Rusty Gold MasterDoc
**
This is an Obsidian Vault that has been exported as a pdf. Pinks links are scattered throughout, but sadly the links
don’t work on the pdf. Just keep in mind that anything pink and underlined is a thing or concept that is defined or
explained in a different section.
still incomplete but I'm trying not to give into worldbuilder's disease and just write the story
World Building
Definitions and stuff
Krysus
#Worldbuilding
Name of this world.
Chrysus - Greek for gold
minor god in Greek mythology and the personification of gold
The word also sounds a bit like "crisis" and I think that's funny. a world named crisis.
Entomon
#Worldbuilding
Butterflies
Bees
Just an excuse for me to infodump about insects
Have the wings of a specific insect that can be summoned at will. Not everyone is able to summon wings if
they don’t have enough natural magic (Essence).
Tend to be shorter and a bit wiry compared to humans, better for flight. Have some sort of facial markings,
making them easy to identify even without wings. None of them grow facial hair because I said so.
Most insects are pollinators in some way or another so flowers are very important in their different cultures.
Each group has their own power, with varying degrees of strength from person to person
Based on all sorts of insects, but we’ll only focus on three types for simplicity and they're the only ones
important right now. (Butterflies, bees, and beetles. the three B’s)
If a country is run by one group of Entomon, they’re not the only ones that live there. They're just the largest
population or at least the population that has the most control.
Monarch Butterfly
Blue Morpho Butterfly
Honey Bee
Carpenter Bee
Bumble Bee
Beetles
Golden-Ringed Dragonfly
Firefly
Jewel Beetle
Ladybug
Scarab
Markings
#Worldbuilding
Races who have natural magic have some sort of marking on their body that glows when they use essence.
Bumblebee Markings
thick dark band around the arm
two dark stripes that go around the torso
Carpenter Bee Markings
Two blue amorphous splotches (not sure how else to describe this shape) on the back
Firefly Markings
two beige half circle under the eyes
marking will sometimes glow like when blushing, even when essence is not being used (it's just cute)
Honeybee Markings
two dark stripes around the arms
one stripe around the neck
Ladybug Markings
two dark spots under the eyes
two dark spots on the shoulder
Monarch Butterfly Markings
Light spots on the cheeks
Light spots on both shoulders
Avians
Countries
#Worldbuilding
can change into bird people.
Owl
Peafowl
Peregrine Falcon
Naiad
#Worldbuilding
Can change into a form that can breathe underwater and swim well. mermaid but without tails. webbed feet?
Koi
Hikmah
#Worldbuilding
Arabic for wisdom
A kingdom that’s basically the Islamic golden age if they were never destroyed. They are the only ones to
really stand a chance against Silph. They value the sharing and preservation of knowledge, contrasting Silph’s
heavy censorship practices and revisionist history. They also value wizardry over witchcraft, having respect
for the amount of work it takes to hone the practice when witchcraft seems to be a lot more about being born
lucky. Responsible for the preservation of a lot of classic works and alchemy texts.
Ruled by Avians
A lot of different groups of fireflies make their way to the country to study astronomy and illusion magic.
Studying here is considered very prestigious. Silphion students are prohibited from traveling to the country to
study as the war comes to Hikmah’s door, the students who are already in the country are stuck in the
country when the border closes. Silph spreads propaganda that those students are being held hostage.
Danaus
#Worldbuilding
Danaus (scientific name for the monarch butterfly and a mythical king of Libya). Name given to them during
their colonization by Silph.
Butterflies are pollinators so the country has a big agricultural industry and has a lot of exports because of it.
Gold is already very abundant in this world, to the point where it isn’t really valuable, but it’s especially
prevalent there. There isn’t much practical use for it so it is used for decorations and ornamentation.
Fought for their independence against an invading force that had control for over a century (Silph) and the
country still hasn’t fully recovered. While they are rebuilding they deal with the Mellifera who promise to help
them rebuild, but are really working to push out the royal family so Silph can take over again.
In the present day their royal family has been reduced to a more ceremonial role, focusing on the protection
of monarch butterfly populations and not having much control over the government.
The monarchy was more of a constitutional monarchy, where the head of the family is the head of a council
rather than having complete control.
Large quartz(or some made up crystal I'll come up with later) mines help with the country’s economy, giving
them some power but also gives Silph a reason to take them over.
Silphion Empire
Inyosi
#Worldbuilding
East African Lowland Honey Bee
Inyosi (Xhosa for bee)
Based on east and southeast Africa
The type of bees that were bred with european honey bees and became the Africanized honey bee in the
americas.
Tend to keep to themselves, in the sense that they don’t try to expand. They are very violent toward intruders
and outsiders, fiercely protecting their colonies because of living in a harsh environment and having to deal
with the Mellifera in their past.
Export some crops and textiles, but no honey. They have enough trouble making honey from their
environment and conserving their supplies.
Remain neutral in Mellifera and Nyuki conflict, knowing they don’t have the resources to fight against the
Mellifera and the Silphion.
Their heir to the throne is mentored by the standing queen. Not necessarily the queen's daughter, but can be.
As part of her education, she follows the queen as a sort of lady in waiting, serving the queen but also
shadowing her while she works so she will be ready to take the throne when she is of age.
The queen acts as a mother not only to her heir, but to her people as well. There is a big emphasis on
motherhood and taking care of children, as children belong to everyone and are everyone’s responsibility.
Nyuk
#Worldbuilding
nyukic
nyukian
More of a city state than a country
Africanized Bee
Nyuki (Swahili for bee, since the original bees were taken from what is now Tanzania). Get called killer bees
after them breaking away caused the death of a queen.
Group of bees that broke away from the Mellifera after being subjugated and used for forced labor. Not big
enough to be their own colony.
Bees that were taken from africa and accidently let loose in south america.
The Nyuki are blamed for being too aggressive and invasive, ignoring the fact that they were brought over by
the Mellifera and let loose in a habitat that they weren’t made for.
Fight back against Mellif, just wanting to be left alone and have their independence after being forced to have
their labor used to benefit the Mellifera. Get labeled as a violent force that needs to be stamped out.
Only bee colony with a king
Silph
#Worldbuilding
Large empire. Global superpower stretching across multiple continents. Trying to keep their control, but their
grip is starting to slip as their empire is showing signs of collapsing in on itself from its sheer size.
