Description
Founded by wealthy Gaule philanthropists looking to establish a station devoted to the arts, Nouveau Limoges was a haven for progressive thinkers and free spirits until the Catastrophe struck. The sole remaining Gaule station in the Sol System, it allowed Consortium assistance and emergency administration in the months following the Catastrophe. The signing of the Limoges Accords returned the station to Gaule in 92 A.C. Recently, a resistance to any affiliation control has taken root and many of the station’s residents have begun agitating for Independent status.
Chronicle Text
In Nouveau Limoges, we began to remember that it is not enough just to survive. Here, we began to think about freedom, individuality, and expression. The first station in the Sol System to be granted Gaulish independence by the Limoges Accords of 92AC, Nouveau Limoges finds itself in a unique collective mind-frame. Its denizens have always had a strong artistic passion and freedom of thought. It is of little surprise perhaps, that it can be considered the patron station of revolution, both of the spirit as well as the mind.
Arrival Text
Bienvenue to Nouveau Limoges. Official Gaule Protectorate presence in the Sol system.
Statistics
System: Sol
Affiliation: Gaule
Level: 5
Orwellian Level: 1 (Low)
Law Level: 9 (High)
Areas
Bank (Tau-la Credit Bank)
Elevators with cage doors descend into the stone floor of the station to reach the bank. Fluted columns and terracotta sunbursts hide the original asteroid rock of the walls.
The bank's marble floors are scuffed and worn approaching the arched teller windows. Bright wall sconces and metal sculptures all draw the eye up toward the artwork on the high ceiling. A mural depicts blocky figures standing in a wheat field with their arms linked, gazing up towards a yellow sunburst in a blue sky.
Brig (Central Correctional Centre)
The prison is a grim and practical place with none of the art decoration that can be seen on most of the buildings elsewhere on Nouveau Limoges.
In stark contrast to the rest of the station, no attempts have been made here to dress up the architecture or make it pleasing to the eye. Every regocrete wall and armored doorway, each bolted down chair and observation platform, display the purpose of its creation: the incarceration of human beings. Pedestrians outside skirt the towering bulk of the prison as they go about their daily lives and there is little foot traffic in the area.
NPCs
Clones (Nouveau Limoges Cloning Centre)
The cloning center’s lobby is filled with comfortable furniture arranged in softly lit alcoves. Soothing music plays in the background.
The walls of the lobby display pictures, taken from within a gestation pod, of a developing clone. Its features are washed out with dramatic lighting that allows the viewer to faintly see the muscles and veins below the soft skin. An attendant sketches on a drawing pad at the front desk and distractedly assists customers as they arrive.
Available Clones
- 3D Printed clone
- Vat Grown clone
- Premium clone (99 Bonds)
NPCs
Consortium Embassy
A squat building with a leaking drainpipe, the embassy sits on an isolated side street. The façade of the building bears the flag of the Consortium and fresh graffiti.
Each department in the slightly rundown building proudly displays official Consortium plaques and flags, but only a handful of staff and bureaucrats can be seen through the glass doors. Unlike the other buildings along the street that are covered with scrawled slogans and painted murals of bright sunrises, the embassy bears several blocks of fresh paint on its face from efforts to cover up the graffiti.
NPCs
Decommissioned Area (Grande Galaxie Museum and Gallery)
Gem of Nouveau Limoges, the Grande Galaxie Museum and Gallery features the finest, most complete showcase of known human artistic expression.
Featuring recovered artistic pieces of vast historical importance, exhibits of the Grande Galaxie Museum and Gallery range widely from carvings and sculpture, to visual art, music, and dance. While some travelers visit to marvel at the beauty and emotion of the ancient works of art, others come to look upon a pre-catastrophic past that could only dare to imagine the near-extinction of humans, and the redemption of their tenuous survival. Curators and exhibit guides offer visitors tours of the installations on a regular basis.
NPCs
Employment (Limoges Work Agency)
Young and old gather around the job boards and computer kiosks. They stand with arms around each other’s shoulders and call out to one another when they find a job suitable for a friend.
The dusty and threadbare clothes of the impoverished job seekers smell faintly of vinegar disinfectant. It mixes with cigarette smoke and the scent of coffee drifting down the alley from the inn. One lone musician plays clear, ringing notes for those gathered in the employment center but leaves their instrument case closed, asking for no payment.
NPCs
Career Advisory (Limoges Careers Info-Point)
A few dozen figures mill about the career advisory lobby. The younger of them chat in excited, hopeful tones, clearly anticipating a well-chosen career as a route to a happy life. Some of the older figures look a little more jaded, matter-of-factly browsing the info terminals to select yet another new career, hoping this time it'll work out better than the last one.
