FANTASY SETTING GENERATOR Instructions: To use the Fictional Setting Generator, roll 1d12 for each prompt, and upon conclusion, piece together the results. A healthy imagination is necessary, if one does not have access to a 1d12, the appropriate numbers may be generated at www.random.org. Origin:
1: Unfinished The creation of the world is ongoing, and may never cease. Some things we take for granted may not yet exist, the laws of reality seem illogical at times, and the half-formed landscape is in a constant state of flux.
2: Alien Forged The world was created to serve as a permanent abode for a series of strange and alien entities, and it is likely they will one day return. The world is bizarre and confounds earthly logic.
3: Dreamscape The world is nothing but the dream of a slumbering deity, and none can say when they’ll awaken. Though the world seems mundane enough at first glance, a deeper look reveals that not all is as it seems.
4: Demiurge An imperfect being of immense power created the world, and thus, it is flawed. The world is fundamentally broken, and though the Demiurge is silent; shackled, slumbering, ashamed, or slain, in time, they may free themselves and undo their mistake.
5: True Creator A perfect being of immense power created the world, and at first, it was likewise flawless, but its perfection did not last. Whether by the Creator’s intent, subsequent abandonment, or unforeseen tragedy, the world has become flawed, but it could be far worse.
6: By Committee Numerous divine entities of varying power set out to create the world, and despite their ceaseless bickering, stubborn compromise was made, and in time, it came into being. The world is a diverse landscape, the work of many craftsmen.
7: Mechanistic Impersonal forces of nature created the world, and for better or worse, no deity had a hand in its creation. The world is as could be expected, to the benefit or the detriment of its denizens.
8: Disaster The world came about as the unintentional byproduct of an incomprehensibly vast struggle in the void before creation. The world, though much calmer to an extent, still bears the scars of its birth.
9: Precursors An impossibly advanced post-scarcity civilization created the world with seemingly magical technology to serve their inscrutable needs. Though they are long gone, their legacy remains in the ancient ruins scattered across the world. 10: Profane A hubristic arch-demon of unparalleled power created the world in an Assemblage attempt to make a work of art that would last the test of time. The world is hellish and cruel, but beautiful in its own way.
11: Eternal The world is an enigma, in that it has never not existed in some way, Existence shape, or form. Even the deities can’t remember when it emerged because it has no true beginning, and should all but the most ruinous of ends come to pass, it shall have no end.
12: Dimensional The world is situated in the center of a plane where extra-dimensional Conflux energies once clashed, bringing it forth at the centre of the maelstrom. Though the storm has passed and the world is stable, occasionally outsiders find their way in.
Age:
1: The World is in its Cradle The creation of the world came to a close recently, if it ever did, and its denizens have only begun to master the rudiments of tool-crafting and fire-building.
2: The World is in its Infancy The world is savage, primal, and dominated by wilderness, and armed with the knowledge of their ancestors, its denizens have begun to explore and exploit it.
3: The World is Still Young By and large, nature reigns supreme, but in several regions its denizens have begun to till the earth, construct city-states, and establish sophisticated culture.
4: The World is in its Little by little, nature has begun to give way to civilization, and Adolescence its denizens have begun to sail to distant lands, subjugating other peoples and being subjugated in turn.
5: The World is No Longer The lion’s share of its denizens have settled and founded great Young nations by the sweat of their brow, though the wildest lands and those within them are yet untamed.
6: The World is Mature The world has finally been explored and the wild settled, its denizens have a wealth of wondrous accomplishments, discoveries, and prosperity, and the surplus is such that some have come to question their deepest held notions and certainties.
7: The World is at its Zenith The illustrious civilizations, technological wonders, and horrific wars of the world’s denizens are breathtaking, though in time, their burden on the land may prove too much to carry. 8: The World has begun to The world’s denizens have succumbed to decadence, and Age grown complacent while the resources needed to sustain their comfort run thinner each generation.
9: The World is No Longer The world’s denizens have managed to overcome their ennui, Relevant and in the dawn of a new age, have begun to expand beyond the world, exploring and settling new worlds and dimensions beyond their plane.
10: The World has grown The world’s denizens were unable to overcome their ennui, Old and in time it consumed them. The zenith of the world is a distant memory, civilization has crumbled, and its surviving denizens struggle to scrape by on what little remains.
11: The World is on the The end is nigh, the world has outlived its time, the stench of Verge of Death decay has begun to set in, and final death is inevitable, but it is slow to come, painful, and hard-fought by the few denizens that endure.
