#worldbuiding

[alterego-arts]

✨🍃🦋The Metamorph 🦋🍃✨

A living constellation of instinct, memory, adaptation. They wander the threshold between identity and becoming, carrying every form they've ever been. They're not divided, they're whole. 🜁

[keepers-art-n-craft]

Map commissioned and reserved by spiffo corp

[squidthesquidd]

I would like to hear any sort of world building cause I’ve been rereading the old characters bios, what’s your main influences for the lore (tfo, cyberverse,tfp etc)

I'd say its like 40% g1, 20% tfp, 20% tfa, and then another 20% bullshit . theres probably some influence from the comics in there somewhere but i haven't actually read them so i wouldn't know lol

A lot of designs are very g1 inspired, cus i love the big blockiness of g1. and especially optimus prime's personality is very g1 optimus.

With a lot of the world building its hard to pinpoint specific inspirations cus a lot of it i just make up on the fly out of things i really want to explore. Like, i have it in tfpx that pink on a bot is seen as a threat or an omen, and im pretty sure i heard that from somewhere but i have no idea where.

I do think the egg thing came from cyberverse. probably. In tfpx cybertronians come out of eggs btw.

And a lot of my worldbuilding and lore comes from fandom! i cant give a specific example cus... i forgor. but im sure for some tidbits its a little obvious!

anyway, here's an infodump on cybertronian reproduction:

there are three (technically two) ways that more cybertronians are created: planet forged and bot forged

The most common way a bot is created is being **planet forged**, which means the planet itself created the bot. It begins at the core of cybertron. a spark is created and sent to the surface in an area called a "cradle" inside of a capsule. a cradle is a valley on cybertrons surface that houses sparkling capsules until they hatch. they are typically extremely hot and humid (a rarity for cybertron since liquids are extremely uncommon) there are hundreds of cradles dotting the surface that vary in size, the largest cradle being the one closest to the planet capital. (it can house up to 10,000 capsules) gestation in a capsule can take up to three months to two years depending on the size of the sparkling. minibots take about six months, fullframes take about a year, and grandframes take the full two years.

when a sparkling is done growing it bursts from the capsule and begins to eat it. The capsule has essential materials in it that will be absorbed by the sparkling that will allow it to consume energon. if a sparkling does not consume its capsule, it will be unable to process energon properly and will starve to death.

A cybertronian being **Bot forged** is much less common, and involves two bots sharing dna in a very similar way to human reproduction methods. Once a bot is sparked (meaning they are carrying a living spark that has the potential to become a sparkling) they must go to a cradle and connect to a vacant capsule root. a capsule root is a cable that supplies a capsule with the needed energy to grow a sparkling. When a bot connects a capsule root the themselves, it will activate their internal forge and will grow a capsule inside the bot around the spark. once the capsule is grown, the bot can disconnect from the root. during gestation a bot is unable to transform into their alt-mode and their body temperature will be much higher than average. as the sparkling grows, the plating of the carrier bot my become distended, which will require repair after the sparkling is removed.

When a sparkling inside of a bot is done growing, it will burst from the internal capsule, causing the insides of the bot to flood, this will trigger their expellation system, and the sparkling will emerge from the bot along with the burst capsule.

The (technically) third way of making a bot relies on planet forging, and is called **cold construction**. A fresh spark is removed from a capsule and placed inside a prebuilt frame, meaning there is zero gestation and the sparkling immediately jumps to being fully formed and *technically* mentally an adult. this method is considered cruel and has only been preformed a handful of times. so far every bot thats been cold constructed has severe mental disabilities (split processor, debilitating paranoia and anxiety, extreme and dangerous mood swings)

[memento-morri-writes]

actually, sorry, I'm not done with my unicorn bullshit. I think unicorns are criminally underused in modern fantasy settings. And not just as "oh we're going to go to the stable and ride unicorns". No, I'm talking unicorns as an endangered species. Unicorns whose wild places are shrinking. Unicorns who, like animals pushed into contact with people, fight back and cause problems.

