Way back when I first started the Serious Worldbuilding Process for the world Druthal is in, the internet was still in its toddlerhood. So when I first cooked up the National Documents, I didn’t have a lot of precedent to build from. In retrospect, I was essentially building a proto-wiki template for worldbuilding. I was also less well-read, less researched and less-practiced at the time. As a result, what the National Document was became something I was unsatisfied with.
So I’ve made some changes to the template– using how many actual nations are broken now on Wikipedia as a basis– and have come up with something that I find… stronger. Like all things, it’s a work in progress. But you might find it useful.
NATION
Basic description*
Politics
- Government
- Laws
- Military
- Foreign Relations
Territories/Subdivisions
- Internal Relations
Geography and Ecology
- Notable Natural Landmarks
- Notable Flora/Fauna
Demographics/Culture
- Languages
- Religion
- Familial Units
- Social Rituals
- Clothing and Hairstyles
- Cuisine
- Entertainment/Games/Sports
- Art and Other Great Works
- Notable Subcultures
History
Key People
- Current
- Historical
One advantage this form also has is that it’s nestable. For example, you could create one for, say, a sprawling empire, and then use the template for each of the principalities and protectorates of that empire, and then again for each region within the principalities, and then again for each city. You could even go down to neighborhoods of the city, if you’ve crafted it to that level of detail.
So, if this is useful for you: have at it. If you have suggestions, I’m happy to hear them.
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*- As you can see from my post on Waisholm, I enjoy putting a few in-world quotes about the culture from both insider and outsider perspectives. For me, it’s a good way to get into the mindset.