Summercamp 2024 Pledge & Preparation
Now that I've made a decision regarding the focus of my efforts this year, it's time to start thinking about the true objective of Summercamp 2024: the acquisition of Diamond Badge Number 5! My plan is to complete and submit one article per day every day. These articles will be created as I livestream on Twitch. You're all welcome to join me at 9AM EDT each day... we can all help keep each other focused. (Article showcases will be offered as time permits.)
Change could mean many things in the World of Cartyrion. On a large scale, a few potential approaches come to mind. Several avenues are possible as a result of the Great Strife - the god-war that almost ruined the world 2000 years ago. What sudden changes were brought about as the war raged on? In places where the Strife's devastation was severe, and only recovering now, what changes are brought by that recovery? How did relations between the disparate Folk of Cartyrion change as a result of sides chosen in the war that almost destroyed the world? What religious changes were brought about by the war and its continuing aftermath?
I could address the circumstances around and effect of the rise and fall of not one, but two Taxlatl (Lizardfolk) empires.
I could address the changes brought about in Cartyrion's history as different Peoples first encountered one another.
On different scales, many other possibilities arise. How was the lifestyle of the Chittiki (Ratfolk) people changed when they first discovered how much other Folk coveted their "shiny rocks"? How did the organization of the various pirate companies in Tyrnabay affect trade around the world? How does life change on the frontiers - especially those near the polar regions - with the changing of the seasons?
Change could be on a personal level as well. What does "coming of age" mean in terms of responsibility and community expectations? What opportunities for "social mobility" exist, and what are they dependent on?
In short, at this early stage, it's too early to decide on a specific theme for this year's Summercamp Articles. If past years are any indication, though, the revelation of the remaining three themes will help point to a direction before Summercamp begins. Stay tuned!
As mentioned, I'll be aiming at Diamond yet again. I intend to stream on Twitch every morning during Summercamp, with the goal of completing one prompt each day during the stream. Not every article will be the most beautiful work I can achieve, but each will be sufficiently complete as to be a useful resource for anyone visiting the World of Cartyrion.
Cartyrion is an established world. Categories are already pretty well established. If I decide to open up a new region this year, a few additional categories will be added to mirror what's available for other regions.
Similarly, a tag system already exists. It's a constant work-in-progress, but it's functional. Existing tags will be used where appropriate (in addition to the #Summercamp2024 tag that every article will get). New tags will be added if they seem to make sense.
This one is also an easy one for me, as I try to keep my meta up to date all through the year. My meta does include details regarding "moods" of various regions of the world, so if the prompts lead me to opening up a new region, the meta for that region will be added. But as of Week 1, it's in pretty good shape.
When the second theme was announced, thoughts about two completely different approaches to Summercamp this year began to form. The first would be a continuation of what I've been doing in past years: using Summercamp to open up a new region in Cartyrion. The region that comes to mind is Elvenhome. Being the part of the world least affected by the god-war thousands of years ago, it's been a refuge of sorts for a long time.
But this thought quickly spawned another. What if I focused on the time of the Great Strife itself? A two hundred year long war that devastated vast regions, saw civilizations and empires collapse, and threatened pretty much all the Folk of the world would certainly be ripe with opportunities to write about Change and Refuge! And from a practical point of view, it offers a chance for an entirely new RPG Campaign Setting in the very same world!
Going back in time offers many possibilities. As the war escalated, many of the common Folk would try to escape its devastation. Populations were be displaced by desctruction. Not only the Folk, but the simpler creatures of the world would need to seek safe havens when their habitats were impacted by the armies and dark magics that were roaming the land. And as the war neared its conclusion, many of those dark forces - the followers of the The Gods of Coercion and the twisted creatures those gods brought into the world - would themselves be seeking escape from the onslaught of the ultimately victorious The Gods of Consent and their adherents.
It's still too early to commit, but the idea of addressing Cartyrion's history of the time of the god-war sounds better to myself day by day.
