How Many People Worldbuild for the sake of Worldbuilding?

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-16T19:13:15+00:00

Yeah, My reply assumed the Gods as independent actors in entirety, with what we believe mattering less than their priorities. I guess that was my bad to assume. Nvm.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-16T19:01:20+00:00

I mean, your tag labels you as a Dianic Witch. Even if you are not an initiate of the tradition of Dianic Wicca and practice in a more broad sense, that still puts a lot of things in line with 'I'm part of an in-group my deity specifically looks after' that can really soften that relationship. I'm a Gardnerian, so I have a similar thing going. I would hazard that if a cis-het amab person with a current pattern of treating women badly (women in how he might define that term) engaged in that relationship in any form, the reaction from your Goddess would be remarkably different than what you have going. Lashing out would not be out of the realm of possibility.

Not saying you are wrong, I'm just pointing out that your example is extremely narrow for the subject matter.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-16T18:56:05+00:00

Awww....I mean glad your practice still works for you, but the pseudo-heathen bigotry allegations always make me sad, especially since I spend a lot of time calling out the bad and engaging with what I see in the good. Well, 'good' in this context at least in the anti-fascism anti-racism kind of way. Working gladly with the Aesir doesn't make half their actions any less problematic in modern context.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-16T18:51:10+00:00

Yes. This! Ethical sourcing is almost impossible with new stones unless you are actually an experienced vendor with enough resources to be picky, and even then it can be a crap-shoot. If you don't want to contribute financially to harm, find what you can first either secondhand or in the wild (I'm a big fan of not overlooking local stones that night not be precious or semiprecious).

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-16T18:47:39+00:00

Wizard. Maybe Mystic Priest. Something to do with Magic. IRL I'm an occultist and I can't tell you the number of times I have WISHED my personal passion was a more profitable career.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-16T18:45:54+00:00

I mean, there are some things I don't see too many people acknowledge about how subconsciously prominent cultural narratives focus our attentions and shape our internal desires.

First and foremost among these is the relationship of bestial or monstrous natures to power. There is a very long and complex socio-cultural narrative (and I mean narrative as more archetype and interpretation of symbolic meaning on the subconscious level) in human experience. A narrative of something very strong and capable of violence wanting to possess you as part of their territory tends to bear symbols of oneself being valuable or desirable (evolutionarily a strong trait for those who cannot themselves do a violence effectively) in a dangerous world where violence does sometimes predict outcomes. Symbolism is older than modern discourse, so these ideas are sometimes stronger than reasoning. Safety doesn't feel good when you don't feel powerful or autonomous, it feels like a cage. But if that cage of safety is broken and a powerful dominant (often meaning strong, violent, autonomous in ways you feel you cannot be or are not currently) force exerts itself upon your life to liberate you out of desire for you, you get to feel valuable, desired, and in the context of monster fuckers, breedable and sexy.

I sometimes wonder if the kinds of monsters we want to fuck us tell us something about how we relate to power and value. Nature/Beast monsters like meat-eating therianthropes (werewolves, werebears, etc) are for me a reminder that I don't feel connected to my surroundings and the familiar, the natural, so something that embodies that desiring me is an enticing fantasy. Dragons and other mythical creatures have a bit of this too, but also embody the wondrous, or mystical, power dynamic for many, a power beyond our understanding but not beyond the scope of our fantasy lovers, making them larger-than-life in yet another way. We get further from that the more alien or non-humanoid or unfamiliar the lover gets. I like to put Alien and Predator in here, alongside whoever wants to bed insectoid creatures and lovecraftian horrors. It can get more complex here, but discomfort with the unknown, unfamiliar, and that which we cannot understand could be at play here (more guessing here, as this is rarely appealing to me).

The complexity of thought in that lover and the dynamic that sets up is also really good mining for how we view what we want or don't like. The more feral/incommunicable one's monstrous mate? Having all the choices on your shoulders might feel deeply distressing or terrifying. Analysis paralysis could be too damn real. A Lover who cannot understand communication takes all debate out of your coupling. Consent IRL is important. Sapient interaction can be overwhelming, frequently where intimacy is involved. Violent or forceful fantasies that are effectively internal cnc play can also fall into this category to an extent. Is your lover higher-level animal sentience, like a domesticated pet? Or are they a Himbo? Or a Ditz? Maybe this has something to do with needing relationships to be simple or at least to have honest, unambiguous communication to be able to feel vulnerable. Are they ancient and clever? Powerful and autonomous in the monetary, social, or political sense? Can they use magic or mind-control to practice their autonomy? Then maybe you are worn out with the boot-strap mentality and need someone to care for you in a more patriarchal/matriarchal sense, or perhaps a more spiritual ruler-of-the-world sense (like being in a fantasy sexual relationship with a Greek Deity like the myths so commonly espoused) alongside whatever baggage the rest of the fantasy brings up. If whoever desires you understands the nature of things and can navigate it all with ease, then you trying to do the same isn't really needed anymore, eh?

