Last updated on May 30, 2022
So far in this series, we have discussed a lot of theories with a few suggestions for practical applied worldbuilding. I have set out a few examples along the way. Now lets take a moment to apply what we know to the sample world I created, Pancirclea. If you have read this series from the beginning, you’d know that the continent is named because I started with two circles representing continents and smashed them together.
Applied Worldbuilding: What We Know So Far
Back in my worldbuilding article on demographics, I came up with three basic genetic groupings, Hillfolk, Savannah People, and Silvans. I based them on the climate and biomes that they evolved in. When I was doing that, I kept in mind that they would likely have distinct cultures from each other.
Culture is not a single defining feature, but a set of features among a society that gives the society a distinct feel. Many of the things we talk about in this series of articles make up the culture of each society. Later, we will talk about language, religion, and politics.
What we know so far in the series is demographics, settlement patterns, urban geography, magic and technology, and some economics (types of economies and trade).
In earlier articles, I mapped out the demographics and settlement patterns of southeast Pancirclea. Now let’s apply some worldbuilding techniques and look at the technology and economics of the region. I’ll take a stab at listing out some of the social forces at work in each society. Once we know that, we can begin to see some areas of conflict.
These social forces and conflicts are the starting points for developing characters that live in these areas. Those characters may have these conflicts as motivations, either as primary motivations or as secondary motivations. Either way, characters with multiple motivations make for much more interesting characters. See the most recent issue of Writer’s Digest (May/June 2021) for a great article on The Russian Nested Doll Theory of Motivation.
Applied Worldbuilding: Resources Are Important
In order apply our worldbuilding techniques to what we know about each society’s technology and trade, we need to know what resources each of them has. This depends on where they’ve settled because their environment determines the natural resources available.
Savannah Culture
Savannah People are an agricultural society. They’ve settled in the plains and by rivers in cities A, B, C, D, F, M, and G. (I am going to finally give these cities names when I write an article about language. Stay tuned.)
They grow grain and raise livestock, including horses, cattle, sheep, and goats. The livestock also produce milk, cheese, and wool.
Hillfolk
The Hillfolk have settled in the hills. Their cities are E, F, H, I, J, K, and L. Cities E and F have some crossover culture between the Hillfolk and Savannah cultures.
Some of the hills are forested, some are not. The hills provide mineral resources such as copper, tin, and coal for bronze making, as well as iron, salt, limestone, and marble. The forests also provide wood for building. Wood can also be converted to charcoal for use in for smelting. They also raise livestock, including sheep and goats.
Silvans
The Silvans did not advance as much technologically as the Savannah or Hillfolk cultures because they were not as much under ecological pressure to survive. The forests still provide enough for their villages to thrive. Consequently, the need for developing intensive agriculture or metallurgy was not as high.
The resources available to them are mostly forest resources they can gather, including the obvious wood and woodcrafts. Also, their long relationship with the forest has allowed them to develop a deep understanding of the forest herbs and medicines derived from them.
Applied Worldbuilding: Technology and Magic
At this point, it’s time to apply our worldbuilding techniques to make some creative decisions. I’ve decided that, due to environmental pressures, the Hillfolk and Savannah People have developed Bronze Age technology, but the Silvans have not. The Silvans still make use of technology borrowed from the other two.
The creative part is the development of magic. There is no real world analogy, so let’s just make this shit up! Without going into too much detail on the mechanisms behind magical theory, let’s just say magic is based on life energy. It’s a common trope and one that works well for the purpose of this demonstration.
Sources of Magic
The Hillfolk have a lot of forests in their hills, so they can draw on the life force of the forests to wield magic. On the other hand, the Savannah People have grasses on the plains, though there are trees along the rivers. Therefore, they have less life force in the natural world to draw on (in spite of the equal value of different types of mana in Magic: The Gathering).
The relative scarcity of life energy in the plains forces that Savannah People to rely on another, more powerful source of life energy: human sacrifice. Naturally, nobody wants to volunteer for the duty, so they rely on prisoners and slaves for sacrifice. Later, we will see how this affects society in the areas of class, religion, and politics.
The Hillfolk are near forests, so they use as much plant material as possible. It is depleting the forests, clearing large areas. They use these cleared areas to plant grain and graze sheep and goats. The hills around city E, where civilization first stared, are almost completely bare.
The Silvans have an abundance of forest resources, including magical energy from the life force of the forest. Because of this and their ready access to herbs and medicines derived from them, they also have developed the knowledge of magical potions.
Applied Worldbuilding: Economics and Trade
As I pointed out in my last article on trade, societies will exchange their surplus resources with other societies for resources they lack.
If you wonder why I focus on trade so much, it’s not because I think every story needs to have merchants or traders in it. Rather, trade is a major pathway for cultural exchange. Ideas, religion, technology, art, and literature all flow along trade routes. It helps to know what materials flow along those routes to know where the routes get laid out.
Savannah People
The Savannah people have a surplus of grain, but lack minerals, metals, wood and charcoal. Because of the cost of the things they lack they have developed a culture that relies on them less. Where they cannot get them, they will trade with the Hillfolk for minerals and metals. To some extent, they will also trade for wood.
The Savannah people also use human sacrifice to power their magic. To some extent, they will take slaves from among their own people, either criminals or subjugated peoples. To make up the difference, they will go to war with other cities or kingdoms to capture slaves, raid the Silvans, or trade with the Hillfolk for them. We’ll discuss war, government, and politics later.
Hillfolk
The Hillfolk have almost exactly the opposite surpluses and deficits than the Savannah people. This makes these two societies natural trading partners. The Hillfolk have minerals and metals but less grain.
They also have wood and charcoal from their forested hills. Because of the forests, they also have more magical energy available. They can’t export that energy, but they can craft magical artifacts for sale. I imagine a brisk trade selling such artifacts to the people of the Savannah.
Silvans
Silvans have little they need from other societies, but find metals and minerals useful. Their magical energy derives from the forest. They store this energy in potions and trade with the Hillfolk for metals and minerals. Because they live on villages and have no cities, they also have no major trade routes.
Nobody is willing to trade their own people, so Hillfolk and Savannah people resort to raids to capture slaves. The easiest source for raids is among the Silvans who live mainly in poorly defended villages.
Setup for Conflict
The core of a good story is the drama created by conflict between characters. Already, we are starting to see conflict arise between societies that might translate into personal conflicts. In my next article, I’ll discuss the class divisions within a society along with a money system.