Fortunately, I don't really need to look for a community group - I already have communities to offer me support, guidance, encouragement, and through which I can offer the same to others.
As a Twitch Streamer, I will be broadcasting live to the world every day of Summercamp, and intend to tackle one prompt per day on the road to achieving a Diamond Badge. Streams will be at 9AM EDT, 7 days per week at https://twitch.tv/rpgdinosaurbob. Come join me for sprint-based writing, article showcases and shoutouts, and just chatting about stuff!
Although I'm not as active on the WorldAnvil Discord server as I could be, I'm not completely absent from it either. Perhaps I'll make an extra effort to pop into a few more channels there during Summercamp.
I will address these two assignments together. I've already designed Cartyrion in a manner where each region (or each potential product area) has its own distinct theme. In addition to the generic world theme (like that of this article), I've got distinct themes for the Feywood, the Kingdoms Region, the Chittiki Great Basin Desert, the pirate lands of Tyrnabay, and others.
Each of these themes is implemented in a way that allows me to assign any one to an article by merely specifiying the appropriage Banner image and CSS class name in an article's Design section. The themes themselves require only that I identify a page background and highlighting color scheme; implementation is essentially a copy/paste operation from that point. Format and layout of articles is consistent across themes.
If I do settle on approaching Cartyrion history during the period of the Great Strife, that will need its own theme. If I tackle the Elvenhome region, that, too, will need its own theme. Over the next couple of weeks, I will start gathering the components I need to define both of these - I'll need them someday anyway!
The first thing that springs to mind in our real world when talking about "belief" is religion. In the Cartyrion of "today", though, religion is not a matter of "belief in the gods". During the Great Strife, the gods made themselves known, and the devastations wrought by them are in some places still visible two thousand years later. The Folk of Cartyrion do not have to "believe" in their gods... they know the gods are real and can influence their lives and their world in exceptional ways.
But was it always this way? Before the god-war erupted, the gods, for the most part, did not outwardly manifest themselves in the world. It would have been possible - even likely - for some of the Folk to question whether they truly existed, or at least whether they cared about what was happening in the physical world of Cartyrion.
What did this look like culturally? How important was religion? And what happened to belief systems and religious practices once the god-war began and the gods started making themselves known in much more impactful ways? Answering these questions would help define the Cartyrion of two thousand years ago - the Cartyrion at the time of the Great Strife.
Returning to the present, other potential beliefs could also be explored. Could there be a second god-war? What would trigger it? Is it imminent? Would the world survive it?
On a lighter note, whether writing about the past or the present, superstitions, legends, and fairy tales are definitely "things" among the Folk of Cartyrion. In a world filled with real magic, these could be even more fantastic than those our own real world has to offer.
Cartyrion is a four year old world. The original inspirations - all found in the world's "meta" - still apply.
If I'm going to focus on historical Cartyrion, I already have not one, but three maps for reference. My world map already contains layers depicting the world as it was before the Folk were awakened to inhabit it, the world as it was after the Folk had spread, but before the Great Strife, and the devastated world left at the end of the god-war.
As mentioned, the inspirations that got me started on Cartyrion all still apply. Now, with four years of articles written, the state of the Cartyrion as it is "now" can be used as inspiration when writing about how it was two thousand years before. (I know how things had to end up, after all!)
Considering the physical, metaphysical, and social upheavals brought about by the Great Strife offers the chance to examine the concept of "decay" in many ways:
In the regions around the Feywood (the first region I focused on in the world), the effects of the Wasting are still visible in the barren, blighted lands to the south. And while the regions between the Feywood and the coastal cities in the north once more support life, the poisons and foul magics of long ago still twist that life into abominations that terrorize the Folk.
The Taxlatl (lizardfolk) people were among the most powerful and "civilized" in all the world before the god war. But the war saw their empire completely destroyed, and to this day the Lizardfolk live mostly in impoverished squalor in the most desolate regions of the world. Sometimes their crude villages exist within sight of ancient ruins that are a constant reminder of what their society has devolved into.
