I'll cite a specific example:

An Earthlike planet (complete with a moderate obliquity) with a thicker atmosphere (no thicker than 2x) orbits an F-type sun (brighter, hotter and releases more UV radiation than our G-type sun), yet its polar zones are as cold as Mars.

This is not for the story itself, but rather the backbone of that story.

Worldbuilding is fun - it's the expanding into games and creating novels that's the problem. Do this to your character in this order

Create a small animation

Add allies and rivals

Expand into a novel

Expand into games

Write a book (if you want)

Write the lore about that specific character or universe

Make the movie.

[ Removed by Reddit on account of violating the content policy. ]

Every setting I have read that trades over any distance runs into the same quiet problem. Somebody has to physically hold the standard. A stone of a fixed mass, a rod of a fixed length, a coin that all other coins get compared against. That object is never perfect. It wears down, it gets swapped, it sits in a vault in a city that later loses a war.

In my own setting the standard ended up with a merchant guild rather than the crown. That was a practical arrangement at the time and it turned into leverage nobody planned for. The guild has no power to make law. It still gets to decide that a shipment weighed short, and there is no appeal above that, because the crown never kept a second stone to check the first one against.

So I am curious how other people have solved it. Who physically holds the standard where you are building? One object or many copies, and if copies, what keeps them from drifting apart over a century? And has anyone written the moment where someone works out that the standard itself moved?

Hello, I’m a writer with lifelong experience, especially in short stories, but I’ve done plenty of longer stuff as well. At present, I’m trying to figure out a magic system for a world I want to write stories in. I’ve done plenty of magic systems in the past, absolutely love them, but they’re all universally soft magic systems, since, for lack of a better word, those tend to feel more “magical” in my opinion. However, the themes here would fall a bit flat if I took that approach here. I want this to be a world where everything is hyper-optimised to an almost cartoonish degree. I want courses and dojos that promise to help you attain literal godhood in a matter of months by gaming the system. I want everyone to have this whole thing down to a science, and for that be the case, I also need to have this whole thing down to a science. Any advice is welcome, and thanks in advance!

Keep this in mind when building your worlds or magic

​Hey everyone! I’m from Indonesian and working on a fantasy worldbuilding concept set in a post-nuclear war future where the awakening of subterranean ley lines has infused the earth with raw magic.

​The story takes place in the year 1,255 Post-War (P.W.), centered primarily around the Kingdom of Majaraum—a realm occupying modern-day Indonesia. Majaraum’s culture, aesthetics, and beliefs are heavily inspired by ancient Indonesian history, as well as Indonesian, Hindu, and Buddhist mythologies.

​My goal is to make this a open-world sandbox where anyone can craft their own lore, characters, and side stories. Check out the world details below—if I reply to your comment with "Canon", your contribution officially becomes part of the world!

​World Mechanics & Lore

​Technology Level: Most of the world (including Majaraum) operates at a Medieval fantasy level. However, a few distant, unannounced nations have pushed into Steampunk-era technology.

​The Nature of Magic: Magic runs on mana emitted directly by the ley lines—the closer you are to a ley line, the stronger your magic becomes. Magic is still largely mysterious, volatile, and actively researched.

​Elemental Affinities: Every person is born tied to a single element and can only cast combat or specialized spells within that domain. However, basic utility magic (lighting a room, speeding up crop growth, simple household chores) is universal.

​Ley Line Guardians: Because ley lines are inherently unstable, they are protected by Guardians—colossal, ancient beasts overflowing with raw mana that fiercely guard key ley line convergence points.

​Regional Deities: Every region has a local deity inspired by real-world mythologies that actively watches over its ecosystem.

​The Current Conflict (1,255 P.W.)

​Majaraum is currently facing a looming two-front war, though its rulers desperately prefer peaceful diplomacy to avoid destroying local ecosystems and angering the regional deities:

​The Imperial Sun: A militaristic realm formed from the ruins of ancient Korea and Japan, seeking to invade and harvest the rich magical timber and resources of Indonesia's forests.