Witches and Wizards
The main story takes place during a war for independence, one of Silph’s territories would like to break
away from the empire, and our characters get caught up in it while they desperately try to just live their
lives.
Silphium - A type of Apiaceae, the flower of certain crops like carrot, celery, coriander, cumin,
parsley, and parsnip. Silph may actually be extinct, but was used in classical antiquity as a
seasoning, perfume, aphrodisiac, and medicine.
Could be a metaphor for the country idealizing the past and wanting to build an empire like those in the
past.
Stated goal is working towards the success of this great empire of the past, back when they didn’t have
magic, when seemingly no one on the planet had magic.
Silph is run by an empress, a Witch who is ridiculously powerful and keeps her political power because no
one dares challenge her. The entire empire has run this way, the ridiculously powerful royal family keeping
political power through the show of magical dominance.
Marriages are always arranged in powerful families, love being irrelevant as long as you can produce a
powerful heir.
Consider themselves a meritocracy. If you have powerful magic and work to hone your skill, it is
expected that you can rise through the ranks and make a name for yourself, no matter how untrue this
really is in practice.
Basically the British empire when they were at the top of their game, just more intimidating as their leaders
are super powerful witches.
Entomon and Avians are not permitted to fly in public areas.
Witchcraft being practiced publicly is a relatively recent development in terms of human history, only about
300 years old. Before that, witches were persecuted, seeing their power as demonic. Witches developed their
own networks and secret societies, protecting those born with magic and practicing wizardry. Their numbers
and power grew to the point where they were able to gain control, and now used their power to “bring their
enlightenment and prosperity to the rest of the world”. Silph uses their new found power to expand and push
back against the other countries that have been established for centuries with their own magic, going from a
small island to a global empire in those 300 years.
- They also bring their other ideas to these other countries, like how the practice of magic should be limited to
the elite and those with natural power, keeping magic out of the hands of the common people and
indoctrinating witches into the elite.
Colonies
Ora
Conquered Territory
Mellif
Danaus (formerly)
Wizardry is sometimes looked down upon by witches, seen as the school of magic for those who aren’t cut out
for witchcraft. Looked down a lot more in Silph, believing that any kind of magic should only be used by
people who are born with it and that wizardry is akin to blasphemy, also to push anti-intellectualism.
Wizardry is closer to science than magic, while a lot of witchcraft isn’t very well understood despite being
such an important part of different cultures.
The social hierarchy of magic from top to bottom; sorcerers, witches, wizards, and everyone else. Wizards
typically have no natural magic and gain power through study, training, and use of magic items. Witches and
sorcerers are essentially the same, a sorcerer just being a title that a witch can be awarded through a show of
raw power and service to their people. All witches in important positions of power have earned the title of
Cities
sorcerer, their strength and skill in magic being the justification for their position, whether or not they really
are effective leaders.
Meli
Ora
#Worldbuilding
Colony of Silph
Cities
Settings
Main setting
Trying to gain their independence from Silph.
Currently in an economic boom and is a magnet for immigration. Many groups flock to the area for the
chance at better work or seeking refuge from their war-torn homes.
A lot of racism from the Silphion colonists. Mellifera are sometimes spared this treatment, but not entirely.
They are seen as “the good ones” when it comes to Entomon, not fully respected even though they are titans
of industry. The Mellifera tend to be richer than the more powerful witches, but no amount of new money can
buy respect from old money type families. Money can buy political power though.
cool capital (New Meli {honey in Greek})
more industrial center with a lot of factories (Assel {honey in Arabic})
more rural area (Pondbury)
Smallmeadow (a town further north, closer to the equator)
New Meli
Honeyoak Academy
Roslin's Tavern
A museum later on
A hospital later on
Pondbury
Tavern
Secret Library
Mellif
#Worldbuilding
Mellifera (scientific name, Latin for honey-bearing)
European Honey Bee
an amalgamation of Europe (Spain??)
The Mellifera are more an absolute monarchy, bordering on an authoritarian dictatorship. Their harmful
intentions are clear to anyone in the elite class, but the common people are mostly unaware of it due to
sneaky propaganda and good PR. The honey bees also do a lot to come off as sweet and docile and only
Education
Silphion Education System
fighting when provoked, when they're really the ones who incite violence and paint themselves as the victims
who were just defending themselves. History is always written by the victors.
European honey bees are good for pollinating crops and producing a surplus of honey that can be harvested,
but they tend to outcompete the native bees when they are brought to a new area.
The working class Mellifera are usually more equal, but there is still a bit of sexism against the males. The
gender roles are much more extreme in the upper classes, males not having much in the way of rights.
The government is much more authoritarian, to the point where people are assigned jobs and only the elite
get to have normal family structures. Children live away from their parents after a certain age, not having
usual family ties once they are adults.
Those in the top forces have the chance at producing an heir to the throne. When the queen is growing old, or
is planning to expand and build another colony, their children can be fed royal jelly when young to grow into
a queen. Those children have no choice in the matter, so there’s room for angst. Once those queens have
grown, they pit against each other in a fight to the death until there is only one. Like the career tributes in the
hunger games.
When real world bee colonies need a new queen, they feed royal jelly to multiple larvae, and whichever one
emerges first will go on to eat the others before they can emerge because there can only be one.
The potential queens fight when they are still pretty young, adding to the horror. They’ve learned enough
about combat and magic to fight against each other, but not enough to fight against the system and escape it.
Pretty brutal way of running a government, but they tend to keep this practice a secret among the elite, away
from the general public and the rest of the world, keeping up their appearance of being friendly and docile
people who only attack when provoked. They tend to instigate conflict and seed internal conflict in less stable
countries, forcing them to attack first so they can have the appearance of their disproportionate retribution
being justified, portraying multiple invasions as them just descending themselves.
They used to wait until the girls reached maturity, but after an incident involving multiple queens banding
together to try and take down the standing queen and stop these battles from happening, the practice was
called into question. It failed and every queen who was raised for this battle was executed, even the ones that
weren’t involved because authoritarianism. A single queen was raised after that disaster and took the throne
through inheritance rather than the usual blood bath. She was considered a terrible leader and blamed for
nearly losing the war against Silph, so she was taken down and the blood sport was reinstated. The argument
was that the queen who won in the battle would prove themselves to be a better leader and war general. The
battle was then held with much younger girls so they were easier to control and less likely to revolt.
