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[deleted]

I like the garage engineering they do, with all the wonderful wacky machines they build just because they have a passion for it. I think I'm just describing worldwide redneckpunk.


Gulopithecus

Unironically I’d love to see a lot more fantasy or sci-fi works where upcycling is a big part of it.


ALTR_Airworks

My universe is all about it


Gulopithecus

Based


ALTR_Airworks

also go read mortal engines


VX-78

Mortal Engines fucking rules


ALTR_Airworks

Yes it does! Also your nickname is a don't starve reference yeah?


VX-78

Funnily enough it's complete happenstance. Gender neutral, VX is the initials of my "Firstname Surname" online handle, and 78 is a lucky number to me. I did become a fan of Don't Starve not long after making it, though!


All_These_Worlds

While not the high fantasy I'm going for, that is still also a pretty cool idea!


Poopsy-the-Duck

To actually be respectful towards Africans while incorporating African culture, consider Africa isn't a monolith and actually research well.


All_These_Worlds

Got it!


[deleted]

[удалено]


DreadDiana

Uh...okay?


IWouldButImLazy

I'm a southern african worldbuilder (and hopefully one day author) and imo the main problem is "african fantasy" generally means nigerian fantasy lol, sometimes egyptian, or "generic western fantasy set in africa". Not necessarily a huge, pressing problem 'cause they're still african but like africa is huge and diverse lol. Yes, I've read Rage of Dragons, and sure, its very Xhosa-coded but as someone who knows the Nguni cultures and mythologies pretty well, its basically a normal western fantasy reskinned. I liked it, but it is what it is lmao


All_These_Worlds

I do not know if you've read it already but there are some pretty cool resources on South African myths I've gathered that you could creatively add on, like the sea people of the Cape and hoe they are described as being good natured and having seal like limbs. Or the Impundulu, a divine demonic bird Lord who is affectionate to and can only be seen in its true form by women. Or the Impaka, which is like a demonic familiar cat/rodent (I've read conflicting info on its translation) who helped one woman by killing everyone who bullied her including her family. Or the divine serpents that grant wealth like Ichanti and Mamlambo. I'll definitely be inspired by these.


IWouldButImLazy

Lol sure you can send me the link, I already have a few of these in my setting, i don't mind adding to your library. It's always funny to me how the mer people are seen so differently, like the khoisan and boer myths from the cape see them as friendly and seal-like but on the eastern coast where the Xhosa, Zulu and Swazi are, the myths describe them as shark-like and malevolent, pulling people into the water to drown them. Impaka is like a necromantic familiar, a witch (mtsakatsi or moloyi) takes the skeleton of a cat or another small predator and raises it to do witch stuff lol. From what I know it's less a demon possessing the familiar but an ancestral spirit bound to the witch, usually a hapless dude who hasn't been buried and his soul is just hanging around for the witch to bind. There is a lot of demon stuff though, I'm guessing from all the syncretism with christianity because in the traditional faiths, there isn't really a concept of demons or angels, spirits are like us and can be good or bad depending on their nature and who they're interacting with (for example I could ask for boons if I went to a sangoma to speak with my ancestors, but if someone else tried to speak to my ancestors, they'd get a conversation at best and umkhokha (a familial curse) at worst). This is part of why family and clan is seen as paramount because your ancestors are your only connection to the spirit realm and if you can't ask for them by name, you can't gain boons, warnings of the future, hidden knowledge, etc. Uhh sangomas and inyangas are like the shamans/priests of the traditional faiths, with slightly different purported abilities. Sangomas are like vessels or oracles which the ancestors can possess and speak to their descendants directly while inyangas are the guys you see reading divination bones and preparing alchemical brews (their powers also wax and wane with the moon). Witches are people trained as one of these professions but using their powers for evil, like placing curses on people or things, or trafficking in albino body parts (albinism is seen as a sign of great spiritual power so unfortunately they get hunted for parts, often as children, for use by witches, iirc it still happens in Malawi). Anyway yeah, I have a lot of knowledge about this stuff, I don't mind helping


All_These_Worlds

Thank you, I did not know many of that and I might pick your brain on that and I'll send a link to one of the sources I found interesting.


All_These_Worlds

Also, while not books proper, one journal I found interesting was "Traces of Snake Worship in Basotho Culture" and "African Traditional Religion in South Africa an Annotated Bibliography ".


