City Builders' Checklist - Version 1 - Brainstorm your city

Oct 6, 2026

Upload by Kyle

City Builders' Checklist Version 1.0 supports structured worldbuilding for role-playing campaigns by guiding brainstorming around where a city forms, which geography protects it, and how climate shapes architecture. It prompts details on local resources, settlement origins, immigration waves, population diversity, and evolving cultural and political structures. It also covers customs, potential ethnic or class tensions, and the hierarchy of power, including the lives and aspirations of workers and the middle class.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLiterature

FormatPDF

Pages28

Reading Time43 min

AccessFree to download

LOCATion

How did the local geography help protect the city?

CLiMATE

How is the city's architecture impacted by the climate?

POPU LATion

What influx of new people helped swell the city over the centuries?

How diverse is the city's current population?

What customs exist?

Are there any ethnic/racial or class tensions?

What is the class structure?

# CiTY BUiLDERS'CHECKLIST Version 1.0 # Mapping a city is the perfect excuse to brainstormyour newly imagined setting! Cities do not just magically appear(well,they can if you want them to,but most don’t).Theyevolve over centuries,taking on new physical and cultural characteristics.Developing your city'shistory-from its humble beginnings as a minor settlement to its bustling commerce of today-will give you many new ideas for your map.…and even more ideas for unique adventures,andmemorable characters. Use StoryWeaver's handy City Builders'Checklist to kick brainstorming your city,its history andevolution...and see what wonderful ideas emerge for your campaign. ## LOCATion Why did the city grow here? What features of the local geography encouraged people to congregate here?Consider theavailability of fresh water,food,building materials,as well as natural protection and naturalmigration routes. | Background Notes | Rumours &Plots Ideas | | --- | --- | Nearby Natural Resources Every city needs something to trade.What resources in the local area were originally gatheredand traded? | Background Notes
Agricultural | | | --- | --- | | Mining | | | --- | --- | ## How did the local geography help protect the city? Over time,cities consolidate wealth.Wealth attracts raiders.Cities also tend to be built in safehavens from the weather.What features of the geography helped to safeguard the city?And ifthere are weaknesses to the defensibility or safety of the city's location,how have those beenovercome? | Background Notes | | | --- | --- | | | | | --- | --- | ## CLiMATE What is the climate of the area? Where on the globe of your world is the city located?Is your city located near the equator,thetemperature zones,polar region?Consider how this impact the seasonality of climate.Write upa climate description for each season below. Summer Fall Average:Daily Temperature______ Rainfall Conditions Winter Average:Daily Temperature Rainfall Conditions Rainfall Average:Daily Temperature_____ Conditions ## How is the city's architecture impacted by the climate? People build structures to keep out the elements.So it stands to reason that the weather impactsthe architecture as much as the resources available in the local area. | Background Notes | Rumours &Plots Ideas | | --- | --- | ## POPU LATion Who were the first settlers that pioneered the city? All cities start tribes or clans of people coming together.From where did the city's firstinhabitants come?What was there ethnicity(or race)?And why did they converge in thislocation? | Background Notes | Rumours &Plots Ideas | | --- | --- | ## What influx of new people helped swell the city over the centuries? Cities attract all manner of people from outlying areas.The bigger the city,the stronger theattraction.What waves of immigration shaped the city's population?And for each wave,whowere the newcomers and what drove them to make the city their home? | Background Notes | Plots ldeas
Rumours | | --- | --- | | | | | --- | --- | ## How diverse is the city's current population? To what extent did the waves of newcomers to the city to become part and parcel of the cultureand political structure of the city?Are there divides between who lives where? | Background Notes | Rumours &Plots Ideas | | --- | --- | ## What customs exist? To what extent do customs between groups within the city differ? | | Rumours 8 | | --- | --- | | | | | | | | --- | --- | | | | | | | Which customs are followed by everyone?Get creative! | kground Notes | | | --- | --- | ## Are there any ethnic/racial or class tensions? How well does everyone get along?If tensions exist why?What storylines can you weave fromthese tensions? | Background Notes | Rumours | | --- | --- | | | | | --- | --- | | | | ## What is the class structure? Who are the rich and powerful in your city?Where d

FAQs

What factors should you consider when mapping why a city grew in a specific location?

Consider local geography such as access to fresh water, food, building materials, natural protection, and natural migration routes.

How does the checklist help you develop a city's climate and seasonal conditions?

It asks for the city's placement on the globe and the climate zone, then prompts a climate description with summer, fall, winter details including average daily temperature, rainfall, and conditions.

How should you approach population history and social structure in the city?

Identify first settlers, then outline immigration waves over the centuries, assess how diverse the population is, define customs, explore ethnic or class tensions, and describe the class structure including the rich and powerful and the attitudes of workers or the middle class.

Oct 6, 2026

Upload by Kyle