#fantasy setting prompts

[scealaiscoite]

fantasy setting prompts ˗ˏˋ ꒰ 🕊️ ꒱

¹⁾ a darkened apothecary illuminated only by the light somehow being emitted by the many bottles and jars lining the walls

²⁾ the banquet hall of a nobleman’s sprawling estate, in the throes of a lavish ball attended by everyone in the townland

³⁾ at a healer’s cabin in the dead of night, overwhelmed by adrenaline and the scent of countless tinctures and remedies as they’re applied

⁴⁾ the last imperial guardpost before crossing into enemy lands

⁵⁾ a run-down inn in the middle of nowhere, half reclaimed by the woodlands around it

⁶⁾ a lake set deep into the mountains with something sinister lurking beneath the surface

⁷⁾ the first port in a new land after weeks at sea trying to get there

⁸⁾ the highest turret in the royal family’s castle on a wintery morning

⁹⁾ the war council’s planning room, the morning after a bloody defeat

¹⁰⁾ an alchemist’s workshop

¹¹⁾ the stables just before daybreak

¹²⁾ the impromptu camp that the leader of the journey had to be begged into allowing after everyone else grew exhausted from being on the road all day

¹³⁾ the army barracks before a battle

¹⁴⁾ the last altar of a dying god’s religion

¹⁵⁾ the empress’s chambers, trussed up in nothing more than silken bedsheets and the morning sunshine

¹⁶⁾ the bedside of an old mentor, right before the end

¹⁷⁾ on the wrong end of a traitor’s sword

¹⁸⁾ a beast’s underground lair, alone and unarmed

¹⁹⁾ the thick of the enemy’s encampment, shackled and unrepentant

²⁰⁾ the mage’s quarters, having seen something there’s no worldly explanation for

²¹⁾ the armoury in the late hours of the night, stinking of polish and tears

²²⁾ in the throne room of the imperial citadel with an ulterior motive

²³⁾ by the scholar’s side in the library, eager for a little more than knowledge

²⁴⁾ an alehouse in the dead countryside, hoping not to be found

²⁵⁾ the executioner’s platform seeking for just one face in the crowd

[prompt-heaven]

a list of 100+ buildings to put in your fantasy town

academy

adventurer's guild

alchemist

apiary

apothecary

aquarium

armory

art gallery

bakery

bank

barber

barracks

bathhouse

blacksmith

boathouse

book store

bookbinder

botanical garden

brothel

butcher

carpenter

cartographer

casino

castle

cobbler

coffee shop

council chamber

court house

crypt for the noble family

dentist

distillery

docks

dovecot

dyer

embassy

farmer's market

fighting pit

fishmonger

fortune teller

gallows

gatehouse

general store

graveyard

greenhouses

guard post

guildhall

gymnasium

haberdashery

haunted house

hedge maze

herbalist

hospice

hospital

house for sale

inn

jail

jeweller

kindergarten

leatherworker

library

locksmith

mail courier

manor house

market

mayor's house

monastery

morgue

museum

music shop

observatory

orchard

orphanage

outhouse

paper maker

pawnshop

pet shop

potion shop

potter

printmaker

quest board

residence

restricted zone

sawmill

school

scribe

sewer entrance

sheriff's office

shrine

silversmith

spa

speakeasy

spice merchant

sports stadium

stables

street market

tailor

tannery

tavern

tax collector

tea house

temple

textile shop

theatre

thieves guild

thrift store

tinker's workshop

town crier post

town square

townhall

toy store

trinket shop

warehouse

watchtower

water mill

weaver

well

windmill

wishing well

wizard tower

[literaryvein-reblogs]

words for your fantasy novel

supernatural: abracadabra, angel, black magic, deep space, demon, divinity, elf, fairy, galaxy, ghoul, god, hell, hex, incantation, inferno, Lucifer, monster, paradise, phantom, poltergeist, purgatory, Satan, shade, Shangri-la, specter, spirit, utopia, voodoo, witchcraft, Xanadu

