Eden World

The subject of this article is from the Crossplay update.
The information from this article is is up-to-date as of 16 July, 2020.

This article was catalogued by the Grand Conjunction of Aligned Systems.

Eden Worlds are a specialized class of planet or moon.

Summary

Groenn-Gras, an Eden World with a Lush biome.

Eden Worlds are a specialized class of planet or moon that meet the following requirements. These requirements are defined by the Grand Conjunction's Project Eden by building upon earlier definitions created by The Arcadia Project.

To be classed as an Eden World different factors of a planet or moon must be looked at, in the order listed below. Eden Worlds can be divided into two classifications depending on how close they are to being ideal: Near-Eden or Eden.

• Near-Eden Worlds are those which just barely miss the criteria of being a true Eden world. Similar systems of planetary classification refer to these alternatively as Garden Worlds. Near-Eden worlds are still very pleasant and noteworthy planets despite being lacking in one criteria or another. Note that a world can miss only one or two criteria to be considered perfect and still be labeled as a Near-Eden World; those with three strikes are disqualified from Near-Eden status.
• Eden Worlds are those which are utterly perfect in every way, having gentle weather, a safe environment, a low sentinel level, lush vegetation, and low presence of hostile fauna. While Near-Eden worlds seem almost common place, true Eden worlds are much rarer, making each one found something to be treasured.

Differences from Earlier Definitions of Perfect Worlds

The primary difference with this method of classifying perfect worlds from previous methods is that the criteria is stricter overall, yet applied evenly with regard to planetary biomes, allowing for a greater variety of worlds to be classified as perfect for habitation. By providing more objective criteria for classification, this version leaves less gray area for determination. Having stricter standards means that far fewer worlds could be classified as Eden Worlds, making them the rare gems that truly perfect worlds deserve to be.

Factor 1 - Weather

Sandr-Mani, a Near-Eden World with a Barren biome and moderate weather.

	Near-Eden World	Eden World
Clear Weather	Yes	Yes
Normal Weather	Yes	No
Extreme Weather	No	No

Weather severity can be checked by referencing the weather's name on the related biome page.

Lush worlds are a special case when determining weather as a factor. Due to how otherwise habitable lush worlds are, consider their weather severity as one level lower when checking them on the chart above. This means a lush world can have any level severity of weather and still be classified as a Near-Eden world, or up to normal weather and still be classified as an Eden world, provided that they meet all other criteria.

Myrkr-Skogr, the first Lush-like Mega Exotic world to be classified as an Eden World.

Mega Exotic worlds with a Lush-like environment are another special case as each of their weather types can be found at any level of severity. For that reason, Near-Eden mega exotic worlds can be any level of weather severity, while Eden mega exotic worlds cannot be extreme. Extreme weather can be easily checked for by exiting your starship and seeing if the weather's name is listed in red. This makes their determination with regard to weather identical to Lush worlds, which is reasonable given that qualifying Mega Exotic worlds are nearly identical to Lush worlds in most ways, except for their odd light and atmospheric colouring.

Factor 2 - Environment

A planet or moon's environment must be Earth-like and fit for easy habitation and colonization to qualify as an Eden World. This rules out any worlds with extreme toxicity or radiation, continual extreme heat, or those that do not have an atmosphere. For this reason Toxic, Irradiated, Scorched, and Dead worlds can never be classified as Eden worlds as their environments are always far too hazardous.

Barren and Frozen worlds can conceivably be defined as Eden Worlds provided they fully meet the remaining criteria, as their weather is not as extreme as the more hazardous biomes previously mentioned. However these two biomes are usually downgraded to Near-Eden status due to their relative lack of flora.

Exotic and Mega Exotic worlds have many subtypes with very few qualifying. Hydro Garden Exotic worlds and Mega Exotic worlds with Lush-like conditions are exceptions as both can have very pleasant, Earth-like environments.

With environment being such an important factor, most of the Eden worlds discovered are Lush ones, as day to day life is ideal on these worlds.

Factor 3 - Sentinel Activity

A sentinel patrolling Sol-Eng, a lush Near-Eden World.

Sentinel drones can be found all across the universe and the level of sentinel activity on a world must be looked at in order to ensure the safety of those who choose to live on a potential Eden World.

In order for a planet or moon to be classified as an Eden world, sentinels must have a low activity level.

High sentinel activity on a world would downgrade it to Near-Eden status while having aggressive sentinels completely disqualifies a world.

Sentinel Activity

	Near-Eden World	Eden World
Low sentinel activity	Yes	Yes
High sentinel activity	Yes	No
Aggressive Sentinels	No	No

Factor 4 - Flora

Jotunn-Eik, an Eden World rich in native flora.

Hydro Garden Exotic worlds, like Flar-Skogr, have only been discovered as Near-Eden Worlds due to having low varieties of actual flora.

Flora level is important when determining the status of potential Eden Worlds. They should be a paradise, having a wide variety of flora, as well as a thick carpet of grass covering most of the landscape. Even Lush biomes with ideal weather can be rejected if they have no native plant life.

Eden Worlds should have extremely high amounts of unique flora species, dense vegetation such as forests, and thick grass. Note that this determination could be different than what the world's Flora level displays as when using a visor or in the Discoveries tab. Once enough data has been collected to get a statistical average for flora species on various worlds, this qualifying factor will be more objectively defined.

Worlds with a low number of flora species, or those that only have sporadic patches of ground cover are downgraded to Near-Eden status. This is the determining factor which limits most Frozen and Barren worlds to that of mere Near-Eden status rather than full Eden World status.

