I’ve been more in the mood for cartography than writing, so I’ve finished — at least in draft form — the map for the Ice Courts before the region write-up is done. The Ice Courts sit just south of the Unlucky Isles and the Gilded Lands, and this region occupies two map “tiles.” (You can […]
Map of the Ice Courts, Godsbarrow’s fourth region Read More »
At 2:30 this morning I woke up from a dream about the dwarves in Godsbarrow and the Snarl, realized it was an idea I’d never seen anywhere before, and knew this was a chance to contribute to the collective lore of my favorite fantasy species. So I grabbed my tablet and wrote it down, couldn’t
Dwarves in Godsbarrow: poignards and the Snarl Read More »
This region is a twofold experiment. One, it diverges from Worlds Without Number‘s (paid link) directive to “make about six nations/groups,” as I’m making two new ones and using two existing ones. And two, it’s the first region that features gods as physical presences, just out there in the world doing god stuff. And those
Godsbarrow’s third region: Kurthunar Read More »
This post wraps up my region-level development of the Gilded Lands. Define the relationships between the groups. This step in Worlds Without Number has two components: what each nation generally thinks about each other nation, and a specific thing they want from each of them. I keep them brief, and I always try to make
The Gilded Lands 3 of 3: national relationships and wants Read More »
The next step in Worlds Without Number‘s region-creation process is… Identify regionally-significant gods. Kadavis — Iskuldra, the Golden Mask (“iss-KUHL-druh,” wealth, glory, recognition), principal deity in a pantheon that includes over 200 “small gods” (other aspects of prosperity, commerce, fashion, etc.) who are venerated in its many fiefdoms. Yrfeđe — Cniht-Cild (“KUH-neet kild”), They Who
The Gilded Lands 2 of 3: regional gods and historical events Read More »
I’m currently working on my third region of Godsbarrow, Kurthunar, so this post and those that follow are me catching up on moving my Gilded Lands material from my PC to Yore. Name the region. The Gilded Lands, so named because most of its nations are wealthy, and most of that wealth comes in the
The Gilded Lands 1 of 3: concept, geographical features, and nations Read More »
With two regions done, my Godsbarrow material needs some organization — so I created the Godsbarrow handbook, a page of links and notes that attempts to organize all of it in a meaningful way. Still very much a WIP, but as ever I’m wary of making the page — and this worldbuilding venture — too
The Godsbarrow handbook: an omnibus page for my Dormiir posts Read More »
Today I wrapped up my second region of Godsbarrow, the fantasy campaign setting I started working on earlier this year: the Gilded Lands, situated just to the east of my first region, the Unlucky Isles. The Gilded Lands are anchored by Kadavis, the largest and wealthiest of the six nations that comprise this region. With
My second region of Godsbarrow: the Gilded Lands Read More »
Last Wednesday, my Seattle group started up a new D&D campaign set in a friend’s homebrew world. She unveiled the map for her setting, and it was amazing — pro-level cartography, tantalizing and inviting and clear, both functional and beautiful. She mentioned in passing that she’d created it in Wonderdraft, a mapping tool I’d never
Remapping the Unlucky Isles with Wonderdraft Read More »
I’ve reached the kingdom creation step in Worlds Without Number (paid link), and decided to zoom in on one caθna (province) in Brundir, Sanχu. (WWN notes that “kingdom” can mean anything you want it to in this context, from a city to a stretch of wasteland to an actual nation.) If I were about to
Zooming in to the province level: Sanχu, a caθna in eastern Brundir Read More »
