#worldbuilding examples

[daisywords]

One of my biggest nitpicks in fiction concerns the feeding of babies. Mothers dying during/shortly after childbirth or the baby being separated form the mother shortly after birth is pretty common in fiction. It is/was also common enough in real life, which is why I think a lot of writers/readers don't think too hard about this. however. Historically, the only reason the vast majority of babies survived being separated from their mother was because there was at least one other woman around to breastfeed them. Before modern formula, yes, people did use other substitutes, but they were rarely, if ever, nutritionally sufficient.

Newborns can't eat adult food. They can't really survive on animal milk. If your story takes place in a world before/without formula, a baby separated from its mother is going to either be nursed by someone else, or starve.

It doesn't have to be a huge plot point, but idk at least don't explicitly describe the situation as excluding the possibility of a wetnurse. "The father or the great grandmother or the neighbor man or the older sibling took and raised the baby completely alone in a cave for a year." Nope. That baby is dead I'm sorry. "The baby was kidnapped shortly after birth by a wizard and hidden away in a secret tower" um quick question was the wizard lactating? "The mother refused to see or touch her child after birth so the baby was left to the care of the ailing grandfather" the grandfather who made the necessary arrangements with women in the neighborhood, right? right? OR THAT GREAT OFFENDER "A newborn baby was left on the doorstep and they brought it in and took care of it no issues" What Are You Going to Feed That Baby. Hello?

Like. It's not impossible, but arrangements are going to have to be made. There are some logistics.

[forevergoldgame]

Like with real animal husbandry, "Is it possible to..." and "is it a good idea to..." yields two different answers!

Is it possible? Hares are working animals. Sometimes it's necessary that a hare be trained to behave in the field around things it thinks of as prey. (Carriage hares can't be snapping up pursedogs as a mid-day snack, after all.)

The success of such endeavors depends on how good a trainer the hare's bonded person is, as well as the temperament of the individual animal. So yes, it's possible.

But is it a good idea? Only if you're willing to take the risk of Fido mysteriously going missing.

[onaperduamedee]

Thinking again about how the gender essentialism in WoT is aggravating not because there is gender essentialism in magic because that's the entire premise of the books but because RJ set to explore that particular premise without fully understanding how gender essentialism and patriarchy affects women differently that it does men. That's how you get Berelain's writing, the internal monologues of Nynaeve in tel'aran'rhiod, groups of women in power often written as petty squabbling fools, practically all the powerful female leaders at the start of the series will be depowered and humiliated by the end, the Aiel warriors being women presented as something foreign...

In RJ world, men are naturally stronger than women in the OP: this rule isn't subverted and permeates every aspect of his worldbuilding. There's a reason only the boys are ta'veren, that Mat ends up taking control of the armies over Elayne, that Perrin is naturally better at tel'aran'rhiod than Egwene, that Nynaeve the strongest channeler we've seen in a thousand years becomes a glorified battery for Rand in the end.

In a way, it's a fascinating psychological phenomenon that the entire premise of his fictional world is based on gender essentialism yet he doubled down on several core elements of gender essentialism instead of subverting them.

When I discuss gender essentialism in his work I do it so because he made it "gender essentialism: the fantasy edition", so while his women challenge gender essentialism in some ways, it's entirely legitimate to question why he didn't expand the subversion in other aspects of his world.

[minecraftbookshelf]

So like…there are potatoes and cacao in empires because there are potatoes and cacao in minecraft which means that clearly trade has been established with the americas they have a mixture of european and american crops.

So its plausible that at least one empire grows corn as a staple crop.

Anyway, how is everyone else’s night going?

That is a genuine question if anyone wants to answer I’m procrastinating at work.

