Letter from the editor

Dear Readers,

I am proud to announce that the sixth issue of Worldbuilding Monthly has

finally arrived! During these past two months our team has been hard at work
writing, editing, and compiling articles into a magazine about governments that I
truly hope you will enjoy.

After much debate the Department Heads and I have decided to shift our publishing
schedule to a bimonthly basis, giving our writers and editors more time to pore over each
piece. Additionally, to allow for a wider variety of submissions, articles will no longer be
required to relate as strictly to the main theme of the issue.

The team has also decided to come together and, on the off months, create a mini-mag-
azine or “mini-mag” pertaining to the topics covered in the previous month’s Worldbuild-
ing Monthly. In these issues we will bring to life and apply the advice present in the main
magazine, diving into the practicalities of building a world with one that the team is creat-
ing together: Postantera.

We will continually strive to provide the community with content that is useful and
entertaining. With that in mind, our next issue revolves around gaming!

Lastly, Debug200 has been working hard to put together a website that will host all of
our magazines! Feel free to check out www.worldbuildingmonthly.com.

We are always happy to meet new creators who are part of this community; if you are
interested in worldbuilding and want to help out in any way contact me via reddit or at
[email protected].

Cheers,

u/UNoahGuy

2 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
Contents
4 The Grand Scale: Government (How to Build a Government)
Hexarch

6 Sharing Your World Without Writing a Novel:

Rules and Formats of Nonfiction
Bokai

9 Pennies, Promises, and Pointed Sticks:

A Guide to Power And Politics
StronglyOPlatypus

12 On Sovereignty, Authority, and Governance

Dheolos

14 Transfer of Power: The Choice of Stability

Jayzonny

16 Featured Artists: Alex Storer, Caeora, & tadas Sidlauskas

Adam Bassett

26 Bureaucracies Galore... How to Make Government Realistic

UNoahGuy

28 Governments from Around the World

Adam Bassett

30 The Implications in Governance of

Communication and Transportation
Dheolos

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 3
 The Grand Scale: Government
(How to Build a Government)
Hexarch

T he nature of governments changes in response

to the people and society they govern; gov-
ernmental institutions and their functions emerge
with force. The concept of the right of conquest,
whereby the most fit to rule is defined as the stron-
gest and therefore most apt protector of the peo-
from the sum of prior political developments. For a ple, is an outdated principle that fell out of use at
worldbuilder trying to create a polity from scratch the time of decolonization. This concept has been
the task of naturally evolving a government, as used to justify the conquering and administering of
they do in real life, is unrealistically complicated. foreign territories, on the basis that the strongest
By defining the following three features of a is the best equipped to protect the conquered.
setting, and thinking about how they affect the The modern evolution of this concept, that of the
organized societies present therein, worldbuilders state’s monopoly of violence within its territories,
can get a leg-up on crafting governments in their recognizes violence as a means of protection but
world—whether they be small tribes of hunter- not accumulation of land. Most governments,
gatherers or a galaxy-spanning empire. unless they are very recent conquerors, will down-
play military might as their right to rule. However,
The first feature is the size of both the territory it will always be there backing up more “official”
and administration that governs it. As a rule of claims to power. Another source of authority
thumb the larger the territory the greater the pop- is the divine, when the ruling body claims that
ulation within it will be, requiring governments to stewardship over its territories has been ordained
also be larger in size. However, regardless of pop- by a higher power. In European monarchies the
ulation size, if a government has few official duties divine right of kings was established to justify the
the amount of officials in its administration will supremacy of the monarchy. Democratic forms
not vastly increase even as it takes on more terri- of government in turn justify their actions with
tory and people. Bureaucracies’ sizes will be influ- the concept of popular sovereignty, whereby the
enced more by the amount of administration that people hold supreme power and exercise it during
they do than by the size of the population or terri- free elections. This type of government can be
tory they administer. The American government in traced back to ancient Athens, which practiced a
1790, for example, had few responsibilities; war, very direct form of democracy where even gener-
diplomacy, and customs were the most prominent als were elected. Finally a government can derive
tasks it saw to and thus it required fewer employ- power from the merits of its leaders, whether
ees than it now does. The modern federal govern- they be battlefield prowess, lineage, wealth, or
ment still oversees those same duties but over the experience, among a myriad of other qualities.
years has added functions like environmental pro- What makes an individual meritorious enough to
tection, healthcare, and the regulation of industry. wield power, however, depends greatly on the soci-
As governmental oversight spreads new jobs will ety and culture they are a part of. A government
be created, and the institution as a whole will grow. will reflect the society it governs, so its source of
To put it simply, the size of governments in your authority will reflect the values of that society.
setting will have increased slowly when adding
new population and territory, and quickly when The third feature is the delegation of power
adding new functions. from the higher to lower tiers of the administra-
tion. There will always be one person, or a small
No matter what the size of a government is group of people, who wield the most power. It is
it will continually need to justify why it has the in the delegation of these powers that a govern-
authority to govern to its people, and in general ment becomes unique. As with size the amount of
this is done with one of the following four claims. people, territory, and responsibilities your gov-
First and foremost is justifying one’s right to rule ernment has will determine how many officials it

4 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
needs to delegate power to, while the method of delegation of power is the transfer of it upon death.
delegation itself will vary depending on the type Jayzonny’s article Transfer of Power: The Choice of
of government you’ve chosen to portray. The most Stability or Chaos goes further into this topic, but
common form of delegation in fantasy literature, for the purposes of creating a government from
as an example, is that of feudalism. This system is scratch what is most important to how power is
often conceived of as a pyramid of power with the passed down is the longevity of the regime. If a
Monarch at its head, supported by landed nobility government is old then there is a good chance it
and the Church. The King gives out land and titles has long standing rules on the transferral of power,
to subordinates in exchange for troops during his if it is young they may not be so well delineated.
campaigns, surplus agricultural output yearly, and
unconditional loyalty forever. Those who support It is possible that the nature of a species, magic,
him are powerful landlords thanks to his munif- or advanced technology might render one or more
icence, taking the forms of military aristocracy of the aspects of your setting completely alien to
and ecclesiastic orders. In turn these powerful how we understand the world today. Your world
landowners do the same in their own lands, called may, for example, have a species that lives for
fiefs, by carving out smaller fiefs from them and thousands of years or one that hibernates for half
subletting to their own tenants in a process known its life. A setting may have technology that allows
as subinfeudation, ‘I can’t do this, so you do it in people to teleport instantaneously between star
my name’ is the core concept behind delegation. systems, or magic that compels people to speak
Another distinct form of delegation is that of Chi- the absolute truth. Any one of these aspects would
nese Imperial Civil Service, a collection of officials create cultures wildly different than anything
responsible for carrying out government policy we’ve ever known on earth, but by taking into con-
and administering China. European nations bor- sideration Size, Authority, and Delegation—three
rowed heavily from the Civil Service when building parameters that have factored into the develop-
their own administrations in the 18th century. This ment of governments throughout the last five thou-
form of delegation places importance on knowl- sand years of human history—a worldbuilder can
edge of the law and reduces the power of civil begin to create dynamic and organized societies
servants by making positions uninheritable and for their worlds.
subject to a meritocracy. Additionally, compared to
feudal vassals, civil servants cannot as easily over-
throw their superiors by force of arms. The final
question that comes along with considering the

