Monomyth will feature fewer characters than regular RPGs. However these characters will be well developed and heavily interwoven in the story. So in short: Much like King's Field but not quite. Same could be said story-wise.
Monomyth's writing is basically structured in four layers:
- There's the cosmic layer, so basically the "theoretical" backbone of Monomyth's universe. This layer will be kept very vague throughout the game. However it still has a relatively strong impact on the story.
- There's the mythological layer, which is technically a way to interpret the cosmic situation of the world. So religions, prophecies, sects, deities, etc. This is normally provided via lore dumps. However I'm greatly opposed to that idea, so it will mostly be provided via item descriptions, character motivations and notes.
- Then there's the actual background story that has a direct effect on the world and the characters. So for example the background story of the locations in the world. Why are certain characters at a certain place? Why is that enemy attacking me? etc.
- And then there's the character story. So basically your personal motivations and your view on all the layers above.
The story itself is the sum of all these layers. From the lowest to the highest layer the provided information becomes more and more vague. Your character's motivations directly affect you. However this does not mean, that the highest layer has a lower impact on the story, because practically the cosmic layer can have the greatest effects on the world.
This whole model for story writing could for example be applied to Dark Souls:
The character motivation is relatively clear. You are the chosen undead. You're on pilgrimage etc. etc.
The background story is what is mostly provided via dialogue and item descriptions. So for example: Why are there bodies lying around everywhere in New Londo? Why are there traps everywhere in Sen's Fortress? etc. etc.
The mythological layer deals with the prophecy, the first flame and how Gwynn is keeping it alive (which is not so much mythological since it's a simple fact) The interpretation of the cosmic situation however is mostly up to Frampt and Kaathe, who are both highly questionable.
And the cosmic layer is simply the information that the fire is dying, which is a factual thing of the world of Dark Souls. However nobody really know's why (to my knowledge at least).
Even in this example you can see again, how from the lowest (character) to the highest (cosmic) layer things get more and more speculative. This is also the reason why on the highest two there are tons of fan theories.
And again, while the player is mostly affected by the character layer (giving you actual motivation to go on your adventure) the really heavy stuff, which actually affects everyone, is coming from the cosmic layer - without much of an explanation, which is okay.
Not everything is always clear cut though. Some layers can technically overlap at some points.
So the story of Monomyth is built with the same theory in mind, taking notes from
H.P. Lovecraft's advice on writing weird fiction.
Click to expand...