Iberia: The Living, Breathing, but Psuedo World"

"A supplementry for DMs in Iberia."

Warning!
The following below is a bunch of jargon that will never really see the light of day, save for some narrative event/focus.
It is more so headcanon for future DMs/myself.
if anything, it serves no player importance. It will only be mentioned briefly for certain metaphysical events or act as a story point that comes into play.
Do not read below unless your want your brain to fry and want to question my sanity. And lastly, no this isn't a Marvels Avengers plotline we're doing here so stop that.
-Kyu

---

"The Psuedo Living World and its Future"

Many terms in this region will be further defined down below.

• Future
• World Seed
• World Branch
• World Tree/ Timeline

When something is alive, it lives through events that lead to its Future. Creatures will often utilize or live through these events to affect their narrative ending in the Future. Whether it be bad or good, one must find their ending someway, somehow.
In the case of Iberia, it is a Pseudo Living World. This bears the dual meaning that while Iberia itself is a living, breathing creature that aspires to find its Future, it is not due to a singular narrative that must happen. Instead, many events over the course of play, players, or the DM themselves may affect it.
The World Timeline may change occasionally, as Players, or the DM themselves divulge from the overall original scope or narrative of Iberia's intended Future.
By utilizing World Seeds to change the narrative of the story, it may lead to such a divulgence, where it leads to a World Branch.
A World Branch is a metaphysical concept where the narrative shifts so far, that it can be deemed to lead to a different ending than the intended ending that may have occurred.
As Iberia continues onwards through gameplay, addition lore, rewriting narratives, etc, Iberia becomes one step closer to the Future it will obtain. As it is tentative, the multiple possibilities will come into play due to the narrative elements leading to the rightful end of its Future.

---

Future

"The collective or individual's will to obtain their narrative ending on the World Timeline."

This applies to Iberia as well, for it is a living, breathing creature that desires to see its narrative ending.
Whether it be through the destruction of catastrophic events, Player interactions, or by the DM's hand, it will search for a Future that it deems suitable to end upon. No matter what happens, the story continues. Through different events, different players, or different interpretations that retell the story or change the narrative, Iberia lives on until its story is told, and all will come to its proper conclusion.

---

World Seed

"A Player, Character, NPC, Event or item that acts as a Catalyst that affects the narrative of the Future."

Such examples of such events are seen in the Fell Star Incident. A cataclysmic event that occurred due to a narrative item, focus, or shift in tone. In an alternate world, the event may have not occurred, and a different event may have occurred.
Or, in addition to the Fell Star Incident, another World Seed had been added, continuing to change elements that shift the original narrative of the Future. While this is not sufficient enough to lead towards a World Branch, it is enough to change the dynamics of the intended story.
For example... what if, the world had no Fell Star Event, but rather had a golden age due to a Player going back in time to save it? That player could bear an item or be the "item" of the World Seed that impacts that ending.
Or... What if the DM deems that the Fell Star didn't fall in a certain location, but rather another area? These events, characters, or DM interventions can be considered the metaphysical element known as a World Seed.

---

World Branch

"Where the world begins to divulge from the originally intended timeline."

There is but one true World Timeline, but none truly knows which Branch leads to its Future. When the narrative shifts across the intended timeline, it leads to a World Branch. Where similar characters, stories, events, may find themselves be reutilized in a different fashion.
This is seen in the World Branch: World of Erinn. Where factions, characters, and players are reutilized in Iberia. Certain elements that have occurred from such a Branch due to a World Seed Event, it has led to a narrative World Branch to an alternate ending that affects Iberia's Future.

---

World Tree/Timeline

"The Overarching Main timeline of the World, where the narrative ends, yet no one knows how it will end."

In the narrative where the Players play in, it is considered to be within the World Timeline which all things can occur and be affected by. While there is an intended ending to occur written by the DM, it can be one of many alternative endings that come into play. Yet, while these alternative endings may be drastically different and play in different settings, many elements will still be the same.
This is where similar characters, events, stories, and elements come into play but can be drastically different depending on the setting. This breathes creative freedom to the user and allows for the realization of said elements once again, but in a different focus. An example would be reutilizing the same campaign plotline on different groups, leading to alternative endings. Or, reutilizing the same NPCs, and having an alternate spin, change in conceptualization, or removal of said character afterward.
Through the various World Seeds and World Branches, it will affect the Future of the World Timeline. Whether it be good or bad, it will be an accumulation of everyone's efforts to reach Iberia's ending.
And so, eventually, we will reach the narrative ending that will come one day, but hopefully not anytime soon.

---