Please read this entire starting post before participating!
It’s time for this year’s FULLY COLLABORATIVE world building project! I’ll kick us off with a “seed” concept for a fictional setting. The entire community is welcomed to join in to flesh out the world. Want to invent a historical event? A type of magic? A single plant species? An entire city? Want to draw maps or illustrate other people’s ideas? Want to compose music that the inhabitants might have written? There are so many ways to develop this world!
The last day for submissions will be August 29th.
At the end, I’ll round up all the ideas and artwork and combine them into a cohesive description of the world.
If there are conflicts between ideas people have put forward, or clashes in tone to the project, I’ll try to make my best editorial judgement calls to resolve them.
When all’s said and done, we’ll release the world we’ve created for anyone to start RPs in!
This will be an “open source” collaborative work. (For an example, here’s last year’s completed sci-fi world building seed!)
READY? Here’s your world building seed:
A world called Thiiv, very much like our own -- the human inhabitants use smartphones to post about their lives on social media, they travel between cities in cars, they enjoy modern medicine such as anesthesia, vaccines and MRI scans. Some countries even have small space programs, capable of putting satellites into orbit but not much more.
Roughly 2000 years ago on Thiiv, there was a full month where the skies all over the planet were filled from dusk to dawn with shooting stars. Every culture in the world has some legend about what these lights were or what they might mean -- but it was that month that the first strange powers were bestowed on a handful of humans. I will refer to these powers for now as “gifts,” though every culture has its own name for them.
“Gifts” are magical abilities. They may take many different forms, but usually the first signs of them show in children who are 6-12 years of age. The oldest known person in history to ever manifest a gift was 20 when the first signs of their powers showed. There may be other significant changes to the individual - drastic changes in pigmentation to skin, eyes or hair are possible. In some cases, the person’s mind is impacted such that their personality and values become unrecognizable to those who knew them before the change. Some describe these changes as “fae,” while others might call them “alien.” There is often an impact on the individual’s life span, though sometimes it makes them very long lived and other times makes them very short lived, depending on the powers they gain and how they function.
“Gifts” are not hereditary, in that they do not run in any particular family. The Gifted themselves appear to be sterile, and there is no record of someone who had a gift producing a child of their own (though there are many urban legends about it happening.) There is no predicting who the next human will be to obtain a Gift, and medical science is so far at a loss to explain how or why it happens.
Every year, on the anniversary of the shooting stars, another child in the world will manifest a gift. But this is not the only time that it happens - once it was believed that it could also happen randomly. With the advent of instant global communications and sharing of research between nations, it’s been possible to match up the time of death of one Gifted individual with the first known manifestations in another in enough cases that it’s now believed that the number of Gifted individuals is always stable, never decreasing, and increasing only by one somewhere in the global population each year.
There are 8 billion people living in this world, and it’s believed that there are only 2000-2500 Gifted individuals (although most are well-documented, not all of them have been identified.)
What theories do the inhabitants of this world have about what the gifts are, and why they occur? What might they believe the slow, almost “artificially” stable increase in their numbers over time means? Is it just a fact of their world as constant as gravity, or is it building toward something?
With this world-building project, we are aiming for a flavor of wonder, magic and mystery, without turning a blind eye to some of the complications that Gifted individuals would cause and have to confront in their own lives. This is a low/high magic setting: the vast majority of people in the world do not have access to magic and will likely never see it in their lives; but it’s well understood that it definitely exists and can have major impacts on the world.
Feel free to add:
Things to avoid:
Some general inspirations include:
It’s time for this year’s FULLY COLLABORATIVE world building project! I’ll kick us off with a “seed” concept for a fictional setting. The entire community is welcomed to join in to flesh out the world. Want to invent a historical event? A type of magic? A single plant species? An entire city? Want to draw maps or illustrate other people’s ideas? Want to compose music that the inhabitants might have written? There are so many ways to develop this world!
The last day for submissions will be August 29th.
At the end, I’ll round up all the ideas and artwork and combine them into a cohesive description of the world.
If there are conflicts between ideas people have put forward, or clashes in tone to the project, I’ll try to make my best editorial judgement calls to resolve them.
When all’s said and done, we’ll release the world we’ve created for anyone to start RPs in!
This will be an “open source” collaborative work. (For an example, here’s last year’s completed sci-fi world building seed!)READY? Here’s your world building seed:
A world called Thiiv, very much like our own -- the human inhabitants use smartphones to post about their lives on social media, they travel between cities in cars, they enjoy modern medicine such as anesthesia, vaccines and MRI scans. Some countries even have small space programs, capable of putting satellites into orbit but not much more.
Roughly 2000 years ago on Thiiv, there was a full month where the skies all over the planet were filled from dusk to dawn with shooting stars. Every culture in the world has some legend about what these lights were or what they might mean -- but it was that month that the first strange powers were bestowed on a handful of humans. I will refer to these powers for now as “gifts,” though every culture has its own name for them.
“Gifts” are magical abilities. They may take many different forms, but usually the first signs of them show in children who are 6-12 years of age. The oldest known person in history to ever manifest a gift was 20 when the first signs of their powers showed. There may be other significant changes to the individual - drastic changes in pigmentation to skin, eyes or hair are possible. In some cases, the person’s mind is impacted such that their personality and values become unrecognizable to those who knew them before the change. Some describe these changes as “fae,” while others might call them “alien.” There is often an impact on the individual’s life span, though sometimes it makes them very long lived and other times makes them very short lived, depending on the powers they gain and how they function.
“Gifts” are not hereditary, in that they do not run in any particular family. The Gifted themselves appear to be sterile, and there is no record of someone who had a gift producing a child of their own (though there are many urban legends about it happening.) There is no predicting who the next human will be to obtain a Gift, and medical science is so far at a loss to explain how or why it happens.
Every year, on the anniversary of the shooting stars, another child in the world will manifest a gift. But this is not the only time that it happens - once it was believed that it could also happen randomly. With the advent of instant global communications and sharing of research between nations, it’s been possible to match up the time of death of one Gifted individual with the first known manifestations in another in enough cases that it’s now believed that the number of Gifted individuals is always stable, never decreasing, and increasing only by one somewhere in the global population each year.
There are 8 billion people living in this world, and it’s believed that there are only 2000-2500 Gifted individuals (although most are well-documented, not all of them have been identified.)
What theories do the inhabitants of this world have about what the gifts are, and why they occur? What might they believe the slow, almost “artificially” stable increase in their numbers over time means? Is it just a fact of their world as constant as gravity, or is it building toward something?
With this world-building project, we are aiming for a flavor of wonder, magic and mystery, without turning a blind eye to some of the complications that Gifted individuals would cause and have to confront in their own lives. This is a low/high magic setting: the vast majority of people in the world do not have access to magic and will likely never see it in their lives; but it’s well understood that it definitely exists and can have major impacts on the world.
Feel free to add:
- Types of “gifts”
- What various cultures call these manifestations and why - “Gifts” is used here as a general term, but some might call them magic, talents, etc.
- Historical figures who had gifts and how they changed the world - real or legendary
- What the daily lives of people who are gifted might be like
- How various governments or other organizations seek to mitigate, cultivate or exploit the Gifted.
- Theories that different groups of people have about what the Gifted are
- What the interaction between science and the Gifted might be like
- Remember, this isn’t Earth! It’s just inhabited by humans and contemporaneous with our current 2021 technology - feel free to invent your own land masses, cities, societies, etc for Thiiv.
- We’re mostly assuming that the plants and animals are roughly Earth-like, and probably use most of the same words (Cat, dog, cow, etc.) to describe them. But maybe you have an idea for something especially different that needs to be on Thiiv.
- Got other ideas? Let’s hear them!
Things to avoid:
- Getting too attached to your creations! Anything you add can be expanded on and changed by other people participating in the project. If you contribute it to this world building project, you are giving everyone permission to play with and expand on your idea.
- Material that’s copyrighted to other intellectual properties, ie X-Men Mutants, Jedi, etc.
- Please don’t add “evil” races to this setting. Cultures or individual people that believe and do unpleasant things are fine. What we want to avoid is describing a race as being intrinsically evil because of some inborn trait disposing them to immorality or criminality.
Some general inspirations include:
- Heroes
- X-men
- NK Jemison’s “The Broken Earth” series
- The Tomorrow People
- The DiscWorld series (in that most people are just people but magical beings walk among them)
HEY ALL this event officially kicks off tomorrow morning. I'm locking it until I get up tomorrow, but consider this your sneak preview. 
AAAAAAAAAAAAAND READY SET GO! 
YES YES YES. Okay just a little one for now, may expand on it later!
