Starting a World Building Project

[MDL]

I'm looking for some people who would like to collectively do some world building. I used to do this a lot with a bud here in Sweden and now I feel as if it is time to get back on the old horse. Fantasy or Sci-Fi/Whatever. I don't really mind. I'm open to any suggestion.


This would be a no pressure kind of deal. People work on the "World" whenever they feel like.


Say hey if you want in and perhaps leave some suggestions or maybe which part of world building you're better or worse at/which part of the world build you would want to work on. Be it individual characters, cultures, aesthetics, deities. Whatevs.

 

[DreamingofRoses]

World-building? Let me show you Rerapth some time. But yeah, I love world-building and I'd be more than happy to work on a project like that. I like figuring out the basic fundamentals of the world. (Like physics'n stuff) Cultures and aesthetics and genetics of the races are also a favorite.

 

[Zatheron]

I'm interested. I've always enjoyed defining and creating different cultures of races and such as well as creating characters.


Are you looking to create a role play out of this?

 

[Captain Hesperus]

Ehmygirl and I have already created a world. It's for the trilogy we are one third of the way through writing. Jus' sayin'...


Captain Hesperus

 

[MDL]

World-building? Let me show you Rerapth some time. But yeah, I love world-building and I'd be more than happy to work on a project like that. I like figuring out the basic fundamentals of the world. (Like physics'n stuff) Cultures and aesthetics and genetics of the races are also a favorite.

Genetics is some interesting shit. You being interested in that could quite the difference come the end product. I'll count you as in. Cheers!
[QUOTE="A'kal]I'm interested. I've always enjoyed defining and creating different cultures of races and such as well as creating characters.
Are you looking to create a role play out of this?

[/QUOTE]Cool! And, perhaps. I didn't really have any plan for what to do with it, but I guess you could use it in whatever way you feel like it.
[QUOTE="Captain Hesperus]Ehmygirl and I have already created a world. It's for the trilogy we are one third of the way through writing. Jus' sayin'...
Captain Hesperus

[/QUOTE]I wanna readtest...
Please?


Could you hand us some tips and pointers? You expert you.

 

[Belial]

Sounds interesting, I always enjoy imagining knew physics, knew events, history, evolution of both culture and genetics, how magic works and religion. Hell Ive been working on my own setting for a little while now.

 

[MDL]

Sounds interesting, I always enjoy imagining knew physics, knew events, history, evolution of both culture and genetics, how magic works and religion. Hell Ive been working on my own setting for a little while now.

Then your experience could come in very handy!
This will be fu- u- u- uuuuun.

 

[MDL]

Alright. If more people are interested further down the road they could just hop on and join the "Team".


I think a good starting point would be to decide if the world is going to be based on the real world or not. What I mean is that the world could for example either be a completely different world than our own or it could be somehow based in reality, like Mass Effect which is set in the future compared to Lord of the Rings which is set in a completely different universe. I hope you catch my drift.


This is a call for opinions.


Cheers!

 

[Captain Hesperus]

Regardless of whether the world is 'pseudo-Earth' or some other reality, one major thing to consider is; how was it made?


By that I mean, is the world a construction of geological forces or was it knocked together by X deity?


It's always been something of a bugbear of mine, considering I did a degree with a strong geology bent, to see fantasy world maps where there are geological features that just shouldn't exist, like mountain ranges in a perfect circle or clustered on one specific area on a map. In ehmygirl's and my OCD-constructed world, we carefully determined the various features of the major continent of the story and then found plausible reasons for them to be there. If scientifically, their appearance would be unlikely, we changed some of the neighboring variables to make the region more geologically and ecologically correct.


If on the other hand, you want to have a truly 'god-created' world, i.e. giant flat world on the back of an armadillo or a giant ring in space, then you have to determine that at the start. It's that sort of world that has cotton-candy trees and rivers of purple Kool-Aid.


Captain Hesperus

 

[MDL]

So... What do you think guys?

 

[Millershipper]

Oh, this is sooo tempting. I've done a bit of world-building (a tabletop rp game I was part of and co-GMed a few sessions). I'm mostly good at throwing ideas out that aren't right but make someone else go "Wait, that just gave me an idea!" As for the world's start point? I've been reading a lot of alt fic so the idea of the world in the future with a tweak or two to the timeline as we know it extrapolated out a few decades would be interesting. Building something from scratch would be fine as well.

 

[MDL]

Oh, this is sooo tempting. I've done a bit of world-building (a tabletop rp game I was part of and co-GMed a few sessions). I'm mostly good at throwing ideas out that aren't right but make someone else go "Wait, that just gave me an idea!" As for the world's start point? I've been reading a lot of alt fic so the idea of the world in the future with a tweak or two to the timeline as we know it extrapolated out a few decades would be interesting. Building something from scratch would be fine as well.

So just to see if I understand correctly. An alternate history based future? That sounds cool.

 

[Freeman]

Sounds interesting, and with Nation-Building being a bit slow, i can take on something of a grander scope... Something with communistic robots, maybe I don't know as of yet....


What will be the setting? Has that been ironed out yet? Don't think so from what I read... Well ill toss my two cents in to this.