[potatobugz]

aughhh i LOVE the little details in the artwork for fhjy especially when it comes to the equipment they use. like, buddys staff has grip on it for him to hold. Oisin has a holster for his spell book. it makes me giddy with delight

[vigilskeep]

sorry for answering that ask half asleep. the REAL thing you need to know about dragon age is that it’s not one of those fantasy worlds that’s built really deeply fixed into real history with deep knowledge. it borrows shallowly. it’s built first and foremost to set a videogame in and i love that about it, that it’s built so quickly you can still see the scaffolding went up and how they got there. they decide on a worldbuilding principle—“uhhh what if our jesus figure was [spins wheel] joan of arc?”—and they go for it because they are on a schedule. you should absolutely never be intimidated by dragon age lore it does not know more than you. all i’m doing is being able to make good guesses at what they’re borrowing from and make leaps from there

[broncoburro]

What do people think of the Northern Kingdom? Well, few ever bother to find out by visiting. (They eat ice or something, right?)

[absolutechaosss]

My favorite growing fantasy and sci fi trend is earrings or jewelry that indicate pronoun preference. 10x sexier than pronoun pins.

[cienie-isengardu]

[MK1] Bi-Han & Kuai Liang. Good brother? Evil brother? Nah, just different reactions to trauma, part 1

Author's note: the first part is not directly focused on Kuai Liang and Bi-Han as characters but at the worldbuilding, our knowledge about Lin Kuei and tradition that shaped Sub-Zero & Scorpion, and Liu Kang's acceptance of things as they are.

Lately it feels like Lin Kuei fandom split into either Bi-Han’s supporters or Kuai Liang’s supporters and the dispute over who is a good brother and who is not is an ongoing issue. This is greatly upsetting because both men have their share of flaws that sometimes fans exaggerate to demonize one or another. For me though, the brotherly conflict is not about who is good and who is bad, not even who is right and who is wrong, but about how two men groomed since childhood to be a living weapon deal with the trauma in totally opposite ways. As in, one is rebelling against the tradition and the other willing to uphold the system. 

With Smoke, the adoptive yet no less traumatized brother, stuck in the middle of that.

Bi-Han and Kuai Liang being survivors of a great psychological and physical abuse is the most true for previous timelines, however hear me out - just because Lin Kuei falls now under Liu Kang’s authority it does not automatically erase the possibility of both brothers experiencing things that no child should. To better illustrate my point, let’s take a moment and look at the Empress Sindel and Umgadi system. 

Sindel in general is presented as the ruler who does not seek an open conflict with Earthrealm and whom Liu Kang openly admires. As Fire Lord said himself, Sindel was destined to “rule Outworld firmly, but fairly” and it is her rule that brings peace to the otherwise conflicted Outworld

Liu Kang, story mode: Its past has been difficult. Though the last thousand years of Empress Sindel's reign have been a true golden age... the memories of that strife still linger.

and

Sindel's Bio: Her early reign marked the start of a new Golden Age.

That is what the character's Bio and the main story mode outright says or implies about Sindel. 

But then intro dialogues bring a different side of the beloved Queen. The people infected by Tarkat illness are exiled, their property confiscated by Sindel’s edict 

Kitana: When you became ill, your assets were taken? Baraka: As required by your mother's edict, Princess.

and in result forced to slowly die in poverty far away from healthy citizens. Those who sympathize with suffering infected people and won’t “report them for quarantine” are treated like criminals, as was seen when Li Mei and her men disrupted the Royal Family’s procession while leading arrested and tied up people.

The bad treatment of infected people, according to Mileena and Baraka endings, will improve thanks to the new Empress, who not only reaches a hand to suffering but would go so far to reveal her own illness to reduce social stigma against the sick. Mileena is seen as hot-headed, violent and not the best material for a Queen compared to Sindel, the supposed wise and kind ruler or even compared to her younger sister, Kitana. But it is the brash Empress that would actually make an effort to change her Empire for better.

Similar things can be said about the Umgadi system, which forces Outworld families to give up their first-born daughters for a training that will turn their children into living weapons to uphold the Royal Family’s rule

Liu Kang, story mode: Umgadi, like Tanya, are warrior priestesses... Selected from the first born daughters of Outworld. From infancy, they are trained to defend the royal family."

