To Elite's Narrative Team

[Melonlorde]

Dear Frontier Team,

I’ve spent a long time immersed in the mystery of Raxxla—exploring the lore, tracing the whispers, decoding the symbols, and following the thematic undercurrents seeded throughout Elite Dangerous. I won’t claim to have found Raxxla in a conventional sense—but I believe I’ve come to understand what it is in a narrative and symbolic sense, and more importantly, how it is hidden.

What you’ve built is more than a location or an Easter egg. Raxxla is a locus of myth, an evolving symbol embedded through apophenic design and esoteric narrative structure. The whispers in witchspace, the recursive loops in the Codex, the framing of the Dark Wheel, and the deliberate myth-making echo the techniques of gnostic storytelling and initiatory fiction. It is, at once, a mystery and a mirror.

In this light, Raxxla becomes not just a place, but a question: one that rewards deep engagement, pattern recognition, and introspective exploration. I want to thank you for crafting a mystery that does not condescend, one that trusts the player to think beyond mechanics and into meaning.

Whether or not Raxxla is “findable” in the traditional sense may not matter as much as the journey it compels us to take—and the transformation that journey enacts in those who follow it.

If that’s by design, then I want you to know: I see it. And I deeply respect it.

With admiration,
[CMDR Melonlorde]

 

[ꝁestrel]

 

[thistle]

I enjoyed it, I admire the writing CMDR Melonlorde.

 

[St0rmFury]

Raxxla = One Piece

It's the friends we make along the way.

 

[BL1P]

Isnt Raxxla the name given to the proc gen seed used to created the Galaxy ?

 

[Elyssaen]

I found the search for Raxxla to be disappointing. Once you figure out it's just visible in the Galaxy Map but only in your free Hutton Orbital Anaconda, only when you're Triple Elite and only if you've never used autodock, it's really quite underwhelming.

 

[Elpapo]

The biggest hint (at very least in my opinion) was droped many years ago, by late Mr. Brookes, whom are not longer with us anymore. He was the very first and main narrative director of modern elite "lore". He knew where it was, as said himself: "raxxla is in game and we know where it is"

The system that contains raxxla was honked once by a unknown random cmdr, who only passed by that system, not very long after launch, he also was one who said this.
This also confirms that raxxla isnt anything else than "named" body, in certain system with procedrual name, wich is very likely behind permit of some sort, given it wasnt found out.

For short while after launch of 2014, nearby permit regions (col 70, horsehead etc.) wasnt permit locked yet (all within 2000 ly from sol), but few months later, Fdevs locked these regions for "future gameplay" reasons... 10 years later, those regions are still locked up, and might as well, be locked forever at that point, as whatever Fdevs planned to do, it went into thier famous "shelf".

Preety sure than every single and each system, wich is nearby to human bubble, save for permit ones was checked already.

 

[Stealthie]

The biggest hint (at very least in my opinion) was droped many years ago, by late Mr. Brookes, whom are not longer with us anymore. He was the very first and main narrative director of modern elite "lore". He knew where it was, as said himself: "raxxla is in game and we know where it is"

The system that contains raxxla was honked once by a unknown random cmdr, who only passed by that system, not very long after launch, he also was one who said this.
This also confirms that raxxla isnt anything else than "named" body, in certain system with procedrual name, wich is very likely behind permit of some sort, given it wasnt found out.

Honestly, I think ED was at it's best with Michael Brookes running the show but I suspect that he was also smart enough to understand that, much like Elite 84, sometimes the most intriguing aspects of a game aren't actually within the game itself.

My biggest issue with the whole "Raxxla" thing is that FDev don't seem to have bothered to implement much of anything in-game that would even hint that there's something to be found.
There isn't a mysterious crashed ship with a log that says the owner had set off to find Raxxla, a beacon that, upon decryption, mentions Raxxla or a group of crazies who've dedicated their lives to locating Raxxla.

There wouldn't even need to be an actual clue to it's location in-game. After all, if there was an actual clue, a group like Canonn would throw enough resources at the subject that it'd be resolved within a fortnight.
And, of course, the flip-side of that logic is the fact Canonn aren't pursuing it seriously almost certainly means there's nothing been found which even hints at Raxxla's existence.