Imagine there being a conflict about the reintroduction (or even just conservation in general) of unicorns much like has been going on with the wolves of Yellowstone for decades now. They're a keystone species, they improve every single aspect of their habitat just by being there. Their magic helps the plants grow, improves the weather, keeps other animal populations in check. But they are wild animals. They do not behave in a way that is "convenient" for humans.

And above all else, they are protective of their homes. They will do whatever it takes to keep humans out. And the humans don't like that. They want to venture into the last wild places and ruin them. So they argue. They paint unicorns as dangerous, as mankillers. Claim that we shouldn't even be protecting them at all. Campaign to be allowed to hunt them. Display horn trophies in their homes.

Meanwhile the conservationists are wracking their brains on how to explain that the unicorns are not violent by nature. That when they are pushed into conflict with people, then there are problems. That having untouched areas, ideal habitat where unicorns can live without fear, will prevent lots of conflict. That killing the unicorns means killing the planet. They try educational outreach, and it works, a little, but then someone goes and tries to take a selfie with one and gets gored, and they're back to square one.

There's petitions to the government from both sides. Ads on tv to save the unicorns. They're used as dangerous creatures in movies, going on bloodthirsty rampages. The scientist scream that that's not a fair depiction, that it's causing more fear than is warranted. That you just have to use common sense and a healthy does of caution. People offer illegal unicorn hunts to the highest bidder. Every so often a video pops up online of someone petting a unicorn foal, and the authorities have to find them.

Zoos and conservation organizations sell unicorn plushies to raise funds and have "adopt a unicorn" programs, where people can keep track of a unicorn in the wild. (They don't do well in captivity, so captive breeding and reintroduction programs aren't even a viable strategy to save them. Scientists say it has something to do with the way they're bonded and connected to the land where they live.)

Just. Unicorns in modern fantasy. They really do have a place, and their mythology makes them perfect to explore these kinds of issues.

[letshaveabouba]

In the words of Mariah, it's time! In celebration of the success this year of two legends (Charli xcx and Chappell Roan, we aren't quite legends yet) our lexember is going to be a camp old romp through some lines from their albums brat and The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess. 

The conlang you can see is N'asibómmó, which has been created on our language creation livestream! This first week will be brat themed with the most conlang-related lyric of the summer: “Talk to me in your own made up language” from Talk talk which merited the full translation treatment - most days we will just give one word. Just don't ask us to define word.

We ended up making 'to talk' a root and nominalised it for 'language' in a 2-for-1 word to root derivation moment worthy of kicking this whole thing off with.

[casusvallis]

╰┈➤ ❝ [Northistle Neighbourhood] ❞

A quieter and cheaper neighbourhood, Northistle is more known for the nature surrounding it than the families themselves. With many of its homes residing deep in the forested and mountainous areas, not many people venture through unless they want to explore the park or fish in the Central Pond.

∘₊✧──────────────────✧₊∘

╰┈➤[1] Dae Residence

Home of the Dae family, composed of Medjine Calixte-Dae, and her daughter Dawn Dae. Her son, Duskin Dae, used to live in the home, but moved out to live in Centretown and get a more 'authentic college experience'. Before the disappearance of Medjine's husband, Gi Dae, the home was much more lively and positive, but now finds itself in shambles. The grass is overgrown, the drywall is stained, and the wood floors are cracked, but Dusk always sends back money to try and keep things stable.

╰┈➤[2] Northistle Suburb

A small cluster of homes residing beside the park, all seen better days. The neighbourhood is known for its cheap and poorly managed houses, but they are a close-knit and connected community. All neighbours support one another, making it one of the more wholesome areas in Casus, even ahead of the Welcome Wagon (WW) suburb.

╰┈➤[3] Northistle Forest

A thick coniferous forest moving up the mountain, with some cottages along the way. Mostly quiet, people don't tend to traverse this area. The residents within the forest are still technically part of the Northistle Suburb, and sometimes come down to participate in community projects. Often, they are on their own, mostly living off the land. One of the cottages is an AirBNB, and often attracts the wrong crowds. We all know how bad AirBNB can be...

╰┈➤[4] Northistle Park

A large open field, often where kids are running around and throwing frisbees or balls. The park used to be larger, separated into Northistle and Southistle, but the Valmous family purchased the Southistle property and the park became much smaller.

