The following are just random thoughts as I read; take'em, leave'em, do whatever (obvs, you don't need my permission)! 
@cobaltasaurus said in Development Thread: Elements: Courts of the Sacred Seed:
Breaking this out from the other thread, so other ideas can be talked about there as well.
What Is 'Elements: Courts of the Sacred Seed'
(One it's a working title.)
Elements would be an original fantasy game set in a kingdom that built up around a "Sacred Fruit", that is the source of elemental magic within their world. Set in the Capital of the Kingdom, the game would be a splash of political intrigue and adventure against the outside world. Five elemental courts rule together in a typically uneasy peace. This is the Council of Elements.
"Elements" is so generic. I'd go with just "Sacred Seed".
What Could I Play?
Seeded (magic-noble) or Seedless (non-magic commoner).
Is there any other type of magic in this world? Maybe Seedless can perform minor acts of non-elemental magic at some heavy cost (divination, etc.)
Are We Human?
We are mostly human! Humans with magic. People could probably have weird hair and eye colors, maybe even some tapered ears, or teeth, or whatever. Small hints of "fantasy" races, but mostly human.
Inheritable (much like the magic). It'd be pretty hard to disprove that that Seeded bastard kid from the docks isn't Lord Jarrod's son, given he has a single fucsia scar running vertically down his eye, which is the same mark every other member of Jarrod's family has, and has had, for generations.
Would also be very awkward when Jarrod's legitimate children aren't born with it... but with green hair, like their maternal uncle DUN DUN DUN GAME OF THRONES REFERENNNNNNCE.
What are the races/classes?
Society is loosely defined by two castes: Seeded and Seedless. Seeded are effectively nobility, tends to run in the families. Seedless are effectively the common folk, the occasional Seeded is produced but if your family doesn't have magic ... you probably won't have it.
Being Seeded should automatically come with a stipend (small, which means it's a lot for a commoner-turned-noble but a drop in the bucket for a noble-born) that every Seeded gets (unless they commit some crime and get stripped of it). Also, a small bit of land (again, drop in the bucket for the rich, reality-changing for the once-poor) to represent their "noble territory".
Why "Sacred Seed"?
Magic is worked through mana. There is a plant that produces a rare flower which is believed to be concentrated mana. Creation myths say that a great evil once threatened <insert race name>, and in desperation they sought out these plant which before hand had been poisonous to them. And planted the seed within the hearts (literally) of fifteen or twenty of their greatest warriors. Legend says only five survived, gaining the ability to wield elemental magic... Their children inherited the ability to wield magic, but with every generation the "mana" in their bodies has lessened. So a religion and economy has built around the tending, growing, and preparation of the sacred flower, so that magic may be still be used.
This is really cool. You can model the currency based on plant terminology, too. A petal, a leaf, a stem are all terms for different amounts of money; pollen might be a slang word for money (the same way we use dough, for example, or even, lololololol, cheddar).
Why the Five Courts?
Legends say that the Founders of the Five Courts were the great-great-great grandchildren of those Legendary Warriors -- the First Seeds. After several generations it became apparent that the families of those legendary warriors were going to be able to spread magic through the entire civilization. But it brought with it chaos and a bit of civil unrest, because not everyone in those families had magic... And common bastards were also born with magic. A hundred years after the First Seeds saved the <insert race> from <insert legendary enemy>, they started a civil war. Commoners using magic to tear down the families that refused to acknowledge them... Until the five strongest of each "element" stepped forward, and created a new system of rule.
Nobility was no longer >fully< a matter of blood and familial lineage, but granted to those who could prove that they were Seeded. Fast forward to present day: The Seeded rule over the Seedless. Each of the five courts guards a garden of the sacred fruit, so that the other courts cannot strip them of power. Being born Seeded means that even if your parents have no magic you are elevated after you prove your magic (though you are looked down upon, and have a lot to prove to the wealthy older families with generations of magic users). ...being born Seedless into a family known to have magic users is worth than death. Many parents will simply cast the child out when it becomes clear they have no magic.