The United Registry of Gifted Individuals (URGI)
All individuals with manifested gifts must be registered with URGI or face heavy penalization. Generally, the onus is on the parents and guardians of children who manifest gifts, given the age at which it occurs. In cases where a child comes of age without being registered, the responsibility to register falls upon their shoulders, and there is a lengthy inquest about why they hadn't been registered sooner. This process can be harrowing and humiliating.
Being gifted means living your life as a celebrity. Some parents attempt to hide their gifted children, wanting to allow them the chance at a normal life without being so much in the public eye. However, this decision isn't without consequences, for it turns all parties involved into criminals. In some of these cases, gifted children will contact URGI to register without their guardians' consent. This can be done at any age.
The United Registry of Gifted Individuals (URGI)
All individuals with manifested gifts must be registered with URGI or face heavy penalization. Generally, the onus is on the parents and guardians of children who manifest gifts, given the age at which it occurs. In cases where a child comes of age without being registered, the responsibility to register falls upon their shoulders, and there is a lengthy inquest about why they hadn't been registered sooner. This process can be harrowing and humiliating.
Being gifted means living your life as a celebrity. Some parents attempt to hide their gifted children, wanting to allow them the chance at a normal life without being so much in the public eye. However, this decision isn't without consequences, for it turns all parties involved into criminals. In some of these cases, gifted children will contact URGI to register without their guardians' consent. This can be done at any age.
Gifted Individuals Privacy Organization
This organization is not well known in the world. They work alongside the URGI to preserve the privacy and personal safety of gifted individuals and their families. The group itself is only helping 100-150 gifted individuals at any one point since the requirements to be eligible for their assistance is very strict.
While the exact requirements are unknown to anyone outside the organization, there do exist rumors that severe disease, personal life issues, and even the nature of their gifts all factor into whether or not they receive assistance.
The group provides help through covert body guards, home security systems, relocation programs, and even tipping off law enforcement where necessary. Incredibly strict NDA's are signed by the gifted individuals (or by their parents/guardians/caregivers) to ensure the secrecy of the group. This is done to prevent any information leaks regarding their methods which has happened in the past.
Some rumors about the organization can be heard, ranging from their use of prototype technology for monitoring all the way to more outlandish conspiracies such as the use of gifted to get rid of any traces of their existence.
While their work is not perfect, they have helped improve the lives of the gifted who needed privacy the most.
This organization is not well known in the world. They work alongside the URGI to preserve the privacy and personal safety of gifted individuals and their families. The group itself is only helping 100-150 gifted individuals at any one point since the requirements to be eligible for their assistance is very strict.
While the exact requirements are unknown to anyone outside the organization, there do exist rumors that severe disease, personal life issues, and even the nature of their gifts all factor into whether or not they receive assistance.
The group provides help through covert body guards, home security systems, relocation programs, and even tipping off law enforcement where necessary. Incredibly strict NDA's are signed by the gifted individuals (or by their parents/guardians/caregivers) to ensure the secrecy of the group. This is done to prevent any information leaks regarding their methods which has happened in the past.
Some rumors about the organization can be heard, ranging from their use of prototype technology for monitoring all the way to more outlandish conspiracies such as the use of gifted to get rid of any traces of their existence.
While their work is not perfect, they have helped improve the lives of the gifted who needed privacy the most.
The Nation of Egalia
Egalia has a rather sad past, originally A gifted individual rose to power, this individual(insert name here) was a tyrant. using their power, the ability to cause fear in others at their own will, even to the point of causing them to die of fright. the Tyrant was killed in a sudden coup lead by other gifted individuals, who they themselves instituted a policy, any further individuals who were found to be gifted, were to be granted a solid budget, enough to start a new life, and then exiled from the country, not out of hate, but out of distrust should someone abuse these powers. those whom ar gifted are denied entry to the country, but are happily provided transportation to any other country with as much respect and dignity.
the national motto of Egalia is :"success by merit and character, not by the hand of fate." a somber reminder of the tyrant which once ruled the country fifty years prior.
Egalia has a rather sad past, originally A gifted individual rose to power, this individual(insert name here) was a tyrant. using their power, the ability to cause fear in others at their own will, even to the point of causing them to die of fright. the Tyrant was killed in a sudden coup lead by other gifted individuals, who they themselves instituted a policy, any further individuals who were found to be gifted, were to be granted a solid budget, enough to start a new life, and then exiled from the country, not out of hate, but out of distrust should someone abuse these powers. those whom ar gifted are denied entry to the country, but are happily provided transportation to any other country with as much respect and dignity.
the national motto of Egalia is :"success by merit and character, not by the hand of fate." a somber reminder of the tyrant which once ruled the country fifty years prior.
Some trends among gifts
As has been stated before, gifts are non-hereditary and do not seem to be linked to any particular geography or ethnicity. What is near universal, however, is that gifts tend to appear in children between the ages of 6 months to 12 years old. It should be noted in this, however, that outliers may exist. The difficulty in determining outliers stems from the fact that all gifts are only uncovered upon ‘usage’.
For example, if a gift entails granting the user the ability to not require oxygen, that user will only discover it if placed in a situation where they’re forced to not breathe for a period of time. Some gifts can end up not being discovered for years or even decades depending on what entails using the gift in the first place.
Gifts are almost exclusively beneficial to the user, from a biological perspective. If an individual's gift is pyrokinesis, they will be immune to at least their own generated fire. A person with ice breath will be immune to their own cold generated. There will almost always be some equilibrium method to ensure that the user is not harmed by their own powers.
That said, the environment around them is certainly not immune to it. This can result in traumatic experiences, such as a pyrokinetic user discovering their powers by burning their house, or a telekinetic user discovering their powers by melting their parents’ brains.
The variety of gifts is near limitless. From super strength, to hyper intelligence, to acidic spit, to high velocity projectile boogers. Though trends where two individuals have the same gift, this is neither common or uncommon. It truly does seem random.
As has been stated before, gifts are non-hereditary and do not seem to be linked to any particular geography or ethnicity. What is near universal, however, is that gifts tend to appear in children between the ages of 6 months to 12 years old. It should be noted in this, however, that outliers may exist. The difficulty in determining outliers stems from the fact that all gifts are only uncovered upon ‘usage’.
For example, if a gift entails granting the user the ability to not require oxygen, that user will only discover it if placed in a situation where they’re forced to not breathe for a period of time. Some gifts can end up not being discovered for years or even decades depending on what entails using the gift in the first place.
Gifts are almost exclusively beneficial to the user, from a biological perspective. If an individual's gift is pyrokinesis, they will be immune to at least their own generated fire. A person with ice breath will be immune to their own cold generated. There will almost always be some equilibrium method to ensure that the user is not harmed by their own powers.
That said, the environment around them is certainly not immune to it. This can result in traumatic experiences, such as a pyrokinetic user discovering their powers by burning their house, or a telekinetic user discovering their powers by melting their parents’ brains.
The variety of gifts is near limitless. From super strength, to hyper intelligence, to acidic spit, to high velocity projectile boogers. Though trends where two individuals have the same gift, this is neither common or uncommon. It truly does seem random.
Vague ideas:
- Cultures having strong dislikes towards Gifted, creating a self-loathing with some individuals in some countries.
- A son of a non-European inspired royal family is a Gifted in current time. As coming from a country with such strict norms around Gifted and magic he struggles to hide his Gift and feel safe in their society.
- Snapping plants, like Venus fly traps but are fully aware of what they are doing. Nips at bugs and animals legs, harmless to most creatures.
- Culture that celebrates such Gifts. Study of the Gifts and their people for years by using difficult herbal medicines (the usual and sage like things). While still supportive of the idea they will never have one in power, much willingly keep them under containment than in too much power.
- Fear gas, it's what you think but it's not. The chemicals have more effect on a Gifted than not, possibly sending their Gift out of control for the duration of the exposure. Used in tests and by sus scientists
- Cultures having strong dislikes towards Gifted, creating a self-loathing with some individuals in some countries.
- A son of a non-European inspired royal family is a Gifted in current time. As coming from a country with such strict norms around Gifted and magic he struggles to hide his Gift and feel safe in their society.
- Snapping plants, like Venus fly traps but are fully aware of what they are doing. Nips at bugs and animals legs, harmless to most creatures.
- Culture that celebrates such Gifts. Study of the Gifts and their people for years by using difficult herbal medicines (the usual and sage like things). While still supportive of the idea they will never have one in power, much willingly keep them under containment than in too much power.
- Fear gas, it's what you think but it's not. The chemicals have more effect on a Gifted than not, possibly sending their Gift out of control for the duration of the exposure. Used in tests and by sus scientists
Limited Range of the URGI
It should be noted that the United Registry of Gifted Individuals does not encompass all nations. Many have outlawed and denounced this organization. Some of these governments work with the Gifted Individuals Privacy Organization. Many do not trust GIPO and accuse them of being nothing more than another faction vying for power and control of gifted individuals.
