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A thread for those who aren't good at or don't really care much for storytelling but who do enjoy building worlds and creating Lore.
I've got about 2 I've been working on so far. They're both incomplete (and will probably remain that way forever lol)
The one I've put the most work into (by virtue of having worked on it the longest) is called Riders in the Skies. I wrote a decent summary (in order to help focus what it is I'm going for whenever I make new additions)
The setting is a science fantasy story with ‘superheroes’ as the primary protagonists. It also has elements of shonen (like the analyzation of powers and how they work) among other things. The powers and abilities are split according to how these powers are often presented in comic book stories. The technology of the setting is based on the idea that comic book super geniuses would share their inventions with the world. This element is the primary contributor to the sci-fi aspect. Think of any incredible piece of tech made by Tony Stark, Reed Richards, and Lex Luthor being sold and copied all over the world.
This technology lends itself to the first type of ‘super-power’. Power granted to one by external (power armor, power suits, magic items) or otherwise unnatural alterations (cybernetics, biochemical enhancement).
The other type of power set, the Materialist, is based on the idea of traditional ‘super powers’. Think mutants, meta-humans, etc etc. Materialists though are a more analyzed version and as such there are more rules as to how it works. There are constraints, which means that certain things cannot logically be done within the story with these powers, necessitating the need for magic.
Magic makes up the 3rd type of power set due to its prevalence within superhero stories alongside superpowers. It’s always presented as different, yet no explanation is given as to why. In my setting this difference has a logical answer which also lends itself to a set of rules and constraints that it also must abide by. It can do many of the same things materialism can do, but it also has things only it can do (and vice versa). The best way to sum up the arcane in this setting is that it’s: The Force + The Warp + Tolkien Magic.
And the 4th type of power set is those who are powerful because of their physiology. Which is to say, amongst their own species, they are normal, but among humans they are powerful. Examples include vampires, werewolves, Asgardians, kryptonians, aliens from ben 10 etc. What separates inhumans in this setting is that they are incapable of producing fertile offspring with humans. And producing an infertile offspring can only occur between certain species.
These elements contribute to the ‘comic book’ aspect of the story. As for the fantasy aspect of the story. This is supported by the world of Therrat itself, the solar system it inhabits, as well as some of the interesting fauna and flora which inhabit the planet. The world has two moons, one habitable, the other not, within its oceans lurks krakens, leviathans, nessids and megalodons. Through its skies flies dragons and enormous arkbirds. And on its lands, walks enormous behemoths and turtles the size of elephants, not to mention the dire wolves and sabertooth cats and other apex predators of Therrat.
This technology lends itself to the first type of ‘super-power’. Power granted to one by external (power armor, power suits, magic items) or otherwise unnatural alterations (cybernetics, biochemical enhancement).
The other type of power set, the Materialist, is based on the idea of traditional ‘super powers’. Think mutants, meta-humans, etc etc. Materialists though are a more analyzed version and as such there are more rules as to how it works. There are constraints, which means that certain things cannot logically be done within the story with these powers, necessitating the need for magic.
Magic makes up the 3rd type of power set due to its prevalence within superhero stories alongside superpowers. It’s always presented as different, yet no explanation is given as to why. In my setting this difference has a logical answer which also lends itself to a set of rules and constraints that it also must abide by. It can do many of the same things materialism can do, but it also has things only it can do (and vice versa). The best way to sum up the arcane in this setting is that it’s: The Force + The Warp + Tolkien Magic.
And the 4th type of power set is those who are powerful because of their physiology. Which is to say, amongst their own species, they are normal, but among humans they are powerful. Examples include vampires, werewolves, Asgardians, kryptonians, aliens from ben 10 etc. What separates inhumans in this setting is that they are incapable of producing fertile offspring with humans. And producing an infertile offspring can only occur between certain species.
These elements contribute to the ‘comic book’ aspect of the story. As for the fantasy aspect of the story. This is supported by the world of Therrat itself, the solar system it inhabits, as well as some of the interesting fauna and flora which inhabit the planet. The world has two moons, one habitable, the other not, within its oceans lurks krakens, leviathans, nessids and megalodons. Through its skies flies dragons and enormous arkbirds. And on its lands, walks enormous behemoths and turtles the size of elephants, not to mention the dire wolves and sabertooth cats and other apex predators of Therrat.