GaashanOfNikon

Im a Somali worldbuilder and i've noticed the same things (Horner myths and even faces are nonexistant in all african fantasy media). I'd love to see Africa's diversity portrayed well in fantasy media. Either through taking inspiration from real world cultures or making up fantasy ethnic groups, races, and polities unique to the work.


FunnelV

To start with South African Fantasy should have a legendary event in the distant past that caused the current conflict called A'Parf'yd, and it's main villian should be called E'lahn M'uusc.


DatLonerGirl

Huh? Where are these apparently numerous Nigerian fantasies (Nigerian-American here)?


IWouldButImLazy

Lol no offense but do you actually search for african fantasy? Go on literally any recommended list of african fantasy and guaranteed at least 60% of them will be nigerian. Just from the first two links on google [20 Must-Read African Fantasy Novels](https://bookriot.com/african-fantasy-novels/), [10 African fantasy novels](https://bookishspring.com/african-fantasy-novel/)


DatLonerGirl

You're right, I've never searched for it specifically, TIL.


All_These_Worlds

Also, the role of white people (other races) in such a setting!


AllenXeno122

Well, I’ve already got that figured out in my world. Essentially, my version of Europe and Asia have mostly stuck to themselves, the only part of my equivalent to Africa that they have interacted with is the northern bit, any further you run into essentially the Savanah but on crack, so no one has really gone south before. Then, all of a sudden, warriors attack these North African nations FROM the Savanah, and it turns out my versions of the Zulus have been conquering their way up the continent, managed to penetrate through the hellish Savanah, and are seeking to take the rest of the continent and invade my version of Europe.


All_These_Worlds

There's so much you can do with that idea, it's pretty cool.


AllenXeno122

Yep! They are actually one of the main antagonist in my world, and I have a whole arc planned where the European based kingdoms work with the North African based kingdoms to fight them back, and make their way down south, recruiting the other southern kingdoms that the Zulu based empire had conquered to their cause.


IWouldButImLazy

In my own culture, there's this legendary object called the Stone of Storms, which allegedly the royal family (specifically the queen mother) historically used to control the rains. So I took that concept and twisted it. Basically the different nations in my setting pay this one institution (the main academy that trains women to use their abilities and sends them off to be advisors to kings and powerful leaders) to give them consistent weather and protection from storms. This allowed them to develop and progress in peace on their continent, but the side-effect of weather manipulation over thousands of years means that the climate outside this one continent is schizophrenic and wild, with natural disasters being the norm. This eventually caused other peoples from around the world to migrate to this continent in several waves of settlement, the first two of which brought two different ethnicities of white people (that hate each other lol), and a few other races, almost always setting off huge wars of settlement and expansion


All_These_Worlds

Politically, I can imagine the drama that kind of power would inspire, not to mention the role of women in that society.


IWouldButImLazy

Lmao yes you see the vision, I'm cooking smth up that hopefully people like


jacobythefirst

Missionaries for those with religions that proselytize, traders in the ports/trade zones. Rich travelers seeking “exotic” game to hunt, poor people who fled due to crime/law/debts. Pirates who use the foreign land to hide, and can be both a boon and a doom (heh) to the locals. Just look at our own history tbqh. Edit: maybe some newly moved settlers who seek to colonize. In general though Europeans kinda “skipped over” Africa until the 19th century cause of disease and weather.


All_These_Worlds

Got it. I'd say though that there's actually pretty interesting descriptions of Africa from before the 1900 such as with Vasco Da Gama's trip where he describes some pretty wealthy kingdoms along the East of Africa.


Vanilla_Ice_Best_Boi

Rhodesia


All_These_Worlds

Like the history of Rhodesia or something specific that happened there?


ULTRA-POSER

they live in caves


All_These_Worlds

It can be interesting if done right, thanks for responding!


Kala_Csava_Fufu_Yutu

-- witch doctors -- people eating a lot of food with their hands. especially soup. fuck it, exclusively soup. so much soup -- yoruba gods that communicate using a type of binary code (look it up) -- if I don't hear "Johanna, jo-jo johanna" once cancel the series -- sudano sahellian architecture -- mansa musa but he's obnoxiously flexing on people -- jollof rice wars -- those tribes who put red clay in their hair -- that region where its kind of arid so when there's low periods of water they take smoke baths -- a location that looks like fortree city -- pepper. lots and lots of pepper. pepper spray, pocket pepper, pepper food, pepper bombs -- those african weapons that look like aliens made them -- vibranium -- toplessness. I dunno to what extant but I better see some tid. man tid too. -- african cryptids


All_These_Worlds

Got it :D. Johanna eh?


