Crossroads II: I'm on a Mammoth.

[Palanan]

So, I haven't looked in here for a while, but thought I'd offer a few comments on runes and sloths.

Originally Posted by Mith
Sorry for the double post, but I came across this for the runes used by the Germanic people.

The single best book on runes that I know is An Introduction to English Runes by R. I. Page. In Chapter 5 he gives detailed derivations of the rune-names and their meanings. If I were going to do anything with runes, especially in a historically inspired setting like Crossroads, I'd rely on Page above any other source.

Originally Posted by Admiral Squish
…some species of ground sloths survived up to about 3000 BC in the Caribbean.

If not later; there's evidence from tar pits in Cuba that Parocnus brownii, a smaller species, may have survived to 2500 BC, and Neocnus comes in Haiti might have survived to 2200 BC or later.

Originally Posted by Admiral Squish
They would be slow and ungainly on land, but all sloths are, really.

Modern arboreal sloths certainly are; I've seen them quite a few times in Costa Rica and Brazil, and I've never seen a creature so painstakingly deliberate in its motions. However, there were a great many other sloths from the late Oligocene to early Holocene, some of which occupied other niches and metabolic envelopes--fossorial, arboreal, aquatic, high-mountain, and possibly even predatory.

Also bear in mind that modern sloths (Bradypus and Choloepus) are surprisingly good swimmers, which may have contributed to the adaptation of sloths like Thalassocnus to the marine environment.

Speaking of which:

Originally Posted by Admiral Squish
I think we could have ground or aquatic sloths survive in the region easily enough.

Fossils of Thalassocnus are known only from coastal Peru and Chile, but it would hardly be a stretch to include them in the Caribbean, since I'd be surprised if there weren't other species which extended that far.

The trouble is that Thalassocnus were essentially coastal creatures, even the deeper-diving species, and they'd be easy prey for mariners looking to stock up on provisions in the Caribbean. Worse yet for the diving-sloths is that their bones were denser than their terrestrial cousins', just as manatee bones are quite dense, and for the same reason--to help them dive more easily. I'd imagine that a trade in diving-sloth bones would quickly develop, and between that and being hunted for sailor-soup the Caribbean species would almost certainly have been driven to extinction around much of the Caribbean basin--wherever European ships made port or were able to explore.

If any survive to the time of the Crossroads setting (which I'm assuming is still roughly 1750) they would most likely be found on the coastline of real-world Venezuela, Colombia and the Guyanas, and perhaps in pockets along the Caribbean coast of Mesoamerica and the Yucatán. This is assuming, of course, they aren't also hammered by native Vespuccian societies.

.

[Steckie]

Caribbean
Well, could you use the waterways map that forms the basis of the basic crossroads map. It's pretty dang enormous, and I'm sure you could crop it down to the appropriate size.

That map is enormous indeed, but the problem is that the Lesser Antilles and the Virgin Islands aren't on the map. And those should all definately be featured on a map of the Caribbean.

[Admiral Squish]

Sloths
Man, you're quite educated on this particular topic, hmm?

The later date of extinction seems to further support the idea of sloths.

Your raise a valid point. In truth, there's no reason sloths themselves would be ungainly, they could easily adapt to almost any lifestyle. However, I would specify that I was referring to aquatic sloths in my head, though the text doesn't particularly indicate that.

Yes, Thalassocnus was the aquatic sloth that came to mind in the first place, however, there is significant evidence that some ground sloths colonized north america before the land bridge arose, and spread through the Caribbean via island-hopping. I imagine some semi-aquatic ground sloths could adapt in that general direction if the appropriate selection pressures were applied.

I'm not gonna argue they wouldn't be hunted, but if we can have mammoths survive, we could almost certainly have sloths. Perhaps a WWDNH scenario, but with a time-lost island, shrouded in mist, that appears and disappears unpredictably, sometimes for years at a time.

[Palanan]

Originally Posted by Admiral Squish
Your raise a valid point. In truth, there's no reason sloths themselves would be ungainly, they could easily adapt to almost any lifestyle. However, I would specify that I was referring to aquatic sloths in my head, though the text doesn't particularly indicate that.

The aquatic sloths would probably not be as fluid or energetic as dolphins, that's for sure. I'd expect they would be slow-moving grazers, paddling along and lumbering slowly onto land--essentially what manatees would be like if they still had limbs.