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 5
 Sharing Your World Without Writing a
Novel: Rules and Formats of Nonfiction
Bokai

T he transition from building a world to sharing

it with other people is one that has stymied
worldbuilders for as long as worldbuilding has
Grab Them Fast

The only writing that doesn't need a hook con-

existed. While many people still worldbuild to tains information so important that its intended
provide a setting for another creative project, like readers must read it, no matter how dry and
a tabletop campaign or novel, a large and growing boring it is. This applies to no worldbuilding mate-
number of worldbuilders see their projects as ends rial at all, ever. This means that you need a hook.
unto themselves. On the one hand, not being bound Examples of useful hooks for nonfiction pieces
by the current tastes in fiction means that world- include leading with a strong assertion (“The his-
builders can direct their creativity in new direc- tory of all hitherto existing society is the history
tions. On the other, many of us still want others to of class struggles”), using in medias res to report
see and enjoy our work, and figuring out how to on the immediate action before explaining the
make an entire world a consumable product is a more boring context, raising a question that will be
real challenge. answered later in the piece, or promising certain
content later on with “clickbait” headlines (“Learn
Typically worldbuilders have tried to solve this these five tricks to bend ghosts to your will!”).
problem in two ways. They either resort to nar-
rative media, thus subjecting their process to the Have a Bias
general demands of that artform and sacrificing a
great deal of detail, or they offer chunks of expo- There is almost no piece of writing that does
sition, sacrificing narrative and human interest not come from a place of bias. Even material that
for a parade of dry facts. But there is a better way. claims to be objective comes from a particular
By replicating the formats and stylistic rules of frame of reference that its author may be unaware
real-world nonfiction one can provide a great deal of. An innocent looking book on the history of
of information while still remaining engaging and Tibetan art, published by a state-run publisher in
interesting. Below are some things to consider Beijing, will be riddled with clear instances of bias.
when you want to share your world but are looking Examples include framing all dates in terms of Chi-
for alternatives to writing a novel, RPG campaign, nese Imperial eras rather than the native Tibetan
or other tangential project. dating system, ignoring historical place names and
borders, and constantly referring to Tibetans as a
The Rules of Writing Still Apply Chinese ethnic group.1

Nonfiction may not be subject to the same Bias need not be damaging, incorrect, or blatant,
expectations as fiction, with the latter’s emphasis but even when you are trying to give the reader
on character centric plots, action-based narratives, clear information about the details of your world,
and satisfying conclusions, but there are still com- consider either writing from the perspective of
mon practices that separate the good nonfiction someone in-world or offering multiple angles
from the bad. A worldbuilder who wants someone through which a fact can be interpreted.
to read past the first sentence of their introduction
should familiarize themselves with them. Nonfic- Make an Argument
tion writing is a craft like any other, and must be
practiced and developed. Once you know where the bias of a piece is com-
ing from you can establish the sort of argument

1
Zhou, Liming. Thangka Paintings of the Tibetan Oral Epic King Gesar. China Intercontinental Press, 2013.

6 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
it is trying to make and the
audience it is trying to reach.
Arguments mean dialogue
and dialogue is engaging. An
argument can be as direct as
a letter condemning a poli-
tician, it can be roundabout
and humorous, or it can selec-
tively withhold information
to lead the reader to a desired
conclusion.

If you are trying to explain

something from an omni-
scient and objective stand-
point it is beneficial to make
note of ways in which people
within that world would
argue about it. Even if the
reader doesn’t have enough
context to pick a side by the
end of a piece, by seeing
multiple positions presented
they will begin to think about
opposing viewpoints and
complexities in the setting.

Keep it Personal

It is a fundamental edict
of journalism that a personal Artist: Adam Bassett
story is more engaging than a broad account.
One death is a tragedy, a thousand is a statistic. Keep the Narrative in Mind
Effective writers of nonfiction almost always bring
the larger argument down to the individual level. This doesn't mean that one must "write a
Sometimes this means writing long biographies of story” but that there should be a story hidden in
great men and women who had direct influence on everything you write. Our modern idea of fiction
important moments in history, and other times this is unfairly limited to clear beginnings, middles,
means writing about the otherwise anonymous ends, and a certain way of progressing between
everyday people who are affected by their partic- each. Nonfiction, however, is much more open,
ular circumstances of time and place. Even when even though a narrative can still be present. A close
you are writing about broad trends or situations a reader of history books will recognize that the
single line about how generalities play out at the author must pick and choose what to include based
individual level will ground your descriptions and on the story they are trying to tell with their num-
make them feel more real to the reader. bers and facts. The more concise a history book is

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 7
 the more essential it becomes to make the broader write as a single body of work, and use the more
narrative explicit, because the reader will not be interesting pieces as hooks to engage readers.
able to make connections themselves without the The drier material can then serve as supporting
tools that they would otherwise have had if the text information for those who have already become
were longer and the pattern were clearer. invested enough in your world to want to dig
further.
Show, Don’t Tell
There are a great many resources that help one
The bane of many a fiction writer, the adage learn how to effectively write all manner of non-
“Show, Don’t Tell,” remains a truism in nonfiction fiction, and I’ve provided a few of those resources
too. If you are describing an oppressive regime, below. If sharing your world with others is a goal,
don’t simply call it an oppressive regime and move but you do not have any interest in the usual
on. Instead explain exactly what it has done to earn avenues of creative writing, studying non-fiction
such a label. If there is an era in your world that models will help you write material that can still
is particularly tumultuous, describe the tumult be read and enjoyed.
and let your reader come to their own conclusions
about just how bad it was. Doing so will keep the
reader’s brain engaged as they’re forced to make
connections for themselves. Some quick reference links for nonfiction writing:

Not All Nonfiction Is Created Equal, But it Has • Writing News Articles
its Place • Hooks, Leads, and Endings
• Crash Course in Learning Theory
An exposé about the scandalous behavior of a • Writing Persuasive Essays
celebrity will be more interesting than a census • Speech Writing
report for a farming district, but that doesn’t mean
that there is no place for census data in your cre-
ative output. Consider all of the nonfiction you

8 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
Pennies, Promises, and Pointed Sticks:
A Guide to Power And Politics
StronglyOPlatypus

