Previously I provided details of a new world building/RPG design challenge for 2026 and promised to provide comprehensive details in a dedicated post.
This is that post.: welcome to City '26! It’s also a “megapost” in that I’ll provide links to anyone else participating who wishes to share their blog: please provide details below or give me a shout on Reddit, discord or Instagram.
Essentially the challenge is to build a city over the course of one year, each week detailing one ward. Peter Lattimore of Garblag Games came up with this infographic while workshopping the idea on his server:
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| Infographic of City26 Challenge by Peter Lattimore, text below |
The Classic
Here’s the original version of the challenge, codified by Pete. Don’t feel constrained by genre: this could be a fictional contemporary city, a far-future utopia, a Dying Earth era Sorcerer King complex or the capital city of your fantasy’s medieval campaign world. Ideally this is a project you’ve been thinking about already or perhaps one you have already begun.
Commit to adding one detail of the ward every day, using the following schedule or adapting it to your requirements. Text below by Pete.
Mondayprincipal building/monument/feature defining area and overview of the ward- who lives and works here? Is it rich, poor or what?
TuesdayRandom encounter table for district (bonus: day/night encounters)Wednesdaygoods and services (with prices?) available to PCs hereThursdaykey faction or NPC controlling (or vying for control or just embodying) district/area etcFridayRival faction or NPC specific to districtSaturdayhooks and plots within the districtSundayTransportation and connections to other areas
PLEASE TRY NO AI!
You can follow along on the Garblag Games Server via this link
Other Variants
You don't have to follow the schedule above, the challenge is to commit to consistent worldbuilding and hopefully end up with something that can be explored in play.
You could...
- Treat this as a reiteration of Dungeon '23: exploring a huge ruined city, one room at a time
- Do the legwork: follow Sam Sorenson's suggestion and detail how many HP each of its denizens possesses a la City State of the Invincible Overlord
- Follow whatever model other city-based games (Gangs of Titan City, Spire, Necromunda) utilise and either expand or provide greater detail
- Exercise your artistic talents and detail architecture, clothing, trade goods, weapons found in each district on a weekly basis
I'm attempting to flesh out my existing City of 100 Gods project, so plan to tailor the schedule to fit the flavour of that world specifically: I'm not committing myself to detail transport every week, for example.
Participants in the Challenge
Links to other City '26 participants will appear here at the participants' request! Please don't link your own approach to the challenge if you intend to use AI.
Links
City of 100 Gods Post
https://aloneinthelabyrinth.blogspot.com/2025/12/city-of-100-gods-traders-wake.html
https://aloneinthelabyrinth.blogspot.com/2025/12/city-of-100-gods-traders-wake.html
Garblag Games Patreon (you can join for free, City '26 post will be publicly accessible I believe)
https://www.patreon.com/cw/GarblagGames
Pete's Discord
Dungeon 23
https://seanmccoy.substack.com/p/dungeon23
In Praise of Legwork
https://samsorensen.blot.im/in-praise-of-legwork
https://seanmccoy.substack.com/p/dungeon23
In Praise of Legwork
https://samsorensen.blot.im/in-praise-of-legwork
Great post and I'm really looking forward to getting started on Sheerfoot in the coming week.
ReplyDeleteI'm likely to sub out the occasional day to write some short fiction, to give more of a sense of the setting.
Its all heading towards a science fantasy setting for Mothership: In the Shadow of the Sheer.
Pkease come join us in Gartopia (our discord) as we explore these cities together!