Aiur

Aiur is the homeworld of the protoss, located in a star system with a single yellow star and possessing a single moon not unlike Luna. It is at least the third of the system's terrestrial planets, if not further out.

History
Aiur is a huge world located on the fringes of the Milky Way Galaxy. It was engineered by the xel'naga and left to itself for a long period of time. When the xel'naga returned, they discovered the protoss on the world. They guided protoss evolution, albeit too fast. As a result, they were forced to flee, and the protoss fell into a racial madness-fueled conflict called the Aeon of Strife.

When the xel'naga were forced to flee the world, they left behind large amounts of khaydarin crystals.

Aiur was devastated in the Aeon of Strife but after the period ended, it began to steadily recover.

The Fall
Aiur was populated by billions of protoss before its fall.

Aiur was attacked by the zerg Swarm in an attempt to destroy the entire protoss species, as per the Dark Voice's plan. The Overmind was destroyed by the mighty high templar Tassadar, who sacrificed his life in a kamikaze strike using dark templar energy.

It was a pyrrhic victory at best. 70% of the population was dead. The planet was thoroughly infested and much if the landscape ruined.

Abandonment


The planet was abandoned shortly thereafter through a warp gate which connected to the Dark Templar homeworld of Shakuras. Hundreds of thousands of protoss died during the evacuation. Some protoss were stranded on Aiur, and others volunteered to remain behind in order to defend the Aiur end of the warp gate.

The warp gate was destroyed when the United Earth Directorate invaded Aiur in their quest to arrest Terran Dominion emperor Arcturus Mengsk. The stranded protoss belonged to several groups; one led by Fenix and Jim Raynor, as well as the Shel'na Kryhas and the Tal'darim. The latter, serving a mysterious Benefactor, learned strange powers.

The protoss refugees on Shakuras made at least one trip to Aiur to recover wounded protoss warriors. Protoss commanders noticed stranded protoss but, believing they could not be rescued, kept their existence secret.

The Interbellum
Around 2503, the zerg occupiers had stopped fighting each other, but had stopped spawing and continued to wander the planet like "discarded tools".

The stranded protoss divided into two factions&mdash;Shel'na Kryhas and Tal'darim&mdash; and clung to life on the ruined world, fighting and avoiding conflict with the zerg. The arrival of a preserver, contained within the brain of terran archaeologist Jake Ramsey, brought great changes to both groups of protoss. The former attempted to flee through the disabled (and then repaired) warp gate, while the latter splintered as they learned the truth behind their mysterious Benefactor. The Shel'na Kryhas and renegade Tal'darim banded together to attack the Benefactor, most giving up their lives using a powerful psionic technique to hold the Benefactor off.

Some of the renegade Tal'darim escaped but none of the Shel'na Kryhas made it. The remaining Tal'darim were attacked by zerg forces led by Ethan Stewart, who was seeking to use the gate and then find Ulrezaj. Ulrezaj absorbed some of his own followers to recharge his power before leaving in a xel'naga vessel, pursued by the zerg and Dominion.

Some observers remained behind from the evacuation to keep watch.

The zerg scoured almost all non-zerg life from several continents. The jungles were littered with ash, broken war machines, and corpses.

Nova was sent to infiltrate protoss facilities on the planet.

The Second Great War
On the eve of the Second Great War, Zeratul returned to Aiur seeking clarification to a prophecy. He communed with the dead Overmind's cortex via Tassadar's spirit and learned of an impending apocalypse.

Psionic Matrix
Protoss structures and units, to a lesser extent, draw their energy from a great psionic energy matrix that emanates from Aiur. This energy can be linked to a nexus, but khaydarin crystal-based pylons are needed to actually tap into the energy required to provide psionic energy to new colonies and bases.

Native Species
Aiur is a planet high in biodiversity and has a large variety of flora and fauna. Known species include;

Fauna

 * Bengalaas
 * Kal-taar
 * Kwah-kai
 * Lombad
 * Mai-lur
 * Omhara
 * Protoss
 * At least one species of bird
 * Various aquatic species about the size of leeches.

Flora

 * Alavash
 * Sammuro fruit
 * Shuwark tree

Geography
Aiur is covered with vegetation and has many lush jungles, populated by creatures such as the bengalaas. It has furious seas and stormy weather. Indeed, its summer storms have been known to appear over plateaus and disappear in the blink of an eye.

Aiur's atmosphere is slightly heavier than that of most terran worlds though unprotected humans can still survive on the planet.

Cities

 * Mendella (ruins, replaced by a proving ground)

Fortresses

 * Citadel of the Executor
 * Khor-shakal

Landforms

 * Brushfire Island
 * Cave of Relics
 * Eldritch Lake
 * Garden of Aiur
 * River of Light
 * Road of Remembrance

Provinces

 * Antioch
 * Scion

Regions

 * Asari Hunting Grounds
 * Ni Monn Adun
 * Velari
 * Velari Templar School
 * Xel'Naga Caverns
 * Crystal Chamber

Temples

 * Protoss temple (destroyed by zerg)
 * Temple of the Preservers
 * Ziggurat