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[Neonivek]

Post 1: Opening and Types

Alright, so as a few of you know I am a large fan of magical lands or islands of land where the ordinary rules of the Dwarf Fortress rules are suspended. I’ve done posts similar to this before and I was glad to hear that Toady is thinking of doing something similar. I have a list of Spheres but they aren’t written in an organized way for this.

So taking Toady’s replacement of Good and Evil lands with Sphere lands… and his replacement of Zombie and Skeleton with generalized Curses… In mind I’ll be trying to write this suggestion. I am already noticing that I am having trouble consolidating my ideas into a coherent long post. I am also noticing it is taking a LONG time…

Please forgive me for calling these Magical Lands… I know Power Land, Sphere Land, or Chaotic Land makes more sense. I will also refer to these lands as a Sphere just to be extra confusing.

Comments, Questions, Suggestions, Criticisms, and additions are all appreciated.

: Types of Land :
There are several ways in which a land can appear, grow, or even disappear. Power Lands are all templates that go over existing land. These are all the ones that I can think of listed, Then I shall expand on a few.

-Natural: The Land appears during creation and neither grows nor shrinks.
--Moving: The land is capable of migrating.

-Miracle: The land is created by the actions of a god and will thus show in their legends file.
--Power: This land is created by the actions/existence of specific powers who have the ability to create these lands
Limitation: These lands can only include the Spheres that a god or power contains

-Artifact: The land is centered on an artifact and will move with the artifact. In a similar way to the Bronze Colossus it doesn’t have to have specifically been created by anyone in particular.

-Creature: The land is centered on a creature, usually powerful, and will move with it and disappear when the creature does.

-Living: The land itself is alive and will encroach on other lands and perhaps even move. Cutting down its trees, killing its creatures, or digging out its minerals can destroy it.
--Alternative: Perhaps a living land can have a “Heart”
Note: These should be capable of being worshipped, especially be elves.

-Actions: The land is created by the actions of others. Examples of this could be battlefields becoming gloomy lands of eternal darkness. These would most likely be “Pre-set” for specific actions to cause a Sphere. Its name should reflect the actions that caused it.

Moving, growing, and Limitations: Certain Spheres don’t seem to be compatible with moving lands. Specifically geology intensive spheres such as: Water, Rivers, Oceans, or Mountains.

-Chaotic Land: If a land has two spheres that are preclude each other it becomes chaotic, the domains of Chaos, Games, Gambling, and perhaps luck also has the same effect. I may or may not fully explain them later…

Adding another post after this one

[Neonivek]

Post 2: Basic Temperature…

So looking at the spheres weather should change depending on which it is. The land doesn’t necessarily have to change the weather for the domain but should increase the likelihood of such.

:Simple Temperature Changes:
With Spheres there should be a temperature range. Creatures will automatically be immune to such effects (Will speak about this more when I speak of Sphere Template creatures). They don’t HAVE to change in temperature and they are all a range so a Fire Sphere land can simply be warm.

Simple refers to otherwise very natural not very magical changes and don’t include seasons.

Non-sphere related:
-Ignores outside Temperature: The temperature in the Sphere entirely ignores the weather of the outside
--Doesn’t radiate: The temperature of the Sphere will not inflict any lands outside of it. It only applies to those that ignore the outside temperature.
-Sphere Exceptions:
--Boundaries: They will almost always include the above two
--Charity, Generosity, Theft: They will almost always exclude the above two

Extreme heat: The Temperature is enough to melt rocks and burn trees at its highest point
-Domains: Fire, Volcanoes, Metals

High Heat: The temperature is enough to burn trees at its highest point
-Domains: Sun, Lightning

Warm Heat: The Temperature is scorching at its highest point.
-Day, Noon

Slow Shifts: The Temperature makes small shifts and generally stays within the same temperature zone. Ignore the location as it can be within any temperature zone.
-Water, Rivers, Lakes, Oceans, Discipline, Misery, Death, Air, Sky

Extreme Shifts: The Temperature always makes extreme shifts
-Sun, Moon, Death (Ha Ha), Trickery, Volcano, Freedom

Perfect Temperature: The temperature stays moderate. At minimum it does so for the creatures that live there.
-Discipline, Dreams, Happiness, Healing, Animals, Air, Sky

Chilly Cool: The temperature is cool enough to become uncomfortable and cause damage to those without clothing or fur.
-Blight, Death, Rain, Caverns, Mountains, Earth, Dawn

Freezing Cool: The temperature is cool enough to cause damage to those without winter clothing
-Lakes, Night, Twilight, Rivers

Extreme Cool: The Temperature is chilly enough to burn on its own even with winter clothing.
-Ocean, Moon

Nightmares, Revelry, Death, Blight, Misery, Suicide: The Temperature will be less or more then what the creatures generally can support.

Luck, Gambling, Games, Chaos, and Fate: Completely random

Part 3: Basic Season changes to come?... Hopefully Ill get to something more interesting by then… In fact the lack of interesting suggestion works against me.

Alright almost time to sleep

[R1ck]

Interesting. How big exactly would these "lands" be? Could you easily recognize them on the map?

[penguinofhonor]

I would prefer that the most noticeable effects would be on creatures. Imagine a land where everything had wings, or a land of spiders where everything has eight legs. Creepy.