╰┈➤[5] Central Pond

A freshwater pond with native fish and plant life, shared with the Valmous properties. Most people fish in the pond, while kids dip their feet in.

[humansundewplant]

Excerpt from Black Ice, by Ranze Kerada, Yttarax’s Herald of Winter

“Fear the cold.”

These are the final words of the Oath of Snow. A sobering reminder to those who forsake a part of themselves. I have heard it from the mouths of idealists and believers, those who have it in their heads that their sacrifices are noble. Much more often I have heard it from the ambitious and the power-hungry. There are many who are willing to trade a limb, a lung, an eye - even a heart, if only they may commune with Yttarax and replace what they have lost with his deepest cold. They mistake the meaning of our Oath of Snow, and in so doing mistake what they accept into themselves. Its first words are “I am the cold,” and the ambitious speak them believing they are a declaration of power. They imagine they will spend their lives repeating those words to helpless, terrified farmers without a stockpile to see them through winter. They wish to be feared, and so they will be. It does not occur to them that they have been warned to fear themselves. The cold is absence, and once all passion and all exuberance, all perverse glee taken from watching the weak cower before you has faded, the cold will remain. It will dig through you, burrow its way into meat and bone and thought, and it will make you as it is. I have long preferred to think of myself as one of the wise few who keep a few simple joys and stave off the absence, yet I have come to doubt myself. How long has it been since I felt anything at tearing out a heart or an eye, to put in its place Yttarax’s gift of black ice? The time draws ever closer that I must lay down my knife and entrust this duty to another, and these words are meant for the one who takes it up: Give the oathbound to the cold. Give your kindness to the cold if it should stay your hand, and give your cruelty if it should make a petty tyrant of you. But no matter how much you wish to be rid of it, do not give over your fear. Hold your fear close and you will never forget that you are the cold.

[ashintheairlikesnow]

BBU Community Days

@bbu-on-the-side * {Day 7: Details} What's a detail of BBU worldbuilding you always wanted to dive into? (Newly emerging professions, legal aspects, pet fashion, economic side effects, societal aspects, facility workplace ethic, history, safehouse organisation, deconditioning…) Do it now, and ramble a bit!

-

I touch on a lot of the things I think about in my own writing, because world-building is honestly so much fun for me!

I don't talk about religion much beyond individual people though, and so that is something I think about but don't write.

Like, my theory on this is that religious organizations across the board heavily disapprove of the system, with their logic being that this allows people to "escape consequences" of their actions in their life before signing up, and there are TV preachers on this universe's Fox News declaring that all must stand before the judgement of God, even if they were pets in life. "The Lord does not forget your sins, even if you do."

I think this makes for uneasy bedfellows between the pet lib movement's leadership and some church organizations. Both want to end the system but with different rationales behind it.

I also think some churches or religious groups run safehouses, halfway homes, etc. Some better than others. I think a lot of churches have "missions" where they go to "the streets" and try to convince runaways to come to their halfway houses. The kind of people who complain about how the runaways don't always seem sufficiently grateful for their pity and charity.

But I think there are plenty of churches who just show up, help, and provide support without demanding worship in exchange. People who leave backpacks with toiletries and some food in areas where runaways tend to congregate. People who just buy food and cook big meals, even when it's illegal to feed runaways. These are the people who know how to befriend someone and provide aid without pity. I see the Unitarian Universalist church being very much about that method? Not always perfectly.

Churches lobby constantly for legal restrictions on the system but in my BBU world part of the point is that corporations have so totally overrun everything that ANYTHING is legal if a billionaire pays the right senator off.

Nat gets most of her funding from Vincent Shield's various shell companies but also applies for a lot of grants. And I think many of those grants come from churches or religious orgs.

Jake doesn't want to ask for money from religious organizations because of his own lifelong resentment after his childhood church ignored, enabled, and eventually justified his father's abuse of Jake and his mom. It means he has to scramble for money more than Nat.

But, yeah. I think about religion in the USA in the BBU and how it would affect a lot of things, but I don't write much of that in.