The daughters in question will never know their biological family or where they were born to ensure their absolute loyalty to the Royal Family, even though not every candidate will finish their training. Once they obtain the title of Umgadi, they can’t marry or be in a relationship, we have no idea if they even are paid anything for their service. So far Li Mei is the only known woman to leave Umgadi, and she did so due to the death of Sindel’s husband for which she was unfairly blamed. And again, the tie-in material implies that the change to Umgadi system will happen because of Mileena, who is willing to reform an organization that is deeply rooted in Edenian tradition, not the “kind and good” Queen Sindel. 

So just because a character is set on the Good Guys Side, it does not mean the said character is crystally good with no flaw at all or that breaking up with tradition is inherently evil, because the tradition alone is just a system of beliefs, practices or behaviors established in the past and passed down from one generation to another within a group of people or society and not a determinant of being good or bad. 

Now, the important thing - Umgadi and Lin Kuei are very similar organizations. The similarities are especially true for old timeline(s) Lin Kuei, as we have more or less idea how training adepts looked through the ages. However, what we learned through sources about Liu Kang’s version of the clan still brings a lot of parallels to Umgadi - and I think we all can agree that objective speaking, the Umgadi system is very unfair to first-born daughters and benefits only the Royal Family.

Through the story mode and intro dialogues, Liu Kang does not question the nature of the Umgadi system. Quite the opposite, the intro between Geras and Tanya suggests that Umgadi was Liu Kang’s innovation

Geras: The Umgadi was one of Liu Kang’s best innovations. Tanya: My order sprung from his mind?

A man who does not see anything wrong with enrolling little girls into never-ending servitude to the Royal Family, logically thinking, won't question the process of making Lin Kuei warriors nor the nature of their duty.

In previous timelines, Bi-Han and Kuai Liang as children were kidnapped and forced into the life of assassins by their own father (original timeline) or unspecified Lin Kuei member, presumably grandfather (alternative timeline). Their choice was to adapt to this hardship or die and so they survived and both became great warriors on their own. The fandom has been torn about their brotherhood for years, as if Bi-Han was a good brother or not. Personally, I do not think this was even a matter of one brother being inherently good and another inherently evil, as both men are the result of the abusive environment in which they grew up. And I truly can’t stress this enough - Bi-Han and Kuai Liang were survivors of great abuse and pathology more than anything else. 

Now, in Liu Kang’s timeline Bi-Han and Kuai Liang were born into a place of power, as both are sons of Grandmaster. Sub-Zero as the oldest was meant to inherit the leadership once his father would pass away, or possibly abdicate. So in theory, Fire Lord improved the living of both brothers. However, the same as the previous, both men weren’t given a choice, as Lin Kuei clan is bound to serve Earthrealm while their existence is kept in secret. 

Liu Kang said: “The Lin Kuei is a centuries old clan dedicated to Earthrealm’s defense” while Sub-Zero’s Bio adds “As the Lin Kuei's Grandmaster, Sub-Zero leads his ancient warrior clan in the defense of Earthrealm from external threats. For centuries, it has been their solemn task” and this is the tradition that will define the whole life of Bi-Han and Kuai Liang. Because they, as sons of Grandmaster, were expected to uphold and continue that service.

We do not have a full picture of how Lin Kuei daily life or training looks like in Liu Kang’s timeline, but the sources give some idea. And so we have an examples from story mode

Scorpion to Kung Lao: We're trained differently. It takes years to master our ways." 

and intro dialogues

Sub Zero: The Lin Kuei are trained from childhood.

confirming both brothers were prepared for their role as Earthrealm Defenders (Liu Kang’s Special Forces) since they were children. Scorpion’s words alone brings another vital clue, as “trained differently” is what distinguishes both brothers from Liu Kang’s chosen Champions. We could see a glimpse of that during the Lin Kuei mission in Ying Fortress, as both Sub-Zero and Scorpion did not hesitate to kill their enemy and Kuai Liang’s “fit of rage” illustrates well how brutal Lin Kuei can be in a fight.

