I was thinking a bit about how odd it really is that humans have a phase marked not only by physical changes, but more interestingly mental changes. During our teenage years our brain rewires itself to such a degree that children, who are in a regular healthy environment characterised by seeking approval from their parents, transform slowly, and not often very gracefully, into rebellious people who wish to separate themselves from the parents they only a little while ago adored. If all goes well the brains of most humans going through the dreadful process level out after a while
I haven't personally done anything with this idea yet, but I think there's room for interesting worldbuilding here. Perhaps a fantasy species has periods of transition to prepare them for different professional roles. When they're young they're fiercely loyal as well as emotionally simple to make them well-suited to physical labour, then when they grow older they transition to become more empathic and insightful which allows them to take on a care-taking/organizing role in the species' society, before a final transition breeds an independent streak in them, allowing them to leave their society to set up their own kinship/family structure elsewhere.
So, have you ever come up with interesting worldbuilding spins in this department? If not, what's your mind conjuring up after thinking a bit about it?
I haven't personally done anything with this idea yet, but I think there's room for interesting worldbuilding here. Perhaps a fantasy species has periods of transition to prepare them for different professional roles. When they're young they're fiercely loyal as well as emotionally simple to make them well-suited to physical labour, then when they grow older they transition to become more empathic and insightful which allows them to take on a care-taking/organizing role in the species' society, before a final transition breeds an independent streak in them, allowing them to leave their society to set up their own kinship/family structure elsewhere.
So, have you ever come up with interesting worldbuilding spins in this department? If not, what's your mind conjuring up after thinking a bit about it?