Dalicron-4

"A man from the planet Dalicron-4 contacted us about a child that was strong in the Force. As you may know, the Jedi have passed from the galaxy, and so no one is really trained to look into this. You, however, have shown discretion and cleverness in your assignments, and we feel that you may be able to handle this one."

- Luke Skywalker

Dalicron-4 was a remote, little noticed planet far in the Outer Rim Territories. Although the world possessed a diverse and vibrant ecosystem, it was home to no more than 1,000 inhabitants, the descendants of colonists from the Galactic Republic. These citizens established and maintained an agrarian society that relied on barter and trade. The people of Dalicron-4 were suspicious of outsiders. Dalia, with a population of about 100, was the largest settlement. The world was known for its unpredictable and ferocious weather patterns. Immense storms wracked the countryside periodically, wreaking untold devestation in their wake.

Dalicron-4 had a long history with the Force. Nearly a milennium before the Battle of Yavin, a Jedi named Duumas uncovered a prophecy about a "Child of Light" who would be born with a unique attachment to the Force: the child could not use the Force himself, but others could channel the energy field through him to gain nearly unlimited access to it. Duumas willed his spirit into a tree on Dalicron-4 to create a zone where the Force had no effect and the child could one day be raised safely. Centuries later, a boy named Caeleb was born with the powers Duumas had foreseen. His parents, having seen Dalicron-4 in a vision, brought him there to live under the protection of Duumas's tree. In 3 ABY, a bounty hunter came for the boy, and the family fled the world with a group of operatives from the Alliance to Restore the Republic.

Description
"Storm's coming! A big one, too."

- Inhabitant of Dalia

Dalicron-4 was a terrestrial planet located in the Dalicron system, Dalicron sector, deep in the Outer Rim Territories. It was far from any major hyperlanes; traveling to the world from Kwenn Space Station took six days in hyperspace. The world was little known in other parts of the galaxy; in fact, nav computers seldom offered more information than the world's coordinates, and that only after relatively lengthy database searches. Few navigation charts included the planet.

The world appeared as a vibrant, blue and green globe when seen from space. It was 60% covered by land with the remaining 40% made up of lakes, rivers, and seas. The climate was temperate, varying from hot, equatorial reaches to frigid, polar zones. The soil was highly fertile, and most of the landmass was covered in dense plant growth: prairies and forests with trees that reached 30 meters in height.

The planet was periodically wracked by immense thunderstorms. These weather patterns regularly reached 130 km from one edge to the other, with some able to reach 320 km across. Winds reached more than 150 km/hr, and tornados often dropped from their midst. The inhabitants of the world had little idea how the storms formed; they seemed to occur randomly and wreak untold devastation. All the inhabitants could do was to secure their buildings and wait out the tempests (moving about outside was near suicidal, as visibility was nearly zero and left them easy prey for Dalicron-4's carnivorous species). Operating spacecraft was a risky proposition, as frequent flashes of lightning overrode sensors and confused viewport polarization systems, while gale-force winds changed direction unpredictably and battered the hull. The storms could last from a mere few minutes to several hours.

History
"You . . . You have to save Caeleb. He must not fall to the darkness. You will find him in the place of no Force. You must hurry."

- Gel

Nearly 1,000 years before the Battle of Yavin, a Jedi Master named Duumas discovered a prophecy that foretold that a "Child of Light", a boy with the ability to amplify the Force abilities of those around him, would come to Dalicron-4. Fearing the child might fall prey to an evil Force-user, the Jedi willed his spirit into a tree on the world, killing his physical body and sacrificing his ability to use the Force. The act created a 50-meter zone in which the Force seemed to have no influence or presence, a safe haven for the Child of Light to eventually find haven.

Around 800 BBY, a group from the Inner Rim had grown fed up with their fast-moving, busy lives as members of the Galactic Republic. Under the leadership of a being named Dalia, they traveled to Dalicron-4 and founded the town of Dalia, named for their leader. Other settlers followed, but the world's total population never grew large. By 3 ABY, Dalicron-4 was home to only about 1,000 sentients.