As story mode and intro dialogues point out, Lin Kuei weren’t trained for the glorious yet honorable Mortal Kombat Tournament, as members of this clan have never been chosen to represent Earthrealm

Kitana: Why are Lin Kuei never Earthrealm champions? Sub-Zero: So that Outworld doesn't lose every tournament.

but they were trained to eliminate any threat to Earthrealm’s safety, be it by killing or capturing those whose activity concerned Liu Kang. As could be seen with the Lin Kuei brothers mission to capture Shang Tsung.

Intro dialogue Sub-Zero vs Reiko adds another detail about process of making Lin Kuei warriors:

Sub-Zero: To kill, one must be cold-blooded. Reiko: My veins are as iced as yours, Sub-Zero.

Thus we may assume Lin Kuei training was not just about a physical aspect but psychological one as well. Both brothers were prepared from childhood to kill - while that was never demanded from Earthrealm Champions. In story mode Liu Kang said:

“No tournament participant has ever been grievously injured or killed."

and

“I would never send my champions unwittingly into mortal kombat."

so I assume the reason Liu Kang send his Champions to search for Shang Tsung was A) threat of the sorcerer that wasn’t supposed to learn magic in the first place and B) they were in Outworld, so he couldn’t call for Lin Kuei without Sindel’s knowledge.

Another detail about Lin Kuei comes from Scorpion vs Nitara intro dialogue

Nitara: Had you ever known hunger, you wouldn't judge us. Scorpion: I have, and I will.

and though we don’t have an idea if Kuai Liang was forced to endure hunger due to training - as happened in old version of Lin Kuei according to Mortal Kombat novel by Jeff Rovin:

 Many young people died during training: some could not hold their breath for five minutes and drowned, others weren’t fast enough to avoid the weapons of the masters, some starved or froze or dehydrated when they were stranded, naked, in deserts or on mountaintops and told to make their way home. But those who survived were the Lin Kuei.

Or was that a reference to economic problems of Scorpion’s clan, which at some point faced so great famine that it touched even the son(s) of the ruling family. Whatever the case, it gives us a sense of hardship endured by Lin Kuei members.

This leads us to another detail - father’s teaching (tradition) mentioned by Kuai Liang and Tomas through the story mode:

Kuai Liang: Glory? We fight for duty.

and

Tomas: Our clan doesn't govern. It serves.

while intro dialogues adds

Raiden: The Lin Kuei won't be allowed to govern. Sub-Zero: We will not be frozen out, Raiden.

Furthermore it is important to note that every Liu Kang’s Champion had their own life outside the fighting - Johnny was an actor, Kung Lao and Raiden were farmers, Kenshi was Yakuza on path to redemption and saving his clan. Lin Kuei? Not so much, as Bi-Han’s Bio points out Sub-Zero leads his ancient warrior clan in the defense of Earthrealm from external threats. For centuries, it has been their solemn task. 

After the Tournament, the Champions easily will return to their life - in the case of Johnny, benefit greatly by making his own movies based on the events, while the Lin Kuei would come back to the never ending training in preparation to defend Earthrealm and repeating the cycle by pushing their children into the same service. And it would go like that for generations, if not for the Titan Shang Tsung’s meddling that interrupted the “natural” order of things.

Let’s establish another thing - namely Lin Kuei duty in recent centuries.

Sub-Zero’s Bio suggest the Earthrealm hasn’t be threatened in generations:

But Earthrealm hasn’t been threatened in generations, and Sub-Zero sees no point in limiting his clan to preparing for dangers that may never come. Under his leadership, the Lin Kuei will come out of the shadows and fight for its place as one of Earthrealm’s great nations.

This lack of need to dispatch Lin Kuei to eliminate threat is supported by intro dialogues:

Reptile: The battle against the sorcerers was your first real fight. Smoke: It was a baptism by fire, Syzoth.

and

Kenshi: How is it you haven't been to Outworld? Scorpion: Earthrealm's defense has never required it.

However Bi-Han alone suggest something else:

Story mode: After years of idleness, it pleases me to again face kombat."

And so do the information about their mother:

Sindel: Both your parents were excellent fighters. Scorpion: I can only hope to live up to their example.

