#lost locket mailbag

[lost-locket-antiques]

Hi,

I just want to say that I really appreciate your fantasy worldbuilding, especially when it comes to fantasy races/species/peoples and one day would love to explore fantasy worldbuilding. Do have a questions

1.) Firstly I love how you put each group of fantasy people into a different classification, such as “faery” and “human”, as well as the fact that “humans” aren’t just basically regular humans like in real life or most common fantasy settings. Do have a question, how come you decided to have elves as a type of human instead of a type of fae/faery? Always thought elves were a type of fae/faery when looking up to folklore, mythology and fairy tales as well as certain similarities.

2.) What is the lifespan and age stage for each fantasy race/species/peoples, including humans, fae/faery and pixies?

3.) What makes each fantasy race/people unique or interesting in your world compared to other fantasy settings.

4.) When it comes to world-building and choosing fantasy races/peoples for your world, what would say is the reasonable number of fantasy races/peoples why? Is there such thing as too little or too much?

Thank you for taking the time to read them

Thank you! I'm really happy that my art and worldbuilding has interested you so much! ヽ(✿ﾟ▽ﾟ)ノNow, to answer your questions:

That's related to how Nijezdo was first conceived. Originally, the Lost Locket was a fantasy Earth that (through the discovery of the Americas) created different Human races, Fae, and Magic. The reason why specifically Elves are Human and not Fae is because of the fact that 1) stereotypical elves look way too human and 2) I had/have a story where an Orc and an Elf have a kid, and in my mind they need to be at least a little related to one another (species-wise, not Sweet-Home-Alabama-wise). When the Lost Locket became it's own world and universe, the relatedness between the 5 Human races (Humes, Elves, Orcs, Dwarves, and Gnomes) stayed, and (through lots of symbolism and figuring out what exactly I wanted) decided to have two other neutral species to make Nijezdo feel more fantasy-esc without compromising my own writing style. Which is why the other 2 species also has 5 races each (Fae having Centaurs, Merfolk, Trolls, Goblins, and Harpies. And Pixies having Terram, Vita, Mortem, Solis, and Lunae Pixies). This is the shortest answer I could give to this question, as this world has been about a decade in the making.

Lifespans on Nijezdo are about 50 years longer than normal human lifespans, give or take. Mostly due to Magic, but there have been some stories of people living up to 400 years old. This is rare though. This also means that childhood tends to be a bit longer, and maturity a bit slower, but not by much. There really isn't a noticeable difference between the species when it comes to age progression. The different stages however, can be quite drastic.

Mostly how the Magic is intrinsic to each race. In most fantasy series magic is either something you learn, and anybody can access it, or it's something only a select few people. Due to blood, or a pact, or what have you. I decided that it would be a mix of both on Nijezdo, and how it works makes how each race reacts quite different. Human Magic is put in everyday life; Elves heal, Orcs are technically psychic, Dwarves are cognoscente, Gnomes control nature, and Humes are a jack of all Human Magic trades, but masters of none. Leaving Humans to need to work together the most. Almost every single Human country has all 5 races living together. Fae are far more individualistic; leading them to keep to their own race (while still creating different countries even in that). They are far less magically indentured then their Human counterparts, but it still changes how they interact with the world. Centaurs are able to run faster than anything living or inanimate, and have a special connection to their Spirit animal (the animal that their other half is), leading most Centaur countries being animal and speed-centric. Merfolk can control aspects of water, and have a siren song, leading most Merfolk to live near water (also because they start out as their aquatic form, before they gain legs), and have a reverence towards song. Trolls are the strongest things living or inanimate, and, like Merfolk, have siren music, if you will, leading a lot of intermarrying of Trolls and Merfolk, and Troll homes being very sturdy. Goblins can camouflage better than octopi, and can teleport, having most of there cities hidden or integrated into other societies. And Harpy are not only one of the only consistent flyers, but also can control weather, and produce any kind of venom from their beaks. Not only are most of their cities impossible to get to without wings, but their homes almost always tend to be oasis in deserts that they created. Pixies are a little harder to define, since very very few of them can speak the words of Humans or Fae, and due to that, their Magic is hard to know. They live with Humans and Fae as trusted luck charms, and humming companions. And this is the stuff only relating to Magic, I also tended to try and make each race distinct as possible, from both each other, and from what most people think when they think of those races (Elves have overly huge ears, that help with sexual dimorphism since they're pretty androgynous, Fae all have cat-like faces [except Harpies, because they're bird people], all Orcs have horns, male Trolls have antlers, etc.).