12: The World is on the The end has come, the world has died, and much of the legacy Cusp of Rebirth of the ancients has been lost, but little by little, life has begun to return, and the still remaining denizens, hardened by their ancestor’s struggle, have begun to thrive in the ashes.
Deities:
1: Absent The deities of the world are dead, gone, or were never there to begin with. There is nothing to intervene or answer prayers.
2: They Watch The deities of the world are distant observers, and it would take something truly extraordinary to get their attention.
3: Ascended Mortals The deities of the world are not deities, but rather, former mortals that, through strength or through guile, transcended their mortality to become something more.
4: Not Of This World The deities of the world are not of this world at all, but rather, came from another place or another time, perhaps fleeing ennui or seeking to settle.
5: Strange Cosmos The deities of the world are non-anthropomorphic entities, and their logic is nigh-incomprehensible to those who serve them.
6: Familiar Cosmos The deities of the world are a varied lot, resembling larger than life mortals more than anything, with all the good, the bad, and mostly true mythologies that entails. 7: Heavenly Feud The deities of the world are petty, meddling, and powerful, but luckily, the threat of mutually assured deicide keeps them from open conflict, to an extent.
8: Exalted Beasts The deities of the world are dreadful monsters, mindless beasts and natural disasters given godhood.
9: True Divinities The deities of the world are truly supreme beings, present in all places at once, with nigh-limitless power to bring to bear, and a sense of restraint most in their position would lack.
10: Profane Idols The deities of the world are in fact demons, and thus, are much more callous and cruel than one would expect.
11: Double Digits The deities of the world are a varied lot. Reroll twice and combine the results, if another 11 is rolled, add the first result, and continue rerolling until an 11 isn’t rolled.
12: Artificial Idols The deities of the world were created by the mortal races, either formed from their collective subconscious, or arcane constructs of unimaginable potency wrought in the long-forgotten past.
Magic:
1: Magic is Mundane Mortals have no magic, it is solely the domain of the world’s deities and lesser supernatural entities.
2: Magic is Rare The world’s magic is hard to find and harder to use. The vast majority is useless superstition, incredibly tedious to employ, or dangerous to the user, but what works tends to be stronger than the freely available magic of other worlds.
3: Magic is Dark All but the weakest magic comes only through diabolical pacts and unspeakable deeds, and when it does, it is corrupting, chaotic, and catastrophic to the user and their victims alike.
4: Magic takes Tools The mortal mind can’t grasp any but the weakest of magic, only through artifice, scroll-scribbling, alchemy, and enchantments can its energies be brought to bear.
5: Magic is Demanding Magic is both powerful and attainable, but it requires decades of difficult study, ironclad self-control, and immense personal sacrifice from its users.
6: Magic is Inherited Only mortals descended from or greatly favored by supernatural entities can channel magic, and while great within its scope, their power is narrow and limited. 7: Magic is Common The study of magic is well-known and widespread, to the extent a town may have a wizard living between its carpenter and smith, but due to its ubiquity, it tends to be weaker than the less available magic of other worlds.
8: Magic is Myriad Numerous methods of magic exist, everything from dark pacts, to artificial tools, to arduous study, and simple circumstance of birth, and its divergent practitioners may have an intense and oft-bloody rivalry with one another.
9: Magic is Science In their curiosity, mortals have codified and tested magic to the extent it’s seen as merely another discipline of science, and broadly implemented in technology.
10: Magic is Everywhere Powerful magic is freely accessible, at minimal to no cost and risk to its users, and magical entities that may be rare in other worlds readily serve mortals in all aspects of life.
11: Double Digits Roll again, keeping the result, with the caveat that magic comes from, or through the deities of the world. If another 11 is rolled, discount it and reroll until another result is found.
12: Magic is Bound The mortal races aren’t able to wield magic on their own, instead they must give up a part of themselves to bind a spirit’s soul to theirs, or entrap a spirit in an item of precious value and force it to cast at its wielder’s command
Intelligent Species:
1-2: Only Humans exist in the world.
3: Only Humans, and 1d3 significant subspecies exist in the world.
4: Humans and one other species exist in the world.
5-6: Humans and 1d3 other species exist in the world.
7-8: Humans and 1d6 other species exist in the world..
9: Humans and 2d6 other species exist in the world
10: No Humans exist in the world, instead, there are 1d3 other species.
