WorldAnvil Worldbuilding Awards 2025 - Han's Entries

Once more, we dance into the future bearing in our arms the fruits of the past.

It's that time of year again - if a little late on my part, because I got so busy. I'm certain everyone's notifications are being utterly bombarded with these lists - apologies for adding another to the pile. Before I get into the list, I want to share my own personal fantastic news. I've just signed the contract for an apartment! I'm buying a place!! I didn't know this was POSSIBLE for millennials and yet thanks to the government's homebuyer scheme, I've found a place. It's a really lovely apartment, even has a pull-out pantry. Oh - and I'm able to mention officially that I'm one of the devs on Civilisation VII VR, too. Very excited about that one - make sure you check out our trailer if you get a chance.
Naturally, with work picking up & the stress of sorting out house stuff, I've been pretty busy! So let's get into the reason we're here, shall we? I've picked a nice array of articles that I hope will be well-loved in this year's WAWA. Some are from Summer Camp, some are from WorldEmber, and one is from a previous year because I'd like to celebrate it properly!

Istralar's Entries for the Worldbuilding Awards

Best Worldbuilding Article - Dirge of Worlds

It is the symptom, not the sickness; it is the response, not the call.

The Dirge of Worlds is the end to every chapter in Istralar's greater universe. The article details the signs and symptom's of a world's end, and paints the picture of what Istralar's current status is in comparison. Has its dirge begun? Is this tale at its end? Decide for yourself - not every question has an accompanying answer.
I've written many pieces for Istralar that hint at the world's fragility and the magic binding it. This article, spurred on by Summer Camp, sets up a very real ending, and lays out the price and punishment any world faces for going too far. This brings together so many different aspects of Istralore, and I'm thrilled with how it came out under the time pressure of SC. Please enjoy!

Hearts & Minds - Rite of Torpor

We pay high tolls for our gift. Would you rather the chance of survival it grants, or the certainty of death?

The Rite of Torpor is a sacrifice and sacrament performed by the people of Aanngaavoq to survive in one of Istralar's most extreme environments. To live on treeless rock with only open sea separating you from the cap of the world is to expose yourself to the devastation of winter's cruelties. It is only through this magical slumber that the small community can find ways to continue through the worst, and yet the consequences to which they expose themselves are dangerous again.
When you read this, place yourself in their shoes. Allow yourself to feel what they must feel, in the cold and the dark. Know their fear. Be their desperation. Let it take you.

Rise of Nations - the Arriusi

Someday, the water will come a-calling to their children's children, and they will come home. The river always calls her children home.

The Arriusi are one of Istralar's minority ethnic groups, born originally from the concept of river-dwelling peoples and expanded into a vibrant, healthy culture embedded into the very heart of Valathe's cultural landscape. Their names are shields for their selves, their hair carries memories of the past forward with them, and their endless travels lead them to conflict with established nations over what the idea of home and ownership can be.
From a creator's perspective, the Arriusi are very dear to me as they represent a resilience and groundedness that I do not often think to write into this world of magic and mystery. They are a glimpse into what everyday lives can be like in Istralar, and the struggles that lie so far beneath the notice of gods and kings. In our modern-day time, where identity is such a tumultuous topic, I am glad to present this aspect of humanity - a group of people who hold their identities close, and live as they wish, in harmony with the world around them.

Wondrous Nature - Teeth?

Sheep are never known as shoop, and thus teeth? have decided as a whole to never be known as tooth?.

Wondrous Nature is a category for things that are both natural and wondrous. It is with great regret that we must consider that teeth? are, unfortunately, both of these things. There are many commonalities in mortal dreams, both upon our Earth and in Istralar. Teeth are one of the stranger ones. Unfortunately, in Istralar's universe, where dreams can take on aspects of reality, this has caused the creation of aberrant dream-calcium beings known as teeth? (yes, with the question mark).
Cutesy at first and nightmarish further in, teeth? were an utter fever dream to write. I consider them a perfect manifestation of the surrealist oddities Istralar is frequently subjected to, and one of my favourite pieces of writing since I joined WorldAnvil.

Strength & Honour - Influence of the Shards

What is freedom if not the shattering of another reality?

There is nothing more core to the story of Istralar, at this point in time, than the Shards. Deific fragments forged into reality-shattering tools, their influence marrs every moment both future and past. They are the spinners of war's threads, they pull the strings of leadership, and they sow seeds of bloody desperation - for no purpose known to man. My party have long struggled against the Shards, uncovering their mystery and toiling against the inexorable impact they have left on this earth.
The Shards care not for the boundaries of time or space. The fingerprints they leave behind stain everything. What, then, escapes their view? How can it be seen, how can it be stopped? What hints to the future lie in this work? Step into the tangled web, and see what you can learn.

Pillars of Progress - Solilux

I suspect we've all been underestimating this one for quite a long time, if my fears are correct.

How often do we hear of wondrous scientific discoveries that can never become medicines? Side effects are something well-known in the field of science, yet Istralar lags behind in its scientific methodology and understanding. Solilux was invented and used with little care to investigate the longer-term impacts a mind-altering substance might cause.
Yeah, turns out that was a bad idea. It'd be bad if it just caused tinnitus, but alas, it does a fair bit more than that. Test your experimental drugs well, folks! This IS a bit of a novel, so be mindful of that!

Myths & Legends - Words of the Silent

That the prophecy is a true prophecy and one that remains unfulfilled is all any deific figure will say. The rest is for mortalkind to theorise about.

Rarely do I provide prophecies and hints to my players that I'm willing to mark as genuine truth. That does not mean the Words are clear and easy to interpret: there are a thousand theories as to what this world-affecting prophecy may actually mean, both in-world and, I'm sure, in the party notes of my dear players. Is it a prophecy currently in progress? Is it a hint at their next campaign?
Whatever the case, I had a lot of fun writing the Words, recording my telling, and then putting together all the rest of the lore in such a way that it didn't give away too much of anything. A good myth, prophecy, or legend should always be rooted enough in reality that folk have enough rope to hang themselves with, I find. If it's too mystical, it gets brushed off. But if they can just about grab onto something, well...