#Fantasy lore

[filurig]

ive had a vague idea about crakam (nattramn) religion for a bit and then finally i saw something which inspired me to actually design a littel of them. More details...

the reality of the glaris legend is probably all mythology but there could have been an event in crakam history which inspired it (honestly, probably involved a basilisk if it did)

crakam settlements will always have a "priesthood district" in which everything is specifically built to be accessed both by foot and wing. however, its pretty normal for the rest of the settlement to be more catered to winged crakam. the one exception is "craftsman districts" in which some craftsmen crakam clip their wings for non-religious reasons.

priests have an important role to play in crakam holidays, and also usually works as craftsmen outside of religious duties - there is a bit of a "holy" connotation to very finicky craftsmanship which sometimes warrant the clipping of wings (for better maneuverability with the hand claws) because of the glaris myth

glaris priests often spend periods every day meditating deeply - there is a belief that this is what ensures that the settlement-wide visual illusion "spell" stays in effect - and it does actually have an effect on the spell's strength!

glaris priesthood roles are often restricted to crakam, but there have been instances of basilisk priests as well - if a basilisk resembles the eurasian jay, it's seen as a good omen and if that basilisk wishes to join the priesthood they will be welcomed with open arms. a "jay basilisk" being born in a crakam settlement will often result in strong pressure from the crakam for them to join the priesthood.

crakam aren't monotheistic, but most crakam settlement are sworn to glaris. there are other gods that some settlements have sworn themselves to.

culturally, brown and blue are colours highly associated with holiness among crakam because of the glaris order

in the pareidoliaverse ive decided there is an additional pine species cultivated by crakam which is Even Bigger than normal pine called "ramnfura". this is the pine which the myth refers to.

[plotandelegy]

The Deep Wells of Magic: Drawing from Timeless and Novel Sources

Hello, and welcome to another one of my incredibly overdue writing guides. Where does the magic pulse from in your fictional world? What energy does your magic user draw forth to complete their spells? Here is a list of classical and somewhat unique magical sources you might use to craft your supernatural system. Remember, the key to originality is being a little twisty and the ability to mash concepts. Okay, maybe the first isn't a determining factor.

Sources:

Geographical landmarks

Celestial Events

Memories

Mythical creatures

Seasonal events

Ancestors

Secrets

Mirrors

Shadows

Dreams

Movements

Heartbeats

Ocean currents

Moonlight

Fragmented thoughts

Music

Echoes

Crystals

Wishes

Mana

Mystical ingredients

Special words

Color

Divine intervention

Relics

Chants

Symbols

Candles

Talismans

Meditation or trance

Sounds and silences

Emotions

Elemental forces

Sacred sites

Amulets

Magic dust

Energy residue

Wind

Weather

[ssleeping-in-a-coffin]

I’ve been thinking about the magic and abilities of vampires in the Hotel Transylvania universe. At first glance, it seems like all vampires share the same set of powers: turning into bats, telekinesis, hypnosis, super strength—things that seem almost innate. But the more I think about it, the less I believe it's that simple.

I feel like abilities such as hypnosis or destructive magic (like creating explosions) can't be something every vampire just naturally has access to. These powers are too complex for everyone to master. For instance, basic hypnosis might be available to most vampires, but only a few, like Dracula or Vlad, can use it on a higher level—strong enough to control large groups or more powerful beings. That kind of mastery requires years of experience, practice, and perhaps even special knowledge. And destructive magic? That’s an even more dangerous ability that needs to be learned. If it’s not controlled properly, it could be a threat not only to others but also to the vampire using it.

I also believe that vampires like Vlad and Dracula aren’t just stronger because of their age. They have access to ancient magical knowledge, artifacts, and rituals that allow them to learn and master rare abilities. It's like they're part of a "magical elite," which is only available to those who have lived long enough or have the resources.

On the other hand, younger vampires like Mavis only possess basic skills, such as turning into a bat or minor telekinesis. They can develop more powerful abilities, but that takes time and training.

So, I think the world of vampires in Hotel Transylvania is much deeper than it seems at first. Different vampires should have different levels of strength and magic, depending on their experience, knowledge, and resources. This makes the characters more unique and adds an element of growth: to become a powerful vampire, you have to study and improve over time, not just be born with a standard set of abilities.

