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<blockquote data-quote="Bill Zebub" data-source="post: 8401127" data-attributes="member: 7031982">Carl Sagan once theorized about what life might look like if it existed &quot;on&quot; (&quot;in&quot;?) Jupiter.&nbsp; I think it involved enormous creatures that &quot;swam&quot; in the gas clouds.The first question to ask is how these islands &quot;float&quot;.&nbsp; If the answer is that the gas is so dense that they float normally, then you've just got a normal island/water world but with something other than water.&nbsp; Which isn't terribly interesting.&nbsp; So assuming that it's actual gas, and that you have some mechanism by which the islands float, I see two potentially interesting differences between this and a more typical island world:1. 3D.&nbsp; Not only do the ships travel in 3 dimensions, but the islands themselves won't necessarily all be at the same altitude.&nbsp; What determines the altitude of a given island, and does that altitude have any implications for status/trade/etc.?&nbsp; Are some strata better for travel/trade, but others have more pleasant climate?&nbsp; Maybe the calm ones are good for airships, but the stormy ones are good for growing crops?&nbsp; Are there strata perpetually enshrouded in thick clouds, where &quot;bad guys&quot; like to hide?2. Movement.&nbsp; Do the floating islands change position relative to each other?&nbsp; What are the implications for political structure and alliances?</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Bill Zebub, post: 8401127, member: 7031982"] Carl Sagan once theorized about what life might look like if it existed "on" ("in"?) Jupiter. I think it involved enormous creatures that "swam" in the gas clouds. The first question to ask is how these islands "float". If the answer is that the gas is so dense that they float normally, then you've just got a normal island/water world but with something other than water. Which isn't terribly interesting. So assuming that it's actual gas, and that you have some mechanism by which the islands float, I see two potentially interesting differences between this and a more typical island world: 1. 3D. Not only do the ships travel in 3 dimensions, but the islands themselves won't necessarily all be at the same altitude. What determines the altitude of a given island, and does that altitude have any implications for status/trade/etc.? Are some strata better for travel/trade, but others have more pleasant climate? Maybe the calm ones are good for airships, but the stormy ones are good for growing crops? Are there strata perpetually enshrouded in thick clouds, where "bad guys" like to hide? 2. Movement. Do the floating islands change position relative to each other? What are the implications for political structure and alliances? [/QUOTE]

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