Sindel in another intro says, she knew the previous Grandmaster 

Sindel: I knew your father. He was a great man. Sub-Zero: Yet he never understood the Lin Kuei's potential.

So I think it is safe to assume Sindel was familiar enough with Bi-Han and Kuai Liang’s mother to praise her skills and is not just praising her out of politeness. But the thing is, Kitana’s intro confirms the Lin Kuei warriors weren’t chosen for the Mortal Kombat Tournament, so how did Sindel know if their mother was an excellent fighter? That to me suggests she either witnessed it outside the Tournament or it was reported to her and the latter may imply Bi-Han’s mother took part in eliminating the threat on Liu Kang’s order, maybe even in Outworld. We know from source material that Outworlders do not tolerate Earthrealm’s unauthorized activity on their land. However in the story mode alone, Sindel herself admitted that Liu Kang’s “interventions have kept Outworld at peace for centuries”

while the vast tie-in material agrees that Sindel’s Court is full of intrigues and dangers - both to the Queen and her daughters. So, if Liu Kang is a close friend of King Jerrod and Queen Sindel, it doesn’t feel that far stretched to think Lin Kuei could be dispatched to ensure the Royal Family's - and in greater perspective - Earthrealm’s safety.

Now, if there was no need for Lin Kuei service in the latest generations, why a woman

considered to be an excellent fighter - thus presumably in great shape

who also happens to be wife of Grandmaster - thus presumably having access to the best medical care the clan could offer

died in some unspecified time before main story happened? That doesn’t sound like a natural death, as Bi-Han and Kuai Liang are what? In their 30s at the worst? Which gives the chance she was a middle-aged woman, not an old person who dies out of age. The Grandmaster alone, also an excellent fighter, died in an accident, though story mode does not tell us what kind of accident it was supposed to be. Did it happen on a hunting trip? During mission on Liu Kang’s order? 

So again, for a supposedly peaceful time, it seems like Kuai Liang and Tomas are those who did not have much part in Lin Kuei activity - in contrast to Bi-Han and presumably their parents. 

Going further, the sources claims Lin Kuei clan is dedicated to defend Earthrealm from external threats, and indeed Lin Kuei warriors fought against vampires (Nitara’s people)

Bi-Han, story mode: As a boy I heard tales of battles against your kind. I had thought them tall ones.

and apparently their might is know in Outworld

General Shao: Finally, the chance to test the Lin Kuei's mettle. Sub-Zero: It will end with your humiliation.

However Lin Kuei apparently took part in solving the internal problems too, if Sub-Zero vs Kenshi dialogue is something to go by:

Kenshi: My ancestors say they've tangled with yours. Sub-Zero: Has it occurred to you to ask them why?

For a quick summary, through the sources, we learn that Lin Kuei:

were meant to serve, not govern

trained from childhood not just to be an excellent fighters but to be capable of killing

do not have a life outside their duty the way Earthrealm Champions do

endured hardship (hunger)

each generation is trained to perform their duty

and presumably, even in supposedly peaceful times, the fighters may not survive to an old age nor die in a natural way (the fate of mother and Grandmaster).

So I think that objectively speaking, we can agree that Lin Kuei does not benefit much from its service to Earthrealm, while Liu Kang got an excellent Special Forces that kept Earthrealm safe for centuries.

[Next part] Bi-Han and Kuai Liang and how Lin Kuei training affected who they are.

[kikuism]

i can acknowledge there are decent anime dubs but what i just can't get over is how they stress japanese words like english. shiBUya and aKIra etc

[daisywords]

So annoying when people try to hold alternate-world fantasy to "historical accuracy" standards like. if I wanted historical accuracy I simply would have read/written historical fiction.

