Psst Maka if you're using the Darkness Skin from April Fool's Day, click on the Help link at the bottom of the page ;D
My favorite was always the Days one. XD
Yep that pretty much sums it all up XD
I literally just had a conversation with you in the Discord server because you were passively saying "I'm okay I guess" over and over so I took pity on you and asked "How are you, Amaury?" XD Don't take me for granted like that, "yo." XD
The Spam Zone has 75,111 threads in it, counting this one. Second place is Arts and Graphics with 8,334. I have no idea what to do with this knowledge, but there it is. Seventy-five thousand one hundred and eleven. XD Let's take a moment to honor all the beautiful things that have happened here over the years. XD
Hi guys, so this time, the requested topic for my Worldbuilding series was Religion and Mythology! There's a LOT to unpack here, so let's dive right into the gritty details, hmm? If you're creating a fantasy world from scratch, religion and mythology of the cultures inhabiting it are very important. Religion and Mythology can define art, politics, music, language, history, the understanding of science, cultural and racial diversity, and architecture, and can be defined by environment, magic-systems, politics, and again, history, cultural and racial diversity, and the understanding of science. Now, I'm going to try and keep this short, but since Religion and Mythology are so involved and pervasive into every corner of culture, don't be surprised if it runs a bit long, lol. To try and shorten it as much as possible, I'm going to just go into the process of creating one religion and its' affect on the world it's placed in, but bear in mind that the thing about religion and mythology is it's diverse. If you want a believable world, you have to have multiple systems of belief, and realistic relationships between the followers of each one. There should be no All-Encompassing one-world religion. Even in futuristic societies or dystopian works where science is well understood and people don't believe in gods, morality in general will always have multiple ways of interpretation and application, and will provide a central theme of conflict that you, as the writer, will need to clearly understand in order to represent your characters' motives and actions sufficiently. In getting into the creation of a religion or mythos, you're going to end up drawing heavily from the other aspects of your world. Starting with, and you're probably sick of hearing this but I'll say it again, the environment. XD The environment is crucial to religion and mythology, especially if your story is set in a time of little to no understanding of science. In fact, it might actually might be the single most important factor in the creation thereof. Most religions, after all, are an attempt at understanding and explaining the world around them. What is this thing called 'the sun,' and why does it rise and set every day? What is thunder? Why does it rain? Who built the mountains? Why are spiders a thing? Seriously though why are spiders a thing?? People who have no understanding of science still need to know why things happen the way they do: it's a fundamental part of human nature. And if there is no known answer, they'll find one. So the environment is a big part of things because without the need to understand thunder, there would be no such thing as Zeus. When you're creating a religion for your world, look at the environment you've created and ask yourself "If there were no such thing as 'science,' how would I think this worked?" And let your imagination supply you with the rest. This is especially fun if you've got a noticeable environmental factor that separates your world from earth, such as the two moons in my own fantasy novel. When I set out to build one of the polytheistic religions in my world, I looked at the two moons and just started writing as if they were actual people; what their backstory was, what their relationships were to the sun and the sea and the stars, why they 'behave' the way they do, etc. Turn the environment into your own cast of characters and write stories about them, and you have the foundations of a polytheistic religion already now in place. Now that the gods themselves are set, it's time to determine the relations they allegedly had with the people in the world. Are your gods benevolent? Malevolent? Ambivalent? Do they visit the earth frequently or infrequently? Where do they live? What 'gifts' would they have given the mortals in their care? What's their physical relationship with mortals? Are the mortals descended from the gods, or are they two separate races? Do the gods and mortals ever have romantic relationships? Are demigods a thing? How do the mortals show respect to the gods? Are the gods worshiped or feared? Do the gods require sacrifices? What sort of moral code do the gods have, and do they enforce this code on the mortals in their care? What happens to mortals who deny or abandon the teachings of their chosen god? Once you establish the way the gods interacted with people in their stories and mythology, you can start delving into the religion's impact on society. Are the religious or political leaders of your cultures determined by something like 'divine intervention' or 'godly birth?' Are the laws of your society based on the moral codes of one or more of the gods? Are the worshipers of one god at odds with the worshipers of another god due to a conflict in these moral codes? How do the followers of the religion treat outliers? If the gods require human sacrifice, how are the victims determined? Are there any festivals or fasts or periods of worship dedicated to important spiritual events or anniversaries? The next thing to consider when making a religion in a fantasy world is your Magic-System, and how it's interpreted to relate to this specific religion. It's important to note, when building a magical world, that every single religion within the world has to have some sort of sign that their religion is tied to the magic, and is in fact a far superior tie than any other religion in the world. You don't have to make it true, but they have to have a reason