of belief: absolution, adjudication, ageism, allegiance, apartheid, apparition, assumed, atheism, attrition, ax to grind, belief, black magic, case, chauvinism, commonplace, concept, conclusion, conformity, connotation, consensus, conviction, creed, culture, deduction, delusion, denomination, dependence/ dependency, determination, dictum, disbelief, dissent, dissonance, divinity, dogma, estimate, ethics/ethic, expectancy, eye, faith, fallacy, fantasy, fatalism, feeling, foreboding, frame of mind, gospel, guess, honor, hunch, idea, ideology, illusion, impression, induction, instinct, intuition, leaning, logic, make-believe, millstone, mindset, misconception, misogynist, motive, necromancy, nihilism, notion, obsession, old wives’ tale, opinion, oracle, patriotism, perspective, pessimism, piety, Pollyanna, preconception, prejudice, premonition, presentiment, pride, principle/principles, prophecy, purport, racism, reality, regard, religion, resolve, right, self-respect/self-esteem, self-satisfaction, sexism, Shangri-la, sign, slant, speculation, stance, standpoint, stock, substance, superstition, surmise, taste, theme, theory, trust, utopia, values, viewpoint, voodoo, witchcraft, Xanadu

NOTE

Excerpted from Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Updated and Expanded 3rd Edition, in Dictionary Form, edited by The Princeton Language Institute.

The above are concepts classified according to subject and usage. It not only helps writers and thinkers to organize their ideas but leads them from those very ideas to the words that can best express them.

It was, in part, created to turn an idea into a specific word. By linking together the main entries that share similar concepts, the index makes possible creative semantic connections between words in our language, stimulating thought and broadening vocabulary.

Source ⚜ More: Basics & Refreshers ⚜ On Vocabulary ⚜ Writing Resources PDFs

[defire]

Forest setting: whump in the woods

(army/scout, fantasy vibes)

Content: mild violence, restraints

Whumpee wakes up to a sword at their throat-- they close their eyes to just imagine this isn't happening for one more second

Getting dragged by the feet over sticks and stones, making gashes up whumpee's back and arms as they squirm and cry out

Whumpee getting tied to a tree and having to stay standing because there's thorns or obstacles at the bottom.

Trying to maintain their dignity by lifting their chin as they rest their head against the tree they're tied to

When that pose forces the bob of their throat as they swallow to be very visible (bonus: looking side to side to keep from crying)

A torch sparking and flickering as it's held a little too close to whumpee's face, whumpee pulling back as far as they can and squinting to protect their eyes

Tied up and bargaining "you look like you're having a little trouble with that fire. Sure would be nice if there was someone around that knew how to do that. Too bad the only ranger here is tied up."

Brigands. Whumpee gets caught, beaten up, manhandled, groped all over for valuables, left stripped and bloody in the woods

Army stuff--scouting and getting CAPTURED BY THE ENEMY (honestly this was my childhood favorite). That sinking feeling as whumpee's face mashes into pine needles under the knee of a soldier

Being up a tree hunting or hiding out, and whumpee's enemy camps below and instead of coming up after them, they start to chop the tree down. Cue a yelling match of "get down!" "Only if you promise my safety!" "Nope!" Chop.

Falling out of a tree and hitting the ground on their back, knocking the wind out of them (especially if then, they open their eyes to see they're surrounded by grinning enemies and just groan)

[deepwaterwritingprompts]

Text: The prince sits with a beautiful, snow white rabbit on his lap. It leaps up, transforming into a hare with bared fangs, whenever someone with unknown intentions approaches.

[unboundprompts]

Random Prompt #185

The air in the forest was thick with the scent of damp earth and pine, a heady mix that clung to the skin. A flickering fire crackled in a clearing, its warm glow battling the encroaching chill of twilight. Shadows danced among the trees as a figure crouched beside the flames, carefully sharpening a dagger with practiced ease, the blade gleaming ominously in the firelight.