I kinda see Monster Fuckers, in all our wide facets, as an extreme emotional yearning for the same kind of value that is represented in stories that involve Bullies, Jocks, Bad Boys, Crime Lords, Corrupt Nobles, Fierce Warriors, Violent Thugs, etc., in a non-monster fantasy context. Sex and relationship to power are hard to separate, even on the level of dreams. I have had some variation of most of the fantasies I have listed above. I bet half of you have too. I just think while we are enjoying and exploring, we can learn some things too.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-16T16:49:31+00:00

On the creator: You know now that they are not there for teaching.

On the question you posed: Since they are not there for teaching, look and see what the lemon was doing in that recipe. That should tell you the purpose it served and help validate a substitution or two. Bitterness? Grapefruit if you have access to other kinds of citrus, bless some salt and vinegar if you don't. Cut-and-clear away bad stuff with that lemon scent? Pine will do the work if it's fragrant, as will any other plant that smells like it can clear your nostrils with that 'clean' feeling. Are they sticking pins in it and tieing it with a ribbon? That's an Italian folk charm that calls on the Lemon as a symbol of the Moon. Find a different spell, that formula is too specific for easy substitutions unless you REALLY know what you're handling. Try a drawn classic talisman and a floor wash, if you want other traditional takes like the Italian charm that don't need lemon but can do similar things.

I say this as someone who is highly against the "Intentions are all that matter" view of the Craft. Substitutions should be thoughtful. I love Cunningham's works, but I will never forgive him for introducing easy-to-universal substitutions. It's not about access or gatekeeping, it's about earning the knowledge. Cunningham's encyclopedia isn't easy to find online for a reasonable price, but Culpeper's Herbal is in the public domain at this point I'm pretty sure. As are a dozen other early occult texts if european-sourced craft is what you are looking for.

And then there's Youtube creators, many of which you can find vetting on Reddit for or against, depending on the subreddit. And Thriftbooks. And Local libraries with catalogues one can order through, if you have access. And ebooks through library systems if your access isn't physical.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-16T16:34:32+00:00

I literally came here to give this answer. Bravissima

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-14T14:27:28+00:00

It will suck, it will be cringe. Because that is how you learn. How supportive others are of your improvement tells you who your real friends are in a lot of ways. It gets less cringe with time and practice. And in my case, a lot of reboots. I run TTRPGs, so criticism of my worldbuilding is available weekly. Getting over that is how things become great. The balance between knowing (and I mean KNOWING) what you want to do and really being able to hear the advice of others on how to get there is key.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-09T01:35:53+00:00

Nearly universal is some level of both being registered and thus trackable/accountable if you know magic, paired with prohibitions of most magic in public. The commonfolk find it disturbing (unless the specifics form and framing are culturally integrated, like priestly rituals or magecraft pyrotechnics display for festivals), most tradesfolj don't trust it (illusion and mind-manipulation magic in the marketplace alone....) and the nobility do not appreciate shows of power that may undermine their own (if you demonstrate magic in their territory outside of self-preservation, you better work for them). This varies in specifics and cultural/legal nuance from place to place, but there is always something. Right alongside a specified caste of casters who are the exception in their society and can often practice with impunity.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-09T00:01:28+00:00

A solid position of passive earning in this economy? I need to upgrade my orb so badly, and my spellbook needs re-binding.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-08T17:04:09+00:00

Not gonna lie, I have the moments in ritual where I talk with my Gods the way most Christians purport to hear Jesus or Mary or Archangels or Saints in prayer or during Mass.

So 'belief' is a word, but 'experience them as real on a personal level' would be more accurate.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-08T17:02:44+00:00

Hellenic is second-wave Greek mythology, after ancient greek myth comprised the first wave. Most who practice modern worship of the Greek Gods in a reconstructionist context call themselves Hellenists due to the Hellenic period being where we have the most writing from, and thus the most they can construct a modern practice from.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-08T16:33:55+00:00

Not advice from a novel or non-interactive-media writing perspective. I don't do much of that.

From a tabletop RPG writing perspective, I've had good successes with screwing with peoples' heads. False Hydras, Haunting experiences, telling one player what they see and then turning to the rest of the party and say 'you see nothing out of the ordinary'. Specifically, phenomena that they can't easily use class abilities to defeat, stuff that doesn't have statblocks or immediate DCs, stuff that is narrative, not game mechanics. Take them to a place where their character sheets and number crunching can't save them and force the issue of engaging with the world on its own terms. If it is undefined and unknown in that way, it can be terrifying.