Originally Posted by Admiral Squish
I'm not gonna argue they wouldn't be hunted, but if we can have mammoths survive, we could almost certainly have sloths.

Well, you know your setting far better than I do, but I have the impression these mammoths survive in the cold, vast Arctic tundra, where few outsiders dare to travel, and where the locals have something of a symbiotic relationship with the mammoths.

The Caribbean would be very different, since it's busy with European shipping, with major powers contending back and forth over the Antilles and probing all around the coastline. More than likely the diving-sloths would be extirpated from the European-occupied islands, and probably surviving only on coastal islands along Mesoamerica and the northern rim of South Vespuccia. That's if there's a substantial native harvest of diving-sloths as well, which would only make sense. Subsistence hunters today are more than happy to take a giant armadillo, which can feed a small village for a week, and the payoff from catching a diving-sloth would be far greater.

On the other hand, diving-sloths can dive, so there might be specialized native hunters or hunting practices, just as there are for any other large aquatic mammal today. There used to be professional manatee hunters in the Amazon, until the numbers of peixe-boi dwindled too low to support them, and I could see something similar for Mesoamericans.

Who occupies the Florida Keys in this setting? That might be another place for diving-sloths to hold on.

[Admiral Squish]

Sloths

Swimming
Oh, no, they would definitely not be as graceful as aquatic mammals like dolphins or seals. Apparently the research indicates they would propel themselves mostly with their forelimbs, making them move more like polar bears. Relatively slow, but smooth, and lumbering up onto beaches from time to time.
Also, I just found a thing that says a modern sloth can hold its breath underwater for almost 40 minutes by slowing its metabolism, which might be even longer for larger sloths, considering lung capacity.

Hunting
Yeah, humans do have a tendency to murder the crap out of large herbivores... It's a thing, we're working on it. I think there are some ways to keep the sloths about, though.
For one, we could have them be considered unclean. I mean, lobsters were viewed as sea vermin. If ground and sea sloths continued to grow cyanobacteria in their fur like arboreal sloths, it's entirely possible the Europeans may regard them as so filthy they're growing things. It could be believed that eating the meat of a sloth will cause laziness, or it could just taste awful.
Religious beliefs could work the other way, at least in native societies. If the sloths maintain the cyanobacteria, it could be believed that sloths are sacred or protected, justifications ranging from them being sacred beings associated with the forest and life (since they are green like plants and would probably host insects like arboreal sloths), or perhaps they could be worked into creation myths and subsequently spared in gratitude.
Sloths might just be really hard or difficult to hunt. If they can dive for as long as suggested above, it would be much easier to hunt manatees, who have to surface every 15 minutes or so, though they would likely prove tempting targets when sunning or sleeping. Perhaps ground sloths are dangerous animals, with almost armor-like hide and foul tempers when enraged, and can seriously injure an incautious hunter with their claws.
We could have the main populations of sloths inhabit places that humans don't usually visit for some reason or another. If they're aquatic, they wouldn't need a significant area of land, they could just sun and sleep on sandbars or other unproductive, isolated rocks. Ground sloths would be more of a challenge to keep out of sight and mind, but perhaps a few 'mysterious islands' or tiny, unsettled islands could have some around.

[Steckie]

The Caribbean is quite a busy place, in the setting i think it's going to be even busier than in history. With the colonisation of Mexico not happening, a lot of settlers didn't move from the Caribbean to the Mainland. And there's the Knights as well.
All in all, the place is more densely populated and the limits on hunting you proposed are probably needed to keep sloths alive in the setting.

Here's an idea: there are a lot of Blue Holes in the Caribbean and a lot of Cenotes on the Yucatan peninsula. A lot of these holes and cenotes are Link sites.
The sloths are one of the few species of animals that can instinctively use a Link site. They don't do it consciously, they don't probe the Links they just sense when a blue hole or cenote links to another blue hole or cenote and use the Link.
Because of this the Maya, Taino and Carib people see the sloths as holy messengers and refuse to hunt them. Seeing a sloth is a considered to be good luck.
This also makes them difficult prey for the Europeans that do hunt them. Sloth skin, bones and teeth are very valuable items for Europeans because they're so rare.

[Palanan]

Originally Posted by Admiral Squish
For one, we could have them be considered unclean…. If ground and sea sloths continued to grow cyanobacteria in their fur like arboreal sloths, it's entirely possible the Europeans may regard them as so filthy they're growing things. It could be believed that eating the meat of a sloth will cause laziness, or it could just taste awful.

