Labyrinths

Beneath the surface of Kepler lies this subterranean world, rife with still-uncharted territories and inhabited by hostile fauna such as Skitter-Hounds, also called Chittering, and Vashollows.

Deeper, more specialized sectors include flooded, pitch-black lower areas and high-pressure, lightless cavern systems.

The environment is extremely hazardous. Some areas experience high gravity, while others are subjected to immense atmospheric pressure. Constant threats from the local ecosystem make even seemingly stable areas dangerous.

Exploration and extraction require specialized skills, equipment, and often high-grade Psions or coordinated parties.

Hollowborn

Hollowborn form a distinct under-society living primarily in the upper crust of the Labyrinths.

They are a genetic subgroup whose biology was fundamentally altered by centuries of adaptation to lightless, high-gravity caverns.

Key Traits

• Stunted growth, averaging approximately 4–4.5 feet tall.
• Bone and muscle density rivaling steel.
• Adaptation to extreme atmospheric pressure.
• Zero natural Psine capacity — they cannot use Psinecraft.

Instead, Hollowborn rely on Psine-powered technology, mining equipment, and artificial systems.

They are the premier miners of the Labyrinths, extracting critical resources and crafting weapons. Some assist or join surface adventurers, although they depend heavily on tools because they lack innate powers.

Hollowborn must constantly defend their territories against Labyrinth fauna.

Pelagic Strigois

Other groups, such as certain Pelagic Strigois, have been pushed into the flooded, pitch-black lower Labyrinth sectors.

These marine-adapted Strigois possess merfolk- or siren-like characteristics and may have Totems associated with creatures such as megalodons and anglerfish.

The labyrinth and adventurer economy is Kepler’s single most profitable economic sector by a wide margin, exceeding even technology, the second-largest sector, which itself depends heavily on labyrinth-sourced materials.

Even nations with only average labyrinth utilization can generate at least 100 billion UK in annual economic activity from the industry.

The Extraction Chain

Labyrinths → Adventurers → Psinecores & Materials → Refinement → Manufacturing → Technology, Psinecraft, Weapons, Infrastructure → Global Economy

Adventurers function as the primary high-risk resource extractors. The deeper and more dangerous the Labyrinth, the higher the potential value of what is recovered.

Skitter-Hound

The Skitter-Hound is a vicious Class C beast that travels and attacks in packs of no less than 20.

Individually, a Skitter-Hound is relatively easy to defeat. Once they sense a target, however, they swarm their prey and can tear it apart with their numerous teeth.

They are approximately wolf-sized, low to the ground, and scurry using 6–8 legs. Their most distinctive feature is their frantic violet eyes.

Skitter-Hounds mainly inhabit the 10th–25th Stratas, colloquially known among adventurers and explorers as The Proving Grounds.

If you hear the chittering in the dark, run. If you see the eyes it’s already too late.
— Old Irie Proverb

Their Psinecores trade for approximately 500–2,500 UK and form the foundation of everyday civilian Psine technology, including engines, lighting, and basic industry.

Vashollow

Vashollows are often described as bipedal skinwalkers with pale skin and claws as sharp as blades, capable of cutting through bone with ease.

They are gaunt to the point of emaciation, yet possess abnormal physical strength.

Vashollows only eat other Labyrinth creatures, not humans. This does not make them friendly toward humans.

They are surprisingly intelligent and will kill humans to use their remains as bait to lure other beasts from the Labyrinths.

They are officially classified as Class A beasts. Unlike many other dangerous creatures, they do not travel in packs, but usually remain within the same vicinity. If one is encountered, a party should therefore be prepared to face at least five.

Their primary habitat is between the 26th–40th Stratas. This is where most adventuring parties reach a hard cap on their capabilities, meaning only the truly elite or foolish venture farther.

Because of this, these Stratas are colloquially known as The Stasis Zone.

Vashollow Psinecores can sell for approximately 50,000–100,000 UK on official markets, or 150,000–300,000+ UK on black markets.

Gashadokuro

Gashadokuro are gigantic 15–30 foot monstrosities whose bones are as hard as Astralium steel, the hardest naturally occurring metal on Kepler.

The only reliable way to defeat a Gashadokuro is to somehow pierce its thick skull.

Any attack that fails to kill it is converted into Psine and absorbed through its bones, making the creature even stronger. As a result, traditional Psinecraft abilities can become worse than useless against them.

They are classified as Class A to Class S monsters and are generally considered the domain of legendary Wanderers or highly specialized parties whose members possess exceptional synergy and tactical coordination.

Gashadokuros inhabit the 41st–50th Stratas, colloquially referred to as The Exile Belt or The Point of No Return.

For better or worse, adventurers and explorers who cross these Stratas often return fundamentally changed. Their outlook, status, relationships, and way of life may all be different afterward.

Because of this, many adventurers deliberately design their parties with reaching these depths as their goal, sometimes disregarding the potential payout entirely.

A party that successfully defeats a Gashadokuro instantly gains legendary status.

Gashadokuro Psinecores offer life-changing exchange rates, ranging from approximately 300 million–1 billion UK.

A single Gashadokuro Psinecore can power an entire mansion’s equipment for approximately 100 years.

Possession of one can make an adventurer famous overnight — or make them the target of corporations, guilds, and governments.

Delsur and Gashadokuro Psinecores

Delsur, Kepler’s most energy-hungry nation and a neon-saturated hyper-capitalist hub, consumes the equivalent of roughly one Gashadokuro Psinecore per month for its scientific laboratories alone, or approximately 12 per year.