My point, though, was simply that, even if we set aside the lack of clues, the complete lack of any in-game reference to Raxxla (AFAIK) suggests it's not something FDev has put out there for players to find.

Personally, I'd say it's something FDev planned on implementing at some point, back when we were all flying around "the pill", and there's currently a bunch of ideas in a file, somewhere, that might be applied to one of the systems/regions that are currently permit-locked, to provide some new narrative content.

 

[Oh Seven Commander]

I know Raxxla isn't worth my time.

I don't even know what I'm looking for. I got a job/family/house/etc. It's hard enough just getting 1 gun for powerplay in a reasonable amount of time.

How on earth would I find something hidden in a game with a 1:1 map of the galaxy when I don't even know what I'm looking for?

 

[Elpapo]

Honestly, I think ED was at it's best with Michael Brookes running the show but I suspect that he was also smart enough to understand that, much like Elite 84, sometimes the most intriguing aspects of a game aren't actually within the game itself.

Raxxla was meant being an "easter egg", an litte "nod" from ealier elite games to current one, and I belive it is in game. Out of respect to MB and hes entire work, well as legacy he did left, I dont think he would mention about it being honked only "once", wich happen in very first months after launch, and at time, areas around bubble wasnt restricted at all, by permit regions.

The "legend" of raxxla went lived on its own, since that time.

My biggest issue with the whole "Raxxla" thing is that FDev don't seem to have bothered to implement much of anything in-game that would even hint that there's something to be found.
There isn't a mysterious crashed ship with a log that says the owner had set off to find Raxxla, a beacon that, upon decryption, mentions Raxxla or a group of crazies who've dedicated their lives to locating Raxxla.

Only "hints" was/is raxxla codex entry, and MB's words, years before codex.

There wouldn't even need to be an actual clue to it's location in-game.
After all, if there was an actual clue, a group like Canonn would throw enough resources at the subject that it'd be resolved within a fortnight.

Preety sure than Cannon, as player group, was established bit later, litte later than Fdevs locked bunch of regions around bubble.... And preety sure also, that many cannon cmdrs did spend countless hours, looking for it, in very near vicinity of bubble, but given it was not founded by even them, but confirmed by MB that it is in fact in-game, that litte fact alone, it does hints and imply, then must be behind permit region wich used to be open, but not accesible anymore.

And, of course, the flip-side of that logic is the fact Canonn aren't pursuing it seriously almost certainly means there's nothing been found which even hints at Raxxla's existence.

I think they did it for looong time, to the point, that many stoped belive it exist. After all, many cmdrs where seduced by raxxla and its story.

My point, though, was simply that, even if we set aside the lack of clues, the complete lack of any in-game reference to Raxxla (AFAIK) suggests it's not something FDev has put out there for players to find.

Well, if it would be not in-game, would it had an dedicated codex entry?

Personally, I'd say it's something FDev planned on implementing at some point, back when we were all flying around "the pill", and there's currently a bunch of ideas in a file, somewhere, that might be applied to one of the systems/regions that are currently permit-locked, to provide some new narrative content.

For myself, when it was actually metioned at codex (back when codex feature was added), it kinda confirmed MB's words about it being in game, back when it was said.

MB was known, as mastermind to design many of early elite "puzzles", wich both had clues been in-game, sometimes... outside of game too. Raxxla is hes idea too.

 

[Vasco Sapien]

Raxxla is Mystery box writing. Nothing more.

 

[nanothargon]

My Raxxla gameplay is - maybe once a year - go on an expedition to "the edge of space" (aka the bubble) and look for weird stuff. It's a kind of focussed exploration gameplay, but more engaging because you're poking your nose into things that you wouldn't in normal exploration. It does pay a fair bit - not as well as other exploration, but it's a lot more fun. It's kind of an excuse to land at some remote settlement and just... go to the bar. Fly around, check out signal sources. Generally pootle around, in a mulder-and-scully kind of way. It's also good to do a few Dark Wheel missions as part of this, just because.

Also, fun to do this in a cobra, for historical reasons, or maybe a sidewinder. You don't really need jump speed, just a few modules and a dream...

