Worldbuilding: Fantasy Culture/Race Profile
Hey everyone! Happy Worldbuilding Wednesday! I thought I’d share the template I used when I’m starting to develop a fantasy race/culture. It’s a good starting point, great for brainstorming but also future reference. You don’t have to fill out everything to have a full culture, and you certainly don’t need all of these things to write an interesting, engaging culture useful for a narrative, but it can be a lot of fun (for me, stress relief actually lol).
If you use this template, please @ me, I’d love to see what you do!
Names and Naming Conventions: it’s a good idea to get this out of the way, especially if you want to make characters ASAP
The People
Appearance: are there common skin, hair, eye colours among this race? Do they have humanoid bodies? Are there features this race is known for (horns, fangs, pointed ears, wings, etc)?
Body Art (cosmetics, tattoos, piercings, hair styles): In some cultures, tattoos are acquired as part of coming of age. Do the people have significant body arts? Is there a stigma attached to any body arts, or are some seen as sacred?
Clothing: what fabrics do people wear? Colours? Consider the climate of the region where they live.
Abilities (where applicable): does this race have unsual abilities, such as telepathy, magical talent, etc?
Locations/Geography of Territories
Major Sites: ruins, landmarks, temples, ports, etc. that are important to the culture, to their economy, history, or mythology.
Countries: does this culture control more than one country? Are there slight cultural differences between them? Are they influenced by the countries they border?
Cities: what are the capital or most important cities? How few and far between are large urban centres, if there are any at all?
Animals and Plants of Relevance: are there any animals or plants sacred to this culture, or just important to their economy as imports or exports? Are there plants/animals found in their lands that cannot be found elsewhere in the world? See also Food and Drink culture.
Social Structure
Government and Law: what is this culture’s system of government? Who holds power? How is power kept, enforced, or fought over? What is the law system? Are there any particular laws that are unique to this culture?
Ideologies and Social Norms: what ideas are held by most of the population? What ideas are stigmatised? What is this culture’s idea of ‘normal’? How are these ideas enforced (if they are enforced at all)?
Religion/Mythology: what kind of religious system is in use (polytheism, monotheism, etc.) and how does this affect people’s daily lives? If there is a priesthood, how do people become priests? Are there sacred spaces, or large temples, for example, for worship?
Death and Burial Practises: how does this culture see death? How are the bodies of the dead treated? How does this relate to mythology?
Love and Marriage Practises: What is courtship like? Does marriage exist in this culture? If so, what are ceremonies like?
Trade and Economy: what is this culture known for? What are their imports and exports?
Food and Drink Culture
(for more on this, see my earlier post here)
Languages and Literary Culture
What languages does the culture speak, if more than one? Consider their history, and nearby cultures as well.
How are stories told in this culture? How is knowledge kept and disseminated?
Magic and Technology
There are so many questions about building a magic system for your world or culture, but at the beginning, just focus on cultural attitudes toward magic. Who can practise magic? Is there a specific way to learn it? In Skyrim, most Nords distrust magic. How does this culture feel about magic in general, and magic-users?
History
Where the culture came from, mythological and/or anthropological origins
How this culture has interacted with other cultures over time
Has the culture evolved or changed in any significant ways over time?
How does this culture see its own history?
General Notes: miscellaneous notes, a place to quickly jot down ideas without worrying about organising them properly yet. This will be a big section at first lol
