Have you ever wanted to create your own fictional universe?

[Koopaul]

Like the topic says. Have you? I've always wanted to be like Tolkien and create an entire world of races and monsters, gods and aliens, legends and lore. I actually did flesh one out over the years based on my various views on video game lore.

I've always had two issues.
With games like Zelda, it was the Hero of Destiny™ and how the gods were puppeteering a hero rather than someone choosing to be a hero on their own free will.
With game heroes becoming more serious/badass/mature and the decline of cartoony game heroes.

These two factors lead me to create a subversive story about the badass Bishōnen Hero of Destiny™ who fails miserably at his job, and the cartoony anthro turtle who takes it upon himself to save the world. From there I created a more detailed story that slowly started to flesh out an entire world of characters, races, civilizations and more.

I could go onto endless details about that world and the story I made, but I'll spare you that this time. For now, share with us if you ever did something similar and what was your inspiration.

[puggsoy]

When I was about 13/14 I wanted to make a story, with a world also inspired by Tolkien and similar authors. Although I tried to start, I never really persisted with writing it (also life got in the way and such). I still kept thinking about it though, polishing ideas and developing the world. So for the past 6 or 7 years I've had this story and world in my head but I have yet to put it down on paper in a Word document.

It probably won't happen, but I do hope I manage to get myself to start writing it this year. I mostly just want to get it out in some physical digital form and have something to work with and flesh out properly, rather than just making various changes to random parts in my head. Also, despite the fact that I'm surprised how much I manage to remember, I can't rely on my memory to retain everything, and besides if I ever want to make it into a proper novel (series?) and publish it then I need to start somewhere.

[Kriven]

Yes, and I'm writing it.

My original intentions were to do a whole multiversal concept based on a loose adaptation of Norse mythology, and I'm still holding to that idea as the center for my stories, but I realized there isn't enough time in my life to explore myriads of multiple realities. As a result, I've ended up changing some things so that they exist within one universe (for example, the character Dexter in the novel I'm writing now was originally going to be transported through the Multiverse and end up in my superhero universe as part of a group of other dimensionally-lost heroes... but I'm changing that because I've decided I have few enough stories going on that there isn't a reason to split the universes). Despite this I still have some specific stories set outside my primary universe (my current novel actually hinges entirely on the idea... as its villains originate from another universe as does the militarized forces which come through to battle them), and there are some things which can't be set in my "Primary" universe because of their scope. An apocalyptic zombie outbreak, for example. I can't end the world and yet have it continue.

Despite this, I will still be exploring the Multiverse pretty deep, because it is the center of my lore. Yggdrasil. the World Tree, exists at the center of the Multiverse, and each root it grows leads to a different universe. Higher beings exist in the same world as Yggdrasil (and there will be rumor of "Other Trees", but I'm not sure how deeply I will explore an Omniverse)... they would be the Fay, as I see them. Seelie and Unseelie, of course, engaged in an endless conflict for control of The Tree, and in effect all of reality as they understand it. Fay, being aware of the nature of the multiverse, are able to locate the "Pools" which connect Yggdrasil to various realms, allowing them to travel between different universes. Also, as Fay are from the same world in which Yggdrasil resides, there is only instance of an individual Fay per multiverse... so while a Fay might encounter two versions of the same human, there will only ever be one of that Fay.

Because of their standing as "Higher Beings", the Fay are usually conceited creatures who hold nothing but contempt for the infinite "mortals" who inhabit the various universes. Humans are stupid, disposable creatures who can be replaced should the need call for it.

The nature of the Fay creates an interesting problem for the Multiverse: by its nature, a new universe is created whenever a mortal performs an action. For instance, Stanley has a math test tomorrow. He chooses not to study for it... but that choice creates a new root on Yggdrasil, a new universe where Stanley did study. However, if Boarsbreath the Hobgoblin offers to help Stanley study, no new universe will be created--there can only be one Boarsbreath in the Multiverse. However, unknown to most Fay, their actions do change things: their actions give birth to a new Multiverse.

So of course, I have tiers of living beings which go on seemingly indefinitely. You've got humans at the relative bottom, and they're joined by more typical Fantasy creatures... elves, dwarves, orcs, etc. These are Universal Beings, or "Mortal Beings". Mortal Beings do not have a natural command of any form of magic, but they can learn to use it if properly taught. In most cases the "magic" my mortal characters use are technological... although they might not understand it. Magic being some kind of remnant from a now-extinct but once-advanced race.

Fay, or Faire Folk, or Fairies do have innate command of magic, although to what degree varies from one species to the next. All Faire creatures can use Glamour, or disguise magic, which is how they remain invisible to most mortals. However, they cannot disguise themselves from other Fay or those who possess Fay lineage. Some Fay species are more powerful than others, and can learn to command immense natural power.

Somewhere above the Fay are Demons and Angels and Spirits (to an extent). What they are, how they live, and the nature of their powerful magic is a mystery to the Fay... all they know is that their magic is different and that angels seldom enter the mortal realms, although demons certainly do. Both angels and demons are gatherers of deceased spirits, both mortal and fay, but what is done with those spirits is unknown... Most demons consume them to become more powerful, and the Fay speculate that angels do the same. I don't intend to explore angels or demons all that closely. I want them to be somewhat mysterious. Where exactly they originate isn't mapped out, as far as multiverse, universe, omniverse, etc. They just exist, and when they come, something big is sure to follow.

Also, because I'm silly, I've spun off "Snow Angels" into a distinct type of angel which inhabits the North Pole and helps to keep Krampus from escaping his prison.

I think I've rambled on long enough here...

[Maxpphire]

I did in 2007 and I just keep expanding on it.

I really should make that comic game thing I keep trying to do.

[Koopaul]

Yeah, I too wish to see my ideas expressed in some medium. Comic, novel, game. Not sure. I don't know where to begin.

The backbone of the story, setting, and characters are in place but the flesh keeps mutating.

One thing that never changes is my mission to make a universe with "flashy" "cool" human characters but have it center around a "mundane" "cartoony" animal character who succeeds beyond expections based on his sheer will to fight.

[Kriven]

Have you ever read Howard the Duck? It's got a similar idea going for it.

[BullockDS]

I'm trying to flesh out a world that I've been formulating since my middle teens, but I've only just now started finalizing some of the major character designs (I've had the main character and most of the major character personalities pretty much dead set for a few years though). I'm just lacking major villains, save for one of the very first. I'm not aiming to create anything close to the scope or intricacy of Tolkien's legendarium, though, because I don't have that dedication.

I'd want to see my universe expressed in a comic, an RPG game, or a novel with many illustrations.

[psychospacecow]

I've tried to make worlds before. My problem is that I fixate on things and get lost in the details pretty quickly. I'll have this one core concept that just sounds awesome and you could kinda build around, but then some minor detail I fixate on takes forever and I kinda lose the drive to try.

[miyabi95_]

I usually build off of the earth when I create my own little universe...But I can't say I've ever gone full-on fantasy. My brother probably has though. Sometimes he'd create his own original maps of fantasy worlds (mostly medieval-based) by just doodling them down in sketchbooks - it was almost as if he had a random generator in his brain that would just place whatever he was thinking on paper.

[Benny The Miraj]

My worlds are generally a mix of medieval and modern. They sometimes have futuristic qualities, too. But not often.