On the fur issue, take a look at this illustration of Thalassocnus for the Smithsonian. Larger marine mammals don't have dense coats, so that aspect wouldn't apply.

The idea of a dietary taboo is a good one, and could explain the persistence of both ground and diving-sloths in areas where native cultures still hold sway. Offhand I can't think of too many creatures a European sailor wouldn't eat--they were happy to take everything from dodos to Galapagos tortoises to Steller's sea cows.

The only factor that comes to mind, as you mention, is the possibility of a severe musk or foul-tasting flesh. I mention this because there are still legends of the mapinguari in the Amazon, which a few people have suggested might be based on cultural memories of ground sloths, or even sightings of surviving individuals. Some of those "sightings"--generally made by backwoods hunters--claim an overpowering stench from the creature. I'm not saying this is verified field biology, but a musk intense enough to nauseate someone in gunshot range would certainly put off thoughts of dinner.

Originally Posted by Steckie
Because of this the Maya, Taino and Carib people see the sloths as holy messengers and refuse to hunt them. Seeing a sloth is a considered to be good luck.
This also makes them difficult prey for the Europeans that do hunt them. Sloth skin, bones and teeth are very valuable items for Europeans because they're so rare.

This is interesting, although I'm not sure if you're referring to ground sloths (terrestrial) or diving-sloths (coastal marine). If the latter, keep in mind that there wouldn't be much for them to eat in a typical Yucatán cenote. These are large grazing animals and they need substantial swathes of marine algae or other aquatic vegetation.

Also, have you already worked out a network of Links between blue holes and cenotes? You'll need to pay careful attention to salinity and the haloclines in both kinds of feature, since a Link in the wrong place would essentially pour the entire Caribbean into the Yucatán aquifer.

And if Europeans are hunting them--especially in a more densely populated Caribbean--it's a sure thing they'll be gone from the European-controlled islands, and if they're considered holy messengers by the Mayans, I can see that as a major source of friction, as European hunting crews constantly probe the coasts for undiscovered populations, with the natives constantly defending them.

.

[SuperDave]

Random question about firearms: how do we want to handle kneeling to fire a two-handsd gun in Crossroads? Do we make it a swift action to drop into a one-legged kneel, gaining a small bonus go aiming while you're down, and then maybe another swift action or a free action to stand back up? Or, for simplicity's sake, do we want to rule that kneeling confers no special bonus to aiming, and is just part or firing a weapon normally?

Alternatively, we could rule that kneeling is the default position, and firing while standing up imposes a small penalty instead.

[Mith]

I would say kneeling is a swift action for a +2 to aiming, but with a penalty to dodging. It shouldn't be a default, since that is not how muskets were always fired.

[Admiral Squish]

I'm procrastinating from writing to poke my head in on this.

I think you could probably kneel/rise from kneeling as a swift action. Kneeling would probably grant a +1 to ranged attack rolls, AC against ranged attacks (smaller target), and CMD to avoid being moved. However, you would take a -1 penalty to melee attack rolls, AC against melee attacks, and CMB. Oh, and you couldn't move while kneeling, obviously.

[Mith]

Oh, and you couldn't move while kneeling, obviously.

I have the perfect feat for that!

QWOP Man

Due to some aberrational heritage, you seem to be able to contort your body into strange shapes and still be able to move. When ever you are in a position that would usually prevent you from moving (ex. kneeling to aim a rifle) you instead can move at half your Move Speed.

[SuperDave]

Sorry Squish, but did you mean to say that kneeling imposes a -1 penalty to CMB (instead of CMD, which you already suggested kneeling should give a bonus to)?

Oh, and I have a more general question for the thread at large: in our setting, lycanthropy is extremely contagious, so I'm assuming were modifying the rules slightly, so that natural lycanthropes aren't the only ones who can transmit the curse. Squish suggested the Fort save should be DC 11 to 13 (it's normally DC 15 for natural lycanthropes). Do we feel this is reasonable? Keep in kind my players are only level 3 right now.