to believe in their religion over the other religions that also explain the way the world works. And if you want to, you can make their religion be 'the true one.' The beauty of adding magic to your world is it does allow for the divine to be possible. You could have your group of gods be real, physical beings that visit with your people throughout the course of the story. Perhaps your MC is a demigod, or even a real god that hasn't discovered their birthright yet, or they could be a mortal who's been given a divine task or gift to serve some purpose of the gods. But if you choose one religion to be real, you still have to give the other religions in your world a valid reason to believe they're real. Which, will be pretty tricky, considering multiple religions might depict the 'sun' as a different being, and unless your sun-god is playful and mischievous, they might not indulge the silly mortals by acting out a different role every time they visit a different part of the world. I mean, they might though, it really all depends on how you choose to portray said god. But that's the good thing about a magic system in fiction. It could really be whatever you want it to be, and as long as you're careful to make your magic system make sense in relation to itself and the fictional world, anything goes. Now that you've got the gods, the stories, the moral and political influences on society, and their place among magic, it's time to work this into the language of your world. Spiders are Arachnids because of Arachne. Narcissism is a term because of Narcissus. Thursday is Thursday because of Thor. I could go on, listing words, names, idioms, phrases, expletives, etc. that originated with religion and mythology. If your world is completely, 100% separate from ours and there is no concept of our religions within it, you need to purge your work of real-world religious terms and instead pepper it with your own expressions and words. Now, this isn't to say you should replace every 'hell' with 'my name for the underworld,' but rather, be mindful that the term 'hell' as an expletive would never have even come into being in the first place, and make your character express his current emotional state in a new way. I've heard common complaints from reviewers of popular books that "the author made it clear Christianity never existed in this world, why is everyone always saying 'oh my god' all the time?" Remember that, when writing fantasy, you're already requiring massive amounts of suspension of disbelief from your readers: Don't push it by breaking your own rules. And now we come to a topic already partially covered in my "Music, Architecture, and Art" guide, which is... well, music, architecture, and art. How are your gods depicted in their nations of worship? Are there massive temples dedicated to them? Are there sacrificial sites? Are there statues of the gods? Paintings or tapestries depicting some of the stories regarding them? Jewelry that's supposed to contain divine properties? Songs that are supposed to summon them, or even just songs that, again, depict things that supposedly happened regarding them? Songs of praises? People like pretty things, and people like faith. There's gonna be a lot of crossover there. Now, if you have a world that does have a good understanding of science and they know why volcanoes erupt, that doesn't mean you have no need for religion. Especially if there is still magic in your world as well as science. It is possible to blend a faith system with science, although extremely difficult. In order to do this, you'll first have to completely understand your magic system and how it interacts with nature and science, so once you have that figured out, you can create a believable world in which a god might be associated with the sun, but not be the sun itself - unless you literally make them the sun somehow, because, as I said, in fantasy fiction, anything goes as long as you set it up correctly. And... then you have a religion that permeates and defines a culture, and is in turn defined by it as well. Now just do that six or seven or a hundred more times, and you've got a diverse, believable, conflict-ridden world you can subsequently do your darnedest to destroy/save. XD Briefly, I'll go over other types of religions, though I won't be building any for you today, rather just noting their existence and some perks or drawbacks to some of them. Setting up a monotheistic religion is a bit different because in most cases, this god created nature as opposed to many polytheistic religions where the gods are nature. If you have a monotheistic religion in place, that can make it easier to explain the bridge between scientific and magical world elements, but isn't necessarily any better than making up a polytheistic religion - if anything just because it's more fun to write about why the sun and moon hate each other so much lol. XD But yeah, monotheistic religions deal more with tiers as opposed to relationships, so when creating monotheistic religions, your stories will usually include some form of angel vs. demon, both under the single god, as opposed to god vs. god on semi equal footing. These tiers could also include beings such as reapers, seraphs, cherubs, etc. Monotheistic religions are also traditionally more... intolerant, as in a polytheistic religion, serving a different god is not wrong, just different, while in monotheism, it's either the One god or it's evil. And then there's atheism, which is the rejection of a god of any sort, pantheism, which usually refers to the belief that a deity is the universe or alternatively, the universe itself is a deity, and therefore the universe itself is worshiped, henotheism or inclusive monotheism, which is the worship of one god while not denying the existence of multiple others, and deism or agnosticism, which are variations of the belief in a distant deity or deities that are responsible for creating the universe, but don't actually have any interaction or interest in it and are therefore an absent god. And then there are still other types of religion that don't deal with the concept of a deity at all, and life itself is treated as sacred. All