THE UNIVERSE
The known world of I C E is a huge glacier: the Inlandsis. This sheet of ice covering the Earth is sometimes thousands of meters thick. This universe swept by powerful winds blowing up to 300 km/h, is punctuated by rare rocky reliefs: the nunataks.
Seasons and Days
Strictly speaking, there are only 2 seasons: a cold season of around 300 days and a hot season of around 10 days. During most of the year, temperatures range from -30° C during the day to -60° C at night, with peaks of -90° C. During the summer solstice, temperatures can rise exceptionally rise to 4° C when the sun is at its peak. Each day lasts approximately 78 hours.
THE UNIVERSE
The known world of I C E is a huge glacier: the Inlandsis. This sheet of ice covering the Earth is sometimes thousands of meters thick. This universe swept by powerful winds blowing up to 300 km/h, is punctuated by rare rocky reliefs: the nunataks.
Seasons and Days
Strictly speaking, there are only 2 seasons: a cold season of around 300 days and a hot season of around 10 days. During most of the year, temperatures range from -30° C during the day to -60° C at night, with peaks of -90° C. During the summer solstice, temperatures can rise exceptionally rise to 4° C when the sun is at its peak. Each day lasts approximately 78 hours.
Atmosphere and Living Conditions
The atmosphere of I C E benefits from a very thin layer of ozone which largely allows solar winds to pass through. So although the daytime temperature is significantly higher, it is accompanied by increasing irradiation making any exit suicidal. So it is at dawn and especially at dusk that life slowly surfaces.
Fauna and Flora
In these extreme conditions, the fauna survives with difficulty: frozen lakes are home to marine fauna and some land animals survive on food collected under the ice. Most of the biosphere is concentrated in frozen lakes, a vast marine world full of life and mystery. The rare land animals never stray from these pockets of life that are their pantry.
THE HISTORY
Some claim that the world as we know it was very different and that the snow did not extend as far as the horizon.
The Ancients
Several thousand years ago, a civilization reigned supreme over I C E, with knowledge beyond our imagination. Our current understanding about them is practically non-existent. Yet this antediluvian civilization is at the origin of many myths — a largely sacred heritage and its deified people.
The Flood
A titanic catastrophe devastated this world decimating this civilization and forever burying the Utopia it had built. The Ancients were probably responsible and victims of their own extinction. The causes (likely multiple) remain a mystery. The ensuing Ice Age was a direct result. Over the millennia, snow covered all traces of the Ancients and later civilizations.
Artifacts
The material vestiges of this distant time are the artifacts — achievements of the Ancients that have withstood time. Some of these objects are intact and sometimes still functional. They are used empirically, without sufficient knowledge to reproduce them or maintain them in the long term. Artifacts are considered by the majority to be objects with magical powers.
The Edifices
The latest archaeologist’s expeditions have uncovered enigmatic giant Edifices: buildings or large structures. Each construction, a uniquely shaped dodecahedron, appears to be made up of a single block of rock-solid resistance. Through the prism of Artifacts and Edifices, the explorers of I C E are de facto confronted with extremely advanced technology which they have not mastered.
THE CITY
In this universe, the City survives under a large dome of ice.
“Hearth of the City”
A mysterious technology, a work bequeathed by the Ancients and nicknamed “Hearth of the City,”provides the city with energy, heat and light. It is almost like a miniature sun. Residents manage to store and channel raw energy from this structure that simulates a day / night / season cycle using shutters.
Organization
Within the City a complex and unequal hierarchy has been established. Concentrically, in the heart of the Sun, as close as possible to the heat, reigns the aristocracy with jealously guarded micro-orchards. The bourgeois succeed them, then the craftsmen, finally the most modest are relegated to the periphery.
Neighborhoods and Buildings
The quality of construction and materials decreases as one moves away from the Center. Rare materials such as earth, metals, and rock are found in the heart of the city. While in the outer quarters there is more animal material: furs, skins and bones. For obvious reasons of infrastructure stability, there is hardly any ice in the center of the city, as it would melt. However, gradually, and as the temperature drops, the proportion of ice becomes more apparent. In the suburbs, the buildings are built entirely of ice bricks.
The Guilds
There is not a resident of the City who does not belong to a guild. These each represent a profession. They are hierarchical and do not have the same privileges. Only the 7 main guilds have a representative who sits in the government.
EXPLORATION
The icy climate of I C E makes any exploration of the outside world particularly perilous. However, whether it is out of a taste for risk, a desire for adventure, or perhaps greed, some people try their luck. So each early summer marks the start of a new expedition of explorers to the ice sheet.
Expeditions & Archeology
Some Navigators have reported in the course of their adventures the description of strange constructions that may have been the work of the Ancients. These revelations have aroused curiosities and prompted the preparation of new, ever more ambitious expeditions.
