What fantasy universe would you live in?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around participants' preferences for fantasy universes they would like to inhabit. Various worlds from literature and media are mentioned, including Middle Earth, Narnia, and others, exploring the appeal and characteristics of these realms.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express a desire to live in Middle Earth, particularly in the Shire, appreciating its rustic charm and safety.
  • Others prefer Narnia for its magical qualities and adventure potential.
  • One participant suggests Lord Dunsany's The King Of Elfland's Daughter for its tragic beauty and metaphysical themes.
  • A few participants mention interest in worlds like Oz, Wonderland, and various video game universes such as World of Warcraft and Halo.
  • Some express skepticism about living in fantasy worlds due to their often pre-industrial, feudal systems, preferring settings with more progressive themes, such as those found in the Kingkiller Chronicles or Codex Alera.
  • There are mentions of wanting to experience unique aspects of different worlds, such as the beauty of Rivendell or the whimsicality of Wonderland.
  • One participant humorously critiques the dangers of living in the World of Warcraft universe.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally express a variety of preferences without reaching a consensus. Multiple competing views on the ideal fantasy world remain, with differing opinions on safety, beauty, and thematic elements.

Contextual Notes

Some participants note the limitations of fantasy worlds, particularly regarding their socio-political structures, and express a desire for settings that reflect more modern values.

Who May Find This Useful

Readers interested in fantasy literature, world-building, and discussions about the thematic elements of fictional universes may find this thread engaging.

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We have a SciFi what world would you like in, now what fantasy world would you pick to live in?

examples are, Middle Earth, Narnia, Harry Potter, Shangri-La, Neverland, Gulliver’s World, Oz, Wonderland...
 
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All of those are not romantic enough, in the poetic sense. I love the worlds of the old romantics, although I wouldn't want to live in HP Lovecraft's worlds, I want to live in his realm of wonder, where things are beyond comprehension. So, to pick a fantasy realm I have to go to Lord Dunsany's The King Of Elfland's Daughter. Tragic, yet beautiful, but one can live in this world and the other if they can remember what they love about the other world.

Lord Dunsany, HP Lovecraft, they wrote fantasy as the metaphysics of their time. It was other dimensions, HP Lovecraft even wrote about gods as being vectors through an ulmnidimentional spacetime...I miss writers like those.
 
For me, I'd want something interesting, but not too dangerous! So Narnia would be it :)
 
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Greg Bernhardt said:
We have a SciFi what world would you like in, now what fantasy world would you pick to live in?

examples are, Middle Earth, Narnia, Harry Potter, Shangri-La, Neverland, Gulliver’s World, Oz, Wonderland...

I would like middle Earth ,i would want live in the shire, in one those cute little warm hobbit holes surrounded by green pastures.
 
I'd love Narnia.
 
Haha! The quiz gave me Middle Earth, but (as I mentioned in the other thread) I'd prefer Narnia.
 
cephron said:
Haha! The quiz gave me Middle Earth, but (as I mentioned in the other thread) I'd prefer Narnia.

The Shire would be pretty nice to live in!
 
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  • #10
The Shire would probably be safe enough for me.
 
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  • #11
Evo said:
The Shire would probably be safe enough for me.

Lots of soft grasses :)
 
  • #12
Greg Bernhardt said:
Lots of soft grasses :)
:smile:
 
  • #14
How about the World of Warcraft? I'd probably pick that...
 
  • #15
I'd like (hope it counts as a fantasy world, or is too close to reality? hehe) to experience meeting allien races like in Star Trek (probably would first need my IQ to be boosted over 200 lol)
 
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  • #16
Wonderland since 42 is my second favorite number.

Especially Rule 42: "All persons more than a mile high to leave the court." All persons in my town are more than a mile high - in fact our elevation is over 6000 feet.
 
