Salver has a long history of exploration and colonisation by people from Alver. It began pre-cataclysm, and has continued until the present day. Despite setbacks and the high costs, the rewards gained have proven worthwhile. Now, the powerful Steel Cities of post-cataclysm Alver continue this exercise, running their own colonies and facilities on the jungle continent of Salver.

From the earliest recorded history, humanity has looked to the sky and seen Salver looking back at them. Early experiments in optics allowed scientists armed with the first telescopes to see that Salver was indeed another world, and this pushed more to think about the possibility of visiting it. Finally, towards the end of the renaissance in 1666, the first humans (Olaus Winslowe, Resolved Moore, Cooper Chilton, Mary Crackstone) landed on Salver after a one way trip through an early Space Gun.

It was not until 1710 that the first permanent colony on Salver was founded - Dreysbank - and a Space Gun built there to allow return journeys. Soon, the scientists of Alver were receiving shipments and specimens of strange and exotic plants, animals, and minerals from Salver, which rapidly accelerated the pace of scientific development on Alver. The nations of Alver scrambled to found their own colonies.

It became apparent quickly that Salver was quite hostile to colonisation, and most hopeful colonies lasted only months before collapsing. Nevertheless, people kept trying, and Salver was at any time dotted with dozens of outposts and colonies, most of which would be abandoned within a year. During the Cataclysm and the Gloom the only remaining colonies left on Salver were cut off from supplies and collapsed.

After the Gloom and as the Steel Cities of Alver rose, interest in Salver quickly grew again. Using existing Space Guns under the control of the new Cities, settlers were sent to Salver once again.

The colonies are mostly used for hunting Skywhales as Skywhale oil is always in huge demand and fetches a worthwhile price for the expense of the colony. Some of the colonies also farm or mine other rare Salver products.

The colonies are located mostly around the shorelines of the continent, and towards the more temperate polar regions, where the weather is milder and the wildlife safer. Early pre-cataclysm colonies were often near the equator, which was one factor that led to their failures. These early colonies were started where they were because of the difficulty of constructing Space Gun capsules and reentry methods that could deal with the more oblique angles required to land nearer the poles. Sending capsules directly into the center of the Salver continent was easier to achieve for early engineers.

The colonists sent to Salver are a mixed lot, with each Steel City having different priorities and criteria for who they send, but, in general, due to the expense involved, only competent and loyal citizens are sent.

There are some independent homesteads on Salver, not affiliated with a colony or a Steel City. These people still rely on the colonies for goods and trade, and pay hefty tariffs to do so.

Society

Salver may be a colonised planet, but it has a permanent population, with many people having been born there and never having visited Alver. Some families can count back their ancestry over five generations on Salver. During the Gloom, Salver was entirely separated from Alver for many decades, and yet some colonies endured. The Salver dialect has moved slightly from the standard on Alver, but is still mutually intelligible.

New Tannenheim has some families that survived the Cataclysm and Gloom completely unaffected, and they carry the oldest continual Alver culture forwards. Most Salver families are Cavalotto Bohrist, many haven't even heard of modern reformed Bohrism.

People who spend many years on Salver have their skin become gradually bluer. It is not known why exactly this happens, but is assumed to be related to the Sky Plankton or the atmosphere in general. It's called the Salver look, and it begins as a greyish-silver sheen on people who have lived on Salver for a decade or more. They are known as silverskins. By three generations the skin is a pale sky blue. The oldest families have deep blue skin and are known as blueskins. Blueskins are deeply respected in Salver culture but are considered curiosities on Alver - on the very rare occasions they visit.

New Tannenheim

Saxa's colony New Tannenheim is the oldest colony on Salver, at 140 years. It is an established town with solid buildings and paved roads, and a population of Salver natives. It is by all accounts a friendly, comfortable town, and has both the lowest trade tariffs and largest Space Gun on Salver, making it the unofficial capital of the planet and the busiest port on it.

New Tannenheim is not especially profitable, as it has (unusually) never operated a Skywhaling industry. Instead, the colony's main industries are Protopitche mining and Salver Tabacco cultivation. The established workshops of New Tannenheim however mean that it is also the best source of locally made cheap goods on Salver.

Banksville

Modopolis's colony on Salver, Banksville has been operating very successfully for 40 years. The colony is run by the Salver Frontier Holding Company private group from Modopolis, who run the colony as a militarised penal colony with prisoner labour. Over the years there have been many prisoner escapes and riots; escaped Banksville labourers form the largest percentage of Salver bandits.

The main industries of Banksville are gold mining and Skywhaling. The colony operates a large restored Space Gun that has a high capacity for goods and is the second biggest on Salver. Free settlers are rare in Banksville but many Modopolis companies have skeleton offices here anyway for the prestige the address offers.

Picklebrooke

Originally founded by New Lange 70 years ago on the ruins of one of the oldest original colonies on Salver (dating back to the mid 1700s) and (nominally) still under their control is the colony of Picklebrooke. For all intents and purposes however the colony is independent, as New Lange is unable to protect or supply it at all. Pickelbrooke has been through many boom and bust periods, and the colony is a mess of old, new, abandoned, and repurposed buildings. The colony's Space Gun hasn't been operated in over 20 years due to lack of maintenance and all traffic and goods go through New Tannenheim.

The main industries of Pickelbrook are Salver Tulip farming and Skywhaling. The town is home to many bandits and desperadoes due to the weak rule of law there, and is also home to a growing population of Vulcanian immigrants.

Plentytown

Plentytown is the newest colony on Salver, established by Harvest only 14 years ago. It is built next to a small stream on top of a rocky mountain plateau towards the north pole of Salver. The nearest colony is New Tannenheim - at about 4 hours flight or a week's walk away.

The colony was meticulously planned and engineered, and is rather high tech, making use of modern electronics and machinery that Harvest sent at great expense. Plentytown pays this off through Skywhaling and refining primarily, though some farms are being established now. Plentytown operates an old restored Space Gun suitable for sending some goods or a handful of people back to Alver at a time.

Flashridge

Flashridge Observatory is a small research outpost run by Greenfield that collects small amounts of rare materials and provides a view of the stars not visible from Alver. It has no Space Gun, so workers have to trek there from elsewhere. The journey is very dangerous, as Flashridge is located on top of a mountain inside Salver's equatorial jungle. The outpost has a small range for rocket experiments as well.