It feels kind of like my character has gone on an adventure holiday, or something. It would be cool if there were more hints or just random logs from other Raxxla questers - wrecked ships, strange structures, deserted camps, etc - to supplement this. It would be awesome to find vaguely Raxxla - or at least, "explorer" - related debris, logs and other evidence.

Whether it exists or not is mostly irrelevant, but - I suspect it does.

Is there any interest in searching on a larger scale, as a group effort? Feels like it might take some of the fun out of it.

 

[Stealthie]

My Raxxla gameplay is - maybe once a year - go on an expedition to "the edge of space" (aka the bubble) and look for weird stuff. It's a kind of focussed exploration gameplay, but more engaging because you're poking your nose into things that you wouldn't in normal exploration. It does pay a fair bit - not as well as other exploration, but it's a lot more fun. It's kind of an excuse to land at some remote settlement and just... go to the bar. Fly around, check out signal sources. Generally pootle around, in a mulder-and-scully kind of way. It's also good to do a few Dark Wheel missions as part of this, just because.

I hate myself for buying into this, but still.....

Depending on which bits of information/lore you take seriously, Raxxla "should" be within the bubble, or close to it.
If we believe what Michael Brookes has said, there was no engineering at the time, and "the pill" had only been expanded into a full galaxy recently so it's likely that anybody who stumbled on Raxxla hadn't travelled very far (relatively speaking).
Also, according to some of the stuff written by Drew Wagar, various characters scooted back and forth to Raxxla regularly, which they couldn't have done if it was on the opposite side of the galaxy.
Also, also, Drew has said that he's had discussions with FDev regarding "lore" stuff so, if FDev listened to him (and they shoud have if they're smart), chances are that their implementation of Raxxla would coincide with Drew's vision of it.

Personally, I reckon that if anybody ever finds Raxxla it'll be because FDev implement a narrative related to, perhaps, The Dark Wheel that culminates in a system such as Polaris getting unlocked and that'll either be Raxxla or it'll lead people to it.

 

[Elyssaen]

Depending on which bits of information/lore you take seriously, Raxxla "should" be within the bubble, or close to it.
If we believe what Michael Brookes has said, there was no engineering at the time, and "the pill" had only been expanded into a full galaxy recently so it's likely that anybody who stumbled on Raxxla hadn't travelled very far (relatively speaking).
Also, according to some of the stuff written by Drew Wagar, various characters scooted back and forth to Raxxla regularly, which they couldn't have done if it was on the opposite side of the galaxy.

I've been wondering, have people worked this out carefully? One oddity about the history of FTL travel in this universe is that major advances have sometimes been about convenience, maintainability and availability of fuel, rather than just speed. The first reference to Raxxla is in 2296, near the end of the 23rd century, and the Li Qin Jao hyperdrive was invented in the 22nd century. I don't know how fast those drives were – slower than FSD, sure, but not by how much.

We've got to be careful to realise we all have a bit of a 'reality distortion' effect with how we understand our own frame shift drives. Travelling from Sol to Colonia is like driving from one US state to another. From Sol to Beagle Point is like a coach trip kid-me took from the UK to Spain and remembers with horror. We see passenger cabin modules and think that journeys are taking days and passengers are hopping between their bedrooms to sleep and lounge areas / indoors swimming pools in a Beluga, but Sol to Achenar is faster than a walk to the corner shop – and it's real time, it really takes the time it takes.

These hyperdrives could've been far, far slower than the FSD, yet people could still have crossed the entire galaxy. If it took 9–12 months to fly to the far side of the galaxy back then, that's about how long it took the British to get to Japan in the Age of Sail – and they did that regularly. I still suspect Raxxla isn't on the far side of the galaxy, but I'm not sure if anyone's carefully worked out and justified that it must be in the bubble, or within 1000 LY or whatever else.

 

[Brrokk]

Dear Frontier Team,

I’ve spent a long time immersed in the mystery of Raxxla—exploring the lore, tracing the whispers, decoding the symbols, and following the thematic undercurrents seeded throughout Elite Dangerous. I won’t claim to have found Raxxla in a conventional sense—but I believe I’ve come to understand what it is in a narrative and symbolic sense, and more importantly, how it is hidden.