Even with races of the Folk, decay in loyalties and societal bonds can be seen. And this is not true of just the losers of the conflict - one of the most prominent of examples is the distrust that exists between the Humans of the kingdoms around the inner sea and the people of the Free Cities that border the Farsea.
Thus, in Cartyrion, "decay" could come up in contexts referring to harsh geographies, abominable creatures, lingering cults, dark magic, and political relationships. Each of these could be examinend in several ways: How did they start? How did they evolve (or devolve) in the years since the god-war? How do they manifest today?
Apart from a general "dusting and tidying" session planned for later in the week, my writing environment is ready to go. The "thinking cigars" are in place... The Spotify Library has been expanded.
I've been rediscovering the wonderful mindset that a background of 70's progressive rock puts me in. It was the backdrop to my original discovery of the Fantasy and Science Fiction genres... it was the backdrop to my first forays into campaign worldbuilding. My first reading of the Lord of the Rings was to a continuous loop of Yes' Fragile and Close to the Edge albums, and state of the art at the time technology -- 8-track tapes -- meant I didn't even have to restart them!
The remainder of the last week of prep time will be devoted to these two tasks. A quick look at my world homepage reveals that (a) there are some remnants from a failed experiment with the names of my races that still need to be cleaned up. There's a large "coming soon" section that needs to be removed from the page entirely, and overhauled before being placed somewheere else (not on the homepage). My author profile needs work too. I tweaked it a bit when I started working on Laurels & Loot, but it needs more work. So... Thursday, 27 June is Homepage Day, and Friday, 28-June is Author Page day. Both will be cleaned up and ready to go before Janet & Dimi push the big red button on Saturday.
Week 1 Themes and Homework
The theme for the first week's prompts will be Change.Assignment 1
Consider what kind of changes would fit in with your world's themes, genre, and other foundational points.Change could mean many things in the World of Cartyrion. On a large scale, a few potential approaches come to mind. Several avenues are possible as a result of the Great Strife - the god-war that almost ruined the world 2000 years ago. What sudden changes were brought about as the war raged on? In places where the Strife's devastation was severe, and only recovering now, what changes are brought by that recovery? How did relations between the disparate Folk of Cartyrion change as a result of sides chosen in the war that almost destroyed the world? What religious changes were brought about by the war and its continuing aftermath?
I could address the circumstances around and effect of the rise and fall of not one, but two Taxlatl (Lizardfolk) empires.
I could address the changes brought about in Cartyrion's history as different Peoples first encountered one another.
On different scales, many other possibilities arise. How was the lifestyle of the Chittiki (Ratfolk) people changed when they first discovered how much other Folk coveted their "shiny rocks"? How did the organization of the various pirate companies in Tyrnabay affect trade around the world? How does life change on the frontiers - especially those near the polar regions - with the changing of the seasons?
Change could be on a personal level as well. What does "coming of age" mean in terms of responsibility and community expectations? What opportunities for "social mobility" exist, and what are they dependent on?
In short, at this early stage, it's too early to decide on a specific theme for this year's Summercamp Articles. If past years are any indication, though, the revelation of the remaining three themes will help point to a direction before Summercamp begins. Stay tuned!
Assignment 2
Based on this, decide how many prompts you'll go for during Summer Camp. Then, download the pledge document and fill it accordingly!As mentioned, I'll be aiming at Diamond yet again. I intend to stream on Twitch every morning during Summercamp, with the goal of completing one prompt each day during the stream. Not every article will be the most beautiful work I can achieve, but each will be sufficiently complete as to be a useful resource for anyone visiting the World of Cartyrion.
Assignment 3
Get your categories and tags organized!Cartyrion is an established world. Categories are already pretty well established. If I decide to open up a new region this year, a few additional categories will be added to mirror what's available for other regions.
