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Coidzor
2009-07-01, 01:07 AM
When you create a new world for one of your campaigns, where do you start when you want to flesh it out beyond the initial thought?

The_JJ
2009-07-01, 01:08 AM
http://www.giantitp.com/articles/YPgbz2j3PckGjjviJU5.html
Dahdah.

Yora
2009-07-01, 01:59 AM
I start with a concept: What do I want the main themes of the world to be? Steampunk Investigation and Treasure Hunting?" "Middle ages feudal lords?" "Half-celestial heroes fighting monsters in indian jungles?" "Warriors swinging huge swords in loincloths?" "Traveling through different planes like to different planets and meet quirky aliens?"

Once you have that, everything else becomes much more simple and there's a much greater chance it becomes something memorable.
As a second step, I recommend making a list of all pieces of art and fiction, that you think have a theme and style that is similar to what you have in mind.

And then just start making out places and add details like the structure of their society and who's their ruler and stuff like that. ^^

Deepblue706
2009-07-01, 02:09 AM
For me, this will depend on where I want to go with the campaign. If I have a huge concept, I start with the first-encountered 'prominent' location that the PCs come across. I develop a mental image of the architecture, the likeness and dress of the people, and their culture. Then follows justification for why the location is featured in the game. Is it a huge, bustling port city of opportunity? Or is it a run-down, war-torn village on some borderlands? My decision here will be based off the preliminary concept behind the creation, and will help to determine what kind of quests the PCs might encounter.

After that I go into history of the location, wherever I think it's appropriate. Usually some details that might help build immersion or possibly provide clues to those who think to study the local history. But, I tend to leave plenty of open space, just in case I get better ideas later on.

Next would be the relation with this location with the next-nearest one (of importance). How they impact one-another. What people from each place think of one-another. Contrasts in culture, language and other factors.

At this point, I've moved onto another place, and have begun building more details; but I don't do this continuously. Usually, I'll come up with three-or-four locations in one region, and then look to other details. However, it's not unlike me to simply move to the next nation, and do the same steps, if to a lesser degree. I'll make more exceptional contrasts to make the world seem a little more diverse, although I always try to make all places stick to a few similar key notes that fit the campaign. If it's a dark and dirty world, I probably won't bother to mention anything about a democratic nation, or even a republic; instead filling the known world with feudal societies and lawless wilderness.

If I'm just running a small-time game with some friends without much thought behind it, then I take a condensed version of the above approach. Location, stuff to do, other details. A quest involved with the location.

And I would then just add on more places on, based simply on what I'd think would be more interesting for the PCs to experience. It comes to depend on whim, where I just think "Ooh! We need an Oasis over here." and then I find reason for people to go there, along with other basic details.

bosssmiley
2009-07-01, 07:36 AM
Take original idea. (see how lonely it looks?)
Throw more ideas at the original and see what sticks.
Note where the interaction of these glommed ideas causes interesting new ideas to erupt.
Elaborate to taste.

I'm very, very much a "Yeah, that sounds fun..." kitbasher when it comes to world building.

The Rose Dragon
2009-07-01, 07:38 AM
Take favorite genre at the time. Take pieces of good examples of genre. Mix-and-match to your pleasure.

Magicus
2009-07-01, 08:31 AM
The way I do it, after I have my general world-concept, is by thinking about all the different people-groups that inhabit the setting. So I'll start with something like "Well, what are the Halflings of this world like? Are they unified or scattered? Maybe I'll make them like [insert random idea x here]. What about Factotums? Maybe they could be like [insert random idea y here]. What about Halfling Factotums?..." And so on. Once you have a few basic groups set up, it becomes a lot easier to think about the rest; for instance, if you know that your Half-Orcs are sea-faring mercenaries working for the highest bidder, it follows that you're going to need some trader lords or the like on the seas as well, and probably ones that aren't Elves or Dwarves (unless you feel like bucking tradition, of course).

Zeta Kai
2009-07-01, 08:45 AM
Here are the steps that we used to let people decide what they wanted to see included in the Vote Up a Campaign Setting project.

Genre
Thematic Priorities
Magic Level
PC Races
Human Percentage
Primary Antagonists
Geography
Primary Religion
Cosmology
Politics
Advanced Classes
Setting Title

After the vote, we assembled a list of what needed to be in the setting:

Cosmology
Timeline
Map & Geography
Language
PC Races (3E/4E)
Prestige Classes, Paragon Paths, & Epic Destinies
Feats
Magic
Magical Items (3E/4E)
Creatures (3E/4E)
Bonus Material

So far, it's been working great for us.

13_CBS
2009-07-01, 08:47 AM
On top of what everyone else has said, I find it useful to create short histories of the world and each country--basically, how the setting came to be what it is from an in-universe perspective. It can help you flesh out, re-examine, and solidify ideas on politics, magic level, society, religion, etc.

Tempest Fennac
2009-07-01, 09:06 AM
I typically add things to my world as they become relevant while planning areas which the player may end up going to just before they get to them due to prefering to be flexible. I only tend to come up with historical information if it's relevant to the players.

Cyrion
2009-07-01, 09:07 AM
I typically start with the ramifications of my basic idea. For example, I ran a campaign set in Renaissance Italy in a world where Columbus didn't come back. That had consequences for economies without colonies, no outlet for religious and political malcontents, etc.

After that, maps really influence my concept of the world and its adventures, and then I think about how I can make races unique and a little different.

subject42
2009-07-01, 09:54 AM
If you want to act in collaboration with your players, there is a game/system called "Dawn of Worlds" that gives you a set of ground rules for working in Tandem with each other.

Look it up. It's a fair bit of fun.

BigPapaSmurf
2009-07-01, 01:49 PM
First
Is the planet special in that is defies conventional physics? How how so? How does this change interact with normal physics?

I prefer normal physics on the large scale since they are predictable and wonderfully diverse...

What is the nature of your sun?
Size/color/binary/trinary/rogue(no galaxy to orbit)

How does the planet orbit?
Stable/elptical/out of plane/rogue(no sun?)

What are the other major objects in the system?
Asteroids/Planets/comets/special/magical objects...

How would these things above be interpreted from below by priests/scholars...mythology associated with these objects and their behaivors.

What is the mass/size of the planet? do you want normal gravity? If gravity is weaker/stronger how does that affect gameplay? Remember most things would be adapted to whatever gravity is there but things like falling would need to be addressed. A smaller planet needs extra mass for gravity to be normal.

Does it have rings or moons/moon sizes/moon distances/colors/noticable features...these things can figure heavily into mythology...also are any of them livable for any creature types?

How is the magnetosphere? stronger/weaker/multipolar, Auroras happen near poles and compasses might not be reliable...plate techtonics/volcanism and magnetospheres mostly rely on molten cores and rotating iron centers. If the planet core is solidifying these things would fade quickly and it would be a dark age indeed.

How wet is the planet? If it has moons it will have tides...What are the major weather patterns? Cold air moves to warmer air usuually in the direction of the planet rotation.

Plate techtonics, I find its best to draw the plate map first showing where new land is being formed, the plates move away from these locations and are reclaimed where plates meet on the other side, helping show where mountain ranges/volcanism are.

How does the planet rotate? Length of day? The planet could be tidally locked to the sun making a scorched all sun side and frozen all dark side...If the planet wobbles to much the seasons could be very long/short or if it doesnt wobble at all it would always be summer at the equator and spring above/below that etc.

How do these seasons apply to the ecosystem? where are the rainforrests/deserts/plains?

After all that I would place the major cultures somewhat randomly and base their mythos around how they have to live in their region and interact with their their neighbors.