[note]A discussion I had with Eclipse has encouraged me to open up discussion of my setting on a thematic level. I've realized that I've hidden much of my setting's theme for one reason or another (largely because I thought it would be cool for people to notice the theme on their own). Now, I'll try to present the theme openly. Several of you have heard elements of this before, but I'd like to now discuss them directly.[/note]Terran is the main world of my campaign setting, Three Worlds. Terran is Earth, 5 million years in the future, currently locked in an ice age. I am designing it to conform with plate tectonic theory, though the projections I've found are all slightly different from each other (they largely depend on potentially random occurrences, such as new subduction zones opening up. I'm currently working on my own model, as I need a full world map before in order to determine climate and biomes accurately.
I am attempting to explore the world of Terran in as realistic of a way as possible. The intent is to create it as our Earth would be if the magic, superstition, myth, and legends we believe were largely true (I have to state now that I respect the mythological and religious beliefs of all people; I hold such beliefs myself too). I started out wanting to create a fantasy world utilizing the themes of science fiction.
Here is the real history of Terran, which will have reflections in the myths of its people.
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Mankind progresses nicely through the ages. Long story short, a cataclysm rocks the world just as an ice age sets in. The destruction is so wide spread, so nearly total, that all culture was lost. Humans, lacking much in the way of instinct, had to rebuild from scratch.
But, as it turns out, the world is animistic. With the loss of technology and man's influence, the spirits of the world reawakened. Of these spirits, the seven elements were the strongest, which coalesced into the Seven God Dragons; four brothers, Air, Earth, Fire, and Water, and three sisters, Life, Death, and Void. The children of the God Dragons are the modern dragons of today.
Because the mortal dragons chose to worship their mothers and not their fathers, their fathers sought to find followers of their own. They at first attached themselves to the reptilian humanoids, who had been created by humans long ago through genetic manipulation. With their blessings, the reptilian humanoids grew in power.
Elsewhere in the world, humans were reestablishing themselves in several locations. The brother dragons were intrigued by them, and they experimented upon them with their magic. The result were the giants. These giants subjugated the weaker humans, enslaving them as they built their empire (thus explains why giants and humans can interbreed).
When man overthrew the giants, a rebellion lead by a half-giant, the God Dragons refined their experiments on humans. This created the gnomes (earth), salamanders (fire), sylphs (air), and undines, known as dwarves, orcs, goblins, and valkyries by humans. These races were created in different areas of the world, and progressed alongside humans (though humans had a small jump, building off the work of the giants, while the demihumans were guided by the God Dragon that created them).
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Again, I want to explore the world in as realistic of a fashion as possible. Though there is magic and spirits and whatnot, I want the world to be internally consistent. I'm not going to try to explain magic with physics too much (though I like to think that certain things are possible psudoscientifically if certain assumptions are held throughout).
With that off my shoulders, I'd like to direct discussion to a few points, though you are more than welcome to bring up your own points.
*What, if any, evolutionary changes might humans undergo in 5 million years? Could this explain the potential for magic? I suspect that little evolutionary changes will be made, based on the notion that our species now "evolves" though the growth of our knowledge, technology, and culture.
*How far should I go with populating the world with new animals and plants? I have a program called "The Future is Wild" that explores a hypothesis of what future animals could be like, but I am unsure how much change would be off putting; if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, why not call it a duck?
*Do you know of any good resources to help me estimate possible climate/biomes of the world during an ice age? I have several, but it's still a large project.
Thanks, everyone, for your interest. Hope to hear from you.
according to one of the theories, then human evolution would be a continuation of what we have now. wisdom teeth will eventually be phased out, the brain will become bigger, we'll be taller. the pinkie toe will be phased out, and we'll have less body hair.
as for animals, then personally I'll say that when it comes to non magical animal and plants, then there isn't much need to make something new. what ever being survives will evolve to fill in the ecological niches, and or all intent and purpose fill in the ecological niche as the animals that came before them. (I believe one of the theory is that if the large predators and grassing animals was wiped out, then over time, rats and rabbits, due to thier more adaptive nature, would eventually evolve into the equivalent of tigers and horses.)
point 3: no idea, sorry.