Similarly, a tag system already exists. It's a constant work-in-progress, but it's functional. Existing tags will be used where appropriate (in addition to the #Summercamp2024 tag that every article will get). New tags will be added if they seem to make sense.
Assignment 4
Take a look at your meta, primer, and any other high-level document and update it according to the current state of your world.This one is also an easy one for me, as I try to keep my meta up to date all through the year. My meta does include details regarding "moods" of various regions of the world, so if the prompts lead me to opening up a new region, the meta for that region will be added. But as of Week 1, it's in pretty good shape.
Week 2 Themes and Homework
The theme for the second week's prompts will be Refuge.Assignment 1
Consider what kinds of refuge would fit in with your world's themes, genre, and other foundational points.When the second theme was announced, thoughts about two completely different approaches to Summercamp this year began to form. The first would be a continuation of what I've been doing in past years: using Summercamp to open up a new region in Cartyrion. The region that comes to mind is Elvenhome. Being the part of the world least affected by the god-war thousands of years ago, it's been a refuge of sorts for a long time.
But this thought quickly spawned another. What if I focused on the time of the Great Strife itself? A two hundred year long war that devastated vast regions, saw civilizations and empires collapse, and threatened pretty much all the Folk of the world would certainly be ripe with opportunities to write about Change and Refuge! And from a practical point of view, it offers a chance for an entirely new RPG Campaign Setting in the very same world!
Going back in time offers many possibilities. As the war escalated, many of the common Folk would try to escape its devastation. Populations were be displaced by desctruction. Not only the Folk, but the simpler creatures of the world would need to seek safe havens when their habitats were impacted by the armies and dark magics that were roaming the land. And as the war neared its conclusion, many of those dark forces - the followers of the The Gods of Coercion and the twisted creatures those gods brought into the world - would themselves be seeking escape from the onslaught of the ultimately victorious The Gods of Consent and their adherents.
It's still too early to commit, but the idea of addressing Cartyrion's history of the time of the god-war sounds better to myself day by day.
Assignment 2
Find a community—whether that’s our Discord server, Facebook Group, your RPG or friend group, or something else.Fortunately, I don't really need to look for a community group - I already have communities to offer me support, guidance, encouragement, and through which I can offer the same to others.
Assignment 3
Find ways to improve styling and layout in your world!Assignment 4
If you’re a CSS wizard, maybe take the time now to give it a polish!I will address these two assignments together. I've already designed Cartyrion in a manner where each region (or each potential product area) has its own distinct theme. In addition to the generic world theme (like that of this article), I've got distinct themes for the Feywood, the Kingdoms Region, the Chittiki Great Basin Desert, the pirate lands of Tyrnabay, and others.
Each of these themes is implemented in a way that allows me to assign any one to an article by merely specifiying the appropriage Banner image and CSS class name in an article's Design section. The themes themselves require only that I identify a page background and highlighting color scheme; implementation is essentially a copy/paste operation from that point. Format and layout of articles is consistent across themes.
If I do settle on approaching Cartyrion history during the period of the Great Strife, that will need its own theme. If I tackle the Elvenhome region, that, too, will need its own theme. Over the next couple of weeks, I will start gathering the components I need to define both of these - I'll need them someday anyway!
Week 3 Themes and Homework
The theme for the third week's prompts will be Belief.Assignment 1
Consider what kind of beliefs would fit in with your world's themes, genre, and other foundational points.The first thing that springs to mind in our real world when talking about "belief" is religion. In the Cartyrion of "today", though, religion is not a matter of "belief in the gods". During the Great Strife, the gods made themselves known, and the devastations wrought by them are in some places still visible two thousand years later. The Folk of Cartyrion do not have to "believe" in their gods... they know the gods are real and can influence their lives and their world in exceptional ways.