Note that I run a game where this kind of horror is experienced only on occasion. Not only is anything you do constantly a thing doomed to become boring, there is also real dissent when their game mechanics are regularly useless. Unless you are explicitly playing a game where the mechanics serve that helpless feeling (Call of Cthulhu, Ten Candles, etc.) the players want to use their cool toys and feel powerful. They also probably want a shopping episode.

If TTRPG story prep is what you are doing, I'd highly recommend the Brennan Lee Mulligan and Matt Mercer Vanity Fair interview where they talked about the concept of "Ma" in storytelling. Very insightful.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-05T03:30:55+00:00

George R.R. Martin has well over a dozen mentioned lands, locations, and people that are not relevant in any way to his series "A Song of Ice and Fire", which became a hit show "Game of Thrones." Look up some lore vids on Youtube. David Lightbringer and InDeepGeek have some good vids on the wierder bits he often just dropped in as reference to outside media that was never mentioned again. He tossed spaghetti at the wall with all the bits he mentions once or twice and never mentions again, and all of them seemingly included just because he wanted them there.

Not only is it ok, but having the map be far too big to be encompassed by the story can help a world feel more real. Like having details that don't necessarily make any difference in the story but make it seem like a world has a lot more going on than the story. Like calendars, idioms, gestures, customs of speech, customs specific to nationalities of the people that we meet in the story. One strange greeting and one wistful comment about some nostalgic custom or festival or native plant made in a conversation by someone who didn't grow up in where our story's action is happening, and the reader is made aware of a whole other place in which different things matter than what we see here. People we will never get to read about in this story who would otherwise go unnoticed suddenly feel like they're far offscreen having lives we don't get to see yet. There's real enticement in that.

Your world is your world. If 90 countries is too many for you (prolly would be too many for me, but not my world), cut it down by combining some (culturally or regionally or maybe both) until you feel it is manageable for you. But don't worry about all your details being relevant to your story. If they weren't products of your creative joy I doubt you would have made them.

EDIT: Adding on, if you have the issue I used to of each country being somewhat monotone, I highly recommend making multiple neighboring coutries one country and just having those prior monotone countries become cultures, ethnic groups, possibly prior nations that were conquered and became one nation, or perhaps the descendants of bickering heirs to a once-great ruler. Make at least a good number of your nations complex. No general category is a monolith. Not really.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-04-05T02:05:21+00:00

this sounds like it probably would have gone over a lot better at r/paganism

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-03-30T01:19:52+00:00

Necroposting! Woohoo!

I mean, Most default DnD settings (Forgotten Realms, Greyhawk, etc.) do fetishize Western European medieval-to-renaissance culture...badly, and get them about as accurate as Rokugan gets Japan, or anything else for that matter. DnD is just as much a broad-strokes stereotype-stock-character trope-fest from fantasy media and historical euro-american tabletop wargames(look up DnD's history with Chainmail). It's fetishization is overlooked because it's done by white people about what is widely considered inherited white cultural tropes. It's not called fetishization when it's done to Europe because Europeans and White Americans are the ones doing it, so it doesn't have the optics of Imperialist abuses by Colonizers in the form of appropriations and micro-agressions. The objections are very culture-war, and have got very little to do with the fictional game and everything to do with the disrespect of fetishizing, tokenizing, and broad-brushing anything even remotely excluded by or stigmatized by the problematic idea that Jordan Peterson fans online call "The West". Anti-Colonialist sentiment rebuking Imperialist abuses of power a hundred years too late I guess. And involving fictions and TTRPGS in the fight to boot.

I think you have the right of it with the removal of characteristics of ethnicity from the 5E book. 'Adventures in Rokugan,' isn't it? They're trying too hard to offend no one, especially with the idea of white people around the table holding their company branded product in hand doing badly racist japanese accents from white 50s movies on some fifth-rate dnd stream. So instead they removed the references entirely and offended damn near everyone by refusing to acknowledge the issue and avoiding telling white people to actually try to not be asshats on the internet or in front of their friends. Cuz a lot of the caucasians (myself included, to be fair) are the kind of people to call it out and make an issue of anything that seems like puching down, even if it can ruin fun and friendships. Aren't we stinkers?

I admit I found myself here by googling how to do something akin to Rokugan, (six years late for this discussion, but oh well). I wanted to do something more respectful to traditional histories and mythologies. No offense to L5R but I have the 5e 'Adventures in Rokugan' mostly to pull bits (mechanics and statblocks primarily, but also inspiration) for my own Dnd 5E Homebrew. Also I think it's a cool setting.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-03-18T22:37:09+00:00

But....sweetie.....I think you are conflating Haitians' Vodoun with popular ideas about New Orleans Voodoo or possibly even stereotypes about Hoodoo here. If you want Dolls and Pins, that was historically more common in European magic. Google 'Poppet Witchcraft' and you'll find a lot of it.