Side Jobs (Ceci et Cela Jobs)
Slumping residents in-between projects of their own line up the get a look at the odd job terminal.
While the office is carved in a concave divot of the station’s asteroid, it’s discombobulating to linger in the building; the acoustics deaden sound frequencies due to the thickness of the walls. Those lined up for their turn at the terminals rarely seem happy. Their need to be there lessens any joy.
| Name | Description | Credits | Statistic |
| Clone Feeder | Gestation is hungry work and our clones need regular feeding! Have a good work ethic? Visit our facilities for walk-in work. | 25 | 4x Intelligence |
| Station Guide | Many visitors to our station need help finding where they're going. Act as a guide and earn some credits. | 25 | 5x Social |
| Temp Barista | We need speedy workers and fast learners to help us further the station's caffeine addiction. Visit the Café for more details. | 25 | 5x Agility |
| Visa Inspection | Nouveau Limoge's port authority needs qualified personnel to help inspect travelers' visas. | 25 | 5x Intelligence |
Discreet Work
These these less-frequented corridors play host the station's grey economy.
Government Center (Administration Centrale)
This is the heart of the Gaule government on Nouveau Limoges and in the Sol System.
A former damaged museum of art site with sweeping neo-gothic architecture and glass walls (now somewhat cracked and stained), it's an area full of people rushing about with "official" business concerns. Large wall displays remind passersby of the terms of the Nouveau Limoges Accords of 92 AC, encouraging humility and goodwill in Conosrtium-Gaule relations and a shared vision for humanity's ongoing recovery from the strife of the Catastrophe.
Info Hub
Holo screens illuminate the area as news sources flow like a river of data from one terminal to the next. Occasionally, some government drone will adjust a particular metric or record another before buzzing about their duties.
Syndicate Services
A number of recruiters, both in physical as well as hologrammatic form, interact with would-be members or peruse applications on the wall of terminals that lines this room.
VIP Lounge
Soft music and soothing lights drift through the atmosphere in the lounge. Robotic waiters clad in shiny (but not too shiny) chrome wheel between Citizens, dispensing smooth looking beverages.
NPCs
Gym (Gymnastique)
Busking musicians perform within the gym itself. The conventional sounds of exercise are broken up by melodies from stringed instruments and the thumping percussion of drums.
Competition for tips is fierce and the musicians vie with one another for prime positions near the largest groups of exercise equipment, playing favorite tunes requested by their captive audience. The collection of musicians seems random; opera singers bellow arias near violinists playing gentle compositions, and experimental tech music grinds along with an acoustic guitar accompaniment.
You must have minimum combined physical stats of 33 to avoid injury at this gym.
NPCs
Inn (Renoir Inn)
A small inn and coffee shop near the market district, the Nouveau Café serves a dedicated clientele of artists and coffee drinkers.
Within the inn, customers are met with the aroma of brewing coffee and the ambient sounds of a musician playing an electric piano in a corner. Behind the counter, servers rush around grinding beans, mixing coffees, and running themselves ragged to meet the demands of their regulars. Customers fill small booths and tables, many of them writing or drawing while they sip on steaming drinks.
NPCs
Bar (Maison du Son)
Harmonious tones of music ring on the air as the house band commonly welcomes a host of local musicians to sit in on sets. The mood of Maison du Son has been known to wax and wane between cool and comfortable to revolutionary and rowdy as quickly as the change of the tune.
Well known as a hot spot on Nouveau Limoges for the locals, Maison du Son welcomes the creative, the cultivated, and the curious alike. Conversations range from varying beliefs on philosophy, politics, and art; drink-induced scrums are not uncommon. Embodying the artistic freedom of the station at large, the bar is timelessly stylish with bright décor punctuated with dangling ceiling crystals.
Menu
Hotel Rooms (Repos Calme)
Situated atop the lounge, La Lumiere, the rooms of Repos Calme are quiet, private, and comfortable.
Privacy is respected in the rooms of Repos Calme, while the loudest thing experienced threatens to be the vivid splashes of the artistic light installation: orange and yellow hued glimmers spray along the deep purple walls and ceiling. The rooms are secure, and the weary traveler is welcomed in style.
You should have minimum intelligence of 11.5 to avoid injury while reading.
Lounge (La Lumiere)
Lively conversation, artistic demonstrations, and a decent drink are all made to order at La Lumiere.
The focal point of the lounge is the holographic image of fire curling up the sides of the walls and licking the ceiling. The flooring, tables, chairs, walls, and ceiling all feature a high-shine obsidian; the mirrored blackness reflects the raging beauty off the flames.
