Jedi Council Forums - The World Builder Society NEW CHALLENGE 2/26/08!!! "Middle'o'Nowhere in a GFFA!"

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Author	Topic: The World Builder Society NEW CHALLENGE 2/26/08!!! "Middle'o'Nowhere in a GFFA!"
oqidaun Title: Manager Emeritus Registered: Jul '05	Date Posted: 1/8/06 11:21pm Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe New Topic 11/17: Satisfying oqidaun's god-complex!
	JediMindTrick000 posted: NEW TOPIC 11/17 I have a bit of a god-complex. -- oqidaun You are the Force, and you are about to create a new planet that meets your every expectation about how a perfect planet should be. What are the most important details you take into consideration when you create a new planet? Additionally, describe in however much detail you choose your perfect planet, including as many details as you see fit to bring it to life. We're trying to satisfy a very large god-complex here, so make it good! (Hopefully oqi doesn't mind me using her name for this one - viva la OC revolucion!) And just as a reminder, you can always drop by whenever you want to add new planets and systems (or in some cases, sectors) to the database. And since I have to pay royalties just to use...her name, if you are the one person who has not yet visited this thread, I highly recommend you do so ASAP! You'll thank me. I had totally forgotten about my name being enshrined in the title of this thread! JMT is away, busy keeping the world safe from all sorts of nasty characters and playing with nuclear missiles. How about we get this happy place up to speed in his absence. So, what is the most important consideration that you have when developing a planet? I personally go for physical geography. Cultures often times develop as a response to the geographic conditions in which they are forced to exist. Think about various earth cultures and the types of places that they inhabit. Here's the twist that I like to use in worldbuilding that combines those physical and cultural geography elements--I like to stick people on planets where the physical geography is against them. It's the classic "man against nature" conflict. Therefore if I'm building the perfect planet, it's going to be a less than ideal place to live. I'll use the example of Shoda the principle planet in my story The Keeper of Secrets. I've modelled it off of where I grew up in West Texas. It's flat, windy, dry and flammable. I'm a big fan of the Old West and I fell for the concept behind Firefly/Serenity big time. Shoda's a boring terraformed world built on a budget. It's underpopulated and lacks 90% of the amenities and comforts that the rest of Galaxy takes for granted. It's out of the loop and most people don't even know it's there. This is where the average working class space person ends up getting stuck. There are no palaces or fancy waterfalls, it's just a bunch of prefabricated buildings and dirt roads. To me that kind of setting is most fun to write in, it's the perfect place for the poodoo to hit the fan. Additionally, as I essentially grew up on Shoda, I have an edge in writing the setting and atmosphere for the story. What about the rest of you? -----signature----- . . . . I'm so bad, I banned myself.
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Sith-I-5 Title: 15th RPF Summer Challenge Winner Registered: Aug '02	Date Posted: 1/9/06 6:04am Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe New Topic 11/17: Satisfying oqidaun's god-complex!
	So, what is the most important consideration that you have when developing a planet The most important? That its large enough to support an atmosphere. Other considerations are that I start with a scene or joke, and then design the planet round it. With A Holocron in Sherwood, I had two ISB agents on an interdimensional round trip from New Cov to the crossover universe of Robin of Sherwood, and they planned to return to go staight back to their starting point. At the last minute, I decided that that would be boring, and had them materialise on what looked like a big beach, so they could say "Which way to the beach." On starting Tokapi Overload, I'm starting from the description at the end of the last story: a lot of rock and sand; no sea in sight. Also, my people aren't dead. So we know the place has gravity and atmosphere, and is not an ice planet, waterworld, or barely formed volcanic place. Everything else was made up at the keyboard. No Slartibartfast-style planetary construction. -----signature----- Crowning Moment of Awesome – THE MASTER. Summoning six billion robotic beach balls Of Doom to decimate the Earth, blowing a good-bye kiss to the Doctor, all the while dancing to "Voodoo Child". EPIC. EVIL. WIN. 007 Family - DVC's twin bro'.
