#like this whole machine thing is only for lola + cuckoo!!! everyone else is gonna have their own arcs/conflict sksjfwlejrlwl

[cabbojage]

HAIII

I have a QUESTION!

what piece of world building do u really like that makes a lot of sense in your au?

HELLOOO SORRY THIS IS LATe i swear everything in my inbox is rotting from neglect. BUT I'M GONNA ANSWER ITALL

hopefully i answer this right but.... i really like all the machine lore in my wip ! the whole "time is currency" thing that i mentioned obviously takes the spotlight in terms of my world's defining features, but machines and the energy that powers them also plays a pretty big role! the gist of it is basically, CLOCKED OUT's city of klairva is mainly fueled by electricity, which is generated in power plants and produced by huge watches wound up by the Clockmaker when he was alive. it's one of the reasons why the city is able to survive with so little land area and such a dense population; essentially, there's an infinite source of energy. however, since the energy source is tied to magic (like a lot of things in my world lmao), it will undoubtedly collapse if the magic ends up dying. or if, you know, the creator of that magic has been considered dead for half a century...

exempt from all this, though, are automatons - half-sentient machines who can take orders but not think for themselves. this is where lola comes in with her mechanic expertise: she makes and fixes automatons! automatons aren't powered by electric batteries, but rather by "keys" - which must be blessed by a Cardinal. the only magical aspect of these keys are the ability to bestow the machine with a half-consciousness (think modern day AI/robots, who can respond to stimuli but don't think or themselves), and keep the machine running without constantly having to be winded (an automatic key instead of a manual one!)

lola, however, has nothing to do with the magic of it all. she deals with the grit, the gears and the grease and the details and dimensions. the design. and i want to capitalize on this human/machine, creator/creation dynamic throughout the whole story - what defines humanity? if your body is ruined into metal, if someone tells you what to do and you obey, does that mean you are more of a machine? if someone else controls how long you live for, are you no different than a generator? the human as a machine and the god as its creator....hm.....

but anyway! i hope this relationship becomes clearer as i write it bc.... all i have rn are vibes LMAOOOO and i don't fully know how i'm gonna represent this or if i have too many elements interacting with each other etc etc TT i might end up toning this down so that my world isn't so magic-reliant (maybe have them use fossil fuels or something idk lmaooo) - but yeah, i like how the whole "time is currency" interacts w the city's machinery as a parallel representing humans as the machines and the cardinals/the Clockmaker as their creator. (i just realized i could've just said that last sentence instead of that massive info dump but.... oh well KLDJALKDJKD)

[cabbojage]

Happy (Very Late) Worldbuilding Wednesday!

(This week was kinda crazy busy for me, so today I’m sending the Asks I couldn’t send on Wednesday.)

In the world of your WIP what kinds of (non-sentient) magic beasts/animals/monsters exist? (As in, are there sea monsters, dragons or unicorns. Something else?) How do people view them - are people afraid of them or do they treat these beasts like pets or animal companions? 

Alternatively, if there aren’t magic beasts in your WIP, what are the most common kinds of pets within your story? Did any of your MCs ever have a pet?

HELLO IM PROBABLY A WEEK LATE SO DON'T EVEN WORRY istg i will send you wbw asks forever to make up for it

MAGIC BEASTS unfortunately there are no biological magical beasts. the closest thing to them however are mechanical automatons - aka steampunk robots !! automatons are very popular throughout klairva as pets (animal automatons) and servants (human automatons). actually, only the rich are able to get servants, so automaton pets are much more common! they're usually fashioned in the form of birds, dogs, cats, and sometimes large (think pet-sized) insects, like spiders or bees. no fire-breathing mechanical dragons, unfortunately - klairva's buildings are too densely packed together, and even the wealthiest household wouldn't have the indoor space for one. so automatons larger than a human are seldom made.

it's largely agreed that automatons are non sentient objects, but people still grow attachment to them and refer to them with more human pronouns (she, he, them) rather than "it." i'm gonna say that the automatons r powered by magic (specifically by the dead clockmaker) but i think i will make a post on energy in klairva + the machines that use it because that is a whoooole different thing LOL

most people are very fond of automatons, similar to how people today are fond of dogs and cats! although they're not fluffy, automatons still react to human touch with a soft, almost "purring" kind of sound of gears rapidly spinning within - something that the citizens of klairva find really cute. lola doesn't have a pet, but she will get one throughout the story! cuckoo has a whole "aviary" of a dozen birds - a mix of carrier pigeons, hawks, and falcons - to deliver messages for her and honestly just wreak havoc whenever she feels like pissing someone off. rowan doesn't have pets. rowan's family has an old dog automaton that he's really close to.

as for real dogs, cats, and birds - they exist. but they're frowned upon almost everywhere in klairva except for the poorer ground level floors and the district of afterhill. afterhill is an exception, as the agriculture district, they're more accepting of organic life and nurturing it - but everyone else has a dislike for the inefficiency of organic life and prefers automation & modernity... which comes in the form of machines......

anyway that was kinda long and i kinda rambled but ye!!! ty again for the question >:D