Death World: Difference between revisions

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** Valeria, homeworld of the Dutch-descended, vaguely Boer-inspired [[Space Marines|Valerian Marines]], probably also qualifies. In the original novels we don't learn much more about it than it being hot, humid and having [[Heavyworlder|roughly thrice-Earth-standard gravity]]. A [[Expanded Universe|much later RPG sourcebook]] elaborates: it's also heavy on volcanic activity, hence full of noxious fumes and harsh weather, as well as singularly hostile wildlife. The [[Badass Army|Galactic Patrol]] has a major hostile environments training camp there.

* ''[[Star Wars]] ''has seen just about every variant on the theme in its Expanded Universe.

** [[Shatterpoint|Haruun Kal]] may to take the cake. The majority of the planet's "surface" is uninhabitable due to hugely toxic clouds, limiting humans to one giant mesa. This mesa is covered in thick jungle and dotted with dozens or hundreds of active volcanos. Most of the animals, from the big cats and wolves down to the monkeys, are carnivorous and good at it—the only major herbivores are grassers (easily the size of a minivan and named for their habit of eating clearings in the jungle) and ankkox (gigantic tortoises with armored tail-maces). The locals' equivalent of sheepdogs are giant armored predators with hide thick enough to shrug off a lightsaber, which may kill you. There's the usual mix of incredibly deadly and disgusting parasites and fungi, some of which can eat through any metal circuits, even ''inside a gun'' or, say, your aircar. Which will—wait for it--''kill you.'' Even the plants are sturdy and tend to be covered in thorns. If you chew Thyssel Bark, you increase your likelihood of contracting fever wasps which will, if not caught, send you into ''gibbering madness'' by literally eating your brain before the eggs they've [[Your Head Asplode|laid in your head hatch]]. And even if nothing biological kills you, the volcanic gases, lava, and "death hollows" (low points where toxic gases pool) still might. The Korun, humans native to Haruun Kal, are all force-sensitive presumably because anyone not force sensitive died very quickly. The Haruun Kal equivalent of the death penalty is "tan pel'trokal," translating to "jungle justice," where you're left naked and unarmed in the middle of the wild jungle. Of course, because of [[Darker and Edgier|the nature]] of the story set there, the [[Humans Are ~~Bastards~~|humans]] living there manage to be ''[[It Got Worse|worse]]''. Haruun Kal's other claim to fame, besides making a good sporting attempt at everyone's life, is that it's ''[[Badass|Mace Windu]]'s homeworld''.

** [[Shatterpoint|Haruun Kal]] may to take the cake. The majority of the planet's "surface" is uninhabitable due to hugely toxic clouds, limiting humans to one giant mesa. This mesa is covered in thick jungle and dotted with dozens or hundreds of active volcanos. Most of the animals, from the big cats and wolves down to the monkeys, are carnivorous and good at it—the only major herbivores are grassers (easily the size of a minivan and named for their habit of eating clearings in the jungle) and ankkox (gigantic tortoises with armored tail-maces). The locals' equivalent of sheepdogs are giant armored predators with hide thick enough to shrug off a lightsaber, which may kill you. There's the usual mix of incredibly deadly and disgusting parasites and fungi, some of which can eat through any metal circuits, even ''inside a gun'' or, say, your aircar. Which will—wait for it--''kill you.'' Even the plants are sturdy and tend to be covered in thorns. If you chew Thyssel Bark, you increase your likelihood of contracting fever wasps which will, if not caught, send you into ''gibbering madness'' by literally eating your brain before the eggs they've [[Your Head Asplode|laid in your head hatch]]. And even if nothing biological kills you, the volcanic gases, lava, and "death hollows" (low points where toxic gases pool) still might. The Korun, humans native to Haruun Kal, are all force-sensitive presumably because anyone not force sensitive died very quickly. The Haruun Kal equivalent of the death penalty is "tan pel'trokal," translating to "jungle justice," where you're left naked and unarmed in the middle of the wild jungle. Of course, because of [[Darker and Edgier|the nature]] of the story set there, the [[Humans Are the Real Monsters|humans]] living there manage to be ''[[It Got Worse|worse]]''. Haruun Kal's other claim to fame, besides making a good sporting attempt at everyone's life, is that it's ''[[Badass|Mace Windu]]'s homeworld''.

** Also, Mustafar anyone? [[Lethal Lava Land]] much?

** Sullust is another [[Lethal Lava Land]], but one that managed to evolve an ecology and native sapient species. The planet used to be okay, but at one point the Sullustan corporate government decided to abandon all environmental regulations and just transfer the entire population on space stations.

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* Deathship Earth, the bad future in Norman Spinrad's Anvilicious ''He Walked Among Us'', where global warming has forced the remnants of the human race are crammed into domes improvised from shopping malls, recycling their wastes. The rest of the planet is a scorched wilderness, apparently inhabited only by a half-rat, half-coakroach scavenger species.

* Literal deathworlds exist in the world of the ''[[Myst]]'' franchise, and play a role in the novels. These are linking books that teleport the user to places utterly inimical to life, such as a planet with a molten crust or ''the heart of a sun''. There is a reason the D'ni make their initial assessment unknown/potentially deteriorated ages in a heat-resistant, airtight, radiation-proof spacesuit with a light-blocking faceplate that automatically pulls the user back after two seconds in the age, returning to a fireproof sealed decontamination cell. All of these safety precautions turn out to be necessary (and effective) the very first time such an assessment is made in ''The Book of Terahnee''.

* An [[After the End]] United States has become this in the [[Long Running Book Series]] ''[[Deathlands]]''. Literal acid rain, clouds of radioactive and chemical junk, pyrotoxin smogs, fetid strontium swamps, 200-mph winds, kill-crazed mutant monsters and the general fact that most [[Humans Are ~~Bastards~~]] in this [[Crapsack World]].

* An [[After the End]] United States has become this in the [[Long Running Book Series]] ''[[Deathlands]]''. Literal acid rain, clouds of radioactive and chemical junk, pyrotoxin smogs, fetid strontium swamps, 200-mph winds, kill-crazed mutant monsters and the general fact that most [[Humans Are the Real Monsters]] in this [[Crapsack World]].

* In Sergey Sukhinov's ''Chronicles of the 21st Century'', [[Venus]] is described this way. Besides the [[Real Life]] reasons of scorching heat, poisonous gases, acidic rains, and low visibility, there are also strange non-carbon-based plants that form a lush forest on a certain plateau. Some of these plants behave in a very plant-like manner, able to uproot and move on their own. They can also defend themselves if necessary and even hunt for food. Even though humans are inedible to the plants, it's usually too late for the poor saps (no pun intended) who end up a tree's lunch before being spat out. Additionally, due to many atmospheric factors, it's almost impossible to solve murders outside the domed city.

* The planet in [[Robert A. Heinlein]]'s ''Tunnel in the Sky''. It doesn't look too bad, at first. Swampy-jungly-foresty place, seems to have largish predators, but nothing TOO obnoxious for a high-school student. Didn't I mention that? This is your pass-fail graded final exam in PLANETARY SURVIVAL. Live to reach the pickup point, and you get a PASS. Oh, and to make SURE you can't cheat and read up on specifics of the place, this planet's just been discovered recently and all we actually know about it is that the environment won't AUTOMATICALLY kill you for eating, drinking, or breathing. Good luck! See you in a week!