List of Humanx Commonwealth planets
Encyclopedia
This is a list of the fictional planets in the Humanx Commonwealth
series of novels by Alan Dean Foster
.
Currently the planet has no sentient race; the native race died out, possibly by racial suicide, over 75,000 years ago leaving behind hundreds of ancient, abandoned cities that have proved a source of fascination to modern xeno-archaeologists.
A variety of lifeforms currently live on Alaspin, most notably the Alaspinian minidrag.
The planet first appeared in the novel Bloodhype
.
, the preferred atmospheric conditions of the AAnn. Beyond this, little is known about Blasusarr other than the fact that it is very well-protected by a detection and space defense network. Its capital city, also the capital of the AAnn Empire, is Krrassin.
word cachalote, a common term for head. This word was applied to the sperm whale
, for its large head, when the mammals were actively hunted in Earth’s oceans.
The novel Cachalot
(1980) introduced the planet to the Humanx Commonwealth universe.
Most of Hivehom's population lives in subterranean hives. The Thranx prefer an incredibly hot, humid climate and the cold Northern regions are mostly uninhabited. The Mediterranean Plateau, a dry, frigid portion of Hivehom's largest continent would later become home to Hivehom's human settlement following the creation of the Humanx Commonwealth.
Cities such as the capital of Daret are located beneath thick rainforest and a near constant, heavy shroud of low-lying clouds caused by the intense humidity; an ideal temperature for a thriving thranx population.
Hivehom's equivalent to Terra's North Pole is mostly uninhabited, except for the small mining colony of Sed-Clee where temperatures range from -5° Celsius to 15° Celsius.
Horseye is also home to the most spectacular river canyon in the known universe.
The planet first appeared in the novel Voyage to the City of the Dead
(1984).
The novel Flinx in Flux
introduced this planet to the Humanx Commonwealth universe.
The planet is currently under edict—all travel to the planet is expressly forbidden—by the United Church, ostensibly to protect the fragile ecosystem. More likely it is to protect the Commonwealth from the emerging world-consciousness that the massive rainforest has spawned. Bits of this plant-based sentience have been placed upon Flinx
’s ship Teacher allowing the planet-consciousness to now travel the universe.
The novel Midworld
(1975) introduced the planet and it is also the setting for the novel Mid-Flinx
(1995).
Beyond its outwardly interesting facade, Moth is a relatively unimportant planet having a substantial non-native human population. It is the planet where Mother Mastiff lives and where she rescued Flinx
from a slave auction. Flinx spent his childhood on this planet learning how to survive on his own and become a thief at the same time.
The novel The Tar-Aiym Krang
(1972) introduced the planet to the Humanx Commonwealth universe; Foster greatly expanded information about Moth in the novel For Love of Mother-Not
(1983).
. There are no extremes on the planet, not large oceans or mountain ranges, the many continents and archipelagos are divided up by twenty small seas. The citizens are mostly content, happy to have been born on the planet or to have immigrated there. The economy tends toward tourism and high end scientific research.
The native race of the planet, also known as the Pitar, were remarkably human-like, physiologically if not genetically, although generally more well-formed, handsome and muscular than typical human standards.
First human contact with the planet was in 2360 AD. In 2365 the Pitar destroyed the colonists on the planet Treetrunk (Argus V) which started the Human-Pitar War. A year later human and thranx scientists invented the SCCAM missile which allowed the alliance of humans and thranx to break the defenses of the Pitar. The Pitar refused any kind of surrender, and the entire race was exterminated. Due to their "irredeemable narccisism", even the few Pitar captured killed themselves or otherwise rendered themselves unsuitable for study.
It was discovered by scientists after the fact that the Pitar had planned a long-term, galactic level genocide of all non-Pitaran sentients. The attack on Treetrunk was perpetrated for the purposes of obtaining human female reproductive organs, which could be genetically altered to produce Pitaran offspring, compensating for the low birthrate that was the Pitaran's main disadvantage over races such as humans and the Thranx.
The planet first appeared in the novel Dirge
(2000), although it was referenced in Foster's first novel, The Tar-Aiym Krang
(1973).
, only deals with one group, known as the Associative. The Associative contains a number of different specialized sub-types, much as a termite mound would. Known types include Scouts, Libraries, Walls, Physicians, Conduits, Warriors, Gatherers, and Talkers. A few more varieties off Associative types that were only mentioned in passing include builders and an unnamed variety compared to an exploding star.