The only thing that should matter is if the alt world feels internally consistent/believable. Not "oh but back then" THERE IS NO BACK THEN. IT'S NOT REAL

and just because some aspects of the world (fashion, systems of government, levels of technology) feel consistent with a particular time period in our history doesn't mean that the author is obligated to stick to all other characteristics of that time period. The POINT of alt-world fantasy is to create a world in which the story they want to tell can work, and that's the metric I'm holding things to

[aroaessidhe]

2024 reads / storygraph

The Sword of Kaigen

standalone fantasy set in a rural mountain village at the edge of an empire that still holds traditional values, with families of powerful water/ice magic warriors

follows a powerful young heir who begins to question his beliefs about the empire when a new boy comes to his village from the city

and his mother, a housewife who has tried to forget her youth as a warrior and vigilante in the city since she moved back home to a loveless marriage

when there’s a violent attack on their village that they’re unprepared for, everything changes, and she has to embrace her old skills to protect her family and people

[ada-tan]

Saw a mutual from the Engage JPN fandom talking about this on Twitter, and they bring up a really solid point—it's not that Engage has no worldbuilding, but that a lot of its worldbuilding is scattered throughout things like bond conversations and supports and flavor text. For me, it's really fun, because as you go through these things, information on Elyos is gradually revealed like piecing together a puzzle.

BUT... that's not the case for more casual players. For those who just do one playthrough without digging too deeply into things like supports and the flavor text, the worldview does end up seeming pretty thin, and the prevailing opinion from players kind of assumes that it is, which is a shame.

It ALSO doesn't help that (from what me and friends have noticed), Treehouse failed to translate several little details brought up in the character profiles that DO help to expand on the world.

How Vander's profile clarifies the way Lythos priests live (in distant villages away from Lythos Castle), or how Louis' profile mentions that most Firenese retainers are nobles, and that him becoming one as a commoner is rare. Or how Merrin's profile explicitly states that women in Solm are the ones who inherit positions of power, over the men. All things brought up in the Japanese version, but not mentioned in translation at all.

Mutual also pointed out that this is why the manga has been so well-received, even with people who didn't like the original game—because the mangaka actually incorporates information from the supports and aspects of Elyos worldbuilding into the main plot. And on that? I'd agree.

While I understand that Engage is Alear's story first and foremost, and that the main plot focuses more on the conflicts between dragons rather than the human struggles that surround it (which is an interesting approach in itself tbh), it's understandable how those looking at it with a more casual glance/superficial eye would think that there's not much to it.

But there is! I find Elyos to honestly be such a fun and fascinating world, and for those who DO care to dig deeper, there really are a lot of fun details about the nations and characters to chew on.

[strixcattus]

Some cosmology for the STP D&D-esque AU:

There are two gods that are pretty universally revered, the Shifting Mound and the Long Quiet. (The Narrator didn't, in-universe, intend for them to be known to the Construct's inhabitants... but things do leak through despite all intentions to the contrary.) The Shifting Mound is hailed as the goddess of growth, transformation, and death, while the Long Quiet doesn't have a domain of his own, rather standing as a counterweight to her—the pauses between her constant motion. These are the "sleeping gods," so called because, despite their widespread worship, they don't intervene in mortal affairs at all. It's thought they're currently going through a period of hibernation, but since they're so detached from the world it's hard to know for sure.

Then there are the Titans, entities with divine magic that live in a realm separate from the world. They're not exactly gods, since they didn't create any part of the world and don't really govern any aspect of it either, but they're hailed as such in communities across the world, and they can grant holy magic. Most people think that Titans and "gods" are one and the same, but in reality most Titans don't engage with the mortal world as gods.

Finally, there are demons, who are the same species as Titans, but live in a different realm. They're worshipped as gods as well, but less often, and they're generally less powerful than Titans. They, too, can grant holy magic to their followers, but fewer people are interested in this deal since demons are typically seen as more wicked. Both demons and Titans are capable of having children with mortal humanoids, but it's much rarer among Titans.

Clerical magic can be granted by either demons or Titans, or through catching a lucky break in worship of the Shifting Mound and Long Quiet. Warlock magic can also be granted by demons and Titans, as well as other, less widely-known entities. Generally speaking, if it's focused around spells the mage chooses to learn, it's clerical magic, and if it's focused around abilities the patron chooses to grant, it's warlock magic. Clerical magic usually also comes with fewer strings attached—generally the only requirement is that the cleric remains faithful to their god, while warlocks may frequently be called upon to carry out their patron's dirty work.