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Zonoma Registered: Jun '05	Date Posted: 1/9/06 9:49am Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe New Topic 11/17: Satisfying oqidaun's god-complex!
	I love this thread! It's a much needed one, in my humble opinion. What a topic! I hope to have time for this challenge, but if not, I have assigned this to a few padawans. -----signature----- http://zonoma.livejournal.com/
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oqidaun Title: Manager Emeritus Registered: Jul '05	Date Posted: 1/9/06 11:19am Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe New Topic 11/17: Satisfying oqidaun's god-complex!
	Sith-I-5 posted: No Slartibartfast-style planetary construction. Then you must not have very nice fjords. -----signature----- . . . . I'm so bad, I banned myself.
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princess_melissa Registered: Mar '05	Date Posted: 1/11/06 12:13pm Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe New Topic 11/17: Satisfying oqidaun's god-complex! - Date Edited: 1/11/06 12:16pm (1 edits total) Edited By: princess_melissa
	I'm one of Zonoma's padawans who got this as an assignment but this was actually lots of fun. Planet: Bathari (pronounced ba-TAR-ee) System: Bathari Location: Bathari is located in the mid rim. The nearest planet is Sullust which is approximately seven parsecs away. Details: Bathari is the third of seven planets in a system sharing its name. Due to extreme climates on the other planets, it is the only inhabited world in the system. Terrain: Mostly forest with several mountain ranges. There are three seas and multiple large lakes and rivers scattered throughout. Climate: Moderate Weather: Moderate Population: Bathari is sparcely populated. Around one million sentient beings in all. Most of them live in the capital city, Oratoo, set in the Kein valley. The rest live either in cliff cities - set in the mountains - or in coastal towns. Flora and Fauna: The planet is mostly covered in a forest of Otari trees. 10 meter tall trees that have adapted to grow very close together, sometimes no more than 20 cm between two plants. These forests are almost impossible to travel through by foot and force the local population to use air speeders to go above them. Because of the Otaris’ close proximity to each other, no light is able to reach to reach the forest floor leaving it barren of all other plants, though the forest canopy is a riotous ecology with many plants feeding their roots into the Otari themselves. Some varieties of seasonal flowering shrubs grow at the base of the mountains where the forests thin out. Wildlife: Small, six legged climbing mammals that thrive in the Otari forests are most prominent. Their natural predator is a large bird of prey which nests in the mountain cliffs. Days: 18 hours Years: 315 Days Major imports: Fresh water Major exports: precious gems and metals mined in the mountains. -----signature----- Knighted by Zonoma Twich's Twisted Sisters! My FanArt - Updated 12/14 http://boards.theforce.net/message.asp?topic=21750870 My Drabbles - http://boards.theforce.net/Message.aspx?topic=24379801&brd=10477&start=24379808 Twins Suns 5
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1Yodimus_Prime Registered: Mar '04	Date Posted: 1/11/06 8:22pm Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe New Topic 11/17: Satisfying oqidaun's god-complex!
