Google Image Search
In fantasy, you may come across the term ‘primordial forces’. It shows up in other genres too, but it tends to pertain to ancient powers. Some may think of ‘primordial soup’, which was basically the goo that started off life on Earth. That’s close to what we’re talking about, but still very far often. So, what would be primordial forces?
Primordial forces existed before everything else and are considered older than the universe or whatnot. They were here at the beginning of time and will exist for all of eternity. This can include reality, matter, energy, magic, space, time, and many other forces. The point is that they have to be something that existed at the beginning of a world’s existence. So, you do have some limitations depending on how the story’s world works.
These forces tend to be what keeps the world together or birthed it as well. This can allow life and death to be included since one could say primordial requires there to be living things. Same goes for time, which would need beings to exist for it to be noticed. Much of this depends on your personal definition and the building of your world though. You can see that there is a lot of flexibility. Still, they all share the traits of being ancient and becoming a building block for the world itself. This is probably why the genetic soup gets the name.
Science has some primordial forces too, which are: gravity, electromagnetism, strong nuclear forces, and weak nuclear forces. Those last two cover a lot of ground, but that does simplify things. Makes sense to me too. These are the forces that keep our universe together, so they had to exist at the start. Otherwise, the universe would never have formed and everything else wouldn’t be created. Space and energy might be the only other forces I could see coming before them, but that might not be scientific enough for this group’s use.
Another possible primordial force is change. Everything changes at some point, so one could say it’s a force. It could be defined as evolution, but that doesn’t include non-living things changing. So, the general term could be change, which explains how the original components of the universe become what people see during the story. Maybe this falls under the strong and weak nuclear forces.
The interesting thing is that I kept finding different sets of primordial forces depending on the world. So, I don’t think there’s a clear set. Science does have the 4, but fiction tends to be different across the board. Yes, the Infinity Gems could count as would DC’s seven forces of the universe. I know at least the first one would be mentioned in the comments if I didn’t do it first. It does prove the variation of systems and how there tend to be stories about people trying to capture all of this power. Makes sense since one who controls the primordial forces of a world would be able to change that world to whatever they want.
So, what do you think of the overall primordial forces concept?
Legends of Windemere 
I’ve heard the phrase used, but didn’t quite understand it. So thank you for explaining. I’ve seen this concept in the show Doctor Who a lot (but not directly stated as such), mostly when the solar system is threatened in some way. This is usually because an alien race has tried to rewrite what they considered to be the DNA of existence. The Doctor has to stop them. So the writers, these forces were seen as fluid, as you describe here. I’ve never used this concept in a story though.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Very cool. I’ve heard it with fantasy a few times. Always in regards to magic too.
LikeLiked by 1 person
If it’s on Doctor Who it must be right! The whole concept is scary, whatever you call it. I used to ask my mother when I was five ‘Who made God?’ and the universe has become unimaginably vaster since then!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s a weird concept to imagine. What came before nothing? Did nothing make everything?
LikeLiked by 1 person
What a brilliant question. How did your mother answer that one?
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m not sure she did, just said God was always there! Fortunately she had not heard of Primordial Soup, otherwise I would have been really confused!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I like the idea for a story, but see it more as vague world building than something more direct like infinity stones. Regular people talking about something vague like The Force sells better in my mind. Leaves options for villains to get away with things by manipulating the general population’s beliefs.
LikeLike
I think it depends on the use. Forgot the name, but there’s a series where the main characters are embodiments of the primordial forces. Supposed to be very good because they’re treated as neutral entities instead of good/bad.
LikeLiked by 1 person
You say that Space and Time are primordial forces, but they did not exist before the so-called Big Bang. (Which wasn’t a bang as there was no material to carry the sound waves, nor anything to hear it even if there were. ) And also, talking about ‘Before the Big Bang’ is a nonsense as there was no time! You need time for there to be a before!
Yes, it does my head in, too!
So if you think of primordial forces as being the start of everything, there is only one, viz: the force that caused the singularity to explode.
Ok, so we’re talking fiction. Hey, we can call whatever we like as a primordial forces.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Except primordial forces are from the beginning. If time constitutes what would be primordial due to age then it would be one too.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Scientists say it wasn’t there at the beginning. But then, I suppose that a beginning implies time.
My brain’s hurting. Even my hair is hurting!
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s the issue with time. It exists without form, but we gave it such. Hours, minutes, seconds, etc. don’t actually exist.
LikeLiked by 2 people
No, they don’t, as evinced by my recent holiday in France where I had to change my watch twice–going out and returning!
LikeLike
I’m coming to this late, but a lot of mythology says that chaos itself is primordial. It is the “stuff” that whichever god created the world from. Chaos often seems associated with water/the ocean.
LikeLike
Chaos is a good one.
LikeLiked by 1 person