The first nations to denounce the URGI did so just days after the group went public. There was not much the URGI could do in response in many nations. Several countries started the movement to ban any monitoring of gifted individuals.
Prime Minister Pattur Vann of a small, wintry nation called Vantalun was the first national leader to spearhead this movement. He gave a fiery speech alongside a famous statue of a freedom fighter in his country. It was located in the Hall of Records, a place known nationally for reminding its citizens of important figures and movements in equality, justice and peace.
The Prime Minister was so passionate with his words, that anti-registry movements popped up throughout the globe. This may have caused conflict in some corners of the globe. It did not become such a major issue strong enough to spark a planet wide war. There were many other extremely more important topics world governments had to discuss.
So called ‘Amnesty Nations’ became a safe haven for gifted individuals. Governments which pushed for URGI control sometimes banned gifted individuals from traveling. Rumors have it that secret organizations helped rescue and ferry gifted people out of the reach of their overbearing governments. Although Vantalun was a small nation geographically, the country had powerful alliances which stretched across Thiiv. Vantalun had global rivals as well. Such nations had to make their own decisions. Dislike of the Vanta people did not automatically mean they also did not intrinsically want to limit the power of registration groups.
The fact that the citizens of Amnesty Nations reject the concept of registration almost intrinsically means that war would never change anything. Even governments which passed URGI laws would be wary of giving such an organization too much power. Their citizens would not want to go to war with opposing countries just to force the will of a private organization. The leaders of these nations would also likely not make the registration of the gifted a top priority.
The Egalian Coup is an example of how countries kept their own citizens in check. Many gifted people joined standard law enforcement and military organizations. If anyone abused their powers, they would be held to the standards of law just like anyone else. The gifted people who worked these jobs may have been local celebrities by way of the media and Internet. They were still just blue collar people working with others to keep order and peace. This proved to be enough to keep most of the planet balanced without too much of a need for registration.
One senator became famous for her words on the URGI in her nation. “People need jobs. The hungry need food. Children need access to the best schools, healthcare and scores of other things… So that we can thrive as a nation… As world citizens.” She spoke in front of her colleges at a place called the Senatorial Chambers. Her nation supported the URGI but implemented a system of checks and balances.
The URGI and GIPO soon became watered-down versions of themselves in many lands. They were not all-powerful, omnipotent, clandestine hands of control. In many places they found themselves just as regulated and under scrutiny as the people they tried to control.
Amnesty Nations grew in number over time until their influence became undeniable. Those who pushed for more control of registry groups had more say in some nations, but less in others. Many citizens saw them as a little more than fringe politics. In some nations, the URGI and GIPO were seen only as optional.
It should be noted that the United Registry of Gifted Individuals does not encompass all nations. Many have outlawed and denounced this organization. Some of these governments work with the Gifted Individuals Privacy Organization. Many do not trust GIPO and accuse them of being nothing more than another faction vying for power and control of gifted individuals.
The first nations to denounce the URGI did so just days after the group went public. There was not much the URGI could do in response in many nations. Several countries started the movement to ban any monitoring of gifted individuals.
Prime Minister Pattur Vann of a small, wintry nation called Vantalun was the first national leader to spearhead this movement. He gave a fiery speech alongside a famous statue of a freedom fighter in his country. It was located in the Hall of Records, a place known nationally for reminding its citizens of important figures and movements in equality, justice and peace.
The Prime Minister was so passionate with his words, that anti-registry movements popped up throughout the globe. This may have caused conflict in some corners of the globe. It did not become such a major issue strong enough to spark a planet wide war. There were many other extremely more important topics world governments had to discuss.
So called ‘Amnesty Nations’ became a safe haven for gifted individuals. Governments which pushed for URGI control sometimes banned gifted individuals from traveling. Rumors have it that secret organizations helped rescue and ferry gifted people out of the reach of their overbearing governments. Although Vantalun was a small nation geographically, the country had powerful alliances which stretched across Thiiv. Vantalun had global rivals as well. Such nations had to make their own decisions. Dislike of the Vanta people did not automatically mean they also did not intrinsically want to limit the power of registration groups.
The fact that the citizens of Amnesty Nations reject the concept of registration almost intrinsically means that war would never change anything. Even governments which passed URGI laws would be wary of giving such an organization too much power. Their citizens would not want to go to war with opposing countries just to force the will of a private organization. The leaders of these nations would also likely not make the registration of the gifted a top priority.
The Egalian Coup is an example of how countries kept their own citizens in check. Many gifted people joined standard law enforcement and military organizations. If anyone abused their powers, they would be held to the standards of law just like anyone else. The gifted people who worked these jobs may have been local celebrities by way of the media and Internet. They were still just blue collar people working with others to keep order and peace. This proved to be enough to keep most of the planet balanced without too much of a need for registration.
One senator became famous for her words on the URGI in her nation. “People need jobs. The hungry need food. Children need access to the best schools, healthcare and scores of other things… So that we can thrive as a nation… As world citizens.” She spoke in front of her colleges at a place called the Senatorial Chambers. Her nation supported the URGI but implemented a system of checks and balances.
The URGI and GIPO soon became watered-down versions of themselves in many lands. They were not all-powerful, omnipotent, clandestine hands of control. In many places they found themselves just as regulated and under scrutiny as the people they tried to control.
Amnesty Nations grew in number over time until their influence became undeniable. Those who pushed for more control of registry groups had more say in some nations, but less in others. Many citizens saw them as a little more than fringe politics. In some nations, the URGI and GIPO were seen only as optional.
Society for Special Parental and Children's Rights (SSPCR) History and Mission Statement
Coming up on 60 years ago, the tragic life story of a woman named Sarah Cassandra Eyrie caused a movement around the globe that opened people's eyes to the some of the particular hardships of being a "Special" (At the time a less common term for Gifted, but afterwards seeing increased positive usage). These hardships had been overlooked or ignored considering the mixed feelings towards the Gifted, but to them they were major issues. This event led to the founding of an organization geared to identifying Specials in dangerous and troubled home environments, matching them with Special mentors throughout turbulent child and teen years, and if desired, assuring these Specials the right to adopt children once they reach adulthood.
Sarah Cassandra Eyrie had the misfortune of being born both with a disability that prevented her from being able to walk and also in a physically abusive household. The details aren't exactly clear, but records showed that she reached out to teachers and authority figures, but that nothing was ever done to remove her or remedy the situation. Some say that it was the stresses of this environment that caused her to manifest her Gift relatively early. In second grade, after receiving a particularly harsh beating, all of Sarah's dolls climbed out of her toy box and attacked her parents, giving her just enough time to escape. She made her way to the police station, but they did not believe her account. What they did believe however were the bruises all over her small body. She was immediately placed into foster care.
But unfortunately the family she was placed with, while not abusive, were neglectful. They received compensation for taking care of her, but did not allow her to go to school, doctor, or sometimes to leave the house at all. She often went hungry or with other basic needs not met. During this time when she should have been making friends and growing as a person, she instead had no one to confide in and nothing productive to pass the time. So instead, she developed her Gift in secret. She learned how to manipulate inanimate objects, dolls in particular, to get what she wanted or needed, and these were her only friends. Thankfully this period of her life only lasted a few years, as during a theft investigation the items were discovered in her home. As she clearly could not walk, it was assumed she could not have stolen anything. The foster parents were charged with the crimes and she was once again thrust into the foster system. But one after the other, families rejected her. She was written off as a lost cause and was sent to a mental institution for children.
Around this time, she drew the attention of GIPO with her outlandish story, although at the time it was only a local rumor. After tracking her down and sending an agent to contact her directly, seeing her power first hand, the agent filed for her release. She was adopted by a wealthy philanthropist named Richard Volante, who kept her Gift a secret and got her the help she needed. He even had a couple of gifted contacts [Names Redacted] who helped to mentor her and reintroduce her to society. She made real lasting friendships and learned to use her Gift for good, casting aside her dolls in favor of tools. She went to college, got married, and had become a world renowned robotics engineer by her 30s.
Then came the event which caused everything to come crashing down around her. The closest person she ever had to a father died. Making matters far worse, Mr. Volante had decreed that on his death his memoire which he had written years earlier be published. In it was Sarah's whole life story, which she had no idea he had written down and had never consented to be made public. Within days, she was a national headline. Although it was seen by many as a powerful and uplifting story, no one wanted any association with her. Within weeks, the company she worked for fired her over fears of her mental instability. Her husband was shocked that she had never told him, and actually managed to file and win a lawsuit against her, not for lying to him about her Gift, but specifically for not disclosing her infertility. It was this latter, history-making case that caused the Special community at large the most hardship. By law, all Specials must disclose to their spouses, or else their marriage became null and void. In a broader sense, the same applied to everyone who was in a serious, exclusive relationship and knowingly infertile. It was a gigantic step backwards in privacy and human rights, and while the law was later overturned, it caused incalculable damage to families all over the world.