[krowfaced]

Second raffle prize for @the-missann, featuring a Silph! I’m not so used to drawing after written descriptions, so it was definitely a challenge, but that’s just the secret ingredient to growth! I thought of two serpents conjoined by the lower mandible, where it also splits to the two halves. Thanks for your patience, and I hope you like it!

[hillfogstudio]

Then you’ll probably like my newsletter, Scrolls From Hillfog. 🧙‍♂️

✨Imagine a life where you open your inbox to find a find a scroll sent from a distant land. ✨

A scroll? 📜

Yes, a scroll. A beautiful, cross-stitch-inspired piece of art with a message.

Sometimes they’re inspirational, sometimes an affirmation, sometimes poetry, sometimes a micro story with lore from Hillfog and its surrounding lands, sometimes dark, and sometimes thought-provoking.

The first edition containing the first scroll, crafted and written by Hillfog’s only Scrollcrafter, is live now.

Edition 2 will launch at 10 subscribers 😌

Sign up for free

[averyghe]

Gawookin or Kobolds as they are called by Humans are the civilisation of anthropomorphic dogs, descending from the artificially made race of genetically altered soldiers created many centuries ago by an unknown demiurge. They live in a strictly regulated caste based society, and worship Sun wolves – magical gods that according to the legend helped them to free themselves from their servitude.

Not all the gawookins accept the curent state of their slaver society. They become rebels and renegades, starting slave revolts and organising their own warlord states on the edges of the Kobold empire. Others, differentiated themselves from the major koboldine culture many centuries ago, now living outside of the major settlements as a nomadic tribes, or immersing themselves in a human and goblin societies.

[skelenby]

Necromantic Basics [ 1 / ? ]

next >

[theycallmeratt]

Wrote a little joke about Sal casting spells he found in magazines but then I looked up the etymology:

And then this blurb:

late 16th century: from French magasin, from Italian magazzino, from Arabic maḵzin, maḵzan ‘storehouse’, from ḵazana ‘store up’. The term originally meant ‘store’ and was often used from the mid 17th century in the title of books providing information useful to particular groups of people, whence magazine (sense 1) (mid 18th century). magazine (sense 3), a contemporary specialization of the original meaning, gave rise to magazine (sense 2) in the mid 18th century.

And y'all. Wizards should cast from magazines, this should a thing in all fantasy and I'm going to start doing this more

[elderscrollsconceptart]

This 100% relates to future posts on this blog

I have strong feelings about this topic but I'd prefer to operate off what the community feels/thinks

[rumeysawrites]

Guys! I'll be starting lore & character posts specifically about my WIP (Interdimensional series), starting later today. Anyone interested?

@dearunreliablenarrator @daishitheprofessionalfool @avalordream @seastarblue @words-n-chaos @the-ellia-west @thecomfywriter @distantflickering @xyoonx @the-letterbox-archives @imsoveryveryconfusedatlife @heycerulean @paeliae-occasionally @illarian-rambling @author-a-holmes @writeblrfantasy @charbroiledchicken @ominous-feychild and I'm not sure if I missed anyone.

[th3-0bjectivist]

The Gem of the South, and the Frozen Furnace beneath the Pale Hilltops

In the Frozen South, there are yet fragments of a metropolis of tall temples, that once touched a clear blue arctic sky, which glistened on snowy hilltops like a brilliant green gem on a lily-white horizon. This city was and is the Emerald of the South, whose lush beauty has decades-faded away, but nonetheless holds as a modern bonfire of desperate survival after The Undoing. One of the oldest and most sacred human-built settlements of Atma’Zae is now merely carved out on the ridge of a slowly melting and cracked glacier. Now drooping off a peak over the Southern Sea, this still-bustling settlement once housed wisemen and oracles who foresaw the undoing of man by his own designs. In these, the Days of Ash, the pillars that once were the pride of the snow have been twisted and cracked away by permanently high arctic winds and toxified sleet.

Once known as Esmer, this settlement was the home of philosophers and religious theocrats. It is the foundational source of the Realm’s only autotheist national divinity, The Order of the Mirror, whose adherents worshipped their own reflection thinking themselves as Gods. Precious gems, predominantly emeralds, but also alexandrite, diamonds and sapphires were mined in the nearby snowcapped mountains to focus magical illusions into distilled magick, a type of magic far more potent and destructive than mere parlor tricks and sleight of hand. The green and lush gardens of Esmer grew rife with arctic moss, tundra roses and diamond leaf willows which stunned weary, cold travellers from afar; distinctly jade among a field of all-white.

