D&D General Favorite Fantasy Africa stuff

[Flamestrike]

they always struck me as 'Nazis mixed with the Assassins of Alamut"..

Who live in the Jungle and wear red.

I have time for truly unique civilisations in games.

Lazy stereotypes are cringeworthy at best (and we've all been guilty of it).

 

[David Howery]

Yet we never see 'fantasy Africa' an advanced society with knights, guilds and so forth.

Nyambe did a decent job of doing that, although 'knights' as such don't really fit well. While you don't want a 'not Africa' that is nothing but a savage uncivilized hellhole, you can certainly borrow concepts from the real one and create fantasy counterparts of the real kingdoms that existed there, and that shouldn't be the bad stereotyping you're worrying about...

 

[David Howery]

Who live in the Jungle and wear red.

I don't think their home base is in the jungle, but it's definitely a semi-tropical place... kinda like Florida. They always reminded me of the Assassins of our history, due to their infiltration across the Flanaess and you never know when one of them will strike...

 

[Zardnaar]

I find most 'fantasy not Africa' contains a heck of a lot of Western stereotypes about the region, in much the same way as 'fantasy not Asia' does.

As an Australian, I also find RPG depictions of 'fantasy not Australia' to be rife with stereotypes about Down under, that are cringeworthy and simple at best.

It's often just lazy stereotypes.

I honestly prefer totally made up cultures, with no real world analogue to compare it to.

My fantasy not Australia got annexed by the Empire of Zealandia. Sentient Kea folk awakened the Kangaroo's and put them in charge.

Zealandia avian empire with kiwis.

Kangaroo are like exploding sheep in the Worms game. You hear oi oi oi boing boing kaboom.

 

[Flamestrike]

Nyambe did a decent job of doing that, although 'knights' as such don't really fit well. While you don't want a 'not Africa' that is nothing but a savage uncivilized hellhole, you can certainly borrow concepts from the real one and create fantasy counterparts of the real kingdoms that existed there, and that shouldn't be the bad stereotyping you're worrying about...

Those borrowed concepts are almost always racial and cultural stereotypes though. Usually with negative connotations.

You can tell a lot about an authors prejudices and biases by looking at how they depict 'not Africa' for example.

For 'not-Africa' its almost always the 'noble savages' trope. Because that's somehow better than 'savages'.

 

[David Howery]

My fantasy not Australia got annexed by the Empire of Zealandia.

I can vaguely remember sketching out a fantasy not-Australia long ago in my DM days, but I had it more like 'Australia right when humans first arrived there'... less arid, lots of megafauna around... don't think I ever had the PCs visit though..

 

[Zardnaar]

Those borrowed concepts are almost always racial and cultural stereotypes though. Usually with negative connotations.

You can tell a lot about an authors prejudices and biases by looking at how they depict 'not Africa' for example.

For 'not-Africa' its almost always the 'noble savages' trope. Because that's somehow better than 'savages'.

My fantasy Africa if I use it is normally Lion folk and things like that with empires of not Mali/Songhai, Kilwa or Great Zimbabwe. Gold mines and traders.

Might also add subraces of elves or whatever there. Wood Elves and Nursing Dwarf from Midgard.

 

[Flamestrike]

My fantasy not Australia got annexed by the Empire of Zealandia. Sentient Kea folk awakened the Kangaroo's and put them in charge.

Zealandia avian empire with kiwis.

Kangaroo are like exploding sheep in the Worms game. You hear oi oi oi boing boing kaboom.

Marsupials running the show. Always the way. That and the Outback.

The reality of Australia is we are actually one of the most advanced, developed and urbanised societies on the planet, with 87 percent of our population of 25 million living in our major cities, and with a HDI and standard of living topped only by few countries.

The USA is not one of them.

Yet every depiction of Australia or Aussies is some Crocodile Dundee/ Outback/ Steve Irwin BS.

If anything, Australia should be a former colony of a great empire (that is now in decline), with a highly advanced society who are oppressing the native inhabitants. That's a lot more like what it's actually like.

 

[David Howery]

Those borrowed concepts are almost always racial and cultural stereotypes though. Usually with negative connotations.

? not if you're using the actual kingdoms that existed there as a base. Wealthy, vast armies, shrewd traders, skilled craftsmen, and not a 'noble savage' in sight.

 

[Flamestrike]

? not if you're using the actual kingdoms that existed there as a base. Wealthy, vast armies, shrewd traders, skilled craftsmen, and not a 'noble savage' in sight.

That's not what I see when I see depictions of 'fantasy not Africa'.

Dark skinned noble savages with facial scarring and spears, coming from a vast dark and barely sketched out continent.

It always comes down to that.