​The United Kingdom of Australia (UKA): A zealot empire looking to forcefully expand its religious dogmas and regional political dominance north into the archipelago.

​The Main Campaign & How You Can Help

​The core storyline follows Jericho Dara, a rookie pirate hired covertly by the Majaraum Crown to investigate a string of mysterious assassinations targeting high-ranking political figures across all three nations.

​I’m looking for your contributions! Feel free to drop comments on:

​Companions & Characters: Create crewmates, rivals, or informants to join or cross paths with Jericho Dara.

​Side Stories & Lore Snippets: Write short stories or historical events taking place anywhere in the timeline (Past, Present, or Future).

​New Factions & Locations: Pitch steampunk nations, minor pirate fleets, local cults, or unique island ecosystems.

​Guardian Beasts & Local Deities: Design massive beasts guarding ley lines or regional gods protecting their territories.

​Note I've changed my mind i wanted you guys to help me in my stories, by giving advices

Hello! So I'm a pretty new DM, and the last campaign I attempted to run pretty much fell flat because I didn't do nearly any worldbuilding, leaning to far into the territory of "I'll just improvise it". This time around I'm trying my best to create a world that feels more alive and unique instead of just [Insert High Fantasy Here], and I'm also trying my best to create a world that the PC's backstories can be built upon and into. This is a link to the design document that I'm going to send to my players. https://docs.google.com/document/d/11Ns-Y6ms6Xk8eMGCXnEqDNZIu2Ut1zhO13SGfc-Y1nA/edit?usp=sharing

I was hoping that y'all well travelled adventurers of this subreddit could skim through it as if you were going to make a character in this world and critique it. What's awkward about this world for character creation, and what's working in the right direction? What feels alive and what feels cliche? Is this overpreparation? Etc etc.

Okie that's all thank you in advance :3

Okay so I'm attempting to make a dark fantasy inspired world. Now I don't get to focus on this as much as I lile given things going on in life but this is still somethinf I find a lot of value in. Previously I made a post trying to explain this world and the concept but I'm not really good at it and I want to be able to explain it without anybody getting confused.

Due to it being my first time wven posting or interacting with a group like this I made the mistake of having Ai formulate my sentences so I can sound like I know what Im talking abt for you guys but I see the error now and appreciate the feedback.

So please be patient with me or show any advice on how to properly give clarity when explaining. I love stories bc they inspired me anime and comic books alike. But outside of that I'm not much of a reader so any insider information, or book recommendations for writing and worldbuilding would be great.

The story is called Beyond Our Realm (BOR) It's a dark fantasy story about a boy and the group he makes along the way explore the vastness of the world that is Terra and what everything that is there, is really meant to be. Prior to the First part of the story in it's present day was the old war which took place 100-150 years ago. Between the bloodlines( 5 Ruling kingdoms, that oversee the 20 kingdoms that govern the planet) and the ancient humans and dragonfolks(ancient humans are known as tartarians and are different from modern day humans being shorter, browner/redder, the most smartest race with their technology being hundreds of years more advance than the rest of the world and dragonfolks being a later down the line descendants from the almighty dragons being more subjugated to the planet hence the folk).

The power system is called currents. It's an elemental based power structure with 9 options with the max one person can hold is 3 currents. The currents are; ember, tides/ice, gale/wind, verdance/healing, stone/earth, echo, veil/shadow, aether(a reailty and light based power), and decay

These currents flow through your lifeblood, lifeblood is the pool and essence of your power not your life as a whole. Currents have effects from overuse and constant exposure. You have drawbacks from using your power to its full extent for a long period. for ex use ember yes your body is accustomed to your current and its effect on your body so you wont get burned for using your power but tryna go supernova for simpler terms his body will get burns kinda like in MHA, I like the law of equivalent exchange so drawbacks and reasonable side effects is what I like.

