Bringing Ecological Conservation into Dark Fantasy Worldbuilding

[Anicolarys]

Greetings everyone,

As a columnist for the DFCB (Dark Fantasy Conservation & Biology) project, I often wonder about the place of the natural world in our darkest campaigns. Too often, ‘Dark Fantasy’ boils down to an aesthetic of ruins and despair, forgetting that nature itself is a victim—or a force of reaction—in the face of corruption.

We are working on an approach called the “Bestiary of Echoes,” where each creature is not just a combat challenge, but a pivot point in an endangered ecosystem. The idea is to integrate conservation and real biology mechanics into the narrative: how does the disappearance of a fantastical apex predator change the geography of a region? How can players become guardians of a sanctuary rather than mere dungeon raiders?

I would be curious to hear your feedback: have you ever integrated environmental preservation or systemic ecology issues into your Dark Fantasy worlds? Is this a source of dramatic tension that you find relevant for your players?

I look forward to reading your chronicles,

— The Bastion ArchivistGreetings everyone,

As a columnist for the DFCB (Dark Fantasy Conservation & Biology) project, I often wonder about the place of the natural world in our darkest campaigns. Too often, ‘Dark Fantasy’ boils down to an aesthetic of ruins and despair, forgetting that nature itself is a victim—or a force of reaction—in the face of corruption.

We are working on an approach called the “Bestiary of Echoes,” where each creature is not just a combat challenge, but a pivot point in an endangered ecosystem. The idea is to integrate conservation and real biology mechanics into the narrative: how does the disappearance of a fantastical apex predator change the geography of a region? How can players become guardians of a sanctuary rather than mere dungeon raiders?

I would be curious to hear your feedback: have you ever integrated environmental preservation or systemic ecology issues into your Dark Fantasy worlds? Is this a source of dramatic tension that you find relevant for your players?

I look forward to reading your chronicles,

— Anicolarys

 

[Voadam]

Sometimes I see themes of demonic taint in an area or a far realms aberration incursion as affecting wildlife that can be a used as a metaphor for pollution affecting an area's ecosystem to its detriment.

 

[Anicolarys]

That’s a very insightful point. Using 'taint' or 'aberrations' as a metaphor for pollution is a classic and effective trope in fantasy.

Where we try to push the envelope with the DFCB (Dark Fantasy Conservation & Biology) approach is by moving away from 'external' evil. Instead of an outside force corrupting the land, we look at Sargass-Ouro as a tragic 'Biotic Response.'

In this case, the creature isn't being corrupted by a demon; it is absorbing the literal 'noise' and metallic waste of civilization. It’s not an incursion; it’s a mutation. The horror comes from the fact that the ecosystem is trying to defend itself, and in doing so, it becomes something terrifying and alien to us.

It shifts the player's perspective: Do you 'cleanse' the taint, or do you realize that we are the noise the creature is trying to block out?

I'd love to hear if you think your players would react differently to a 'natural mutation' vs. a 'demonic infection'!

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

One obvious but obscure place to look is Storm Constantine’s Wraethu novels. The titular beings supplanting humanity are supposedly a direct result of pollution, etc. driven mutations to humanity. IOW, we did it to ourselves. Schlock movies from the 60s-80s like Frogs, Squirm, Empire of the Ants and Phase 4 use mutated natural creatures as antagonists.

There’s also “escaped” bioweapons & failed experiments that show up all over horror & sci fi- often in variant zombie fiction. Tangentially, RW “zombie-making” pathogens (esp. fungi) have recently gotten popular, like in Last of Us.

How can players become guardians of a sanctuary rather than mere dungeon raiders?

One of the most memorable short stories I read in the early years of Dragon Magazine involved a Druid-like hero fighting his way to the core of a magically corrupted swamp to cleanse it of evil.

Terry Brooks’ Shanarra prequel series, the Word & Void novels, centered on humanity’s ultimately doomed efforts to stave off a demonic army’s incursion.

 

[Tonguez]

I've done maybe 3 adventures that fit the ecological models

1. The local starts expanding, flooding adjacent farmland with what the peasants call sick water. Swamp dwelling stirges attack sheep, some livestock miscarry. Thus the local baron (a PC) decides to get in pumps and drain the swamp, also getting the PCs to exterminate the stirge infestation.
This bring them into conflict with the local bullywugs who are protecting their breeding pools, goblins who have been feeding on mutated fish (and bullywug tadpoles) and the Naiad/Swamp hag.
The Swamp Naiad reveals that she has been using her body to filter corrupted waters from the north (which causes her to become a Hag), the expanding swamp is an attempt to contain the taint before it floods out to destrom the entire area. The PCs track the taint through increasingly putrid swamp infested with rot worms and abberations until the find the source - an attempt by cultust to open a gate to the Far Realms that failed. Destroying the gate doesnt cleanse the corruption - they still need to stop the drainage works and stabilize the ecosystem

2. A new vendor brings apples to the market, but on eating them the villagers fall into a curse sleep, seeing a black horse with a lantern face, and hearing the sound of hooves on wood. That night the sleepers all rise and sleepwalk towards an old int he east gully. PCs follow and it leads towards the old Thornmere Apple Orchard, which is now overgrown, apples on the ground ferment but do not rot, giant owls swoop down on the sleepwalkers. The House is haunted and PCs must deal with the haunting to save the sleepwalkers.

3 Shipments of Wax and Honey fail to reach the local temple. PCs go to investigate and discover that the Apiary has become groundzero for a rebellion of the Giant Bees led by an Abeil Queen who objects to human exploitation of the Hives.