The planet first appeared in the novel Reunion
(2001).
The planet first appeared in the novel Icerigger
(1974).
There is no native sentient race on Treetrunk, none ever having developed. Five years after human colonization, all 600,000 humans living on the planet were killed by the Pitar as the opening to the Humanx-Pitar war.
The planet was first formally introduced in Dirge
(2000).
The planet first appeared in the novel Orphan Star
(1977).
Humanx Commonwealth
The Humanx Commonwealth is a fictional interstellar ethical/political entity featured in the science fiction novels of Alan Dean Foster. The Commonwealth takes its name from its two major sapient species, who jointly inhabit Commonwealth planets and administer both the political and...
series of novels by Alan Dean Foster
Alan Dean Foster
Alan Dean Foster is an American author of fantasy and science fiction. He currently resides in Prescott, Arizona, with his wife, and is also known for his novelizations of film scripts...
.
Alaspin
Alaspin has large jungles surrounded by equally large savannas and river plains; its only notable celestial feature is two moons.Currently the planet has no sentient race; the native race died out, possibly by racial suicide, over 75,000 years ago leaving behind hundreds of ancient, abandoned cities that have proved a source of fascination to modern xeno-archaeologists.
A variety of lifeforms currently live on Alaspin, most notably the Alaspinian minidrag.
Annubis
Annubis is most notable for the fictional Hyperion forests from which the fictional drug bloodhype is manufactured. In an attempt to eradicate the highly addictive and deadly drug, the trees were burned in 545 A.A. and are thought to be completely destroyed.The planet first appeared in the novel Bloodhype
Bloodhype
Bloodhype is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster. The book is eleventh chronologically in the Pip and Flinx series, though it was written second, and it is an oddity for the characters since they only appear in the last third of the book...
.
Blasusarr
Blasusarr is the homeworld of the AAnn race and is often called the Imperial Home World. Climate is dry and hot, largely desertDesert
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of most plants. Most deserts have an average annual precipitation of less than...
, the preferred atmospheric conditions of the AAnn. Beyond this, little is known about Blasusarr other than the fact that it is very well-protected by a detection and space defense network. Its capital city, also the capital of the AAnn Empire, is Krrassin.
Cachalot
Cachalot is almost entirely covered by ocean with small ice caps and a few artificial floating islands created by humans. The dominant non-native races are intelligence-enhanced Cetacea (includes whales, dolphins, orcas and porpoises) that were brought to the planet from Terra in 2300 A.D. The name of the planet derives from the PortuguesePortuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
word cachalote, a common term for head. This word was applied to the sperm whale
Sperm Whale
The sperm whale, Physeter macrocephalus, is a marine mammal species, order Cetacea, a toothed whale having the largest brain of any animal. The name comes from the milky-white waxy substance, spermaceti, found in the animal's head. The sperm whale is the only living member of genus Physeter...
, for its large head, when the mammals were actively hunted in Earth’s oceans.
The novel Cachalot
Cachalot (novel)
Cachalot is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster.-Plot summary:Cachalot is an ocean planet where humans have begun building floating cities. It is also the same planet where all of Earth’s cetaceans were transplanted six hundred years ago after the Covenant of Peace was enacted with...
(1980) introduced the planet to the Humanx Commonwealth universe.
Hivehom
Hivehom is the home system of the thranx race; the system itself has twelve planets, four of which are inhabited.Most of Hivehom's population lives in subterranean hives. The Thranx prefer an incredibly hot, humid climate and the cold Northern regions are mostly uninhabited. The Mediterranean Plateau, a dry, frigid portion of Hivehom's largest continent would later become home to Hivehom's human settlement following the creation of the Humanx Commonwealth.
Cities such as the capital of Daret are located beneath thick rainforest and a near constant, heavy shroud of low-lying clouds caused by the intense humidity; an ideal temperature for a thriving thranx population.
Hivehom's equivalent to Terra's North Pole is mostly uninhabited, except for the small mining colony of Sed-Clee where temperatures range from -5° Celsius to 15° Celsius.
Horseye
Horseye has four moons, three distinct sentient species (Mai, Tsla, and the Na) and a continent structure that is dominated by a single, massive ocean. This ocean experiences a constant clockwise current driven by the orbits of the four moons.Horseye is also home to the most spectacular river canyon in the known universe.