A crowded room of men in suits yelling over

one another about the latest law proposal; a
beloved queen, feeding her husband a poisoned
can buy enough votes to sow discord in an oppos-
ing party, or even occupy another person’s position
of power, using them as a proxy. Influential people
meal as his advisors eagerly watch him die; mil- can be paid off to say almost anything with suffi-
lions of people, casting their ballots in a heated cient funds.
race for a high office; a space station refusing to
let a ship dock due to a war that broke out while Politicians aren’t the only people who need
the crew was in stasis. All these scenarios, chaotic money though. Private citizens can perform many
or orderly, cruel or just, major or minor, have one services too, are often cheaper, and usually need
thing in common: politics. the money a lot more. They can act as assistants,
making tasks easier and freeing up time for manip-
Politics, at its core, is a game of power. It’s more ulating the political landscape, and in many cases
than just a game though, it is an inevitability. Any they can vote too, though it’s typically harder to
system which divides power between people, that pay off enough people to make a difference in an
is to say any system of governance at all, will have a election or referendum. If it’s in someone’s inter-
thriving network of politicians who all aim to bend ests to fight a war they can convert that money to
the governmental apparatus to their will. That is, weapons and hire a mercenary army. If a particular
for better or worse, what politics is. Everyone who person really needs to die, an assassin works for
wishes to make a change, whether they are Eddard pay as well.
Stark or Emperor Palpatine, must levy their power
and influence to affect the actions of a government, Finally, currency itself is a form of power. Who-
one of the most important aspects of any world. ever controls the source of money controls the
Many worldbuilders wish to imbue their creations economy, and the economy is rather important.
with the intrigue and shadowy machinations Someone in control of a bank that issues banknotes
demonstrated in both the real world and fictional can inflate and deflate the currency at will. If a cur-
worlds such as in Game of Thrones. Power and the rency is backed by some good securing a monopoly
struggle to obtain it are the basis of all of these on that good puts one in a de facto position of
conflicts, and serve as the basis for many interest- authority and respect. And with control over these
ing stories and settings. economic factors one can manipulate the markets
to make their own investments pay out, concocting
Power comes in three main forms: money, schemes and forming companies to make their
weapons, and words, all of which are interrelated personal estate filthy rich.
and dependant on one another.
Weapons
Money
In politics weapons function like money does,
Money is straightforward; one party gives some- except that instead of rewarding compliance they
one coin, or credits, or cattle, and the other party punish defiance. Often just the threat of violence
does what the first asks. Bribing a politician, or is all that is needed to get people to toe the line,
someone with comparable wealth and influence, but those people must believe their government is
would require a lot of money and last only as long capable and willing to carry out their threats, oth-
as the bribed party thought the money was worth erwise they hold no weight and no power over any-
earning. Even then politicians involved risk being one. Typically, when dealing with weapons, money
arrested for corruption. The upside is that a poli- is a cost paid to obtain them, a more tangible asset.
tician is a valuable asset, and a wealthy individual Soldiers, mercenaries, and assassins all need to be

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 9
 kept happy, lest their spears and knives be pointed Words
in the wrong direction. Feeding, clothing, shelter-
ing, and most importantly paying them goes a long This brings us to the final form of power: words;
way toward doing that. Before anyone can exercise promises and crossed fingers; bits of informa-
any of the numerous benefits provided by employ- tion exchanged between hooded figures in the
ing armed forces one has to make sure they’re dead of night; rousing speeches given in front of
pointing their weapons at one’s enemies. an enormous crowd. Money and Weapons help
directly influencing others, and while words are
The greatest of the benefits weapons provide is no different they are tougher to wield effectively. A
insurance. Anyone with political power is a poten- well-spoken politician is a formidable one.
tial target for violence, but armed bodyguards and
the like will go a long way towards deterring assas- Some choose to enlist the common people to
sins. As politicians pursue their goals they will get their cause, convincing them for good or ill that
in other people’s ways and may find themselves at they are on their side, and will help them if given
the center of a major scandal. One can try avoiding the political power to do so. This works especially
the latter by not doing anything wrong, but stick- well in republics, where the people choose their
ing to their principles in the cutthroat world of an leaders. Politicians who can sway the masses must
interesting fictional political setting will often get exist in any government, for an unpopular govern-
someone betrayed, killed, or worse. Anyone who ment is one destined to fall. The length of time that
wishes to stay alive has to make sure whoever may someone holds onto power for if they choose this
wish to kill them fears their weapons more than route depends on them helping the people while
they hate them. in office, or at least how good they are at making
them think they’re helping. The public giveth
The defensive benefits to an armed force are power, and the public taketh power away.
only part of the picture, however. Along with
money the military will form the bulk of a nation’s The people don’t represent the only need for
power in international politics. The ability to wage promises and speeches, however. Politicians are
war on opponents is essential, whether with the people and an eloquent speaker can convince a
smallest tribal societies or the largest empires. In politician to work with them. Making promises
addition to the numerous benefits that come with is a good way to get one’s agenda going and to
conquering other nations, the threat of war can make some friends on the inside. Relationships are
help bend weaker nations’ will. very valuable assets in the political world, so one
mustn’t break their promises without very good
Of course, there are downsides to this form of reason for doing so. You wouldn’t work against
power as well. In peacetime maintaining a large a like-minded friend, or a spouse, or a family
army can be a boon to the economy by providing member, would you? Assuming there are human
jobs and services. Excessive use of the military can characters in a setting,your world’s politicians can
also interfere with civilian life by taking up land, be expected to be similarly reluctant. Surrounding
food, and money. Soldiers are people too, and if one’s self with others who share a similar goal is
they are underpaid or homesick morale will drop a great way to combine their collective assets and
like an anchor, so providing for them is a must. become a much more powerful entity. Such politi-
Always remember that even if a leader is great cal bonds range in nature, and can take the form of
in war, when the gunsmoke clears and they have a bilateral deal between two politicians, a simple
to deal with administrative and public work they political marriage, or the largest political parties,
could very well be incompetent. One must keep all though these are just a few examples. The power
fronts in mind, economic, military, and political, or of words is not limited to forging alliances through
you may find one’s self trapped in a corner, even promise, information also holds power and value
after winning the war. in politics. If a political player obtains dirt on a

10 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
rival, the logical course of action would be black-
mail. Information is like currency: if a first party
has something the second wants, and the second
has information the first wants, a trade is mutually
beneficial. The same applies for the reverse, of
course, and one should always be wary of other
people learning things they shouldn’t know.

Conclusion

One need only look to the First Triumvirate of

the late Roman Republic for a real-world example
of these three outlined powers working just as
described. Players involved included the exceed-
ingly rich Crassus, whose power lay in his financial
empire; the military leader Pompey; and Julius
Caesar, whose charismatic populism helped him
gain power through the people. Together they
formed a powerful informal alliance in order to
achieve their individual and common goals. They
financed each other’s programs, helped each
other pass their bills, gained offices, and forced
the Senate, their common opponent, into tough
positions. This example also speaks to the fragility
of alliances. Crassus died while making an attempt
to conquer Parthia, and the familial bond shared
by Caesar and Pompey broke down with the death
of Pompey’s wife and Caesar’s daughter, Julia. Civil
war broke out between the two former Triumvirs.
The Second Triumvirate rose from the first one’s
ashes, this time between Lepidus, Marc Antony,
and Caesar’s adoptive son Octavian. This alliance,
too, broke down into civil war, this time tearing
apart the Republic and leaving an Empire in its
place. What are the lessons that worldbuilding can
learn from this? Powerful people working together
can drastically affect change, but the same holds
true when working against each other. When
worldbuilding it is important to remember stories
like these, for alliances, rivalries, and the way
relationships fall apart are the silk from which the
ever-intriguing web of politics is woven.