After a few more generations, Silph has taken over and forcibly removed the standing high queen.
Honey is a huge export, being used more than table sugar. A lot of atrocities happened in our world for the
trade of sugar, so it’s easy to imagine the atrocities that can be caused for the trade of honey.
There are other honey bee colonies, but they mostly keep to themselves and don’t try to create more colonies
and expand.
Bee purity culture? If the gender roles are reversed for Mellif, then would young boys be getting the talk about
saving themselves for marriage or maybe they don’t get married at all since child care is done communally
rather than a nuclear family unit. I like the idea of them not really having the concept of fathers, the way real
drones bees technically don’t have a father.
Aptitude test
#Worldbuilding
a test taken when children are around 16 years old, at the end of their secondary school education. Silph presents
Magic
themselves as a meritocracy, and those do well academically are afforded more opportunities in their higher
education and career prospects. Of course, those who score well are usually students who have had years of
private tutoring and private school education, on top of having unrestricted time to study. sort of their main shot
for class mobility. if you don't poorly, a lot of doors are closed.
the results of the test can be used to apply to universities and apprenticeships, and usually involve a suggestion as
to what career the subject should pursue given their current abilities.
the main reason the test is taken at 16 is because that is when magic abilities have usually finished developing, so
if someone doesn't show magical abilities at this point, it's likely they never will. those with promising magical
abilities can go into formal training, while those who don't can go into other areas of study or learn a trade. the
main goal of the aptitude test is actually to assess magical abilities and how powerful those abilities are.
possible academic test acronyms?
GEM
JEWEL
Primary School
#Worldbuilding
typically ages 5-10 years old
not much to say, reading and writing, arithmetic, just a percussor to secondary school.
Secondary School
#Worldbuilding
typically age 11-16
Honeyoak Academy
this period of time is treated as preparation for the aptitude test.
the ages where children usually start to show magical abilities and marking appear. some might take
specialized classes if they've already show magical abilities.
magnet school for entomon??
the academy that our main gang go to before the timeskip
Essence
#Worldbuilding
Magical energy
Every living thing has some amount of essence as it the life energy of all living things. If the essence of a living
being is running to low, they become fatigued and fall ill. Once they are completely drained they will die.
Different races who are magic users have more essence then is necessary to sustain life, and this extra energy
manifest as markings unique to each magic using race.
TLDR, essence is basically just mana, but mana is mostly a videogame term and I think it sound stupid.
circling back around to the elemental magic system. I doesn't have to entirely make since, it just needs to be
consistent in the way that they interact with each other. They're the raw power that witches can control. sort of
just throwing around the forces of nature at their enemies. I think they should be considered the building blocks
of life.
Fire and water are clear opposites. Ether is very vaguely defined, sort of energy manipulation. Their able to scan
people's minds? I've always liked that idea. Controlling life energy? Plants and Decay are opposites?
Embodiment magic can usually only use their magic in a specific way. Monarch healing falls under ether, but it's
limited and their only able to heal.
Thaumaturgy can use any of these elements in any combination for a wide variety of spells, but their limited by
how hard it is to get their hands on items charged with that type of essence. Fire essence is the most used for this
purpose, as their the easiest to recharge, just stick the gem in the sun. Life essence is collected from certain plants
that need to be grown. Decay essence is collected from from certain fungi as they're decomposers. Water essence
is harder to get you hands on, being collected from moonlight and the moon is frequently not at full brightness,
constantly waxing and wanning. so water witches are probably more sought after. Charging crystals with ether is
more labor intensive, it being generated similar to how we generate electricity. they currently rely on power plants
that burn coal or some other material? Maybe there a push for converting fire or plant energy into ether since it's
more environmentally friendly, but it's not as efficient or cost effective as burning fossil fuels so there isn't a lot of
money behind it.
Ether ---> Quartz (all types, quite versatile, clear quartz probably works the best)
Fire ---> Ruby?
Water ---> blue sapphire?
Decay ---> Jet
Life ---> amber
Embodiment races have feature that can be summoned at will
- gills or wings
Some materials found in nature have natural essence that can be used by wizards to power magic items for
spells.
Gemstones have a lot of essence that are preferred for magic items. The gemstones can be recharged with
other natural materials or from other magic user who produce their own essence naturally.
- Some gemstones can be altered to only absorb essence.
- Used as restraints for magic users, usually witches as they're quite powerful. Used in physical restraints like
handcuffs, or embedded into the walls of a room like a jail sell.
- Some witches aren't able to control their magic while their young, and these absorbing gemstones are worn
as jewelry to prevent magical outbursts.
Ether is used like electricity to power cities as the Silph and their territories are the first to enter an industrial
revolution.
Using essence as a power source is a clean energy source, but it's production uses a lot of labor exploitation
and conflict arises for control of gemstone mines.
While essence is necessary for life, too much of it is toxic. overuse by witches and sometimes other magic
users can cause deterioration and the growth of these crystals in the body. it's not seen in wizards since their
magic comes from external sources, but they can still become sick from over exposure.
Thaumaturgy
#Worldbuilding
Official name of Wizardry.
Thaumaturgy can be studied by anyone, human or otherwise, requiring no natural magic and can always be
improved with more training and the gaining of knowledge. With it being something to study different people in
different parts of the world would have all developed their own ways of using it.
focus on Silph Thaumaturgy for clarity.
Types of magic that fall under thaumaturgy
Users called thaumaturges. More commonly called wizards, alchemists, mages, or spellcasters.
Is somewhat of a softer magic system, even though it's treated in universe as a hard science. Why? I'm stupid and
don't trust myself to build a hard magic system that makes sense, so keep the rules loose should make things
easier. Can't contradict yourself if you never give any hard and fast rules.
Where does magic come from?
Alchemy
Ceremonial Magic
Divination (informal, can't actually predict the future but is practiced anyways)
Sigils
Essence is a magical energy. Essence can be found concentrated in all sorts of natural material (certain
plants, gemstones)
- Essence is found in some amounts for all living things, as it is an energy necessary for life itself. Extra
essence that isn't just for keep things alive can be harnessed and used for thaumaturgy.
Who can use this magic?