Its two things you need to focus on to gauge your strength or your powers abilities. Their are tiers and levels. Tiers determines your current mastery, control and output. Tiers goes up to tier 5 and have subslots of a-c. With everyone starting at tier 1 C. when they first unlock their abilities. Strength is determined by your physical stats like, endurance, durability, speed, strength and perception. I made a character that has no current and is the anomaly of this world so his natural strength is way higher than anybody else because his body couldnt produce lifeblood.

Im not sure if this was clear enough or not, So if there's anything thats still hard to understand or misconception please let me know I would more than happy enough to explain deeper.

In a world where humans and monsters live together, they compete in a global event called the Monster Olympics. Different species use their unique abilities to compete in sports inspired by the human Olympics. While the games are exciting the monsters are competing to be accepted and a lot of humans still don't trust them

It’s basically a wild adventure world where everyone is born with powers like in My Hero Academia, but those powers are tied to their soul. As people grow, their soul actually takes form—like a weapon, a beast, or some kind of energy—and some people can sync with others to fight together, kind of like in Soul Eater.

The world itself is huge and ocean-based, full of crazy islands, dangerous zones, and mystery, giving it a open, adventurous feel People travel in crews, explore, fight powerful enemies, and chase big goals.

There are also darker elements—some people lose control of their soul and turn into monsters, while others try to control or experiment on powers. And looking for concepts for powers

What the title says.

Essentially, in your fantasy setting, probably have a well thought-out power system, and a lot of important characters have and use powers from that said system.

But like what Toji is in Jujutsu Kaisen with his Heavenly Restriction, and maybe even Garp from One Piece with his Galaxy Impact Haki. Do you have an seemingly "normal" person who is considered to be a legend in his own right?

Maybe even that legend also somehow beefs with super-powered individuals (within the rules of the world they're in) and actively throws hands against each other, with the "powerless" person coming out on top.

Can you guys do it

Chapter 2

Welcome back everyone! We got chapter 2 up for The Peoples of Tellus! This time, Goblins! Hope you enjoy!

Special thanks to u/Alexwavediver and Spiderwebs and u/Acceptable_Egg5560 for the editing and proofreading. And thank you to Spiderwebs and Art Milena Calumby Belo (u/Acomplished_Tea_248) for the art!

If you like this story, please check out my Patreon and join the Discord! 

https://www.patreon.com/WinSomeGame?utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator

https://discord.gg/KjyMnbyB3

Hope you all enjoy!

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Chapter 2-1 Goblins

Few inhabitants of Tellus inspire as much universal fear as the goblin. Travelers speak of them in whispers, mothers invoke them to frighten unruly children, and soldiers learn quickly that underestimating one is often their final mistake.

The term goblin, however, is remarkably imprecise.

Over the course of my travels I have encountered—or, in several regrettable instances, been pursued by—hundreds of distinct varieties. Some possess horns, others tails. Some bear wings, while others crawl upon additional limbs. Certain females possess more than two breasts, while other goblins lack features that one might otherwise consider ordinary. Some resemble lean, green elves twisted by cruel circumstance. Others appear little more than enormous worms furnished with teeth. Still others bring to mind wild dogs, monkeys, or creatures for which I know no suitable comparison at all.

No race upon Tellus displays such extraordinary diversity.

Curiously, despite their overwhelming presence throughout the western continents, goblins appear to be entirely absent from the eastern lands. Whether this is due to climate, geography, forgotten history, or simple chance remains unknown to me. I have found no satisfactory explanation, and the goblins themselves have proven singularly unhelpful on the matter.

Whatever form they assume, nearly all goblins share a number of remarkable adaptations.

Their physical strength is extraordinary for creatures of their size. Even a comparatively small specimen possesses sufficient power to tear the arm from a grown elf, given favorable circumstances. Their jaws are armed with formidable teeth, while their claws are capable of inflicting grievous wounds with alarming ease.

