If you can't make them interesting enough physically, give them quirks in their language and actions that seem alien to man, and in kind, make mankind seem strange to them. Do they end every statement with a strange sound? Do they not sleep? Do they communicate silently telepathically or by touch? What do they find valuable that an ordinary man may find worthless? What would they do if they found gold, precious stones, or complex machinery? Description alone should not instill a sense of culture, only their actions can.
this post was submitted on 01 Aug 2023
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Worldbuilding
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Thanks for that! It's probably pretty obvious that this was an attempt to create a society of "alien" or some "other" that has very relatable struggles and motivations.
I think I will want to play more with their motivations. It can't all be about merely surviving; Where's the tension in that?
I do see what you mean about lack of cultural depth. One thing I would suggest is thinking about them less on a "whole race" level and more on a personal level:
Imagine a Pukafolk home. In there lives an absolutely average individual in their society, or many if they live collectively.
- What does this person eat? Is this diet rich, poor, or average? What might someone who is in a different social circle eat?
- What does their average day look like? Not just the major things, but what little things would they look forward to or get annoyed by?
- What faith, superstitions, or beliefs about the intangible or uncertain do they hold? I do see you mention faith here, but faith is very rarely monolithic across a society.
- What job does this person hold? Is it one viewed as desirable, undesirable, or neither? What jobs might those
Essentially, try to think more about the individual lives of Pukafolk, rather than their species-scale dynamics.
Just a quick reply now: I'm taking this onboard, just distracted from writing by a vacation and catching up with work. Thank you! 🤟
I enjoyed the write-up, but I see what you mean about the lack of cultural depth (put most assuredly intended for the deep folk). Also liked what you said about the other comment in terms of cultural motivation. But how they need to survive can play directly into those motivations.
Perhaps people are starting to delve too deeply for minerals and ores, and are encountering these folks in even greater numbers? They see the firearms they possess and are starting to pry into their smything. The priests are nervous it could cause conflict if the don't acquiesce, but would spell ruin if they did.
How they react to such triggers could certainly help broaden their cultural leanings.
I'll take the pun in stride, and I like the idea of a tension between their necessary secrecy about the guns and a deep yearning for contact with the above ground world of humans. What makes sightings so common is that yearning, but their mystique comes from the fact that if anyone on the outside knows too much, they become an existential threat.
Maybe there's an MIB parallel in there somewhere.
That MIB parallel makes me think of a religious secret society, keeping the secrets of the surface from the regular pukafolk, and keeping the surface from interacting too much with their underground. Probably more heavily leaning toward repressing interest in going to the surface via fear and such.
You might have done me a huge favor. I was assuming the MIBs would be above grounders suppressing Pukalore, but how much cooler is it if Puka have a sect of MIB-alikes who suppress ABOVE GROUNDER LORE gaaaaasp that's why they always snoop around creeping people out aaaaa hahaha that's amazing