Project Redwood

Beware! Here be giants.

[redwoodproject]

What is Redwood?

A fantasy worldbuilding and creative writing project about magic, giants, trust, and prejudice in a world at war with itself.

₊˚ ✧ ━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━ ✧ ₊˚

Masterposts

Characters

₊˚ ✧ ━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━ ✧ ₊˚

commonly used tags

#oc art

#oc writing

#asks

#lore

#bestiary

#fanart

₊˚ ✧ ━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━ ✧ ₊˚

Hi! I'm Stella! ✧˖°.

I mostly doodle, write a little, and occasionally post mad ramblings about the blorbos who exist only in my mind.

Any writing or lore I post is first draft, may or may not be canon, and is to be considered experimental and subject to change. I’m just messing around and figuring things out as I go!

Go check out my science fiction project, @garagespaceship!

₊˚ ✧ ━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━ ✧ ₊˚

⚠︎ WARNING ⚠︎

I do block k*nk blogs! If you’re dubiously SFW but I think I still smell k*nk on you, you may still get a block. If you want to play it safe, you can interact from SFW blogs only! It’s nothing personal, I just absolutely do not want my OCs circulating in s*xualized spaces. Thank you for your consideration.

🚫 DO NOT inject any information regarding my characters into any AI. I am aware that some level of web scraping by AI is unavoidable, but I still want to minimize it as much as possible. Thank you!

✅ You are welcome to draw my characters! You don’t need to ask first, and I’m always thrilled to see fanart!!

[redwoodproject]

smug bastard

[redwoodproject]

So I’ve talked before about hair being symbolic in giant culture. An extension of that is who touches your hair means something. A passing pat or ruffle isn’t notable, but intentional focused attention like hair brushing or braiding is considered very intimate. Among adults the only person who does this is a partner or someone expressing romantic interest. It’s a sign of intended courtship.

This creates an interesting problem because Asmund’s hair is very pretty. And Signe thinks absolutely nothing of casually brushing it, and braiding it, and putting little flowers in it, oblivious to the fact that Asmund is extremely flustered and confused.

[redwoodproject]

[redwoodproject]

Can you give us very random facts about Asmund?

woodcarving hobbyist

excellent cook

can play a guitar and sing surprisingly well

easily bribed with pastries (food-motivated creature)

stubborn as hell when his mind is set, and tends to make decisions without consulting anyone else

loves animals, and isn't bothered by the strange or creepy ones (absolutely will handle a tarantula no problem)

has worn the same pair of boots for years and keeps repairing them rather than getting new ones (if he has to get something new he’ll grumble about it for ages)

likes to keep things simple and orderly

not fond of loud crowded places

paradoxically drawn to adventure and novelty (it's complicated)

holds himself to a high personal moral standard and will psychologically tear himself apart for violating it

competitive, but in a friendly way

will make the worst joke you’ve ever heard and grin like a smugass while you groan about it

[frights-n-fables]

Asmund forced to wear anything new 👆

[redwoodproject]

Accurate! 😂

[stella-draws-things]

Roland + echolalia

[stella-draws-things]

Asmund + slightly milder echolalia and when you stick them in the same room they verbally bounce off each other like little ping-pong balls, driving Terence slowly but surely insane.

[redwoodproject]

To wrap up the main cast, could you give us some random facts about Signe please? 👀

I'm still kind of reworking a lot of details about her! But here's a few.

young noblewoman (resents it)

hobby interest in insects and entomology

is in deep conflict with her family

makes many choices just to spite her mother's strict expectations

loves fiercely, fights fiercely

stubbornness to rival Asmund's

will heal you up clean, but it will hurt like hell in the process

craves adventure and freedom

[redwoodproject]

Do you ever like to imagine what your characters would look like in a live-action movie?

Sometimes! But I usually think of them as animated characters! Animation just feels right for them.

[redwoodproject]

Can you give us some random facts about Terence please?

loves tea (his favorite is earl grey with a touch of vanilla)

loves entertaining people and being the center of attention, even though it wears him out and he needs to recharge alone

skilled actor (skilled liar)

broadway singing voice

is either totally uninterested or completely obsessed and laser focused (this applies to jobs, topics of study, people…)

champagne taste on a box wine budget

convincingly passes himself off as wealthy while being completely broke

has been working hard to send money back to his mom

loves banter and playful insult

is more than willing to bend or break the rules if he feels it’s necessary

has a strong personal moral code, but it’s a bit of an enigma from the outside

will work himself to the point of collapse if not forced to rest

fiercely loyal to a select few people

emotionally constipated

[redwoodproject]

Can Asmund see tiny things like bugs when he's in giant form? And if not what was his reaction to seeing a bug for the first time?