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 11
 On Sovereignty, Authority, and Governance
Dheolos

G overnment is a complex institution that must

perpetually battle both internally and exter-
nally for control over its polity. I will focus on three
authority much because it is a non issue in most
of the West. However, governments throughout
the world have problems operating and exerting
key areas of government: sovereignty, authority, authority. One of the biggest threats to a govern-
and governance, and their relation to each other. ment’s authority is rebel groups which attempt to
All three are necessary for a government to run its seize territory, thus giving them authority over it.
polity and all three introduce avenues for fascinat- Countries engaged in devastating wars often lose
ing and intriguing worldbuilding. authority over territory that they do control after
reallocating critical resources to the war effort,
Sovereignty is simply the ability to make one’s resources that would otherwise have been used to
own decisions without outside influence. A gov- govern. Impoverished and underdeveloped coun-
ernment is sovereign when it has the authority tries can also have difficulties exerting and retain-
to govern itself without foreign influence, and/or ing authority, they cannot get the resources to
when it is recognized by other governments as govern their territory even when not facing threats.
sovereign. But sovereignty does not apply only to
countries, various government institutions can Consider that a country’s ability to enforce laws
also be sovereign. Historically, monarchs, such as is based on how developed it is; some underdevel-
Her Majesty the Queen of England, Elizabeth II, are oped or less wealthy countries may have difficulty
sovereign. This is because their right to rule comes enforcing laws in rural areas. Consequently these
not from the people, but from God. A sovereign areas may become bastions of crime and other
is nominally unrestrained by a constitution, rule
of law, or any Earthly force. A recent debate has
begun in the British Parliament over whether Par-
liament itself is sovereign. This is crucial to resolve
quickly because if it is sovereign, that implies the
Brexit referendum may be invalid, as the sole right
to decide Britain’s future in the EU lies with Parlia-
ment and not directly with the people.

When designing any government in your world,

decide which institutions are sovereign and which
are bound by the will of others. Also consider
this question when creating countries and their
historic and current relations with others: how
important is international recognition in your
world? Always remember not to have any issue be
a simple “yes” or “no” answer. Government is one
of the most complex and intriguing aspects of soci-
ety, and your world should reflect this (or have a
legitimate reason not to reflect this). There should
be subjectivity and friction at every decision.

Authority is the ability to realistically enforce

decisions in the territory you control. Enforcing
laws, enforcing borders, building public infra-
structure, and collecting taxes, among other
government activities, all rely on the government
having authority over territory. We don’t consider
Artist: UNoahGuy

12 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
illicit activities, outside of the oversight of govern- instance, if a government decides to ban prostitu-
ment. In more urban areas a spike in illegal prac- tion, they must first publicise this to the country.
tices can occur if the government is weakened. If If there is some variant of the internet this should
your government is sufficiently weakened, what does be easy. However, if your setting exists before
it choose to enforce, and what does it let get away? mass media, it becomes a more challenging task. If
people are mostly literate, notices would need to
Due to advanced networks of infrastructure, be placed in key locations of every city, town, and
modern technology has allowed us to, in some village in the country. Alternatively, if literacy is not
ways, transcend geography when it comes to common, town criers will be needed to go up and
authority. This is crucial in modern or futuristic down every street in the country shouting the new
worlds. A great example of the use of technology law. The next major step is to dismantle what pros-
to govern is visible in the Middle East today: the titution infrastructure exists, mainly brothels. Man-
Iraqi government is still paying public servants power must be used to force every brothel in the
who live and work in ISIS occupied territory. In this country to shut down. It could be done peacefully,
case Iraq still holds some aspects of authority in or with violence if needed or desired. From then
territory it does not control, because the internet on the government must continue to indefinitely
allows for the transcendence of geography. What monitor every area of the country to stop any
the government is able to do with this authority, practice of prostitution. Governments will never be
however, is harshly limited. able to fully enforce a law, as some practices always
fall through the cracks, practised in dark alleyways
Governance is the intent behind the choices that or in basements. It is the government’s sovereign
a government makes, and how it wishes to run prerogative to decide how far it is willing to go in
and rule over its territory. When a law is passed enforcing its laws.
it does not immediately start enforcing itself. The
government must allocate its resources to enforce In order for a government to administer a polity
that law in every location in the country. Consider it must have sovereignty, either by being recog-
Robert Mugabe’s land seizures in Zimbabwe as an nized by other governments as rightfully having
example. Currently many farmers are taking the their territory or by being able to stop others from
government to court on grounds of the law being annexing or influencing them. A government must
unconstitutional due to its haphazard enforcement. have authority, meaning that it must have the
This, in conjunction with the legal uncertainties resources and ability to enforce domestic decisions
present in Zimbabwe, makes this case a fascinat- it makes. Lastly, a government must govern: it must
ing example of the inner workings of governance. make decisions and have institutions to help it in
The Zimbabwean government only enforces land doing so. For a government to be an interesting
seizure laws when it wants to. Many Rhodesia-era* and dynamic part of your world there must be
farms continue to operate today, paying taxes, challenges to overcome at every step of the way. It
employing people, and exporting crops, even must actively fight to uphold its sovereignty, either
though they are possibly illegal under Mugabe’s through diplomacy or through military force. The
regime, simply because the government has not institutions that give it authority such as police
gotten around to seizing their land. and public servants must face challenges and resis-
tance, and lastly there must be debate and reason-
When a government in your world passes a ing behind why it governs as it does.
new law, consider the logistics of enforcing it. For

* Rhodesia was a country in Africa which broke from colonial status in 1965 declaring independence under a white
minority government led by Ian Smith. The internationally unrecognized “rogue state” steadily lost ground to insurgent
black nationalists until, crippled, it enfranchised its black population in 1979. It was dominated electorally and militarily
the following year by Robert Mugabe’s ZANU group, who promptly renamed the country Zimbabwe.

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 13
 Transfer of Power: The Choice of Stability
Jayzonny

T he process of transferring power, no matter

the form of government, can be used to lead
a worldbuilding project in a multitude of narra-
vacuum and distracted the country from other
important affairs for years. The power grab by
Mary, Queen of Scots, was possible because of Eliz-
tive directions. Changes in leadership can be the abethan England’s turmoil. Queen Elizabeth, dis-
backdrop to other important events in a world, tracted by such calamitous internal affairs, nearly
but they could also be the focal point of the entire waited too long to defend against the incoming Span-
project, or anywhere in between those extremes. ish Armada, threatening the safety of her country.
In general, transferring power from one group to
another changes pre-existing political relation- Some monarchies have maintained a king or
ships between key players in a world. Whether queen without hereditary rule involved. The Holy
it be monarchical Roman Empire, for
succession, democratic example, was nominally
elections, or anything in an elective govern-
between, this process is ment for centuries.
the only way for interest Control of the throne
groups to continue to was in the hands of a
hold onto power. Peace- group of hereditary
ful transfers of power prince-electors who
leads to stability and would vote on the next
predictability, allowing Emperor. In theory this
for the story or world system would have
to develop unhindered. represented the diverse
A contested transferral groups within the Holy
of power leads to chaos Roman Empire, but in
and conflict, which reality males from the
allows a worldbuilder Habsburg line won the
to focus on this power throne for 287 years
vacuum, a story in itself. straight, effectively
By alternating and ending the elective gov-
exploring the two dif- ernment. The monopoly
ferent paths in a setting Artist: Wynter over succession and
one can add depth to a continuity of power by
world and expand on the roles of government, such one group allows the government to continue to
as making laws and declaring wars. focus on foreign affairs, keeping the polity stable.
Similarly, for a worldbuilder, keeping sections of
In a hereditary monarchy the transfer of power their world stable in this way leaves room to focus
process takes the form of succession, where an on other aspects of their setting. Habsburg control
heir is pre-established before the passing of the of the Holy Roman Empire allowed them to become
current monarch. In patriarchies throughout his- involved in the European scene and abroad in
tory male relatives of the current ruler have had an unprecedented way. The Empire’s leadership
priority in the path to power, while female relatives process demonstrates not only the imperfections
had less opportunities than their male counter- in governments, but also that the result of these
parts. Unforeseen consequences and random imperfections is not always negative.
chance, however, have led to rulers such as Queen
Elizabeth I to reign despite not being the original Like the real world your setting should include
heir to the throne. The meteoric rise of Elizabeth unforeseen circumstances and consequences. Our
to the Queenship, and the circumstances around own reality would not be the same without a king
it, caused England to focus on the ensuing power who went through six wives trying to produce a

