Worldbuilding: How to Create an Original Setting
Learn to create a unique setting for your tabletop RPG campaign or novel - without getting overwhelmed. It's easier than you think!
CREATE YOUR FREE ACCOUNTWhat is worldbuilding?
Worldbuilding is, put simply, creating an imaginary place where stories can happen. That could be a completely new world (like Tolkein or Star Wars), or a version of our world (like Percy Jackson, The Walking Dead, Fallout or the Marvel Universe).
Worldbuilding includes what the world looks like, the plants and animals that fill it, as well as the extraordinary - magic and space-travel, myths and monsters. It includes the people who live there, along with their cultures, languages, and beliefs. Worldbuilding isn’t just a static setting or backdrop for your story or game. It’s a vivid, active environment that shapes your characters and conflicts.
What is the goal of worldbuilding? Making a made-up world believable and interesting to those who experience it, whether they're reading a book, playing a game, or watching a movie.
Why worldbuild?
Worldbuilding underpins EVERYTHING, from plots, to characters, to scene settings. This makes worldbuilding the natural starting point for a storyteller’s creative process. Plus, it offers a wealth of benefits, from stress management to literally imagining a different world. And if you’re a professional storyteller (or aspiring one), worldbuilding is a critical part of your path to success, drawing in your audience, giving sequel potential, and adding value to your work.
You’re already a worldbuilder!
Ever played pretend? Made up a story? Built a village in a video game? Drawn a map to pirate treasure? Then you’re already a worldbuilder! It’s something we naturally do as children, and a skill we often lose as adults. But you can get it back with practice!
World Anvil is built to help you remember what you already know: you possess endless creative potential. We’re here to help you tap into it again.
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"I’ve been forging worlds for over 40 years. Every new world I create now begins, takes root, and comes alive exclusively in World Anvil. There is simply no better environment to organize, create and comprehend a complex, functioning, breathing universe."
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Gamemaster: Create a homebrew setting
- Pick a genre & RPG system.
- Choose your big adventure idea.
- Focus on 3 important setting aspects.
- Map out your starting point.
- Get your players involved.
Writer: Create a fictional world
- Pick a genre & mood/vibes.
- Describe a unique twist.
- Craft 3 compelling characters.
- Focus on 3 important setting aspects.
- Outline your novel (or start writing!)
Worldbuilding Examples
Good worldbuilding adds depth and dimension to your storytelling. It creates natural challenges for your characters, adds the weight of history to conflicts, and provides a layer of mystery for exploration. Here are some exceptional worldbuilding examples from books, TV shows, movies and games. Think about the ways the world makes these stories special - and how these stories only make sense in their particular world.
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WHAT DO OUR USERS THINK
My overall book sales have grown by 300% in 2 months! Using World Anvil’s tools, I created a dedicated book page connected to the rest of my interactive world and the sales immediately jumped! Best creative investment I’ve made since 2005...
ANDY LAW
CEO, Rookery Publications; Game Designer, Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay; Cartographer, Critical Role; Host, LAWhammer
I love using World Anvil! When my lore-brain is running amok in a thousand directions, it helps me capture all those thoughts, connect, and structure them into a world that feels real and coherent. Plus the community is an endless well of inspiration!
PETER CHIKOWSKI
Game Master; Award-Winning Writer; Creator, The Deck of Worlds
As a multi-media publisher of an original fantasy world, we needed a central resource for our artists, writers, and game designers. World Anvil has been the perfect solution... Its easy-to-use features allow for a ton of flexibility and creativity (especially the interactive maps!)
CATHY BOCK
Professional Writer, Game Developer, Incredible Dream Studio
I'm using World Anvil to provide my patrons and fans with an online encyclopedia of all my creations (including all the art I made for it). Next to all it's practical uses, the platform itself and the community has lit a worldbuilding fire inside me that inspired me to create so much more content for others to enjoy!
TIM | BONUS ACTION
Patreon Artist, Worldbuilder & Magic Item Specialist
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