Random Ideas from the Real World

The real world provides more inspiration than we could ever hope to use, and in complex and unpredictable forms that can break us out of the ruts of genre fiction and vanilla fantasy.

So let’s spin the virtual globe and pick a place at random. Presume we are populating a hex, or planning for an overland trek in our favorite TTRPG.

This is merely an inspirational exercise. It is not informed by any deep study of the randomly chosen real-world location. Indeed, we are intentionally keeping our view “fuzzy” to make it that much easier to create something fictional for game purposes. 

Latitude: 18.46154

Longitude: 104.94312

Real-world location: Bolikhamsai Province, Laos

Immediate visual keywords: Bridges, Boulders, Flowers. The GM should aspire to include one or more of these keywords in every major feature they describe. 

Criss-crossed with mountain ranges, our province is a land of bridges of all shapes and sizes, traversing either deep forested valleys or rocky rapid rivers. Many of those bridges are characterized by winding, flowering vines, growing along every available surface.

What else can we learn about this place? Again, this is an intentionally superficial skim. While a deeper study would likely be interesting and rewarding, it’s beyond the scope of ordinary session prep.

1. Waterfalls and hydroelectric power
2. Quasi-military refugee gangs
3. Religious tension
4. Karst limestone “stone forest”
5. Sun bears, elephants, clouded leopards, and hornbills
6. Tobacco production 
7. A temple with a “very large footprint” of a famous ascetic 

Already, with just a few pieces of information, we have an intriguing setting. We can adapt, abstract, remix, and refocus in various ways. For example:

1. Water power. In addition to the bridges, huge water wheels turn constantly on the fast-moving rivers. This is a natural place, but also one heavily leveraged for energy. 
2. Foreign gangs. Gangs from the north are constantly troubling the local populace. They may try to rob the PCs, but would be just as likely to recruit them, perhaps downplaying their predatory nature. The PCs are soon drawn into a story of foreign invasion and secret societies.
3. The religious overlay. More than one faith is observed here. Religion forms another “overlay” on the region, perhaps creating conflicts within communities and among otherwise sympathetic NPCs.
4. A petrified forest. The karst limestone “trees” of the real world can become actual trees transformed by magic. Perhaps by gorgons? 
5. Fantastic animals. Some of these animals may be fantastic enough in their ordinary form. But we can also derive fantastic equivalents just from literal interpretations of their names. Perhaps the sun bear can emit a blinding flash to stun its prey. The clouded leopard is invisible unless in direct sunlight. The hornbill makes a distinctive trumpeting call when disturbed, something that can work for or against the PCs.
6. Tobacco as treasure. What do PCs do when they capture the bandits' treasure… and realize it is 100 massive bales of stolen, unprocessed tobacco? Can they transport it somewhere and trade it in? 
7. The ascetic’s temple. This could be a flashpoint for religious tension, a bandit hideout, or the entrance to our obligatory dungeon.