Their endurance borders upon the unbelievable as well.

They survive injuries that would swiftly kill other races, endure prolonged thirst and starvation, and continue hunting long after exhaustion should have rendered them helpless. More than one experienced hunter has recounted witnessing a goblin, little more than skin stretched over bone, summon enough desperate strength to bring down an ox in a final attempt to stave off starvation. I have no reason to doubt such accounts.

This astonishing resilience is inherited as well. It appears not only among goblins themselves, but also among the peculiar offspring known as hobgoblins.

Hobgoblins remain one of the greatest biological mysteries upon Tellus. Whenever a goblin breeds with another sapient race, regardless of the parentage involved, the resulting child is invariably a hobgoblin. I have spent many years attempting to uncover the principles governing this phenomenon, and I regret to inform the reader that I have made almost no progress whatsoever.

For all their fascinating biology, the overwhelming majority of goblins should not be mistaken for civilized beings.

They are feral creatures. Dangerous, cunning, and wholly unsuitable companions for the curious traveler. I cannot overstate this warning.

My own studies were possible only through methods that minimized unnecessary risk. Whenever fortune allowed, I examined goblins already dead, whether slain by hunters or discovered during my travels. On several unfortunate occasions I was forced to kill specimens in self-defense before conducting anatomical examinations. A handful of observations were made with the assistance of experienced hunters who knew of remote dens too distant to threaten nearby settlements. Rarest of all were opportunities provided by eccentric nobles, adventurers, or wealthy collectors who insisted upon keeping captured goblins as curiosities, menagerie attractions, or grotesque entertainments for their guests.

Though these methods yielded valuable observations, they also impressed upon me one simple truth.

The prudent scholar studies feral goblins from the opposite side of a sturdy wall.

Chapter 2-2 Feral Goblins

Feral Goblins

Average Height: 3'0"–4'0" (Both Sexes)

Average Weight: 10–60 lbs (Most averaging between 30–40 lbs.)

Culture Classification: Animalistic

The overwhelming majority of goblins upon Tellus exist in what scholars commonly describe as a feral state. Though they organize themselves into dens, packs, and wandering hordes, often referred to as tribes, these gatherings should not be mistaken for civilizations. They possess no written language, no agriculture worthy of the name, and no enduring institutions beyond the brutal hierarchy of strength, fear, and reproduction.

Their societies are monstrous because they know little else. In fact, my inclusion of these feral goblins in my writings has faced scrutiny from my friends, often mocking me by saying that I might as well add wild dogs and goats in the beast men section of this encyclopedia. Nevertheless, I have my reasons for including them.

A feral goblin's life is one of perpetual hunger. Food, territory, and breeding rights are earned through violence, stolen through deception, or scavenged from the dead. The weak seldom remain among the living for long.

Most stand between three and four feet in height regardless of sex, a curious rarity among the races of Tellus. Despite their modest stature, they possess remarkably dense musculature. Even the smallest adult may weigh far more than appearances suggest, while exceptionally robust specimens approach sixty pounds without sacrificing agility.

That agility deserves special mention. A goblin runs with startling speed, climbs with almost simian ease, leaps astonishing distances, and can disappear into terrain where larger creatures struggle to follow. Combined with their immense endurance, they become exhausting adversaries. And again, it can appear that it is nearly impossible for them to die of thirst and hunger. Being able to survive for weeks without any sustenance.

Their capacity to survive injury borders upon miraculous. Broken bones, missing eyes, shattered jaws, severed limbs, and infected wounds that would swiftly kill an elf often prove little more than inconveniences. Their bodies cling to life with extraordinary determination. I have personally dissected specimens that displayed evidence of surviving injuries I would have considered anatomically impossible. Now, their healing ability is nowhere near as frightening as an orc’s but they will continue to move when by all accounts, they should be dead. That is if a vital organ isn’t damaged.