Thaumaturgy can be done by anyone, at least in theory. In practice, it requires a lot of study to be even
halfway good at using it, and having the time (and usually money) to study can be a huge barrier to entry.
Silph specifically puts more barrier to who can get into these thaumaturgy programs.
Cultural differences?
Since magic is learned in a more academic setting, these universities are always discovering new things that
can be done with magic, creating new technologies and field of study over the years.
different cultures who are very spread out all over the planet have very different ways of doing magic, having
their own schools of thought when in comes to magic and ways of teaching.
With recent globalization, things are become more standardized (anything other than Hikmah schools are
considered less than and not as "advanced")
How is this magic used?
Items that contain essence
Gemstones are the preferred item for thaumaturgy. The gems can hold a ton of energy in such a small
space. Most gems absorb the energy around them, so when their first mined they're usually ready to go.
they can be recharged pretty easily. (How exactly??) The gems can also be altered to not absorb the
energy around them, or to constant absorb energy very quickly in different ranges.
Gold has been known to be very good at conducting and storing essence and has been used in
thaumaturgy since it's inception. More recently, gold bars are being mass produced that have an essence
charge (aurum) and act as power sources. Gold is very accessible in this world and aurum as a power
source is much more accessible than charged gemstones. Gold is used less of a precious metal used for
ornamentation and more an important, useful resource for everyday life, like iron I guess.
Gold bars can be used to practice Thaumaturgy as they are cheaper than gemstones, but can't be
used for super powerful magic.
Incantations?
- I really want to come back around to the idea of spoken magic. The spoken words cause the essence around
them (?) to act according to their word. I still have no idea how that would work, but would be a cool
application for a conlang.
- Spoken magic would also require a ton of study to learn the language, even more study than what would be
necessary for thaumaturgy, so it's not commonly used.
- Spoken magic could also go hand in hand with music. Musical rituals to case a spell?
Education
Academic - the usual way. It's important to have a grasp of the fundamentals before moving on to anything
more complex. (What exactly are the fundamentals?)
Classes and lectures
Self-taught - Some people don't make it all the way through formal education. Some don't go at all, and have
a nonstandard way of practicing. While the informal practices are not respected, (and sometimes illegal) it
could be pretty hard to go against in a fight when they have such a completely different approach to magic.
- Formal magic is more academic. Street magic is probably more combat based.
- Street magic is demonized but is really it's own school of magic.
- typically practiced in dense urban areas and varies from city to city
- A lot more focused on combat and self defense. Sometimes used in the production of illicit substance and
other organized crime. Frequently used by the Ora Rebellion, causing the unofficial practice of thaumaturgy
to go from not respected to straight up illegal
Probably has a cool glowing visual flair.
What is the cost? (limitations)
Wands, amulets, and other magic items need some sort of power source. (gemstones, aurum, some other
items in a pinch) This power source will eventually run out and need to be replaced. This can get quite
expensive, not just the materials but also the schooling.
Regulations
Silph has created a system where only those who go through the formal magic education system are
issued a license are able to legal practice thaumaturgy. (could write an entire faux snippet from a history
textbook on what cause these regulations to be put in place) Those who are studying are typically only
meant t use magic while supervised, but people break this rule all the time (like driving without a
license, just don't get caught). Young children have their magic items confiscated outside of instruction
period to make sure their aren't any incidents.
Since practicing thaumaturgy in Silph requires a degree and a license, there's actually a pretty
small pool of wizards running around. The system prevents people from lower classes from
practicing, and licenses can be revoked for all sorts of reasons. Thaumaturgy should theoretically
be a way to make magic more accessible, but Silph has restricted it greatly.
Restriction of knowledge - Learning thaumaturgy requires a lot of study and practice. A lot of people wouldn't
see it as worth their time, especially with the other barriers to entry
Social impact
People's perception: Thaumaturgy isn't as respected in Silph seeing as it isn't a natural talent and witches are
the ones in charge.
Economics: Ora wizards are quite wealthy as they are the center for global aurum production and new aurum
technologies.
Religious impact: Any type of of Magic was punished in Silph a few centuries back, so Silph is actually really
behind in terms of thaumaturgy, their powerful wizards usually being from places like Hikmah (which could
be important later)
Physical impact: Magic Animals? I really want phoenixes and dragons. cool plants?
Environmental Impact: Gemstone mining and aurum production is actually quite harmful to the
environment. People are only now discovering just how detrimental these productions might be.
Witchcraft
#Worldbuilding
Natural talent.
control the raw elements
Users called witches. those in higher positions of power are called sorcerers
very soft system. know in universe to be a powerful magic, but very fickle and unpredictable. sometimes essence
just does what ever it wants when witches use it. Why is this? shrugs.
Where does this magic come from?
User themselves. Witches have a shit ton of natural essence.
Who can use this magic?
only witches, those who are born with it.
Social pressures: most witches are pressured into a sort of career that uses that magic. Not doing witchcraft
professionally is seen as a waste of your potential and is seen as shameful.
How is this magic used?
Something instinctual, can be hard to control without focus or training.
Education
Almost always taught through an apprentice system. Witches usually have the expectation that they will have
to take one apprentice at some point. Only those with very important and demanding careers are exempt
from taking an apprentices, usually those in military and government positions.
There is some standards on what a witch should be able to do at certain milestones, but there is no standard
education. Powerful witch families would put more effort into making sure their children are mentored by
other powerful witches, or sometimes mentor their children themselves.
What are the costs? (limitations)
Exchange of energy: While witches have a huge reserve of essence, it's not limitless and they can eventually
run out, needing time to rest and recuperate.
Regulations: Some witches have very out of control magic, more common while their young but can continue
into adulthood. these witches are given gemstones that have been altered to absorb essence and prevent
magical outburst.
these gemstones are also used as restraints for witches and other natural magic users. if someone was
arrested, they would be retrained with cuffs that block the use of magic whether they knew the person
was a user or not.
Restrictions due to consequences: Witches can sometime use too much essence, pushing themselves to the
point of exhaustion.
reaching this point of exhaustion regularly could cause magic burnout?
overuse can also cause crystals to form in the body, are very sharp and painful
can happen to other natural magic users but usually witches are the only ones who have enough
essence to cause these crystals to form
could also cause maddness?
a genetic disease that can cause essence to attack the body (autoimmune disease?)
