DayTrippers Planet Generation System

Apr 17, 2025

The interstellar destination below was created using the DayTrippers Planet Generation rules (now in beta testing). Click here to generate another one.

0) {
$planetCount += rand(1,6);
$planetCountDice–;
}
return $planetCount;
}

function planetSize($planetMod) {
$planetSizeArray = array(“”, “”, “Small Rock Planet”, “Small Rock Planet”, “Asteroid”, “Moon”, “Artificial Satellite”, “Medium Rock Planet”, “Large Rock Planet”, “Gas Giant”, “Gas Giant”, “Gas Giant”, “Rogue Planet”);
$gravityModArray = array(0, 0, -3, -3, -3, -5, -2, -1, 0, 5, 5, 5, -3);
$planetSizeRoll = rand(1,6) + rand(1,6) + $planetMod;
if($planetSizeRoll < 2) { $planetSizeRoll = 2; } if($planetSizeRoll > 12) {
$planetSizeRoll = 12;
}
$planetSize = $planetSizeArray[$planetSizeRoll];
$gravityMod = $gravityModArray[$planetSizeRoll];
return array($planetSize, $gravityMod);
}

function gravity($gravityMod) {
$gravityBase = 0;
$divide = 0;
$gravityArray = array(“”, “”, “12”, “12”, “12”, “11”, “11”, “1”, “2”, “2”, “2”, “4”, “4”, “4”, “6”);
$atmoModArray = array(0, 0, -2, -2, -2, -1, -1, 0, 3, 3, 3, 5, 5, 5, 6);
$gravityRoll = rand(1,6) + rand(1,6) + $gravityMod;
if($gravityRoll < 2) { $gravityRoll = 2; } if($gravityRoll > 14) {
$gravityRoll = 14;
}
$gravityVal = $gravityArray[$gravityRoll];
if($gravityVal > 10) {
$gravityVal -= 10;
$divide = 1;
}
while($gravityVal > 0) {
$gravityBase += rand(1,6);
$gravityVal–;
}
if($divide) {
$gravity = number_format(1 / $gravityBase, 2);
} else {
$gravity = $gravityBase;
}
$atmoMod = $atmoModArray[$gravityRoll];
return array($gravity, $atmoMod);
}

function atmosphere($atmoMod, $gravity = 1) {
$atmoArray = array(“”, “”, “Atmosphere is escaping the planet”, “Atmosphere is escaping the planet”, “Atmosphere is escaping the planet”, “Extremely thin, no Oxygen”, “Chlorine”, “Carbon Dioxide”, “Nitrogen/Oxygen with heavy gases, Propane, Butane”, “Dense Air (Nitrogen/Oxygen)”, “Nitrogen/Oxygen with Ozone in Stratosphere”, “Nitrogen/Oxygen with trace toxins”, “Ammonia & Methane”, “Hydrogen & Helium”, “Exotic toxic gases”);
$waterModArray = array(0, 0, -6, -6, -6, -6, -4, -3, -2, -1, 1, 0, -4, -5, -6);
$atmosphereRoll = rand(1,6) + rand(1,6) + $atmoMod;
if($atmosphereRoll < 2) { $atmosphereRoll = 2; } if($atmosphereRoll > 14) {
$atmosphereRoll = 14;
}
$atmosphere = $atmoArray[$atmosphereRoll];
$waterMod = $waterModArray[$atmosphereRoll];
$pressure = $atmosphereRoll * $gravity;
return array($atmosphere, $waterMod, $pressure);
}

function water($waterMod) {
$waterArray = array(“”, “”, “No standing water”, “Arid rock/desert world, very little standing water”, “Arid rock/desert world, very little standing water”, “Arid rock/desert world, very little standing water”, “Semi-Arid world, water frozen or beneath surface”, “land”, “land”, “Ocean world”, “Water vapor makes up most of the atmosphere”);
$waterRoll = rand(1,6) + rand(1,6) + $waterMod;
if($waterRoll < 2) { $waterRoll = 2; } if($waterRoll > 10) {
$waterRoll = 10;
}
$water = $waterArray[$waterRoll];
return $water;
}