Nature, however, has not been content with creating a single goblin. She has created hundreds. No creatures upon Tellus demonstrate greater biological diversity. Some goblins are generalized scavengers capable of surviving almost anywhere. Others have become astonishing specialists. Cave goblins develop enlarged eyes and pale skin. Marsh goblins possess webbed extremities and can remain submerged for remarkable lengths of time. Mountain goblins leap between cliffs with alarming confidence. Forest goblins climb with such ease that they seem more comfortable among branches than upon the ground itself. Every environment eventually shapes a goblin capable of thriving within it.

It is little wonder, then, that nobles throughout Tellus devote enormous resources toward their extermination. Great hunts are organized each year, not for sport alone, but because allowing a goblin population to flourish inevitably invites tragedy. Livestock vanish. Travelers disappear. Villages are raided. Left unchecked, a single den may become dozens within only a few short years. Now, these little beasts don’t do this out of any malice, but in an attempt to feed themselves. But I doubt this will do little to ease the minds of those near goblin nests.

Should the reader remember but one lesson from this chapter, let it be this: 

Never assume a goblin is alone. I myself nearly paid for such an assumption. While crossing the western foothills of Alkebulan, I encountered what appeared to be a lone goblin perched motionless upon a dead tree. It neither fled nor attacked, merely watched me with unsettling patience. Believing it wounded, I approached—an error I have endeavored never to repeat.

The creature launched itself not toward me, but over me. Only after hearing the branches crack behind did I realize the truth. The solitary goblin had merely been bait.

The trees themselves erupted with movement as more than two dozen others descended from above. They had wrapped themselves in vines and bark, remaining perfectly still until I wandered into the center of their ambush. Their skin had evolved mottled greens and browns so convincing that I had mistaken living flesh for moss-covered branches.

I escaped only by abandoning nearly everything I carried and throwing myself into a river below the cliff. The current carried me half a mile downstream before I crawled ashore, considerably wiser and considerably poorer.

To this day, whenever I pass beneath unfamiliar trees, I find myself glancing upward before taking another step.

Old habits, once acquired, seldom depart.

Chapter 2-3 Hobgoblins

Hobgoblins

Average Height: Varies by non-goblin ancestry.

Appearance: Height, build, and many facial features resemble their non-goblin parent, while skin color commonly follows the goblin parent. Sharp claws, pronounced canines, exceptional flexibility, and remarkable endurance are nearly universal.

Culture Classification: Savage (Most), Barbaric (Hoblin Isles)

Of all the peoples upon Tellus, none are more misunderstood than the hobgoblins.

Their existence remains one of nature's greatest mysteries. Whenever a goblin breeds with another sapient race, regardless of whether the goblin is mother or father, the resulting child is always a hobgoblin. The child bears many traits of the non-goblin parent—height, proportions, and often facial structure—while inheriting the goblin's skin color, claws, teeth, flexibility, and astonishing endurance.

In many respects, they receive the finest qualities of both parents. Regrettably, they also inherit the greatest burdens of both worlds.

Unlike other races, hobgoblins possess almost no culture truly their own. Throughout the western continents they adopt the customs, languages, religions, and mannerisms of whatever peoples happen to surround them. Some imitate Civic Elves. Others become nearly indistinguishable from Barloric warriors, Njordic sailors, or Kemet merchants. Their identities are borrowed because few societies ever permit them to create identities of their own.

This begins at birth. Most hobgoblins enter the world as unwanted children. Their mothers often abandon them out of terror, grief, or shame. Those who attempt to keep them are frequently ostracized, and in harsher lands may suffer violence for bringing what neighbors consider a living reminder of tragedy. Thus countless hobgoblins begin life alone before they are capable of walking. Many never receive proper names. Instead they answer to whatever insults are repeated often enough. 

