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Description
Hyperspace is a form of parallel space that exists "beneath" normal, three-dimensional space. Discovered by ancient mankind, hyperspace allowed for much quicker and efficient faster-than-light travel, quickly replacing the warp drive in humanity's ancient empires. Hyperspace travel fell out of favor after the completion of the wormgate network at the height of the Second Empire, but resumed after the fall of the network along with the War of the Cog Lords. Hyperspace travel remains a common form of faster-than-light travel among powers with ready access to hypermass, such as the Third Empire and the powers with which it makes regular trade.

While commonly misconceived as an alternate universe, hyperspace is actually a higher dimension in the universe generally. It is known, from fragmentary Second Imperial records, that travel to other dimensions is possible from hyperspace, but this is dangerous and has never been attempted by any power after the War of the Cog Lords. In hyperspace, time and space do not operate under the rules of general relativity, but rather operate more similarly to a quantum state. This allows ships, with the proper navigation and detection equipment, to position itself in such a way that it exits hyperspace great distances away from its starting point. For reasons lost to science, gravitons affect hyperspace travel adversely, making jumps near massive bodies (or artificial sources of gravitons, such as interdictors) extremely risky. The risk of jumping inside a planet or star is too great for regular jumps, so hyperspace-capable craft will often jump in the outskirts of a star system and use their sublight engines to fly toward a system. This is a disadvantage not shared by warp drives, giving warp-capable ships greater tactical maneuverability inside a star system.

Entering hyperspace requires a tremendous amount of energy, along with a hypermass reaction. Hypermass is a form of exotic matter found in hyperspace, often near the gravity wells of stars in realspace. Without a hypermass reaction, a ship's hyperdrive cannot replicate the spatial dimensions of hyperspace, which is necessary for moving matter and energy from realspace to hyperspace. Hypermass harvesting is extremely difficult, and the methods for doing so have been lost to history. Only old Second Empire-era mines remain can continue to harvest hypermass, although the modern galactic powers have made valiant efforts. Further making hypermass mining difficult is that much of it is depleted; the Second Empire mined much of the hypermass throughout the galaxy and moved it to their core systems, systems which have been inherited by the Third Empire. This gives the Empire a virtual monopoly on hypermass, forcing hostile powers such as the Federation to largely eschew hyperspace travel. Other powers have become creative with their use of hyperdrives. The Consortium powers, in an effort to save on hypermass consumption, use the more primitive flux drives. Flux drives are slower than standard hyperdrives, and require the ship to accelerate in realspace in order to more easily replicate hyperspace dimensions.

Hyperspace travel is also limited by hyperspace lanes. While it is possible for hyperspace-capable craft to travel anywhere in the galaxy, there exist natural "pathways" between different stars that make hyperspace travel between the two points easier and quicker. A hyperspace lane can reduce a hyperspace trip that could take a week to mere hours. How hyperspace lanes are formed are lost to history, but they almost always form between two large gravitational objects, such as stars or black holes. It is known that the Second Empire had the ability to make artificial hyperspace lanes, and while many of these have degraded over time, a well-functioning hyperspace lane system still exists among the core worlds of the modern Empire.

Description
Hyperspace is a form of parallel space that exists "beneath" normal, three-dimensional space. Discovered by ancient mankind, hyperspace allowed for much quicker and efficient faster-than-light travel, quickly replacing the warp drive in humanity's ancient empires. Hyperspace travel fell out of favor after the completion of the wormgate network at the height of the Second Empire, but resumed after the fall of the network along with the War of the Cog Lords. Hyperspace travel remains a common form of faster-than-light travel among powers with ready access to hypermass, such as the Third Empire and the powers with which it makes regular trade.

While commonly misconceived as an alternate universe, hyperspace is actually a higher dimension in the universe generally. It is known, from fragmentary Second Imperial records, that travel to other dimensions is possible from hyperspace, but this is dangerous and has never been attempted by any power after the War of the Cog Lords. In hyperspace, time and space do not operate under the rules of general relativity, but rather operate more similarly to a quantum state. This allows ships, with the proper navigation and detection equipment, to position itself in such a way that it exits hyperspace great distances away from its starting point. For reasons lost to science, gravitons affect hyperspace travel adversely, making jumps near massive bodies (or artificial sources of gravitons, such as interdictors) extremely risky. The risk of jumping inside a planet or star is too great for regular jumps, so hyperspace-capable craft will often jump in the outskirts of a star system and use their sublight engines to fly toward a system. This is a disadvantage not shared by warp drives, giving warp-capable ships greater tactical maneuverability inside a star system.

Entering hyperspace requires a tremendous amount of energy, along with a hypermass reaction. Hypermass is a form of exotic matter found in hyperspace, often near the gravity wells of stars in realspace. Without a hypermass reaction, a ship's hyperdrive cannot replicate the spatial dimensions of hyperspace, which is necessary for moving matter and energy from realspace to hyperspace. Hypermass harvesting is extremely difficult, and the methods for doing so have been lost to history. Only old Second Empire-era mines remain can continue to harvest hypermass, although the modern galactic powers have made valiant efforts. Further making hypermass mining difficult is that much of it is depleted; the Second Empire mined much of the hypermass throughout the galaxy and moved it to their core systems, systems which have been inherited by the Third Empire. This gives the Empire a virtual monopoly on hypermass, forcing hostile powers such as the Federation to largely eschew hyperspace travel. Other powers have become creative with their use of hyperdrives. The Consortium powers, in an effort to save on hypermass consumption, use the more primitive flux drives. Flux drives are slower than standard hyperdrives, and require the ship to accelerate in realspace in order to more easily replicate hyperspace dimensions.

Hyperspace travel is also limited by hyperspace lanes. While it is possible for hyperspace-capable craft to travel anywhere in the galaxy, there exist natural "pathways" between different stars that make hyperspace travel between the two points easier and quicker. A hyperspace lane can reduce a hyperspace trip that could take a week to mere hours. How hyperspace lanes are formed are lost to history, but they almost always form between two large gravitational objects, such as stars or black holes. It is known that the Second Empire had the ability to make artificial hyperspace lanes, and while many of these have degraded over time, a well-functioning hyperspace lane system still exists among the core worlds of the modern Empire.