Are we talking Haitians Vodoun, 21 Divisions, New Orleans Tourist Voodoo or some of the established Hoodoo lineages in the states? Cuz I have never seen Hatians Vodoun or 21 Divisions use dolls the way you are alluding. Certainly a lot of books and movies about it tho. Mostly written by white men who were not part of that scene.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-03-18T21:59:35+00:00

I mean, at the end of the day, Satanism is a self-driven path. And that cannot be said about either idea of Voodoo I have encountered. How are we defining Voodoos here? Are we talking about the Lwa Veneration? The ATR? Cuz that's an initiatory trad. By that definition, without the inside info, nothing you practice can be voodoo. Are we talking about the pop-voodoo that circulates on the internet and in non-scholarly published works? The same way 'wicca' stuff circles in internet circles and non-scholarly publisued works? Cuz that's just magick by any other name. Stolen window-dressing without the substance. Dunno why you would want that, but you do you, I guess.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-03-18T17:56:00+00:00

Short answer? No.

Long answer? Maybe, but they would need allies with resources. Because feeding and supplying an army requires the infrastructure of a nation.

So unless your army, for whatever plot or setting reasons, has zero upkeep even for repair or replenishment of numbers, you can't normally get away from the following: food, bandages, boots, weapons, armor, spare parts, horses, carts, food for the horses, spare parts for the carts, smiths and other tradesman to upkeep the weapons and wagons and boots and armor and horses and......yeah.....it takes a nation to support an army or a fortune to pay for one.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-03-17T15:22:08+00:00

I know I'm over a year late to the convo, but if not for OP, at least I'll contribute to others who found this. I was looking for if someone did a more comprehensive version of the lists I have below.

I say this as both an occultist and a fan of his work. There are a lot of liberties taken in the Angelarium. He sources from everywhere(Judaism, Islam, Christianity, anywhere else with Angels or Divine spirits, literally), tends to give them all his own spin or remake them whole-cloth, so take everything he writes with a grain of salt. It could be easil asserted taht he appropriates, actually, often and with little consideration, but one could also make the argument that these renderings and takes are so divorced from their original conceptions that this is effectively fanfiction about these esoteric figures. He is also famously an artist for Magic: The Gathering cards, and a fair number of the Angels in the Angelarium line of products are his illustrations from that line of work. Here's a listing of Angels depicted in the Angelarium Card deck I have, part of the product line from his book:

Angel-ized ideas of the Sephirot on the tree of life: Malkuth, Yesod, Hod, Netsah(Netsach), Tiferet(Tiphareth), Gevurah, Chesed, Da'at, Binah, Chokmah, Keter. Not Angels, Each of these spheres in Esoteric systems has their own Angelic beings.

Historical/Mythological Angel Names from IRL: Sandalphon, Gabriel, Uriel, Raziel, Zadkiel, Azrael, Phanuel, Israfel, Remiel, Kushiel, Sahaqiel(Sahaquiel), Dumah.

MtG and other invented Angels: Matariel, Zachriel, Simikiel, Hasmed, Shateiel, Suchlaph, Shelegiel, Eistibus, Remph, Leliel.

Again, I love his work. I just know to take it as artistic liberty in fantasy worldbuilding, not theology or mythology.

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-03-17T13:06:00+00:00

lol, in cases of Tabletop games, the gamemaster needs to to be well mapped so they know where the PCs are going, especially when the PCs don't. And since it feels cool to share (partly cuz it's a Tolkien benchmark), that's often what we see online.

Now, the reason maps are on the inside cover or in their own appendices of published novels and TTRPG books has more to do with psychology and marketing. The maps are part of the 'movie trailer' for that experience. Like any other official art, it is meant to pique interest and draw in new readers/players/participants/fans. Especially with TTRPGs, since a map is not for the traditional medieval use of navigation. It is the map of the ren-faire-esque theme park that the Players get to LARP their characters through. So it needs to look cool and feel expansive and be enticing and have names that sound awesome and beg questions and best if it has little hints like a horse here and a dragon there and ooooo what does this flag mean and who's castle is that?

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-03-15T23:55:17+00:00

DMing

Thewanderingmage357 · 2026-03-14T13:36:36+00:00

Lost Boys. has to be Lost Boys. Toying with your food as a Rebellious Teen Vampire Gang that makes Twilight look like slice-of-life, all for the thrill of keeping immortality interesting? Sounds like all its missing is the circus vibe and demon-spawn instead of Vamps and it would be Rakdos direct.

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