TERRESTRIAL (VARIED, VARIED)

Graedius is the unofficial capital of the Graedian Confederacy, and of trade in the League in general. It also claims to be the wealthiest planet in the League, a claim none have as yet disputed. Although a terrestrial and very habitable planet, Graedius is the size of a gas giant. The local raw materials and the position of the planet have made it a center of commerce since interstellar travel became possible. It has an indigenous people, but a wide variety of species also call themselves Graedian and indeed have Graedian citizenship. A vast portion of the planet is covered by cities, but the sheer volume of land has made it nearly impossible to completely cover over the entire surface, as has been done on other major Borderworlds. Many wars have visited Graedius, but only the Nebulan invasion and suppression of revolt affected the planet; the entirety of the world’s original settlements were wiped out and replaced with mountainous Nebulan cities and industrial centers. Little evidence remains of the ancient Graedian civilization that thrived more than twenty-five hundred years before Nebulan arrival.

The Graedian Speedway is a fantastically popular racing circuit run on Graedius itself. Though a single race, the circuit is divided into several areas stretching across the planet and even into space. These areas vary in type of vehicle used, terrain, and dangers presented by each track (which are often stubstantial, if not lethal). It is varied, violent, and thus of course widely appealing. The Squire Clan runs the Speedway, though it is subject to taxes and regular inspections by the ruling Astyrs.

Another form of Graedian entertainment, Platformer harkens back to contact games of the distant past, though with a technological twist. Groups of four to twelve players (varying further depending on circumstances) are put in a field – generally long and cylindrical – which is then reduced to near null gravity. Platforms hover at varying heights throughout the contained field, and the two teams effectively fight for control of the required number of fields (typically all, in professional circuits).
The game is sharp and brutal, with no breaks at the highest levels of play. Certain forms of weaponry are allowed, but no deaths have been known to have occurred. Platformer is second in popularity only to the Speedway.