[floral-comet-whump]

consider institutionalized living weapon whump. mmmm. I will now explain this autism fueled hyperfixation that has been going on and off for me in the last 3-5 years

content warnings (all fictional): general whump stuff, child abuse, child soldiers, living weapon whump (kinda), conditioning, discussion of genshin impact (since I'm not tagging this post as genshin in fear of normal genshin likers on tumblr stumbling onto whump and not knowing what it is, therefore whump likers who dislike genshin and have the tags blocked would still view this (maybe. idk how tag filtering works)), multiple whumpers/carewhumpers, multiple whumpees, fantasy whump, briefly mentioned eating disorder

OKAY so back at like 2020 or 2021 I was ACTIVE in the genshin rp scene and one of my friends made a fatui oc that, due to being the only survivor of a snow blizzard, was adopted into the fatui and raised to be a soldier! also this was before inazuma's release so shoutout to [unnamed bc we fell out of touch so I don't know if they'd like to be named] for predicting the house of the hearth!

anyways their oc was not only an absolute BANGER, but also sparked what I now realize was whumperflies in 14 yo me! so I copied it with my own oc. also had the stellar idea to think that if [friend's oc] was integrated, why not make it a whole program? badabim badaboom fatui orphanage. I shit you not the first thing I came up with is that the rejects get sent to dottore

uhhhh as stuff came out and someone leaked a fatui orphanage then the secret shrine maiden quest came out I TWEAKED. my oc got updates. leaks about lyney (and lynette) being from the hoth(house of the hearth) brought me back after I'd gotten bored. I desperately held myself back from telling everyone their surnames. I listened to their leaked voicelines. I read their stories.

it was not as bad as I envisioned in my head. fym arlecchino saved them!! white knight white knight!!! fym they're not sleeper agents!!!! fym freminet has a job he enjoys that is in no way related to the fatui?!!?!!! free time and healthy hobbies on my extremely fanonized interpretation of a fictional orphanage we previously only had teeny tiny crumbs about?!?!?!!!;1!?!

arlecchino releasing made me fully give up on the vision I'd originally had on the hoth. I generally do actually like the canon hoth, but I was super attached to this whole miniature concept I'd invented and shared with so many people.

so I'm making my own child soldier orphanage!!!

CONSIDER CHILD SOLDIERS IN WHUMP. WITH CONDITIONING. consider telling children that have nowhere else to go (and whumper KNOWS they have nowhere else to go) they can either join the military or continue whatever they were doing. consider training and conditioning them. consider reminding them where they'd be, had carewhumper not taken them in. consider "letting them off easy" via punishment, or threatening to put them to other use.

consider teaching those children happy lies of doing good, and shattering that reality when they dare be ungrateful and try to run away. consider always making the expectations on them clear. consider the bonds these children will form both with each other and carewhumpers. parental whump my beloved. consider living weapon whumpee that isn't an on-field combatant. consider living weapon whumpee who's allowed to be a person as a reward.

consider living weapon whumpee who was previously rescued from a different kind of whumper and is just perfect for molding into a killing machine. consider orphans children willingly volunteering for the military because the program is well known. consider generations upon generations of this where previous whumpees retire to work in the same orphanage so that they'll never have to move out, prolonging the cycle of violence with promises of family. and that family isn't even false, just conditional.

whumpee who was rescued from a vampire thrall trade and is constantly reminded where they would've been had carewhumpers not been so generous as to rehabilitate them. ungrateful little thing, always reacting so slow, cowering from the vampires the carewhumpers have taken in as if they're the same one, either hoarding food or immediately wolfing it down.

whumpee who was abandoned as a child and came in to a place they knew they'd be accepted, but gradually realized the danger behind it and tried escaping. they were brought back and thoroughly disciplined. it's obvious that they're using a facade once one simply reads their file or asks them, but that doesn't matter so long as they're obedient.

a whumpee turned carewhumper that sees nothing wrong with what they're doing. they were raised this way, and though it was very scary, so is life in general. they certainly wouldn't have survived in this world without this orphanage, and much less by being coddled. the children brought here have all had difficult experiences that have scarred them, they can't be treated like normal kids.

that's all the ocs I have thought up for it rn soz

yeah!! will also be in a typical high fantasy setting because I prefer it a whole lot more.

I'm honestly unsure of what to call this thing. I can't really go with the house of the hearth. at some point I internally called it erysimum institute because I read destroyer and the name beldam institute just sounds rlly catchy. also erysimums symbolize faith in unfortunate situations which I think fits perfectly. but the loneliness/shyness part of wallflowers (a prominent type of erysimum) is a little less fitting.

I'll definitely change the name because I want it to be as original as it can be!! probably to some kind of flower meaning rebirth or smt but idk.

p.s: it would have art!!!