What you’ve built is more than a location or an Easter egg. Raxxla is a locus of myth, an evolving symbol embedded through apophenic design and esoteric narrative structure. The whispers in witchspace, the recursive loops in the Codex, the framing of the Dark Wheel, and the deliberate myth-making echo the techniques of gnostic storytelling and initiatory fiction. It is, at once, a mystery and a mirror.

In this light, Raxxla becomes not just a place, but a question: one that rewards deep engagement, pattern recognition, and introspective exploration. I want to thank you for crafting a mystery that does not condescend, one that trusts the player to think beyond mechanics and into meaning.

Whether or not Raxxla is “findable” in the traditional sense may not matter as much as the journey it compels us to take—and the transformation that journey enacts in those who follow it.

If that’s by design, then I want you to know: I see it. And I deeply respect it.

With admiration,
[CMDR Melonlorde]

Liked for "apophenic"; I just learned a new word.

 

[Melonlorde]

I feel like this would help - file attached. Alot of you are perhaps being too literal in your search for it. The mentions of Raxxla (Art Tornqvist, and Dark Wheel Toast) are, in my opinion, encoded structures that once accepted as such reveal the relationships between the player, Raxxla, and The Dark Wheel.

A big hint is the fifth Brooke's Memorial Beacon (this beacon defines Raxxla exactly), and eludes to the encoded structure of The Dark Wheel's toast. Another hint is the now redacted E/F missions. "A call to adventure" and "what's lost will soon be found". Ask yourself how that relates to Paradise Lost which appears in stations as a diagram of the Realm of Chaos and Night, a cosmology by John Milton who Brookes was a huge fan of.

Persephone is at least one of the Rosetta stones for the mystery. This appears in the Art Tornqvist mention with Cora, also known as Kore also known as Persephone. Remember that this is likely an encoding of overall structures, and not direct pointers to what Raxxla is, in the game.

What im claiming to know (at least its a strong suspicion) is the story being told with Raxxla, and not what it is specifically in game. Its more Meta than I think alot of people want to admit or at least alot people use the intentional design of Raxxla to dismiss its presence which is ironic.

I beg the searchers to reel out and look at this from a distant perspective. We are trying too hard to find a tangible thing when if you just took the time to consider what Raxxla is compared to, what it has done to the community, and what it does to people who go searching. You'll find an interesting story being told. One that encompasses every player uniquely and individually.

 

[Comandante]

To quote a song:

IF someone finds Raxxla, I promise to give the finder (findee?)...

ONE MILLION tonnes...

Of New Raxxlan Humble Pie...

MWHAHAHAHHHAHAHHAHA

 

[Ian Doncaster]

Depending on which bits of information/lore you take seriously, Raxxla "should" be within the bubble, or close to it.

Certainly "how is Raxxla concealed?" is a more interesting potential puzzle than "pick a system, any system, are you feeling lucky?"

There are plenty of ways even with the original 1.0's capabilities that Raxxla could be hidden in even an inhabited bubble system and not have been found yet.
Equally, positioned within an unremarkable system just 1000 LY out (still pretty close to the bubble), it wouldn't necessarily even need to be all that well hidden.

Ultimately theories about Raxxla that place it in/near the bubble need to explain why no-one has found it yet (but still provide a mechanism for someone who knew how to find it to do so) - and that's the bit that's missing.

If we believe what Michael Brookes has said, there was no engineering at the time, and "the pill" had only been expanded into a full galaxy recently so it's likely that anybody who stumbled on Raxxla hadn't travelled very far (relatively speaking).

What sources there are for that Michael Brookes quote place it towards the end of his time working on Elite Dangerous - 2017 or so - though with some disagreement as to exactly where or when. But even if the actual honk was earlier on than that, Sag A* was reached before the official game release date, Beagle Point not long after. It doesn't absolutely rule out a position anywhere in the galaxy.
(If had been just a singular visit by 2017, then that implies a likely position somewhat further out, though still not necessarily more than 1000 LY depending on direction)

Lots of people take that quote to imply "...and if the CMDR had done a routine exploration sweep of the system, Raxxla would have been really obvious". But that's not necessarily what was meant, of course. (And can't have been what was meant if the system in question was really close to / within the bubble.)