function climate() {
$climateArray = array(“”, “”, “Frozen solid; ice & rock”, “Frozen solid; ice & rock”, “Arctic conditions”, “Arctic conditions”, “Cold”, “Temperate”, “Hot”, “Greenhouse conditions”, “Greenhouse conditions”, “Wildly variable”, “Hellish”);
$precipDLArray = array(0, 0, 0, 0, 5, 5, 6, 7, 9, 8, 8, 5, 10);
$climateRoll = rand(1,6) + rand(1,6);
if($climateRoll < 2) { $climateRoll = 2; } if($climateRoll > 12) {
$climateRoll = 12;
}
$climate = $climateArray[$climateRoll];
$precipDL = $precipDLArray[$climateRoll];
return array($climate, $precipDL);
}

function biosphere() {
$biosphereArray = array(“”, “”, “Biotoxins in atmosphere”, “Biotoxins in atmosphere”, “No life”, “No life”, “Proto-organisms in suspension”, “Proto-organisms and non-mobile lifeforms”, “Non-sentient lower lifeforms”, “Sentient lifeforms”, “Sentient lifeforms”, “Highly evolved lifeforms”, “Highly evolved lifeforms”);
$biosphereRoll = rand(1,6) + rand(1,6);
$biosphere = $biosphereArray[$biosphereRoll];
return $biosphere;
}

/* BIDNEZ */

$starIndex = 0;
$starType = ‘Star’;
$stars = array();
$planetName = planetName();

$starSizeData = starSize();
/*
$stars[0][‘starSize’] = $starSizeData[0];
$stars[0][‘colorMod’] = $starSizeData[1];
$stars[0][‘planetMod’] = $starSizeData[2];
*/
$starSize = $starSizeData[0];
$colorMod = $starSizeData[1];
$planetMod = $starSizeData[2];

$starColorData = starColor($colorMod, 0); // 1=forcespecial 0=dont
$starColor = $starColorData[0];
$planetCountDice = $starColorData[1];
if($starColor == ‘Special’) {
$starSpecial = specialStar();
$starType = $starSpecial;
switch($starSpecial) {
case ‘Dwarf’ :
$starSize = ‘less than 0.1 times ‘;
$starType = ‘Dwarf Star’;
$starColorData = starColor(0);
$starColor = $starColorData[0];
if($starColor == ‘Special’) {
$starColor = ‘Black’;
}
break;
case ‘Cluster’ :
$starType = ‘Star’;
$starIndex++;
$starColorData = starColor(0);
$starColor = $starColorData[0];
if($starColor == ‘Special’) {
$starSize = ‘- tiny compared to ‘;
$starType = ‘Neutron Star’;
$starColor = ”;
}
break;
case ‘Nova’ :
$starSize = (rand(1,6) * rand(1,6) * 10) . ‘ light-years across’;
$starColor = ”;
break;
case ‘Brown Dwarf Star’ :
case ‘Pulsar’ :
case ‘Quasar’ :
case ‘Black Hole’ :
$starSize = ‘- tiny compared to ‘;
$starColor = ”;
break;
default :
$starType = ‘Star’;
break;
}
}
$stars[0][‘starSize’] = $starSize;
$stars[0][‘starType’] = $starType;
$stars[0][‘starColor’] = $starColor;

if($starIndex) {
while($starIndex > 0) {
$starSizeData = starSize();
$starSize = $starSizeData[0];
$colorMod = $starSizeData[1];
$planetMod = $starSizeData[2];
$starColorData = starColor($colorMod);
$starColor = $starColorData[0];
// $planetCountDice = $starColorData[1];
if($starColor == ‘Special’) {
$starSpecial = specialStar();
$starType = $starSpecial;
switch($starSpecial) {
case ‘Dwarf’ :
$starSize = ‘less than 0.1 times ‘;
$starType = ‘Dwarf Star’;
$starColorData = starColor(0);
$starColor = $starColorData[0];
if($starColor == ‘Special’) {
$starColor = ‘Black’;
}
break;
case ‘Cluster’ :
$starType = ‘Star’;
$starIndex++;
$starColorData = starColor(0);
$starColor = $starColorData[0];
if($starColor == ‘Special’) {
$starSize = ‘- tiny compared to ‘;
$starType = ‘Neutron Star’;
$starColor = ”;
}
break;
case ‘Nova’ :
$starSize = (rand(1,6) * rand(1,6) * 10) . ‘ light-years across’;
$starColor = ”;
break;
case ‘Brown Dwarf Star’ :
case ‘Pulsar’ :
case ‘Quasar’ :
case ‘Black Hole’ :
$starSize = ‘- tiny compared to ‘;
$starColor = ”;
break;
default :
$starType = ‘Star’;
break;
}
}
$stars[$starIndex][‘starSize’] = $starSize;
$stars[$starIndex][‘starType’] = $starType;
$stars[$starIndex][‘starColor’] = $starColor;
$starIndex–;
}
}

