FAO Frontier: Petition to fix Capitol

[Goose4291]

Frontier and Commanders,

During the recent community goal I noticed that Capitol (the seat of the Empire, and the planet initially colonised by Marlin Duval) was in fact a Waterworld with no visible land mass. I have raised this ticket a few times and never got a response, but again submitted it. The response I got was somewhat baffling:

Hi there,

This is by design. The Achenar system has a combined population of 13 billion - As such, this is mostly due to the volume of stations within the system which accommodate this populace.

Kind Regards,
//Donny

This conflicts with all the lore we have had so far regarding the planet (which in Frontier had multiple planetside starports, namely Duval City, Fortress Cambridge, Camp Denver and Maxwell's Camp) as well as associated cities.

This went further in First Encounters with specific landmarks being noted both in the Gazetteer and ingame journals, for example

From the Gazetteer
Tourists, once they have amassed the documents required to visit the Achenar system, flock to see the Emperor's palace on Capitol (6d). The building is a vast structure of a pink glass-like material which shimmers in the sun and glows as it re-emits the energy at night. Foreign visitors are welcomed by palace staff who use subtle pro-Empire propaganda in an attempt to undermine the Federation. This greeting is not extended outside the palace grounds, where a person with a Federation accent is met with scorn unless money can be made out of them. The accent of the Empire has evolved out of Achenarians trying to mock the standard Federation diction by accentuating certain vowels. To the foreigner their speech sounds rather like a whine.

INFAMY PERPETRATED
J.J.


His Exalted Majesty, the Emperor Hengist Duval has indicated today his extreme displeasure on being informed of the extraordinary disappearance of the Triumphian Road.


As all on Capitol know, this road is one of the earliest constructed on our homeworld and is traditionally the route by which His Excellency enters the capitol at the conclusion of any one of His glorious victories.


Now we grieve to see that only a trench in the ground remains where once the granolite flagstones and illustrious statues of past Emperors graced its twelve kilometre length. Luckily, the thieves omitted to remove the execution podia which are spaced at regular intervals along the way so that His Excellency will not be incommoded by the inconvenience of having others constructed.


Thanks are also given that the statue of our present Supreme Leader which was due to be inaugurated within the year remains safely in the workshop of Kynsama Pan, His Excellency's chosen sculptor.

In addition to this, it conflicts massively with numerous current GALNET articles, for example

12 March 3301
Senator Steps Out with Socialite
Senator Patreus and Aisling Duval have been spotted together at a number of popular nightspots in Capitol this week, leading some social commentators to speculate that the two may have become romantically involved.


If true, the association could potentially secure Senator Patreus’s bid to become the leading voice of the Empire. While Aisling herself is not currently considered a serious contender for the Imperial Throne, her pairing with the Senator could provide the leverage he needs to secure support from a large portion of the Senate, particularly from those who are currently throwing their weight behind Chancellor Blaine.


When asked for comment, both Senator Patreus and Aisling Duval refused to answer any questions regarding their possible relationship.

and

16 January 3301
Pomp and Circumstance of the Royal Wedding
Foreign dignitaries are beginning to gather on Capitol in Achenar, in preparation for the royal wedding. Senators from throughout Imperial space have begun arriving, and many leaders from friendly independent systems too.


Red carpets have been laid in local starports, and for the full length of the Imperial Avenue. Gilded open-topped speeders can be seen ferrying them to their ornate quarters at the Imperial Palace. For the ceremony itself, special wheeled gilded carriages pulled by horses.


The route is already being prepared with arrays of brightly coloured flower arrangements flanking the red carpets on the tree-lined route. Huge banners carrying the Imperial Crest are being raised between the trees, and on the faces of key buildings. Many have said it is this sort of thing that shows the grandeur of the Empire at its best.

Frontier, what I request is for you to turn Capitol back to the normal earth like world it was in the past, so as to avoid any issues/complaints being raised when Atmospheric Planetary landings occur later down the line and also to tie it in line with the current lore.

Anyone who agrees please feel free to add a comment below. Discussion is of course, also welcome.

 

[AveMe]

I agree. It should be ELW.