During the rise of the Empire, two Force-sensitive humans had a child they named Caeleb. They could tell the boy had an unusual connection to the Force; it was so strong that they feared the Force might overwhelm their son. One day, the boy's father had a vision of a place of sanctuary where Caeleb might enjoy a normal childhood: the place was Dalicron-4. The family moved to the remote world along with Caeleb's older sister, Jhara, and his grandfather, Gel, a former Jedi and veteran of the Clone Wars. They took up residence near the Force-nullifying tree where Jedi Master Duumas's spirit resided. There, Caeleb grew up ignorant of the Force and its potential. The family took up farming.

By 3 ABY, tales of the exploits of Luke Skywalker had reached Dalicron-4. The old Jedi Gel sent a message to the Alliance to Restore the Republic asking them to send Skywalker to speak to him about the boy. Gel was afraid Darth Vader and the Galactic Empire might find Caeleb and misuse him. He hoped they might escort him and his family from the world and into Alliance custody.

Unable to spare Skywalker, the Alliance sent a team of agents. They located the boy and rescued him from a Whiphid bounty hunter named Tol Skaros, who had already dispatched the boys parents and grandfather. Fearing the worse should they dally, they quickly fled the world.

Meanwhile, an Imperial Nebulon-B frigate called the Harasser arrived in the system and placed Dalicron-4 under quarantine. A Rebel scout named Thaum Rystra appeared, claiming to be a lieutenant of the Rebel Alliance. He ordered the Imperials to let the ship jump to hyperspace, and the Child of Light escaped the system.

Inhabitants
Dalicron had about 1,000 inhabitants. Those in and around the town of Dalia made their livings primarily through agriculture. Dalia's population was overwhelmingly human, although other species, such as Ho'Din, Ithorians and Rodians, were present in smaller numbers.

The typical outfit of a Dalian was a dress for a woman and a tunic, trousers, and vest for a man. The world received few visitors from offworld, and the people tended to be suspicious of outsiders. Dalians in particular largely distrusted strangers, although they knew that trade with them was a necessary evil. Nevertheless, they did not recognize credits (or any other currency for that matter), preferring instead the barter system. The technology level on the world was behind that of the rest of the galaxy, and high technology could be traded for precious items.

The planet's inhabitants farmed nerfs, which they used for both milk and meat. Other farmers raised Cracian thumpers. Local foods and drinks were beer, cider, fruit juices, wine, potatoes, gravy, and bread.

Several predatory species roamed Dalicron-4. They often preyed on hapless victims of the planet's unpredictable megastorms. The verlen was one of these; it hunted the forest in packs.

Locations
"Well, just settle in. These things can get real nasty. Daz's is about as safe as it gets during one of these things. Better than being on your ship. How about another drink?"

- Thaum Rystra

Dalia was Dalicron-4's largest settlement, but even it had only 100 citizens. It was a small settlement, with only six or so buildings in the town in 3 ABY (most citizens of the region instead lived on farms in the surrounding area). The social hub of the settlement was Daz's Tavern, a wooden structure that served food and drink. The town had the only starship landing field, which had facilities to put up eight light freighters but lacked refueling and repair facilities. No one manned the landing field, so communications from space and requests for landing clearance went unanswered.

The tree into which the Jedi Master Duumas willed his spirit was located in the vicinity of Dalia. It created a strange, 50-meter zone where the Force did not penetrate and where the raging storms of the planet had no effect. It had a stark white trunk and two-tone leaves; the tops were deep green, and the bottoms were yellow. The leaves and branches swayed at all times, regardless of any wind blowing.

Behind the scenes
Dalicron-4 is the backdrop of "Child of Light", an adventure for the Child of Light trilogy of The Star Wars Roleplaying Game from Wizards of the Coast. The adventure misspells the world's name as Dalinar-4 on p. 7.

Appearances

 * Child of Light