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Hand in hand with the ones you love

The next two phases were often greatly involved with each other, and that was the creation of the peoples of the land as it currently is, and how the people came to be that way.

For this phase I took a small tip from the bible and created a history for the creation of Felrani, even to the extent of having a history of the god, Makbar (The One) and his battle with Marbarnend (Evil Cast Out from The One) literal translation in Felranese.

So basically I gave a reason for everything.

The process was simultaneous at first. I began by taking a stack of 5x3 record cards and naming the leader, lord, mayor of each city, town and village of the Western Isles. At the same time I began the long process of legend and history for the Isles. For

the history of the creation of Felrani and the Western Isles in particular I wrote another story. Although it's never been written in anything other than a outline form the entire history of Felrani could be written as another.

So the journey of the lesser gods from Makbar's Halls to the lands, the key of mortality and how it was lost, the arrival of men and the illicit immortality of the gods giving rise to the new race, the elves. How these tensions between men, god and elves resulted in a devastating war that almost destroyed the Western Isles themselves. All these tales and more are recorded and known, at least in part, by most of the inhabitants of the lands.

This means we have a race of people suspicious of the elven folk who now hide from their human neighbors, we have a divided community of the gods. Those, who for their own selfish reasons, nurture and protect the humans, and those whose only intent is to destroy all the people on the lands and return it to ownership of the gods themselves.

This colors their lives. The people reluctantly worship the northern gods because therein is their only safety and they hate and fear the southern gods and their agents. All branches of the Western Isles culture is affected by Rules laid down by the gods, part of the treaty instigated by the peace pact that ended the wars.

Thus, with the leaders named, their wives, children, parents and immediate family history created, and their immediate desires known, whether they seek peace, power or justice, the land is now almost ready to become truly alive.

The characters themselves help elucidate the world then. Often when writing a phrase or saying would emerge, "By the ears of Crofger!" one rotund gatekeeper remarked. It then became necessary to determine where this phrase came from and the history of Crofger, the eavesdropper Tom who spied on the goddess Ariena's lovemaking was born, and his punishment of being given elephant ears so that everyone would know and ridicule him. So too have constellations, legends, tales of distant loves and alliances, wars and treachery all been created by the characters themselves.

Because, in reality, it is their world and their lives.

How could I dare tell them how to live it?