Restriction due to knowledge: A witch who hasn't completed an apprenticeship could still do very crude raw
damage dealing, but can't do complex spells or control their magic very well. They're also more likely to hurt
themselves from improper to technique or overworking themselves
Social impact
Witches are at the top in Silph (politically and as a social class)
lots of blood supremacy
Embodiment Magic
#Worldbuilding
Include entomon, avains, and Naiad.
magic is explained more in depth on each individual race page. this page is just an overview with a few example so
it remains a reasonable length.
Beings that embody the trait of a certain animal. the magic that they gain from the animals is sometimes more
metaphorical than straight forward so I can do whatever I want.
Honeybees having poison and dragonflies being fast fliers is straight forward. Fireflies being illusionists is a bit of
an abstraction (being able to manipulate light morphs into being able to trick the senses). Butterflies are just me
doing whatever I want (Monarchs can heal and blue morphos can somewhat see the future. what does this have to
do with butterflies? nothing.)
What are these users called?
Where does the magic come from?
This is a bit complicated. Entomon, Avains and Naiads are considered distinct groups with their own
subgroups, but they all use embodiment magic.
Also a very soft magic, but all the magic is soft
the user themselves. They use natural essence like witches, but also use essence to summon certain attributes
(wings, gills, maybe tails?) have less essence than witches. Typically only have enough essence for
summoning their attribute, but some have enough essence to use a talent that's specific to that race. having a
talent is a bit uncommon, but not super rare.
social pressures: those with these special talents might also be pressured into a similar career, similar to
witch but probably less shaming.
How is the magic used?
Summoning attributes is something instinctual. You just sort of do it, like breathing, you can't really explain
it to someone who doesn't already know
talents are also pretty instinctual, but they can learn to improve them and have better control.
Education
flying and swimming would be taught by family or the community.
(an entomon who wasn't raised around other entomon would be able to summon their wings, but might
not know how to fly without being taught)
dragonflies are a bit more involved, learning to make tight turns and teaching them how to use essence
to pick up speed
some talents can be improved upon through thaumaturgy
- monarchs studying to be doctors, bumblebees studying to be botanists, honeybees studying alchemy
What are the costs? (Limitations)
Exchange of energy: use essence, have to learn to be aware of how much essence they have and how to
conserve energy for when you really need it
Regulations: Silph again has restrictions. They know this magic is useful and can do things that witchcraft
can't (witchcraft is more elemental).
Silph puts regulations on flying as they don't consider it useful unless your a dragonfly.
Silph used to have more Naiads in the past as dock workers. They've been demonized and driven out in
recent years (still not sure how I want this to go)
Priorities the immigration of those seen as useful (causing a "brain drain" in the countries they emigrate
from. or I guess "magic drain"?). Include dragonflies, monarch butterflies, and bees. (why exactly are
Magic Items - Generic
Types of Gemstones
they useful?) Other users aren't considers useful and are respected. Those who are useful aren't fully
respected either, more tolerated than anything else.
Restrictions due to consequences: Have less natural essence and get exhausted more easily.
Social impacts
Honeybees control the honey industry, very wealthy and carved out their own place in society. (organized
crime? honey mafia?)
Monarch butterfly healing is quite miraculous and sought after, but they don't get the subsequent respect.
Typically overworked and more prone to burnout
More concerned with protecting the environment since most believe their magic comes from the animal they
embody
this is true. blue morphos have less power as the actual butterflies became endangered. healing magic
also becomes more rare as the actual monarch butterflies also become endangered, which actually get
some people to care since healing magic is more important to their society.
Wand
#Worldbuilding
gold rods - new, aurum tech
wooden wands with gems embedded - more traditional, and much more effective
most common in colleges as training tools. some wizard continue to use them if they have a flair for the dramatic,
but their considered old fashion outside of an academic context.
Wearables
#Worldbuilding
seen more with people who use thaumaturgy for work and their everyday lives.
arm cuffs that can have small gems or aurum inserted for an essence boost, used mostly to supplement
embodiment magic talents.
amulets and bracelets can have larger gemstones for most sophisticated spell casting. also able to easily replace
gem stones when essence runs low.
armor? people experimenting with using aurum in fashion for impossible looks?
Aurum
#Worldbuilding
Aurum used to be capitalized like a proper noun, but started to be spelled with a lowercase as the word was used
more frequently. like E-Mail eventually became email.
Aurum, the Latin word for gold and the source of its chemical symbol, "Au"
Aurum is gold that has been charged with essence and can be used for at sorts of things (a cheaper way to
charge wands and other magic items, used in pretty much all new technologies as wires for conducting
essence, a small aurum battery can power a lightbulb for 1,000 hours). Gold is a very plentiful resource is this
world, but charging the gold with essence is what makes it valuable.
some sort of alloy that makes it more stable for storing essence?
Magic Items - Important
Quartz
charge with ether to be used as power sources or as boosts to people use use ether naturally.
sort of like the baseline gemstones. it's versatile and can be used for all sort of things. not everything, other
gemstones would be need for super specialized needs, but we don't see any witches up close in this book so we'll
cross that bridge when we come to it.
we see them used for healing a lot, in traditional healing from Danaus and also in the optimized way their used in
the Ora hospitals.
clear quartz would be the most effective, but different quartz would probably fall under here.
Jet
used to store decay essence.
Jet is a type of lignite, the lowest rank of coal, and is a gemstone. Unlike many gemstones, jet is not a mineral, but
is rather a mineraloid. It is derived from wood that has changed under extreme pressure. Jet is a product of
decomposition of wood from millions of years ago, commonly the wood of trees of the family Araucariaceae.
Amber
gemstone for storing life essence
Amber is fossilized tree resin. Examples of it have been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since the
Neolithic times, and worked as a gemstone since antiquity. Amber is used in jewelry and as a healing agent in folk
medicine.
The Golden Artifacts
#Worldbuilding
Little miss plot devices- the golden trio
(it's actually based on the golden weapons from Ninjago, but that's embarrassing)
the three function like aurum, anyone with gold rod wand experience should be able to use them to some affect.
the main difference is that they don't run out of energy the way that regular aurum does. they never need to be
recharged, which baffles most people. they also give special powers to specific entomon, the reason for this is
unknow for out main characters, and an entomon in that family of entomon can also access that power, but it
takes a toll on their bodies faster. even for those that are chosen to wield these artifacts, it can destroy their bodies
from over use. unlike regular aurum items that just project essence from inside the item, these artifacts channel
essence through the user, making them more effective but also harming the user with overuse.
since these fuckers were made by basically divine intervention, they have a seemingly infinite power source and
are clearly breaking the laws of conservation of energy that everyone else has to follow. The limitations of using
these to solve problems comes from the fact that only entomon can use them, and using them for too long
channels a shit ton of energy through someone's body which is eventually toxic.