[lucalicatteart]

 sculpted a strange shimmery two headed snail, speckled with wild flowers on it's shell~

[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

[writingprompt-ledgers]

ᴛʜᴇ ʜᴏᴜsᴇ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴛᴡᴏ ᴋᴇʏs

You’re invited to housesit for a friend who swears they’ll be gone only a week. The house is cozy but unusual, with two locked doors at either end of the hall—each requiring a different key.

When you’re handed the keys, they come with strict instructions: one is for the front door, the other must never be used. On the third day, the second key appears in your pocket, but you’re sure you didn’t touch it. That night, something knocks softly on the second door.

[scealaiscoite]

head of state x captain of their personal guard prompts ˗ˏˋ ꒰ 🕊️ ꒱

¹⁾ “must you always make my job so very difficult, your highness?”¹ “someone with your prowess must be challenged, captain. how else will i see to it that i made the right choice in selecting you for the job?”²

²⁾ “*name*, i’m begging you. if you won’t listen to me as your guard, then listen to me as someone who loves you - please let me get you to safety before it’s too late.”

³⁾ “what were you playing at, looking at me like that from across the court?!”

“since when do you feel permitted to give your opinion on matters of the crown?!”¹ “since i fell in love with the person wearing it.”²

⁴⁾ “when i told you to forget our titles during our sparring lessons, i didn’t think you’d actually follow through.”

⁵⁾ “i’m beginning to think you’ve only taken to spending so much time in the throne room to show off for me.”

⁶⁾ “i’ve dreamt of making you my consort more than i’d like to admit.”

⁷⁾ “so not only have you been ‘entertaining’ marriage prospects, but you didn’t even deem fit to tell me about it yourself? am i not even worth that to you?”

⁸⁾ “if the lords/ladies-in-waiting spy you leaving my quarters in the morning again, i fear we’ll be fielding more question than we can answer.”

⁹⁾ “you know how direly i hate these balls, my love.”¹ “yes, i do. but i also know how very much you love me, so i’m hoping one will cancel the other out.”²

¹⁰⁾ “you do remember that i’m supposed to be the one protecting you, yes?”

[phishyie]

@theguardianofmagic

Digging through the vault and found these old sketches of these two, almost directly after the original scene I sketched of them! Bowen is a delightful character who I loved to make fun of in my old rp days (re: ten years ago, @heronarose )

For context, Bowen is a knight to the Princess, affectionately called “Darling” by most, save for the knight errant himself. He’s a bit more rigid and a stick in the mud than anyone else in this world, but let’s assume he means well. Guard dog privilege, very repressed feelings, lots of obliviousness (Darling) and yearning (Bowen).

Coincidentally, these two exist in the same universe as Donnie, who I also haven’t drawn in ages… but that’s a story for another day.

Meanwhile, back on the farm, and drawn far more recently - maybe they aren’t kissing, but certainly some not-so-sober longing gazes from one particular knight!

[promptsforyourwhumpfic]

Whump Prompt #1376

Whumptober #26: Breakfast Table

That beautiful moment of chaos when the table has to get swiped/cleared for The Whumpee. They’re frantically dragged through the door to The Healer, seeping blood into the wooden floor below as they’re barely able to hold themselves up. Whatever food/supplies that were being prepared are now covering the nearby surfaces/piled on the floor as The Whumpee is transferred to the table. While The Healer sometimes liked the sudden rush of excitement, they were far from happy that breakfast had been disturbed. Couldn’t these adventurers have emergencies during normal waking hours?

Fresh water and towels are produced as The Healer instinctively begins pulling the whumpee’s clothes away to assess the damage, a piece of fruit in their other hand as they are insistent on finishing at least part of their meal. 

“What happened?” They ask, scrunching their nose at the sight of ghastly weeping wounds. 

“The Beast got ‘em.” Grunts the whumpee’s friend. The group of adventurers were ambushed during the night in the forest. They just about managed to defeat the beast, though not without the whumpee taking a bad hit. The Healer listens intently as the friend gives them a description of The Beast, as well as the symptoms your whumpee had been experiencing on their journey. During this time, they also instruct another friend on where to place pressure on the wounds as they flick through books to find more information on their attacker. 

“Did it look like this?” The Healer eventually asks, showing an illustration of The Beast to a friend. 

“It did.” They nod eagerly. 