Depending on how realistic you want your fantasy to be, but I would say, yeah, there can be too much. DnD is a pretty good example (in my opinion) of way too many races to live on a single world, and worst of all, there is no differences between, say, a dwarf that lived in the cold North, where the sun could disappear for months at a time, and a dwarf that lives in a desert. Mostly because each DnD race all come from a single country, or area, and thus have no differences culturally between each other. It doesn't make any sense logistically, and it give players and DMs (possibly) way too many factors at play. DnD gets away with it because it's a game, and people like choices, but for a story you're creating, you do need to at least try and limit how many types of different people live on your world OR make your world massive. Even in the Lost Locket, where I have 15 different races running around, 1 species tends to work together to the point that the different races have more become different breeds, and another species that's so small that their cities tend to just exist in the big people cities with little to no issues. Most of the separation comes from country rather than race, and I would say that's the more realistic take on it... However, this is also fantasy that we're talking about, it doesn't have to make sense to the real world, but it does need to make sense in the confines of the world you created. If you want, you can have 100 different species running around, causing a ruckus, and most people wouldn't care, it really just depends on how close you want to follow real-world rules, and if it makes sense to the world you're making. This is fantasy after all, make it fantastical.

Anyway, I hope that was.... at least a little cohesive?? I'm not the best at putting my thoughts into written words (outside of actually writing stories), so I hope this didn't sound like the ramblings of a madwoman, lol.

[lost-locket-antiques]

hey i wanted to say ur worldbuilding slaps! only skimmed through it but it seems really cool based on what i’ve read.

on harpies (sorry if i’m asking something that’s been brought up before), but is there any specific determining factor for the type of bird someone is born as? like is it genetic, environmental, etc?

Thank you so much!!! I’m so glad you’re enjoying it so far :D

Don’t worry too much about asking questions that might have already been answered. If nothings changed I’ll just send you do that post, or I might just recon the whole thing lmao.

But to answer your question; the type of bird Harpies are born as is completely genetic. Say a Sparrow Harpy and a Quail Harpy fall in love and have a child together, the child has about a 50/50 chance (tho, there are more dominant traits like that of human hair color) of either being born as a quail or sparrow.

No Harpy in the history of Nijezdo has ever been a hybrid bird, while there are myths and legends about such things, no one has ever seen or recorded such a phenomenon. Some say it’s possible, but most believe it to be nothing but faerytales.

It’s not even that uncommon for different Harpy types to marry and have children, it’s the equivalent of a blonde and a brunette having kids, and is treated about the same, too, of course, as long as you’re in the same caste.

Though, most Harpy in higher castes tend to stay and marry within their own type to “keep the bloodline pure” as it were. Have to make sure your offspring is as smart as they can be, after all.

Thanks for the ask!!

[lost-locket-antiques]

4. How does someone propose marriage in your culture(s)? How long do they stay engaged, and what marks the marriage?

So, I'll go chronologically with the stories since there were no specific area you asked for >:3

(also these may be subject to change, just simply because I haven't thought about this as much sorry in advance)

(A/N) This, ah, was a lot longer than I thought it was gonna be, so... be warned after you decide to open this up, it's gonna be a wall of text...