Can "Seeded-ness" be detected at birth or is it something you wait for to manifest? If it's the latter, you should consider there being an entire process of disownment, some ritual of ostracizing, etc. As a modern society, when we make fictional worlds, we often try to find our own sensibilities and insert them--I think this is where a lot of things go boring. Sometimes it's justified (let's create a feudal world that isn't misogynistic, yeah, sure) but other times it could lead to some really creative and interesting conflict (a society where if you are born Seedless you are publically, very systemically and legally removed from your family and cast out). There might even be pressure for them to do it even if they don't want to--Seedless sons and daughters of Seeded nobles who live in remote farms off of hidden stipends sent over by their parents, as if in hiding, because their parents loved them but had to publically ostracize them for their social health, etc. How would those people feel? Wouldn't that make for great characters?
What Are the Courts?
There are five courts and they are:
- The Court of Embers, ruled by the Queen of Fire.
- The Court of the Sea, ruled by the King of the Tide.
- The Court of the Groves, ruled by the Monarch of the Mountain.
- The Court of Frost, ruled by the King of Ice.
- The Court of the Winds, ruled by The Queen of the Sky.
I've written a few of this type of thing before and one thing I think works really well is for each Court to have it sown title-style. By this, I mean instead of each having King/Queen, they each have their own title that the others don't . For example: King/Queen of Fire; Emperor/Empress of the Tide; Monarch of the Mountain; Sovereign/Sovereigness of Ice; Tsar/Tsarina(?) of the Sky, etc.
It makes it especially easy to later refer to these people without a) naming them every sentence and b) naming their entire court every time. Everyone knows that when I say "tsar" I am talking about the absolute authority of the Court of Winds, not someone else.
Are All Seeded Just Those Elements?
No! In fact one of the struggles I hope to express is fitting in non-traditional elements into the court-- or attempting to start your own court! Are you someone with control over rain but not standing water? Do you join the Court of the Sea, even though you can't move the tides or even a pond? Or do you join the Court of the Winds, even though you can't cause gales? Do you go Courtless? What do you do?
You gon' need a customizable system and limitations 'cuz people are gonna go bonkers with this shit. I mean I am mostly reasonable, as you know (or at least, lie to me) and I am already like CAN I MAKE A COURT OF SHADOWS? WHAT ABOUT A COURT OF SOUNDS? WHAT ABOUT A COURT OF THE SMELL ORANGES LEAVE IN THE FALL? I dunno, you know, MUSHers, man.
What is Courtless?
Effectively rogue Seeded. There's a lot of pressure on the Seeded to join a Court at the Age of Majority, because the various rulers don't want anyone trying to take a slice of their pie. But over the ages people with non-traditional elements have tried... Some have even managed to have short lived courts.
I am getting revolutionary vibes here. Rebel encampments, etc. Very nice.
Becoming Seeded From Seedless?
Oh, yes, it is possible. The leaders of each court and their trusted second knows ...some of the ritual to Seed someone. However, the majority of people who go through the process die... and the rules are loathe to grant the ritual to anyone. For when you become Seeded directly from the Sacred Flower, rather than being born... Your power is Greater than those born with magic. There are a few historical incidents where someone was Seeded, and then turned around and performed a coup upon the Court Leader that granted them the ritual.
Probably the fate of a lot of Seedless nobles whose parents have the clout to try to pull this off. Unfortunately, since it's rare... yeah.
Black Market & Shady Operations
While the Five guard their gardens, it is almost impossible to completely keep anything from the masses completely. There are shady gardens where people grow less pure version of the Sacred Seed and sell it to those who do not want to go through the Courts. Some of these places offer the "Seeded Operation". There is a graveyard in <part of grid city> where bodies are found almost every other month, with gaping holes within their chest and the sacred flower growing out of it...
Story Seed: Noble kid found in graveyard, massive hole in chest.
How Do You Get Mana?
All people -- even the Seedless -- are innately born with a little bit of a Mana (there are terrible cults that will sacrifice Seedless for their untapped Mana). But you have only so much of it ... But you get it back by consuming the fruit of the Sacred Seed. It can be cooked, brewed into a tea, fermented... Eating it raw gives you a lot of mana, but tends to have uncomfortable side affects... Cooking it gives you less but makes the gaining of that mana a little bit easier.
I am thinking here that maybe some Seedless innovators/inventors have figured out, like..., you knowe, maybe if I inject this shit right into my heart (like an epinephrine injection) I can get REALLY HUGE elemental powers for TWO HOURS and then I have an 80% chance of dying.
