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Literacy and Languages in your game
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<blockquote data-quote="steeldragons" data-source="post: 6743821" data-attributes="member: 92511"><p>My world has gone through several tides...from "Everyone just speaks Common...Thieves get Cant and Druids get Druidic, races get their racial languages (obviously, and those have changed in number and inclusiveness throughout the years)...but only mages/cloistered priests (PCs) ever learn how to read and write" to "every region and race has a dialect and different dialects can have different accents from region to region and each dragon color speaks its own tongue...and...and..." From "Barbarians can never learn to read" to "everyone just can, and write, cuz: can't be bothered."</p><p></p><p>In more recent years (decade or so), thankfully, the tide has ebbed back out to what I consider a nice middle ground that still offers the world a good (without being stupifying) granularity and rich believable internal verisimilitude.</p><p></p><p>So, now, Common makes [most of] the world go 'round. That trade/adventurer/"commoner" kind of speak. Regional/national languages (some with old and current versions). A few specialized courtly languages. Racial languages are mostly contained. Dragons speak Draconic. Done. Giants speak "Gigantic"("Jotun", whatever). Done.</p><p></p><p>Priests have a language for their magic. Mages have a language for their magic. Druids have a language for their magic. Thieves have regional Cants. </p><p></p><p>Reading, among adventurers, is universal (unless a player doesn't want to be cuz: reasons). Writing is fairly widespread, as well, though not a given.</p><p></p><p>Languages, in my games, are based on the PCs race, homeland/region of origin, possibly class, and Int. score. Learning a language that is not your native tongue presumes reading and writing as well (it's just easier). No character can have languages beyond those granted by race, origin, and class in excess of their Int. modifier. So, if you don't get a +1 or better to Intelligence, you get your race, homeland/origin, and class grants you. Thus, it is fairly common that mages, clerics, and elves of any stripe (sometimes a halfling or two) are the ones with advantaged linguistic skill.</p><p></p><p>NPCs, naturally, speak/read/write whatever I need them to.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="steeldragons, post: 6743821, member: 92511"] My world has gone through several tides...from "Everyone just speaks Common...Thieves get Cant and Druids get Druidic, races get their racial languages (obviously, and those have changed in number and inclusiveness throughout the years)...but only mages/cloistered priests (PCs) ever learn how to read and write" to "every region and race has a dialect and different dialects can have different accents from region to region and each dragon color speaks its own tongue...and...and..." From "Barbarians can never learn to read" to "everyone just can, and write, cuz: can't be bothered." In more recent years (decade or so), thankfully, the tide has ebbed back out to what I consider a nice middle ground that still offers the world a good (without being stupifying) granularity and rich believable internal verisimilitude. So, now, Common makes [most of] the world go 'round. That trade/adventurer/"commoner" kind of speak. Regional/national languages (some with old and current versions). A few specialized courtly languages. Racial languages are mostly contained. Dragons speak Draconic. Done. Giants speak "Gigantic"("Jotun", whatever). Done. Priests have a language for their magic. Mages have a language for their magic. Druids have a language for their magic. Thieves have regional Cants. Reading, among adventurers, is universal (unless a player doesn't want to be cuz: reasons). Writing is fairly widespread, as well, though not a given. Languages, in my games, are based on the PCs race, homeland/region of origin, possibly class, and Int. score. Learning a language that is not your native tongue presumes reading and writing as well (it's just easier). No character can have languages beyond those granted by race, origin, and class in excess of their Int. modifier. So, if you don't get a +1 or better to Intelligence, you get your race, homeland/origin, and class grants you. Thus, it is fairly common that mages, clerics, and elves of any stripe (sometimes a halfling or two) are the ones with advantaged linguistic skill. NPCs, naturally, speak/read/write whatever I need them to. [/QUOTE]
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