“Then I’m afraid your friend may not make it through the night… unless you are able to find a very specific ingredient.”

[gh0sthands]

magic whumpee experimented on (fantasy setting)

magic whumpee kidnapped and experimented on by whumper. whumpee has magic in their very blood, and whumper wants to know how it works. they purposefully antagonize the whumpee to test how their magic responds to emotions, particularly stress.

whumpee is poked and prodded with needles, their blood stolen from them. their body cut open so whumper can try to understand how the magic flows through their body.

whumper gives whumpee something/uses their magic to keep whumpee asleep, because whumper's primary objective is science, not torture. but when whumper realizes that whumpee's magic is dormant if they're unconscious, whumper has little to no qualms about experimenting on a conscious whumpee.

if whumper gets tired of whumpee's screaming, they simply cast a silence spell over them. then adds more restraints to keep whumpee from moving.

when whumper isn't experimenting on them, whumpee is kept in a cold, dark room, chained to the wall. they are given the bare minimum of sustenance, in the form of a small magic pill that keeps them fed. and that whumper forces down whumpee's throat.

then, one day, while whumpee is lying on the table, they think they hear someone. someone besides whumper. and whumper notices, too. whumper leaves whumpee on the table with their body cut open, to go deal with the intruders.

except whumper never returns. whumpee hears the fight somewhere in the building. they think they recognize caretaker's voice.

and then caretaker runs into the lab.

"gods," caretaker's tough exterior breaks down as they sob.

whumpee is too in shock to move their body, but their eyes meet caretaker's. caretaker has never seen such fear.

"i've got you baby," caretaker mutters, focusing all of their energy into healing the gaping wound. gentle yellow light shines from caretaker's palms, and with focus, the wound begins to stitch itself together.

whumpee whimpers, and caretaker says "i know, i know, I'm sorry baby, i'll make it as quick as i can," and one of their hands finds whumpee's own.

caretaker's magic isn't enough to fully heal the wound, but it's enough to get whumpee stable. caretaker sheds their cloak to cover whumpee's still naked body. they've seen whumpee's body before, but right now, whumpee deserves some privacy.

then, caretaker finally works on the restraits. one by one, caretaker yanks the leather straps off, and finally, finally, caretaker picks up whumpee from the table, heading straight for the exit.

"whumper's dead," team leader says, catching up with caretaker. "how's whumpee?"

"stable, for now."

"let's get going, i'll treat them once we're safe" medic says.

whumpee can barely process that any of this is happening, but they're in caretaker's arm now. they know it's real. they know caretaker (and team leader and medic) will keep them safe.

whumpee lets themself fall asleep in caretaker's arms.

[o0o0thorn0o0o]

I was kinda hyperfocusing on completing some pieces for something, and wanted to come back online only after I finished them, but then I realized I wouldn’t get done nearly in time anyway… So they’re postponed for a later date, who knows when. I’ll take my time. Anyway, I’ll try not to disappear again, especially so soon… ^^;

But yeah, it’s been a while since I posted about Zangetsu, so here is he.

At first, I was just gonna go for a regular sketch. But then I decided to put him in a turtleneck, ‘cause, yeah, that’s what I like drawing, idk what to tell you ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ And then I wanted to render it the same way I did for Ichigo and Orihime’s b-day pieces since it’s fun and I like the colors. And then, since I was already drawing him with a turtleneck in that style… at this point, I was kinda making excuses not to draw Zangetsu in the same outfit. So I gave in and did it, eheh. Hey, it’s a really good fit. I should draw it more (1), and I really wanted to see Zangetsu in it (2). So yeah.

Plus, I like trios, and this makes it a set of three, heheh. (Plus maybe, just maybe, this makes up for not finishing anything for him on his birthday ;~; Listen, okay: Ichigo was the priority… I’ll try to do better next year…)

(Also, this may or may not stay a collection of three… but if there are additions, it’ll be sometime in the future, when I get the spontaneous urge again)

[unboundprompts]

Random Prompt #182

A single match flares to life, casting a brief glow across the stone floor as a woman lights a lantern. The flame flickers, reflecting off the rows of glass jars on the shelf, each filled with something unrecognizable, floating in murky liquid. In the quiet, the soft tapping of fingers against the glass breaks the silence, as if something inside is stirring, waiting.