World-Building and Story Q&A Game

Mainly the reason so few use it is because for most cultures, it is just a new and unknown force to them!

I've started to think historically of the planet - in which it began with just a few completely magical beings. They were probably the essence of magic, and used their abilities to create each their own children and pass down to them as much knowledge as they could/cared to share.

And along the lines and generations upon generations a lot of the knowledge gets lost along the way and a lot of creatures just forget all about it - and some say those mystical beings actually never even existed and are just fairy tales.

And so now, since so few actually use it - there is even fewer who are willing to teach others. It's something you really have to be willing to try to learn/have an interest in and go finding a teacher to teach it to you, or if you're lucky maybe a place in which enough people around actually use magic that there may be a school for learning the magic arts! (Or maybe if you're locked up in some place for eternity with nothing better to do than study this magical ability you've got a taste for... you can just super focus on harnessing that power ehehehDevlynehehehe >n>! )

It's useful if you know how to use it though~! And depending on what you use it for. Most who've studied light magic have found ways to use for healing, lighting up dark rooms, shielding.

I'm sure there are others who've found ways to use it for greater things then that, but the characters who use magic in my story use light magic for those types of things. And then dark magics are mostly just curses, ways of manipulating others, killing, exploding things.. all the fun stuff!

People for sure can use it by accident (Sometimes thats how they begin to learn and start using it!). Using magic is really a spiritual thing that you merely have to focus on. ((Kind of like a will power type thing - or like, 'using the "force" XD Gathering the energy around you and focusing it to do your bidding.))

It's actually because of that too that makes it so hard to properly learn and study. There's no spells or words you simply gotta say and suddenly something happens. Gotta think for it to happen, will for it to happen, and maaaybe it will happen! Haha~

How accepting are the cultures in your story of outsiders?

Depends on the culture! Although most of the smaller ones like Drake's and Oliv's tend to be pretty wary of outsiders. They don't trade or communicate with other cultures so if anyone ends up in their village they're probably either lost or looking for trouble.

There are bigger city type places that are made of of assortment of different creatures and beings from all over though, and those places are pretty open and uncaring to outsiders haha.

How common is crime? What acts are considered criminal within the culture, and what are the punishments for these crimes?

In small tribes like Drake's and Oliv's it's pretty rare for crimes to ever occur. (Everyone knows everyone, so if you steal you're going to get caught haha)

But If something terrible IS caused by someone in their tribe, they do have ways of dealing with it.

For Drake's, punishments can include being tossed into a pit with a furious beast and forced to battle it. If you win, you can get off the hook depending. If you lose, you gotta stay in that pit for a while. (They'll take out the animal though hehe)

For Oliv's, they don't have any real formal type of punishments. But for rebels like Oliv who is constantly going against their customs they've acquired a form of "cold shoulder" type of punishment in which no words are spoken, but everyone knows you are to not speak to Oliv and do her any favors.

What festivals does the culture celebrate? Are they tied to a religion, or secular?

Both Drake and Oliv's tribes have a "Becoming an adult/man" type ritual in which (oddly enough) requires both of the tribes to climb up a mountain, retrieve their ancient artifact and bring it back. If they do this they are now, an ADULT! (And then the artifact is replaced for the next kid)

I'm sure they have more fun festival type things, but I haven't thought up of any yet eheh!

What kind of person is looked up to within the culture? (Or, what qualities are valued in a person?)

For Drake's tribe I've already mentioned I think, is being an incredibly brave and adventurous monster fighter. They're all really proud and boastful about the things they can beat up and kill. They will tend to have a lot of contests with each other, seeing who can kill the most of a certain type of animal.

For Oliv's it would be their priest. Everyone looks up to and respects the priest and always goes to ask for their wisdom and ideas for any questions or problems they may have.

Do the people rely on myths to explain things they don't understand, or do they prefer logic and scientific reasoning?

I think ALL cultures pretty much rely on myth and stories to explain their reasoning for everything, since technology isn't something that has been introduced in this world.

What are living conditions like for your people? (Do they live in cities or small settlements, or are they nomadic? What are shelters (if any) made of? Are they materialistic, or do they live simply? Do they keep livestock/farms, or import food, or are they a hunter/gatherer culture?)

Ah! For this one I have a picture for:
http://fav.me/d4ng012

The second to last is my ideas for Oliv's village, and the last is for Drake's. (And the one before thaat is where my brother characters live, but I don't think I've introduced them yet XD So I won't go into theirs. The first is just the wild jungle)

Both are hunter/gatherer type culture and they do keep some livestock. While Drake's have small farms, Oliv's does not. They just keep things like chicken-y type creatures and some smaller other creatures for meat when they're hungry.

How are children educated? Is there a school system or individual lessons/apprenticeships, or are kids expected to just pick everything up on their own?

Children are taught by their parents for most everything in their tribes. There isn't a form of school, although there is a form of apprenticeship when they get older.

Places in the cities have a more formal schooling type systems set up but are mostly just trade-specific type places for learning certain things like language, writing, blacksmith, etc

Did you pull from any real-world cultures for your fantasy world? How about mythology/fairy tales?