Garden of Sandstorms

The Age of Wars, year 83 - Loro'Dahinja

For most couples who live in the equivalent of poor and middle class families, the man is the one to propose. After the woman accepts the wedding plans start, and they have only a few months to plan.

It is most proper to have a huge wedding planned by the bride's family, because it's suppose to be a celebration of a new life between two lovers, and a celebration of the God of the Sun and Husbands, Heliwo and the Goddess of the Moon and Wives, Lariza. So many sun and moon motifs.

The groom's family is the one to give a dowry to the newlywedded couple, to help them start out, and the dowry could be anything from money to start out, a new house to live in, or even just a kepi-kepi as a valiant stead for the couple. It just needs to be useful.

The upper class is a little different, as most marriages are arranged from birth. There are rarely any dowries simply because marrying your children off to other households is dowry enough. the weddings are still huge, and tend to be celebrated throughout the entire town they live in, but most of the time, it's for political gain.

How to tell a couple is married (and this goes for most Human countries) is a specific earring they wear, it usually has a crest of the more powerful family etched on it (for the rich) or the husband's family crest.

Evergreen's Leit

The Age of Songs, year 219 - Enatu Islands/The Southern Centaurian Tribes

Enatu Islands

The Enatu Islands is at the heart of Merfolk culture, it's where the King of Merfolk reside and where most of there children dream of living, so most of their marriage customs stem from here.

Men and women usually have no problem bringing up the idea of marriage to their partner, usually by writing and singing a song in a confession of love. In fact, almost all legally and socially binding contracts are in song, all must be written down and sung to the other party and, at least one witness. It is also possible to have a prewritten proposal either passed down through generations or bought at specific stores.

How the other party agrees to the contract is by singing the chorus of the song with the proposing party. After which, the two set off to compose their Wedding Song. And however long it takes is how long they stay engaged.

The actual date of the wedding isn't important, nor really is the party, what matters is the song, and the witnesses. The Wedding Song must be compose by the couple, and must have a priest and at least one witness (again) to attest that it happened. Once the song is complete, the couple is considered married, and what ever happens after is just extra.

A shell necklace is usually a sign that someone is married.

But that's only between two Merfolk!

Trolls and Merfolk have been allies since basically the day they were created, due to their magics being so similar (Merfolk's songs and the Troll's instruments). So marriages between these two races are pretty common as well.

They mix and match between their two cultures to make something a little unique.

The music is still there, the only difference is that the Merman(maid) sings while the Troll(ette) plays. If the Troll is to propose, they'll give a piece of jewelry that is perfectly symmetrical, usually something to do with a circle "For they have no beginning and no end, just like our love". The Merfolk accepts the proposal by accepting the jewelry.

The marriage is usually a bigger deal, with parties and drinking for several days before and after the Wedding Song.

If a Merfolk has a symmetrical piece of jewelry and a Troll a shell necklace, it's usually pretty clear who their hearts belong to.

Southern Centaurian Tribes

Compared to what you just read, these people tend to enjoy the simpler things. Hunting and gathering is a big staple to Centaurs, so the best way to show that you're willing to be someone's marriage partner, you better be good at one of these things.

Women are usually the ones to propose in this culture, only because they outnumber the men about 3-to-1, and they do it by either hunting an extremely hard animal to kill, foraging a rare plant, or giving the man a gift that they made from their "job" (cook, shaman, artist, etc.). The men usually prove themselves through battle (usually just shows of aggression in competitions), showing that they are strong enough to protect the family.

If the man accepts the woman's gift, there's two ways it can go.

1) they go straight to the shaman to declare themselves married. Or

2) they have a week long party to plan out in a few weeks time. Then get married by the shaman.

The two Centaurs then are given tattoos on their cheeks, to signify that they are married.

Blood of the Halfbreed

Age of Songs, year 239 - Lorocoda

The men propose here, with the second closest equivalent to our traditions that we have.