Sarah did not completely lose hope. She remarried, started a businesses of her own, and the couple started down the road of adoption. More than anything, she wanted to prove that even someone in her circumstances could succeed at raising children, even if they were not her own. However, despite gaining public support, no agency felt comfortable with placing a child in her care. Her new husband even became an attourney in order to try to shift the law in their favor. Their cause was met with some success, but sadly not for themselves.
At the age of 45, she died of a brain aneurysm related to her Gift. Her husband raised money and awareness by selling "Sarah's Dolls", and eventually the SSPCR was founded in her memory. Though never a father, he became a mentor to many young men and women both with and without Gifts. Eventually the Eyrie Law was passed, giving Special and mixed couples a path to adoption. Also as a result of SSPCR's influence, Gifted children are ensured anonymity and in many places receive greater protections under the foster care system.
To this day, Sarah's dolls are still a symbol of Gifted Children's rights.
Coming up on 60 years ago, the tragic life story of a woman named Sarah Cassandra Eyrie caused a movement around the globe that opened people's eyes to the some of the particular hardships of being a "Special" (At the time a less common term for Gifted, but afterwards seeing increased positive usage). These hardships had been overlooked or ignored considering the mixed feelings towards the Gifted, but to them they were major issues. This event led to the founding of an organization geared to identifying Specials in dangerous and troubled home environments, matching them with Special mentors throughout turbulent child and teen years, and if desired, assuring these Specials the right to adopt children once they reach adulthood.
Sarah Cassandra Eyrie had the misfortune of being born both with a disability that prevented her from being able to walk and also in a physically abusive household. The details aren't exactly clear, but records showed that she reached out to teachers and authority figures, but that nothing was ever done to remove her or remedy the situation. Some say that it was the stresses of this environment that caused her to manifest her Gift relatively early. In second grade, after receiving a particularly harsh beating, all of Sarah's dolls climbed out of her toy box and attacked her parents, giving her just enough time to escape. She made her way to the police station, but they did not believe her account. What they did believe however were the bruises all over her small body. She was immediately placed into foster care.
But unfortunately the family she was placed with, while not abusive, were neglectful. They received compensation for taking care of her, but did not allow her to go to school, doctor, or sometimes to leave the house at all. She often went hungry or with other basic needs not met. During this time when she should have been making friends and growing as a person, she instead had no one to confide in and nothing productive to pass the time. So instead, she developed her Gift in secret. She learned how to manipulate inanimate objects, dolls in particular, to get what she wanted or needed, and these were her only friends. Thankfully this period of her life only lasted a few years, as during a theft investigation the items were discovered in her home. As she clearly could not walk, it was assumed she could not have stolen anything. The foster parents were charged with the crimes and she was once again thrust into the foster system. But one after the other, families rejected her. She was written off as a lost cause and was sent to a mental institution for children.
Around this time, she drew the attention of GIPO with her outlandish story, although at the time it was only a local rumor. After tracking her down and sending an agent to contact her directly, seeing her power first hand, the agent filed for her release. She was adopted by a wealthy philanthropist named Richard Volante, who kept her Gift a secret and got her the help she needed. He even had a couple of gifted contacts [Names Redacted] who helped to mentor her and reintroduce her to society. She made real lasting friendships and learned to use her Gift for good, casting aside her dolls in favor of tools. She went to college, got married, and had become a world renowned robotics engineer by her 30s.
Then came the event which caused everything to come crashing down around her. The closest person she ever had to a father died. Making matters far worse, Mr. Volante had decreed that on his death his memoire which he had written years earlier be published. In it was Sarah's whole life story, which she had no idea he had written down and had never consented to be made public. Within days, she was a national headline. Although it was seen by many as a powerful and uplifting story, no one wanted any association with her. Within weeks, the company she worked for fired her over fears of her mental instability. Her husband was shocked that she had never told him, and actually managed to file and win a lawsuit against her, not for lying to him about her Gift, but specifically for not disclosing her infertility. It was this latter, history-making case that caused the Special community at large the most hardship. By law, all Specials must disclose to their spouses, or else their marriage became null and void. In a broader sense, the same applied to everyone who was in a serious, exclusive relationship and knowingly infertile. It was a gigantic step backwards in privacy and human rights, and while the law was later overturned, it caused incalculable damage to families all over the world.
Sarah did not completely lose hope. She remarried, started a businesses of her own, and the couple started down the road of adoption. More than anything, she wanted to prove that even someone in her circumstances could succeed at raising children, even if they were not her own. However, despite gaining public support, no agency felt comfortable with placing a child in her care. Her new husband even became an attourney in order to try to shift the law in their favor. Their cause was met with some success, but sadly not for themselves.
At the age of 45, she died of a brain aneurysm related to her Gift. Her husband raised money and awareness by selling "Sarah's Dolls", and eventually the SSPCR was founded in her memory. Though never a father, he became a mentor to many young men and women both with and without Gifts. Eventually the Eyrie Law was passed, giving Special and mixed couples a path to adoption. Also as a result of SSPCR's influence, Gifted children are ensured anonymity and in many places receive greater protections under the foster care system.
To this day, Sarah's dolls are still a symbol of Gifted Children's rights.
Kim wrote:
Please read this entire starting post before participating!
It’s time for this year’s FULLY COLLABORATIVE world building project! I’ll kick us off with a “seed” concept for a fictional setting. The entire community is welcomed to join in to flesh out the world. Want to invent a historical event? A type of magic? A single plant species? An entire city? Want to draw maps or illustrate other people’s ideas? Want to compose music that the inhabitants might have written? There are so many ways to develop this world!
The last day for submissions will be August 29th.
At the end, I’ll round up all the ideas and artwork and combine them into a cohesive description of the world.
If there are conflicts between ideas people have put forward, or clashes in tone to the project, I’ll try to make my best editorial judgement calls to resolve them.
When all’s said and done, we’ll release the world we’ve created for anyone to start RPs in! This will be an “open source” collaborative work. (For an example, here’s last year’s completed sci-fi world building seed!)
READY? Here’s your world building seed:
A world called Thiiv, very much like our own -- the human inhabitants use smartphones to post about their lives on social media, they travel between cities in cars, they enjoy modern medicine such as anesthesia, vaccines and MRI scans. Some countries even have small space programs, capable of putting satellites into orbit but not much more.
Roughly 2000 years ago on Thiiv, there was a full month where the skies all over the planet were filled from dusk to dawn with shooting stars. Every culture in the world has some legend about what these lights were or what they might mean -- but it was that month that the first strange powers were bestowed on a handful of humans. I will refer to these powers for now as “gifts,” though every culture has its own name for them.
“Gifts” are magical abilities. They may take many different forms, but usually the first signs of them show in children who are 6-12 years of age. The oldest known person in history to ever manifest a gift was 20 when the first signs of their powers showed. There may be other significant changes to the individual - drastic changes in pigmentation to skin, eyes or hair are possible. In some cases, the person’s mind is impacted such that their personality and values become unrecognizable to those who knew them before the change. Some describe these changes as “fae,” while others might call them “alien.” There is often an impact on the individual’s life span, though sometimes it makes them very long lived and other times makes them very short lived, depending on the powers they gain and how they function.
“Gifts” are not hereditary, in that they do not run in any particular family. The Gifted themselves appear to be sterile, and there is no record of someone who had a gift producing a child of their own (though there are many urban legends about it happening.) There is no predicting who the next human will be to obtain a Gift, and medical science is so far at a loss to explain how or why it happens.
Every year, on the anniversary of the shooting stars, another child in the world will manifest a gift. But this is not the only time that it happens - once it was believed that it could also happen randomly. With the advent of instant global communications and sharing of research between nations, it’s been possible to match up the time of death of one Gifted individual with the first known manifestations in another in enough cases that it’s now believed that the number of Gifted individuals is always stable, never decreasing, and increasing only by one somewhere in the global population each year.
There are 8 billion people living in this world, and it’s believed that there are only 2000-2500 Gifted individuals (although most are well-documented, not all of them have been identified.)
What theories do the inhabitants of this world have about what the gifts are, and why they occur? What might they believe the slow, almost “artificially” stable increase in their numbers over time means? Is it just a fact of their world as constant as gravity, or is it building toward something?
With this world-building project, we are aiming for a flavor of wonder, magic and mystery, without turning a blind eye to some of the complications that Gifted individuals would cause and have to confront in their own lives. This is a low/high magic setting: the vast majority of people in the world do not have access to magic and will likely never see it in their lives; but it’s well understood that it definitely exists and can have major impacts on the world.