14 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
male heir. Henry VIII is a great real life inspiration their country’s political landscape in the 21st
for many parts of worldbuilding, as his actions and century, holding the positions of Russian president
personal reasons for taking them still affect our and prime minister since 2005. After Putin reached
world today. In order to be allowed to remarry, his term limit Medvedev rose to become President,
which he wanted to do simply because his wife appointing Putin as prime minister immediately.
could not produce him a male heir, he single-hand- Putin, in turn, would go on to become president
edly created a new religion. The King's actions again after Medvedev’s single term, appointing
demonstrate the importance of the human element Medvedev as prime minister. The pair’s monopoly
and self-interest, going as far as effecting leaders’ over the top “elected” positions in Russian politics
decisions. By accurately representing the unpre- has led to the creation of the term “tandemocracy”,
dictability of reality and the shortcomings of those in reference to how the two hold onto power in
in leadership positions, a worldbuilder can add tandem. This degree of control over the transfer of
depth to a government through “what-if” scenar- power process is obviously an outlier in the mod-
ios. However, these unforeseen events should be ern world, but serves as a reminder that no gov-
used in moderation; the worldbuilder’s creation ernment is black and white. Medvedev and Putin
should have some elements that perform reliably. function as agents of predictability in domestic
The turmoil that occurred in England during Henry affairs that allows for a focus on foreign interaction.
VIII’s reign turned the country in on itself, rather
than seeing it become involved in more interna- The roles of proper and improper transfers of
tional affairs. power add depth to a setting and allow a writer to
focus on certain predetermined aspects of his or
A republic, on the other hand, is the opposite her story. The matter of who holds control after a
of a monarchy. While a monarchy is a govern- leader’s time in office ends can be in the hands of a
ment with an heir apparent, a republic is a gov- select few, of the people, or anywhere in between.
ernment in which all power resides in a body of A peaceful transfer of power adds stability to a
citizens. These, in turn, are entitled to vote and world that is constantly changing, but this stability
imbue power in elected officers and representa- does not mean that succession needs to be cut and
tives responsible to them. The transfer of power dry. An inclusion of deaths, assassinations, wars,
between leaders of a republic occurs naturally and scandals can affect the path to power and the
because of the existence of term limits. In most values desired in a leader. A combination of these
countries today leaders do not have a direct impact things can lead to anarchy and an interesting story
on who will be their successor, although they can in itself, as seen in George R.R. Martin’s A Song of
pledge their support to one candidate or another. Ice and Fire. Having reliable and predictable trans-
In other cases, like that of Dmitry Medvedev and ferences of power, or sudden and chaotic succes-
Vladimir Putin, those in power can designate their sions, can provide a writer with the predictability
successor. Both Russian politicians have dominated (or lack thereof) that is needed in their world.

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 15
 featured artists:
alex stoRer, Caeora, & Tadas Sidlauskas
W orldbuilding is not describing a place or mapping out a region - it is doing so
in a believable and (if possible) beautiful way. Worldbuilding is a tool in the
arsenal of an artist, be they creating visuals or stories. The magazine has not done
enough to showcase the art of the community we, the members of its staff, are a
part of. Starting now that will change.

Welcome to the first featured artist showcase, where we present three

exceptionally talented worldbuilders.

We intend to continue this practice in all future issues of the magazine.

If you have some work that can be related to worldbuilding - the
process of constructing an imaginary world - please reach out
to us over email or social media. We would love to see what
you’ve been working on, and it just might end up in the
next issue of Worldbuilding Monthly!

Thank you for your continued support.

We develop this magazine out of a love for it
and the community that we belong to.

Sincerely,
Adam Bassett
Writing Department Chair &
Worldbuilding Monthly Artist

16 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
Last Patrol. Digital. 2011

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 17
 alex stoRer

{
{
A huge spacecraft hovers above a land-
ing site. It is bulky and seems cumber-
some – its complex construction shows us
that this is a transport vessel, designed
to move large quantities of freight, or
possibly people, between the planets and
the stars. It may be arriving, or possibly
leaving – we cannot be sure, but the
large number of people waiting at this
terminal implies that they are anticipat-
ing its arrival, and what it brings.

Torrential rain and grim clouds tell us

that the weather system on this planet is
not attractive for humans like ourselves.
It may the norm on this world, or per-
haps it represents a rapid deterioration
in what was once a pleasant and idyllic
land, and many are trying to escape it
while they can. Now they eagerly await
their chance of rescue from an impend-
ing catastrophe.

Yet a lone figure watches the scene from

a balcony. He is not part of this mass
reaction to events, but calmly observes
the flow of humanity. Does he know
something they don’t? Or maybe he has
simply accepted that life on this world
is more acceptable than the alternative
that may be found elsewhere..

Richard Hayes

See more work at:

• The Light Dream

18 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
Terminal. Digital. 2016

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 19
 Desert Maps: Tribal Camp. Pencil, Photoshop. 2017

20 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
Desert Maps: Tomb. Pencil, Photoshop. 2017

Desert Maps: The Maw. Pencil, Photoshop. 2017

Desert Maps: Pyramid. Pencil, Photoshop. 2017

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 21
 Caeora
I don't really consider myself to be an artist. colouring them all, I’ll be drawing and coloring
I draw, ink, paint and spend a great deal of time another twenty maps for another climate, grass-
thinking about colour palettes, highlighting and lands, mountains, swamps, tundra or oceans. I will
how to invoke themes and emotions with the maps continue until there is huge library of content that
that I make. But for a very long time, I’ve called people can use for inspiration and fleshing out
myself a worldbuilder. Maps are my way of creating their own worlds.
a visual window into a setting, a place in a world
that can be explored with your eyes. People might See more work at:
use my maps as battlemaps for RPG’s but that is
not their primary purpose, instead I want to create • Blue Sword Games - Indie Game Company
thought provoking content that helps stimulate • Patreon
and encourage worldbuilding and story creation.
With this in mind, I’ve currently drawn twenty
desert maps, all with a purpose and unique look
into the desert climate, places like desert canyons,
obelisk's, boneyards, pyramids and camps. After

Desert Maps: Boneyard. Pencil, Photoshop. 2017

22 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
 Portrait. Digital. 2016

tadas Sidlauskas
My name is Tadas Sidlauskas. I work as a free-
lance illustrator and concept artist. I mostly do fan-
tasy related artwork. I find it fascinating how there
are endless ways to design and interpret things. If
there's some written description of a character for
example - no two people would see it in their mind
exactly the same. Everybody would have their own
slightly different version. I find it very interesting
to translate those ideas into visual images and to
show my own interpretation of them.