The planet first appeared in the novel Voyage to the City of the Dead
Voyage to the City of the Dead
Voyage to the City of the Dead is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster.-Plot:Scientists Eitienne and Lyra Redowl come to the planet Horseye to study the entire length the immense Skar River and its spectacular river chasm, the largest in the whole Humanx Commonwealth...
(1984).
Longtunnel
Longtunnel is characterized by an extremely inhospitable climate and an extensive network of caves, due to the soft crust and significant amount of rain. Longtunnel is inhabited by one sapient race, who call themselves Sumacrea.The novel Flinx in Flux
Flinx in Flux
Flinx in Flux is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster. The book is fifth chronologically in the Pip and Flinx series....
introduced this planet to the Humanx Commonwealth universe.
Midworld
Midworld's distinguishing feature is the thousand meter high rainforest that covers nearly all of the planet, making it the most biologically diverse planet in the universe. It is home to a human offshoot known as Midworlders who are slightly smaller than human standard with adaptations that include light green skin and long toes.The planet is currently under edict—all travel to the planet is expressly forbidden—by the United Church, ostensibly to protect the fragile ecosystem. More likely it is to protect the Commonwealth from the emerging world-consciousness that the massive rainforest has spawned. Bits of this plant-based sentience have been placed upon Flinx
Flinx
Philip Lynx is a fictional character, an adventurous young man with unusual qualities in a series of books set in the "Humanx Commonwealth", written by Alan Dean Foster and published by Del Rey Books.-Character biography:...
’s ship Teacher allowing the planet-consciousness to now travel the universe.
The novel Midworld
Midworld
Midworld is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster. It is set in his primary science-fiction universe, the Humanx Commonwealth.-Plot:...
(1975) introduced the planet and it is also the setting for the novel Mid-Flinx
Mid-Flinx
Mid-Flinx is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster. The book is the sixth chronologically in the Pip and Flinx series....
(1995).
Moth
Moth has three notable features. First, a set of broken rings around the planet gives the globe a distinctive look from outer space, an appearance similar to that of a Terran moth. Second, its dominant weather pattern is almost continual rain, mostly because of the near constant cloud-cover. Third, Moth has a single 'moon', Flame, which is actually a dwarf planet sharing the same orbital path as Moth.Beyond its outwardly interesting facade, Moth is a relatively unimportant planet having a substantial non-native human population. It is the planet where Mother Mastiff lives and where she rescued Flinx
Flinx
Philip Lynx is a fictional character, an adventurous young man with unusual qualities in a series of books set in the "Humanx Commonwealth", written by Alan Dean Foster and published by Del Rey Books.-Character biography:...
from a slave auction. Flinx spent his childhood on this planet learning how to survive on his own and become a thief at the same time.
The novel The Tar-Aiym Krang
The Tar-Aiym Krang
The Tar-Aiym Krang is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster. It is Foster’s first published novel and started both his Humanx Commonwealth universe and his two most popular recurring characters, Pip and Philip Lynx...
(1972) introduced the planet to the Humanx Commonwealth universe; Foster greatly expanded information about Moth in the novel For Love of Mother-Not
For Love of Mother-Not
For Love of Mother-Not is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster. The book is the first chronologically in the Pip and Flinx series, though it was written fourth, as a prequel to help flesh out Flinx’s early history.-Plot introduction:...
(1983).
New Riviera
New Riviera, often called Nur, is often referred to as a paradise world, for it is even more perfect for human habitation than TerraEarth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
. There are no extremes on the planet, not large oceans or mountain ranges, the many continents and archipelagos are divided up by twenty small seas. The citizens are mostly content, happy to have been born on the planet or to have immigrated there. The economy tends toward tourism and high end scientific research.
Pitar
Pitar, like Midworld and Ulru-Ujurr, is under Church Edict preventing any Commonwealth citizen from setting foot on the planet.The native race of the planet, also known as the Pitar, were remarkably human-like, physiologically if not genetically, although generally more well-formed, handsome and muscular than typical human standards.
First human contact with the planet was in 2360 AD. In 2365 the Pitar destroyed the colonists on the planet Treetrunk (Argus V) which started the Human-Pitar War. A year later human and thranx scientists invented the SCCAM missile which allowed the alliance of humans and thranx to break the defenses of the Pitar. The Pitar refused any kind of surrender, and the entire race was exterminated. Due to their "irredeemable narccisism", even the few Pitar captured killed themselves or otherwise rendered themselves unsuitable for study.
