Veska (Scrapbook)
Scope
The motivation behind building Veska (Scrapbook)
Mostly for fun, really. It's a hobby of mine, I enjoy expressing my creativity and I also like spreading that enjoyment to others.
The goal of the project
Veska exists for a variety of reasons. I mainly want a backdrop to immerse my readers into when I finally get to publishing my damn book, but it also serves as the primary setting I use for my D&D Campaigns.
Veska (Scrapbook)'s Unique Selling point
Personally, what makes Veska unique to me is that it's designed to highlight the tribulations that others go through to achieve what they want. Whatever struggle the characters face, they're willing to try and overcome what's pitted against them in hopes of accomplishing their desire. This is not exclusive to the heroes.
My villains are likewise, going through the same thing. They're forced to endure whatever burden they're given and can also overcome those just as easily as my heroes. They are just as likely to succeed as the heroes are, and furthermore, an important question to ask yourself in this setting is whether or not the ends justify the means. A lot of baddies in my setting aren't bad for the sake of being bad; they're brought to where they were through whatever turmoil left them at that state. Whatever goal they may desire to achieve, it is done without a care for the lives of others.
Aside from that: It is your classic dark fantasy setting that has its highs and lows, but mostly keeps a grounded and realistic setting designed to pull people into the world.
My villains are likewise, going through the same thing. They're forced to endure whatever burden they're given and can also overcome those just as easily as my heroes. They are just as likely to succeed as the heroes are, and furthermore, an important question to ask yourself in this setting is whether or not the ends justify the means. A lot of baddies in my setting aren't bad for the sake of being bad; they're brought to where they were through whatever turmoil left them at that state. Whatever goal they may desire to achieve, it is done without a care for the lives of others.
Aside from that: It is your classic dark fantasy setting that has its highs and lows, but mostly keeps a grounded and realistic setting designed to pull people into the world.
Theme
Genre
Dark Fantasy, centered around a 'weird west' or 'Victorian' timeline. Guns exist, and are in fact, effective and often used in tandem with blades.
Reader Experience
There's a variety of feelings that I want to purvey when it comes to Veska. It's a world as a whole, so the most important thing I want my readers to feel is immersion. I want them to be able to know what they smell when they walk into a bakery around the street corner, and what they see when they look up to a dull, grey sky amidst a sprawling city.
Aside from that, fear. Horror is an important element I utilize in Veska, but an important thing I often employ to further orchestrate that is intrigue and confusion. Things happen in Veska that aren't meant to be understood, and the greatest fear that mankind carries is the fear of the unknown. We are pattern seeking creatures, and when that pattern is left just vague enough to comprehend, it not only unsettles, but intrigues those that are interested.
Aside from that, fear. Horror is an important element I utilize in Veska, but an important thing I often employ to further orchestrate that is intrigue and confusion. Things happen in Veska that aren't meant to be understood, and the greatest fear that mankind carries is the fear of the unknown. We are pattern seeking creatures, and when that pattern is left just vague enough to comprehend, it not only unsettles, but intrigues those that are interested.
Reader Tone
Personally, I'd say Dark is probably the best way to describe the setting. It isn't pleasant, it isn't enjoyable, but it isn't necessarily hopeless. That's the big theme with the world, after all. No matter how hopeless and insurmountable the world may be, things can be overcome through effort.
Character Agency
First thing's first, player agency is an important thing to me when I DM. Despite how gritty my worlds are, I like to make sure my players are the heroes. Not the characters I've made, not the NPCs that are around them. There may be other people around the world that are phenomenally powerful, but in the end, my players gain the spotlight, and they should feel like not people, but heroes.
Or even the villains.
Or even the villains.