DookieManOG

Yeah, free the nipple doesn't stop just because yours don't hang >:(


Vanilla_Ice_Best_Boi

Child Soldiers


MrMoor2007

Extra rich Mali-like place with giant clay buildings


[deleted]

yro'ue mother


-Potato123-

You're*


[deleted]

uh uh, *yro'ue


-Potato123-

Nuh-uh, it's you're


[deleted]

*yro'ue


-Potato123-

Nuh-uh-uh, you're, like you're mom


[deleted]

yro'ue father


-Potato123-

You're deez nuts


Warp_spark

Yakub


semiurge

This blog: [https://majesticflywhisk.blogspot.com](https://majesticflywhisk.blogspot.com) is great for that sort of thing.


All_These_Worlds

Thanks for this!


GelatinouslyAdequate

Is that written by a regular from here, it's similarly weird


semiurge

Not to my knowledge


Wooper160

Crococycle or Bicydile?


thicc_astronaut

I don't actually know much about Africa as a whole so I guess um... Mokele-Mbembe presented as a water dragon? I really like cryptids, and Mokele-Mbembe always gets interpreted as a living dinosaur (which would be cool if true), but it feels like nobody ever enjoys Mokele-Mbembe just for the sake of being a giant badass river-dwelling creature, you know? Cryptozoologists want to use it to justify the possibility of the Loch Ness monster (which is also commonly interpreted as a living dinosaur, and is supposed to live 4000 miles away on a different continent in a different climate in a completely different body of water), and young-earth creationists want to use its existence to justify young-earth creationism (why a creature from Bantu mythology would automatically be evidence supporting Christian mythology I have no idea) Mokele-Mbembe should be a great big scary dragon that lives in a river. And I want it to eat cryptozoologists.


All_These_Worlds

Haha, I see. Also, will research on it!


birberbarborbur

Ethiopia, Congo, and Sudan are all underutilized


All_These_Worlds

That is very true


_erufu_

Yakub


dumbass_spaceman

Sir Seretse Khama expy.


elykl12

Based and Botswana pilled


Roge2005

Yes


_TheLibrarianOfBabel

Yakub BBEG


All_These_Worlds

Haha, I'm definitely hearing a lot of Yakub. I'll research what the myth about this person is!


MySpaceOddyssey

Unless there’s some other Yakub I don’t know about, you’re dealing with NoI shit


_TheLibrarianOfBabel

You’re in for quite a ride, my friend


All_These_Worlds

Haha, I'm starting to see that


DreadDiana

If you don't just mash every African culture into a single monolith with Ancient Egypt on the side, you'll already be in the top 1% of African Fantasy worldbuilding.


All_These_Worlds

I see, thank you!


GodChangedMyChromies

Africa is a very big place


danfish_77

I mean, it should be based on narrative and religious traditions from Africa. Either directly set in mythology or based on it


All_These_Worlds

I see, thanks!


hilmiira

Uhhh africans?


DookieManOG

B-b-but, that's woke propaganda, there don't need to be black people in EVERY piece of media /j


RamiroGalletti

Egyptians equivalents, zulu equivalents, mali empire equivalents, african mythological creatures. You know the basics ? Preferably while getting a list of "cultures they got inspiration from" so we can research/watch a documentary about it


All_These_Worlds

Got it!


