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Stars, as described in the Universal Strata Model, are theoretical products of Natural Personification—specifically Relational Concentration. In practice, however, all known stars are the creations of Gods or organisms. Stars are physical entities that express information in the languages of Starscript and God Tongue. Stars may be observed every night across the entirety of the Plane by looking up to the heavens.
Stars have been theorized to be capable of forming naturally as a product of Relational Concentration, in the same way Gods or limn form via Material Concentration and Natural Diffusion respectively. Despite this the natural formation of a star has not been recorded, though the idea has been supported by various interactions with Gods.
Astronomy is the study of stars, how they work, and how they are written. Starforging is the act of forging new stars through the application of astronomical studies. Stars are used for a multitude of applications by many occupations throughout the Plane. The first star dates back to prehistory, with the creation of the First Epoch Star by the Gods of What Is and Is Not. The first use of a star by a sophont is unknown, but does likely date back to the creation of humans.
Types & Categorization
Astronomers divide stars into two types: true stars, those created by the Gods and which reside in the heavens, and artificial stars, those created by organisms using limn. True and artificial stars are alike in many ways, but waver from one another in many others. The physical characteristics of both true and artificial stars appear to be similar or the same, however their true underlying behaviors and makeup differ significantly.
Stars are often also divided into three categories dependent on the information which they convey:
- Legal stars control the relationship between the Real and Unreal. Legal stars are written in Starscript;
- Index stars tie some kind of action within Reality—or the interaction which creates it—to a new action in Reality. Index stars can be written in Starscript or God Tongue;
- And documentary stars simply detail information and do not have any kind of dictation over Reality. Documentary stars are written expressly in God Tongue.
Unlike organisms, who forge artificial stars through the manipulation of limn, Gods are capable of creating new stars instinctively, without external resources. To Gods the creation of stars appears to be a natural act, requiring little conscious effort or preparation. When a God creates a star they may choose whether to publish it, sending it to the heavens, or whether to keep it on the Plane. Gods are capable of inscribing significantly more information onto their stars than organisms, allowing them to create significantly more powerful stars.
Gods are capable of writing stars in Starscript, allowing them to publish legal stars. Multiple Gods are capable of publishing stars together, and a legal star which would inhibit the domain of one God cannot be published without said God’s contribution—or the contribution of their parental God(s).
Most organisms use organs known as limnary presses to forge stars, though this is not the case for sophonts. Sophonts are special because they are the only organisms who forge stars in the refined art of Starforging. Whereas limnary presses are only capable of forging a specific star, starforging allows sophonts to create diverse and powerful stars.
Whereas typical organisms have no purpose for documentary stars, sophonts and Gods are capable of using stars in a more abstract and artistic form by publishing documentary stars.
Behavior & Characteristics
Stars are composed of strange substance, similarly to limn. Unlike limn however, stars are much harder to observe, and thus not much is known about their actual structure. It is unclear whether the limn used in forging an artificial star undergoes structural change upon the completion. The shifting surfaces and light-emitting properties of stars make it nearly impossible for astronomers to gather further information regarding their structure.
It has been hypothesized that stars retain at least some degree of their limn’s original structure, as their release of light mirrors that of limn’s own. However, there may be no relation between these phenomenon. The rate at which a star releases light seems to grow exponentially proportional to its surface area, which is not a behavior exhibited in limn. It has been alternatively hypothesized that the release of light by stars is a similar phenomenon to the release of light by certain chemical reactions, wherein light is released in the form of lost energy in the interaction.
True stars exhibit a number of unique properties which artificial stars do not possess. The surface of true stars is often described as more volatile than that of artificial stars, their surfaces shifting in much sharper waves—sometimes described similarly to fire—and releasing much brighter light. True stars expel heat alongside their light. The waves of true stars also exhibit a reaching behavior, wherein waves can be seen reaching out far beyond their typical boundaries, typically in the directions of related child or parent stars. These arms can form what appear to be networks of connected stars in the sky.
While not a property of the star itself, true stars are often more dense in information than artificial ones. This is a result of their method of creation, Gods’ are naturally capable of creating dense and complex stars. Unlike artificial stars, true stars also do not burn out. Unless their creator God passes away a star will last indefinitely suspended in the heavens. True stars’ sizes are often determined simply by how complex the information they are conveying is. This is in contrast to artificial stars’ sizes, which are directly determined by how much limn was used to forge them. An artificial star’s lifespan is dependent both on how much limn was used to forge it, and how complex the information it conveys is.
Starforging
Primary article: Starforging
Starforging is an act practiced by sophonts in which limn is compacted into an orb and carved intricately with God Tongue. When the God Tongue is finished the star completes itself
Application & History
See also
This article is considered complete for the moment, but is missing sections which can be elaborated on as the setting develops! If you think it needs expansion now, suggest an edit through a GitHub issue!
This article could use expansion on the history of stars in science and their cultural impact.