	Ooo. It's got a hard 'th'. Hmm. Interesting. Word of advice: never trust the hard 'th's. They're dangerous. Nothing good can ever come of hard sound that regularly disguises itself as a soft one. Believe me. So: my most important consideration when creating a planet. Well Durcust came about from me asking myself "Now, what kind of place would consider my riding drill deathtraps an everyday sight?" The rest was history. But that only sorta answers the question. Most important consideration. Hmmm... It isn't location or politics. Definitely not culture. Usually not the weather. Hell, I came up with Phindar's storm season on a whim. Probably not geography. ...Maybe wildlife? Not really. Nearly every GFFA nonsentient can breath air. I think its 'do I need something to happen that is especially desastrous or destructive? Like, planet-wide destructive?' Yeah. That's usually it. -----signature----- Rule 12: A soft answer turneth away wrath. Once wrath is looking the other way, shoot it in the head. --- http://boards.theforce.net/b/b1/26481069 - The Wise http://boards.theforce.net/B/b1/21283317 - Planet Hopping
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thesporkbewithyou Registered: Feb '05	Date Posted: 1/11/06 8:36pm Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe New Topic 11/17: Satisfying oqidaun's god-complex! - Date Edited: 1/11/06 8:37pm (1 edits total) Edited By: thesporkbewithyou
	Oh, I almost forgot about this thread. Glad to see it's back up! So, what is the most important consideration that you have when developing a planet Definitely it's location in the galaxy, and it's location within it's system. It's location within it's system will determine what type of climate it's going to have, thus determining what type of life it's going to be able to support, thus determining what type of culture they will have which will affect your characters and the story they're telling. It's location in the galaxy will determine how your planets people look upon the rest of the galaxy and how galactic events affect them. A world closer to the outer rim with not that much contact with the larger world will not be affected as much as a world in the mid rim or core. [Edit] I goofed on the markup! -----signature----- Loyal servant ... er ... Padawan of HyperionRising. E-sis/mutual adoptee/ter of Maggy for a happy almost 3 years
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1Yodimus_Prime Registered: Mar '04	Date Posted: 1/12/06 2:15pm Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe New Topic 11/17: Satisfying oqidaun's god-complex!
	Galactic location would be a very important consideration to take. While it's possible to circumvent the galactic disk, space travel is still a major thing, and no easy task. So where you decide to place your newly created planet should be a major question. Conversely, location in the solar system is not quite as important as you think. At least when considering a planet's climate. Note: Neptune is hotter than Mars. Earth's nothern hemisphere experiences winter when its orbit is closest to the sun. More imporant when deciding climate is axis tilt and atmosphere - both its thickness and its contents. A general rule of thumb - the thicker it is, the hotter it is. Venus, for instance, is the hottest solid planet in our solar system, not Mercury. Because venus has an extremely heavy atmosphere, while Mercury's is almost nonexistant. Of course, any planet as far away as Pluto is going to be inhospitably cold. and any planet as close as Mercury is going to be inhospitably hot. -----signature----- Rule 12: A soft answer turneth away wrath. Once wrath is looking the other way, shoot it in the head. --- http://boards.theforce.net/b/b1/26481069 - The Wise http://boards.theforce.net/B/b1/21283317 - Planet Hopping
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thesporkbewithyou Registered: Feb '05	Date Posted: 1/12/06 5:11pm Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe New Topic 11/17: Satisfying oqidaun's god-complex!
	So where you decide to place your newly created planet should be a major question. Exactly my point. At least when considering a planet's climate. Note: Neptune is hotter than Mars. Earth's nothern hemisphere experiences winter when its orbit is closest to the sun. More imporant when deciding climate is axis tilt and atmosphere - both its thickness and its contents. A general rule of thumb - the thicker it is, the hotter it is. I guess you're right about that. It makes a lot of sense. -----signature----- Loyal servant ... er ... Padawan of HyperionRising. E-sis/mutual adoptee/ter of Maggy for a happy almost 3 years
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Eleventh_Guard Registered: Dec '05	Date Posted: 1/12/06 5:37pm Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe New Topic 11/17: Satisfying oqidaun's god-complex! - Date Edited: 1/12/06 5:42pm (3 edits total) Edited By: Eleventh_Guard