in all, try and make your religions diverse, not just in characteristics of the gods themselves, but also in the kind of religion being practiced. And if you want to make one or more of your religions true to your world, you can - but you don't have to. If you've done your job well and have crafted multiple religions that are believable enough, in the end, it doesn't really matter which one is right: only which ones your characters believe to be right. Because religion is, in my opinion, a far greater force with which to drive your plot than simple greed, power, or lust. Yes, sometimes those vices can be a great source of conflict, but they're no match for a hero/villain who does what they do out of a sense of divine right or moral superiority. Belief is a stronger motivator than wealth, faith is a reason to fight when material or emotional factors might cease to be. Give your characters faith, and they have the strength to power through whatever comes their way in the name of all that is right or holy. Call their faith into question and watch them fall to pieces as they struggle to make sense of a suddenly-inexplicable world. Faith is an excellent plot device, and also incredibly relatable to most audiences. But, I'm starting to ramble. XD To try and wrap this up, religion and mythology are the core of the human experience, even if the end result is a denial of the whole thing. They shape history, write languages, inspire creativity, and provide either hope, peace, and security - or torment, fear, and uncertainty. If you don't have some good religions or mythology in your world, you're cutting yourself off from what might be your greatest asset as a writer, and it would be well worth it to reconsider the option of including some. As always, if you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below and I'll get back to you when I can, and if you want to follow me on twitter for more writerly thoughts as I have them, my handle's PlushChrome. Poll for the next topic is up! Happy writing! <3
Lol, see, I thought that too, but ya can't go wrong with the keyblade/staff/shield combination. XD I figured out Merlin and Yen Sid right away but I was actually thinking about it for months before I thought of Kairi's grandma for the knight. XD Once that piece fell into place, it was just a matter of drawing it. XD
A. I read these puns when I was walking into work today. They made me late. XD B. They're all beautiful puns C. I'm unable to donate because I'm saving my Munny for future pins (since I know what they all look like haha :p) but I did give everyone in the page a like, so I hope you're happy. XD
1. (I'm sorry I know it isn't "canonically accurate" lol) What's your Hogwarts House? XD 2. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? 3. If you had to choose between reliving your worst day over and over again or forgetting it completely, which would you choose and why?
"I'd likely say that my three best qualities... Are first, my determination, second, my intelligence - and yes, I know how arrogant that makes me sound, heh. And third, my compassion." "As for me, I would list first my strength, second my heart, third my cunning." "I wish I had spent more time with my father. I was sixteen when he died, and I'd always thought I would have more time later, time that never came." "I tend not to dwell on regret. Regret, as well as guilt, grief, and shame, are weaknesses that cause mistakes and lay snares in my path. That said... I do wish sometimes that my chosen path had led somewhere else... But the burden I have chosen is one that must be borne, and I am the only one who can bear it. I will do so gladly for the people I can help with it." "My sister, most definitely. She is strong, brave, intelligent, beautiful. At times perhaps too direct, and very stubborn: she and the Queen are often at odds. But she is also kind and loyal. I could not have asked for a better sister." "A very old friend. We grew up together, played together... Hid together. I always cared for him, helped him, as best I could. Our paths diverged a long time ago, but even over long distances, the Spirit of Magic keeps us close. Everything I do, I do for him, and for all those like him, unable to protect themselves and calling for a savior." "My master, he's learned in all fields of study and is regarded as a great philosopher. He once told me never to accept a statement given without reason, nor to believe a word presented without fact." "I cannot pick one single remark, actually, but I will instead mention my teacher as the source of all advice I have ever found helpful. He trained me in the use of my magic, and helped me to learn my place in the world, and now he's my most trusted adviser. He hasn't let me down yet." "My people don't believe in an afterlife, really. Though we do believe that after death, your spirit becomes one with the Spirit of Magic. You lose all sense of self, you lose your memories, you merely... become a part of the world. And if you lived a good life, the Spirit of Magic becomes happier, and pours that positivity back into the world. While when a wicked one dies, the Spirit of Magic grows troubled and volatile, and life gets much harder. Famine, earthquakes, plague, and wars, those are all signs that there are too many wicked contaminating the Spirit of Magic... That is, that's what most of my people believe. I'm not actually sure what I believe, myself. Perhaps there is an afterlife... Or perhaps we all become one with magic." "I have traveled all over our little world, and have studied many different cultures and religions, and I have not yet found one I find more or less believable than the others regarding what happens to our souls when we die. Some believe, like Doranian says, that the souls of the dead join with the Spirit of Magic, but I've never felt anything to support this belief. Others believe the dead become part of the ocean, still others think their loved ones are merely reborn into the world as their own descendants. For my part... I have no answer as to what will happen to me when I die. All I know is what sort of world I intend to leave behind when it happens. That's what matters to me."