I'm still working through the backlog; I really like what's been done with the Tuniit so far. They feel much more three dimensional, and much more dangerous. I think that having them ride mammoths (but not mammut) is reasonable - they might only be starting to breed them to be the right size, but it only takes a few generations for dogs to increase in size. I also support giving them true Viking-style palisaded settlements, but I think that given the level of social cohesion and complexity they've got, we really need to start thinking about who their ruler is, how they obtained and maintain their power, and how the government is structured. I recommend we look to the pre-Christian Viking kingdoms from the Age of Settlement (800 AD - 1000 AD) for inspiration.

We're having another gaming session tonight. I'll let you all know how it goes, and what the players discover.

[Steckie]

We're having another gaming session tonight. I'll let you all know how it goes, and what the players discover.

Have they managed to poke any holes in the setting already or are things fairly stable? And i mean in both the fluff and the crunch.

[Palanan]

Originally Posted by SuperDave?
We're having another gaming session tonight. I'll let you all know how it goes, and what the players discover.

Are you keeping a campaign journal? Because that's something I'd love to take a look at.



Also, you've mentioned here and there that you're working towards bringing the setting to print form, and I'd be very interested in seeing that as well. How far along are you on text and other elements?

[Mith]

I believe the print form would be the last aspect of the project. First they have to make sure that everything is ready to be written first.

[Admiral Squish]

Yeah, pretty much. To be honest, our progress toward actually putting a book together is basically just a serious intent. There has been a bit of discussion about how various things would fit into such a book, and what we should put in/leave out, but we're not like, laying the text down or anything.

While I'm here: I'm very close to done with my NaNoWriMo book. If all goes well, I may return to the thread in a real fashion within the week.

[SuperDave]

Pretty much what Squish said about the printed version. I want to wait until everything is mostly set in stone before I start compiling. I put a lot of effort into a couple of hand-drawn maps of Tuniitaq and Aztatlan last year, and within a few weeks they were already outdated. (But perhaps it's not a bad idea for me to start collecting canonical details from the thread and see how many pages we've got so far?

You know, sometimes I think we should be putting Crossroads on a wiki instead of a thread. Though one of the advantages of the thread is that everyone sees everyone else's changes and updates. Then again, having our own wiki would free us up somewhat from forum restrictions on subjects like religion. I don't know, just thought I'd throw that idea out there, and see what you guys make of it.

I have started a campaign journal, actually! It's called "The Journey of the Mound Lord's Heir" (https://the-mound-lord-s-heir.obsidianportal.com).

They players haven't found any fault with the timeline yet, though really all they've seen so far is Cahokia. I'll let you know how they feel about the Iroquoian regions and the Great Lakes.

No complaints about balance so far, though I personally wonder if Admiral Squish's 'dire staff' weapon might be a little overpowered. One of the players also feels strongly that Coatls are much too powerful, but I'm withholding judgment until they've actually fought one. I also think that the Martial Artist could really use more techniques, plus some kind of way to learn multiple schools.

We're still working on how to balance firearms with melee combat, since the only real way to limit their power is to force players to keep track of ammo, which usually gets boring fast. But again, they've only fought one real battle and one "exhibition" battle (nonlethal damage only), so combat is still in its infancy.

[Steckie]

Quick question:
While working on the Caribbean (almost there, just need to do Trinidad, Tobago and the ABC-islands!) i've found out that the Island of Trinidad in 1750 had a population that was probably less than 1500 colonists. In a 1783 census the population was 2763 with 2032 of those being Natives and 310 of those African slaves. Leaving room for 295 free nonwhites and 126 people of Spanish descent. In 1750 this would have even been less.

This isn't really all that much and since northern Cabralia is a short boatride away the Island probably wont be much more interesting to colonists in the setting. We also have the free neutral state of converted natives nearby.
So what if the Spanish recently (say 1740?) sold the Island of Trinidad to the neutral state of Tobago.
Tobago, wich because of it's neutrality aquired a great amount of wealth, had the money for it. And because of it's growing population (both births and natives flocking to the Island) they need the room for all those people. And they need room for farms to feed those people, there can only be a certain amount of food that comes from ships.
Trinidad isn't all that interesting to the Spanish, they still control Mainland Cabralia and the mouth of the Orinoco even with Trinidad sold.
This would make the neutral natives a bit more important and not limit them to one Island that can easily be blockaded.


