Of ancient times and new beginnings

A new year has begun and the first year at worldanvil comes to a close (well, its more like 4 months since I joined, but who is counting).

I've met a lot of cool and interesting people and learned quite a lot..so first of all thanks to all my readers (yes, that means you) and to everyone who has helped me grow.
A special shoutout goes out to the german discord channel and #challenge-discussion - keep being awesome.

So, lets look at the last year, its challenges (ha!) and the awesome articles that people published. I could probably list a LOT more articles, but there's only so much space here.

Worldember statistics

Words written: 10758 words
Total Likes earned: 51
Articles written for Worldember: 10
Articles that placed on Leaderboards: 4

Worldember community favorites:

1st place: The Wandering - An obsidian curse
2nd place: Al'nahar's Harbor Quarter
3rd place: Whispering Waves - A Harbor Tavern

Worldember reflections

Since I only had around 15 days to write, I'm exceptionally proud I managed 10758 words. Lets see how I did fulfilling my pledge:

• Al'nahar - I vastly underestimated this city. In the end, I managed to finish ONE city quarter, which came to a whopping 2155 words and is one of my proudest works. Considering I have around 10 districts planned thats gonna be a BIG project. (but one I'm looking forward to).
• Ri'kahars organisational structure - well, I wanted to do that after the city. So, while the plan still stands, not much happened here
• The pantheon of gods - sadly, another one I didn't get around to. But don't worry, I keep that in my sights.
• I entered Mochi's species challenge and while I did not write every single prompt as originally planned, I managed one (and there might still be more just for fun) and earned a cool new badge.
• Catos Condition challenge - I struggled a bit to get that one on the road, but once I had an idea what I wanted to do this was a blast to write - and considering the Wandering was the most liked of my articles this WE, you seemed to like it too.
• Scavenger Hunt: Daeni's challenge was driving me nuts for a few days while I fiddled with groups, secrets and CSS but I REALLY REALLY wanted to do make it work - and learned a whole lot about subscriber groups, secrets and other stuff trough it. In case you want to take a look, its here

After all, I learned much more about realistic targets and now I have to make some plans for this year. So, what's planned for next year?

Al'nahar gets more districts

Deities - the pantheon is planned, I just have to write a few articles *cough*

The Khan's of Kashar - a rival nation of clans will get at least an outline, more if I can manage it

More food, tradegoods and culture as a relaxing exercise in between

Items - everything from tradegoods to special unusual items , I plan to write at least 10

Species - Flora and Fauna need some love too, at least 3 entries into Beasts of the sea, sky and land

I plan to host a challenge! I'm really excited about it and have the idea nailed down, I just have to write up some rules for it and find the right time

Last, but definitely not least: bring my players into WA, they know nothing of it yet and I'm looking forward to see their reaction

And now for the stars of this show:

My favorite articles

A green "hell" greatly illustrated by diary entries and fitting pictures - a great read, one of the best ways I've seen to implement "radiation" in a fantasy setting, this is one article I can heartily recommend to everyone (and I have a soft spot for the idea). I also have to highlight the excellent use of the sidebar in this article - definitely something I will lean into more.

Another great article, this time we delve into potions - I really like the idea that those potions are made from blood and not necessarily compatible with each person. Including illustrations for each potion, this is a very interesting and well written take on the plain old healing potion

I have written a recipe or two by now, but notahumanhand actually wrote a whole cookbock.
The level of detail and work that went into this is mindblowing.

I'm going to have to write some primers for countries soon - if I do, I hope I can do it as well as Blue Fairy 74. This primer is well organised, packed with info and the formating and pictures break up the text into neat bites that leave you hungry for more.

An interesting article about a storm that seems to be growing forever and is over a million years old, I really like the idea and the setting on this planet.

Materials are an often overlooked topic during worldbuilding, clothing even more so.
Combining both, this wonderfully crafted article is a great read and an inspiring use of both categories.

I couldn't decide which one to pick, so here is another one by Blue Fairy 76. I really like the detailled description and all the little details for the meadow goblins - but the crown jewel of this article for me is the use of the map layer feature to show different clothing styles. Awesome idea and I highly recommend you check it out

You want to visit a tavern and need one with a LOT of details and plot hooks? Don't worry, Tillerz got you covered with Fish and Shrimp. Embedded in a stylish design, this has it all - from events, GM information, plot hooks and even a menu, this is as good as it gets for an rpg ressource.

Well, I'm a bit biased here since this is an entry for catos condition challenge and I submitted bronzification as a symptom - I was really curious what people would do with that one. Enter Thaldimine Poisioning, my personal favorite in that category. Sporting some lore, a detailled description that was a great read for a not so easy challenge.

Last, but definitely not least is Rookland, the Bastion city - this awesome travel brochure has a great pick of pictures, great writing and feels overall like something a tourist bureau would hand out to people. I'd visit in a heartbeat!