Cults of the Dark Seed
There are two whispered of and feared cults of the Dark Seed. Those that abduct Seedless and sacrifice them for their untapped Mana. Either addicted to the slaughter and dark rituals, or because they cannot bear to eat the Sacred Seed because it is too harsh on their body and so they fall to their only other option: Sacrifice. The second cult is that which gains temporary access to elements other than their innate ones through the cultivation of Tainted Fruit produced from the failed Seeding attempts. ...in fact there are whispers that it's even darker: Some of this cult abduct Seedless and attempt to Seed them just to cultivate these tainted fruits, and gain access to whatever element that person would have had, had they lived.
Mixes well with the above.
Who Are The Rulers?
The Five Courts are ruled by the King/Queen/Monarch of <Element>. Their children are Prince/Princess of <Element>. They typically have a "Crown <Element>" which signifies which of their children will take over ruling the court when they retire/die/move to the country/whatever.
Gnar gnar, I went into detail on naming conventions above.
Royal Seedless?
Royal Seedless are Rare. Very, very rare. Because their parents tend to cast them out and immediately work on having a child to replace them, sometimes going as far to name that new child the same name. Or, in other cases when it becomes public knowledge that a Queen/King has produced a Seedless, they are usurped by their political rivals. It is used as proof that that bloodline is failing and a new one must be put in place. This is normally a cadet branch of their family, or even a first cousin-- sometimes even a sister or a brother. Very, very rarely does a King or Queen produce a Seedless child, keep them, AND manage to keep their Crown.
See above comments por possibilities on how to handle this socially.
New Seeded?
What happens if you come from a Seedless family and are found to be Seeded? You petition to join a court-- typically one that aligns with your element. And they granted you the title of Seeded. Unless you do something very impressive all you are granted is this title, and a small sum of money to establish yourself within the Seeded District... If you do something impressive, have some political allies, or somehow manage to climb the rungs... You might be granted land, a higher title (say Baron, or Count, until I think of some other term). In other terms: Being a new Seeded from a Seedless family is like a commoner being granted the title of "lord" but not being granted land or any holdings. They're given enough money to move into the nobles area, but probably in the poor nobles quarter of it...
Went into the land/holdings thing above. I think it should be small, but it should be there; you really wanna reinforce that whole "BORN SPECIAL, RECOGNIZED BY OTHER SPECIAL PEOPLE" thing. You also want to make sure it's worth the sacrifice to try Seeding yourself as an adult.
What is the name of the Sacred Fruit?
I don't know, maybe just something cliche like 'Manafruit'. small hand gestures I'll think of something!
It should be the root word for whatever the name of the people is, because at some point they became completely dependent to it and in effect identify themselves by their relationship to this fruit.
What Happens When You Eat The Fruit?
Depends on if you're eating it raw or eating it cooked! If you eat it raw you get >a lot< of mana, I'm sure that'll have some mechanics by it once we start working on mechanics. But it also tends to fuck with you. Eating it raw damages your body, and probably gets you high as fuck. It is akin to eating opium raw. Doing a little bit of it is fine, doing a lot of it could lead to your body shutting down. Now, if it's cooked, however. You can take more of it. It provides you with less mana, but it's far less harsh on your body-- also it tastes better.
See above for potential other things you can do with this.
How Is It Prepared?
The Fruit is a bit like a Citron / Buddha's Hand. It's mostly pith. Since it's mostly pith and skin the most common practice is to candy it or infuse it into broths, alcohol, or tonics. There is, however, a very small center that is full of your more typical citrus fruit. That center is very, very aromatic and highly sought after. It is where the majority of the mana resides. However, the pith and skin can be utilized for it as well. The center of the Fruit will often be cultivated in large quantities for the most elite Seeded, and the less fortunate ones may buy the pith and skin off of those cooks for their own house holds. More economically mindful houses will utilize all of it. Using the center for the heads of the house, and then the pith and skin either candied or infused into something for their children and any Seeded associates.
Looks like you got this down.
Can Seedless Eat The Fruit?
Yes, too much of it gives them a mild headache. Otherwise it has not effect on them.
OR DOES IT? I dunno, see above.
Chefs Are Legend
Because the world revolves around this fruit to regain mana (unless you're sacrificing people, gross)... Becoming a Chef is for the Seeded is one of the way that the Seedless gain prestige and standing within the world. It is a High High Honor to be a chef for a great house. There is a very prestigious school within the capital that teaches people who to cook, and specifically how to work the fruit into their dishes.
Obvs. I always wanted to play a vampire chef who made all sorts of tasty dishes where the vitae's magical properties were somehow preserved, lololololol.
