Rainbow World
Rainbow Worlds are "worlds whose radiant energies defy all scanners producing a rainbow-like image". When seen from space they appear yellow. There are 10 of them in the area of space in which Star Control II takes place. Each one is the first planet orbiting a star. When seen from HyperSpace, these stars lie on two lines intersecting at Groombridge. It is believed that the arrow-like pattern they form is supposed to point the direction of the Precursor departure.1 2
The Spathi mention a Precursor text referring to what they translated as "10 artificial 'waste disposal sites'". Similarly, the Slylandro Joyous Lifting remembers that the "Shaggy Ones" (the Precursors) either discovered or assembled a set of 10 worlds and organized them in some pattern. He describes the location of two such worlds. The Thraddash likewise have discovered ancient text fragments which describe "Precursor Dumps" and state that the "dumps are in some kind of pattern". It is generally assumed that these are all references to the rainbow worlds.
Rainbow Worlds are rich in already-processed radioactives, but more importantly, the Melnorme give 500 credits for the whereabouts of each newly discovered world. It is sufficient to orbit the planet for its location to be registered in a ship's log; no scan of any kind is required.
Table of Rainbow World locations[edit]
| World | Star Location | Referred to by |
|---|---|---|
| Beta Pegasi I | 039.5 : 745.8 | Slylandro |
| Epsilon Draconis I | 283.6 : 785.7 | Thraddash |
| Epsilon Lipi I | 543.7 : 827.0 | |
| Beta Leporis I | 766.6 : 866.6 | Supox |
| Gamma Aquarii I | 853.4 : 879.7 | |
| Groombridge I | 996.0 : 904.2 | Slylandro |
| Alpha Andromedae I | 862.5 : 700.0 | |
| Gamma Reticuli I | 741.6 : 508.3 | |
| Gamma Kepler I | 602.0 : 297.9 | |
| Zeta Sextantis I | 468.1 : 091.6 | Tanaka/Katana |
Pattern in HyperSpace[edit]
Notes and references[edit]
- 1From a mail by Paul Reiche III to a Star Control II player:
- the arrow points the direction of the Precursor Migration -- and the supposed direction for the sequel to follow.
- 2From the dialog at the Slylandro homeworld:
- "We were told the planets were... again this is confusing... organized (?) in some pattern which in some way alluded to the Shaggy Ones' ultimate fate."