Vikings or Celts

[Algolei]

Vikings!

I know them better.

However, I'd rather incorporate as many cultures as I can, so I'd go with both plus several other cultures. Utilize the whole Northwestern European thing, with Southeastern European and Western Asian tossed in like delicious crunchy croutons. The Iberian peninsula would make a nice side. Northern Africa could be the coffee.

(...twenty minutes left 'til lunch. :\ )

 

[mythusmage]

Turanil,

Since you're doing an Early Dark Age campaign, use Germanics. Ancestral to both Goths and Norse. Rapining bastards out to plunder and kill. (And become Romans, but that didn't work out.)

BTW, did you know that by the definition used by D&D 3.x early Old Kingdom Egypt qualifies as barbarian?

 

[hawkwing2k5]

If your going for a more hack n slash or combat oriented campaign go with the Vikings. You can toss in the squabbling of the norse gods as well. They do interact with man kind however they tend to be a bit on the violent and bloodthirsty side.

Conversly, the Celts lend to druids bards and more mysticism (Excaliber) atmosphere.

For me I would take the Celts simply cause the Vikings are IMO been there done that.

Any typos are mine and I blame my fingers for the rebellion to make me look dum.

 

[SgtHulka]

Why choose? The Wilderlands campaign setting has both, the real world had both, why shouldn't your campaign setting have both?

 

[AdmundfortGeographer]

Uffda, I'm a bit biased. I live in Minnesota (grew up watching the Minnesota Vikings), and I'm a little bit Dane and mostly Norwegian, and I still have (very, very old) relatives who were born here in America and spoke Norwegian before they learned English. (I still dream about learning Norwegian someday...) I've read annotated Icelandic Sagas, Poetic Edda, and Prose Edda.

So yeah, I vote Vikings.

 

[The_Gneech]

Well, neither of 'em led elephants over the Alps...

-The Gneech

 

[Henry]

Between the two, I'd say Celts. The horned helmets were fake; the body paint wasn't.

However, now that someone mentioned it, the Mongols would be the best for a fedualistic society, because the real-life mongols kicked EVERYONE's butts. (Well, almost everyone.) But wounted horsemen, silk-and-fur armor almost as effective as a mail coat, fast horses, archery feats? Mongols, man!

Failing that, the familarity of the Vikings would work against them as a campaign nemesis - the purpose of a barbarian culture is to be ALIEN, to be unusual, and unfamiliar as possible. Celts fit that to a T, judging from the posts here who picked the vikings because they were more familiar.

 

[davidschwartznz]

It takes a village to raise a child...

But it takes a Viking to raze a village!

 

[Chaldfont]

Colts! Vikings suck this year. GO COLTS! Superbowl XL! Woohooo!!!

Oh, wait. I misread the thread title.

 

[frankthedm]

Vikings.

Celtic stuff draws out too many neo-pagans for my tastes.