Titans, demons, and other entities include:

The Triad: A group consisting of the most powerful Titan, the most powerful demon, and their considerably weaker younger sister (half-sister to the Fury). The Apotheosis considers herself ruler of the Titans, the Fury considers herself ruler of the Underworld, and the Tower considers herself ruler of the mortal kingdoms. To what extent they can exert this power may vary—in particular the Tower is rarely known to mortals. The Eye of the Needle: A middling-powerful demon who left her realm to enter the mortal world in search of opponents who were more interesting to fight than other demons. She has a half-humanoid daughter out there somewhere, but they haven't spoken since the girl was old enough to take care of herself and set off on her own. Demons don't really do "family." The Networked Wild: An entity formed by the collective network of plants (among other aspects of nature) across the world forming a redundant brain with a capacity impossible for any mortal mind to truly comprehend. Its existence enables the existence of druids, and witches often tap into it as a source of external power. While it contains an impossible-to-determine number of minds (some of which are mortals attempting to tap into its wisdom by temporarily becoming a part of it, which rarely goes well upon separation), it is theorized that there is a single consciousness at the heart of the network, whose identity is unknown. The Wounded Wild: A nature spirit embedded somewhere within the western woods. She was forcibly cut from the Networked Wild a long time ago, and guards her location carefully, less her assailant return to finish the job. It's theorized that magic, particularly druidic magic, would behave unusually around her because of her separation from the rest of the Wild. The Razor: An entity just left of anything with a known classification. She's not any sort of spirit, humanoid, or semi-humanoid (which includes Titans, demons, and fey), but she is a powerful entity capable of granting a warlock pact if she finds someone interesting enough to sponsor. The Stranger: It's only rumor, but there have recently been religious sects emerging that believe in an earthly incarnation of the Shifting Mound, insisting that she is perhaps the first true god since the sleeping gods went into hibernation. Most people regard such groups as trying to take advantage of people's loyalty to the sleeping gods.

[child-of-hurin]

As most novels I read feature sexism in varying degrees, there's something orientating about reading one so imbibed in a more extreme level of misogyny that it helps recalibrate one's standards

[phoenixcatch7]

The thing with stories of any type is that everything is a translation. Sometimes literally, from the author's own head, from another language, from book to TV.

Then there's things like visual metaphors, props and fake backgrounds, set pieces, onomatopoeia, paragraphs of description that everyone will visualise slightly differently, animated contortions, unrealistic but helpful sound effects, camera angles to emphasise mood.

In fantasy or scifi settings you can't even assume they're speaking the language you do. That their culture is exactly what's shown and nothing more.

So much of what makes up good world building is shorthand, is making it work to the audience, is using something in the right context rather than digging up every detail that would make or break the illusion.

A character in a magical world, or even simply a non English speaking country, would not use the same curse words. Leather could be presumed to be cow but could just as easily be any number of bizarre creatures. Booking a hotel could require a very different system to one we're used to. Champagne, the word, wouldn't exist without France but it carries the meaning of expensive alcohol for celebrations and parties, the readers would understand what it means.

Tolkien did it with LOTR and it was a masterpiece. The prevalent themes of dark and light being mere shorthand for expansive good and evil, used to convey the messages it needed rather than entirely new words the readers wouldn't intuit? The characters not even going by their actual names? A whole entire conlang that never even gets mentioned in the actual story??? That's a man who has a grasp on how tightly interconnected the world, history and culture all reflect each other. I mean of course he did, it was his job, but what he did was nothing short of fantastical.

All this to say, I believe this is the root of all world building. Cohesive, well balanced, feasible, detailed-but-not-too-much, no words that'd break a reader's/viewer's immersion, expansive enough, realistic, resonant, coherent, believable. All of it, whether fantastical or realistic, stems from one thing.

Is this a good translation of what you had in your head?