Botany Bay

This article is about the planetary system. For the DropShip, see Botany Bay (Individual Gazelle-class DropShip).


Botany Bay
Botany Bay 3151.svg
System Information
X:Y Coordinates−177.828 : 483.083[e]

The Botany Bay system was home to at least one habitable world and (as of 3145) was located in the Periphery region known as The Barrens.[1][2] It is approximately 515 light-years from Terra in the coreward direction.

System Description[edit]

Botany Bay is located near the Götterdämmerung and Last Chance systems.[1][2]

System History[edit]

The Botany Bay system was either settled by the Rim Worlds Republic during the Star League era at some point after the end of the Reunification War, or was an already-settled planet that became significant enough for Inner Sphere nations to record its location within the Republic's Apollo Province.[3][4][5]

Political Affiliation[edit]


Botany Bay[edit]

Botany Bay

Planetary History[edit]

As an independent periphery world in 2972, the inhabitants of Botany Bay sought to exploit the resources of their own star system and set about establishing deep space habitats and factories via contracts with the JàrnFòlk, though challenged by the capital cost.[16] It was JàrnFòlk trader Olaf Jespersen who discovered the obsidian sand from Botany Bay was useful for ore mining operations on Sigurd. The Jespersens set about to establish a trade route whereby industrial sand would be delivered to Sigurd and Sigurdian dross extractors shipped to Botany Bay for water purification.[16] The crew of the Merchant-class JumpShip Winnetka was shipping from Botany Bay when, in 3017, they discovered a large Star League supply base on an uninhabited Periphery world.[40][41]

Circa 3025, Botany Bay had become part of the Oberon Confederation, presumably through their contacts on Sigurd. One of the breakaway planets that formed Morgraine's Valkyrate, Botany Bay was later part of the Greater Valkyrate.

Clan Jade Falcon conquered Botany Bay during the opening stages of Operation REVIVAL, the Clan invasion of the Inner Sphere. The planet was then invaded for a second time in mid-3071, when forces from Clan Ice Hellion captured the world from the Falcons as part of an invasion of their occupation zone.[32][33] The Ice Hellions were only able to hold Botany Bay until December, however, when the world was assaulted by Clan Hell's Horses.[33][42]

Under the Clan administration, the world prospered. In 3083, the world Ferris rebelled against Clan Hell's Horses, leading the Horses to withdraw from many of their Periphery holdings, including Botany Bay. Though Botany Bay and its neighbors, Götterdämmerung and Last Chance, were marginal worlds at best, by joining together they were able to survive. They formed the Ragnarök Union and opened trade links with Clan Jade Falcon on Erewhon and Lackhove.[43]

At an unknown time during the greater Dark Age Era, Botany Bay was raided by a lance of pirates. This lance abandoned four of its members on planet. These four, led by Serena Yang, continued to raid the towns of Black Canyon County with a Verfolger. After a year of continued raids by Yang and her associates, the governor of Black Canyon County hired a set of stranded wanderers, survivors of the collapse of Roger's Rippers, to deal with the problem. These mercenaries were supplied with equipment left behind from the Jade Falcon occupation. Whether they successfully dealt with Yang is unknown.[44]

Military Deployment[edit]

2765[edit]

Jade Falcon Occupation[edit]

Geography[edit]

Referred to as an ice planet, at least parts of Botany Bay were subject to savage winds blowing a black sand which is composed of volcanic glass (obsidian). It was noted that the abrasive sandblasting wind was so bad that ferroglass domes at the DropPort would only last for a year or so.[16] In the northern region of Black Canyon County, wintry conditions, including extensive snow, could last for two thirds of the year.[47]

Planetary Locations[edit]

  • Black Canyon County: A northern region of Botany Bay, surrounding the Black Canyon. Had a solahma garrison during the Jade Falcon occupation, which left some equipment behind afterwards. By an unknown time in the greater Dark Age Era, most settlements and outposts in this region were surrounded by high ferrocrete walls.[44][48]
  • The Black Canyon: Named for its buildup of wind-delivered volcanic ash and obsidian sand, a 200-meter-deep steep-walled maze-like cross-shaped canyon full of treacherous rock formations and dangerous pitfalls. While it is approximately eight kilometers at its widest, much of the Black Canyon's floor is barely wide enough to allow 'Mechs passage.[44]
  • Albion: a town five kilometers north of the Black Canyon[48]
  • Battenborough: a town seven kilometers east of the Black Canyon[48]
  • Croft's Rest: a town four kilometers south of the Black Canyon[48]
  • Danube: a town five kilometers west of the Black Canyon[48]

Map Gallery[edit]

Nearby Systems[edit]

Closest 20 systems (19 within 60 light-years)
Distance in light years, closest systems first:
Götterdämmerung 17.6 Last Chance 19.0 Battaraigi 20.5 Cryfder 26.8
Erin 37.3 Koskenkorva 37.6 Erewhon 38.1 Givrodat 40.4
Lackhove 40.6 Here 47.2 Zertarum 48.1 Anywhere 48.2
Jápminboddu 50.3 Illium 52.9 Blackstone 54.8 Gorfynt 56.1
Sentarus 58.6 Bone-Norman 58.6 Beowulf 58.9 Somerset 60.3