But was it always this way? Before the god-war erupted, the gods, for the most part, did not outwardly manifest themselves in the world. It would have been possible - even likely - for some of the Folk to question whether they truly existed, or at least whether they cared about what was happening in the physical world of Cartyrion.
What did this look like culturally? How important was religion? And what happened to belief systems and religious practices once the god-war began and the gods started making themselves known in much more impactful ways? Answering these questions would help define the Cartyrion of two thousand years ago - the Cartyrion at the time of the Great Strife.
Returning to the present, other potential beliefs could also be explored. Could there be a second god-war? What would trigger it? Is it imminent? Would the world survive it?
On a lighter note, whether writing about the past or the present, superstitions, legends, and fairy tales are definitely "things" among the Folk of Cartyrion. In a world filled with real magic, these could be even more fantastic than those our own real world has to offer.
Assignment 2
Create a bank of inspirations! Quotes, music, description of experiences and shower thoughts, etc.Cartyrion is a four year old world. The original inspirations - all found in the world's "meta" - still apply.
Assignment 3
Find art and pictures that inspire you, and grab a map if you don't have one (and need one).If I'm going to focus on historical Cartyrion, I already have not one, but three maps for reference. My world map already contains layers depicting the world as it was before the Folk were awakened to inhabit it, the world as it was after the Folk had spread, but before the Great Strife, and the devastated world left at the end of the god-war.
Assignment 4
Check your inspirations again. Are they still relevant? Can you find any that better represent the current state of your project?As mentioned, the inspirations that got me started on Cartyrion all still apply. Now, with four years of articles written, the state of the Cartyrion as it is "now" can be used as inspiration when writing about how it was two thousand years before. (I know how things had to end up, after all!)
Week 4 Themes and Homework
The theme for the fourth week's prompts will be Decay.Assignment 1
Consider what kind of decay would fit in with your world's themes, genre, and other foundational points.Considering the physical, metaphysical, and social upheavals brought about by the Great Strife offers the chance to examine the concept of "decay" in many ways:
Thus, in Cartyrion, "decay" could come up in contexts referring to harsh geographies, abominable creatures, lingering cults, dark magic, and political relationships. Each of these could be examinend in several ways: How did they start? How did they evolve (or devolve) in the years since the god-war? How do they manifest today?
Assignment 2
If you like special tea when you write, stock up for a month. Tidy your office, make a “do not disturb” sign, and think about any other last-minute strategies to optimize your writing space and time!Apart from a general "dusting and tidying" session planned for later in the week, my writing environment is ready to go. The "thinking cigars" are in place... The Spotify Library has been expanded.
I've been rediscovering the wonderful mindset that a background of 70's progressive rock puts me in. It was the backdrop to my original discovery of the Fantasy and Science Fiction genres... it was the backdrop to my first forays into campaign worldbuilding. My first reading of the Lord of the Rings was to a continuous loop of Yes' Fragile and Close to the Edge albums, and state of the art at the time technology -- 8-track tapes -- meant I didn't even have to restart them!
Assignment 3
Review your world homepage to hook potential readers!Assignment 4
Take a look at your author profile and pillar articles on your world and polish them!The remainder of the last week of prep time will be devoted to these two tasks. A quick look at my world homepage reveals that (a) there are some remnants from a failed experiment with the names of my races that still need to be cleaned up. There's a large "coming soon" section that needs to be removed from the page entirely, and overhauled before being placed somewheere else (not on the homepage). My author profile needs work too. I tweaked it a bit when I started working on Laurels & Loot, but it needs more work. So... Thursday, 27 June is Homepage Day, and Friday, 28-June is Author Page day. Both will be cleaned up and ready to go before Janet & Dimi push the big red button on Saturday.
Good luck, Bob! Glad to see you going for Diamond again.
Thanks! And congrats again on your new job! I hope week 1 is going well - and I really hope it'll leave you time to participate in Summercamp! Best of luck to you in both endeavors!
Laurels & Loot is a new, lightweight TTRPG rules system that hearkens back to the early days.