The story itself is more a basic outline than an actual cohesive narrative (and I can't help but constantly change and alter it)
This version of Riders in the Skies takes place in a fictional world with its own fictional past. The world of Therrat has seen many ages come and go and it has seen much strife. Therrat’s full recorded history is twice as long as that of Earth’s. The age at which man began to experience ‘powers’ began some 1300 years ago. Since then the humans of Therrat advanced at a startling pace, this led to a massive upheaval and rearrangement of society, with materialists occupying the upper class. When magic came about, it posed a direct threat to the power wielded by the materialist’s and so was harshly persecuted. So much so that many of the oldest arcane universities have only been around for little over a century. And even when they were built they still dealt with threats and prejudice from the outside world. Over the course of the story we learn different things such as the various mythologies and histories of Therrat. We learn that mankind’s presence on Therrat is not natural. In this version, the titular organization’s origins dates back at least a thousand years.
Over the centuries the Riders fought around the world, fighting for lives and rights of innocent people, whether this was through helping overthrow a tyrannical governments, helping fend off a genocide, or intervening in devastating conflicts. The Story is meant to parallel real world events (revolutions, funding from self-interested third parties). Its takes the idea of superheroes by making them super-powered beings who are heroes, not necessarily for fighting small level crime, but fighting crimes against humanity and fighting for popular movements. Aside from that, they don’t fit the bill of traditional edgy anti-heroes, (they’re not sociopaths, and they are genuinely good people).
The basic synopsis is that, in the modern era, the organization is crumbling from a number of factors, both internal and external. This has not stopped the daily problems which plague the world from raging on; from crime and corruption, to disasters and super-powered mayhem. They must deal with these while also being force to deal with the fact that, perhaps their time is simply coming to an end.
I want the story to resemble that of Star Wars. We jump in at random points in time (sometimes months or years apart) and focus only on the conflicts which shape the characters. As such individual stories are self-contained, yet still part of a larger overarching narrative.
The conflicts themselves are based on various sci-fi, anime, and cinematic tropes I enjoy: disaster movies, space movies, adventure, military, battle shonen, video games.
This version of Riders in the Skies takes place in a fictional world with its own fictional past. The world of Therrat has seen many ages come and go and it has seen much strife. Therrat’s full recorded history is twice as long as that of Earth’s. The age at which man began to experience ‘powers’ began some 1300 years ago. Since then the humans of Therrat advanced at a startling pace, this led to a massive upheaval and rearrangement of society, with materialists occupying the upper class. When magic came about, it posed a direct threat to the power wielded by the materialist’s and so was harshly persecuted. So much so that many of the oldest arcane universities have only been around for little over a century. And even when they were built they still dealt with threats and prejudice from the outside world. Over the course of the story we learn different things such as the various mythologies and histories of Therrat. We learn that mankind’s presence on Therrat is not natural. In this version, the titular organization’s origins dates back at least a thousand years.
Over the centuries the Riders fought around the world, fighting for lives and rights of innocent people, whether this was through helping overthrow a tyrannical governments, helping fend off a genocide, or intervening in devastating conflicts. The Story is meant to parallel real world events (revolutions, funding from self-interested third parties). Its takes the idea of superheroes by making them super-powered beings who are heroes, not necessarily for fighting small level crime, but fighting crimes against humanity and fighting for popular movements. Aside from that, they don’t fit the bill of traditional edgy anti-heroes, (they’re not sociopaths, and they are genuinely good people).
The basic synopsis is that, in the modern era, the organization is crumbling from a number of factors, both internal and external. This has not stopped the daily problems which plague the world from raging on; from crime and corruption, to disasters and super-powered mayhem. They must deal with these while also being force to deal with the fact that, perhaps their time is simply coming to an end.
I want the story to resemble that of Star Wars. We jump in at random points in time (sometimes months or years apart) and focus only on the conflicts which shape the characters. As such individual stories are self-contained, yet still part of a larger overarching narrative.
The conflicts themselves are based on various sci-fi, anime, and cinematic tropes I enjoy: disaster movies, space movies, adventure, military, battle shonen, video games.
In my mind, I envision the technology of the setting as a cross between Gundam and Halo.
As for the world/society itself, the best way I can describe is like a mix between Overwatch and Middle-Earth. So kind of Star Wars-ish I guess. The fantasy races occupy the same position as Omnics. Though at this point the discrimination isn't as egregious. It resembles the kind of discrimination in modern America. Problems still exist sure. But egregious crimes such as murder and blatant discrimination are considered taboo and heavily looked down upon by the general populace. This applies to sapient machines as well.
As for the world/society itself, the best way I can describe is like a mix between Overwatch and Middle-Earth. So kind of Star Wars-ish I guess. The fantasy races occupy the same position as Omnics. Though at this point the discrimination isn't as egregious. It resembles the kind of discrimination in modern America. Problems still exist sure. But egregious crimes such as murder and blatant discrimination are considered taboo and heavily looked down upon by the general populace. This applies to sapient machines as well.
Last edited Feb 19, 2021 at 02:54AM EST