He could probably see some large ones like big butterflies! But not in detail. They would be just a tiny splash of color. Like a butterfly the size of a housefly. Smaller insects like houseflies or ladybugs would be comparatively like fruit gnats. You might notice them if you're paying attention but they would just be specks mostly. The first time he sees insects properly he's fascinated by how many different kinds there are. There's so much variety, and so many tiny details he's never been able to make out before!

Signe is personally obsessed with entomology, so she's likely to point out insects whenever she can and ramble about them. Asmund loves to listen to her, but occasionally he has to pull out the "it's just a bug" and make her fume a little (lovingly).

[redwoodproject]

Can you give us very random facts about Asmund?

woodcarving hobbyist

excellent cook

can play a guitar and sing surprisingly well

easily bribed with pastries (food-motivated creature)

stubborn as hell when his mind is set, and tends to make decisions without consulting anyone else

loves animals, and isn't bothered by the strange or creepy ones (absolutely will handle a tarantula no problem)

has worn the same pair of boots for years and keeps repairing them rather than getting new ones (if he has to get something new he’ll grumble about it for ages)

likes to keep things simple and orderly

not fond of loud crowded places

paradoxically drawn to adventure and novelty (it's complicated)

holds himself to a high personal moral standard and will psychologically tear himself apart for violating it

competitive, but in a friendly way

will make the worst joke you’ve ever heard and grin like a smugass while you groan about it

[redwoodproject]

trying to explain some character dynamics to a friend

[redwoodproject]

Since Asmund is a prince, does he have a sort of "royal outfit" or a small crown or anything like that or no? I’m curious 👀

He does have a simple diadem, though he only really wears it for ceremonies. He also has formal clothes which are decorated with intricate embroidery. He dislikes wearing them because they’re uncomfortable, and because he generally avoids formality.

[nocturnal-birdie]

Okay but, i need his girl or one of his friends to tease him that hes a pretty princess when he has the diadem on x3

[redwoodproject]

Oh he would absolutely flaunt it, toss his hair and play it up. 😂

[redwoodproject]

Was Asmund lonely before he met Terence and got the amulet? It must be hard being so much bigger than everyone else...

Not really! He had a community of other giants before he was magically yoinked away from it all. Family, friends, architecture that was scaled for them. The crucial thing is, Asmund doesn't perceive himself as a giant. He sees himself as the norm and humans as outliers. As far as he's concerned, humankind is akin to an invasive species, expanding further and further into lands that have historically belonged to his people. He doesn't resent them for this - after all, everyone is just trying to survive - but he refuses to accept a paradigm that centers humans as the predominant race.

[redwoodproject]

Do you have some random facts about Roland? (Our boi) 👀

he burns things every time he tries to cook

he can't hold a tune

he's got really good aim when throwing things

he trips over his own feet on a regular basis and everyone pretends not to notice

he knows a lot about history and folklore and will ramble if you get him started

he's a bit superstitious

fears hates monkeys

[redwoodproject]

We saw Terence’s reaction to Asmund’s fangs in the small snippet "Teeth",

But what was Roland’s and Signe’s reaction to le chompers?

Funny enough, both of them clocked it initially as “oh he has a rather sharp grin” and then brushed it off. It wasn’t until they knew what he was that it was recontextualized into something that had meaning. Part of why he can blend in with humans is because of the general social instinct to not bring undue attention to small differences in appearance. Nobody wants to be rude, so no one gives it more than a passing thought. Odd genetics, they assume. A quirk, and nothing more. There’s no reason for most people to recognize his teeth as an indicator that he’s an entirely different species.

Of course, after they know the truth, Signe and Roland do have opinions. Signe finds it charming and likes the sharpness as a reminder of his true nature. Roland doesn’t like them at first, since it brings to mind the old gruesome stories. Eventually he gets used to it and it just becomes another feature of his friend, a man who he trusts with his life.

[redwoodproject]

What is the average height for giants?

Is Asmund tall for his kind? 👀

He is! That human 6’9 is actually directly translatable to his comparative height as a giant. He’s half-a-head to a head taller than most other giants. He sometimes bonks his head on low doorways and is often taller than everyone else in a crowd. His mama says he got it from his father, along with his wild hair.