The Honeybee Comb
meant to be wielded by a honey bee
gold weapon: palintonos bow (that impossible to string bow that Odysseus used)
Races
Entomon
The Diadem of Danaus
meant for a monarch butterfly
The Elytron Amulet
meant for a scarab beetle.
with infinite ammo since the the bow and arrows are summoned from thin air
The word diadem derives from the Greek διάδημα diádēma, "band" or "fillet", from διαδέω diadéō, "I bind
round", or "I fasten"
power: destruction, opposite of healing
The monarch butterflies being healers and most believing in pacifism. this was a power granted so they
could have a chance to protect themselves against invading forced, it did not work out.
gold weapon: sword
gold weapon: battle axe
the axe can be impractically large because it's magic and can probably make itself lighter for the user or
something
Human
#Worldbuilding
While they are referred to as different species in-universe, the “species” are all just humans with different
manifestations of magic, but have divided themselves as if they are different species.
A lot later in the series there could be a movement to refer to them as different races rather than species, seeing as
without their magic, their biology is pretty much identical.
Those who refer to themselves as "human" are those without any natural magic. While witches in Silph also refer
to these selves as human, they see themselves as a superior human. It should be noted that witches are technically
their own race. This may seem needlessly complicated, but important to lay down the groundwork for the fantasy
politics.
Witch
#Worldbuilding
Witches have colorful markings on their backs, from the base of the spine to the top of the neck.
Have a tendency to look down on others, seeing themselves as superior, seeing as witches have the most
natural Essence. Their only real match and possible threat is the Avians, but their population is smaller
compared to humans and the Avians keep to themselves, neutral in global conflicts to a ridiculous degree.
Witches are born with natural magical talent. It is incredibly rare, and witches are easily able to gain social
power because of their rare physical power. Witchcraft is quite rare to balance out how powerful it is. It can
be somewhat improved with training, but for the most part you have to be born lucky. Wizards are confined
to the laws of equivalent exchange, but witches regularly break the laws of physics, like the laws of
conservation of matter and energy. It is much more elemental magic and tends to deal with raw power and
damage dealing. Good in fights of brawn, not so good in terms of societal progress and advancement.
Bees
Beetles
Honey Bee
#Worldbuilding
Entomon
Power: poison
They can poison their targets, Poison essence is usually made into potions to make them easier to
administer.
Revere the honey bee and build their society off of the social structure of actual bee hives.
Matriarchal society, only having queens for their entire history (more of a reverse patriarchy, having social
roles similar to actual honey bees)
The males and females are mostly equal physically, unlike actual bees where the drones only really exist to
mate with the queen of another hive and then die. The matriarchy is upheld anyways due to the caste system
of actual honey bees colonies, and that females are the only ones that have magic. Females are the only ones
allowed to have royal jelly.
Royal jelly is meant to change a worker bee into a queen bee by making her fertile so she can lay hundreds of
eggs, but that’s boring so we're making it magical.
Royal jelly instead makes young bees grow larger and stronger and gives them more powerful magic.
Those in the military and religious leaders are given small amounts of royal jelly (basically microdosing) to
enhance their strength, but it’s reserved for the elite that devote their lives to service. Once royal jelly is taken
there’s no way to reverse the effects.
The first beekeepers that we know of were from ancient egypt, which I am very happy to learn as it gives me
the perfect excuse to draw from egyptian mythology.
Main population
Mellif
Nyuk
Inyosi
Firefly
#Worldbuilding
Entomon
Power: illusions
a lot of them use illusions to work in traveling entertainment groups and as traveling merchants.
Illusion magic doesn’t just trick someone’s sense of sight, it can also trick the other senses. Touch,
sound, taste, smell.
Can create heatless and long lasting lights, an important technology that some make for a living. A lot of
them might have been out of a job after advancements in technology are able to make lights that are
cheaper and more easily accessible.
all over the world
Don’t have their own country, existing in other countries, usually in (but not exclusively) nomadic groups.
Not completely nocturnal, but more likely to stay up late into the night and sleep late into the day. Works
with their schedules if they’re nighttime entertainers.
Revere the actual fireflies for giving them the gift of flight and lighting up the night. have festivals of light.
Dragonflies
Religion
Small groups that are decentralized, small communities within other countries.
Their use of illusion magic makes them be seen as very untrustworthy, their magic being entirely based on
fooling the senses. At the bottom of the pecking order in terms of Entomon, seen as useless and do nothing
but look pretty.
Monarch Butterfly
#Worldbuilding
Entomon
Power: healing
All of them have the ability to some degree, but few have the strength to make healing their profession,
so actual healers who work as doctors are still on the rare side.
Mariposa Monarca, sometime called milkweeds in a derogatory way
Based on South America (specifically mexico?)
Resistant to poisons and venoms, like how caterpillars eat poisonous milkweed and become poisonous
themselves when they become butterflies.
Act as protectors to actual monarch butterflies when they travel south to hibernate for the winter.
Blue Morpho Butterfly
#Worldbuilding
Entomon
Power: divination
Some have the rare talent of divination, seers who aren’t usually believed for their prophecies. Even in a
world of magic, seeing the future is assumed to be near impossible. Their visions aren’t set in stone, as I
don’t like the idea of fate, but are more so a vision of what is most likely to happen if direct action isn’t
taken. They are easy to discredit because of their visions not being absolute, but it also means that their
warnings aren’t always listened to, sometimes with disastrous consequences. Most likely to have a
connection with their deity. They might ask their deity to do something to stop a horrible vision from
coming true, the deity saying they can only do so at a terrible price. The butterfly effect, doing something
small can have disastrous consequences.
Universe Creation
#Worldbuilding
The gods of their world gave them all specific magic to fulfill different roles when they work together, but the
people instead divide themselves based on those differences, making the gods a bit jaded and indifferent to
humanity. What’s the point of stopping this war when another is bound to start up again before you know it?
