Difference between revisions of "Equestrian Physics"

Revision as of 00:10, 3 November 2011

The Curious Physical World of Equestria: Part 1, The Sky

Weather within Equestria would be mostly normal if not for pegasi. In many areas of high pony population, there are weather teams where cloud cover is manipulated by Pegasi. Over the years, Pegasi have learned to use cloud cover patterns to manipulate temperature gradients and produce predictable wind patterns. Wind pattern regulation requires extensive cooperation between weather teams in various cities and this is now managed via a central weather command in Cloudsdale. In addition, Cloudsdale, among a few other floating cities (see below), have facilities to produce weather phenomena, which they then sell as commodities. Rainbows, storm clouds, and snowflakes are produced and sold where they are needed. Buyers are mostly city funded weather teams, but some large plantation farmers are known to purchase rain clouds for their orchards. The result of all these weather related ministrations is that many ponies enjoy a veritable "climate controlled" outdoors. The downside, which few ponies dwell on, is that on the boundaries of "controlled" sky, one can see strange and powerful weather patterns, including tornadoes, heavy thunderstorms, and a phenomenon known to Pegasus scholars as "Electro-Rainblooms". Boundary zones exist mainly near the central volcanic region of Equestria and the bounding mountain ranges. Some entrepreneurial pegasi attempt to harvest these severe weather products for sale, but the business is dangerous and most ponies have opted for laboratory grown weather.

Cloud Interaction Rules

Clouds are very light, with a density that is only just lighter than air at the surface. The lowest lying clouds with enough cloudstuff for appreciable manipulation (exceeding the size of a pony), are as low as 50 feet from the ground. The existence of these low lying clouds and their vast prevalence has been shown to be a consequence of weather manipulation. See the table below for various standard manipulations of cloudstuff one can perform (applies only to pegasi and griffons. All other creatures cannot interact with clouds):

Manipulation Description	        | Rules Description
Push/Pull/Drag	                | Treat as std object with mass of 1 kg per
                                   cubic meter (0.062 pounds per cubic foot)
Break	                        | Treat as std object with -5 hardness and 1
                                   HP per cubic meter (0.062 HP per cubic foot)*
Form	                        | Treat as clay, follow crafting rules to 
                                   determine outcome complexity**
Cause Precipitation	        | Profession (Weather Team) Check DC 15***

• When breaking a cloud, treat the entire cloud as a single object with total hitpoints according to its volume. The cloud will shrink in volume by an amount proportional to the damage you deal to the cloud. Negative hardness means that the cloud takes additional damage equal to the specified negative hardness on a sunder attempt. Finally, cloud sundering can result as a by product of rapid movement into a cloud. If you wish to ram through a cloud, the damage you deal to it is a function of your move speed. Damage dealt to a cloud via ramming it is: Move Speed - 25, which includes a cloud's hardness. In our example Rainbow Dash build, at level 12 she has 160 feet move speed and thus would be able to deal 135 damage to a cloud by ramming it. After a section of cloud has been destroyed, you may continue your move, possibly again encountering more cloud stuff and attempting additional cloud destruction.
  • Clouds can be fashioned to interact with ordinary objects via a relatively inexpensive material called Cloud Sand, which costs 25g per pound. One ounce is enough to "fix" 10 cubic meters of cloud. Cloud affected by Cloud Sand is more resistant to destruction, gaining a hardness of 5 (+10 from unmodified cloud), and will not precipitate its moisture. Cloud Sand, which is produced through an alchemical modification of normal sand (craft DC 20), is the basis for cloud cities like Cloudsdale. Buildings and roads may be produced from sand-fixed clouds.
    • DC 15 Prof (Weather Team ) produces a light rain. DC 20 produces a heavy rain. DC 25 allows the production of snow. DC 30 produces a torrential downpour or hail.

Rainbows

Rain has an obvious economic benefit for farmers, and farming demands drive the bulk of weather manipulation market, but in Equestria rainbows are also considered an economic product. Rainbows are a decorative product. Most town festivals require a rainbow or two and several holidays employ rainbow shows, which are similar to firework displays. Rainbows are shipped in a distilled and concentrated form, and this form can also be used as an expensive food garnish. Commercially produced rainbows are somewhat different than real rainbows. They're actually thin partially fixed cloud stuff mixed with optical enhancing organic crystals. The crystals and the cloud fixing agent is what gives these commercially produced rainbows their characteristic spicy flavor. When used as a food garnish, one is not supposed to eat it, but it isn't toxic.