Looking for Info on India

[Ibram]

Hi all,

I'm looking for good info for use in a mythic India setting... mostly things like weapons, names, and maybe a bit about magic.

 

[driver8]

You may want to look at the free Mahasarpa setting over at the Wizards site. It was released on pdf after Oriental Adventures came out.. its a mythic setting thats Indian/ SE Asian influenced. No samurai but yogis and yuan ti.

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20011019a

 

[talinthas]

Heh. If only you had asked this a few months from now, when my Upanishads d20 proposal would be finished =)

For now though, i can offer you a few basics to get started with.

Weapons-
In most early indian mythology, the most common weapons as mentioned in the Upanishads and Puranas are the Tulwar (curved sword), the Gada (big heavy mace), the Trishool (trident), and the Danush-Bandh (the bow).
Also referenced is the Parshu (axe), but not as often, generally in conjunction with Parshuram, the 6th incarnation of Vishnu.

Other weapons include the Khukri (a curved dagger), the katar (a punch dagger), the chakram (a sharp disc kinda like a sawblade, used by dieties), the pasa (a kind of triangular bola), the silambamboo (a staff) and standard things like spears and such, though the names aren't coming to me off hand. Also note that the stories reference a lot of enchanted arrows that caused explosions, turned into snakes to choke targets, split into multiple shots, and other cool effects.

I'm not sure what exactly you mean by names, since there are billions of em to choose from =)

As for magic, It was all divine magic, cast by high ranking Brahmins and demons and such. Most of it involved polymorphing and evocation, with some stories involving things like golem creation and mind control. Also, the main starter for a ton of the stories is the Shraap, or the Curse, as uttered by a pissed off sage. These curses can affect anyone of any standing, including dieties, and do horrific things unless certain conditions are met to appease the angered saint. Think a combination of Geas, Atonement, and begging on your hands and knees.

I'm still working on how to mechanically implement all this stuff, but i'm happy to help if you have more specific questions =)

so far in d20, Oriental adventures and Green Ronin's Naranjan are the only real india based rpg products, but they might not have what you're looking for.

edit- see this website for more detail. http://www.atributetohinduism.com/War_in_Ancient_India.htm

 

[shilsen]

Heh. If only you had asked this a few months from now, when my Upanishads d20 proposal would be finished =)[/url]

Bugger! Guess that means I should speed up work on my Complete Puranas for 3.5e then

 

[Turanil]

Besides what equipment is used, the culture is most important.

--PALADINS: despite the concept is originally a Christian like full plated knight, you have a great opportunity for adding paladins. The Sikh have an extemely interesting religious tradition of holy defenders. They appeared during the 16th or 17th century when the Sikh were persecuted by the invading muslims. They created an order of what can be described as knight errants and paladins. Basically, they are religious warriors who perpetually travel the land and defend / help those (of their faith) in need. When not doing so, they will frequently have shows and contests of valor involving riding and swordfighting. The (sacred) equipment of any Sikh includes a curved sword, a rounded shield, and a long turban in which they wrap their hair. Their is only three allowed colors for their clothing and turban: blue, yellow, or white. The Sikh consider their beards and hair sacred in some way, so they never cut them. In spirit (maybe not in class features), if there would be paladins in your Indian campaign, they can only be Sikh. About the Sikh religion, it could really be described as a LG religion, monotheistic and actively practicing equality (I mean: no castes) and charity.

--PRIESTS: If (as told above) arcane magic doesn't exist, but only brahmin can cast divine spells only, I would suggest a couple of things: Brahmin would rather be of the Cloistered Cleric variant from Unearthed arcana. Shamans from Oriental Adventures would also fit well (except for the name). On the other hand, the cleric class, with its d8 hit-die, heavy armor, etc., absolutely doesn't fit with a Brahmin.

--MONKS & PSIONS: If you wouldn't allow arcane spellcasters, on the other hand monks and psionics classes are at home in an India setting. Just change the names: Monks become "Yogis", and Psions become "Sadhous". They all are mystically inclined people who spend their lives as hermits in search of the Nirvana (illumination). They are said to develop extraordinary supernatural abilities in "awakening their kundalini" (i.e.: name for Chi / Ki energy of Asians).

So many other things could be said about this subject...

I would love to play in an Indian campaign, but well...

 

[talinthas]

honestly, for clerics, i'd suggest having to redo the entire spell list for an indian campaign. Use the stats of a wizard (no armor or weapons, etc), but a new, more focused spell list with things like heals, curses, polymorphs, enchantments, fireballs and other elemental spells, and the like. While the culture has a lot of history with ghosts and undead and such, necromancy doesnt really come up.