"Mm, likely dogs. We keep hunting dogs at the castle and I've always enjoyed them. I don't spend much time with animals, however." "I have a hawk I'm very fond of, and I like to believe she likes me too. I found her when she was still young and raised her. She delivers messages for me and I use magic to see through her eyes when I need to. I'm also partial to dogs and wolves, and I have a fondness for animals in general, but none are as important to me as my hawk." (omg thank you for this question cstar I never would have thought Ayara was an animal lover with a hawk but THEN THIS HAPPENED!) XD "I've always been partial to fresh fruit myself. Especially strawberries." "Lamb, I would say." (omg why was this one so hard.) XD "Blue, I suppose. I've always been partial to it." "Green, and clear, pale blue - like the grass and trees, overlooking a mountain spring." "I haven't given a great deal of thought to the future, in all honesty. I don't envision it to be much different than my life now. I love my city, my kingdom... I could never imagine being somewhere else. And as for what I do, what I become... Well, my path has been set for quite some time. I am an architect, I've studied under my master for years, and one day hope to train my own apprentices. There! That, I shall give as my answer. In five years, I would like to see myself teaching my craft to another who enjoys it as much as I." "I will have brought about a change to the world, I will have brought my people out of hiding, I will have started a new age; and I will be the new god." "My mother, she was... Gentle. Caring. She was always there when I, or, my sister, needed her. She laughed often, over all sorts of things... Nobility didn't suit her, I think. The rules, the expectations, the way the other women in our home village treated her before we moved to the castle after my father died. And after that, it all seemed to affect her even more. After that, she laughed a little less... I would say, my favorite thing about her were her eyes. That's what I remember most fondly about my mother. Her eyes, always sparkling with joy or mischief, or full of love for those around her. Even when they were full of tears, there was always hope there. As for my father, I remember most his strength. He was a strong man, proud, and full of spirit. Young, as well, compared to the other fathers we knew. He was the lord in our village, and ran it well, and he died a hero, fighting a dragon in the countryside near the village. I am not like my father; I'm not a ruler, a fighter... But I hope, should the need ever arise, that I will find I can be as brave." "I do not know my parents. I only have... vague memories, barely even images, from when I was very small. But, when it was discovered I possessed magic, I was... abandoned, like many of my kind were. I do not know my parents... But if I ever find them, I will kill them without a moments' hesitation." "My sister, is one. She is very important to me and if I ever were to lose her, I'm not sure how I could manage. And my two friends, the princes, they are like brothers to me. They have always been kind to me, taking to me when we moved to the capital and doing everything they could to help us get used to life there - even if it meant getting us into all sorts of trouble, sneaking into the kitchens to steal sweets or setting the hunting dogs loose in the throne room - which was not our intent, I hold to this day, haha. And the memory and reputation of my father and mother, my responsibility to honor them by living a life worthy of their son. So, really, what I could never live without? My family." "The Spirit of Magic, the entity that not only gives these wondrous gifts to me and my people, but who breathes magic into the very world. I have been in tune with the Spirit of Magic all my life and to lose it would be to lose my very self." "Passion. Wealth is indeed very handy, haha, but I do not seek it like some others do. And glory is best suited for those who seek it in battle. But passion, that is what drives all things; passion gives us something to believe in, something to strive for. I don't know what my passion is yet... But I know it will find me someday, and then... perhaps purpose will not be far behind." "Passion, of course. The world is full of people willing to die, willing to kill, in the name of wealth and glory. Enough! The love of cold coin and adoration has been a blight on this island for far too long and if they think their gold and recognition will be a match for my passion, they are sorely mistaken, and will fall all the harder when their fickle idols stand by and do nothing to help them."
