Early Modern Fantasy!

Jade

Your friendly neighborhood Swearengen
Original poster
LURKER MEMBER
FOLKLORE MEMBER
Invitation Status
  1. Look for groups
  2. Looking for partners
Posting Speed
  1. 1-3 posts per week
Writing Levels
  1. Adept
  2. Advanced
Preferred Character Gender
  1. Female
Genres
Fantasy, SciFi, Swords and Sorcery, Apocalyptic, Steam Punk, Drama, Anime, Superhero, Medieval,
Tired of your standard medieval fantasy? Feel like helping me build an early modern(roughly 1500 to 1790) fantasy setting? Ya? OK then! Let's do it!

So, I guess I'll start by providing a few prompts for you guys to use as jumping off points. Let's start with some of the prominent nations of this world. Pick a prompt below, answer it, and then we'll continue from there, asking more questions and giving more prompts until things are fleshed out to our liking, and we've created an awesome world!

1: This nation controls over 80% of the world's most precious trade resource, and 50% of it's second. Describe this nation and the valuable resources it trades. What are the resources? Why are they valuable? How did they come to control these resources? How do they maintain said control?

2: This nation is one of the smallest and oldest in the land, yet has maintained respectable power for over 1200 years. Describe this nation and how it has done this. Strong defenses? An unbeatable military? Guerrilla tactics? Defensive terrain? Diplomacy? Religion? Vassal/protectorate of a stronger nation?

3: This nation resides within an archipelago. How many islands does this archipelago hold? how large are they compared to one another? Does the nation control every island? Does each island have a distinct culture, or have they more or less assimilated?

4: This previously backwater nation boasts a recent technological advancement which it has not shared with other nations. This has given it a unique advantage on the world stage, so much so that it is now not only very rich, but also politically influential. Describe this nation and said technology.

5: This nation sports the most well trained and proficient antique military in the land, but has yet to adopt gunpowder. Describe this nation, and explain why it refuses/fails to utilize gunpowder weaponry. How does it still hold it's own on the battlefield despite this fact?

6: These people are the greatest nomadic tribe in the land. Describe them and their ways. Where and why do they migrate? How do they survive? Why do they live he way they do? Do they use mounts or beasts of burden? If so, what are they?

I'm purposefully leaving these prompts very loose so you guys can have a lot of freedom to be creative. Don't hesitate to tell us about things I didn't specifically ask about in the prompt. Feel free to explore whatever part of your nation that you may feel like exploring, including magic, fantastical beasts, and other fantasy tropes. Even feel free to use pictures to help color your descriptions and fuel your imagination. The only thing I ask is that we stick to a rough early modern vibe, and that we don't have any fantasy races: humans only. Also remember; we don't need or even want to get everything down in the first go. This first round of prompts and answers is just the beginning; don't try to cover everything all at once. We'll have ample time for that in the subsequent rounds.

Can't wait to see what you guys come up with!
 
Last edited:
This post is old. But whateves.

The nation that control 80% of the world trade resource. That should be energy for the transportation, yes? At first I thought petroleum, but maybe whale oil? Or coal? If this involves magic, then maybe a magic well? They control these resources because it is bountiful beneath the land. Perhaps it is a giant mining cave beneath, but a bustling trade metropolis on top.

The smallest and oldest city with respectable power should be the way they are because of religion. There are many religious people in the world, some fearing the pantheon, some respecting the pantheon, however little truth they know about the pantheon. There originally was only one book believed to be sent from the gods which the people take guidance from, but after thousands of years passed, other books was created by old priests and professors, said to be explanation of the book sent from the gods. This created other branches of religion and broke the people into multiple difference churches with different beliefs. Most people simply believed the words of their priests and professors without actually reading the original main book of guidance. Different churches believed their church to be the true church and other churches to be wrong, but truly, none of them is right anymore. People fight and make amends on and off all throughout the years. Only few people knows of this fact but none believes them. Nonetheless this small city is still respected and known as the first true church. Although the are many branches of religion, other city would lend their power if this small city was threatened in any way.

Will add more later.
 
Archipelago. Nature. Flora and fauna. All of the island have the same culture and history. Although they seem to be unmodernised people, paint smeared on their faces, wearing tunic made out of leaves and leather, true old culture is difficult to find anymore. Most if it is just an act, a front, and a mask, as they are a nation supported by money from other nation through tourism. Although they seem to be fashioning spears and shields as weapons, they actually have real firearms in their army.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jade