See more work at:

• ArtStation Portfolio
• Blog
• DeviantArt

Ifrit. Digital. 2016

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 23
 Witch. Digital. 2017

24 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
Jump. Digital. 2015

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 25
 Bureaucracies Galore...
How to Make Government Realistic
uNoahGuy

M ost imagined worlds have multiple forms

of organized government within them. In a
perfect world governments would run efficiently
After having created these agencies one must
detail what makes them work, as well as the ineffi-
ciencies making these processes arduous and slow.
and without corruption, but a flawed world is often Government agencies in constant contact with the
more interesting to imagine, perhaps because it public might operate slowly because of the miles
feels more believable that way. After all the real and miles of precautionary red tape put in place to
world is chock full of flawed governments, ripe for protect themselves, or because of excessive docu-
the picking of worldbuilders in need of inspiration. mentation required by law to remain transparent.
You must provide a reason why these agencies
A classic real-world example of imperfections in exist; it all has to make sense in-world.
government is the maddeningly complex bureau-
cracy that can surround seemingly simple issues. What is a government is if does not build or
Government size depends on the level of organiza- embellish itself? Governments throughout history
tion a world has achieved, and how much power have been obsessed with grandiose monuments
institutions within it can exert. Highly advanced that offered little if any benefit to the masses. Take
worlds could host governments with hundreds of the lavish palaces of Europe and the pyramids
redundant departments, whereas this might not be of Egypt: these projects used vast amounts of
the case in post-apocalyptic settings; if there aren’t surplus resources and manpower that could have
enough vehicles, or people to drive them, there will been used instead on welfare or practical infra-
be no need for a Department of Motor Vehicles. structure. In a fictional setting, such actions by
This, however, does not mean that a world set in the government could stir up resentment toward
earlier ages cannot have complex governments the ruling class, reinforcing rebellious sentiment
with massive bureaucracies; China had a robust present within the populace. Ask yourself what
meritocratic bureaucracy since at least the 6th your world’s most wasteful palace or monument is.
Century BCE. The project, depending on the type of government,
could be anything from an over-budgeted public
On the other hand government agencies only stadium, to a colossal monument, to the leader-
arise when there is a need for them to. Recently the ship carved into a mountainside using slave labor.
United States has been debating whether or not Government waste doesn’t end there though; there
to form the “Space Corps,” another branch of the can be agencies that spend all the money in admin-
military, as humanity’s horizons expand towards istrative bonuses, while other more vital agencies
space. Take a look at your world and take note of have to survive off of budgetary scraps.
what needs to be regulated, asking yourself if it
should be. You can even incorporate government Consider whether an agency is truly merito-
organizations into your world and explore the con- cratic or if government employees are only there
flict and friction against people that believe these because there is some kind of favoritism involved.
agencies are superfluous. Here is a list of agencies Determining who wields power and how they take
that might exist in a speculative fiction setting hold of it can be important to creating realistic gov-
with powerful governments: Dragon Control Unit, ernments. If your government is a monarchy the
Department of Genetic Modification, Ministry of heads of each agency may be personally appointed
Magic and Wizardry, Thought Police, and The and removed at the ruler’s discretion. If your
Royal Academy of Happiness. nation is an egalitarian democracy it won’t make
sense for government officers to be nobility that

26 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
Artist: UNoahGuy

rules for life without any check on power. Although function without it, rendering the whole system
any type of government can employ anyone how- ineffective in what is known as institutionalized
ever they please, it is all up to you. corruption. Corruption is something that one must
take into account when creating a government
Finally, corruption plays a defining role in many for any setting; it is human nature to desire more.
governments and is present to varying degrees However in a world with more than one species, it
in every system, no matter how perfect the struc- could be interesting to see how other races react
ture might seem. The root cause of corruption is to bribes. Maybe the concept is completely foreign
often the desire for money and clout that can not to them, or maybe their bribes take a unique form.
be found in the current system. Many communist Every realistic government needs some form of
nations have a culture of bribery because govern- corruption.
ment officials interacting with the citizenry are
not paid what they think they are worth. Bribes The more realistic a fictional government is
offer a means to improve the squalid conditions the more the world feels tangible. Immersion is in
that the officials and their families might live in, an the details. Governments are reflections of their
opportunity not present to the rest of the populace. cultures and they operate as a living apparatus,
In more capitalistic societies the cause is the same: connecting intangible laws and regulations with
officials want to make money — everyone wants the everyday person. Next time you work on your
to make more money. With more robust economic world take a look at the government structures
systems come more complex forms of bribery, such within, try to see the gears in motion behind the
as kickbacks for corporate partners or inside infor- ticking hands of the government clock.
mation on the market, all to increase the official’s
wealth and power beyond the conventional limits
of their position. Sometimes corruption reaches to
the levels where basic forms of government cannot

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 27
 Governments from Around the World
Adam Bassett

W hen determining the government of a nation

one should look to its past. As its creator
you have a unique insight into the history of your
religious and other beliefs. Consider the following
governmental systems and feel free to do some
extra research on your own about those which
world, and the ability to change it when necessary. intrigue you. Look into the way these forms of
Consider whether the government has historically government were implemented in existing nations
had a single ruler, such as in a monarchy, or if it and consider how your futuristic space-elf society
was more democratic. Were the kings or officials constructed their own version of it.
good to their people? The answer will determine
the natural flow of the polity’s power; a series of
good rulers may maintain the monarchy, while
a series of bad rulers may erode it. Cruel rulers Anarchy
cause others to think they can reign better better, N/A
fomenting rebellions or dissent. Kind rulers can
also experience resistance and revolts, of course, This is a tricky one. Anarchy is, by definition,
but the motives behind why are slightly more com- the lack of a government. It belongs on this list,
plex—and a discussion for another time. however, because of its close relationship to the
absence of government, no matter the type. Anar-
According to Aristotle people are political by chy can arise in any government in decline, as it
nature, wanting to form bonds and structures is considered by some political theories to be the
within their society. This theory suggests that gov- natural state of humanity. When Anarchy arises
ernments occur naturally, having been born out of the existing government is questioned, and there is
the situations a people find themselves in. These some form of fight for control.
governments have a history, which as a world-
builder you may use to help create their present
views. This concepts applies to governments in all Authoritarian
genres, so when building a government for your Bahrain, the People’s Republic of China, Democratic
space-savvy society you will need to ask yourself People's Republic of Korea...
similar questions to those that you asked while
designing a government for a 13th century-in- Defined by a political and/or economic submis-
spired kingdom. sion to authority. That authority may take the form
of a person, party, or class of people. Citizens of an
In an effort to inspire worldbuilders creating authoritarian state exist to serve those in power,
polities in their settings I have compiled a small list who may in turn choose to ignore their own laws.
of governmental types that existed, exist, or have
been theorized about in real life. While worldbuild-
ers may create complex governing systems to suit Commonwealth
the needs of fictional settings, we should always be Jamaica, South Africa, Uganda...
trying to learn more about the real-world subjects
used to create our worlds. There should be an aca- A group of sovereign states linked by choice and
demic foundation to a worldbuilder’s knowledge. with common objectives or interests.
Remember that a territory, given enough time,
eventually changes forms of government so that
it could exhibit properties of a few of these gener- Communist
alized governments all at one time. For example, The People’s Republic of China, The Republic of
after the 2011 Egyptian revolution against the Cuba, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam...
dictatorship in power the military took over, fol-
lowing which a new democratic state was founded. Communism is not a form of government, but
Similarly, a single government may have members rather an ideology applied to them. Governments
who represent differing socialist, authoritarian, can be based upon communism, a theory or social