The men would bow at the woman's feet, reciting poetry (his own, or something well known) about how he adores her, and places a small box at her feet with wedding rings (almost always earrings) placed inside. If the woman accepts, she places her hands under his chin, and gently pulled him up, usually saying something like "For a man to grovel at my feet, he must truly love me. But how are you to lead my home, if you do not stand beside me?" So they stand together, and take the wedding rings.

They then plan the wedding, usually for about a year, and have it at the Temple of the Sun and Moon, the God Heliwo and Goddess Lariza's temple.

The wedding rings (for both the men and women) are what signifies a married couple.

Mochi Turtle

Age of the Steam Engine, year 56 - Lorocoda

This is the closest equivalent to our traditions.

The man is still the one to propose, and buy an engagement ring (Now just a single earring) and bow at the woman's feet. Poetry has gone out of fashion, and the man just simply askes "Will you marry me?" and the woman would answers "Yes" or "No".

This time the whole family is involved, and through the entire engagement, there's really no set time limit, both the bride and groom's family compete to make the biggest shindig the community has ever seen. It's a total competition.

The ceremony is done, again, in the Temple of the Sun and Moon.

[lost-locket-antiques]

Good afternoon/evening/whatever time it is when you finally read this. I have to say, it's quite heartening to find a fellow Christian online who both accepts evolution(I presume, given our shared love of spec-evo) and uses it so diligently to spread "salt and light" across the internet. As such, I am curious: do you take commissions? I have my own faith-based setting on DeviantArt and some concepts that I think would look great in your unique style.

Hello! To answer you're question about commissions first; at this point in time, I don't do them. I do plan on possibly starting them soon, so good news on that front, at least. And, funny thing that, I actually don't believe in evolution, at least, as it's taught now. However, I find it's a really good way of figuring out how you want to plan out fictional worlds with their ecosystems and biomes. Since you start off with a singular thing and let it branch out.

However I have no qualms (obviously) with people who do believe in evolution, the universe God created is a vast, amazing, and beautiful place, and however it was formed, it was formed by Him, and I adore studying it.

Thank you, for taking the time to look at my work, it's a pleasure to meet a fellow Christian spec bio fan. I hope that this answer isn't too disappointing, but I do plan on putting out a commission sheet some time in the near future. Until then, I hope you enjoy the Lost Locket and all her wears.

~Emerald

[lost-locket-antiques]

not a lore question but do you have a tag list for your writing posts? if so can i be added to it? your worldbuilding is rly cool but i follow too many people to properly keep up haha

I realized that I actually didn’t have a tag for my writing in general, lol. So I finally made one after thinking about it for a little bit.

“#legends of loro” is the tag, ;3€

[lost-locket-antiques]

🎨 - What colors or textures do you associate with the wip?

Specifically Nijezdo as a planet an old paper texture in navy blue

Blood of the Halfbreed has to be a deep red, weathered wood texture like that of a well lived in home.

Evergreen’s Leit is icy blue and feels like a smooth stone worn away by river water.

Mochi Turtle is a vintage green, the type you see in turn of the century homes. Totally a leather texture, hearty and hard to tear.

Garden of Sandstorms gets a very leafy green, texture of just wet sand like that on a shoreline.

Is this me being a bit pretentious? Maybe

[lost-locket-antiques]

What's the difference between fae and fairies? ( I've just discovered this blog but I'm interested)

Ah! Well for starters there are 3 species of sentient and sapient people on Nijezdo: Humans (Humes, Elves, Orcs, Dwarves, and Gnomes), Fae (Centaurs, Merfolk, Trolls, Goblins, and Harpies), and Faeries (Earth, Life, Death, Sun, and Moon Faeries). All of them corresponding to the 3 groups of gods. Order for Humans, Chaos for Fae, and Mediation for Faeries.

The biggest difference between Fae and Faeries is the fact that Faeries are specifically connected to natural things, as most of their namesakes specify, while Fae are about as connected to nature as Humans are, with very minor exceptions.