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RPG World Building Guide

RPG gamemasters who want to build fictional worlds must consider many interconnected elements to create realism and consistency. The secondary world should reflect the basic physical forces of nature and have a population supported by interconnected industries and resources, with a history shaped by character actions. While detailed explanations aren't needed for every aspect, internal consistency is important to draw players into the story. The game system should not feel constraining and should prioritize storytelling over mechanics. Successful world building requires significant time and thought but results in engaging settings and campaigns.

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381 views1 page

RPG World Building Guide

RPG gamemasters who want to build fictional worlds must consider many interconnected elements to create realism and consistency. The secondary world should reflect the basic physical forces of nature and have a population supported by interconnected industries and resources, with a history shaped by character actions. While detailed explanations aren't needed for every aspect, internal consistency is important to draw players into the story. The game system should not feel constraining and should prioritize storytelling over mechanics. Successful world building requires significant time and thought but results in engaging settings and campaigns.

Uploaded by

Dan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Foundations of World Building

for RPG fictional settings

RPG Gamemasters, once they have a handle on the mechanics and system of the game they are
running, will almost certainly want to try their hand at world building. While this can be a rewarding
process, it is not for the faint-of-heart. The background work required to tell cohesive stories in a
fictional, or secondary, world is daunting.
A secondary world nearly always reflects our real, or primary, world. This must be so for several
reasons.
Our understanding of reality is rooted in our primary world. To understand a secondary world, it
must somehow reflect our primary world. Any fictional world that does not have at least a minimal
reflection of our primary world would require a frightening amount of exposition to impart
understanding to players or readers.
Just as they are in the primary world, the basic forces and processes of nature should be
consistent in the secondary world- rivers do not flow uphill, water follows a cycle, ocean currents affect
weather, earthquakes and volcanoes happen. These and many other physical considerations must be a
consistent foundation in the secondary world. This is not to say that these basic forces cannot be
circumvented by either technology or magic, but the basic consistency must be present.
The elements of our primary world are completely interconnected- geography, population,
languages, characters, events, etc. These and other elements all interact to create history. The
secondary world should be the same. The elements of the secondary world should each contribute to
the illusion of reality within that world so the players are drawn into the story they are helping to tell.
Many gamemasters fail at this point. Sure, you have a grand capital city with a sprawling
marketplace where I can buy whatever I can imagine, but where do these products originate. There is no
thought to the thousands of acres of farmland needed to support a large population- no thought to the
mines, quarries and lumber mills needed to provide the raw materials that will become the products I
wish to purchase- no thought to the history of the world that led to the development of some of those
products. While it is not necessary to fully explain every last detail of the secondary world, the creator of
that world must at least be aware of the necessity of internal consistency.
As the English poet John Donne wrote, “No man is an island.” It is the actions of people in our
primary world that are the greatest cause in the chain of history. This must be so in our secondary world
as well. The actions of characters, whether PC or NPC, must be causes, affecting the future of our
secondary world. If the outcome of the current adventure has no affect in the future, the gamemaster
has missed an opportunity for worldbuilding.
When world building, be cautious that the game system does not become part of the secondary
world, whether in actuality or appearance. The game system is the link between the primary and
secondary world, but not part of the secondary. The game system is how we primary players interact
with the secondary world through our characters. As such, the game system should not feel like a
constraint on storytelling or secondary world history. If it does feel constraining- vary it, change it, get
rid of it- find a system that allows story-telling over mechanics.
World building for a fictional setting is both time consuming and thought consuming. The many
considerations are essential for a consistent secondary world and believable storytelling, but the result
will be worth the effort, for both players and gamemasters.

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