28 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
system based upon the idea that property cannot Federal / Federation
be held by an individual, belonging instead to the Argentina, Switzerland, United States of America...
community or state. The idea was begun by Karl
Marx and Friedrich Engels in their co-authored A union of states under a central government
text The Communist Manifesto (February 21, 1848). distinct from the governments of the various states
Communism, as they outlined, has not yet been involved in the union. A federal republic differs
successfully achieved. Despite that many socialist just in that the federal government has a constitu-
nations exist today, attempting to reach a perfect tion and self-governing subunits.
communistic society. China’s version of communist
government, for example, is actually Maoism. This
is a splinter form of Marxism-Leninism developed
in large part by Mao Zedong, and while it has
similarities with Marx and Engels’ text, as well as
Vladimir Lenin’s interpretation of Marx and Engel’s
teachings (Leninism), Maoism is a separate prac-
tice which stresses small industry and agrarian
culture.

Democracy
Canada, Norway, The United States of America...

A government put in power through elections

by the people. In a constitutional democracy the
government is based on popular sovereignty, that
is to say it is created and upheld by the will of its
citizens, which is explained and set forth within a
constitutional document.
Artist: withbestintentions

Dictatorship Monarchy
Azerbaijan, Laos, Venezuela... Jordan, Denmark, Saudi Arabia...

A government headed by a dictator: a single A state or nation in which supreme power or

individual with absolute power. This may also take sovereignty is held by a single person, with the
the form of authoritarianism, fascism, totalitarian- power usually passed down a familial line. Limited
ism, or other forms of absolute rule. monarchies, such as constitutional monarchies,
have a sovereign who is limited by established laws
whereas absolute monarchies have no restric-
Ecclesiastical tions on the ruling sovereign.
Iran, Vatican City, and the former Roman Empire...

A governing structure which is operated by Oligarchy

the church. It also indicates a strong relationship Saudi Arabia, Russia, Turkey...
between church and state, one where the govern-
ing officials may in some respect be treated as A small group of wealthy individuals with
deities or at least as high-ranking clergy. Note that absolute power over a nation. While there may
while similar to a theocracy these are differing be a presidential figurehead they are still just one
terms. Theocracies identify a single law-giver of the few of the oligarchy, simply the first among
whereas an ecclesiastical society has ruling con- equals. Note that Saudi Arabia was mentioned for a
ducted by an established institutional religious second time, this is because the government can be
leadership. classified as both a monarchy and an oligarchy. The

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 29
 republic is both a republic and a democracy,
where authority and power comes from the cit-
izens of the nation but the government is run
through the officials whom they choose.

This is not to say that there are only ten forms

of government, if none of these broad stroke sys-
tems fit in your world feel free to invent your own
or modify these to your heart’s desire. The coun-
tries of Earth already have, as many of them have
Artist: withbestintentions governments that exist in between a few of those
listed here. I would advise that you don’t let reality
dictate your decisions but I do suggest you learn
wealthy hereditary nobility which rules the nation all you can about the world we live in. It’s quite
are all tied by blood to the founder of the kingdom, a strange place, and people have been trying to
King Abd Al-Aziz bin Sa’ud, who left behind a large out-do one another for thousands of years.
number of children when he died.
What you decide upon doesn’t need to be like
any government we know of. There are no limits to
Parliamentary exploring what is possible when defining polities
Great Britain, Israel, Pakistan... in a world that is all your own, but the best way to
get started is to be informed about what is already
A government which contains a parliament, in existence. With that knowledge you can choose
a legislative body made up of officials who often to select one of those governments knowing more
serve to represent certain people within their about it, or you will have the insight to avoid spe-
nation. Certain members of the parliament may cific ruling systems. Either way, it is important to
also serve as a prime minister, chancellor, or don have a foundation upon which to build the govern-
another title of importance. A parliamentary ments around your world.
democracy is the democratic form of this gov-
ernment, whereas the parliamentary monarchy
is very similar to the aforementioned limited
monarchy. Further reading:

• Aristotle’s Political Theory

Republic • CIA World Factbook: List of Countries and their
Armenia, Cape Verde, Zimbabwe... Governmental Types
• Encyclopedia Brittanica: The Functions of
Any state in which supreme power is held Governments
certain groups of people through elected repre-
sentatives, and which has elected or nominated a
president rather than a monarch. A democratic

30 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
The Implications in Governance of
Communication and Transportation
Dheolos

C ommunication and transportation are of vital

importance to any government. The speed
with which a nation, or civilization, can send infor-
solutions of governments as well; France, prior to
the French Revolution, actually privately sold the
rights to tax collection to private parties, thus leav-
mation, people, and resources from one place to ing the logistics to others.
another will have drastic effects on how govern-
ment can operate and rule. The faster a polity is To offer one example, the Kingdom of France
able to do this the larger the nation can be. In clas- in the 16th and 17th centuries had a huge divide
sical societies roads and shipping were revolution- between north and south that influenced the
ary, and they helped many empires achieve the size development of French culture as we know it
that they did. Rome, despite their impressive road today. Because ships were unable to reach inland
network, preferred expansion along coastlines cities it proved too difficult for the French crown to
because of the advantage of shipping. efficiently move resources to and from such cities.
Artificially isolating communities from each other
As technology progresses communication and accelerated the evolution and diversification of
transportation become faster. Railways allowed for culture; people from southern France were called
the mass transport of resources inland, providing “provençal”, meaning rural, and spoke in a funny
breakthroughs in commerce for many inland cities accent, putting them at odds with the “Parisian”
that once had difficulties staying in touch with French. Any trade in between the metropole and
coastal networks. Before modernity we were only the provinces was dominated by small merchants,
able to transport information as fast as we could and up until the French revolution roads built by
people. With the exception of courier pigeons the Romans were still the dominant infrastructure
information had to travel on foot, by ship, or on for inland transportation in the kingdom. This lack
horseback, spread by travellers or trade. of roads certainly helped further this divide.