Oh and speaking about Tobago, i've been thinking about how to set up these guys as well.
Basically when they obtained their independance they went back to the way they used to do things politically and installed a chiefdom. They kept to their neutrality and because of it they started to become an important trade harbor. They demand that any ship coming with a 10 mile radius of Tobago takes down their national flag and flies the flag of Tobago. While under this flag, they are considered neutral and can trade in Tobago City (needs a name). When leaving the Island they take down the flag again at the 10 mile point. Even pirates are protected under this flag.
Because of this trade many local families have started to obtain a lot of wealth. So much that they're becoming more powerfull than the Chief of Tobago. The Families control the trade and the harbor, they control the ships that bring food to the city and because of it they basically control the city. They can starve them if they want to put some pressure on the population.
The Chief has one thing still keeping him in power: assassins. Because of Tobago's neutrality they are forbidden from creating an army or navy. The only thing they have is a small police force, but they are undermanned. And the Families each have a larger retinue of 'bodyguards' larger than the entire police force. The chief however still has control over a large force of assassins. If one the member of one of the Families takes things too far he can encounter a little accident. The same can happen to foreign traders that make too much trouble. The Chief tries to avoid using these assassins because overusing them could start a revolt, but they're the things keeping him in power. They're also excellent spies that provide him with the information he needs.
The Chief and the Families are all loyal Christians and they make sure they stay that way because it is one of the conditions of the neutrality.

But now the poor population is converting to Voudou en masse. This endangers the neutrality, but the religion really appeals to the poorer people. There's often talk of rebellion, but the Voudou people aren't organised enough to pull it off. The Houngans on the Island need to be very carefull or they risk assassination.
The whole place is basically a big powderkeg ready to explode when PC's get thrown at it.

[Pokonic]

I would think a wiki could be nice; it would feel a lot more 'live' than, say, a tumbler or a blog or such. Lot's of inter-activity.

[Admiral Squish]

Hmm. I suppose it would be easy enough to make a wiki... and it's not like the thread would be going away, the wiki would just help interconnect everything in a somewhat more accessible way.

[Mith]

the only real way to limit their power is to force players to keep track of ammo

There are tables that don't do that? That surprises me.

[BRC]

There are tables that don't do that? That surprises me.

Tracking nonmagical ammo can be a huge hassle, and it won't really matter. Most characters won't get anywhere near running out of ammo outside of extreme circumstances. If running out of ammo is a concern, they'll fill their socks with bullets.
So Ammo Tracking tends to go

I have one hundred bullets.
I used ten, I have ninety bullets.
I used five, I have eighty five bullets.
I used fifteen, I have seventy bullets.
I'm back in town, I have one hundred bullets.

Lots of paperwork just to tell you that yes, you have plenty of ammo.

[Mith]

Fair enough. I never really played a ranged character very much to become familiar with ammo tracking. I preferred to be in the melee. They only way I can think of balancing the ranged and the melee is to make upgrades for the melee weapons easier to come by, but that might not be considered fair.

[Palanan]

Originally Posted by SuperDave
I have started a campaign journal, actually! It's called "The Journey of the Mound Lord's Heir"….

Just took a look, interesting beginning. A couple of comments:

First, it may just be my system, but for every page on the journal the Lewis & Clark banner is kicked down below my initial field of view, so I'm left with the background image and a strange quasi-dragonmark banner to the upper left. So, for every page I have to scroll down to see what's on it. Not sure if this is something with the site or with my browser and/or OS.

Also, when I try to click on a linked name in the first entry--Aztatlan, Fusang, Mayalatolli, etc.--I'm always taken to a login page. Are these links available to players only?

And are there more sessions waiting to be posted? I only see the intro and brief character commentary on what seems to be the first session. I'd love to know what happened with those flying heads.

Originally Posted by BRC
I'm back in town, I have one hundred bullets.

That's quite an assumption there, one that wouldn't hold true in every game. I've usually played with groups that track ammo fairly closely, because often enough you can't assume you'll conveniently find your way back to a friendly town whenever you need a refill.

I'd expect that would be even less likely in this setting--for instance, if the party is fleeing down the Mississippi with a score of war-canoes in hot pursuit.

[Admiral Squish]

for instance, if the party is fleeing down the Mississippi with a score of war-canoes in hot pursuit.

Oh man... That sounds like an EPIC adventure. The PCs get a powerful mound family honked off at them in Cahokia, and the nearest friendly land is in the Caribbean.

[Admiral Squish]

Well, I have officially completed national novel writing month, and did so in 2/3 the allotted time. I'm feeling a tad pleased with myself.
The good news for you guys is that I am now free to start devoting serious time to talking in this thread once again and working on the various projects to make the setting a reality. I picked up a few tricks during the experience that I believe will help me to be much more productive overall.

