Arcas

The Madness of Chartrulean takes place on Planet Arcas, a world that resembles Earth. This world, however, is dying. Its remaining civilization has endured industrial ruin, natural catastrophes, and civil war. Resources are scarce, and most of the surface water is too contaminated to purify.

To curtail their problems, the people have turned to the stars. A complex network of space elevators move resources to and from the surface, including water mined from celestial bodies. Industrial processes, energy production, and hydroponic farming take place outside of the atmosphere, reducing the strain on the planet’s delicate ecology. Most of this activity centers around the cities of Simitu and Cailou.

Arcasians know that this is only a temporary reprieve from an inevitable exodus. But whatever hope this system had restored is threatened by the presence of the Rau.

> "Chartulean began his long descent to the surface, the sole passenger on board a glass elevator. A great tower connected Astreus’s upper and lower counterparts. At the top of the tower was the spaceport, situated in the planet’s stratosphere. An almost garish monument to Arcas’s technological accomplishments.
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> Hundreds of smaller structures like it spanned the horizon, great pylons drawing lines between the earth and the cosmos.
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> The elevator was in a race against the setting sun, adding an element of serene beauty. As it broke through a layer of haze, the sprawling capital city of Simitu showed itself. The metropolis was dwarfed by the purple mountains and expansive salt flats of the Blighted Valley. The neighboring city of Cailou peeked through the haze from an even greater distance. Retaining walls fought back against the caustic environment that encroached upon Arcas’s last great cities.
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> That familiar nagging sense of unease couldn’t touch Chartrulean in the air, and the elevator gave him a rare window of silence in the midst of chaos. But seeing the whole landscape at once made one fact irrefutable: The planet was running low on things to give its people."
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## Ecology

Arcas has limited habitable geography due to shortages in natural resources and the expansion of the planet's polar ice caps. The planet is still in recovery from a volcanic winter that began over 1000 years when the super volcano Mount Zarastra erupted at the beginning of the Rankushine Epoch. There are two primary habitable regions: The Blighted Valley and Icarukian Mountain range.

#### The Blighted Valley

The Blighted Valley is a region between the Icarukian and Cailouvian mountains, south of the Zarastran borderlands. It is dried up sea bed, comprised primarily of salt flats. There is no vegetation, yet It has the most stable temperatures due to its proximity to Arcas' hemisphere.

The valley is home to the capital city of Simitu, and its sister city, Cailou.

#### Icarukian Mountains

The Icarukian Mountain range makes up the Eastern edge of the Blighted Valley. The terrain transforms from salt flats to red clay as the elevation increases. At the northernmost point of range, at the mouth of the valley that leads to the Zarastran borderlands, is the protected city of \*Idrica.\*

#### Zarastra

The Zarastra borderlands make up the northmost region of the Blighted Valley. The region is only traversable during the summer months, as it is often engulfed in blizzards. As with all elements on Arcas, the snow is highly acidic, making it hard on machinery. Due to increased levels of magnetism, electronics do not fare well in the region.

The region is home to the former metropolis of Zarastra, which is now buried beneath rock and ice. The city was destroyed with the eruption of Mount Zarastra, and the region severely altered. The only remnants of civilization or giant statues of the Mystic Saints Niven, Etruriel, and Dua, which mark ancient tombs.

## Culture and customs

### Feasting days

Feasting days occur every 8 days, and are the only days of the week that most Arcasians consume solid food. This is due to extreme rationing of resources. The wealthier populace, however, breaks from this trend, and food purveyors have begun catering to private markets. This has created a growing divide between the rich and the poor. Activist organizations, such as the New Regime, leverage this divide to rally people to their cause.