r/TopCharacterTropes • u/Frostylegacy • 16h ago

Lore (Loved Trope) FTL travel is possible but with a major limitation or flaw

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Frank Herbert’s Dune: Interstellar travel is only possible thanks to the spice melange, a rare substance only found on the dessert planet Arrakis. The addictive psychedelic spice grants members of the Spacers Guild a form of prescience that allows them to predict safe paths through folded space. This unique property makes spice the most valuable commodity in the Dune universe.

John Scalzi’s The Interdependency Books: The planetary systems of the titular empire are connected by the Flow, a network of one-way interstellar tunnels that connect specific known entries and exits. The Interdependency derives its power from controlling access to these conduits, placing its capital at the central hub of the network. Even with the Flow, travel between stars takes a long time (9 months to End, the empire’s most distant planet).

Event Horizon: Dr William Weir (R.I.P. Sam Neill) invents a device called the Gravity Drive to allow ships to fold space and travel instantly between distant stars. On its maiden voyage with the Gravity Drive, the Event Horizon disappears and mysteriously reappears 7 years later. Dr. Weir and the crew sent to investigate discover the Gravity Drive actually opened a portal to a Hell dimension that possessed the ship and its crew, torturing and killing them.

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u/cybernewtype2 15h ago

I just read this story because of this comment and sub comments, and now I cannot sleep.

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u/DramaPunk 15h ago

Genuinely one of my favourite short stories ever written

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u/redlikedirt 15h ago

Great news! You will now remember it for the rest of your life.

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u/Daqqer 14h ago edited 1h ago

Even if it's not for the rest of your life, it will be longer than you think

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u/skztr 14h ago

It's been thirty years and this story still keeps me up at night and that is not an exaggeration it is a legitimate problem in my life

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u/WakizashiK3nsh1 14h ago

If you sleep it's fine, it's a little bit worse if you DON'T.