GitP Worldbuilding Project

[Felixaar]

Making stats for the races would be way too constricting. However, make huge generalisations would not be out of place - aka Humans are taller than gnomes, crocmen are more green than humans.

So this map you've got. Is this the whole world, or just a section of it? If the latter, then what is off the edges?

Floating islands? What do they float above, water, or land? What holds them up?

Steampunk, eh? I'm assuming Gnomes are more intouch with said technology, while Crocmen are almost entirely devoid of it? No? Am I mistaken?

Crocmen - are they more Croc or Men? are they humanoid, but with crocodile characteristics? Or do they walk on all fours? Are they amphibious?

[Maximum Zersk]

Seems like a good idea.

We agreed that it would be a small part of the world.

The floating islands are floating above the mountains. We still have to flesh out how they float. My idea was large amounts of lighter-than-air gases trapped in the rocks.

Generally, gnomes are in touch, yes. Croc-men wouldn't be entirely deviod, but less industrailized than other races.

And it's Steamchemyclockpunk, by the way.

The croc-men are more man than croc. They're bipedal, and amphibous.

[Kurien]

I don't think lighter than air gases trapped in the rocks is a good explanation for floating islands. A blimp/dirigible/airship is only just able to float in midair, and most of its volume is taken up by the helium. Rock and soil is very heavy; it seems very unlikely that a little gas could keep a massive chunk of land floating in the sky.

I propose a different explanation. Perhaps the floating islands are composed of some superconducting mineral that generates a powerful magnetic field?

[Maximum Zersk]

Reminds me of Avatar...

I guess that could work. But my idea was that huge amounts of the Helium were encased in the rock. Like, about half of it. But that DOES seem a bit odd.

[Echowinds]

It doesn't need to make scientific sense in our own physics. A bit of mystery goes a long way in the world; you don't need to explain everything.

So floating islands exist - except no one knows how they float. Heck, you can just say gravity works oddly in certain parts of the world. Who knows.

[ref]

Works with the idea that the gnomes aren't showing all their secrets. Especially to humans, since the gnomes know they'll be dangerous with the technology and the natural aggressivity.

[Tulio d Bard]

This gas thing doesn't work. Where will the water tables be? Without rivers or any other water source the gnomes would have left the mountains long ago.

I vote for unknown.

[Maximum Zersk]

Yeah, okay.

[Szilard]

Unknown makes it more awesome.

Also, what did we ever decide about dinosaurs, or are we no longer considering them?

[CrimsonAngel]

I'de love to do some animal and plant sketches.

[Maximum Zersk]

I put the dinos aside until we get to the fauna. So, no, they're not gone yet.

Go ahead and draw the sketches, Crimson. The more the martyr!

Or was it, the more the wartier?

[Tulio d Bard]

We should keep working with other subjects besides the map, since there's actually only one person doing that. Maybe 2 or 3 topics at the same time could be handled easily.

BTW, I almost did double posting to save the project lol.

*EDIT: Banners be needed*

[CrimsonAngel]

Sorry people, kinda lazy today. What kind of plants live here?

[Szilard]

We have no idea. Make stuff up. That's the point.

[Maximum Zersk]

Well, if we have the map, we can work on the rest of it.

What we've got is:

Ocean on the east, Desert on the west. Mountains between. Floating Islands above mountains. Two major drainage basins, each flowing into two gulfs. Croc-men live on river and coast, Gnomes on mountains, and humans everywhere.

I'll Try to make a Banner.

I was guessing something creative for the plants. Any ideas people?

[Felixaar]

I would actually not be in favour of leaving the floating islands unexplained, mostly because that seems like a super-lame-cop-out to me. I do, however, suggest we table it for the time being.

As for fauna - the question is whether we want the world to be cultivated or still wild. My vote is for wild (mostly because both my other worlds are cultivated), so a lot of stretches devoid of humanity would be involved. Megafauna is a neat idea. I don't know about Dinosaurs, but large creatures of one type or another is good. A few collossal creatures would be fun, too - perhaps on the other side of those mountains. And sea monsters. Gotta have sea monsters.

