Flight Rising Discussion

[img alt="A black and white penguin waddling back an forth on top of the forum post."]https://64.media.tumblr.com/765c9abd2035005cdeac9f171180f8df/tumblr_n9jundzMHn1sh2doyo1_540.gif[/img] [color=412924][size=4][font=cambria]My lore is more a traveler's guide than an actual story, tho it does say how my clan got to Ancura Archipelago and their current lifestyle here [emoji=normal eyes size=1] If you struggle to write individual dragons' lore, you could build from somethin' more general like this and then assign important roles to dragons based on what their society is like For example, how do they deliver messages and packages? Who does that job and why do they like it? Does that courier dragon have to deal with thieves tryin' to steal their cargo?

Well, in the beginning, I wasn't a lore lair. I just collected dragons that reminded me of my OCs and named them after them.

I don't remember what made me want to actually tie them together and turn it into lore, but part of it was the thrill of having OCs who would never interact in my headworld have a chance to interact with each other in, well, an AU.

It took me a long time to figure out a working name, but I believe the empire idea was due to an obsession with a story album my favourite band came out with, which revolves around an empire.

I usually boot dragons when they don't inspire ideas anymore (which hasn't happened in a long time tbh) or if I want to replace them with a more fitting dragon, especially since back when I first started playing around with things, I wanted different elements because I wasn't going off of them originally for some. The lack of inspiration thing doesn't really happen anymore since I'm very selective with who I want to be in my lair now. It sometimes does make deciding what to do with hatched G1s kinda difficult though xD

I have some that I have basic ideas for and that's it. I just usually develop them slowly xD It's not rare for me to find a song and suddenly I have some ideas for one of the characters in my lair! But yeah, if they don't spark joy after a while and I know I won't feel bad getting rid of them, they'd get the boot. I'm trying to avoid doing that now since I want to actually develop some of these guys (especially since I don't want to boot G1s/anything old).

I do try at least giving them a potential role to at least help them grow. That's why even ones with only basic ideas are still sorted into specific tabs.

My lore is inspired by another game I enjoy, The Long Dark, it's still not fully written but the gist of it is that an aurora borealis is causing unnatural fenomena in the clan's territory, such as memory loss, eternal night around the lair, accelerated decay in food / organic materials, and increased aggression in wildlife So another approach you could consider: take inspiration from other stories you like or find interesting, and turn them into your own [emoji=sunglasses size=1]

[quote name="Gusui" date="2024-07-18 02:29:37" ] First, how did you begin your lore? Did you have an overall plot/theme in mind and build from there? Did you start with a single dragon and build the world around that? I'd be super interested in hearing what your process is/was. [/quote] I started with a concept and a location. I was really into the Magnus Archives at the time, generally really liked horror and monsters and especially small town horror, and had realized Arcane played into that specific niche of cosmic horror I enjoyed so much. So, because Arcane was the researcher flight and I was into TMA... I decided to make my lore revolve around a group of dragons researching the supernatural. I set it in the Starwood Strand because the fest scene was gorgeous and it gave me more small town vibes, and began developing this narrative of the big ominous monster-capturing scientific facility looming over this run-down, wary town. The actual story came much later. Every ominous company has some shady investors and leaders, obviously, so obviously that was something I wrote in eventually. Then it just happened that over time as I got new dragons for my lair, I started finding ways to connect them to these initial dragons and begin fleshing out this vague idea for [i]why[/i] these guys were so shady. I started asking what they were up to, why they needed these specific players in their plans, what places or events were involved and why? The questions came naturally. It did require me rewriting some fellas to really become invested in their lore and thus their story, since they were pretty old and underdeveloped. But once I did, it just sorta started falling into place. I started with a small handful of dragons from my old lair that I stripped of their previous apparel and re-made, then picked up new guys here and there. [quote name="Gusui" date="2024-07-18 02:29:37" ] Second, how do you decide which dragons to keep or get rid of? [/quote] I don't actually remember what my justifications were, because if I think back on it, they all seem completely random. There's some I know were because I had a personal attachment to the dragon, some that were just because they were extremely pretty and I wanted to use them again, and some I'm ????? Genuinely no clue, lad. But what I DID do was put everyone I wasn't definitely attached to in my hibden. .... They're all still there, and I very much need to figure out what I'm gonna do with them one day, since it looks likely I'm gonna start using my hibden genuinely eventually due to how big my lair is. So my answer honestly is to not think about it that hard. You don't need to make one big decision right now, you'll figure it out over time. [quote name="Gusui" date="2024-07-18 02:29:37" ] Third, what do you do with dragons that you don't know what to do with/how to characterize? Do you use prompt/character generators to get ideas or is there some other way you like to approach it? Do you just get rid of them if you can't think of anything for them after a certain period of time? [/quote] Straight up I keep them until I come up with something. Sometimes I ask friends for ideas, sometimes I redress them if its really not vibing, but my best advice truly is just to be engaging in a lot of other stories. Inspiration doesn't usually come from thin air, you need to be reading and watching and playing other things that might knock ideas loose from your brain. Stretch your legs a little. This advice carries into ANYTHING creative. You never know when that next story will have you finally go OH I know what this dragon makes me think of!! I know how to write them!! Finally.... some general advice? It does NOT have to be super unique, original, and stunning. It doesn't have to be professionally done or please anyone except yourself, because ultimately you're writing for fun. Think of like an exercise more than a serious project.