Feel free to add:
Things to avoid:
Some general inspirations include:
It’s time for this year’s FULLY COLLABORATIVE world building project! I’ll kick us off with a “seed” concept for a fictional setting. The entire community is welcomed to join in to flesh out the world. Want to invent a historical event? A type of magic? A single plant species? An entire city? Want to draw maps or illustrate other people’s ideas? Want to compose music that the inhabitants might have written? There are so many ways to develop this world!
The last day for submissions will be August 29th.
At the end, I’ll round up all the ideas and artwork and combine them into a cohesive description of the world.
If there are conflicts between ideas people have put forward, or clashes in tone to the project, I’ll try to make my best editorial judgement calls to resolve them.
When all’s said and done, we’ll release the world we’ve created for anyone to start RPs in!
This will be an “open source” collaborative work. (For an example, here’s last year’s completed sci-fi world building seed!)READY? Here’s your world building seed:
A world called Thiiv, very much like our own -- the human inhabitants use smartphones to post about their lives on social media, they travel between cities in cars, they enjoy modern medicine such as anesthesia, vaccines and MRI scans. Some countries even have small space programs, capable of putting satellites into orbit but not much more.
Roughly 2000 years ago on Thiiv, there was a full month where the skies all over the planet were filled from dusk to dawn with shooting stars. Every culture in the world has some legend about what these lights were or what they might mean -- but it was that month that the first strange powers were bestowed on a handful of humans. I will refer to these powers for now as “gifts,” though every culture has its own name for them.
“Gifts” are magical abilities. They may take many different forms, but usually the first signs of them show in children who are 6-12 years of age. The oldest known person in history to ever manifest a gift was 20 when the first signs of their powers showed. There may be other significant changes to the individual - drastic changes in pigmentation to skin, eyes or hair are possible. In some cases, the person’s mind is impacted such that their personality and values become unrecognizable to those who knew them before the change. Some describe these changes as “fae,” while others might call them “alien.” There is often an impact on the individual’s life span, though sometimes it makes them very long lived and other times makes them very short lived, depending on the powers they gain and how they function.
“Gifts” are not hereditary, in that they do not run in any particular family. The Gifted themselves appear to be sterile, and there is no record of someone who had a gift producing a child of their own (though there are many urban legends about it happening.) There is no predicting who the next human will be to obtain a Gift, and medical science is so far at a loss to explain how or why it happens.
Every year, on the anniversary of the shooting stars, another child in the world will manifest a gift. But this is not the only time that it happens - once it was believed that it could also happen randomly. With the advent of instant global communications and sharing of research between nations, it’s been possible to match up the time of death of one Gifted individual with the first known manifestations in another in enough cases that it’s now believed that the number of Gifted individuals is always stable, never decreasing, and increasing only by one somewhere in the global population each year.
There are 8 billion people living in this world, and it’s believed that there are only 2000-2500 Gifted individuals (although most are well-documented, not all of them have been identified.)
What theories do the inhabitants of this world have about what the gifts are, and why they occur? What might they believe the slow, almost “artificially” stable increase in their numbers over time means? Is it just a fact of their world as constant as gravity, or is it building toward something?
With this world-building project, we are aiming for a flavor of wonder, magic and mystery, without turning a blind eye to some of the complications that Gifted individuals would cause and have to confront in their own lives. This is a low/high magic setting: the vast majority of people in the world do not have access to magic and will likely never see it in their lives; but it’s well understood that it definitely exists and can have major impacts on the world.
Feel free to add:
- Types of “gifts”
- What various cultures call these manifestations and why - “Gifts” is used here as a general term, but some might call them magic, talents, etc.
- Historical figures who had gifts and how they changed the world - real or legendary
- What the daily lives of people who are gifted might be like
- How various governments or other organizations seek to mitigate, cultivate or exploit the Gifted.
- Theories that different groups of people have about what the Gifted are
- What the interaction between science and the Gifted might be like
- Remember, this isn’t Earth! It’s just inhabited by humans and contemporaneous with our current 2021 technology - feel free to invent your own land masses, cities, societies, etc for Thiiv.
- We’re mostly assuming that the plants and animals are roughly Earth-like, and probably use most of the same words (Cat, dog, cow, etc.) to describe them. But maybe you have an idea for something especially different that needs to be on Thiiv.
- Got other ideas? Let’s hear them!
Things to avoid:
- Getting too attached to your creations! Anything you add can be expanded on and changed by other people participating in the project. If you contribute it to this world building project, you are giving everyone permission to play with and expand on your idea.
- Material that’s copyrighted to other intellectual properties, ie X-Men Mutants, Jedi, etc.
- Please don’t add “evil” races to this setting. Cultures or individual people that believe and do unpleasant things are fine. What we want to avoid is describing a race as being intrinsically evil because of some inborn trait disposing them to immorality or criminality.
Some general inspirations include:
- Heroes
- X-men
- NK Jemison’s “The Broken Earth” series
- The Tomorrow People
- The DiscWorld series (in that most people are just people but magical beings walk among them)
So i have this thing like.. It's pretty old but it's a concept for an animal species.
The species is called The Antira's, and the archive is pretty old and work in progress. I left it on the notes on my computer and i'll just copy and pase the whole thing bc idk.. Don't wanna rewrite a whole PSA here.
"The Antira's (Blood-Tiranus) is quite a simple species to explain.
Starting for physical appearance, they have a long and thick torso with four big zig-zag shaped legs and a neck that looks like it's chacked most of the times. Their head is covered in more of their fur with their big horns sticking out of it, and their face is inside of the shadows that their fur over their head is making, only letting their glowing eyes and teeth be revealed.
They have a long tail that is the same size of a square coffee table. Their fur can be very variations of the color red, but the most common is the color blood-red for their fur, most common on females.
The males are characterized for having bigger horns than a female's and having a type of blade on the tip of their tail. As for the females, they have sligtly smaller horns than males and have extra fur on the tip of their tail.
Most of the times, male Antira's are borh with horns that come from the back of their head just like females. But sometimes, a male Antira can have a pair of horns that come from the front of their head that point upwards. It's not a rare breed of Antira's but that does mean that the male with that set of horns is most likely stronger than the rest of the males in their flock.
Antira's are commonly found in large flocks, centered in a big spot in two types of habitats:
1 - Big and moist forests;
2 - Large fields of soft grass.
Antira's are omnivores. More to the carnivore side than the herbivore side. Their diet consists of either every type of meat consumable or just some fresh red apples. The apples help them to get the nutrients to maintain their digestive systems intact and always working properly while meat only fills their stomach.
Antira's don't like to be bothered. If you try to approach they will ignore you until you try to touch them in a normal of fast speed. That is an offensive act for them that will make them see you as a threat and attack you immediately. They also have a good memory, so hoping that they will foeget your actions after a couple of minutes is already a bad thougth to have.
Antira's can have the same height of a 20 year old average man holding a 4 year old child on their shoulders combined, while having the weight of an average Cheetah.
When a male Antira reaches adulthood, it's time to provide for their flock. So every now and then, a group of at least 5 or 7 males migrate from their flock to not only return with food, but also to return with the location of a new spot their flock can live with more food and more water.
When an Antira dies, it's either they're too old to continue providing for the flock or they can't fight anymore. So whenever an Antira dies, it dies for the flock, to the flock. Meaning that they sacrifice their body for the other members of their flock to feed on."
And that's it for now.
Narukami University of Science and Technology
NUST is one of the best universities in the world and also the leading entity in the research around this 'gift' phenomenon.
NUST is located in Narukami Island, an Island under the jurisdiction of the Empire of Enramoto, one of the so-called 'Amnesty Nations'.
Not only focusing on research about the gift itself, but this university also develops technology to help people with gifts to better control it. They are also more willing to share the knowledge they have with another university to further their research, as long as there are mutual benefits.
They also develop their own registry of gifted individuals and their power, classifying it from rank E to rank S, depends on their usability and threat to humanity. This classification system is only used for research purposes and is not publicly available.
There is also a special residential area for gifted individuals who are willing to help the research in return for protection and education.
NUST is one of the best universities in the world and also the leading entity in the research around this 'gift' phenomenon.
NUST is located in Narukami Island, an Island under the jurisdiction of the Empire of Enramoto, one of the so-called 'Amnesty Nations'.
Not only focusing on research about the gift itself, but this university also develops technology to help people with gifts to better control it. They are also more willing to share the knowledge they have with another university to further their research, as long as there are mutual benefits.
They also develop their own registry of gifted individuals and their power, classifying it from rank E to rank S, depends on their usability and threat to humanity. This classification system is only used for research purposes and is not publicly available.
There is also a special residential area for gifted individuals who are willing to help the research in return for protection and education.
I thought this looked cool and maybe I'd try it.
