Native American Campaign Setting?

[Angcuru]

Good Idea Fusangite. I was a bit Amer-Indian obsessed all the way through school, even into College(which I just recently dropped out of), where I dropped a history class after a teacher told me "nobody gives a damn about primitive American cultures, they haven't contributed anything to history" after I handed in a report on the Pontiac Rebellion, so I can get into the literature pretty easily.

Give me this guy's address so I can beat his head in with my steel-toed boots.

 

[blackshirt5]

He teaches at Middlesex. I almost beat his head in. Then I chose to just walk out of his classroom.

 

[Black Omega]

Not to mention the fact that as far as is known, the Iroquois never took to using primitive germ warfare as the colonists did, in the form of smallpox victims blankets being handed out to the indians.

The situation at Fort Pitt certainly did insure Lord Amherst's name would be remembered in history.

Ever wonder what the world would have been like if everything were the same, except that the Native Americans had gotten fed up, hijacked some boats, and decided to not only take back North America, but push across the Atlantic and take Europe and England?

It would certainly change things. Assuming all that changed as the attitude toward colonists, there's no doubt early on early colonies would be easily destroyed. I can't see any impression being made on Europe, defending on home ground the European nations would have had not only the edge in technology but also numbers. The colonization of North America would have proceeded more slowly and it very likely would have had a more Spanish and French flair to it. No American revolution as such. You could make a pretty interesting scenario of how things might have turned out.

 

[blackshirt5]

Imagine, if you will, England being crushed between an Amer-Indian Invasion and a rebellion by Ireland.

Hmmm...

 

[Angcuru]

what if rome had not wasted it's resources on gladiatorial combat but instead took out all of it's potential enemies....imagine seeing a Praetorian carrying a Plasma Rifle and a Frank Herbert's Dune-style Body Shield.

 

[mythusmage]

Blackshirt5

Not to mention the fact that as far as is known, the Iroquois never took to using primitive germ warfare as the colonists did, in the form of smallpox victims blankets being handed out to the indians.

Funny thing, the first Smallpox blankets were handed out by humanitarian groups who wanted to help keep Indians warm. The dead didn't need 'em anymore, so they got laundered and given away.

Unfortunately, Smallpox isn't so easily gotten rid of, and what you might expect happened. People put two and two together, and started handing out Smallpox blankets deliberately.

Back to the Setting

Since some folks will want to play European style knights and wizards, will there be any sort of contact with a European type setting? Or will there be guidelines regarding difficult (as opposed to nearly impossible) travel between the two lands? Since long term contact is likely to produce substantial changes, I recommend it be set up so that play commences during early contact days. For that matter, it would probably be best if you did it much as CWD did Nyambe. A fictional America and a fictional Europe.

The Old world is experiencing something of a population explosion, with the result that the old fishing grounds are getting fished out in order to feed people. So Old World fishermen are going further and further afield to find fish.

It's been twenty years since the first European fishing villages were established on the coast of the New World. Some fishermen have brought their families over, others have married into the local tribes. Some of the natives have married into fishermen families, and they and others have taken up the fisherman's life.

At the same time some of the Old World nations have sent people to keep an eye on their subjects (What Medieval despot in his right mind is going to give up tax revenue if he can avoid it?), while the Iroquois analog has taken notice of these new people and decided they too should be invited to join the Five Lodges. (Whether they want to or not. The Huron were originally invited to join the Iroquios about the time the French came to North America. They refused. The Iroquois set about destroying the Huron Nation.)

Then you have the non-humans -both Old World and New World- who are learning about their counterparts across the sea.

(You know, if I keep writing at this pace I may have to ask for co-author status.)

 

[fusangite]

On the question of North American natives going to Europe, considerable evidence has now been uncovered that the Inuit did in fact make it to the Faroes and Hebrides; remember also, that the Inuit conquered Greenland from the Vikings prior to 1492.

The problem of epidemics is somewhat thornier, however. The main reason that epidemics were able to wipe out 80-90% of the North American population is that few native cultures used domestic animals and those that did did not house the animals in the same living space as humans.

Most major epidemics e.g. TB, bubonic plague, smallpox, influenza, etc. were mutations of diseases affecting domesticated animals. The wide range of endemic diseases of Europeans existed in the population because of certain technological and lifestyle aspects that defined European cultures.

 

[Black Omega]

On the question of North American natives going to Europe, considerable evidence has now been uncovered that the Inuit did in fact make it to the Faroes and Hebrides;

Would not shock me. We seem to be constantly find more evidence that the ancient peoples were much better sailors than they often get credit for.

remember also, that the Inuit conquered Greenland from the Vikings prior to 1492.

1408 or so, wasn't it? The colony of Østerbygden disappeared about this time, though more credit is given to the harsh weather, and utter isolation of the colony. Many of the Norse were adopted into the Thule, there's no doubt.

 

[Dr. Strangemonkey]

I would like to put in a votes for four corners/American Southwest/Mexican Northern cultures and a bit on the Aleut and Inuit. Arctic Circle cultures are amazing bad ass.

I highly recommend Fast Runner as a movie everyone should see.
It's out on DVD now.

 

[Joseph Elric Smith]

Well depending upon quality and price I would probably pick it up
ken