	Planet: Mistan Four (can be called Mistan 4 or Mistan IV, but is usually spelled out) System: Mistan Location: The Mistan system is in the Mid-Rim, between the Hydian and Perlemian Trade Routes (closer to the Hydian). Details: Mistan Four is one of five planets in the system, and one of two inhabitable planets. (Well, it's only barely habitable now, but that's a long story that will be described below.) It was mostly forest and grassland with a single large mountain range in the northern hemisphere. The natural water supply, which includes small rivers and creeks through the forested areas, is mildly metallic. Climate: The climate of Mistan Four in its heydey - up to 50 ABY - was temperate and pleasant, with only minimal shifts through the seasons. Population History: There was no natural sentient population on Mistan Four. It was first settled in approximately 100 BBY and maintained a small population, never rising above 5,000; competition with spaceports closer to the main spacelanes kept it quiet, and most who would go out there were malcontents and criminals who needed a place for secret dealings. In 13 BBY, the Galactic Empire took over, but never used the planet as anything more than a minor military outpost. The station was abandoned in 5 ABY, and once more the planet became a haven for shady characters. One late settler, believed to have arrived in the early 20s ABY, was Darth Korosia, the rogue apprentice of an unknown master. (Rumor is that she was apprenticed to Lady Lumiya, but this remains unverified.) The remnants of the Zeran Sith Order - Darth Inferna and Darth Vexon - claimed the abandoned Imperial station in 25 ABY. Sithstrike ending: Korosia was killed in a dispute with Inferna, who then left Mistan Four in the care of Vexon to pursue other interests. Vexon began mining operations in 45 ABY. He allowed criminals to remain on the planet until 48 ABY, when he declared the planet a military holding of his own. From here he based the Guerrica Empire, and built factories to build battle droids. The Guerrican Sith Wars were fought from 48 ABY to 50 ABY, when the other major factions of the galaxy (including the Chiss Ascendancy, Hapes Consortium, and others) banded together and invaded Mistan Four, planning to knock out its fleet and droid factories and force a surrender. The Droid Empress ending: Vexon and his heir both died during the invasion, and the Empire was partially disbanded, with an interim ruler over the remainder. However, so much debris from the battle fell into the atmosphere of Mistan Four, with plenty of toxic spills, that the sun's rays are completely blocked out, and Mistan Four has been plunged into an ice age with toxic water wherever it melts. Mistan Three, the hot ocean planet, suffered a similar fate. With proper equipment, one could still survive on it, but it would take a rather desperate adventurer to seek refuge in the Mistan system following the end of the Guerrican Sith Wars. Main Industry: Various metal ores, which were mined out and depleted by 50 ABY, and special battle droids, for which production ceased also in 50 ABY. -----signature----- A conversation on Dathomir: Welk: My daughter did that... I am blameless. I'm not even armed. Jacen: And you just let her do whatever she wants? Welk: You're new here, aren't you?
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oqidaun Title: Manager Emeritus Registered: Jul '05	Date Posted: 1/12/06 7:38pm Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe
	I've a little two person realm over on lj where I toss out the occasional worldbuilding thought. Here's something I posted called the ABC's of Culture. Now don't give me too much credit for it, as I stole it originally from an ancillary (sp? I never taught 'spelling')textbook, you see in a past life I used to teach AP Human/Cultural Geography to a herd of miscreants. This is a format for sorting out different elements of culture and really gets your noodle aimed in the "write" direction on creative projects. I'm going to post it here so that I can share with the lot of you and I like seeing my ol'buddy JMT's thread on page one of the Resource Boards. Art Buildings Communication Dress Economy Family Structure / Gender Roles Government History Icon (visual or emblematic elements immediately associated with this culture) Jobs Knowledge Language Movements & Migration Nationalism, Nationalist Mythology Organizations Population (demographic stuff including majority and minority populations) Quality of Life (health, life expectancy, comforts, problems) Religion (includes organized and unorganized, superstitions, mythologies) Status (hierachies and class structures) Taboos Urban and/or Rural Population Vaction and Recreation Ways of Every Day Life X-Marks the Spot (catch all for how the culture has adapted to and responds to the physical geography) Yum (food) Ztuff (stereotypes good and bad connected to the culture) It's not a perfect list nor is it written in stone, but it gets you thinking in terms of a dynamic culture. Also the ABCs of Culture (having taught with this thing during my three year stint in public ed) organizes cultural elements in such a way that you see and (for our purposes) craft related cultural responses and interactions. Hope someone around here finds this helpful. -----signature----- . . . . I'm so bad, I banned myself.
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correllian_ale Title: Manager Emeritus Registered: Jun '05	Date Posted: 1/13/06 8:16am Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe New Topic 11/17: Satisfying oqidaun's god-complex!