Alright, so, animals. This specific species is called a Crat. It's kinda what it sounds like, a cat and a rat. They're a domesticated species known for being an extremely popular pet among humans. They come in colors such as black, white, grey, and orange. They have two sets of eyes, (That's 4 eyes!) but their vision isn't the best, so they rely mainly on hearing and smell. They can, however, navigate excellently in the dark due to it's 4 eyes. It's tail is on average 4 feet long and is very similar to a rat's, and works the same way. Keeps it's balance, and it can use it to hang on things. They also have hands and feet like a rat's, so they can grab better. Like I said, they're s popular pet, but not easy to take care of. They're better suited for climbing and so you'd need a setup with lots of places to climb and lots of obstacles.
Their diet mainly consists of large insects, raw meat, and a few fruits here and there. They shouldn't eat anything with lots of sugar, and they drink water. They also can't eat candy. If they're fed correctly, they're pretty light and can easily be picked up and moved around. They can be found in homes, but occasionally there's a stray here and there.
Alright, so, animals. This specific species is called a Crat. It's kinda what it sounds like, a cat and a rat. They're a domesticated species known for being an extremely popular pet among humans. They come in colors such as black, white, grey, and orange. They have two sets of eyes, (That's 4 eyes!) but their vision isn't the best, so they rely mainly on hearing and smell. They can, however, navigate excellently in the dark due to it's 4 eyes. It's tail is on average 4 feet long and is very similar to a rat's, and works the same way. Keeps it's balance, and it can use it to hang on things. They also have hands and feet like a rat's, so they can grab better. Like I said, they're s popular pet, but not easy to take care of. They're better suited for climbing and so you'd need a setup with lots of places to climb and lots of obstacles.
Their diet mainly consists of large insects, raw meat, and a few fruits here and there. They shouldn't eat anything with lots of sugar, and they drink water. They also can't eat candy. If they're fed correctly, they're pretty light and can easily be picked up and moved around. They can be found in homes, but occasionally there's a stray here and there.
Alrighty, here goes nothing.
I was thinking of a creature known as a Hydrusky, a combination of a mythological hydra and a siberian husky. They possess the body of a normal husky, but also have large dragon-like wings that branch off of their back and allow for ease of flight. In addition, the husky possesses several necks that can be as long as 28 feet. Younger Hydruskies will typically have only two heads, with older ones having up to 8 and record holders having up to 12.
These creatures also have a thick double coat that can range in color from white, to black, to light grey, and more. These coats will typically be shed every season, leaving a large amount of hair in their place.Their nature is typically noticed to be friendly, but also exceptionally reserved, avoiding contact with other species outside of special occasions. That being said, they are also noted to have a high degree of intelligence and can be very vocal, typically making a seldomly noticed roaring bark that can be heard for miles.
Very little data is available on the migration patterns and life cycle of the Hydrusky, but it is believed that they inhabit the high-altitude regions of Thiiv, staying in the mountains during the Winter and coming to lower regions to hunt during the Spring and Summer. Frequent findings of large pawprints in the mud easily support this theory. Some of these creatures have also been domesticated in older regions, with smaller breeds serving as pets and larger ones sometimes able to serve as guardians and supply haulers in larger cities.
Oh, and the fur can also be used as insulation if properly cleaned. So you can weave blankets with Hydrusky fur! 🐺
I was thinking of a creature known as a Hydrusky, a combination of a mythological hydra and a siberian husky. They possess the body of a normal husky, but also have large dragon-like wings that branch off of their back and allow for ease of flight. In addition, the husky possesses several necks that can be as long as 28 feet. Younger Hydruskies will typically have only two heads, with older ones having up to 8 and record holders having up to 12.
These creatures also have a thick double coat that can range in color from white, to black, to light grey, and more. These coats will typically be shed every season, leaving a large amount of hair in their place.Their nature is typically noticed to be friendly, but also exceptionally reserved, avoiding contact with other species outside of special occasions. That being said, they are also noted to have a high degree of intelligence and can be very vocal, typically making a seldomly noticed roaring bark that can be heard for miles.
Very little data is available on the migration patterns and life cycle of the Hydrusky, but it is believed that they inhabit the high-altitude regions of Thiiv, staying in the mountains during the Winter and coming to lower regions to hunt during the Spring and Summer. Frequent findings of large pawprints in the mud easily support this theory. Some of these creatures have also been domesticated in older regions, with smaller breeds serving as pets and larger ones sometimes able to serve as guardians and supply haulers in larger cities.
Oh, and the fur can also be used as insulation if properly cleaned. So you can weave blankets with Hydrusky fur! 🐺
Those Who Believe and Uphold The Powers and Light of The Sacred Ones Of the World of The Gods, The Light Gatherers
This is a society of people who live on a large isthmus in the east (or the west??? I don't know), who believe in a ???(I forgot the word for what type of legend it is. It's like an urban myth... uhhh... but not... It's something, I'll get it eventually) legend of light-bringing gods, or divine beings, who came from the suns and stars and bestowed upon them, the people of Thiiv, the powers and abilities that the Light gives to the sacred ones. They believe that it is passed from soul to soul, so that when one dies the power is obtained by another.
Also, the (society name here) think that there may be other planets out there in space with the same powers, and therefore they are naturally divided into different factions amongst themselves. Some of these are as follows:
Those Who Would Have The Power for Themselves
These guys actually want to go to space! They're a scientific foundation with an official name, probably, but I'm just putting this out there for now. This is what they are, uh, colloquially. Anyway, they believe that other planets, moons, stars, and whatnot have either people with greater gifts, or actually contain more Light themselves, so they want to get out there and get 'em. They have pretty good tehcnology, actually. But a different faction keeps stealing it and it makes them pretty mad. Every time. The worst part to them is that it's being used for VR video games! Infuriating! Anyway, they're just people, of course, but some of them have kind of crooked ideas. Like, stealing stars, that sort of thing. Their goal is generally just to be really powerful and have Universe-Space Power.
Those Who Would Keep The Power For The Planet Of Thiiv
These guys believe that they were put on Thiiv to protect and enrich it, and they should live their lives and remain as hallowed beings and all of that... jazz... But, they have a pretty nasty argument going with, uh, ^^ those guys up there. Some of them really like video games. They're largely entrepreneurial, but they also have a deep and abiding, basically religious respect for their Light figures, so it's kind of a code to keep them protected. They're very strong and occasionally bring forth very good warriors.
Those Who Would Share The Power Amongst The Planets and Those Who Would Share The Power Amongst The Generations
The power is real! The Light is great! And these guys want everyone to share it! For whatever reasons, maybe some ages-old tapestries, who knows? They kind of seem like they'd be the type to collect stained-glass windows and take them for history, so they have a legend amongst themselves which they believe symbolizes something like this: the Light-Gathered ones, the Hallowed Souls, and the Burning Bright Ones (all essentially one and the same, but with minor differences) are meant to protect the whole universe. They used to have a sacrificial process where they would release their most hallowed Light Gatherers to the Universe for 'Redistribution', but, uhh, that was a long time ago. They don't do that anymore. These guys kind of get all up in everybody's space, but they're very cheerful. The other factions don't like them much at all, but they tolerate them because they have such a calm and collected people and seem to keep very good diplomatic rules. They're honorable, shrewd, and generous, so they all think they're pretty great and don't like being messed with. Their gifted ones can get kind of feisty when they're backed into a corner. They want a space-exchange program when they can get to space, but for now they've got a world-exchange program wherein the Light-Gatherers of their side of Thiiv, some from their faction and some from others, can participate in traveling and schooling in other countries, so they can learn about different jobs, arts, and efforts.
The three main factions all bicker a lot, but they share their Light-Gatherers as they are also the holy Light-Givers of the people. So, they have to get along at least somewhat even if they're sneaking dark looks at each other over punch and cake.
Also, the most powerful god in the multi-faction mythology and religion is a snake god, therefore snakes are a highly prized symbol of intelligence and divine being, and actual 'divine beings' AKA Light Gatherers with snake-like traits are considered more valuable than others. This has, unfortunately, resulted in the occasional kidnapping.
There's also a group of online trait-quiz-creators (what kind of Light Gift marks your personality? Click here to find out!) who annoys almost all of them to no end, so there's that, too.
They all have police efforts that focus on taking down illegal Lantern-Fighting circles near their areas.
This is a society of people who live on a large isthmus in the east (or the west??? I don't know), who believe in a ???(I forgot the word for what type of legend it is. It's like an urban myth... uhhh... but not... It's something, I'll get it eventually) legend of light-bringing gods, or divine beings, who came from the suns and stars and bestowed upon them, the people of Thiiv, the powers and abilities that the Light gives to the sacred ones. They believe that it is passed from soul to soul, so that when one dies the power is obtained by another.
