Using Monsters To Define Nations

[Azure Trance]

Is it very common in your worlds? What monsters do you use, and how? Not simply another humanoid kindgom, which is usually just a psuedo-human nation with a cultural tilt like a Hobgoblin Roman Empire, but more unique, unusual creatures. For example:

• A blue dragon in charge of a desert city state, who mines the nearby areas for gold. The gold gives him power which other nations are forced to recognize. (Similar to the Dragon Kings of Athas)
• A Solar as leader of a human empire ("I am the State." - The Sun King)
• An eternal King who is a ghost and hasn't left his throne for centuries

 

[Andrew D. Gable]

One of the nations (Phrygia) in my world is still ruled by its founder, Phrixus. He poses as the latest entrant in an old dynasty, but in reality Phrixus is a lich and founded the nation over 1000 years ago. Phrygia hasn't been fleshed out much, though, as the PCs have never gone there.

 

[kenjib]

The fabled kingdom of Mizun Lai lies far to the east. According to legend, it has been ruled continuously for over 600 years by a powerful dragon with the power to assume human form. He never leaves his palace though, and has been seen by very few people. Thus, speculation abounds as to whether the legends are true, or whether it has actually been a great hoax perpetuated by mortal human emperors over the centuries.

 

[Dr. Strangemonkey]

Take a look at Oathbound. Every nation in the setting is formed by the fact that god-like beings are using them as social experiments.

So all of them are populated by whatever weird mix races the beings desire in whatever climate the beings dictated.

And there are other issues too:

Like a being who wrote the first laws of every nation in a way to make inherently small, unstable, and combatitive.

Or another who frequently imports pairs of naturally inimical civilizations and creatures in order to see what sort of new or interesting hunting techniques will develop.

I think it's a great way to create flavor within a world.

 

[s/LaSH]

All societies are controlled by their leaders. In my own campaign, there aren't that many monster-controlled lands... except for that one with the dragon. But he's rather hands-off most of the time.

There are political entities governed by other agendas and races, but they're a secret. Sorry, I can't tell you where the yuan-ti come into Genghis Khan's plans.

 

[Marimmar]

IMC the city of Westgate in the Forgotten Realms was ruled by a council of liches with vampires as their executive officers. They expanded their territory and fought battles against the players' characters who were between lvl 17 and 21 back then.

~Marimmar

 

[Desdichado]

I'm probably unusual. Although I have a strange fetish for monster books, I actually much prefer to use human(oid) antagonists rather than monsters for most encounters, so monsters -- when they feature at all -- are really quite special and terrifying. I have toyed with the idea of nations ruled by slumbering dragons, ala Iron Kingdoms, or ancient lich-kings, but I'm still developing some of those aspects of my most recent homebrew.

 

[Azure Trance]

Undead seem popular, if only because they 'were' human(oid) and easy to give humanistic tendencies to. Vampires, Ghosts, Liches, and all the variations thereof ... dark, creepy, and perhaps easier to play then an enigmatic/aloof Dragon or Outsider (Demon/Devil/Celestial)