If Fantasy, lets create the world from scratch, even if its a messed up Earth like Warhammer Fantasy used, or a complete new one, or different sections of a greater world. Who knows, Albion could have been on the same world as Middle Earth. On that point I am saying different Continents. I mean its okay to have the world start out small, and flat, but no world is like that.


If sci-fi/alternate history/future scenario (my favorite) I would use Earth for Earth's sake (though we don't have to...) I would say just using Earth would be alot easier, and a bit more familiar to say the least. But messing with Earth's history is always fun in my opinion.

 

[Millershipper]

<snip>... Well ill toss my two cents in to this.
If Fantasy, lets create the world from scratch, even if its a messed up Earth like Warhammer Fantasy used, or a complete new one, or different sections of a greater world. Who knows, Albion could have been on the same world as Middle Earth. On that point I am saying different Continents. I mean its okay to have the world start out small, and flat, but no world is like that.


If sci-fi/alternate history/future scenario (my favorite) I would use Earth for Earth's sake (though we don't have to...) I would say just using Earth would be alot easier, and a bit more familiar to say the least. But messing with Earth's history is always fun in my opinion.

Why not combine the two? An alternate history where some event woke magic up, or allowed it to start. Yes it's been done (I'm looking at you, Shadowrun), but every possible storyline has been done. It's a matter of creatively putting a new spin on an old story. So, what do the others think? Is this something you'd want to run with, or shall we create a world from a blank slate?

 

[Grey]

I'm not very good at collaboration, but you may have noticed a number of settings popping up under my hand, so I can probably be a bit of help once this is properly in motion.

 

[MDL]

Why not combine the two? An alternate history where some event woke magic up, or allowed it to start. Yes it's been done (I'm looking at you, Shadowrun), but every possible storyline has been done. It's a matter of creatively putting a new spin on an old story. So, what do the others think? Is this something you'd want to run with, or shall we create a world from a blank slate?

I think this is an interesting angle. But let's hear some other suggestions before we decide. Let the brainstorming continue!
One idea that has intrigued me, which has probably been done, is the 100 years after the zombie apocalypse. Basically the new world after the zombie breakout, the survivors and how they formed their new society. This allows for us to create a completely new world, but still anchored in our own and easy to relate to.


Throw more ideas out there and we'll summarize them and pick one/combine them all/some of them.

 

[Freeman]

I think this is an interesting angle. But let's hear some other suggestions before we decide. Let the brainstorming continue!
One idea that has intrigued me, which has probably been done, is the 100 years after the zombie apocalypse. Basically the new world after the zombie breakout, the survivors and how they formed their new society. This allows for us to create a completely new world, but still anchored in our own and easy to relate to.


Throw more ideas out there and we'll summarize them and pick one/combine them all/some of them.

Well maybe not a 100 years, maybe 10 years or so. Zombies once bringer of the Apocalypse, now dwindled down to nothing but a pest. A few cities are zombie free and are back up and running before the outbreak. But at what cost?

 

[Grey]

Unhallowed Metropolis recently beat us to that idea.

 

[MDL]

Well maybe not a 100 years, maybe 10 years or so. Zombies once bringer of the Apocalypse, now dwindled down to nothing but a pest. A few cities are zombie free and are back up and running before the outbreak. But at what cost?

So there's another suggestion. Anyone else? The more the merrier.

Unhallowed Metropolis recently beat us to that idea.

I really don't think we should limit ourselves in any way. As was mentioned earlier, everything's been done, one way or another.

 

[Grey]

Oh, I'm not suggesting you don't go with the idea - you're just going to have to put more effort into distinguishing it. And I'll be happy to point out where it doesn't.


So far - post zombie outbreak, and waaaay post zombie outbreak.


So why not go with controlled zombie outbreak? The undead have been contained, but whatever force animated them presents a new avenue of scientific study and technological development. Government necromancers experimenting with rebuilt or modified zombies, or attempting to raise them in controlled laboratory conditions?

 

[MDL]

Oh, I'm not suggesting you don't go with the idea - you're just going to have to put more effort into distinguishing it. And I'll be happy to point out where it doesn't.
So far - post zombie outbreak, and waaaay post zombie outbreak.


So why not go with controlled zombie outbreak? The undead have been contained, but whatever force animated them presents a new avenue of scientific study and technological development. Government necromancers experimenting with rebuilt or modified zombies, or attempting to raise them in controlled laboratory conditions?

That's one hell of an idea. So that makes the suggestion total: Deuce. More!
And honestly, I've always wanted to make WALL·E: the role-playing game.

 

[Grey]

And honestly, I've always wanted to make WALL·E: the role-playing game.

http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Engine_Heart

 

[MDL]

http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Engine_Heart

Hoooooooooly fuuuuucking shiiiiiiiiiiiiiit.

 

[Zatheron]

I really don't think we should limit ourselves in any way. As was mentioned earlier, everything's been done, one way or another.

^


Truth.


I was thinking that we could throw in a fantasy aspect. As if the zombie apocalypse didn't only create zombies but awoke an "inner strength" in some individuals. Just a thought.

 

[MDL]

[QUOTE="A'kal]^
Truth.


I was thinking that we could throw in a fantasy aspect. As if the zombie apocalypse didn't only create zombies but awoke an "inner strength" in some individuals. Just a thought.

[/QUOTE]So a sort of superhero subplot?