Means of transport
On the icy vastnesses of I C E, sailors move mainly by ice sled. However, other systems of transport exist: Ice Manta Rays or larger sailing sleds.
THE GUILDS
The CryoArchitects
The CryoArchitects are Master Builders. They arrived with the first pioneers and are one of the oldest Guilds. Only the brightest students can hope to join this prestigious guild.
They define the territorial project of the City, draw the plans and supervise the construction and maintenance of the buildings. The reduced amount and variety of materials available has sharpened their expertise in the use and control of ice. Also, most of the buildings and the roads are essentially made of ice bricks.
THE GUILDS
The CryoArchitects
The CryoArchitects are Master Builders. They arrived with the first pioneers and are one of the oldest Guilds. Only the brightest students can hope to join this prestigious guild.
They define the territorial project of the City, draw the plans and supervise the construction and maintenance of the buildings. The reduced amount and variety of materials available has sharpened their expertise in the use and control of ice. Also, most of the buildings and the roads are essentially made of ice bricks.
The Enlightened
Gifted with foreknowledge, the Enlightened are respected for their ability to predict inclement weather, particularly storms. Immersion in ice water causes their body temperature to drop, triggering a trance that allows them to access their visions.
Their gift of foreknowledge is hereditary. This guild and the 5 families that make it up jealously guard their talent and especially their genes. They live in the center of the City and adopt an ostentatious and luxurious baroque style of dress.
They are consulted by the Navigators to plan their expeditions and by the Nourishers to plan the hunting periods. The CryoArchitectes question them before planning the work impacting icy expanses.
The Incandescents
They are the technicians, responsible for the maintenance of the Hearth of the City. They have the heavy task of producing, distributing and regulating energy, heat and light in the City.
Some members of this guild participate in a ritual that gives them access to a completely different part of the guild. Indeed these privileges have a particular connection to artifacts. With just a touch they can activate some, understand the usefulness and hidden power of others. Without them we probably would never have discovered the Valley of the Ancients, much less managed to open the doors of the buildings.
The Incandescents
They are the technicians, responsible for the maintenance of the Hearth of the City. They have the heavy task of producing, distributing and regulating energy, heat and light in the City.
Some members of this guild participate in a ritual that gives them access to a completely different part of the guild. Indeed these privileges have a particular connection to artifacts. With just a touch they can activate some, understand the usefulness and hidden power of others. Without them we probably would never have discovered the Valley of the Ancients, much less managed to open the doors of the buildings.
The Nourishers
In the icy environment of I C E, successfully feeding a population of over 10,000 is a feat that the Nourishers renew every day. The Nourishers Guild has the most supporters and that is probably the only reason it has a seat in government. It is made up of three trades: hunters, breeders, and the many horticulturalists and market gardeners.
The Alchemists
They are both the artisans and the merchants of the City. They are also masters in the art of trading and set the rules of commerce within the City.
As I C E‘s resources are scarce, crafting relies heavily on recycling materials and items that are damaged or become obsolete.
Alchemists have a wide range of skills, but all of them operate in a similar way: destroy in order to rebuild better. They are masters in the art of modifying, restructuring, and transforming everything that comes into their hands.
The Alchemists
They are both the artisans and the merchants of the City. They are also masters in the art of trading and set the rules of commerce within the City.
As I C E‘s resources are scarce, crafting relies heavily on recycling materials and items that are damaged or become obsolete.
Alchemists have a wide range of skills, but all of them operate in a similar way: destroy in order to rebuild better. They are masters in the art of modifying, restructuring, and transforming everything that comes into their hands.
The Navigators
Formidable adventurers for some, happy troublemakers for others, the Navigators are above all intrepid explorers. They are never short of incredible stories, often even hard to imagine. They bring back detailed maps of their expeditions in which they record nunataks and frozen lakes. They seek to push back ever further the limits of the known world. They move around in ice tanks, sailboats sliding on long skates.
This once minor guild is mainly made up of people from modest backgrounds. However with the discovery of the valley of the Ancients and the establishment of the great annual expeditions, the Navigators’ guild is now part of the 7 main guilds of the City.
The Icewalkers
This young Guild’s mantra is to find the right track through the ice. With the development of excavations in the Valley of the Ancients, their expertise as scouts has saved precious time in the search for Artifacts.
Eager to learn new techniques and redouble their ingenuity to unearth the best veins of ice, they work in concert with the CryoArchitects. Their incomparable know-how allows them to access the most inaccessible cavities and faults of several hundred meters.
The Icewalkers
This young Guild’s mantra is to find the right track through the ice. With the development of excavations in the Valley of the Ancients, their expertise as scouts has saved precious time in the search for Artifacts.
Eager to learn new techniques and redouble their ingenuity to unearth the best veins of ice, they work in concert with the CryoArchitects. Their incomparable know-how allows them to access the most inaccessible cavities and faults of several hundred meters.