You should have minimum social of 11.5 to avoid injury while socializing.
NPCs
Market (The Emporium)
The market is a large, open plaza packed with shopkeepers and artists who form an eclectic mix of vendors trying to peddle their wares.
The market hosts the usual motley of merchants doing everything they can to sell their wares. Alongside them are many of the station’s artists. They cluster together in small groups, sharing tables and kiosks where they lay out their latest works. The artists don’t make many sales, but they seem more interested in receiving compliments from their peers and passersby anyway. Shopkeepers mutter and complain loudly to one another about the artists taking up valuable space they could use to expand and make more profit.
NPCs
Vendors (Vendors of Nouveau Limoges)
The sellers offer a varied mix of street art, stylized station maps, and carvings. Buskers accompanied by dancers working for tips line the avenue and keep a respectful distance between one-another so as to not muddle the music of their peers.
Public Market
Locals converge on the public market, hopeful of raising much needed credits from their unwanted possessions.
Storage (Nouveau Limoges Storage)
The storage area is an odd contrast in decor. Dusty but elegantly painted works of art adorn the walls, mingled with what look like revolutionary slogans sprayed over each other. Oddly, the spray paint doesn’t touch any of the paintings.
Off-white classical columns frame the room and break up groups of lockers at odd intervals. The artwork on the walls hangs above the lockers, tilted at an angle to provide the most visibility to those below. The radical graffiti, sprayed carefully around the room in very tasteful designs, come across as quite artistic themselves. The slogans, with their bright colors and careful phrasing, fit in with the rest of the art in a pleasant way.
Port (Port of Nouveau Limoges)
Almost more of an art gallery than a center of travel, the port of Nouveau Limoges is decorated with an extensive collection of paintings and sculptures. Welcome brochures proclaim the port to be “The gem of the star lanes!”
Decorated end to end with all manner of sculptures and artistic installations, almost every inch of free space in the area has been filled with displays dedicated to travel and space. Glorious images of the cosmos stretch across the walls and ceilings, painted with such skill that a traveler could spend ages gazing at all the star maps, constellations, and celestial bodies. Alongside these are huge sculptures of starships that an untrained eye might even mistake for the real thing. The dockworkers are not enamored of the clutter in their path and they shout at gawkers to move out of their way as they thread cargo through the maze of artworks, leaving chipped corners and jarred displays in their wake.
NPCs
Arrivals
A bustling river of humanity with endlessly branching tributaries flows from the shuttles arriving here, through the processing gates, to crash onto the banks of eagerly awaiting locals receiving visitors from near or far flung parts of the galaxy. A number of travelers post the usual glazed looks of those recently harangued by any type of transportation system created and run by the human species. They drift with a mixture of existential confusion and relief through to the station beyond. Always, they are scrutinized by security or some type of subspecies therein.
Shipping Bay (Shipping and Receiving)
Customs officials check bundled packages set to leave the station and require proof of purchase agreements on cataloged works of art.
NPCs
Docks (Docking Bay)
Personally owned vessels pull into the dock and await Gaule Protectorate Visa checks.
Subject to the occasional protest, the scene at the docks seems to depend on the volume of incoming traffic. With more visitors, the chances of a demonstration increases dramatically while the slowest days offer a lower showing of dissatisfaction.
Local Shuttles (Limoges Travel Terminal)
The area thrums as people try to navigate it as efficiently as possible, picking a line past those going the other way. Audio notices of imminent departures blare at all segments of the day.
Mostly the terminal functions smoothly, but occasionally the security queues erupt with indignant squabbles between Gaule guards and those without the valid visas required for station entry. Those whose protests fall on deaf ears are bundled into an awaiting deportation shuttle nearby.
Residences (Emile Galle Batiment)
The centrally located high-rise is a towering structure of regocrete and steel. Off-setting the somber and efficient structure are vividly colored windows across which myriad colors cascade and glimmer: a trick of texture and light. The lower levels of the building host a mural of graffiti, contributed to by a number of local artists as a testament to the unbreakable spirit of creativity that is Nouveau Limoges as a whole.
Each apartment is situated such that the windows are the unique focal points of the residential units. The grim gray of the stone provides the perfect canvas upon which these hues play. Should the passerby stop for a listen, muffled notes of music from various apartments often linger, so to does lively debate, or impassioned conversations. The foyer greets with a grand nouveau art style: long, thin beams, harsh right angles, and the richness and depth of tone of color. The building is as diverse and artistic as the denizens.
Ruins (Ruinville)
Once majestic buildings have collapsed and filled the streets with dust and debris. Nearby, the remains of a fresco can still be seen on a peeling wall.
