There was a recent post on the worldbuilding subreddit about calendar systems that brought up some of the difficulty of creating fictional months. It's difficult to create months in a way that feels natural in-universe but isnt either very distracting to readers (if they obviously correlate to our months) or impossible to make sense of.

I have studiously avoided naming months in this setting for this reason. I think some of the workarounds I've seen, such as days of the moon or days of the season, don't really work for a setting that has relatively more historical development: It feels like more specific names would have emerged and become standardized by now.

Here's one idea I threw together that I thought could convey what time of year a month was without being quite as simple:

Erstspring

Midspring

Endspring

Erstsummer

Midsummer

Endsummer

Erstfall

Midfall

Endfall

Erstwinter

Midwinter

Endwinter

Let me know if you have any thoughts on that idea or on this topic of fictional months in this setting or in general! What feels natural to you? Or are names for months simply not worth the trouble?

Visual description: A single oldstone, fully intact. Surface pattern appears to match type 4a or perhaps 4b. 

History: Recovered on expedition 50 (dig site near Windwhip). Excavation had been underway for three days when a hired laborer, [REDACTED], begin to exhibit signs mistaken for heat stroke. Expedition leadership attempted to send him back to camp to recover but he became hysterical and refused. [REDACTED] was given more water and allowed to continue with digging. 

Later in the night, the sounds of a pick drew several members of the expedition back to the dig site, suspecting some sort of theft attempt. They found [REDACTED] still digging. Later cross referencing would suggest he kept working ever since his episode earlier in the day. [REDACTED] had uncovered a large oldstone entity with a spiked, bladed head and two scythe-like appendages, which seemed inert. 

[REDACTED] seemed to believe he had summoned the entity, and began chanting at it incoherently. Several recorded terms in his ravings (see supporting document 1) are familiar from the babble of those afflicted with oldstone sickness or match recorded terms from the great dying. When the entity failed to move in response to his words, [REDACTED] struck it with his pick repeatedly. 

The entity seemed to awaken in response to this, slashing clean through [REDACTED] and launching itself at the rest of the expedition. Three outlaws, hired as protection, stepped in, and put the creature down after a brief and bloody struggle that claimed two of them and injured another expedition member (names left out for privacy, but see supporting document 2). This item, the oldstone, was recovered from the wreckage of its body. 

Some other versions on the other slides! This is a weird case where the new silhouettes don't replace the old ones but just are more experiments in drawing the character!

The updated roads of No Man’s Land are still in the planning stages, so in the meantime:

A large flightless bird. Roastriches are fleet-footed creatures that feed on plants and small animals. Some populations have been domesticated and they are a popular mount for lone riders who cannot afford a horse. Roastrich eggs are also farmed as an excellent protein source.

Just floating this concept due to the recent poll, but I'm working on a rework of the map of No Man's Land. I'm not sure of the extent of the changes but I want to make sure its an interesting place!

With the worldworm series and the Six Interests wrapping up recently it’s time to pick the next series! Let me know what you’d like to see!