FRCS Verisimilitude: Cultural Analogs?

[The Thayan Menace]

Does anybody know where I can find a listing of specific cultural regions in the Forgotten Realms ... alongside a list of "real-world" civilizations that helped inspire them?

[For example: Mulhorand (FRCS, pp. 184-186) is akin to Pharaonic Egypt ... and so forth.]

-Samir

 

[Steve Jung]

Try this from the Wizards boards. http://boards1.wizards.com/archive/index.php/t-516453.html

 

[ruleslawyer]

Most FR regions are written to be purposely NOT analogs of historical civilizations, but rather to create an overall high-fantasy feel. Mulhorand, Unther, and Chessenta are the civilizations with the most obviously real-world analogues, followed by Calimshan (although I get the feeling that Calimshan was supposed to resemble a fantasy Koth or Zamora rather than a historical Arabia). Of course, one could attempt to establish closer RW parallels, or (better still!) draw on RW sources to flesh out FR regions. I'd suggest the following:

Cold Lands/Moonsea: 8th-17th century Russia and the Baltic States
The North: A cross between the Canadian frontier/Wild West (the interior) and 9th-12th century Scandinavia (Luskan, Ruathym, etc.)
The Western Heartlands: More Wild West
Amn: Medieval/Renaissance Italy
Tethyr: Medieval France
Calimshan: Medieval North Africa/the Arabian Peninsula
The Dalelands: late-medieval Switzerland or southern Germany
Cormyr: Arthurian England
Thay: early-medieval Byzantium
Mulhorand: ancient Egypt
Unther: ancient Sumer or Babylonia
Chessenta: classical Greece
The Vilhon Reach: Blend elements of Hellenistic Greece/pre-Roman Italy/"dark ages" Italy

Still, I really think that historical analogues are a poor way to go; it seems a much better idea to develop two or three key signifiers for the place (or people from it) and run with that. David Eddings' Belgariad has some nice illustrations of how to do that without getting too fancy (while opinions may be mixed on how good those books are as fantasy literature, IMHO they provide the right level of description and ease of "hooks" for a game).

Incidentally, I think that a number of the "analogues" in the above-linked thread are terrible; how are the Nars more Eastern European than, say, Plains Sioux or Mongol? How are the Lantanna (a race of gadgeteers and seafaring merchants from a subtropical island) like Germans?

 

[Shemeska]

It's probably worth noting that the Mulhorandi and Untherites aren't just analogs of Egyptians and Sumerians, they were groups of humans abducted by the Imaskari from another prime material world or worlds that worshipped the egyptian and babylonian pantheons.

 

[marune]

Wow, 2 very good FR posts here

What ruleslawyer and Shemeska said, forgot about the Wizards' forum one.

To add to Shemeska's post, according to at least one official product, they came directly from Earth.

 

[Nyaricus]

Those posts prett much sum it all up; any more questions and I can add somehting I'm sure if you wish.

Candlekeep might also have info as well

Oh, and Wikipedia has some *great* maps uploaded

 

[smootrk]

Some of the early notes (Greenwood) regarding The Forgotten Realms is that it has ties to our (the real earth).... quite appropriately named, and a very good reason that many of the cultures mirror real life cultures. These ties between the real and the fantasy have been 'played-down' for what I see as marketing reasons more than anything else (as far as I can tell), or maybe because back then there was all the ferver over Mazes and Monsters type mentalities and they wanted any sort of inuendo of real and fantasy having ties to be omitted (or so I deduce).

In any event, it is readily apparent that the cultures are mirrors of real world cutlures, sometimes put in a blender with other aspects including fantasy elements.

 

[Faraer]

Ed eschewed Earth analogues partly so that players would engage with the details of the setting their characters were in, rather than jumping to conclusions about it. The parts of the Realms grafted on by TSR when the setting was used as a dumping ground tend not to follow that philosophy. The Old Empires are a middle ground, where Scott Bennie drew more directly from their partial Earth inspirations than the originals did; Calimshan too, in some sources and to a lesser extent.

I'd quibble with ruleslawyer in that the Realms are more swords and sorcery than high fantasy.

smootrk, not just early notes but dozens of sourcebooks and magazine articles directly refer to the links between Toril and Earth: the existence of Toril as one gate-linked world among multitudes is another of the Realms' design principles. TSR did downplay this for the reason you surmise, but the core Realms cultures are decidedly not mirrors of Earth cultures, and were not significantly influenced by them (worldwalking is rare).

 

[marune]

I'd quibble with ruleslawyer in that the Realms are more swords and sorcery than high fantasy.

I'm not a master of Realms lore like Faraer, but I disagree here, look at the various Volo's guides and tell me that it's not high fantasy

 

[kenobi65]

ruleslawyer, I'm surprised you left the Moonshae Isles off your list, which are pretty clearly Irish-insipred.