Setting Creation Process: Dilmun [Archive] - Wizards Community

Setting Creation Process: Dilmun [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Eladrinstar
05-27-07, 01:03 AM Okay, this is where I am going to create a campaign setting. The usual method in these forums is to post completed work involving the cosmology or creation myths and slowly the campaign fades away as the time between posted articles gets shorter. So here, I am going to merely brainstorm my ideas, and during the process of creating the campaign things will change.

Feel free to make suggestions, but unless they are really good or fitting I won’t take them.

Okay first things first. The name. Actually, you don’t need to start with a name, but I’ll start with it here. I wanted a name that invoked a memory of ancient times. No, not Egypt or Greece, but Sumeria, or the Indus Valley. History buffs might know that Dilmun was an early civilization in the islands of Bahrain and the Qatar peninsula in the Persian Gulf. Mythology buffs might know it as the mythical land of creation in Sumerian mythology. I’m not at all sure how it is pronounced, but knowing Sumerian’s pronunciation I am guessing it is said Dill(the name) Moon.

You need to think of how your setting will be different. While it is certainly possible to make an interesting setting with generic themes, I don’t want that here. First thing I think is to up the technology. I thought at first to downplay the tech level to Bronze Age, but this limits the players. So, instead, I think of upping it. I think of steampunk. No, I like it, but not here. However, 50 years later would do. Yes. Telegraphs, radio, cameras, newspapers, blimps, planes, light bulbs, heck why not, automobiles. Think 1920’s tech. No movies or telephones.

That sounds good. Now, one thing I noticed is that on many settings, the main kingdom is set in the Northern hemisphere. I mean, look at Earth. Most of the temperate lands of the world are in the north, and the strongest countries, so the southern hemisphere is seen as a backwater. But there is no reason more landmass could be in a southern hemisphere. The strongest kingdom while be in the south.

I am thinking of making this kingdom a Hegemony. Complete control of Dilmun. And I am know un-thinking it. War is a crucial part of many campaigns. How about they control vast amount of lands on many continents? Possibly 50 percent of the land mass of the world. The empire, no thats too generic, the Dominion of Vamporum, is centered in an ancient kingdom, and is slowly conquering the land. The Dominion is like a club in which some nations are gently absorbed, but like a dragon in that others are brutally devoured. I like the symbolism in that imagery. The flag of the land will show a red dragon with a bloated belly gulping down a man while a silver dragon lifts a woman into the air, where he put his people on a shining cloud as opposed to his stomach like his counterpart. The dragons’ tails intertwine to create a spiral.

How about the land mass in which the Dominion is centered is a desert with a saltwater sea in the middle. The surrounding areas of the sea will be Mediterranean-like. How about making the animals of the sea and surrounding fresh water bodies exotic. The first thing that comes to mind with out saying “tropical penguins and freshwater coral” is prehistoric life. Quiet streams teem with animals similar to what we had in the Cambrian period, while modern deer frolick in the trees just off the bank. I like that imagery and will not change it. As the largest Cambrian predator was a mere meter in length (I will not be using the metric system after this, by the way) sailors and indeed swimmers have little to fear and with the fast reproduction rates of the invertebrates fishermen are prosperous.

Tomorrow I will be tackling the problem of making an interesting religion for the world.
Eladrinstar
05-27-07, 08:29 PM The religion thing will have to wait for tomorrow. Also, I am seriously considering scraping dragons from the setting. Controversial, I know. Now the flag needs to be changed, but I wrote up several other completely different ideas last night.
Araes
05-27-07, 09:34 PM I'm not sure if it could be said to be standard that completed settings are posted here and then fade away. In general, the ones that people actually know about and remember are those which have been created using the method you proposed (like Walmart (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=92543) for example). That said, it should be interesting to see how it develops if you do stick with it. I regularly struggle just to make contributions which should be easy (like one substantial post per day).

On the campaign itself, its a interesting premise. There's actually a relatively avid following for literature that sounds quite similar to this called Dieselpunk. With such a high level of development, Modern / Future seems like it might also be a consideration, purely for adaptation of the rules.

The biplanes and wyverns (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=844936) topic being bantered about currently seems like it might also have some useful crossovers.
Eladrinstar
05-28-07, 09:16 PM Remember, although the technology of the 1920's will be present, the cultural motifs will be different. No jazz or mobsters or depression.

Anyway, Religion will have to wait. I am tempted to make a monotheism, but it doesn't feel quite right, neither does polytheism, so I am thinking of atheism but that doesn't feel right either.

Anyway. There are 4 core races I want to get out of the way. Half-orcs, Gnomes, Elves, and by extension, half-elves. Yes, I know. Reasons?

Half-orcs. There will be orcs, but the half-orc freaks me out. Orcs and humans are too different to be creating offspring.

Gnomes. I am no gnome-hater, but for some reason I don't want them in the setting.

Elves & kin. I feel as if I cannot fit them into the setting. Sorry. Maybe if there is a niche for them I'll bring it back.

New races. Just some ideas.

A plant race. Not trees, it has been done. What is an oft neglected plant. Got it. The green stuff on your lawn. A humaniod clump of grasslike stalks with five arms. The head is on the upper torso, and the fifth arm protrudes from the top. I like it. They will be reverant of nature.

Wait, why did I just type that. I am being conformist. How about this. They are the techies of Dilmun. They are engineers. They care not for nature as long as they can harvest its resources.

This one was inspired by a drawing by a student in art class. A horselike humanoid. They have long faces, thin arms with hands with hooved-fingers, strong long legs, intricately braided manes, and plump bellies. They are very good at mathematics and there culture revolves around the economy. They are cowardly, which makes their fast running useful, and generally lazy.