Worlds with no flora species are completely disqualified, as are those with minimal to no ground cover.

Species of Flora

	Near-Eden World	Eden World
Many Flora Species	Yes	Yes
Few Flora Species	Yes	No
No Flora Species	No	No

Ground Cover

	Near-Eden World	Eden World
Thick Ground Cover	Yes	Yes
Sporadic Ground Cover	Yes	No
Low to No Ground Cover	No	No

Factor 5 - Fauna

Eng-Blodh, a Near-Eden World with a Lush biome and dangerous predators.

Eden worlds should be true to their name and be home to a wide variety of creatures. The presence of fauna is not necessary for a world to be classified as a Near-Eden World.

While Eden Worlds require many species to be present, those aggressive towards Travellers should be never or almost never encountered, if present at all. Any world with frequently encountered predatory species would be downgraded to Near-Eden status. Please note that the actual frequency of encounters with any particular species is different than its listed rarity in the Discoveries tab.

Fauna Species Present

	Near-Eden World	Eden World
Many Fauna species	Yes	Yes
Low to no Fauna species	Yes	No

Hostile Species Present

	Near-Eden World	Eden World
Hostile species never or almost never encountered	Yes	Yes
Hostile species frequently encountered	Yes	No
Hostile species continually encountered	No	No

Examples of hostile species encounter frequency.

• Travellers are greeted by seeming waves of the hostile species at multiple landing locations or at their base location. The species is continually encountered.
• Travellers have a good chance of seeing the hostile species when exploring on foot or harvesting resources. Encounters are not continual, nor are they seldom. The species is frequently encountered.
• Traveller had to spend a large amount of time exploring at several locations before finally having an encounter with the hostile species making it one of the more difficult or last remaining species to find on its world. Or species lives Underground. The species is almost never encountered.
• Traveller has scanned all species on the planet and none were hostile towards them. It has been verified there are no hostile species on the world, making them never encountered.

Combining All Factors

In order to be considered an Eden world, a world must pass each of the factors listed above at the highest level of qualification. Those answering "No" to any of the Eden World criteria are downgraded to Near-Eden status. As these worlds are considered perfect, they need no further explanation on their world page other than being labeled as an Eden World.

In order to be considered a Near-Eden world, a world may only answer "No" to one or two of the Eden World criteria and must answer "Yes" to all Near-Eden World criteria. Consider it a "three-strike" rule. Those which do not meet these overall rquirements are disqualified from being able to be considered Near-Eden worlds. It is helpful to list the reasons why a world did not achieve full Eden status on its world page. A complete list of all possible reasons follow.

• Severe weather (for Lush and Lush-Like worlds)
• Moderate weather (for Barren and Frozen worlds)
• High sentinel activity
• Low Flora variety
• Sporadic ground cover
• Low Fauna variety
• Frequently encountered dangerous Fauna

Worlds which answer "No" to any Near-Eden World criteria, or "No" to more than two Eden World criteria are disqualified from all consideration. It is helpful to list the reasons why a world did not qualify for either status on its world page, in order to assist others who may attempt to classify it in the future.

Examples

The words in bold for the following examples should be used on a Near-Eden world's documentation page to explain why it did not meet the standards of a full Eden world.

Eden World Examples

• The Lush worlds of Jotunn-Eik and Groenn-Gras have mild weather, lush environments with ample varieties of Flora, low sentinel presence, and a wide variety of gentle Fauna, granting them both Eden World status.
• The Mega Exotic world of Myrkr-Skogr has mild weather, a lush environment with ample varieties of Flora, low sentinel presence, and a wide variety of gentle Fauna, all granting it Eden World status.

Near-Eden World Examples (One Strike)

• The Mega Exotic world of Ploma-Skogr has a lush environment with ample varieties of Flora, low sentinel presence, a wide variety of gentle Fauna, but extreme weather which limits it to Near-Eden World status.
• The Lush world of Sol-Eng has moderate weather, a lush environment with ample varieties of flora, but high sentinel activity limits it to Near-Eden World status.
• The Lush world of Eng-Blodh has moderate weather, a lush environment with ample varieties of flora, a low sentinel presence, but frequently encountered dangerous Fauna limit it to Near-Eden World status.

Near-Eden World Examples (Two Strikes)

• The Hydro Garden Exotic world of Flar-Skogr has mild weather and is covered in lush green grass but low Flora variety and high sentinel activity each limit it to Near-Eden World status.
• The Barren world of Sandr-Mani has a low sentinel presence and varied flora, with higher than average ground cover for a barren world, but moderate weather and sporadic ground cover both limit it to Near-Eden World status.

Disqualified World Examples (Three Strikes)

• The Barren world of Grar-Sandr seems nice for a barren world, but has moderate weather, high sentinel activity, and low Flora variety. These three strikes disqualify it for status as either an Eden or Near-Eden world.

Disqualified World Examples (Automatic Disqualification)

• The Lush world of Eng-Bleikr has mild weather, a lush environment with ample varieties of Flora, and a wide variety of gentle fauna, but hostile sentinels automatically disqualify it for status as either an Eden or Near-Eden world.
• The Barren world of Sandr-Fell has a low sentinel presence, but extreme weather automatically disqualifies it for status as either an Eden or Near-Eden world.

Gallery

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  Ploma-Skogr, a Near-Eden World with a Mega Exotic biome and extreme weather.

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  Varmr-Hol, a Near-Eden World with a Frozen biome and low Flora density.