World Building Resources for TTRPGs
Here are the tools and resources I've been using to build my own fictional world of Azure.
Books
Worlds Without Number by Kevin Crawford
I've often heard Crawford's procedures and tables praised and I'm joining the choir. After 15 minutes with a set of tables, I created a group of people who look like living marble statues and have a tentacle in their mouths that act as a second tongue. Additionally, I'm liberally stealing huge chunks from Crawford's setting as the basis for my own. Crawford's particular flavor for his riff on Dying Earth and Tékumel is really well done. Specifically, the conceit that the setting is a nested computer program into which other beings can enter really reframed my conception of how I could construct my cosmology. If I had to choose one book from this list to keep relying on for building Azure, it would be this. That said, it would have tough competition from my next choice.
Tome of Adventure Design by Matt Finch
I didn't know quite what to expect when I bought this book. I had seen Kelsey Dionne use it when she built an adventure on Youtube, so it was a small leap for me to at least check it out. At first, I was surprised how much of it was taken up by tables--I think I was expecting more of a set of essays on design theory--but after reading and implementing Finch's approach to how creativity works, I think it's brilliant. There's adventure design advice I found excellent in a short intro with other advice on how to use sections and tables peppered throughout. The "Capsule Backstory" table focused around telling small stories of the past to provide context for a singular room or item lead me down a long road that altered other parts of my adventure in better ways. Already I'm excited for players to encounter the Enghengwain in its psychic lair and steal the authority of the past from the Memory Harbor.
Sandbox Generator
I had a bad impression of this book early on entirely due to how "plain" so many of the tables initially appeared. They felt like they were merely echoing the most conventional of fantasy genre tropes, which paled in comparison to Worlds Without Numbers' decidedly striking and unique setting. But after a few hours with it, I've found myself really appreciating that conventional flavor as a perfect basis for me to inject my own weirdness. I've also loved using the herald generator to set the tone of a clan or family.
Software
Notion
I deeply love the wiki-like database for organizing information. It's incredible how much you can create the sensation of being in a different space via layout and structure of text. It puts me in a different creative space and it's the best software tool for externalizing and organizing the information in my head. Add to the fact that being cloud-based means I can access it from different devices quickly and easily and Notion (or something similar to it like Obsidian) is a requirement for me.
Procreate
Whether I'm fiddling with an image in my head, building a hex map, or just therapeutically doing my amateur graphic design doodles, I've loved using this app as part of my process.
Defter Notes
Where Notion is the rigidly structured tool that brings me organization, Defter Notes is the chaotic space where my mind can roam. The iPad app uses the digital infinite space and paper piece metaphor to create writable surfaces on the massive desk of my dreams. I can create immense amounts of clutter without the worry of a real mess and it's the first space I go to when I want to start rolling on tables and brainstorming.
Twilight Dice
I've yet to find a perfect digital dice solution that I love, but Twlight Dice comes as close as I want to right now. The look of it is beautiful and the UI animation is lovely as well. Importantly, the app doesn't attempt to animate the dice being rolled on screen but still delivers the plain information I need in an appealing way. Most importantly: customizable dice! Roll a 1d17 if you need one!