References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Era Report: 3145, p. 38: "Inner Sphere - [3145] Map"
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Field Manual: 3145, p. VI: "Inner Sphere - [3145] Map"
  3. 3.0 3.1 Historical: Reunification War, p. 158: "Inner Sphere - [2596] Map"
  4. 4.0 4.1 Handbook: Major Periphery States, p. 25: "Rim Worlds Republic At the Fall of the Star League - [2750] Map"
  5. 5.0 5.1 Era Report: 2750, p. 36: "Inner Sphere - [2750] Map"
  6. Handbook: Major Periphery States, p. 18: "Rim Worlds Republic after Age of War - [2571] Map"
  7. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 25: "Lyran Commonwealth after Age of War - [2571] Map"
  8. Field Manual: SLDF, p. xi: "Inner Sphere - [2764] Map"
  9. Historical: Liberation of Terra Volume 1, p. 10: "Inner Sphere - [2765] Map"
  10. Field Report 2765: Periphery, p. 38: "Rim Worlds Army Deployment Map - [2765]"
  11. Field Report 2765: LCAF, p. 25: "Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces Deployment Map - [2765]"
  12. Historical: Liberation of Terra Volume 1, p. 104: "Rim Worlds Republic - [2767] Map"
  13. Historical: Liberation of Terra Volume 2, pp. 122–123: "Inner Sphere - [2822] Map"
  14. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 36: "Lyran Commonwealth after First Succession War - [2822] Map"
  15. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 40: "Lyran Commonwealth after Second Succession War - [2864] Map"
  16. 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 Godt Bytte, p. ??[citation needed]
  17. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 47: "Lyran Commonwealth after Third Succession War - [3025] Map"
  18. The Periphery, pp. 156–157: "Maps of the Periphery"
  19. Unholy Union, p. ??[citation needed]
  20. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 56: "Lyran Commonwealth after Fourth Succession War - [3030] Map"
  21. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 59: "Lyran Commonwealth after War of 3039 - [3040] Map"
  22. Historical: War of 3039, p. 133: "Inner Sphere - [3040] Map"
  23. Era Report: 3052, p. 11: "Inner Sphere - [3050] Map"
  24. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 61: "Lyran Commonwealth after Clan Invasion - [3052] Map"
  25. Era Report: 3052, p. 23: "Inner Sphere - [3052] Map"
  26. Objective Raids, p. 31: "Map of the Jade Falcons Territory"
  27. Era Report: 3062, p. 11: "Inner Sphere - [3057] Map"
  28. The Periphery, 2nd Edition, p. 111: "Greater Valkyrate, Oberon Confederation & Elysian Fields"
  29. Era Report: 3062, p. 29: "Inner Sphere - [3063] Map"
  30. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 70: "Lyran Alliance after FedCom Civil War - [3067] Map"
  31. Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 43: "Inner Sphere - [3067] Map"
  32. 32.0 32.1 Jihad Hot Spots: 3076, p. 17: "Timeline of the Jihad"
  33. 33.0 33.1 33.2 33.3 Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 50: "The Jihad in Review"
  34. Jihad Secrets: The Blake Documents, p. 65: "Inner Sphere - [3075] Map"
  35. Field Report: Clans, p. 27: "Clan Wolf/Clan Hell's Horses Deployment Map - [August 3079]"
  36. Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 63: "Inner Sphere - [3081] Map"
  37. Field Manual: 3085, p. vii: "Inner Sphere - [3085] Map"
  38. Interstellar Expeditions: Interstellar Players 3, p. 42
  39. Era Report: 3145, p. 10: "Inner Sphere - [3135] Map"
  40. Technical Readout: 3026, Revised Edition, p. 10: "Savannah Master Hovercraft"
  41. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 146: "S. L. Lewis, Incorporated"
  42. Jihad Hot Spots: 3076, p. 20: "Timeline of the Jihad"
  43. Interstellar Expeditions: Interstellar Players 3, pp. 42–43
  44. 44.0 44.1 44.2 A Time of War: Quick-Start Rules (Free RPG Day 2015), pp. 23–24: "Down and Out in the Barrens"
  45. Field Report 2765: Periphery, p. 20: "Amaris Regulars - Divisional Status"
  46. A Time of War: Quick-Start Rules (Free RPG Day 2015), p. 23: "Down and Out in the Barrens"
  47. A Time of War: Quick-Start Rules (Free RPG Day 2015), pp. 24–26: "Down and Out in the Barrens"
  48. 48.0 48.1 48.2 48.3 48.4 A Time of War: Quick-Start Rules (Free RPG Day 2015), p. 26: "Down and Out in the Barrens"

Bibliography[edit]