A small group carrying empty bags gathers at the edge of the ruins and listens intently to a man wearing rugged clothes and carrying a pack of supplies. The guide speaks in a serious tone about the dangers of treasure hunting within the ruins, but his charges wear expressions of excitement and appear anxious to get moving.
NPCs
The Wrecks
Despite the dangers of crazed Ruins Rats and unstable structures, a popular activity for those in need of credits is treasure hunting within the Wrecks.
A small group carrying empty bags gathers at the edge of the Wrecks and listens intently to a man wearing rugged clothes and carrying a pack of supplies. The guide speaks in a serious tone about the dangers of treasure hunting within the Wrecks, but his charges wear expressions of excitement and appear anxious to get moving.
The Wilds
The Wilds seem oddly peaceful for a place where so much blood has been shed. Old statues and fountains, now cracked and broken sprawl throughout the ruined buildings. It seems almost impossible that the reality of this place is more along the lines of a war zone than an art gallery.
The Syndicates here wage war, both on each other and the people living out in the Wilds. If you look closely at the art positioned throughout the wilds, nearly all of it has black, indented marks from rifle fire. Traverse here at your own risk.
Security (Security Enforcement Centre)
Protesters crowd around the security offices bellowing slogans at bored officers. Private bodyguards who operate out of the same building appear to be increasingly agitated by the crowd's blockage of their potential paying customers.
The station Security officers of Nouveau Limoges wear Gaule Protectorate military uniforms and expressions of boredom as they sit within their bunkers. The protesting crowd chants slogans demanding a reduction in taxation and bureaucracy, and periodically someone throws a stink bomb at the gate or dashes forward to spray slogans on the walls. The guards watch this dutifully but without emotion. When the crowd surges they load their less-lethal weapons and fire, leading to an outcry and an increased volume in the chanted slogans. As the crowd falls back the officers move forward and arrest those incapacitated by their riot control weapons, dragging them back towards the building and the medics waiting to treat their injuries.
NPCs
Sick Bay (Central Medical)
The wide halls of the hospital stretch monotonously onward, smelling of antiseptic and bleach, with an underlying hint of metal.
The buskers, university students, and Gaule flags that are so numerous just outside the hospital doors are all conspicuous in their absence within the building. The rich mahogany colored paneling and vaulted ceilings diffuse the light and muffle sound. Beyond the bustle of the admissions area there are moments of absolute stillness and quiet, broken only momentarily as a technician or nurse crosses a dim hall and disappears through a thick set of doors.
NPCs
University (Université)
An expansive campus with plazas full of finely wrought sculptures stretches beyond the university’s archway. Handcrafted pennants proclaim the names of professors who teach actual live classes as opposed to the standard nano-shot education courses.
Clean brick buildings rise up out of well-tended courtyards where casually dressed students chat, laugh, and play music. In some places groups of people gather to paint on canvases while instructors demonstrate different techniques. Elegantly designed signs direct students towards the queues for the standard nano-shot classes and classrooms for the classically taught courses.
Classes available:
- Business
- Combat
- Engineering
- Leadership
- Medicine
- Psychology
- Spaceship Operations
"Galactic Destinations" Introduction
Founded by wealthy Gaule philanthropists looking to fashion a station devoted to the arts, Nouveau Limoges has long existed as a haven for artists, poets, musicians, and idealists. With its reputation for independent thinking and a resistance to authority, the station has always been seen as somewhat of an eccentric anomaly to the Gaule administration. With its large population of free thinkers, devoted to creative pursuits, the government was often at odds with the non-conformity of its citizens. The imposition of tighter control was met by increasing civil disobedience and the threat of outright rebellion.
In time, a compromise was reached by the Gaule and the people of Nouveau Limoges. Henceforth, the station would be governed with a lighter hand. The government would be still in charge, but would allow the citizens greater say in how they were governed. After the Gaule shifted their attention to establishing stations in Alpha Centauri, Nouveau Limoges became the remaining Gaule presence in Sol, and entered into what’s been called the “Golden Age” of its artistic and cultural development.
And then the Catastrophe happened. Famine. Communication blackouts. Drought. Panic. A breakdown of essential systems.
Unfortunately for the station’s citizens, it wasn’t just the Catastrophe they had to deal with. Desperate to establish order in the disaster’s wake, the Gaule administrators of Nouveau Limoges accepted the assistance of the recovering Consortium. Some say they had no choice in the matter; they were isolated, and cut off from their own government. In any case, the Consortium moved quickly to consolidate its presence and took control of the station’s recovery. Thus began the reconstruction under Consortium supervision. At first the citizens were grateful for the help, but as systems and infrastructure were stabilized, they began to struggle against their benefactor’s increasingly harsh rule. When, according to the Consortium, reasonable demands and the need for community sacrifice were ignored, martial law was declared. The Consortium began a campaign of measures aimed at stamping out all dissent.