$planetCount = planetCount($planetCountDice);
$romanArray = array(”, ‘I’, ‘II’, ‘III’, ‘IV’, ‘V’, ‘VI’, ‘VII’, ‘VIII’, ‘IX’, ‘X’, ‘XI’, ‘XII’, ‘XIII’, ‘XIV’, ‘XV’, ‘XVI’, ‘XVII’, ‘XVIII’);
$planetNumber = rand(1,$planetCount);
$romanNumber = $romanArray[$planetNumber];

$planetSizeData = planetSize($planetMod);
$planetSize = $planetSizeData[0];
$gravityMod = $planetSizeData[1];

$gravityData = gravity($gravityMod);
$gravity = $gravityData[0];
$atmoMod = $gravityData[1];

$atmosphereData = atmosphere($atmoMod, $gravity);
$atmosphere = $atmosphereData[0];
$waterMod = $atmosphereData[1];
$pressure = $atmosphereData[2];

$water = water($waterMod);
if($water == ‘land’) {
$watercover = (rand(1,6)+3)*10;
$landcover = 100 – $watercover;
$water = $landcover . ‘% land, ‘ . $watercover . ‘% water’;
}

$climateData = climate();
$climate = $climateData[0];
$precipDL = $climateData[1];

$biosphere = biosphere();

/* DISPLAY */

echo ‘STELLAR SYSTEM ‘ . strtoupper($planetName) . ‘
‘;
$i = 1;
switch(count($stars)) {
case 5 :
echo ‘Pentary System:’;
break;
case 4 :
echo ‘Quadrary System:’;
break;
case 3 :
echo ‘Trinary System:’;
break;
case 2 :
echo ‘Binary System:’;
break;
default :
break;
}
foreach($stars AS $thing) {
if(count($stars) > 1) {
echo ‘
‘ . $i . ‘. ‘;
}
if($thing[‘starColor’] AND $thing[‘starColor’] == ‘Orange’) {
echo ‘An ‘;
} else {
echo ‘A ‘;
}
if($thing[‘starColor’]) {
echo $thing[‘starColor’] . ‘ ‘;
}
echo $thing[‘starType’] . ‘ ‘;
echo $thing[‘starSize’];
if($thing[‘starType’] != ‘Nova’) {
echo ‘the size of Sol’;
}
$i++;
}
echo ‘
‘;
echo ‘with ‘ . $planetCount;
if($planetCount == 1) {
echo ‘ planet in orbit.
‘;
} else {
echo ‘ planets in orbit.
‘;
}
echo ‘
‘ . strtoupper($planetName) . ‘ ‘ . $romanNumber . ‘
‘;
echo ‘TYPE: ‘ . $planetSize . ‘
‘;
echo ‘GRAVITY: ‘ . $gravity . ‘ G
‘;
echo ‘ATMOSPHERE: ‘ . $atmosphere . ‘
‘;
echo ‘PRESSURE: ‘ . $pressure . ‘ Earth atmospheres
‘;
if($planetSize != ‘Gas Giant’) {
echo ‘WATER: ‘ . $water . ‘
‘;
}
echo ‘CLIMATE: ‘ . $climate . ‘
‘;
echo ‘PRECIP DL: ‘ . $precipDL . ‘
‘;
echo ‘BIOSPHERE: ‘ . $biosphere . ‘
‘;

?>


‘;
?>

DayTrippers is a Surreal Science Fiction Reality-Hopping OSR RPG. Now available at RPGnow.com.

Explore More Insights

Spork meets Spiderman

In 2003 webmaster colleague and Web405 listmom Dennis Wilen announced a project called The Spacebrothers' World Tour, in which dozens of inflatable aliens were shopped off to various locations all across the globe. Project participants endeavored to utilize these...

read more

The F.I.R.M. System – How Interactive Are Your Media?

The word "Interactive" has been applied to virtually everything, from electronic toys to sophisticated works of tech-art. But what exactly is "Interactivity"? The computer has been described as "an interactive tool". But if I pick up a...

read more

The Art of Ambistructure

14 January 4437: En route to the city of Sanctuary, Blandisford Barter encounters an Elven minstrel on the Bridge at Three Roads Crossing. The RunePlayer introduces himself as Rimsel, and informs Barter that he has been sent by the Council of Deneldor to oversee the...

read more