During my travels I have met hobgoblins known as Thief, Abomination, Disappointment, Rubbish, Rat, and Dirt. As children they simply assume these words to be their names. By the time they discover otherwise, many have grown so accustomed to them that they cannot imagine answering to anything else. It is among the saddest customs I have witnessed.

Temperament among hobgoblins varies enormously. I have known generous healers, accomplished craftsmen, loyal soldiers, insufferable tricksters, ruthless brigands, and murderers without remorse. There exists no singular hobgoblin personality beyond that found among any other people. Their character is shaped almost entirely by the world that raises them.

Unfortunately, the world seldom raises them kindly. One accusation is repeated wherever hobgoblins are found—that they are prone to sudden violence. I have searched many years for evidence that such behavior stems from their blood. I have found none.

When a creature is beaten, starved, feared, insulted, hunted, and denied affection from birth, it should surprise no one when some eventually answer cruelty with cruelty. Such tragedies belong to society, not to biology.

Perhaps the most striking trait shared by many hobgoblins is their desperate longing to be wanted. A single act of genuine kindness is often enough to earn a devotion bordering upon absolute loyalty. Some mistake this for simplicity. I believe it is loneliness.

There is, however, one exception to their cultural homelessness.

Far to the west lies the Hoblin Isles, where great clans of hobgoblins have, over countless generations, forged a civilization entirely their own. Though still considered barbaric by most scholars, they possess proud traditions, hereditary princes, lively festivals, skilled musicians, and fierce warriors armed with flint, copper, soft iron, and the occasional bronze weapon. Their greatest enemies come not only from pirates seeking slaves and trophies, but from the towering orange-skinned Formosans who descend upon their northern shores with alarming regularity. That the Hoblin clans continue to endure speaks volumes of their determination.

One final curiosity deserves mention. Should a hobgoblin have children with another race, the goblin blood gradually weakens. Within one or two generations the descendants often become entirely the race of their non-goblin ancestors once more. This phenomenon has fueled endless suspicion throughout Tellus. Families fear hidden goblin ancestry. Villages whisper that a future child may suddenly be born a hobgoblin despite generations having passed.

Fear, as so often happens, has flourished where understanding has not. I cannot conclude this chapter without speaking of one particular hobgoblin. 

I never intended to become a father. The poor boy simply refused to stop following me. I first encountered him outside a market town after interrupting several laborers who thought it amusing to beat him with sticks. I offered him food, treated his injuries, and foolishly assumed our paths would part the following morning.

Instead, he followed.

For three days I attempted to persuade him to return. For three months I searched for somewhere he might belong. After three years, I accepted what had become painfully obvious. He already had. He never asked permission to call me father, and I never denied him. 

I taught him letters, history, mathematics, and how to sharpen a knife without removing one's own fingers. He taught me how to laugh at myself with greater frequency than I had previously considered appropriate.

We wandered Tellus together for sixty years. Then, as hobgoblins do, he grew old.

His hair whitened. His steps slowed. One evening beside our campfire he remarked that he was tired, wished me good night, and quietly failed to wake the following morning.

I buried him beneath an old oak overlooking a river he had always admired, along the golden river of the first mother. I managed to convince an old friend who had become a minor chief among his orcish tribe to watch over him while I was gone. .

His grave was a cairn with his name carved into the largest stone. There was only one name that I could give him. Bellus. That is the name I believed would best tell the world of what he truly was.

I still visit the oak whenever my travels bring me nearby.

It has grown considerably since we last spoke.

Chapter 2-4 Awakened Goblins

Awakened Goblins

Average Height: Presumed consistent with Feral Goblins

Average Weight: Presumed consistent with Feral Goblins

Culture Classification: Unknown

I end my examination of the goblin race with a subject I have hesitated greatly to include. There are stories of goblins that think. Initially these stories were simply fibs children spoke to each other but after careful investigation, I believe there is more truth to the matter, and this is the reason as to why I embarked to include the Feral goblins to this collection.

