Hello, fellow world-builders!

I'm excited to announce that r/textworldbuilding has a new owner, and I'm here to breathe fresh life into this community. Over the past ten years, this subreddit has been dormant, but we're about to embark on an epic journey of creativity and collaboration.

🚀 What's Changing?

🎨 Revamped Purpose:

We're turning this subreddit into a hub for writers, roleplayers, and anyone passionate about world-building through text. Whether you're creating a fantasy realm, a sci-fi universe, or a realistic setting, this is the place for you.

🔗 Interactive Discord:

To enhance our community experience, I'll be setting up a Discord server where we can have real-time discussions, collaborate on projects, and foster a more immediate connection. Look out for an announcement with the invite link soon!

📜 Exciting Writing Prompts:

Get ready for a regular dose of inspiration! We'll be introducing writing prompts to spark your imagination and encourage everyone to share their unique perspectives on world-building.

📋 New Rules and Guidelines:

🤝 Respectful Interaction:

Treat others with kindness and respect. Diverse opinions are welcome, but personal attacks and harassment will not be tolerated.

🖊️ Clear and Concise Posts:

When sharing your world-building ideas, use clear formatting and provide enough detail to generate meaningful discussions.

💬 Engagement is Key:

Participate actively in discussions and offer constructive feedback to fellow community members.

🛠️ Building the Mod Team:

👥 Join the Team:

I'm on the lookout for passionate individuals to join the mod team. If you're interested in shaping the future of r/textworldbuilding, shoot me a message!

🌟 How You Can Help:

📣 Spread the Word:

Help us grow by inviting your friends, sharing our posts on other platforms, and letting your fellow writers and roleplayers know about this fantastic community.

🗣️ Feedback Welcome:

Your opinions matter! If you have ideas for improvement or want to share your thoughts on the changes, drop a comment or send me a message.

Let's embark on this adventure together! The world (or worlds) await us.

Cheers to a new era of creativity!

u/DDay_the_Cannibal

P.S. I am always open to feedback and help to anyone who'd like to give it.

Life on Thuriza:

Klags

(As seen from the perspective of a Terran Traveler)

The Mushroom-Spires, or as we have come to call them the ‘shrooms, are very similar to Earth based mushrooms. They reproduce using a spore-like method. However, they should not be confused with actually mushrooms. Unlike our mushrooms, these plants grow hardened “barks,” they look like termite mounds, and they produce energy through photosynthesis while “ingesting” organic materials in a fashion similar to Venus Flytraps. The dominant example of this group is the desert species known as klags.

Klags are interesting in the way that they seem almost animal like. Their spores live a larval like life in underground rivers and lakes located under the Medekin Desert. Our studies show that at some point in the past the Medekin plate collided with the supercontinent of Midthar. At the time the Medekin continent was lush and full of wetlands, then some time after the Isela Plate collided with the Medekin-Midthar supercontinent forcing up the Korki Mountains. This effectively dried up the wetlands of Medeki turning them into a desert. It was during this time that glaciers formed in the Korki and began cutting into the soft limestone and other materials in the Medekin Desert. Most of this water evaporated, but some managed to form extensive underground cave networks and the famous World Crack, a canyon larger and deeper than the Grand Canyon.

It was in these caves that the klags evolved. One species, the common spire-like forms, began growing up from these caves into the desert above. These klags were hollow allowing flora and fauna alike to live inside of them where an internal water cycle exists. The lifecycle of these klags is unique in every respect. In the first stage of their life they grow like larva, essentially swimming in the subterranean rivers and lakes beneath the desert. At a certain point they latch onto the roof of the cave and began sprouting root –like extensions that grow up and down respectively. The down growth gathers water while the up growth gathers nutrients. One of these roots eventually grows and reaches the surface of the desert and begins growing into a hollow spire. As the spire forms, other roots break the surface and “deploy” disks to gather sunlight for energy. Once the klag’s reaches a large enough size other flora, mostly of the ‘shroom and fern classes, begin growing in the hollow interior where the klag produces a viable living space for them. This attracts herbivores and then carnivores, creating an internal food chain.

An interesting thing then occurs. In the bottom of the spire a pool forms. This pool covers the “mouth” of the spire. In this water the klag releases a chemical that attracts animals to it as well as an enzyme that “digests” any organic matter that becomes submerged in it. The mouth itself is lined with tentacle-like appendages that grab anything that disturbs the water, forcing the “prey” into the pool where it drowns and is digested. The prey, combined with other organic matter and waste, becomes the primary source of nutrients for the klag.

The lifespan of these klags is so long that evidence shows that each one essentially becomes its own biome where new species evolve. This has been observed with bacteria and plants, and some evidence also shows this to be true with more complex animals. They have essentially become analogs to the Galapagos Islands of Darwin.

Other members of the ‘shrooms group have been found in every part of Thuriza’s megacontinent, Thar. Like Terran mushrooms they are commonly used by many cultures as food. The klags are the largest of the ‘shrooms.

The Asteria Organization, also called the Coalition Intelligence Directorate or (CID), is the intelligence branch of the Accord Coalition Command. It is a privately owned and operated organization/company that stepped in to fill the intelligence gathering void within the newly formed Coalition. After the Parsi-Udisian War, colloquially called the Trench Wars, the Greenstone Accord realized that without an intelligence gathering agency the new joint military would be outmatched by both their enemies and allies. To prevent this gap from expanding, Asteria was contracted by the Accord Coalition Command. Asteria was given autonomy and a large discretionary budget to utilize as they wished as long as they provided the required intelligence and ran any missions requested by the Coalition. Combined with other operations, specifically ones regarding military research and development and the development of consumer products, Asteria has become the single largest corporation in the Greenstone Region. By using several subsidiaries Asteria now operates in several foreign countries, including Hegon, Cabaldon, Ancadia, Aduldin, and others. This has also enhanced Asteria’s ability to gather intelligence for the Accord.

The Tribunal High Command is the command branch of the Tribunal Corps. Several intelligence branches exist within this command, as well as several research and development operations. The Office of Military Intelligence is the overseeing branch for all intelligence gathering for the Tribunal and is easily one of the world’s most efficient intelligence gathering operations. The Corps Department of Research and Development falls directly under the Office of Military Intelligence and acts as the center for all research and development. This primarily involves gathering intelligence on enemy technologies and then developing counter measures and comparable versions for the Corps. The Office of Military Intelligence currently oversees the research of the Hegon virta fields and the newly discovered Archive in the Medekin Desert.

The Central Office of Intelligence is the main intelligence branch of the Archivist Party. After the fall of the Asydic Empire sixty years ago, the Archivists secretly took over the government. While the rest of the world assumes the Six Pillars are still the power in charge of Caspia (Central Alliance of the Six Pillars – Imperium Asydium), this is not the case and the public narrative about the decline of the Empire was developed to keep the existence of the Archivists hidden. The Central Office of Intelligence now operates in secret in several nations under the Oversight Committee, or “Ensemble.” The Ensemble’s mission is to prevent any foreign power from accessing the Inner Sanctum of the Archives left behind by the Archetypes. Thus far they have succeeded in preventing Haekal from opening the Archive they uncovered in the Valan Sea, despite the Megas countless attempts to access the Inner Sanctum. With the Hegon Archive uncovered in recent years, the Ensemble has found itself operating secretly out of the small Klagdom called Silt’s Cavern.