Prior to railroads, inland locations were The digital revolution and globalization have
harder to access. In worldbuilding consider had permanent effects on governance. It has paved
the wide-reaching effects of what you include: the way for cyber politics, the digitalization of
economically, the shipment of goods inland will currency, transnationalism, and more. Note, how-
be more difficult in a pre-modern setting, while ever, that there is now a huge divergence between
socially it will most likely cause a cultural divide the amount of time it takes to send information
with coastal territories. Aspects of governance, from the time it takes to send resources. It takes,
such as taxation, will also be harder, or more nominally, a fraction of a second and a fraction of
expensive, to carry out. The relevant economic a penny to send an idea from one side of the world
principle is called the ‘economy of scale’; the to the other, but it is orders of magnitude more
concept that as one upsizes their venture, the difficult to send people or resources. Someone can
cost per each unit of activity decreases. Without go from one side of the world to the opposite in
better technology there’s no way to improve the less than a day but for a huge cost. Resources can
economy of scale, therefore the movement of large go the same distance in the same amount of time
quantities of goods will remain difficult. Consider for a significant cost as well, but older and slower
how governments in your worlds manage areas methods of transportation (rail and ship) continue
which they have little access to. Also consider the to dominate the movement of resources because of
economics of more isolated locations, such as their less expense.
need to be more self sufficient, for example. Less
access to exotic goods and cheaper building mate- We stand today in the first sliver of light at the
rials will be more widespread in remote commu- dawn of the space age, and though space travel will
nities. Consider the unconventional or capricious inevitably improve in cost and speed, let’s look at

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 31
 how developed it is now. It takes a few seconds to As the breadth of human civilization gets wider
send information to the moon and with minimal and wider, and communication and transportation
cost, but it takes three days (at best) to send a of resources becomes more and more difficult, the
person there, at an obscene cost. Likewise, it takes desire and need for self governance would grow.
about an hour to send information to Mars at little Terrestrial nations would have a harder time main-
cost, but months to send a resource (or person) taining control over their extraterrestrial colonies,
there at an even more exorbitant cost. and after a few centuries sovereign, thriving extra-
terrestrial nations might forget their terrestrial
This is incredibly important to note for world- origins and eventually establish colonies of their
building because up until space travel we’ve seen own, stretching the breadth of humanity further.
only decline in the time it takes to communicate This is the transition from a geocentric setting to a
and transport resources. However, with the intro- space opera setting.
duction of space, we’re seeing a reverse; as we
extend our reach farther and farther from Earth, If your setting consists of multiple planets con-
the time and money it takes to send information sider how the sheer size of outer space, and the
and resources is actually increasing. difficulties that brings, will affect government. How
do governments maintain rule over planets per-
Let’s consider the implications of a permanent haps several light years away? What do you think
settlement on Mars. Communication with it would would be the average size of a sovereign nation, or
be trivial, the settlement would be able to keep in would the inhabitation of space outright demolish
contact with Earth to exchange not only vital infor- the nation-state paradigm?
mation about the settlement, but also for leisure
and entertainment. A forty minute delay would Another area worth exploring is what will
make the internet inaccessible to Martians, at least happen when FTL transportation is obtained.
with its current configuration, leaving them out of Suddenly distances that formerly took years to
things like online gaming, IM chats, and the like. traverse now take only a few hours (or even less).
The internet would almost certainly be modified to Consider how politics will be affected, and which
allow Martian access to webpages and downloads groups might not want FTL to become widespread.
on Earth, and local networks could be set up on Mars Transportation companies, freighters, and myriad
for instantaneous communication on the planet. other economic sectors would certainly be over-
hauled. Also, self-sufficiency would become unnec-
I’m sure some sci-fi enthusiasts will be scream- essary; settlements could economically specialise
ing “FTL!” as they read this, but we can expect to in industries that their planets or systems might
begin colonizing other planetary bodies before we have a natural advantage towards. Someone whose
achieve faster than light transportation or com- job it is to mine iron on a planet with little iron will
munication. Thus we will, in the real world, see a be out of work when iron can be imported in great
dramatic spike in the time it takes to move people quantities from a different system.
from one end of our civilization to another, but in
your worlds this may not be the case. At the same time, who will want more wide-
spread FTL? This will open up new opportunities
To relate back to the subject, there are two areas as well. Businesses will have the option to grow in
worth exploring here. The first is the implications new ways, peoples will want the ability to travel
of this spike in terms of governance. A hypothetical great distances in feasible times. New unions, fed-
Mars colony would likely not need or want inde- erations, and so forth will be forged.
pendence from Earth at least for some time. The
ease of communication means that the decision Communication and transportation of resources
making process would not be any faster if the col- and people are one of the ways that governance is
ony were independent. The colony would also be tied to technology of a civilization, and they have
very dependent on Terrestrial resources, but that a significant effect on the way governments (as
would change as it became self-sufficient, which well as economies and society) can operate. When
depends on how its ideas and politics evolve. designing the technology of your setting consider
how communication and transportation restrain
and enable governments.

32 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
Prompts
I t's easy to get stuck, hit writer's block, or overlook small
details. We would like to try and combat these troubles by
asking questions about your world that you may not have
thought of, as well as by offering writing prompts. If you would
like to write a short story based on one of the writing prompts,
or have a prompt you would like to share with us, please submit
it to us at [email protected] or social media.
Submitted stories must be based on the following prompts in
order to be eligible for reproduction in the next issue.

File Requirements:

• The file must be no longer than 5,000 words

• The file must include title and author(s)

Worldbuilding Prompts:

• What lies in the deepest part of the world?

• Who takes care of the trash in your cities? Where does it go?
• What sort of creatures have been domesticated? If any are
the same as what we are familiar with, are there any new
uses your people have for that creature?

Writing Prompts:

• The forest cried out with the souls of the damned, warning off
any explorer who dared pass through.
• Magic was a mysterious force which no one understood for
most of history. Until she came along.
• She picked up the shovel and walked out into the night.

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 33
 issue contributors
Administrators:

UNoahGuy — Editor-in-Chief
LordHenry — Vice Editor-in-Chief

Adam Bassett — Writing Department Chair

GangsterDuck — Writing Department Deputy Chair

Ike Riva — Editorial Department Chair

Strongly_O_Platypus — Editorial Department Deputy Chair
Brotatofarm — Editorial Department Deputy Chair

Wynter — Art Department Chair

WithBestIntentions — Art Department Deputy Chair

Debug200 — Meta Department Chair

GangsterDuck — Meta Department Deputy Chair

Contributors:

Alex L. — Editor
Asanouta — Editor
Arxis — Editor
Batrouse — Artist/Writer
BH Pierce — Writer
Bokai — Editor
Campforlife — Writer
Dheolos — Writer/Editor
Dimitrije Stankovic — Editor
Eatsfooddrinkscoffee — Editor
Hexarch — Writer
Hjaelmedhorn — Artist
hodmandod — Editor/Writer
Ixtl — Editor
Jason DiBlasi — Writer
Jayzonny — Writer
Liam Flew — Editor
Mick Gadaleta — Editor
Niklaus Andromedius — Writer
Phillip Kroh — Editor
Spartango — Editor
TheToastWithGlasnost — Writer
Tristen Fekete — Artist/Cover

34 WORLDBUILDING MONTHLY
VOLUME 1 ISSUE 6 35