I have more. But I have to get off the internet right now. I'll post them tommorow.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Eladrinstar 05-27-07, 01:03 AM	Okay, this is where I am going to create a campaign setting. The usual method in these forums is to post completed work involving the cosmology or creation myths and slowly the campaign fades away as the time between posted articles gets shorter. So here, I am going to merely brainstorm my ideas, and during the process of creating the campaign things will change. Feel free to make suggestions, but unless they are really good or fitting I won’t take them. Okay first things first. The name. Actually, you don’t need to start with a name, but I’ll start with it here. I wanted a name that invoked a memory of ancient times. No, not Egypt or Greece, but Sumeria, or the Indus Valley. History buffs might know that Dilmun was an early civilization in the islands of Bahrain and the Qatar peninsula in the Persian Gulf. Mythology buffs might know it as the mythical land of creation in Sumerian mythology. I’m not at all sure how it is pronounced, but knowing Sumerian’s pronunciation I am guessing it is said Dill(the name) Moon. You need to think of how your setting will be different. While it is certainly possible to make an interesting setting with generic themes, I don’t want that here. First thing I think is to up the technology. I thought at first to downplay the tech level to Bronze Age, but this limits the players. So, instead, I think of upping it. I think of steampunk. No, I like it, but not here. However, 50 years later would do. Yes. Telegraphs, radio, cameras, newspapers, blimps, planes, light bulbs, heck why not, automobiles. Think 1920’s tech. No movies or telephones. That sounds good. Now, one thing I noticed is that on many settings, the main kingdom is set in the Northern hemisphere. I mean, look at Earth. Most of the temperate lands of the world are in the north, and the strongest countries, so the southern hemisphere is seen as a backwater. But there is no reason more landmass could be in a southern hemisphere. The strongest kingdom while be in the south. I am thinking of making this kingdom a Hegemony. Complete control of Dilmun. And I am know un-thinking it. War is a crucial part of many campaigns. How about they control vast amount of lands on many continents? Possibly 50 percent of the land mass of the world. The empire, no thats too generic, the Dominion of Vamporum, is centered in an ancient kingdom, and is slowly conquering the land. The Dominion is like a club in which some nations are gently absorbed, but like a dragon in that others are brutally devoured. I like the symbolism in that imagery. The flag of the land will show a red dragon with a bloated belly gulping down a man while a silver dragon lifts a woman into the air, where he put his people on a shining cloud as opposed to his stomach like his counterpart. The dragons’ tails intertwine to create a spiral. How about the land mass in which the Dominion is centered is a desert with a saltwater sea in the middle. The surrounding areas of the sea will be Mediterranean-like. How about making the animals of the sea and surrounding fresh water bodies exotic. The first thing that comes to mind with out saying “tropical penguins and freshwater coral” is prehistoric life. Quiet streams teem with animals similar to what we had in the Cambrian period, while modern deer frolick in the trees just off the bank. I like that imagery and will not change it. As the largest Cambrian predator was a mere meter in length (I will not be using the metric system after this, by the way) sailors and indeed swimmers have little to fear and with the fast reproduction rates of the invertebrates fishermen are prosperous. Tomorrow I will be tackling the problem of making an interesting religion for the world.
Eladrinstar 05-27-07, 08:29 PM	The religion thing will have to wait for tomorrow. Also, I am seriously considering scraping dragons from the setting. Controversial, I know. Now the flag needs to be changed, but I wrote up several other completely different ideas last night.
Araes 05-27-07, 09:34 PM	I'm not sure if it could be said to be standard that completed settings are posted here and then fade away. In general, the ones that people actually know about and remember are those which have been created using the method you proposed (like Walmart (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=92543) for example). That said, it should be interesting to see how it develops if you do stick with it. I regularly struggle just to make contributions which should be easy (like one substantial post per day). On the campaign itself, its a interesting premise. There's actually a relatively avid following for literature that sounds quite similar to this called Dieselpunk. With such a high level of development, Modern / Future seems like it might also be a consideration, purely for adaptation of the rules. The biplanes and wyverns (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=844936) topic being bantered about currently seems like it might also have some useful crossovers.
Eladrinstar 05-28-07, 09:16 PM	Remember, although the technology of the 1920's will be present, the cultural motifs will be different. No jazz or mobsters or depression. Anyway, Religion will have to wait. I am tempted to make a monotheism, but it doesn't feel quite right, neither does polytheism, so I am thinking of atheism but that doesn't feel right either. Anyway. There are 4 core races I want to get out of the way. Half-orcs, Gnomes, Elves, and by extension, half-elves. Yes, I know. Reasons? Half-orcs. There will be orcs, but the half-orc freaks me out. Orcs and humans are too different to be creating offspring. Gnomes. I am no gnome-hater, but for some reason I don't want them in the setting. Elves & kin. I feel as if I cannot fit them into the setting. Sorry. Maybe if there is a niche for them I'll bring it back. New races. Just some ideas. A plant race. Not trees, it has been done. What is an oft neglected plant. Got it. The green stuff on your lawn. A humaniod clump of grasslike stalks with five arms. The head is on the upper torso, and the fifth arm protrudes from the top. I like it. They will be reverant of nature. Wait, why did I just type that. I am being conformist. How about this. They are the techies of Dilmun. They are engineers. They care not for nature as long as they can harvest its resources. This one was inspired by a drawing by a student in art class. A horselike humanoid. They have long faces, thin arms with hands with hooved-fingers, strong long legs, intricately braided manes, and plump bellies. They are very good at mathematics and there culture revolves around the economy. They are cowardly, which makes their fast running useful, and generally lazy. I have more. But I have to get off the internet right now. I'll post them tommorow.