The "Daily" Worldbuilding Prompt

[Ban]

Don't pass a black cat under a ladder placed on a crossroads on a friday the 13th. Especially if you've opened an umbrella inside a house with the address "666".

Question 42: What are your world's superstitions? (Bonus: where do these beliefs come from?)

 

[Orc Knight]

Question 42: What are your world's superstitions? (Bonus: where do these beliefs come from?)

It's bad luck to cross a wood elf. It's fairly self explanatory, what with the whole part of them eating other peoples and things. Or, just killing people.
Nymphs kiss is good luck, if only because it's basically a shot of magic straight to the system.
13 is also bad luck, though no ones really quite sure. It's just one of those things. Though it's likely a carryover of merged realities.

 

[Ban]

This terribly important question had to come at some point.

Question 43: Can you give me the descriptions of some of your world's cheeses?

 

[Orc Knight]

This terribly important question had to come at some point.

Question 43: Can you give me the descriptions of some of your world's cheeses?

This had to come up some time, didn't it? So...cheeses.

Gruff Cheese: A dwarven goat cheese that's a bit like Picodon. As the dwarves like to make their cheese hard. Comes from the Gruff goats and pairs well with their other meals. Mostly because with dwarves, you eat what you get.

The Golden Wheel: A magical cheese that is said to be the most delicious on Eld and becomes any flavor of cheese. It's gone down in the myths and legends of the world for rolling through fairs and inviting the fair goers to chase it. It may even lead to a cornucopia.

Gunners Cheese: Think pepper jack, but with a chance of explosions. Made on the Southern continent with the gunpowder pepper, it is a soft cheese that can be used as explosives in dire straights. Though it has to have the seeds ground into it for a more effective sort of molded explosive. And if you think it's a little odd, don't. They grow peaches that explode.

Mystery Brie: It's a mystery (of what milk it's made of), but it tastes good.

Hallowed Cheese: More a mystery then the mystery brie. But the mystery is to why it is hallowed. No deity has laid claim to it. But it has effectively been touted as Eld's most holy cheese. It has a good PR department. And after one bite, it quickly becomes clear it was probably made by the drow. It's effectively an alchemical cheese creation that makes people think it tastes divine. Which it probably does.

Pink's Pub Cheese: Cheese with beer in it as made by the dragon brewer and bartender Pink for her pub the Downed Giant. Made with her whisky malt beer and smoked gouda, she serves it beside her beers and meat skewer and herb bread meals.

 

[TheCrystallineEntity]

Question 41: Can you give me a linguistic overview of your world? (Language families, broad distribution, intelligibility, lingua franca, trade language...)

Um...presumably everyone speaks the same language, or has built in universal translators or something.

Question 42: What are your world's superstitions? (Bonus: where do these beliefs come from?)

I have no idea. I must investigate this.

Question 43: Can you give me the descriptions of some of your world's cheeses?

Well, the universe of Wyrd has a moon made of cheese, so I suppose it must exist somehow. Then again, Wyrd is...probably the least rational and reasonable universe...

 

[Ban]

Question 44: What does an average household look like? (Is it a modern nuclear family, or a multigenerational feudal household? Do pets live inside?)

 

[Orc Knight]

Question 44: What does an average household look like? (Is it a modern nuclear family, or a multigenerational feudal household? Do pets live inside?)

I guess it's a multi-generational sort of family. No ones invented nukes yet, so to speak, so no radioactive families at all. Not really much for averages in the world as is, given poly and other sorts are all around too.

 

[Ban]

Question 45: How are children treated in your world? (Until what age are the kids? Are children allowed to work? Can they vote? Are they considered people or property? Do daycares and schools exist? Has the concept of teenager/young adult been introduced in your world?)

 

[Orc Knight]

Question 45: How are children treated in your world? (Until what age are the kids? Are children allowed to work? Can they vote? Are they considered people or property? Do daycares and schools exist? Has the concept of teenager/young adult been introduced in your world?)

Sometimes, mostly like children. Or as much as they can be. Depending on class, some may have to start working at a very young age and may get versions of schooling during free times or winters. Public schools aren't really a thing as of yet, but they are working on it, though it in itself is a new concept of sorts. There are tutors and prohibitive and expensive schools of the private sorts where the nob kids tend to go. Daycare's kind of count, if you go with the goblin nurseries who raise the young greenskin's. As for the humans and elves, that's what a maid/manservant or raising them themselves is for. The gold elves do more of the communal sort of raising like the greenskin's. And the concept for teenagers/young adult is around in a sort but applies more to elves.

And for the final big swing, where wood elves are considered. Many children are conscripted more or less into their families military service. Some at quite a young age (Adriel was ten when she joined the armed forces. Because mommy said so). Some may even work their way through different service branches or become mercenary hires along with whoever they're formed up with. Unlike the other races they have no choice in it and even a young teen is a semi-competent combatant.

 

[TheCrystallineEntity]

Question 44: What does an average household look like? (Is it a modern nuclear family, or a multigenerational feudal household? Do pets live inside?)

Most families live in the same area, if not the same house, and the amount of members depends on the family. Cats are the most common pets.

Question 45: How are children treated in your world? (Until what age are the kids? Are children allowed to work? Can they vote? Are they considered people or property? Do daycares and schools exist? Has the concept of teenager/young adult been introduced in your world?)