	WTH oqi! Actually that's a cool idea, I'm savin' it for future reference.... -----signature----- Consider this my "throw back" jersey... I govern my life around my own personal code of ethics, and I suggest that you do the same.
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Lady_Cora Registered: Sep '05	Date Posted: 1/13/06 1:46pm Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe New Topic 11/17: Satisfying oqidaun's god-complex!
	Whoa, now that's some list! I'me definitely saving it! Actually, it really got me thinking of a way to apply it to the Hekaryans (my own creation, the people of Hekarya - it's a long story...). I've been working on them for almost two years and this will definitely help me polish them up even better. -----signature----- Beatus vir qui suffert tentationem Quoniam cum probatus fuerit accipiet coronam vitae
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1Yodimus_Prime Registered: Mar '04	Date Posted: 1/13/06 6:56pm Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe New Topic 11/17: Satisfying oqidaun's god-complex!
	Simple, yet elegant, Oqi. Like an Einsteinian algorithm... but with less devastating protonic acceleration. Some of those categories you gave are so obvious, I wonder how I even forget them. Yet, there I am, forgetting them. For instance, I rarely consider taboos and nationalist mythologies. But who can blame me? Johnny Appleseed was a boring story. Though, by sheer coincidence, I have recently been thinking about the taboos of the GFFA. I figured with all the "K" bombs my characters drop, I may as well find out what they kriffin' mean. But that's off topic, damn it. ON Topic, I tend to have this problem where I see a world someone has created and think it's awesome. And I know that if I asked, the creator would most likely be perfectly fine with allowing me to use it. But I just can't get past the feeling that each world we create is a personal thing, and outside use should be hands-off (though I would never practice such a philosophy). I don't know if anyone else feels that way, but I get the impression. What I think we should do is start a communal World Building project. Nobody will feel weird about using a communal world once it's finished, because it would be essentially an open source planet. In fact, it would be pretty damn cool to see a totally fabricated world used in several unrelated fanfics. In fact, though this is getting ahead of myself, the planet would never be truly finished as long as it is being used on the boards. And how sweet would it be to see something that happened in one of your stories get referenced in a completely unrelated story by a totally different author, simply by virtue of having it happen on this planet? Pretty darned sweet, I'd say. Frankly, the possibilities are endless. But more substancially, it would draw people who would otherwise not be interested into the idea of world building, simply by virtue of it being a neat project. The details on how exactly we'd go about this are still fuzzy in my head (like everything else in there). I figured it would be worth putting this on the table anyway, just to see if there's any interest. But with Oqi's list as a springboard, and the prevalence of extremely crafty minds floating about this forum, I have little doubt that such a project would be doable. -----signature----- Rule 12: A soft answer turneth away wrath. Once wrath is looking the other way, shoot it in the head. --- http://boards.theforce.net/b/b1/26481069 - The Wise http://boards.theforce.net/B/b1/21283317 - Planet Hopping
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correllian_ale Title: Manager Emeritus Registered: Jun '05	Date Posted: 1/13/06 7:35pm Subject: RE: Our Star Wars Universe New Topic 11/17: Satisfying oqidaun's god-complex! - Date Edited: 1/13/06 7:41pm (1 edits total) Edited By: correllian_ale
	I like Yods thinking re: the "community" planet; it would almost be like it's own "Tales From...", because like he said it would be continously used by different authors. The only down side that I could see, if you would call it one; is that it would have to be a "melting pot" a la Coruscant, Nar Shadda, or Tatooine. Otherwise there may be too big of a restriction on what an author can and can't do. Things like religion, social classification, taboos and demographics might be overly "mixed". In instances like that it runs the risk of being un-original. But I'm so high on that idea, that I'm sure kinks like that could and would be worked out. I don't know what I could contribute, being as there are bigger experts on social structures and histories; but double-hockey sticks; it's too ORIGINAL to pass up without serious consideration. Pure genius Yodimus...well at least mutt genius. -----signature----- Consider this my "throw back" jersey... I govern my life around my own personal code of ethics, and I suggest that you do the same.
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