world-building-logic

name	world-building-logic
type	domain
family	narrative
rigor	standard
description	Use when building fictional worlds, designing magic systems, or ensuring internal consistency.
keywords	consistency, world-building, internal-logic, setting, magic-system, design
compatibility	Claude Code and compatible agent products
requires	[]
enhances	["fiction-architect","character-vulnerability","prompt-optimizer"]
sources_pdf	["How Buildings Learn (Brand)","Science of Storytelling (Storr)","The Hero With a Thousand Faces (Campbell)"]
sources_web	["Sanderson magic system lectures"]

Overview

World-building logic is the engineering of "internal consistency." It moves beyond mere imagination to create a setting that feels "lived-in" and logical. By applying Brand's Pace Layers to social and physical structures and Sanderson's Laws of Magic to the world's limitations, the builder creates a "controlled hallucination" that supports rather than distracts from the plot.

Guiding Principles

Principle 1: The Six Pace Layers (Source: Brand, How Buildings Learn)

A world is not a static monolith; it is a stack of layers moving at different speeds:

1. Site: The eternal (geography, climate).
2. Structure: The centuries (foundations, deep traditions).
3. Skin: The decades (exterior appearances, fashion).
4. Services: The years (infrastructure, technology, systems).
5. Space Plan: The months (interior layouts, social groups).
6. Stuff: The daily (ephemera, personal belongings). Friction (Shearing) occurs where a fast layer (Technology) tries to override a slow layer (Geography).

Principle 2: Limitations > Powers (Source: Sanderson, magic lectures)

Internal consistency is defined by what characters cannot do. A character with unlimited power has no story. Drama is found in the clever application of a world's specific limitations. The more powerful the tool (magic/tech), the more restrictive the rules must be.

Principle 3: Environmental Storytelling (Source: Storr, Science of Storytelling)

The world is an extension of character. Use "Behavioural Residue" (clues left behind) and "Identity Claims" (broadcasted symbols) to show the history of a setting. Instead of telling the history of a city, show a "High Road" monument next to a "Low Road" slum.

Principle 4: The Understanding Threshold (Source: Sanderson, magic lectures)

An author's ability to solve a conflict with a world-rule is proportional to how well the reader understands that rule.

• Hard Systems: Rules are known; the solution is a logical payoff.
• Soft Systems: Rules are mysterious; the solution must be character-driven, not rule-driven.

Principle 5: The "Known" vs. The "Unknown" (Source: Campbell, Hero With a Thousand Faces)

A world must have an "Ordinary" logic and a "Special" logic. The transition between them (The Threshold) must be marked by a shift in rules, stakes, or environment.

When to Use This Skill

• Designing a fantasy world, magic system, or sci-fi infrastructure.
• Establishing the "social rules" of a specific historical or corporate setting.