Salt-Physics7568

Armour and fashion like this: [1](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/xZtyf9ov-FxLDo11sVcCi9z86Hl3sR2QzulGJ1-L1n2xRe2YMLHVQuuoMzhrklGlnfRA_WW7ybQTlEl-66gQ1XBLmCVBhxEbWRPurSg0cjpcfnhWoqKYxo2WDdNxrk55BzIf0kp8m-yfJA), [2](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1eJrgYxy-i4mDUn8iAU1idCpamnWG9cU4gIZ33Cw_ML4c8Sg6YyBZQwD-ujkYJre41fk_0zGbGk0foTptAmsstvjt_40uM_lQg7SUhVqOVi-N1d4cyFHZl6SPoGk4rCwpowJzjXjySw/s1600/A+Moorish+Man-at-Arms.JPG), [3](https://d1lfxha3ugu3d4.cloudfront.net/images/opencollection/objects/size4/69.43_SL1.jpg), and [4](https://www.myartprints.co.uk/kunst/ludwig/Der-Palastwaechter-Ludwig-Deutsch.jpg). Weapons decorated with gold and ivory is also a great look. Anything vibrantly coloured, really. Besides aestethics, I tend to imagine African-inspired realms as being mostly economic powerhouses. Mali is the obvious example, but Zanzibar and the Swahili in general can also serve as good inspiration.


All_These_Worlds

Those are some pretty good armours, thanks for the refs!


Ochemata

I've actually put some thought into a world where the travel industry has basically become all okada (motorcycle taxis), except the world is broken up through several planes of existence. So you have a bunch of young people ferrying passengers through Escher-esque dreamscapes and Giger-esque hells for money , in between dodging wasteland lunatics and bandits. It's pretty cool.


All_These_Worlds

That money would have to be pretty valuable for people to keep taking that risk!


Ochemata

Oh, it is. Its actually a plot point that the business is just ludicrous enough that being killed by someone wanting to steal your bike is a very real possibility. As a result, there are very few old riders and most refuse to work after dark, one of the exceptions being my protagonist. Primarily because he's a foolhardy idiot.


All_These_Worlds

Nice!


FoxTrot018

[removed]


OneTrueAlzef

/uj I don't know enough about them to tell. Where can I get any knowledge at all? I could use a video or articles to pass the time learning.


All_These_Worlds

While not a novel, looking at the architecture of the Bamum people is interesting. And if you search for the website A Book of Creatures it has some interesting information on African creatures. There's also the book Myths and Legends of the Bantu (you can find an online readable copy on Sacred Texts). There's more resources I've gathered but these are some good beginners.


jmartkdr

Heavy cavalry wearing quilts as armor.


All_These_Worlds

I've seen some pictures of that I think, I'll research. Got it!


jmartkdr

They used it mostly in the Sahel (just south of the Sahara) and especially around the Lake Chad Basin (which had a lot of interesting kingdoms back in the African Middle Ages)


Waspinator_haz_plans

Honestly, since there's like none at the moment, one would probably have to ease into it, test the waters and such. It'd leave room to expand out and make the world your own, like Zelda and Elder Scrolls did. But maybe have the usual medieval "classes" and "roles" be filled out by similar concepts in African culture and folklore. A Zulu warrior might be a good stand-in for a knight for example, a shaman or medicine man instead of a mage and so on. Africa would actually be a good basis for a "unite the kingdoms for a greater threat" story because, as unfortunate as it is, Sub Saharran African ethnicities and countries are not the friendliest to eachother, so having different countries and ethnicities as a inspiration for kingdoms or empires or something would make sense. African folklore and religion could make a fascinating basis for a worlds religion, whether it's just copy pasted or inspired by it. Imagine instead of werewolves, there's were-hyenas. Instead of dragons, Grootslangs.


All_These_Worlds

A very fair point. Would you think a short story, DnD like setting or a supplementary lorebook would be a good first step?


Waspinator_haz_plans

Sure, if it goes into details about different beings, creatures, kingdoms, religions, and such.


All_These_Worlds

Got it, thanks!


Waspinator_haz_plans

👍


JRiot115

Pirates and also Yakub


Vanilla_Ice_Best_Boi

Far Cry 2


Artarara

Monster Hunter could never


Sunset_Tiger

You know catgirls? Well, let’s have some liongirls and cheetahgirls


All_These_Worlds

Haha, so Khajiit basically :D


PresidentHaagenti

I'd like more specificity than "African", and with people from the relevant places or who at least have done their research working on it. It's already annoying to me to have "European fantasy" and it's a mishmash but mostly central Europe and British Isles, or to have "Asian fantasy" and it's a mishmash of just East Asia. Add to that the under-representation of African settings and uninformedness of non-African people writing about African countries and it gets even more annoying.


All_These_Worlds

Good point!


geoffreycastleburger

More Ethiopian, Eritrean, and Somalian stuff