Also, the (society name here) think that there may be other planets out there in space with the same powers, and therefore they are naturally divided into different factions amongst themselves. Some of these are as follows:
Those Who Would Have The Power for Themselves
These guys actually want to go to space! They're a scientific foundation with an official name, probably, but I'm just putting this out there for now. This is what they are, uh, colloquially. Anyway, they believe that other planets, moons, stars, and whatnot have either people with greater gifts, or actually contain more Light themselves, so they want to get out there and get 'em. They have pretty good tehcnology, actually. But a different faction keeps stealing it and it makes them pretty mad. Every time. The worst part to them is that it's being used for VR video games! Infuriating! Anyway, they're just people, of course, but some of them have kind of crooked ideas. Like, stealing stars, that sort of thing. Their goal is generally just to be really powerful and have Universe-Space Power.
Those Who Would Keep The Power For The Planet Of Thiiv
These guys believe that they were put on Thiiv to protect and enrich it, and they should live their lives and remain as hallowed beings and all of that... jazz... But, they have a pretty nasty argument going with, uh, ^^ those guys up there. Some of them really like video games. They're largely entrepreneurial, but they also have a deep and abiding, basically religious respect for their Light figures, so it's kind of a code to keep them protected. They're very strong and occasionally bring forth very good warriors.
Those Who Would Share The Power Amongst The Planets and Those Who Would Share The Power Amongst The Generations
The power is real! The Light is great! And these guys want everyone to share it! For whatever reasons, maybe some ages-old tapestries, who knows? They kind of seem like they'd be the type to collect stained-glass windows and take them for history, so they have a legend amongst themselves which they believe symbolizes something like this: the Light-Gathered ones, the Hallowed Souls, and the Burning Bright Ones (all essentially one and the same, but with minor differences) are meant to protect the whole universe. They used to have a sacrificial process where they would release their most hallowed Light Gatherers to the Universe for 'Redistribution', but, uhh, that was a long time ago. They don't do that anymore. These guys kind of get all up in everybody's space, but they're very cheerful. The other factions don't like them much at all, but they tolerate them because they have such a calm and collected people and seem to keep very good diplomatic rules. They're honorable, shrewd, and generous, so they all think they're pretty great and don't like being messed with. Their gifted ones can get kind of feisty when they're backed into a corner. They want a space-exchange program when they can get to space, but for now they've got a world-exchange program wherein the Light-Gatherers of their side of Thiiv, some from their faction and some from others, can participate in traveling and schooling in other countries, so they can learn about different jobs, arts, and efforts.
The three main factions all bicker a lot, but they share their Light-Gatherers as they are also the holy Light-Givers of the people. So, they have to get along at least somewhat even if they're sneaking dark looks at each other over punch and cake.
Also, the most powerful god in the multi-faction mythology and religion is a snake god, therefore snakes are a highly prized symbol of intelligence and divine being, and actual 'divine beings' AKA Light Gatherers with snake-like traits are considered more valuable than others. This has, unfortunately, resulted in the occasional kidnapping.
There's also a group of online trait-quiz-creators (what kind of Light Gift marks your personality? Click here to find out!) who annoys almost all of them to no end, so there's that, too.
They all have police efforts that focus on taking down illegal Lantern-Fighting circles near their areas.
Lantern Fights
This is a little like the fighting rings from a certain movie about a robot, or the festival of arena fighting from a certain popular powerful-character anime, but obviously I can't say that here, so! Lantern Fighting is just a type of Arena fight, like... Gladiators? Where Gifted are pitted against each other.
It's technically legal under the right circumstances, like pro wrestling, but depending on the environment it can be truly dangerous, especially with uncontrolled powerful fighters. This is why it's usually frowned upon, and cracked down upon by law enforcement, but it's still pretty prevalent and has a lot of fans. Some of them are online, and there are a few "Glowdiator" groups that cheerlead their favorites. For pep. *rah rah* The Glowy Glee Monsters group online has a few attachments on their website to participate in fanart and discussion of the powerful fighters.
Because gladiators are popular and they kind of always have been...
Glowy Glee Monsters
They used to be the Glowing Glee Monster Girls, and then the GleeGlow Girls' Monster Matinee, but the name gets changed every so often, so their name for now remains Glowy Glee Monsters. Some of them aren't proud of it, but that's what they are so they don't have much of a choice.
This is a large online fangroup of all sorts of things - namely the Empowered, the Gifted, the Light-Gatherers, etc. - who frequently post memes online, create fanmeets and quizzes, and run a few different blogs and zines about their favorite celebs and characters. Their website is primarily centered around adoration and worship of the Gifted (and all other names by which they go), but they also have philosophers, bloggers, historians, and theorists running around and pasting wild theories and information out there on the web. The internet tends to be their favorite place as a whole, it seems, but obviously someone has to go out and take fan photos and organize sleepovers in front of merchandise shops. Kyaa, who's your fave?!
They probably have a motto, but I haven't thought of it yet!
This is a little like the fighting rings from a certain movie about a robot, or the festival of arena fighting from a certain popular powerful-character anime, but obviously I can't say that here, so!
Lantern Fighting is just a type of Arena fight, like... Gladiators? Where Gifted are pitted against each other.It's technically legal under the right circumstances, like pro wrestling, but depending on the environment it can be truly dangerous, especially with uncontrolled powerful fighters. This is why it's usually frowned upon, and cracked down upon by law enforcement, but it's still pretty prevalent and has a lot of fans. Some of them are online, and there are a few "Glowdiator" groups that cheerlead their favorites. For pep.
*rah rah* The Glowy Glee Monsters group online has a few attachments on their website to participate in fanart and discussion of the powerful fighters.Because gladiators are popular and they kind of always have been...
Glowy Glee Monsters
They used to be the Glowing Glee Monster Girls, and then the GleeGlow Girls' Monster Matinee, but the name gets changed every so often, so their name for now remains Glowy Glee Monsters. Some of them aren't proud of it, but that's what they are so they don't have much of a choice.
This is a large online fangroup of all sorts of things - namely the Empowered, the Gifted, the Light-Gatherers, etc. - who frequently post memes online, create fanmeets and quizzes, and run a few different blogs and zines about their favorite celebs and characters. Their website is primarily centered around adoration and worship of the Gifted (and all other names by which they go), but they also have philosophers, bloggers, historians, and theorists running around and pasting wild theories and information out there on the web. The internet tends to be their favorite place as a whole, it seems, but obviously someone has to go out and take fan photos and organize sleepovers in front of merchandise shops. Kyaa, who's your fave?!
They probably have a motto, but I haven't thought of it yet!
Theories Regarding Gifts
Due to the time period when gifts first began to manifest, they were often seen as forms of divine gifts, witchcraft, or some ability awoken through meditation or the like. As the understanding of science and the natural world progressed, the theories grew to be based more in accepted understandings of the natural world; such as genetic mutations or early signs of the next evolution of humanity. With the onset of mass informational sharing and communication at near instant speeds, the theories began to move away from evolution or the more esoteric ideas in witchcraft or religious explanations. Many of the more accepted theories relate to genetics in some form or another, however the biggest point that hampers these theories is that across the thousands of individuals who have had their genes analyzed, there was no connection between them that could explain the gifts. Even between individuals who had gifts of similar effect.
Five years ago, astronomers had discovered evidence of a planet outside the known seven in the solar system Thiiv was in. This planet having an orbital period of tens of thousands of years at least, with its closest point in orbit having been reached around 2133 years ago according to data retrieved by the scientists. While this does not necessarily prove that the planet and the emergence of gifts are related, it has been the subject of major theorization in the current day, although no satisfactory explanation for the steady number of gifted individuals and the yearly cycle where a new individual receives their gift exists as of now.
Nature of Gifts
A gift is not (usually) a single mutation. The Gifted all have access to some kind of power, most commonly thought to be magic -- they tend to have particular affinities and specific effects that are easier for them, but most can alter reality in many small ways with enough concentration and practice. Having a Gifted mentor is one of the strongest predictors of eventual mastery and overall power for any particular gifted individual, expanding the number and type of effects a single person is able to create in the world around them.
Not having a mentor may mean that the gifted individual never advances beyond the one trick they learned by accident, and is stuck with their one "power" being breathing underwater rather than the ability to influence the water and air around them in general.
Many, many gifted individuals have lived and died without ever meeting another gifted person.
The Gifted are Desperately Rare
With 8 billion people in the world, the current ratio of gifted people is 1 in 3.2 million, assuming the estimate of 2500 gifted individuals in the world is correct.
This often translates to a single gifted person in an entire nation. Given the distribution of people around the globe, this statistically means that the majority of gifted folk are born in poorer countries, potentially far from phone lines, postal routes, reliable travel infrastructure and other methods of communicating about their presence.