This period became known as “The Sorrows.” All forms of resistance were punishable by imprisonment or exile. Citizens were initially asked to volunteer for recovery work but were soon drafted into forced labor. “Desperate times call for desperate measures,” the Consortium explained. “We must work together or we will die together.” During this period, Nouveau Limoges saw an influx of Consortium citizens, many came to help, other to administer, and some for exploitation. To this day, even after being returned to Gaule administration, Nouveau Limoges has a sizable Consortium population.
The Consortium administration of Nouveau Limoges continued for over 80 cycles, and would have continued indefinitely if not for the recovery of the Sol Jump Gate and the re-establishment of contact with the Gaule home system of Alpha Centauri. This would lead to a brief armed confrontation between the naval forces of both Affiliations and the subsequent signing of a peace treaty on Nouveau Limoges. This treaty, the Nouveau Limoges Accords, would define the future relationship between the Consortium and the Gaule Protectorate. It would also return Nouveau Limoges to Gaule.
The return to Gaule rule would signal the official end of “The Sorrows” and the re-establishment of Nouveau Limoges’ artistic and cultural heritage. Though its “Golden Age” may never be duplicated, the station has quickly regained its reputation for nurturing the arts. Artist and Craftsman Guilds are once again flourishing. Markets are busy. Museums and galleries are open. New plays and music are being performed. Nouveau Limoges is once again a cross-road of free-thought, creativity, and independence. A booming market of artistic trade and craftsmanship. A refreshing mixture of the mundane, the exotic, the profound, and the rare.
Through artistic triumphs and devastating losses, Nouveau Limoges has re-emerged to become a shining beacon of human expression. There’s an old Gaule saying, “For better or worse, Nouveau Limoges will change the way you see the universe and yourself.”
"Culture of the 'Verse" Entry
Welcome to the second segment of Culture of the ‘Verse, your portal to all things beyond mere survival! With the Catastrophe in our collective pasts, we look to the future to expand humanity’s possibilities. Last time we looked at cloning, with all of its complications, so today we’ll be focusing on the pleasant topic of artistic endeavors!
Art is ever-present – whether in times of stress or prosperity, people will create art which reflects their values, needs and desires. Stations like Nouveau Limoges recognize this and choose to maintain publicly available museum exhibits, so that everyone’s lives may be enriched by these artistic features. Some exhibits even feature artifacts from before the Catastrophe! Because art means different things to different people, we decided to capture the soul of the Grande Galaxie Museum and Gallery in Nouveau Limoges, of the Gaule Protectorate, by asking people about their favorite exhibit!
Aveline LeLac, 136 cycles old
“Interpretive dance sounded ridiculous – my friends had to drag me to the show – but the first time I saw Thea Mai on stage, I was touched. Her performance, full of skill, grace and care, was clearly captivating… But it wasn’t until days later that I realized it was all a metaphor for our oppression by the Gaule, and the need for us to rise up. It was the first time I felt the strength of someone’s feelings resonate so strongly with mine. I’ve been to all of Thea Mai’s performances, ever since.”
Yaël Archambeau, 12 cycles old, and Vincent Archambeau, 181 cycles old
“I liked the pieces that you could move and stack on each other and change their color and make a whole station if you wanted to!”
“It was the Stack-a-Block event, last cycle. Yaël and their friends came here every day for a tenspan, and learned a lot about station structures and what they need to run properly. They would have kept coming, if my son had let them—”
“I loved Stack and Block! Papa should have let me finish! I made a place to get rations, a place to work, and a big open space to play with friends, and a museum like this one! And I made a biiiig house! It had seven rooms and a kitchen and two live-in rooms and eight places to go potty!”
“Yes, Yaël, it was a very lovely house.”
Pascal Cartier, 92 cycles old
“It sounds boring, but I like things which are really well crafted. Paintings made with real paint compounds, which show beautiful landscapes as we think they were on Old Earth. Hand-chiseled statues where every fold of cloth, every hair, is perfectly in place. I can stand in front of these and let my worries wash away… I know art has important meanings, but to me, it’s about how it makes me feel, and ‘traditional’ art makes me feel at peace with the universe.”
As you can imagine, with art and beauty being subjective, everyone has their favorite! The next time you have a chance, stop by the Museum and see what exhibit is on that cycle – we promise you’ll experience something novel!
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