Also, according to some of the stuff written by Drew Wagar, various characters scooted back and forth to Raxxla regularly, which they couldn't have done if it was on the opposite side of the galaxy.
Also, also, Drew has said that he's had discussions with FDev regarding "lore" stuff so, if FDev listened to him (and they shoud have if they're smart), chances are that their implementation of Raxxla would coincide with Drew's vision of it.

Drew I think has been fairly clear that the one thing he definitely doesn't know (and nor do any of the other fiction writers) is anything about where Raxxla is in Elite Dangerous. I think the most we can conclude is that the solution (it's Lave's Moon) he put forward in Oolite fiction was not adopted for Elite Dangerous, though it may have got a Codex nod in the "unremarkable moon" aside.

 

[Yure]

Bravo! Well said Ian! Doesn't matter if you got the quote, blessing, or toast correct, if you don't know how to look you ain't going to find it.

There is plenty of evidence of in game mechanics that FDEV can "flag" items to not appear on FSS. A good example of this is comet Bob Haley and the Parelco comets.

It seems to me that Braben is a man of math and science. Raxxla will be found with suspicion based on light evidence, math, and an observant eye. If it is ever found at all, as those last two things are probably the most detested aspect of the game.

Certain, yet that game mechanic is one that has been in game since day one.

Keep an eye on your speed sensor and the Siren of the Deep that will clue you in to a gravity well.

 

[Stealthie]

Certainly "how is Raxxla concealed?" is a more interesting potential puzzle than "pick a system, any system, are you feeling lucky?"

There are plenty of ways even with the original 1.0's capabilities that Raxxla could be hidden in even an inhabited bubble system and not have been found yet.
Equally, positioned within an unremarkable system just 1000 LY out (still pretty close to the bubble), it wouldn't necessarily even need to be all that well hidden.

Ultimately theories about Raxxla that place it in/near the bubble need to explain why no-one has found it yet (but still provide a mechanism for someone who knew how to find it to do so) - and that's the bit that's missing.


What sources there are for that Michael Brookes quote place it towards the end of his time working on Elite Dangerous - 2017 or so - though with some disagreement as to exactly where or when. But even if the actual honk was earlier on than that, Sag A* was reached before the official game release date, Beagle Point not long after. It doesn't absolutely rule out a position anywhere in the galaxy.
(If had been just a singular visit by 2017, then that implies a likely position somewhat further out, though still not necessarily more than 1000 LY depending on direction)

Lots of people take that quote to imply "...and if the CMDR had done a routine exploration sweep of the system, Raxxla would have been really obvious". But that's not necessarily what was meant, of course. (And can't have been what was meant if the system in question was really close to / within the bubble.)


Drew I think has been fairly clear that the one thing he definitely doesn't know (and nor do any of the other fiction writers) is anything about where Raxxla is in Elite Dangerous. I think the most we can conclude is that the solution (it's Lave's Moon) he put forward in Oolite fiction was not adopted for Elite Dangerous, though it may have got a Codex nod in the "unremarkable moon" aside.

Gotta say, I'm considering this from the POV that Raxxla isn't actually in the game now and any future implementation of it would similar to, for example, the crashed Jameson Cobra or the INRA bases - something where players would, retrospectively, end-up thinking "Wait a minute. We could have found this at any time???"
It might be interesting to verify whether, for example, the planets with INRA bases were first scanned before the INRA bases were discovered, suggesting that FDev put them there after they were scanned.
Alternatively, of course, it's entirely possible that FDev just looked at their data and deliberately placed INRA bases on planets that hadn't been scanned.

But anyway...

Thinking about it in terms of plausibility, you have to wonder what a bunch of insanely rich and powerful people would be likely to do.
Is it likely they'd make their home on a remote world, isolating themselves from the rest of the galaxy, in a place where their wealth and power didn't really mean anything?
There's no way future Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos are going to want to spend their time sitting around eating grapes and making snow-angels in piles of gold coins.
They're going to want to be based somewhere that allows them to get stuff done.
Their base would have to be near the bubble, not so we could find them but so they could carry on taking advantage of us.