Children are treated with respect, and definitely treated as people. They are looked after by parents, relatives, and elders. There's schools, but not like there are here. Children learn about what they like best, and develop the skills they want to develop.

 

[Ban]

Question 46: What do people in your world value most in a leader? (Strength? Kindness? Rationality?)

 

[WooHooMan]

Question 46: What do people in your world value most in a leader? (Strength? Kindness? Rationality?)

Piety.
The term "divine law" is taken very literally in this world. In fact, the setting is called "Her Law" (a reference to the most widely-worshiped goddess) so statecraft, governance and even law-enforcement is centered heavily on religiousness (or rather that religiousness is built around a respect for law). Also, fitting the setting's name, most widely regarded leaders tend to be women. Though they tend to be secular dictators and monarchs.

Beyond that, most secular leaders can get by on force of personality and ruthlessness. Theocracies are the most common form of government while military dictatorships are the second most common. In any case, the most charismatic people tend to get higher on the food chain than the strongest, kindest or most rational.

 

[Miles Lacey]

Question 2: Wandering through one of your world's cities, a thief steals my wallet. I report the incident to a local authority. Who would they be, and what will (Or won't) they do about my stolen wallet?

In Kadrish, the capital of the Kharran Empire, a tropical city not unlike SIngapore, you would go to the local police. They would be confused about what a wallet is because people in the Empire use money belts.

Every temple has an honesty box which is often used by criminals with a guilty conscience to return stolen goods under a "no faults" policy. Most of the pickpockets who steal stuff like a wallet or purse will use the honesty box to return it but don't expect it to have more than 14% of the money that was in there when it was stolen. The 14% is left there as "the gift of the gods". So the chances are good you will have it returned.

The temple workers usually clear out the honesty box and hand in stolen items that have been returned to the police about once a week or more if asked to do so.

 

[Orc Knight]

Question 46: What do people in your world value most in a leader? (Strength? Kindness? Rationality?)

Strength appears to be valued over all. Both of the individual strength and the sort of strength to carry an entire army behind the leader. Martial strength and prowess and the cunning to get through politics. True, politics on Eld is usually whoever uses their weapons the best to cut through politics in general. As time goes on though it becomes more about working with peoples rights and being a bit more rational about things. Though, given it is still Eld, having a good sword arm still comes in handy.

 

[Miles Lacey]

Question 45: How are children treated in your world? (Until what age are the kids? Are children allowed to work? Can they vote? Are they considered people or property? Do daycares and schools exist? Has the concept of teenager/young adult been introduced in your world?)

Children are subservient to both older siblings and adults in order of age regardless of the status of the adults within the household. A child becomes an adult on their sixteenth birthday as part of a Transition to Adulthood ceremony. A person cannot vote until they are 21. They are not the property of the parents or elders. They are seen as people. Schooling is compulsory from 6 to 15 inclusive. If they are gifted with magic when they turn 16 they must attend a mages college until they reach the rank of Adept. As many households include both biological and non-biological parents and other relatives daycare is largely unnecessary except in the cities where the cost of living makes large families under one roof impractical.

Children do not work until they leave school. In the Kharran Empire child labour is illegal. However chores and errands where a child is paid a small allowance is permitted.

Teenagers exist as a category in their own right but their rights vary from region to region. As a rule city teenagers have more rights than rural teenagers.

 

[Miles Lacey]

Question 42: What are your world's superstitions? (Bonus: where do these beliefs come from?)

It is offensive to sit on any surface where food is served. (A Maori tradition.)

As the left hand was traditionally used for wiping one's bum it is never used for shaking hands or saluting. (Based on Middle Eastern tradition.)

Cats are believed to absorb the souls of the living so they are not allowed on beds, in bedrooms or any other place where people sleep. (Arabic tradition.)

The number 14 (the number of gods) is so sacred that no building has a 14th floor and people will often substitute the number with the word saava and the written number with the symbol (usually ¤ ). (My own invention based in part on my childhood when I could not pronounce the number seven so I called it saa-va.)

It is bad luck to have an adult virgin in the home so people lose their virginity on their 16th birthday. (My invention.)

People wear a precious stone to ward off the souls of the wicked and to bring them good luck. (Based very loosely on a southeast Asian tradition.)

 

[Ban]

(Throwing this one in a little early)

Question 47: What are some common names in your world? (Bonus: Why are they popular?)

 

[TheCrystallineEntity]

Question 46: What do people in your world value most in a leader? (Strength? Kindness? Rationality?)

Well, since the Eternal Ones are the closest thing to leaders, one of the reasons why no one wants to overthrow them [the gods of disbelief notwithstanding] is how they treat everyone with respect.

Question 47: What are some common names in your world? (Bonus: Why are they popular?)

All of my names have meaning, because I like etymology and discovering name origins, so there's not really any common names. >.<

 

[Orc Knight]

(Throwing this one in a little early)

Question 47: What are some common names in your world? (Bonus: Why are they popular?)

The currently most popular name is Adriel, due in no small part to her saving the world. Or getting a lot of the credit for it, though she was responsible for saving a lot of it. Though most popular names come from heroes or royalty and such. Adriel happens to be both. So, somewhat to the originals chagrin, she often finds others named like her.

 

[Miles Lacey]

Question 46: What do people in your world value most in a leader? (Strength? Kindness? Rationality?)

In 7441 a survey was done about what people like in a leader. Above all else they valued decisive and just leaders who lived by the values they expect others to live up to. Hypocrisy and dishonesty are despised.