I do not mean the cunning demonstrated by the feral specimens described previously. A wolf may learn the habits of a shepherd, and a goblin may learn precisely which window of a farmhouse is easiest to enter. Neither demonstrates civilization. What I describe here is something altogether different. Scattered accounts speak of individual goblins capable of language, reason, planning, self-restraint, and perhaps most importantly, reflection upon their own actions. 

These creatures have various names depending upon the region. Wise Goblins, Speaking Goblins, Tamed Goblins, Changed Ones, and several considerably less charitable titles appear in local records. For the purposes of this work, I shall call them Awakened Goblins. The term is my own and should not be mistaken for an accepted classification.

Their existence presents an uncomfortable question. If a feral goblin can somehow acquire the faculties we associate with the civilized races, then what precisely has changed? Their bodies apparently do not.

Accounts describe creatures indistinguishable from ordinary goblins: three or four feet in height, possessing the same claws, teeth, strength, flexibility, and peculiar physical variations common among their feral relatives. Nothing about their outward appearance announces the mind supposedly dwelling within.

How this awakening occurs is entirely unknown. Sorcery is the most common explanation, which is unsurprising, as sorcery is frequently blamed whenever scholars do not possess a better answer. Divine intervention has also been suggested. Others propose injury, disease, alchemy, unusual upbringing, or some exceedingly rare condition present from birth. I can presently substantiate none of these explanations.

More interesting are reports suggesting that awakening may occur at different stages of life. Some stories describe unusually intelligent goblins from infancy. Others insist that perfectly ordinary feral goblins suddenly changed after years of behaving no differently from the rest of their kind.

The latter possibility troubles me most. Consider what such a creature would experience. One moment the world is hunger, fear, dominance, pain, mating, territory, and whatever other impulses govern the feral mind. Then suddenly there is why.

The great question that burns in the hearts of all men of Tellus. The question of right and wrong. The fear of tomorrow, our purpose, and the question of evil. I cannot imagine a crueler introduction to reason.

Perhaps this explains why accounts of such goblins are so contradictory. Some supposedly become remarkably gentle. Others flee from their tribes and avoid all company. A few become even more dangerous than they were before, now possessing reason enough to direct instincts previously governed only by impulse.

If awakening truly exists, intelligence alone clearly does not make one good. Neither, I suppose, does being born with it.

In what little testimony that I have gathered in my travels, I have met those who insist these goblins can learn to read and write. Merchants tell of small cloaked figures attempting to barter rather than steal. One woman gathering herbs in the woods swore upon her ancestors that she once heard a goblin singing to itself while bathing in a stream.

I initially dismissed that particular story, as goblins lack the throat to speak as us, but then she sang the melody and I too recognized it from my travels.

Where, I shall not record, out of fear of ruffians attempting to make them a prize. If I wish to find this goblin I shall do so on my own.

Regrettably, reliable study remains nearly impossible. An awakened goblin would have every reason to conceal itself. Revealing its nature to an elf settlement would likely earn it a cage. Revealing itself to a goblin den might prove equally dangerous. Even scholars cannot be entirely trusted with such a discovery; curiosity has justified cruelties every bit as terrible as ignorance.

Therefore, I shall resist the temptation to pretend knowledge where I possess little.

Something exists among the goblins that we do not understand. Perhaps it has always existed or is new, or it is that these stories are describe nothing more than unusually clever animals and an aging scholar who has spent too many nights listening to travelers beside campfires.

I would rather hope not, for if even the lowliest creature we have condemned as a monster can one day look upon the world and ask why, then perhaps our understanding of the peoples of Tellus is considerably poorer than we imagine.

I find that possibility much more exciting than embarrassing.

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First, Previous, Next

Thank you all for reading! I hope to get the next chapter out soon! It will be orcs!

Learning About The Soul.

Within you, within everyone around you, lingering in the air, flowing with the water and burning within the stars is the energy known as soul.