[CrimsonAngel]

I guess i'll just make some based on habitats.

[Tulio d Bard]

As for fauna - the question is whether we want the world to be cultivated or still wild. My vote is for wild (mostly because both my other worlds are cultivated), so a lot of stretches devoid of humanity would be involved. Megafauna is a neat idea. I don't know about Dinosaurs, but large creatures of one type or another is good. A few collossal creatures would be fun, too - perhaps on the other side of those mountains. And sea monsters. Gotta have sea monsters.

Yay! Sea Monsters!

I think there's not too much to change about plants besides size and lesser details so that they continue being plants (unless we want walking carnivorous raging nettles). Maybe some kind of vine covering the forest's floor, human-sized flowers, bioluminescent trees. And don't forget the old n' good fungi. Blood-drinking fungi.

[ref]

Maybe a rare plant that has complicated requirements to live, but in secret places in the mountains, those conditions exist, and the gnomes know how to process this plant to make islands float.

Er... makes little to no sense, I know...

[Kurien]

I thought of a carnivorous, aquatic plant similar to bladderwort, only large enough to suck in decent sized fish.

Pitcher plants large enough for small mammals, birds and reptiles to be trapped inside?

Creatures the size of some of the Colossi from Shadow of the Colossus?

Electric cuttlefish that dwell in massive bromeliad-like plants?

[CrimsonAngel]

Right now i've drawn a few flowers, a tall maybe swampy one with a horrible smell and taste, a floating one for water that's edible and has a huge poulaation, a large yellow flower that's open durin the day absorbing sunlight and closes at night and glows. It can be used in lamps because (REASON). I also have a realy pointy and poisonous flower, and lastly a plant were it's flowers look like angry tribal masks. I uploaded them all to facebook via DSi, so pics are coming up. Excuse my proportionaly insane drawings.

[CrimsonAngel]

Please forgive the double post.

Spoiler

Show

Floater

Glower

Uhhh, pricker? poisoner?

Sheilder

stincker

[Maximum Zersk]

Awesome. I like the Shields going GRRRR!

Okay, now to look at them closely:

Would the floater need roots? If it's floating on water, it would absorb the water it's floating on.

The Glower seems good. So, people would grow them to use as lanterns, eh?

Not too bad.

MEAN MASK GRRR!!!

The stinkers look like the plants in The Wind Waker.

[Felixaar]

(unless we want walking carnivorous raging nettles).

I'd watch that movie.

[Maximum Zersk]

So, curious, what would an animal in a swamp look like? Meaning, what things must it have?

I was thinking of designing some animals for the swamp climates.

[Je dit Viola]

Well, first and foremost, it has to thrive and survive there. Meaning amphibious creatures are pretty great. Also, scaley creatures such as gators and snakes and frogs seem to like it there. Spiders, too, especially poisonous ones, and birds would also be common, landing on the partially sumberged trees.
Some fish would also live there.

So, I'm thinking that what would work well are amphibious giant snakes, lizardlike (dragonlike?) beasts, large birds, and other things like that, would be the staple animals living there.

[Tulio d Bard]

I think swamp creatures (insects, animals and others) should be small. There isn't much space to fly or walk due to the type of plants that exist in such environment, and the water isn't very deep too. So lots of birds (small/medium sized ones), mammals, reptiles, amphibious and fishes shouldn't be bigger than a jaguar.

You can see some examples of Brazilian Pantanal's fauna here.

[CrimsonAngel]

Fire breathing Tucan.

[Tulio d Bard]

I've got a question: Will Gods (or God) be real?

[Maximum Zersk]

Well, we could go the belief way. If enough people practice a set of beliefs, then it will be true. On the other hand, we could have a set pantheon or creator. Whichever one.

I've drawn some swamp creatures, by the way. I'll put them up later.