[Neonivek]

Interesting. How big exactly would these "lands" be? Could you easily recognize them on the map?

You know Evil and Good lands? Toady plans on giving them the Axe and instead replace them with Spheres (If I understood correctly)

So you don't have Evil lands... you have a Land that has the Spheres of Fire, Justice, and Fortune

You don't have Good lands... You have a land that has the Spheres of Sun, Healing, and Pregnancy

Note: Those were just examples

So they will become just as large or small as they currently can get in the game as they are.

My status on next update: Given my week, I should have an update tommorow

I would prefer that the most noticeable effects would be on creatures. Imagine a land where everything had wings, or a land of spiders where everything has eight legs. Creepy

It can be more weird then that... Imagine a land where all the creatures were babies... Or where everything was born pregnant. Or where Dogs are born with arms in which they create their own societies where they use the Rich Green Iron deposits that sit right under the Trees that have poems etched into them.

[Deathworks]

Hi!

Basically a nice idea, however, I have some tendencies of my own:

The living, expanding land doesn't really sound that interesting to me. Neither do the babies and pregnant places.

But something I do find interesting has been very much neglected or at least not fully developed by your suggestion:

Civilization-linked lands: Right now, we have just a little bit of tree cutting and tree planting, but it would be great if civilizations (which should have some variance in their spheres anyway) would reform their surroundings. I mean, that is basically what "civilization" is about - subdueing and forming your environment.

So, if you have a bloodthirsty, violent civilization, rivers in its lands could become polluted and vile, trees will grow crippled and twisted and even the most docile animals will madly attack any travellers. Another civilization may embrace worship of the undead. Poisonous rain gathers in equally deadly rivers and packs of undead creatures roam through its countryside. Another civilization may focus on study and magic and its forests are full of wonderous creatures, some benevolent, some dangerous.

This has a lot of appeal for me as it strengthens history in world gen immensely and also should help giving civilizations equal opportunities for spreading.

It would be really cool (albeit probably too much work), if such transformations created new subregions which may eventually replace old subregions, or at least if subregions got renamed if their entirety changed its status. (Right now, even after humans have overrun your world, they will still be living in forest subregions, even though there are no forest tiles left).

Deathworks

[Neonivek]

My plan is to connect "Magical Lands" to all aspects of Dwarf Fortress as the suggestion from Creatures, Plants, Weather, Materials, and even curses upon Adventurers.

But I will admit Deathworks I didn't think of applying it dirrectly to a civilisation.

In fact the closest thing to it was the idea that civilisations with religions with spheres similar to that of the land would treat it as holy land and all the stuffing that comes with that.

unfortunately I have overestimated my time... and the time I would be willing to work on my next posts... especially since I have to do a lot of boring stuff like include what Spheres effect rainfall and cause lightning storms before I can get to the interesting stuff like it raining blood, cats, or pink colored water.

[Neonivek]

Post 3: Complex Temperature changes

UGH, I havn’t worked on this as much as I should have but I will continue to update this until I get everything down. I appologise to anyone who actually looks at my posts thinking I just updated.

Anyhow so now that we have dealt with temperature changes that could otherwise be natural and require little coding to do (relatively… I think) we now shall delve into the not so basic.

So I can do these additions quicker, Ill skip pointing out specific Spheres this time. If this takes away from the suggestion, Id love to hear your feedback.

:Complex Temperature Changes:

It should be noted that these use the Simple Temperature changes lists as well

Targets: Each one of these changes can effect: Creature, Plant, and/or Material and if those are from inside or outside the magical land. It should even be capable of becoming even more complex such as a land where weapons become so hot that all combat must be done via wrestling. It also should take note if such effects are applies because the native creatures of the land should always be capable of survival, they should only be dead or non-existent if the land decides they are.

Reverse Effect: In this the temperature has the opposite effect on the target in question. A Creature could find that the Tunic that is on fire freezes him.

Different Temperature: The Temperature is different for each classification. While this could allow a person not to feel the intense heat from the sun, it will not protect him from fire or lava.

Safety from Temperature: one of the classifications are immune to the direct effect of the temperature, or rather it is always in its natural state. This can be applied to the cold and/or hot spectrum.

:Specific Complex Temperature Change effects OR Examples:

Weapon Control: All weapon become so hot or cold that they must be dropped or they cause wounds.

Violence Control: Whenever someone strikes another, the ambient temperature around them increases a few degrees. This continues until they die.
-This makes an excellent “Law” and “Justice” Sphere ability for the land.

Civilisation Rejection: All created objects and walls become so hot that they melt instantly in these lands.
-A “Do not build here” should be made for anyone trying to build on these lands… Interestingly an Artifact that could make this kind of place would be very powerful though nearly impossible to obtain.

Eternally Frozen: All water is frozen in this area

Fireproofing: Nothing may burn

Burning Bush: All plants are on fire all the time, though they are never harmed by the flames. The ambient temperature is unchanged however.

Dwarf Paradise: All Kittens and cats instantly turn into -Ice Statues-

Preservatives: All food and drink are cold at all times.

Material Ban: A specific material will always melt in this area

Sentient Ban: Goblins, humans, Dwarves, or Elves will always freeze to death or catch fire in this area.
-Once again it should warn you… as funny as it would be to see your Dwarves just burst into flame

What determines that target of the temperature change should be dependant on the spheres available.