It was discovered by scientists after the fact that the Pitar had planned a long-term, galactic level genocide of all non-Pitaran sentients. The attack on Treetrunk was perpetrated for the purposes of obtaining human female reproductive organs, which could be genetically altered to produce Pitaran offspring, compensating for the low birthrate that was the Pitaran's main disadvantage over races such as humans and the Thranx.
The planet first appeared in the novel Dirge
Dirge (novel)
Dirge is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster. The full title is sometimes shown as Dirge: Book Two of The Founding of the Commonwealth.-Plot summary:...
(2000), although it was referenced in Foster's first novel, The Tar-Aiym Krang
The Tar-Aiym Krang
The Tar-Aiym Krang is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster. It is Foster’s first published novel and started both his Humanx Commonwealth universe and his two most popular recurring characters, Pip and Philip Lynx...
(1973).
Prism
Prism abounds with both carbon- and silicon-based life forms. There are a number of intelligent species on the planet, but the book which introduces the planet, Sentenced to PrismSentenced to Prism
Sentenced to Prism is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster, and is a stand-alone entry in his Humanx Commonwealth series of books...
, only deals with one group, known as the Associative. The Associative contains a number of different specialized sub-types, much as a termite mound would. Known types include Scouts, Libraries, Walls, Physicians, Conduits, Warriors, Gatherers, and Talkers. A few more varieties off Associative types that were only mentioned in passing include builders and an unnamed variety compared to an exploding star.
Pyrassis
Pyrassis falls within the territory claimed by the AAnn Empire. It is a desert planet that also contains an ancient, alien transmitter. The tenth planet in the system is a brown methane dwarf that hides one of the Tar-Aiym’s semi-sentient Krang weapon.The planet first appeared in the novel Reunion
Reunion (novel)
Reunion is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster. The book is the seventh chronologically in the Pip and Flinx series.-Plot summary:...
(2001).
Tran-Ky-Ky
Tran-Ky-Ky is notable for its long warm-cold climate cycle; currently in the Humanx Commonwealth timeframe, Tran-Ky-Ky is in its cold cycle and most of the planet is under ice. Each cycle lasts approximately 50,000 years and is due to the unusual orbit of the planet. Native species is the Tran, a somewhat bipedal cat-like race with membranous wings on their arms they use in conjunction with the long claws to skate on the icy surface of the planet. Because of the strange climate changes the Tran have had some trouble developing. Their "warm weather"-related species is the Golden Saia.The planet first appeared in the novel Icerigger
Icerigger
Icerigger is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster. Like many of Foster's science-fiction novels, Icerigger takes place within his Humanx Commonwealth universe-Plot:...
(1974).
Treetrunk
Treetrunk, also known as Argus V, has large polar icecaps that cover the majority of the surface. Only the equatorial regions are habitable by humans, the Thranx and AAnn have no interest in colonizing the planet due to it cold temperatures, though to humans the equatorial climate is a cool temperate.There is no native sentient race on Treetrunk, none ever having developed. Five years after human colonization, all 600,000 humans living on the planet were killed by the Pitar as the opening to the Humanx-Pitar war.
The planet was first formally introduced in Dirge
Dirge (novel)
Dirge is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster. The full title is sometimes shown as Dirge: Book Two of The Founding of the Commonwealth.-Plot summary:...
(2000).
Ulru-Ujurr
Ulru-Ujurr is currently under edict -- all travel to the planet is expressly forbidden -- by the United Church, ostensibly to protect the native primitive species. Surface is highly mountainous and while about one-fifth as large as Terra, gravity is similar due to the make-up of the planet’s core. Ulru-Ujurr has an irregular orbit that is slowly moving it away from its sun. This is the homeworld to the ursine Ulru-Ujurrians.The planet first appeared in the novel Orphan Star
Orphan Star
Orphan Star is a science fiction novel written by Alan Dean Foster. The book is Foster's eighteenth published book, his fifth original novel, and is chronologically the third entry in the Pip and Flinx series...
(1977).
Other planets
- Burley –
- Comagrave –
- Dawn – first interspecies fair site between humans and thranx
- Fluva – homeworld of the Sakuntala
- New Paris
- Repler –
- Tharce IV – homeworld of the Deyzara
- Willow-Wane – first colony world of the thranx