They gave humanity the tools to have a harmonious society, but they also gave them free will that gave them the
choice to squabble over power and resources.
Most of the divine world does not actually interact with mortals, and what their up to isn't all that important since
I think that organized religion similar to out real world religion that are based on faith in what you can't prove is
more interesting.
The exception to this are the different Pantheons that those with Embodiment Magic worship, but they are less
The Entomon Pantheon
gods and more so powerful immortal being who are in charge of protecting the earth. They don't typically care
about the welfare of their worshipers, but give them magical gifts from time to time.
How the world came to be is a bit irrelevant for my purposes, but at some point I want to some up with different
creation myths that different groups believe.
Orlaith
#Worldbuilding
Some denomination of a bigger religion?
Primary religion in Silph
Basically the roman catholic church. Lots of justification for their imperialism.
Worship one God, who is believed to be the creator god. While other divine deities mess around with humanity on
the regular, this creator God has never made their presence known. At least in a way that can be tangibly proved,
having a creation myth on the creation of the universe and also why witches have absurdly powerful magic. They
believe their magic is divinely ordained, Silph having a “divine right of kings” sort of government because of it.
Orlaith - golden princess
Immortals in general
#Worldbuilding
The Entomon all have their own deities, but they all believe in the other deities that they don’t worship. All the
Entomon deities are part of a pantheon that actually exist and interact with the entomon from time to time, so
there isn’t really the question of if their gods exist or not (objectively, they do exist, they just aren’t super powerful
or all knowing). These deities act very human, similar to the Greek gods, getting married and having children and
making mistakes. They mostly show up in times of strife when nature is endangered. The deities are more or less
indifferent to the problems of their worshipers, only caring about the state of the planet. The Entomon get the
magic from their insects, so a lot of their religion is to protect the welfare of those insects.
The deities are much more concerned about the protection of the planet rather than the affairs of humans. They
gave the entomon their power and the gift of flight in exchange for them working to protect the planet. The Inyosi
are given the power to protect themselves against the Mellifera, not because they are being favored but because
the Mellifera are actually hurting the planet with their honey production and industrial farming. The Nyuki aren’t
helped by their deity is because doing so wouldn’t help the planet all that much, seeing as the group of Nyuki are
too small to make a difference in the Mellifera's power. The deities are pretty lawfully neutral and goal oriented
when it comes to the protection of nature, and are literally incapable of empathizing with human suffering.
Entomon are able to have the choice to become one of the Gods after a show of great sacrifice and devotion, but
choosing godhood means sacrificing their empathy and humanity. What good is living forever if you aren’t
capable of human connection anymore? A question that could make for good flash fiction.
these deities are not gods exactly, they are immortals with immense power and gave a sliver of that power to
certain groups of humans that became entomon. most entomon revere and pray to these deities, but they had no
hand in the creation of the world and are not divine or omnipotent, they are simply believed to be gods.
Bees
#Worldbuilding
Conflicts
Gods of Fertility and Defense
The honey bees are very successful so they almost never have interaction with their deity. The European
honey bees are closer to religious fanatics with their bloodsport to decide their next queen and their extreme
gender roles. Most societies in this world and all bee societies follow a matrilineal descent system. This makes
more sense than a patrilineal system. If the lineage is traced through the mother, you always know for sure
that it’s her child because she’s the one that gives birth, so the issue of illegitimate children never really comes
up. This is used as a reason by the Mellifera for their extreme gender roles. The queen is commander and
chief of their military, but their religious leaders are the ones who actually have the most control.
Their deity is a warrior god.
Inyosi worship the same deity as Mellifera, but as a god of fertility, praying for the protection of their children
and the success of their crops. The deity is both for war and fertility, they are just worshiped differently based
on the needs of the bees.
Butterflies
#Worldbuilding
Gods of Healing and Death
The monarch butterflies are in big trouble, so a main part of the plot is their deity trying to get someone to
save the forests that the butterflies hibernate in. Believe that the actual butterflies that they protect are the
souls of the deceased and their ancestors. The butterfly migration could be merged with a day of the dead
type ceremony, using milkweed instead of marigolds.
Their deity is a healing god, who is considered a collector of souls. While healing magic can do what seems
impossible is keeping people alive, everyone will die one day. So the deity is believed to collect their soul
when their time comes, no matter how much you try to save their body. A lot of healing magic is meant to
ease pain and suffering rather than extending life.
The butterfly who is chosen by their deity is given one wish in exchange for their service, whatever their heart
truly desires. They are chosen very young and don’t always make the best wishes.
Beetles
#Worldbuilding
Gods of Order and Balance
Fireflies tell a lot of stories, relying on oral traditions about the creation of the universe and lessons on
morality, so stories tend to vary from region to region. Something about the stars would be important to
religion. Possibly a trickster god, stealing knowledge from the gods and giving it to humanity.
Mellif and Danaus
#Worldbuilding
The Mellifera came to settle in the Danaus, under the stipulation of helping them while they were struggling
with their crops and protecting the monarch butterflies. Their government is overthrown and Mellif takes
over, the monarchy being pushed to the side rather than executed as a show of good will.
A lot of assimilation happens during the time the bees have control, changes in culture and language
As the years go on, the Mellifera do help a lot with agriculture, but it ends up being to the detriment of the
migrating monarch butterflies as the forests are cut for lumber and farmland. The royal family is adamant on
protecting the forests and protecting the butterflies who rely on it, fearing that the monarchs will go extinct
and their magic will fade.
Mellif argues about the loss of jobs the conservation efforts would create and the economy would practically
collapse. A lot of economic growth has happened under their control, so it’s hard to get the public on the side
of conserving the forests. The royal family argues that the monarch butterflies are a proud symbol of their
country that they have sworn to protect. They don’t know for sure if the magic will fade, but they can’t take
any chances. If their magic fades, their crops and way of life will suffer and the country really will collapse.
The conflict continues until the royal family has been pushed out entirely, losing the last control they had
over protecting the butterflies. The conservation efforts are still happening, but they no longer have any
support from the government and Mellif puts in effort to make the public not be in favor of the conservation,
getting the people to believe it’s not in their best interest.
