Come in come in! Good to see you again, how the campaign going? Good? That's great! but your finding that the typical use of Tolkien inspired western Fantasy is starting to wear off on your players?Let's go an sit in my library and look through some books and watch some movie and documentaries.
Many years ago, when I was 13 I was heavily into the history of the Roman empire. My favorite book series at the time and to some existent still is the "Emperor" collection of books by Conn Ilgalden, a Historical Fiction series of book based on the life of Julius Caeser. I read and continue to read the series to this day , I think they are great books, very Shakespearian with the betrayal and sense of watching real people just trying to play out their life's, it inspired me at the time to try and write a book myself, which looking back from it was probably awful , but my English teacher at the time bought me something to help me with my writing. She bought me "The Oxford Companion to Classical Civilization" and while being one of the heaviest books in my collection , is one of the most comprehensive books for covering a Variety of subjects about the ancient world within western Europe, from gem manufacturing, disease , arms and armors of the Roman army the economic history of slavery within the ancient and entire plethora of subjects and how they related to different societies .
This book has been more helpful to me in creating a realistic fantasy world than almost any other. Mainly because it shows how real societies dealt with problems of economic strife, of disease, their public holidays and how they affected a society, different cultures outlook on war and so many different topics.
I like to create places and a world that to me and the people playing within my game seems real. Weather that comes from a detailed map, or intricate history to a place, a political system that operates the city or a well-founded religious order of knights, these things while important, they are the big things that create the outlines of a picture, and the block colors that inhabit those spaces. The Small details, however, are like the different shades of in a Van Goth Masterpiece. The small uses of lighter and darker colors in places bring the painting and bring attention to the bigger aspects of the of the piece.
We can take this technique and imply them to world creation, and we can use inspiration from many different places. My world is a mix of classical and medieval history combined with classic and modern day fantasy. While at the same time using influences of gangster films and real-life crime organization tactics in my world. Because at the end of the day these are the topics I find the most interesting and because I know these subjects quite well I can freely write about and improvise around those subjects in my writing but also if I do need to fill in the minor details like, specialty alcoholic drink of the town, or how the protection racket works within the city, how does the city look as you walk around it ? does it look dilapidated and why? Why are some sections more broken than others? You will find these details become more and more easy to fill in as you continue to write and consume your influences.
One of the key rules I'm always reading about and being told back actual writers by is write about what you know. I know it's a cliché but writing about what your most comfortable with will firstly be a lot more fun and secondly be a lot better for your player,ecause their going to be able to see how much effort you've put into the story and grow from your energy. Re-watch your favorite films, re-read those important books you couldn't put down and listen to that song that had a profound influence on you, immersing yourself in those influences again can help your stream of creativity.
I hope today's discussion has been helpful, So once an again peeps!
Bye !
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