Esmer-Alda has since been retitled for modern times, forever changed and pitted-out inside the edge of the Pale Hilltops of the South. After the Nemesis, the survivors of the Undoing were forced to burrow deep its hilltop and build a massive furnace in the coal-rich mantle beneath the now-abandoned rock crystal towers. An estimated 20,000 prisoner-slaves man the burners, the control valves, and the combustion chamber deep beneath this once holy site. The upper city is no longer habitable as acidic blizzards, and sub-zero temperatures permeate under a thick sulphur-dioxide sky. Soon, there will likely be no more Esmer-Alda, as it dithers over the Southern Sea ready to bend and break into the waters below at any moment.

Lore Entry # 3 (click here for art)

[filurig]

decided to go fawk it and make it so that nattramn and basilisks are able to hybridise in pareidolia yay!!! more info under cut

as for how its possible, irl clearly these species would be too distant from eachother to hybridise but ok its fantasy and also. i think part of it might be that as basilisk ancestors evolved their odd trait of picking up aspects of other fauna around them during fetal development, it just resulted in their genes being really wack and spontaneous and for some reason that made it so that they can procreate with nattramn again. i think the ancestors shown in the last image for example could not concieve together bcs the basilisk ancestor species had not evolved the wacky genes thing yet.

societally i think it varies on how they're treated. generally hybrids are accepted as parts of their societies, but depending on several factors they can be somewhat alienated. in nattramn society, "basramn" hybrids are generally more well accepted due to a combination of societal and religious reasons. "nattlisks" usually mingle with basilisk communities much easier for similar reasons. the kind of folklore that sprung up surrounding them in these communities may depend on the fact that basramns have an easier time fitting into nattramn society (due to nattramn putting a lot of importance on flight) while nattlisks have an easier time shapeshifting and can usually fit in basilisk communities easier because of it (basilisks celebrate their shapeshifting ability culturally quite strongly), and the folklore sprung up as sort of a "post hoc" justification for potential alienation/embracing of hybrids. because of this this means that union between a basilisk and a nattramn and whether or not its accepted depends on the context bcs of what hybrid it produces. thinking this may be further reinforced with old legends about mythical (or real, potentially) historical figures in their cultures. (have to think more about this)

also i dont think ive mentioned it here but the reason why these hybrids arent TOO uncommon to see is that nattramn and basilisks are closely intertwined, and while its unusual to see a nattramn mingling with basilisk communities, its quite common for basilisk communities to exist within nattramn settlements and their attitudes towards one another are generally amicable/positive.

"nattlisk" and "basramn" are not canon terms for them, and in universe theyre generally referred to either as basilisk, nattramn or harpy depending on what the observer/local culture thinks they are lol. humans especially dont really know the difference - i think maybe nattlisks may be interpreted as some sort of other vätte like a rå or a troll due to their more humanoid look

generally have similar lifespans to nattramn/basilisks, overall they do rather well for being hybrids other than miscarriages (or, well, since theyre egg layers, failed/unhatched eggs) and nattlisks being more susceptible to illness early in life.

[oliolioxenfreewrites]

[kooosh-sniffa]

Hellooooo. I'm back with some yummy art and to present you all to my OCs, Elker (left), and Siena (right), the caos twins in my imaginary land. This drawing is inspired by this video of @sir-fluffbutts also known as sir fluff on yt ( btw i traced the word trouble from the og vid, i just got too tired of doing pixel letters by scratch, it was a wag too long and tedious process man 😭).

These two are from an elf like species called "hyphens" that are known for always being twins, hence the name, they also aren't very known, so their abilities are known only at a surface level . Elker is a popular bounty hunter in the city, and their sister Siena can be found in their og community as a common member always there to help, very far away from her sibling, which isn't common for their species since the siblings usually stick together.

I have a very nerdy and kinda thought-out world for these suckers that I might info dump at some point, but as literally everything I do, it's not fully developed, and I'm not confident in my world building, but if any of you is willing to listen I'm happy to talk about my silly little fantasy world.