Everyone, thank you for such a great reception to the Munny system and Pin Shop! We had a lot of fun putting it all together and we're just getting started! :D Due to the reception and feedback, we're doing two new things for the Pin Shop, to give you more goodies! And both revolve around User Submitted pin designs! First, a contest! We're going to create two new permanent Usergroup Exclusive pins, one for Contributors and one for Premiums, designed by one of you! There are Submission Threads in your respective sections, so go check it out to find out how to enter your designs! Second, not so much a contest as much as an indefinitely ongoing perk, again for Premiums and Contributors! Users in these groups will also find Submission threads to submit as many regular Shop Pin designs as they want. Every month, the staff will select one of these submissions, turn it into a pin, and put it for sale in the shop for 1 Munny! Yep, just 1 Munny to get a User Created, super limited edition Pin! :D The very first pin, designed by Cstar, is already up for sale, so check it out! It will never be for sale again so snatch it up while you can, it's just 1 Munny! :D Thank you all for your response to the Shop, I'm so happy you love it! <3
"I would claim to be compassionate, brave, and intelligent - although my sister is apt to favor words such as 'gullible,' 'reckless,' and 'arrogant.'" "I am powerful, I am purposeful, I am passionate." "Well, I grew up in the plains, but I've always loved the view of the mountains on the horizon. I would love to explore them someday, but I think I'll always love the wide, open lands of the plains. There, you're free." "Really, I prefer forests above all else, but mountains take a second. From the highest of mountains, you can see the world itself at your feet." "Well, I'm not sure what a desert is... I don't think we have any on our island. But the ocean is a terrible force of nature, that destroys all in its' path, raging and merciless in its' cold fury. Those who climb down the cliffs and venture into the wildlands during low tide do so only out of desperation - everyone in the known world fears the ocean, though I often find myself wondering, if there are other islands out there, and other nations of people, and the terror of the waves is all that has kept us apart." "I agree with this. The ocean is a force even the Spirit of Magic cannot easily control, and it is folly to even attempt to tame it." "I would try to save both... The king has always been kind to me; he took in my sister and I when our father died, and has always treated us well, giving us everything we ever needed. But I would not be able to turn my back on the people, no matter who was at risk. One life is never more important than the lives of several, especially if we are entrusted with their care, as a sovereign and even as only a sovereign's ward." "I would look at the situation with an objective eye, and whichever is more important to my goals, I would save. However, going by no more information than this, I would say I would save the village. A sovereign must be prepared to die for his people - if he does not do so willingly, I shall readily help him along." "My name is Doranian, pleased to make your acquaintance." "My name is my own - I am called Ayara." "Goals? Well, right now I'm studying architecture, philosophy and the sciences as an apprentice under my master, a great man of learning employed by the king. I suppose, one day I wish to take my master's place when he retires, and spend my life learning and teaching others to love it as much as I, but beyond that, I have not spared much thought." "My goals are far-reaching and extensive, but I suppose, if I were to try and simplify it down to one answer, my foremost goal is to break the bonds of oppression long bestowed on the weak and the different, and make the powerful pay for the atrocities they have allowed to happen - and even caused - until justice has been served to all." "Although I've never been as strong a duelist as the two princes or my sister, all of whom still tease me for it, I do have some experience with a sword, as well as daggers, bows, and spears. Growing up in the royal family, I was taught all forms of combat, though I do not enjoy it and only practice for defense." "I have no need for weapons, though I do know how to use a dagger. I am a high sorceress, I pray to the Spirit of Magic and it bends to my will; it is a force strong enough to match the sharpest of swords and the strongest of shields."
Following this new fun trend even though I don't roleplay and haven't had much of a chance at D&D, I'll be fielding Green questions for the Protagonist of my WIP, and Red questions for my Antagonist, answering them in character. XD And... go!
1. What's your Hogwarts House? XD 2. What do you want out of life? (Yes I stole this from you after you stole it from KH lol) 3. What would you say is your biggest strength? 4. What would you say is your most fatal flaw?
1. What do you value more than anything else in the world? 2. What is one thing you would never be able to forgive if it were done to you or a loved one? 3. How far are you willing to go to achieve your goals? Do you draw a line somewhere, or do you believe the ends justify the means? 4. What is your most treasured possession?
5 please and thank you! ^.^ I'm so excited for this one! XD
Just listen to Patrick
1. What's your Hogwarts House? 2. What do you like better, dinner or dessert? Or breakfast? XD 3. Do you enjoy music? What kinds? Do you play any instruments? Do you sing? 4. Do you like to read? Or do you prefer a life of action? That's good for now, I think. Maybe I'll come up with more later. xD
But then wouldn't it put notification bubbles on the tab for the forum until you check it? So if I'm on a different tab, I'd get a red notification on the open KHV tab and when I come to check, it would show it was just a Munny transaction. Also, if there were notifications every time you earned munny, you would have to hover over the Munny tab to 'check' your notifications before the bubble would disappear, so people would frequently have to go to the upper corner and hover over it after every single post, log in, or like received. Which, depending who you are, could be quite a lot of notifications. This is forcing something onto people who potentially don't want it (at least me, lol) just to add something I personally find completely unnecessary. The transaction history is easily available for people who want to see it, without being obtrusive or obnoxious for people who don't.