Mellif takes care of the agricultural industry, but doesn't know how to take care of the land and ruin the soil
for a while before people notice and bring attention to it. With tangible evidence of the damage that the
Mellifera are doing and fewer crop yields, the more conflicts start to rise.
The magic actually does start fading as the butterflies become endangered, causing more conflict and
eventually war.
Danaus is able to drive out Mellif and rebuild only because Mellif gets taken over by Silph
Ora Colony rebellion
#Worldbuilding
Most of the reason for the rebellion is to dismantle this very rigid cast structure, establishing equality between
classes and species. Their ideology is a bit more extreme, believing that the only way to achieve the goal of
equality is to physically put everyone on the same playing field. No magic, no flying, no undersea cities. Achieving
the goal of severing all of humanity from magic would throw the world into chaos. Their entire way of life is built
on magic, getting rid of it would be near apocalyptic. But it will take away the power of the elite. They argue
humanity will recover, not in their lifetime but one day, and that the world would be much better for it.
There are other opponents of the Silphion government but don’t agree with the current rebellion’s ideology. They
argue that nothing will change, that humans are bound to find new ways of categorizing and ostracizing people.
There’s always someone at the top and someone pushed to the bottom. Burning the world down and starting over
is not the answer, and they should instead work to improve the lives of people through options other than war.
The rebellion is called out for being hypocritical, using magic to fight this war to end magic, but they call it a
necessary evil. Fighting fire with fire works if it’s used to choke out the bigger fire, causing both flames to run out
of fuel and oxygen and sputter out. Backburning.
The people of the Ora colony would like their independence from the rule of Silph. The main goal of the
rebellion is to gain the support of the Mellifera. The Mellifera still have their queens in different colonies, but
they don’t have a high queen or their own nation anymore after being taken over by Silph. The Mellifera were
allowed to keep their queens and way of life as long as they increased the production of honey and helped to
take a stand against Danaus. While the rebellion does not agree with the Mellifera caste system, they work
with them anyways in a “hate the sin love the sinner” way. If they have the Mellifera’s support, they will have
the power to wage war.
Some are against getting the mellifera involved, seeing as winning this war would give them the power to
become a nation just like Silph. The Mellifera are rich off of their honey production, and will continue to grow
in their wealth as the consumption of honey is so ingrained in everyone’s daily life.
Honey Bee conflicts
Time Periods
#Worldbuilding
The Mellifera are the most powerful entomon, having the most land until they were conquered by Silph.
Instead of having their country dismantled, they were absorbed and given resources by Silph to invade other
groups of entomon.
Inyosi are very strong warriors and manage to drive their forces out, so the Mellifera are given support to take
them down so Silph could also have control over their honey production. It doesn’t work, but some Inyosi are
taken to Danaus and the Silphion colonies, working to produce honey and other goods.
This group of bees in Danaus rebel and form their own city state, Nyuk, not being officially recognized by
other world leaders. The Mellifera label them as a violent threat that must be exterminated, even though they
are the ones that brought them in the first place.
Inyosi is similar to Mellif but they focus more on community and the betterment of the group while Mellif
focuses much more on profit and expansion. The Mellifera were only more accepted in the time of Silph’s
global conquests, attempting to turn the Mellifera against other entomon while refusing to acknowledge their
past mistreatment of the Mellifera. Mellifera culture has historically been very collectivist, doing what’s best
for the group and encouraging conformity. But as honey and other hive products became a lucrative business,
upper class bees take on a more individualistic mindset.
The Inyosi are villainized for being too aggressive, when they are only aggressive when defending their hives
from outsides and their harsh environment. Some of the bees that were taken by the Mellifera escaped, and
these honey bees that go on to form Nyuk are somehow blamed for the economic and environmental collapse
happening in Danaus when Mellif was the ones who caused it. The bees are made out to be killer bees, and
the Mellifera paint themselves as the victims that couldn’t possibly be at fault.
Hikmah and Silph
#Worldbuilding
Both are colonists, and other groups suffer from their conquests. Insert spiel about why colonialism is bad here.
Fucking hate each other, but have a peace treaty for trade and so they don’t destroy each other.
Foils for each other. The freedom of knowledge vs censorship. The freedom of religion vs religious
persecution. Looking to the future vs trying to recreate the past. Wizardry vs witchcraft. Respect for the
humanities vs disregard for the humanities. Progress vs Antiquity.
While they are different, they are not complete opposites. They both believe strongly in their own superiority
and need to expand their country to spread their greatness.
A big part of the series could be trying to get Hikmah to help in terms of conflicts with Silph, only to learn
that Hikmah isn’t that much different when it boils down to it.
The Honey Industry is basically the real world Sugar Industry
#Worldbuilding
Honey used to be a commodity, something that had to be traded for, usually with the Mellifera since Inyosi
don’t trade much honey. Mellifera is taken over Silph, giving Silph control of the honey industry. Silph gave
the Mellifera incentive to expand their honey production to the level that Silph was demanding.
Hikmah uses a lot more sugar than honey, but their production of sugar isn’t very ethical either.
**
The Era of Ora
#Worldbuilding
Main Setting
Time of the Ora Colony rebellion
the phrase "era of ora" has a weird mouthfeel and would get made fun of for sounding stupid
Rise of Silph
#Worldbuilding
The current monarchy rose from a witch who pushed to have the secret world known. It wasn’t a well kept
secret, so they might as well show their true power to the world. They shouldn’t have to live in hiding and fear
anymore. These magic leaders are hesitant. They think it better to just keep to themselves as it’s more
convenient than trying to be accepted in their society, and this way no one ends up dead.
There is an incident when a wizard who worked as a doctor in a small village was reported and executed
for practicing magic, despite using it for the betterment of his village. This caused uproar in the
wizarding world and civil war sparked. The witch who took power from this war believed that they were
now responsible for giving other magic users across the country the freedom to be themselves, and no
one had to be squashed for just wanting to exist. This dynasty loses the plot as the years go on, as it
usually is with dynasties that go on for generations, and the current royal family is much more
concerned with their expansion and conquests, not being able to see the irony that they recreated the
power structures that had oppressed them generations ago. What they did learn from history was that
the restriction of knowledge can go a long way in terms of stopping people from rebellions.
These witches have a tendency to not see the other races as “human” worthy of respect, sometimes not
even as sentient beings (kinda like how Harry Potter treats nonhumans). They are simply tools they can
use to further their goals.
