Be careful of what's on the menu.

[Turjan]

Possibly. I've never seen water-buffalo mozzarella, though, and I'm a bit of a cheese fan; I go out of my way to look for unusual cheeses.

If it's at least nearly as difficult as here to find some nice food, I can feel with you.

BTW, feta cheese around here usually prefers to goat, not sheep cheese. Although if you just call it ovicaprid cheese, I guess you're covered either way.

I think it was mixed in most cases, anyway. If you go to Greece or Cyprus, you often see small, mixed flocks of goats and sheep.

 

[Len]

I was wondering what you thought about using agriculture and animals that were not indigenous to medieval Europe in a "traditional medieval" camaign setting (i.e. corn, potatoes, tobacco)?

Since the Forgotten Realms is in Europe, it obviously doesn't have corn, potatoes or chocolate. Or beholders or formians or worgs.

 

[shilsen]

Since the Forgotten Realms is in Europe, it obviously doesn't have corn, potatoes or chocolate. Or beholders or formians or worgs.

Dammit, why'd you have to derail the water-buffalo mozzarella discussion?

 

[ruleslawyer]

Not much of a discussion, but...

Possibly. I've never seen water-buffalo mozzarella, though, and I'm a bit of a cheese fan; I go out of my way to look for unusual cheeses.

I take it that you haven't been to Italy, or New York, or Philadelphia, recently. It's not an issue of "unusual" cheese; mozzarella di bufala is taken by practically every native Italian and serious Italian foodie I know to be *the* genuine article (and, yes, it does come from water buffalo). The good fresh cow's stuff is usually referred to in Rome and points south as fior di latte, not mozzarella.

But this really belongs on eGullet.

 

[kenobi65]

Since the Forgotten Realms is in Europe, it obviously doesn't have corn, potatoes or chocolate. Or beholders or formians or worgs.

They import their chocolate from Maztica. Stuffed into the bodies of beholders -- or, as the Mazticans call them, "pinatas."

 

[Desdichado]

I take it that you haven't been to Italy, or New York, or Philadelphia, recently.

Well, when I said I went out of my way, I didn't mean I went that out of my way...

All the Italians in Buenos Aires used mozzarella de vaca, though. Although perhaps they're not serious enough about their cheese...

As for getting this discussion a bit back on track (I don't really want to usurp barsoomcore's self-proclaimed title of Tzar of Threadjacks), as I've said before, fantasy campaigns do not equal real geographical areas. In fact, I purposefully try not to have such a 1-to-1 correspondence between a real life culture and a fantasy culture. I quite dislike the "these are fantasy Vikings" or "these are fantasy Italians" or whatever.

 

[Turjan]

In fact, I purposefully try not to have such a 1-to-1 correspondence between a real life culture and a fantasy culture. I quite dislike the "these are fantasy Vikings" or "these are fantasy Italians" or whatever.

I fully agree with this point. Real world cultures bear much too much baggage with stuff I don't want to have in my campaigns.

 

[eris404]

PS I understand that Corn = grain and Corn beef =salted beef (using corns of salt) but what about the Corns on my motherinlaws toes? Why are they called Corns?

bleeecch! That so turned my stomach that I can no longer read this thread.

BTW, from Dictionary.com:

v. corned, corn·ing, corns
v. tr.
1. To cause to form hard particles; granulate.

 

[Kuld]

Since the Forgotten Realms is in Europe, it obviously doesn't have corn, potatoes or chocolate. Or beholders or formians or worgs.

Formians, are these dirivitives of the fomorians of Irish lore? Hmmm.. Maybe FR is in Europe!!

 

[demiurge1138]

Formians are centaur-ant people. They're officially, 3e style, at least, outsiders from Arborea and Mechanus, and are violently expansionist.

They are also delicious if dipped in chocolate.

Demiurge out.