 

[Cody]

History has changed - lore is mutable!

 

[Soliluna]

Seems like it should be ELW rather than Water World. Agreed

 

[GW42]

sounds like an extreme case of global warming to me...

(also sounds a very sensible idea)

 

[Goose4291]

sounds like an extreme case of global warming to me...

If that was the case I'd be happy with it. Sadly the current news articles contradict this.

 

[clampitts]

You PC users will be able to land there in your Skimmers no doubt (Cmdr TheManFromBude)

 

[GW42]

Well, being awkward I could suggest that these could all be underwater cities/starports that Galnet is referring to, but I do agree with you

Slightly off topic, but is everything from the old games officially canon in ED? I never played the earlier games (despite being old enough), and also somehow managed to miss kickstarted, beta etc...

 

[Edith_The_Hutt]

Yep. ELW or submarine cities please, we currently have a canon discontinuity we don't need.

 

[Goose4291]

Well, being awkward I could suggest that these could all be underwater cities/starports that Galnet is referring to, but I do agree with you

Slightly off topic, but is everything from the old games officially canon in ED? I never played the earlier games (despite being old enough), and also somehow managed to miss kickstarted, beta etc...

The old/new stuff does conflicts at times (particularly with regards to who could have inherited the Imperial Throne, which was quietly swept under the rug with a hand wave).

It's more that the current lore (i.e. current GALNET stories and I think the lore approved Duval short story from Elite: Tales From the Frontier) conflict with the planets current appearance.

 

[deMangler]

I am hoping FD do work towards having canon that makes sense. I don't even bother reading the galnet articles any more they gave me brain ache. It is a shame about the disparity with the books as well. Some people went to a lot of work to get their fiction in line with what FD wanted and then it is all wasted.

 

[Crazy Jedi]

Are we sure the galnet reports are real????
what if the Thargoids have invaded, decimated the planet and drowned the population and the apparent "news" reports are in fact Thargoid propaganda???? To keep us from the truth!!! The earth could be next!!! Non of us can land there so how would we ever know??
wheres my tinfoil hat?

 

[Cori]

Let's not forget the alien races in The Dark Wheel which have mysteriously been erased from the timeline.

 

[lysan]

Yeah, fix the lore or fix the planet, just fix something....

 

[Kerrash]

Consider for a moment that Frontier may not have bothered fixing the planet type because 1.5/2.0 will do it...

 

[DWorth]

Maybe when they had that big parade on Capitol at the weekend, everyone was wearing wellies?

 

[Goose4291]

Consider for a moment that Frontier may not have bothered fixing the planet type because 1.5/2.0 will do it...

Thats the point Kerrash. The QA response was 'we've intended it to be like that, and thats the way it'll stay' which is different from what you're saying

 

[LameoveR]

Agreed.
Signed.

 

[Vasious]

Having read the QA response, maybe the Emperor's Palace is a Floating city and the only settlement on the planet now, as the whole planet is the personal Demesne/estate of the Emperor

Does make you wonder, however, what exactly the story is about the primitive sentient/sapient life that once existed there and was wiped out was, if the world is water world and the whole initial colonization in the first place.

Though that itself has two conflicting reports

https://community.elitedangerous.com/galnet/12-JUL-3301

Back then, life was known to be plentiful throughout the galaxy, though it wasn’t appreciated how rare sentient life was. Before long the species was made extinct by the settlers, mainly through imported bateria. Much later, this extinction would later be used as a pretext for Federal intervention in the system.

vs Obsidian Ants Video of the Empire endorsed by The Newsletter

https://youtu.be/M_ilIzB8qpY?t=188

When population growth heralded the need for terraforming of other planets in the Achenar system in 2314, Henson Duval authorized the sterilization of Achenar 6d, in preparation for terraforming, which resulted in the extinction of a sentient race indigenous to that planet. This act enraged the Federation, who threatened to retaliate if actions such as this were to be repeated.

which oddly disagree which planet was colonized first even, let alone the reason for the extinction

 

[Pir8pete]

Agreed. Achenar should be shining Jewel in the firmament. Not a damp squib....