Also, with monsters, things like Goblins, Ogres, ghosts, ghouls, and the like are fine. You'd also want to include Vanaras from OA, and a variant of Rakshasa, since the D&D one just doesnt fit, despite the name.

classes- Fighter, variant cleric, divine bard (maybe the new chorister prestige class from the War of the Lance dragonlance book would fit- think Narada), monk, barbarian (Bhima from the Mahabharat), rogues, experts (or the new master base class from War of the Lance), and possibly psions. Rangers, druids, wiz/sorc, and paladins don't really work. While i understand the reasoning in calling Sikhs paladins above, in the old myths, EVERYONE who adventured was a warrior of god, so it doesn't flavorfully fit. I'd probably also divide class by some form of the caste system, and not allow multiclassing, since it also doesnt fit the flavor.

I'd probably limit PCs to humans, with different regional and cultural feat packages, and so on.

and you can't forget all the cool things like flying chariots and giant demons who sleep for thousands of years because they mispronounced the word asking for eternal life =)

and dude, if you're doing the complete Puranas, maybe we should work together =)

 

[Stormrunner]

You might also want to check out the Complete Guide to Rakshasas from Goodman Games (US$13). It includes a lot of the mythic background behind the critters, as well as rules for yakshas (half-rakshasas), yogis, and a chakram-throwing prestige class of rakshasa-hunters. (Though for some reason they insist on calling the weapon a "discus", and creating yet another set of stats for it. On the plus side, you can now bounce the weapon off of walls and opponents, Xena-style.)

 

[hong]

I get all my best character names from the Sri Lankan cricket team.

 

[Turanil]

honestly, for clerics, i'd suggest having to redo the entire spell list for an indian campaign. Use the stats of a wizard (no armor or weapons, etc), but a new, more focused spell list with things like heals, curses, polymorphs, enchantments, fireballs and other elemental spells, and the like. While the culture has a lot of history with ghosts and undead and such, necromancy doesnt really come up.

While I understand the reasoning in calling Sikhs paladins above, in the old myths, EVERYONE who adventured was a warrior of god, so it doesn't flavorfully fit.

As for clerics using the wizard class, you could also get a look at the Shugenja class from OA adventure, if you don't feel like abandoning wizards and modifying classes.

About sikh = paladins. I agree that the paladin's class features do not fit very well with Sikh warriors (but they could without stretching a lot of credibility, in a fantasy setting). Those Sikh warriors, however, are not just "warriors of gods", but really are paladin-like in spirit. For an "adventuring" mystical warrior of God, probably the cleric class as is would fit.

 

[shilsen]

honestly, for clerics, i'd suggest having to redo the entire spell list for an indian campaign. Use the stats of a wizard (no armor or weapons, etc), but a new, more focused spell list with things like heals, curses, polymorphs, enchantments, fireballs and other elemental spells, and the like. While the culture has a lot of history with ghosts and undead and such, necromancy doesnt really come up.

What he said. A good 60-80% of stuff we take for granted in D&D just would not fit in such a setting, if you're trying to stay true to the mythology.

Also, with monsters, things like Goblins, Ogres, ghosts, ghouls, and the like are fine. You'd also want to include Vanaras from OA, and a variant of Rakshasa, since the D&D one just doesnt fit, despite the name.

I'd add giants to the list. There are rakshasas, danavas, daityas, etc. in Indian myth, all of which are different from the other (and have considerable variation within the groups). For these, many creatures from the core rules could be used (with stats mildly modified and the names changed). For example, many of them are described as having mixed animal and human features, so you could easily use a centaur's stats while describing the creature as a demon's torso on a horse's (or goat's or lion's or...) body.

classes- Fighter, variant cleric, divine bard (maybe the new chorister prestige class from the War of the Lance dragonlance book would fit- think Narada)

Narada? You want a bard who travels everywhere on a flying mortar and pestle ?

I'd probably limit PCs to humans, with different regional and cultural feat packages, and so on.

No playing Hanuman, or if he's a little too close to divine, Sugriva or Nala (you did mention vanaras above)? Or anthropomorphic bears, a la Jambavan? Or a modified half-fiend and half-celestial template for descendants of demons and gods (Ghatotkacha, the Pandavas, etc.)?

and you can't forget all the cool things like flying chariots and giant demons who sleep for thousands of years because they mispronounced the word asking for eternal life =)

Or churning the ocean using a mile-long snake and a mountain placed on the back of a zaratan

and dude, if you're doing the complete Puranas, maybe we should work together =)

Anytime. Just have to get this pesky Ph.D. out of the way too.