11: No Humans exist in the world, instead, there are 1d6 other species.
12 No Humans exist in the world, instead, there are 2d6 other species.
Species Archetypes:
1: Brute This species is known for its prodigal strength, near-endless endurance, and dim wittedness.
2: Vermin This species is known for its individual incompetence, short lifespan, and rapid rate of reproduction.
3: Agile This species is known for its incredible dexterity, mind-boggling flexibility, and skill at moving unseen.
4: Elder This species is known for its ancient history, long lifespan, deep wisdom, and keen intellect.
5: Comfy This species is known for its tight-knit families, friendly demeanor, and talent at agriculture.
6: Alien This species is known for the unsettling adaptations that allow it to thrive in areas other species couldn’t.
7: Artisan This species is known for its industriousness, secretive demeanor, and talent at craftsmanship.
8: Big/Tiny This species is known for its physical stature, which is much larger, or smaller than other species.
9: Arcane This species is known for its high affinity for the supernatural, or its seemingly supernatural abilities.
10: Collective This species is known for its intensely hierarchal society, and the huge variation between its castes.
11: Double Reroll twice and combine the results. If an 11 is rolled again, discount it, and Digits reroll until 11 isn’t rolled.
12: Mundane This species is known for its lack of distinguishing traits, versatile mediocrity, and widespread settlement.
Interspecies Relationships:
1: Master Race One species is widely considered to be superior paragons, to which others should defer.
2: Enslaved One species is widely considered to be inferior, and is enslaved to an extent by the other species. 3: Race War The species rarely meet, unless weapons are drawn. There is a long-held and irreconcilable animosity between the species.
4: Deep Mistrust The species shun and avoid one another if possible, though outright violence is uncommon, race riots aren’t unheard of.
5: That Part of Town Members of both species that live in the same region are discouraged from closer association. Any close relationships would mark those involved as pariahs.
6: Separate But Equal The species have no hate for one another, and show their respect by staying out of each other’s way. Though there may be trade, the societies themselves are largely separate.
7: Pragmatic Members of both species are businesslike in their dealings with one another, if it pays off to band together they’ll do so, but they won’t go out of their way to integrate.
8: Melting Pot The species meet, trade, and form alliance fairly cordially, but primarily in trade hubs and major population centers. Sparks fly and cultures blend.
9: Amicable Members of both species get along fairly well, all things considered. There are prejudices, but they are by no means universal.
10: Friendly The species are quite close to one another, and interspecies marriages are not uncommon, though there are some few who’d prefer to remain separate.
11: What Species? Members of both species are blind to their differences, and view themselves as one and the same in all matters, save mutually exclusive physical needs, of course.
12: The Same Members of both species are in fact members of the same species, Species and can’t exist without one another, each is either different phases in the species’ lifespan, or only gender that requires the other to reproduce. If deemed appropriate, this table may be rerolled to determine the relations between each part of the species.
Physical Composition:
1: Frozen The world is icy cold, dominated by endless swathes of tundra, vast pine forests, and glacial clusters, here, warm weather is rare, and food is scarce.
2: Far Up Above The world’s landmass is comprised of a series of floating islands, constantly orbiting and colliding with one another, far above a bottomless void.
3: Archipelago The world is ocean as far as the eye can see, there are no landmasses save a series of scant island chains and coral reefs, the concept of continents is widely regarded as fiction.
4: Almost Archipelago The world is almost entirely ocean, aside from a handful of middling continents, the entirety of the world’s landmass is made of scant island chains and coral reefs.
5-7: Earth-Like The world boasts a balanced spread of continents and islands of various size, with a wide array of biomes and environs.
8: Almost Pangean The majority of the world’s landmass is contained within a single large continent, though there are some lesser continents and scant island chains.
9: Pangean The entirety of the world’s landmass is contained within a single, enormous continent, surrounded by seemingly endless oceans.
10: Deep Underground The world is so deep the sky is considered a myth, consisting of a series of vast caverns, sprawling tunnel networks, and the rare waterflow from above.
11: Interplanar Maze The world isn’t contained in the same dimension, rather, it is a series of pocket dimensions linked by an intricate network of portals, either naturally occurring or generated by magic. If deemed appropriate, this table may be rerolled to determine trends in the sub-dimensions.
12: Scorching The world is scorching hot, dominated by endless swathes of rocky desert, parched badlands, and winding rivers, here, cold weather is rare, and water is scarce.