Setting the Setting - OD&D (3LBB) & AD&D2e - Part 3 - Cultures: Eldorian Human

 

In the first two posts on generating a setting for a try at soloing Original D&D, I used 2nd Edition World Builder's Guidebook to generate some World Hooks for the world our characters will adventure in, then generating some ideas for what the Local Campaign Area would be like, culminating in generating some cultures to populate it.

This will be the first post taking a closer look at one of those cultures, some rolls and choices to further define, and breathing some life into it. We'll start with looking at the dominant culture of the area, one of 2 human cultures.

For the Culture Archetype, I selected European Middle Ages. At its core, I wanted the culture to still have that familiar (TSR) D&D feeling.  However, there will be acknowledgement of the environment as well. A European Middle Ages culture doesn't just spring up on a large, grassy isle in a tropical sea, and if such a culture settles in such a place, there will be adaptations.

European, Middle Ages: The classic AD&D setting, this presents a fantastic kingdom of knights and ladies. It is an age of chivalry and castles. Power lies in the hands of the landed nobility and the various churches or temples of the realm.

For Technology Level, I considered the culture, as well as the World Hooks of Seafaring, Religious and Insurrection. I chose Hundred Years' War, and will work the reasoning into the full tale of all the cultures together.

Hundred Years' War (Late Middle Ages): The technology of muscle-powered weapons and heavy armor reaches its height. The feudal system of lord and vassal begins to breakdown as the merchant class grows in importance. Guilds and leagues of craftsmen who practice a trade appear, allowing increased production and advancements, while concentrating wealth and power in towns instead of the noble estates. As towns grow in size, more land is brought under cultivation to support the increasing population. Primitive firearms such as the handgunne or arquebus may be available at this level of technology.

For Social Alignment, I selected Neutral, and while going through the alignments for this and the other cultures, I noticed that I had 9 cultures... Of course, the rules we'll be using for the campaign operate under the 3 Alignment system, but this is beside the point. Social Alignment is merely a descriptive element of the Society and Culture.  For most NPCs, Alignment won't even be a concern. For PCs and major NPCs, the concept of standing with Law, Chaos or Balance in the cosmic struggle will still be the concept of Alignment in use (and will also be worked into the overarching narrative of the world, area and cultures.)

True Neutral: When the social alignment so intermixed that no clear trends can be discerned, a neutral kingdom or land results. Various power blocs or classes within the state may struggle to bring about the conditions they prefer, but the net effect is a national apathy, or a land plagued by inconclusive infighting. The whole range of government types can be found in neutral states.

Form of government was also selected. In keeping with the selections of Cultural Archetype and Technology Level, I chose Feudalism for this Culture. However, that is for this Culture specifically.  I made a separate selection, pertaining to the islands as a whole as well as the second human culture we will detail later - or rather, I conceived a hybrid of 2 other selections, Hierarchy and Satrapy, following with our World Hooks of Religious, Insurrection and Shrines. 

Feudalism: The typical government of Europe in the Middle Ages, a feudalistic society consists of layers of lords and vassals. The vassals provide soldiers or scutage to the lords, who in turn promise protection to their vassals.

Hierarchy: A feudal or bureaucratic system which proceeds through different levels of a religious institution.

Satrapy: Conquerors and representatives of another government wield power over the region, ruling it as part of a larger empire. The satraps themselves might be bureaucrats and military officers, or they may be unusual characters or monsters of some kind, such as dragons, beholders, or vampires.

The Local Campaign Area Chapter proceeds from here to Subsistence Systems, culture/race relations, and Population Level, but I feel like these are best addressed when we get to detailing and mapping the land itself and plotting the settlements.

What I did do, however, is go to the Culture Name Generator at Vondy.com and see what I could come up with.  Looking at the options generated with the parameters I provided it, I settled on Eldoria for the island itself, the Eldorian Islands for region, and Eldorian as both the language (which will be our effective Common) and the demonym for both the culture and residents of the island and region in general (much disputed by some of the other cultures present).

I also thought of migratory patterns, and through some ad hoc rolls and choices, decided on settlement waves for our 9 cultures. Despite being the current dominant (mostly) culture of the region, the Eldorians are not native, but rather arrived in the second of three waves of migration, roughly 500 years ago, from the North.

On the whole, I'm starting to get something of a Greedfall vibe (though with less guns.)