Planet:Lilon

Lilon was the moon of the planet Nerophion. A world of swamps, bogs and bayous, Lilon was settled early in the space-faring history of the Paingler. Apart from the immigrants and colonists from the world it orbited, Lilon had no notable intelligent life. It served primarily as the focus site of the first "exodus" when the Paingler achieved advanced space-flight and the technology capable of colonizing other worlds. Since, the planet has been used primarily as a center of agriculture, exporting raw materials from the swamps, as well as flora and fauna "farmed" on the surface. Regardless of the presence of Paingler colonization, the world was widely uninhabited, with one major center of civilization and a scattering of farming settlements.

Geography
Lilon, much like Nerophion, was a harsh and humid planet. It was covered by vast tracts of swamps and rivers, draining into shallow marshlands and bogs, with strands of jungles in between. Rocky mountains poked up here and there on the surface, barely rising over the dense swamps and rainforests. Unlike Nerophion, and despite being primarily composed of water, there were very few true open bodies of water on the planet; a handful of large lakes made up the majority of the planet's water cover, with the rest spreading out as streams, rivers and creeks that crept through swamps and marsh.

Rainfall was frequent, so much so that it was considered abnormal for a day to not have rain. Like Nerophion, vicious storms oftentimes wracked the planet. The atmosphere and climate was considered murky and "oppressive"; a mixture of high heat and very damp conditions made things singularly unpleasant. Traveling through the swamps and marsh without caution was dangerous, as the muddy and watery conditions often made travel very difficult and served as formidable obstacles: accounts of unwary travelers being sucked under the mud or tripping over roots are frequent. Travel by the waterways was not much different, as the rain made the rivers and creeks swell and run fast.

Flora
Lilon was home to a variety of different plant species, primarily trees, mosses and vines. Native trees grew upwards of several stories on average, composing a dense upper canopy. Smaller trees made up a "middle" canopy, with only the ground below. The tallest trees grew extremely wide and their bark and branches were difficult to cut by hand, hence earning them the moniker of "metalbark trees". From the trees, numerous species of fruit grew, with the most popular two being the sweet-fruit - a vaguely star shaped red fruit with a very sweet flavor - and the so called "meat" fruit, so named after the dull, meaty flavor.

Numerous other planets flourished on the planet, ranging from flowers to ferns that congested the shores of the waterways. Like Nerophion, Lilon had species of carnivorous plants, although in greater numbers than its parent planet. The claw plant was said to resemble the claw of a crustacean and used its startling strength to grip prey until it was consumed. Another species used bio-luminescence to attract nocturnal creatures - primarily insects. The snatcher vine, once indigenous to Nerophion, was transported here and has since flourished.

A curious flower that grew on Lilon grew to several feet in diameter. While toxic, this plant was a curiosity, as the scent if gave off depended on the amount of rainwater it received: copious amounts of watering led to a more fruity smell, whereas deprivation or water shortage caused this scent to smell like rotting flesh. This plant was often called the "heart-of-the-swamp", due to it's bloody red and grey color, as well as its size and tendency to grow further inland.

Fauna
Unlike Nerophion, which was inhabited primarily by aquatic animals such as fish and cephalopods, Lilon had a diverse range of animal life. Most of the animals on the planet stayed in the upper reaches of the jungle canopies or within the mud and murk of the swamp floor. Curiously, there were little examples of "cross rangers", or species of animals that traversed from one environment to another.