There are those who believe that because it's so hard to track them down and detect them when they are born in a nation with fewer resources to devote to searching for them, there could be up to 10,000 Gifted individuals in the world. But this is generally thought of as wishful (or paranoid) thinking.
Many countries may have laws on the books about what to do with the Gifted if they are discovered in the population, and go a hundred or more years without ever having to actually enforce any of these laws.
Powerful Nations Court Gifted From Around the World
Nations that are global superpowers - or who aspire to be global superpowers - tend to have intense recruitment programs aimed at bringing gifted individuals to them, and utilizing their gifts to enrich, advance, and defend their nations.
The higher a concentration of Gifted folk that a government is able to amass, the more likely that they will continue to grow in strength - more gifted will gravitate to these larger communities of their own kind, and small cultures where gifted are able to mentor one another mean that newer generations seem to be progressively more and more powerful.
However, the more gifted individuals a nation harbors, the more likely those gifted are to gain control of the levers of power themselves, and there is a constant tension between venerating the gifted as national heroes and treating them almost as an internal threat.
A gift is not (usually) a single mutation. The Gifted all have access to some kind of power, most commonly thought to be magic -- they tend to have particular affinities and specific effects that are easier for them, but most can alter reality in many small ways with enough concentration and practice. Having a Gifted mentor is one of the strongest predictors of eventual mastery and overall power for any particular gifted individual, expanding the number and type of effects a single person is able to create in the world around them.
Not having a mentor may mean that the gifted individual never advances beyond the one trick they learned by accident, and is stuck with their one "power" being breathing underwater rather than the ability to influence the water and air around them in general.
Many, many gifted individuals have lived and died without ever meeting another gifted person.
The Gifted are Desperately Rare
With 8 billion people in the world, the current ratio of gifted people is 1 in 3.2 million, assuming the estimate of 2500 gifted individuals in the world is correct.
This often translates to a single gifted person in an entire nation. Given the distribution of people around the globe, this statistically means that the majority of gifted folk are born in poorer countries, potentially far from phone lines, postal routes, reliable travel infrastructure and other methods of communicating about their presence.
There are those who believe that because it's so hard to track them down and detect them when they are born in a nation with fewer resources to devote to searching for them, there could be up to 10,000 Gifted individuals in the world. But this is generally thought of as wishful (or paranoid) thinking.
Many countries may have laws on the books about what to do with the Gifted if they are discovered in the population, and go a hundred or more years without ever having to actually enforce any of these laws.
Powerful Nations Court Gifted From Around the World
Nations that are global superpowers - or who aspire to be global superpowers - tend to have intense recruitment programs aimed at bringing gifted individuals to them, and utilizing their gifts to enrich, advance, and defend their nations.
The higher a concentration of Gifted folk that a government is able to amass, the more likely that they will continue to grow in strength - more gifted will gravitate to these larger communities of their own kind, and small cultures where gifted are able to mentor one another mean that newer generations seem to be progressively more and more powerful.
However, the more gifted individuals a nation harbors, the more likely those gifted are to gain control of the levers of power themselves, and there is a constant tension between venerating the gifted as national heroes and treating them almost as an internal threat.
SolarLoki wrote:
Many of the more accepted theories relate to genetics in some form or another, however the biggest point that hampers these theories is that across the thousands of individuals who have had their genes analyzed, there was no connection between them that could explain the gifts. Even between individuals who had gifts of similar effect.
I want to build on this; one nation that aspired to be a global superpower bent the ethical rules about cloning humans and tried to increase the number of gifted that they had access to through cloning, and were greatly disappointed to discover that none of the clones had access to gifts. Though this experiment was highly classified, it has created quite the ripple among the scientists who were involved in the project, and is whispered about in other nations whose spy networks picked up a whiff of the experiment.
(Just a disclaimer, I may update this with more ideas, so always check back on it. My mind is absolutely exploding with ideas!)
Idea #1: GIFT CLASSIFICATION
As gifts began to appear it became evident to some scientists that some gifts were similar enough to "sort out". The classifications of gifts are as follows: Beam, Mutant, and Evolution.
Beam-type gifts are an activated gift, such as the famed Karnos, with the gift to throw balls of elemental energy from his hands
Mutant-type gifts are gifts that cause the gifted person to have an unchangeable body, such as the popular Drakon, with scales as tough as diamonds that render him nearly indestructible.
Evolution-type gifts are gifts that allow the gifted person to change themselves, like the great Yo-yo, who has the gift to elongate their limbs in an offensive or defensive manner.
Though there are quite a few gifts, scientists have narrowed the known ones to three classifications. Scientists predict that there could be more in the future if more gifts begin to show up.
Though there are studies being made to see if there is a correlation between gift classification and longevity of life, no such progress has been made, considering the fact that those with gifts are exceedingly rare.
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Idea #2: The Band of Helping Hands
Another faction on the planet of Thiiv is the Band of Helping Hands (BHH, for short). Their main goal is to show the world that gifts were meant to form joy and brotherhood between those with gifts, not a way to separate those with or without.
The founder of the BHH, Mitchell Vincent, formed the organization as a safe haven for those with gifts that felt it was unsafe for them to continue living where they once were. Mr. Vincent is a renowned speaker, with the gift to make his voice louder or softer at his own will, although making him appear as a lion-like human. (Unfortunate for his parents when he was younger, however.) He often speaks on behalf of younger gift wielders when they make a mistake for the first time, even offering to take them under his wing while they grow. He even invites the parents to accompany their child while at the BHH Manor.
Mr. Vincent is not the only one to speak for the gift wielders. He also has the help of his two best friends, John Rupert and Ulysses Gordon. With so many gift wielders in one place, the three leaders often find themselves being confronted by the URGI and the GIPO. In some countries, the gift-wielders are protected from them, but in others, they are not so fortunate. The three leaders have often spoke out against the ideas of registry, but they try not to force their opinions on the younger ones, leaving the choice to get registered up to them.
John Rupert heads the security side of things, with his gift being the ability to conjure more limbs and having super athletic skills. Security at the BMV mostly includes making sure certain gifts are met with safety restrictions and making sure no lynch mobs have the opportunity to make it past himself.
Ulysses Gordon looks over the media and studies side of things, with his ability granting him hyper intelligence and the ability to communicate through brain waves. While the BHH isn't a worldwide leader in the studies of gifts, they certainly make a lot of progress as far as studies go.
Idea #1: GIFT CLASSIFICATION
As gifts began to appear it became evident to some scientists that some gifts were similar enough to "sort out". The classifications of gifts are as follows: Beam, Mutant, and Evolution.
Beam-type gifts are an activated gift, such as the famed Karnos, with the gift to throw balls of elemental energy from his hands
Mutant-type gifts are gifts that cause the gifted person to have an unchangeable body, such as the popular Drakon, with scales as tough as diamonds that render him nearly indestructible.
Evolution-type gifts are gifts that allow the gifted person to change themselves, like the great Yo-yo, who has the gift to elongate their limbs in an offensive or defensive manner.
Though there are quite a few gifts, scientists have narrowed the known ones to three classifications. Scientists predict that there could be more in the future if more gifts begin to show up.
Though there are studies being made to see if there is a correlation between gift classification and longevity of life, no such progress has been made, considering the fact that those with gifts are exceedingly rare.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Idea #2: The Band of Helping Hands
Another faction on the planet of Thiiv is the Band of Helping Hands (BHH, for short). Their main goal is to show the world that gifts were meant to form joy and brotherhood between those with gifts, not a way to separate those with or without.
The founder of the BHH, Mitchell Vincent, formed the organization as a safe haven for those with gifts that felt it was unsafe for them to continue living where they once were. Mr. Vincent is a renowned speaker, with the gift to make his voice louder or softer at his own will, although making him appear as a lion-like human. (Unfortunate for his parents when he was younger, however.) He often speaks on behalf of younger gift wielders when they make a mistake for the first time, even offering to take them under his wing while they grow. He even invites the parents to accompany their child while at the BHH Manor.
Mr. Vincent is not the only one to speak for the gift wielders. He also has the help of his two best friends, John Rupert and Ulysses Gordon. With so many gift wielders in one place, the three leaders often find themselves being confronted by the URGI and the GIPO. In some countries, the gift-wielders are protected from them, but in others, they are not so fortunate. The three leaders have often spoke out against the ideas of registry, but they try not to force their opinions on the younger ones, leaving the choice to get registered up to them.
John Rupert heads the security side of things, with his gift being the ability to conjure more limbs and having super athletic skills. Security at the BMV mostly includes making sure certain gifts are met with safety restrictions and making sure no lynch mobs have the opportunity to make it past himself.
Ulysses Gordon looks over the media and studies side of things, with his ability granting him hyper intelligence and the ability to communicate through brain waves. While the BHH isn't a worldwide leader in the studies of gifts, they certainly make a lot of progress as far as studies go.
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