So, let's get right back into it, eh?

Caribbean
A busy region, deserving of its own super-header, I believe.

Sloths
These gaiz. These gaiz are amazing, and I am so glad I'm living a life wherin I can spend a significant portion of my day discussing the feasibility of surviving ground and sea sloths in the Caribbean and call it a productive day.

Links
I gotta say, I'm not fond of this. I feel it would take them out of the realm of unusual animals into the range of magical beast. I think I much prefer the idea of them being purely mundane but unexpected animals.

Unclean
Hmm... I do think the idea of a foul smell would probably work, considering the aforementioned myths surrounding the amazonian thingie. However, it probably wouldn't apply to the aquatic ones.
Though, looking at the manatees and whales, it's entirely possible that hairless swimming sloths would grow barnacles or algae on their skin like other large aquatic mammals.

I think that might be enough to keep Europeans from hunting them to extinction. I mean, if they didn't wipe out manatees...

Sacred
This would help to explain why they wouldn't be hunted by natives. Perhaps this ties to the above thing about them growing algae/barnacles on their backs/in their fur. Maybe they could be believed to be nature spirits of some sort. Ground sloths as tree-tenders, the ones who maintain the forests. Aquatic sloths, seeing as they appear to be growing rocks and plants, might be believe to eventually grow into islands.

Might come back to this idea.

Trinidad
Hmm... It seems pretty possible. Mostly natives, not a lot of colonists even 30 years later, trying to develop the isle would probably be a pain in the butt, and it's not like Spain is short of land holdings in the Caribbean. If they could get a tidy price for it an improve their trade relationship with Tobago, that might well be seen as a good deal.
Plus... It's not like they couldn't get it back if they REALLY wanted it.

Tobago
I do like me some powderkegs.
I don't know about taking down their old flag to fly Tobago’s, though, that seems a lot like yielding authority to a foreign power. I could see flying Tobago's flag in addition to their own, and I suspect pirates would just pick a second flag at random to avoid being overly obvious about their true nature.
While I like the idea of trade families with big personal police forces, I think it's kinda been done with the Haiyuanren. While we still could make it happen, I'd caution we'd want to be certain to have something that makes them distinct.
I LOVE the assassins idea, though. TONS of potential there.
And vodou-oriented friction, ah, be still my heart!


This wasn't brought up, but I just realized it never got decided:
Blackbeard's Island
If nobody has a strong opinion on this one, I'll probably just go with a turtle, since it's such a classic.

This occurred to me earlier, when I was thinking about barnacles and manatees. If some aquatic mammal were to develop a case of super-barnacles, or coral, then I think that would make a suitable being for this blackbeard island idea. A mega-manatee would just look like a whale if you'd never seen one before, which would fit with some of the myths, and the shape's close enough, if you add a barnacle/coral stony shell/back thing. It being an air-breather would explain why it would be seen on the surface so often. The problem would be feeding it while it stays on the surface to support this island thing, but I'm sure there are solutions.

-----------------------------

Mermaids
Okay, I've been thinking on it... Considering how xenophobic most human societies are, and the obvious physical and social barriers that would make interactions between the two a challenge, I'm re-evaluating my stance on mermaids. It just seems that the mythological omnipresence would mean we'd be ignoring a huge opportunity. As long as we keep mermaids from having too much of an impact on humanity, we should be fine. I mean, there are mermaid-like entities in many varieties of myth, so it's not like we can just have them not be here and leave a big gaping hole in the myths.

I would say the majority of mermaids would be mammalian pelagic nomads, similar to dolphins or porpoises, but with hands. I think that an unfortunate side-effect of this way of life would be an extreme poverty of tools. The main problem is that as soon as you let go of anything that's not inherently buoyant, it would begin to sink. Imagine trying to develop the use of tools if, whenever you dropped something, it was gone forever. Buoyant tools wouldn't be a great option, since it would require extra effort to use it in your primary environment, and surface winds would make it float away if you left it unattended. You wouldn’t want to carry too much, either, due to drag on the body in the water. The other issue is materials. There's not a lot of stuff out there conveniently near the surface, and anything you'd want to use would need to be there, and stay there the entire time you were working with it.