Its total national consumption is considerably higher.

Access to Labyrinth resources is therefore a major strategic concern for energy-intensive states.

Adventurer ranks are roughly aligned with, but not identical to, Psion Grades. Unlike Psion Grades, which primarily measure the magnitude of an individual’s power, Adventurer Plates are based more heavily on mission difficulty and demonstrated field capability.

As a result, several Siege-grade Psions can form a party capable of regularly defeating Class A beasts or completing Class A missions and thereby achieving Gold Plate status.

Quest/Monster Class	Psion Grade	Adventurer Rank
D	Tool	Copper Plate
C	Weapons	Bronze Plate
B	Siege	Silver Plate
A	Military	Gold Plate
S	Nuclear	Diamond Plate

Average parties are mostly Bronze-Plate with a Silver-Plate leader.

Legendary parties tend to lean toward Silver-Plate members with Gold-Plate leadership.

A successful Silver Plate adventurer can gross over 300,000–500,000 UK annually, netting roughly 150,000–250,000 UK after high overhead costs including licenses, taxes, equipment, medical supplies, and logistics.

Only approximately 8% of the Psion population possesses Siege-grade capability.

Stratas 1–10

Colloquially known as “The Shallows”

Environment: Bioluminescent fungal forests, pale trees, and stable atmospheric pressure.

Civilization: Partially tamed. Eiria has reinforced paths, freight lifts known as The Five Mouths, and commuter routes.

Economy & Threats: Safe enough for travel, although unlit areas still harbor minor predators. Copper Plate adventurers operate here, farming low-level-value Psinecores to pay their bills.

Encountering a Vashollow or Gashadokuro here is extremely unlikely.

Stratas 11–25

Colloquially known as “The Proving Grounds”

The name comes from the fact that these depths represent the point at which inexperienced adventurers begin being separated from those capable of surviving the true dangers of the Labyrinths.

Environment: The light begins to fail. The biomes become stranger, including crystallized oceans, petrified jungles, and massive caverns with their own weather systems.

Economy & Threats: This is the primary hunting ground for the adventuring industry. Skitter-Hounds and other lower-quality creatures roam these depths.

Bronze Plate teams spend much of their time mapping these Stratas, which make up the bulk of the Labyrinth economy.

Stratas 26–40

Colloquially known as “The Stasis Zone”

The name refers to the point where the capabilities of most adventuring parties effectively reach a ceiling. Progress beyond these depths requires increasingly specialized abilities, equipment, knowledge, and teamwork.

Vashollows and other stronger or more intelligent beasts dwell here.

Silver Plate adventurers bring back valuable Psinecores for the Delsur technology markets.

Stratas 41–50

Colloquially known as “The Exile Belt ” or “The Point of No Return”

Neither name necessarily represents an official designation. Both emerged from the culture surrounding the Labyrinths and the reputation of those who venture this deep.

The name “Point of No Return”, in particular, carries a deeper cultural meaning. For better or worse, adventurers and explorers who cross these Stratas are often said to return as completely different people, if they return at all.

Threats: Gold Plate territory. Adventurers rarely come this deep unless they are on a sponsored, high-stakes commission.

Gashadokuros begin to appear within these Stratas.

Stratas 51 and beyond

Colloquially known as “The Abyssal Zone”

The depths beyond the 50th Strata are collectively referred to by various names, with “The Abyssal Zone” being the most common scholarly and adventurer terms.

Environment: Extremely hostile and largely uncharted.

The landscape may be littered with pre-Convergence War ruins. Complete sensory deprivation is common, gravity may fluctuate, and the physical laws of Kepler begin to warp under the immense concentration of raw, unrefined Psine produced by specialized plants, animals, and beasts.

Diamond Plate adventurers are anomalies in these depths.

Conspiracy theories claim that Dragons were born within these Stratas before being carried to the surface by legendary explorers and Wanderers.

A single creature from these depths could potentially obliterate a surface city. Entire expeditions vanish here without a trace.

The 100th Strata

The Myth: No one has ever reached the 100th Strata and returned.

The Lore: Scholars debate what lies at the absolute bottom.

Some Lalumists believe it is the birthplace of Psinecraft or the location where the Goddess Lalume first walked.

Neo-Cartaists believe it holds the charter of the Book of Canonization.

Rumors claim there are at least one hundred Stratas within the Labyrinths.

Going beyond the 50th Strata reportedly requires the clearance of a Great Wanderer or high-level authorization from the World Council.

The creatures beneath these depths are known only through the accounts of the magnificent few who have ventured there — and the many who never returned.

The Hollow-Kepler Theory is a collection of conspiracy theories suggesting that the Labyrinths were not entirely formed through natural geological processes.

Some versions claim the Labyrinths were created by aliens or an ancient civilization that lived underground.

Another variation suggests that early humans may have originated within the Labyrinths before eventually migrating to the surface and establishing modern Keplerian civilization.

Labyrinths are a major driving force behind the romantic Age of the Wanderer ideal — the drive to chart the unknown, uncover lost remnants of the past, and seek fortune, glory, or wonders.

People such as Ramone Mari dream of navigating underground Labyrinths as part of following in their father’s Great Wanderer footsteps.

The Great Wanderers themselves are strongly associated with this exploratory frontier.

At the same time, Labyrinths represent extreme risk and the raw economic engine of the world.

They sit at the intersection of adventure, resource geopolitics, technological progress, and the constant tension between surface civilization and the dangerous depths below.