  • #17
Greg Bernhardt said:
btw, here is a rather simple quiz to take to find out
http://www.youthink.com/quiz.cfm?obj_id=171412
That gave me Wonderland, although that might be a little too weird for me. I think that I would actually prefer Rivendell, it would be amazing to be surrounded by such beauty with relative safety comparable to the Shire. Hopefully given that it seems Rivendell is important to LOTR there would be a nice flow of other humans passing through/living there to supplement the elves who I imagine might have a quite different personality than me.
 
  • #18
Middle Earth, hands down.

If I picked my own? Eh, I'll get some flack for this one, but Azeroth, definitely. Specifically Darnassus. I'd be happy to be a peaceful Night Elf forever.
 
  • #19
I've been stuck in New Eden.
 
  • #20
LOL someone said the world of warcraft! HAHahahaha
So you could live for about 30 seconds then get ganked by a mentally stunted 12 year old as soon as you step foot outside a city? hahaha Enjoy.

Ill stick with Narnia
 
  • #21
Narnia -- I've been trying to find an entrance for quite some time. Where is that black hole? :-)

World of Warcraft? No, I prefer a few zones in Everquest like Twilight Sea. :-)
 
  • #22
I got Land of Oz, but I prefer the Shinobi world of Naruto, seiretei from Bleach, or the world from Avatar: the Last Air Bender :D
 
  • #23
Julio R said:
I got Land of Oz, but I prefer the Shinobi world of Naruto, seiretei from Bleach, or the world from Avatar: the Last Air Bender :D

I bow before your eternal wisdom...
Though I'm disappointed not to find DBZ world.
 
  • #24
To my fellow LOTR fans...
A lot of the legend is adapted from the old viking and norse mythsy a few interesting examples are:
Middle Earth-from Midgard which means the same
Vanyar- name of a tribe of gods later assimilated with Aesirs (the ones from Asgard including Thor and Odin
Gandalf- name of a dwarf :( literally magic elf :D
.
.
.
Oh and hobbits are real.:D
 
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  • #25
To be honest I can't think of a fantasy world I'd ever want to live in. They might come with cool magic but pretty much all of them are pre-industrial feudal systems and whilst the hero of a thousand faces might rise above his lowly beginnings I'd not like to be one of the 99.9% of people who are background peasants. Incidentally if anyone knows of a fantasy series where revolutionary democracy is a major theme I'd love to hear it.

Disclaimer out of the way I've just finished the first two books of the Kingkiller Chronicles (third instalment expected 2015) and loved them. The magic has very strict rules and takes the form of technology more than anything. For example: the basis of magic is converting one type of energy to another so devices like lamps can be made that convert heat to light. It's plot is fairly standard but its a well written and interesting series.
 
  • #26
Iain M Banks Culture would do me.
 
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  • #27
Ryan_m_b said:
Disclaimer out of the way I've just finished the first two books of the Kingkiller Chronicles (third instalment expected 2015) and loved them.


Just finished reading the second installment and loved it too. The university the main protagonist attends would be a really nice place to be part of.
 
  • #28
The Land of Oz.
I thought I would end up frolicking in the grass amongst the other hobbits, but I was misperceived, apparently..
 
  • #29
For fantasy it would have to be Middle Earth, but I'd be torn between The Shire and Rivendell. I love the rustic simplicity of The Shire and to me it is more beatiful than Rivendell. However this assumes I'd still be human so I'd end up with a sore back from bending over in the hobbit holes. Rivendell is stunning but maybe too stunning, it would hurt my eyes eventually! Plus I'm not a vegetarian! On the plus side, in a world like Middle Earth I'd certainly prefer the security of Rivendell.
For sci-fi, it has to be Bank's Culture, absolutely hands down. Live the life of ease, take up a job as a hobby if you want, visually stunning, totally hedonistic, and barring a galaxy-devouring hegemonising swarm, it's extremely secure.
Great question!
Incidentally, I live in New Zealand so in fact I'm already living in Middle Earth!
 

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