Ahh for this story YES a lot haha XD Especially for Drake and Oliv's tribe. For Drake's I took inspiration from rural oriental type of themes, at least especially for their village houses/look. Plus they're dragons sooo heheh.

For Oliv's I took inspiration from native American ways of doing things/looks for their village and life style. And hey, they're deeeers!

Also for the brothers I've yet to introduce, I think I may have subcinsiously been inspired by Razia's Shadow when making them XD
(Razia's Shadow, btw, is an AMAZING story-musical album that you should all go listen to >u> )

But they're village is basically divided by class from the "light" born and the "dark" born. (Still trying to come up with better names for it XD) In which basically you are born with a natural light in you, or a natural darkness in you.
((And in Razia's Shadow it tells the story of a world that light and dark lived together - but then something happens and it gets separated, but ''true love'' brings it back :B )) That doesn't happen in my story but, I get reminded of it now when I think about it XD

What kind of beliefs about the afterlife are there in your fantasy world? How widely agreed-upon are those beliefs?

For Drake's people they don't believe in the afterlife, and just that when you're gone you're gone. They DO however, believe that deaths should be honored and the person to be forever remembered. In that way - they live on in spirit.

For Oliv's, some have asked the Priest what they think about the afterlife and the priest always gives vague answers. So they have a mix of believes of that there is an afterlife, that they are reborn, or that maybe even come back as a ghost. (Or just they're gone, but that idea isn't as popular as the others XD)

Do you think, on the whole, the world you invented is one you would want to live in?

WELL, maybe since using magic might be cool but - ahh, no technology. I am not an adventurer. I guess if I grew up not knowing about technology, maybe I'd become an adventurer though and like to live in this world XD Maybe not.

Sure wouldn't like dealing with all the scary critters that live in it though, aahh.

What are the gender roles within your culture? How have these evolved over time, and what has made them the way they are?

Mostly just what I've stated for Oliv's tribe in that woman stay home, take care of children, cook. Men hunt and protect the village. It's the way it has always been as for as they know, and they're not keen on changing their ways any time soon.

How does the economy function? Is a form of currency used, or do people trade directly, or are supplies shared freely with whoever needs them?

Most cultures have their own form of currency, which makes things complicated when trying to purchase things outside of your own country. Items tend to be traded instead if money has no value to it.

What are the naming conventions within the culture? Are they relevant/do they have a deeper meaning, or are they just there as a means of identification? When are names assigned-- are they given at birth (or at a later time), or do they need to be earned?

If, I was cool at naming ideas I'd probably like to invent the idea that Drake's tribe creates warrior names for themselves that they earn from all their battles. But that'd just be a fun side idea XD Otherwise, no, they barely have the names they have. (Forever almost being called Deer and Dragon.)

If the people in your world are nonhumans, what physical features, abilities and weaknesses do they have that set them apart from ordinary humans? Do some individuals have additional special/uncommon abilities, whether magical or scientifically-explained 'superpowers'?

Despite their dragon and deer appearances, nothing else really sets them apart from normal humans.

Devlyn, however, my lovely little demon-thing-I-need-a-fancy-name-for has the ability of being technically invincible. I say technically because the only thing that can harm him is one of their own. It's why they're so widely feared and despised as a species. However, thankfully due to their violent nature they've mostly already been killed off by their own kind - and are generally very rare to encounter! Besides that their only true weakness is their need to steal hearts. (Because they are physically born with a weak heart. If they don't steal one by the time they're nearly an adult you can expect them to have a very short life span.)

For reasons lost to their kind over time, they have the ability to magically take a heart from another living being with the heart - although separated from the body - still functioning and acting like it was still there. However, they are not allowed to take the persons heart without their permission. Just can't happen without that! (Most use forms of trickery and threatening to get permission granted easily though haha) Once they take the heart, they can add it to their own body.
((I've played with the idea that they can even take more than one heart at a time, greedily trying to steal as many hearts as they desire. But I'm not sure where all those hearts would fit XD Or if its just some 'magic' type deal))

..Ah that was fun! I've wanted to talk about these guys for a long while now! :3

If the world contains multiple different 'races', can they interbreed? (what abilities/weaknesses do the half-bloods inherit?)
And, if the above is possible, how common is it? Is it accepted, or considered a taboo?

Yes and no. Depends on if it's physically possible. (For instance, Drake and Oliv couldn't have kids since she's a mammal, and him a reptile.) I'd imagine it's not very common. Not because its frowned upon, but just because generally the same species tend to live amongst and interact with their own kind.

They stay alive, the heart acts as if it's still in their body even though it's not. If their whole heart is stolen, there's not much they can do about it. They'll keep the heart with them for as long as the person lasts. (Once the person dies, the heart stops beating and they got to go out and find a new one heh!) Asides from that neither are really too bound to each other.

((Although stealing only 'half' their heart is a possibility too! In that way a stronger bond is sort of connected between the two since the person who keeps their remaining half of the heart has the ability to inflict pain to the THIEF if they so desire. (Which would also mean harming themselves though since it is THEIR heart after all) Because of that though - half hearts are rarely stolen. Since you now make yourself vulnerable to the attack of the owner of the heart. Unless your Devlyn. And only still half a heart because you didn't want to steal one at all in the first place eeeheh!))