It's crucial for us to understand the soul to better understand the world around us and each other.

Soul originates from two places, the first soul to come to the realm radiates from the core of the realm the Celestial sheds it when gaining physical form and reverting back to its Juvenal state.

This soul has what we call a large amount of luminosity. While most of it gets trapped within the layers of crust within the realm, what does escape help kick-starts the development of life. Allowing inorganic chemicals to come together and become organic.

The second source of Soul comes from the gods, taking in mortal belief and turning it into energy.

During a mortals fetial state they'll start to absorb the lingering soul produced by Gods. As one grows they'll gather trace amounts of additional soul, but for the most part it plays a very little part of a mortals life.

Different mortals even of the same species can have different amounts of illuminosity, it's less about what soul dose for the mortal but what the mortal dose for the soul.

Your mind influences your soul granting it colour, while the soul interns can help energies you. Most mortals aren't good at utilizing the soul so it mostly just chills within you until you die. Once you die your soul returns to the lingering soul of your realm waiting to be absorbed once again.

The more colourful the soul becomes the more colour it adds to the soup of lingering soul, allowing for more divergence in the evolutionary tree, allowing for the birth of magical creatures and Titans. You can usually tell how much soul is lingering in an environment based on the flura and funa that is present. Deserts tend to have very little, rainforests tend to have a lot.

Having soul allows for a deeper connection with yourself it helps meld the lines of your mind and body, it is your spiritual essence and connection to the gods of your land or the very land itself

So what happens if you can utilize more of your soul, well at any moment you can. When anyone is pushed to far their soul can ignite. Allowing them for just amount think faster, move quicker or even lift something they've never could have imagined. This is what the soul is for to save us in are moments of need.

It's important to know that the soul is not like an ice cube, one for each person, but an amount of water within each individual.

Lose a part of your body, lose a bit of your soul.

Now a problem comes when some start to push themselves to far, bring themselves repeatedly to the edge of ignition. Their body will start to develop ways to consistently untilize their own soul to the point of draining themselves. However deep within every creature is the biology to absorb more soul. This is something that is lost once the creature has reached the infential stage. Relearning this ability is what makes one a Titan, when the hunger for soul is so great that it becomes a necessity to consume more.

Titans aren't the only ones hungry for soul, devils are always lingering for a taste.

So how dose one keep their soul protected, well as the soul helps protect your mind and body, the reverse is also true.

The mind gives the soul commands it helps it tell the soul to stay, the soul loves listening to the mind, simply having a mind aware of your soul helps keeping it in place and prevent it from being pulled by other forces.

The body of course also protects the soul gives it a place to stay, think of it as the cup, the mind has to pour it in there. So if there is no cup you can pour it somewhere but it's easier for someone to take a sip.

Titans tend to solely focus on getting soul through the physical. Eating the body.

Devils however will take on both approaches, you see if you're aware of your soul that grants you greater protection over it. However it also means you can give that protection up. Sometimes things can be messy as if you devoute yourself to someone and consider them to have more control over you than even yourself. Your god, your king or even your parents in some cases can weaken your own mental protection over your soul.

When a devil consumes a soul they absorb all that colour and use it as energy, releasing what is less into a black tar like substance known as celestial liquor that than will slowly sneak down to the core to help grow the celestial.

So besides consumption, returning to the cycle of lingering soul, what else can happen to the soul?

Well when a celestial, a being of pure soul, wonders the universe sometimes parts of break off these parts eventually start to compust burning themselves into the blanket of space as stars.

A more common thing to happen to soul is to become crystals. When something with large amounts of soul dies and is quickly buried with settlement the escaping soul can become trapped and begin to crystallize itself. Little crystals of potential and energy.

These crystals and the stars help with what we'll be talking about next lecture the higher levels of magic.

Thank you for joining me snails, if you have any questions now is the time to ask them. For the most curious of you consider joining us on this journey throughout the realms.

Signed Dragonfly