The World (Archipelago)

Basic Information

The World is a man-made archipelago built off the coast of Dubai. When finished, it will consist of over 300 islands in the shape of the continents of Earth.

Sources

Bibliography

1. Google Maps Image

2. Wikipedia entry

Game and Story Use

• A lot of rich and famous people are planning to buy some of the islands and build homes there, so player characters trying to either kidnap them or protect them could end up there.
• The layout of the islands could be useful for ritual sympathetic magic - if you can cast a spell on the archipelago, maybe you could affect the entire world with it!
• In a fantasy world, a suitably rich and decadent ruler of a major nation could create an artificial archipelago in the shape of the lands of his own world.
  • He might attempt to gain bragging rights through this: "I rule the whole world!"
  • One also might wonder what exactly he might do with the islands representing the nations of his enemies…
• Such a map could only be made by people with access to advanced satellite mapping! Which, actually, Dubai does, but let's not rule out the possibility of Space Aliens here!
  • Okay, so the map does not have to be highly accurate to be interesting. But if such a map were detailed and accurate and constructed in a time when most maps were inaccurate and speculative, that would suggest some secret source of information… (Space aliens! It's space aliens, I say!)
  • This could lead to an after the end scenario in which an archipelago exists that the inhabitants don't know represents the world.
  • Long enough after the end and the archipelago may not resemble the world anymore - continental drift may mean that it resembles how the world used to look. Which may be useful.