[ariellewm]

Arielle W.M. Presents Worldbuilding Month: History & Lore

[amaiguri]

When you're a Writer and a Vtuber...

If you like storytelling, Vtubing, or both, this one's for you 🥰

You'd think there'd be more overlap of "People who want to be fantasy characters and hide their face" and "Writers" but there really aren't. I know like me and @moonfeatherblue and that's it for the writing/worldbuilding and Vtuber overlap lololol. I think there should be more of us!

So, let me convince you to become a storytelling/worldbuilding/writing Vtuber like me...

In addition to just loving all the cool things you can do with Live2D as a software (if like art and you don't just stare at rigging showcases on YouTube, you should. It's so cool!), I also love storytelling in a social media space. Like, how do you tell a story over time? How much information should you reveal and when? What colors, images, and sounds evoke the feelings you want? And what feelings will keep people coming back for more? Basically, Vtubers have made me fall in love with marketing because the best marketing is just storytelling with some sort of call-to-action at the end.

Am I GOOD at marketing? No, lol, but maybe YOU would be! KEEP READING to find out XD

On the flipside, so so many Vtubers are like "I'm the embodiment of sin and also a gamer and a singer" or "I'm a cottagecore whale who is also the collector of lost souls and I play video games" and it's like... clearly Vtuber audiences LIKE the fantasy aspects of this. Why is the Vtuber default just gaming? Why is there not waaaaay more whimsy and storytelling? (This isn't to say Gaming Bad TM. I'm literally a game dev. I NEED streamers to play my games. I love them.) There's just so much opportunity for cool storytelling with Vtubers!

If you wanna get into being a fictional character/having a kayfabe-like wrestling persona for your writing, you should 100% get into Vtubing. You don't even need to stream to be a Vtuber -- and honestly I'm not even sure you need to post videos necessarily lol -- GIFs and pictures could probably get you pretty far on the right platforms. You could start out using a PNG --there are so many good, free PNGtuber softwares and you could use Picrew images (with the right permissions!) for your PNGtuber to start. Or if you can draw, you can just DO THAT.

Or if you have like $50 USD, Raindrop Atelier has a FULLY rigged Vtuber "Picrew" with chibi models that are so high quality and cute! Or if you have like $300 USD, you could get one of the Picrew-like Vtubers from Charat Genesis. (Yes, that's a lot BUT most Vtuber models — 2D and 3D alike — run you from $2000 to $8000 sooooo $300 is a steal in comparison.)

And then, over time, you could post and reveal facts about yourself and tidbits of your lore! And you could give writing advice or talking about your worldbuilding in-character! I've had this idea to make a fantasy creature mockumentary for actually years now and I'm just trying to find a good scope for it...

On the downside, as with all "storytelling in real time", it can a little discouraging at the start when you don't have a big audience. And this specific niche is especially underdeveloped so it's definitely hard to find a foothold. BUT I find that, because it's all play -- it's all FANTASY -- I have a lot more energy for this kind of marketing than I would if I were promoting myself as "just a writer, trying to sell my writing." Getting people to like me is exhausting. Getting people to like my writing is part of the writing process!

Cuz like, aside from just "inhabiting a fictional character" and "reducing your face presence online while still giving your personal brand a face", being a Vtuber is also a fun way to tie into your work.

Like, my Vtuber model is Arlasaire and she's the protagonist of my (probably) upcoming RPG, Untitled Yssaia Game, (Not the final name, real name pending lol). She talks about cooking and music and geography over on my YouTube channel and it's all infused with cool fantasy music and sound effects. She speaks in and teaches you about conlangs in the world. And she goes on fantasy dates or fantasy vacations! So now, I'm getting people attached to this character and her world BEFORE I even get into her actual story. And all her merchandising and stuff is really just game merchandising and so on and so forth... and that's just good branding! Hopefully some day, this translates into more people playing the game and seeing more of my work!

But obviously, I'm very new to marketing or else this blog post would convince more writers to become Vtubers and more Vtubers to write lol.

Anyway, here's some Arlasaire art (art: LexiKoumori on IG, rig: Kanijam) AS WELL AS some of her earlier model sketches before I asked for her hair to be silkier and less feathery! And lastly, a short unedited video of me being cringe so you KNOW you could do better :DDDD