I think they would probably hunt for their food, using either their hands (claws?) or melee spears. I don't know of any floating plants that would serve as a readily available foodstuff. I could imagine them hunting turtles, using their brains and weapons to reach inside the shell and get out all the good stuff, then use the shells for materials. They might follow schools of fish or pods of whales, the way plains hunters would follow the buffalo herds. Some may tame seals or sea otters to help them on the hunt.

I did have some distinctly interesting ideas relating to Caribbean mermaids. If they truly come from myths of manatees, then making them similar would be a logical course. I'm imagining sumo-wrestler upper bodies and flat, paddle tails. I think they would be a cool creature to see, but I can't really think how their society would function in a way that wouldn't interfere with human affairs above the surface.

Nations
I been thinking on the subject of nations after we broke up the tuniitaq confederacy. The list is probably gonna look pretty different and I was trying to figure where there should be breaks.

Columbia
Obviously, we're looking at new Spain, new France, and new England, with the city of New Netherlands, and some Papal state islands under the control of the Knights. Would the Caribbean count as a separate trio of countries for our purposes?

The North
This is gonna shatter into Tuniitaq, Vinland, Mammutaq, Innutaq (inuit territory along the northern coast), then... a range of subarctic tribal lands (south and eastern portions of the north) I suppose? I do think there should be more done there... There may be a strategic alliance between the first three or not, depending on how that works out, but they would almost certainly remain independent nations. Oh, and the Russian colonies on the Aleutian islands and the east/south coast of alaska.

Fusang
Actually gonna stay united. I think it works as a whole unit.

The Heartlands
We've already got the Ganonsyoni, but I'm debating if the League should be split, or if it's solid as-is? If It would split, I would probably just break it into two, the Cahokian League filling the eastern woodlands and the Mississippi area, and make the plains tribes into a single political entity. I'm imagining a sort of alpha dog situation, with lots of tribes constantly warring, with varying degrees of lethality, to determine who's the top dog. When one emerges, the tribes follow his command until he or his tribe become too weak, and then it all kicks up again.

The South
This has already split, we've got mayatolli, aztatlan, and a whole lot of little nations, of which we should probably get a complete list of at some point in the future.

Wiki
Ahh, what the hell. We might as well do it. I'll set something up later tonight.

[ReturnOfTheKing]

Love this campaign setting, and I can definitely see some things I'd like to steal borrow. For instance, the idea of having stats for Cultures is genius! I hope you wouldn't mind if I used something similar in a homebrew I've been dreaming up?

[Admiral Squish]

Love this campaign setting, and I can definitely see some things I'd like to steal borrow. For instance, the idea of having stats for Cultures is genius! I hope you wouldn't mind if I used something similar in a homebrew I've been dreaming up?

I'm glad you like what you see! I'm quite fond of the idea to describe different backgrounds and the like.
Actually, I'm working on a slight modification to the cultures format dealie at the moment. I'm using a rework of sasquatch cultures to illustrate it. So, you may want to wait a second before you... borrow anything.

[SuperDave]

Alright, as of last night, the players are officially (though not all of their character) are officially aware that Prince Caddogah is a werewolf. They haven't entered combat yet, but rolling initiative will be the first order of business next session.

One of the players is a Huli Jing rogue, and he feels that rogues may have limited appeal in a primarily ranged-combat setting. Since his character is not primarily a ranged fighter (why bother when the gunslinger is so much better at it?), he's basically limited to using the Cloak of Illusion to hide for most of every battle. He personally is OK with this, but he's not sure that most players will be willing to sacrifice most of their coolest rogue abilities just so they can be mediocre (at best) in ranged combat. While they would still be able to backstab with ranged weapons, why bother if you've got to be within ten feet of yojr target anyway, and your gun will inevitably give away your position, as well as the element of surprise?

Important question: Are the Huli Jing able to see through each other's Cloak of Illusion? Because if they can't, then we're basically dealing with a race who can almost flawlessly impersonate every other member of their race at will. I talked with KungFuLobster about this, and he said that making them able to see through each other's Cloak of Illusion would actually make the Huli Jing MORE valuable, because then everybody wants one on their team so they can see through other Huil Jings' Cloaks of Illusion. I vote that we make this canon.

It also doesn't make sense to me (or this player) that they're restricted to one static human form, when they can already impersonate members for completely different species.

Speaking of the Cloak of Illusion, if it's a supernatual ability, then it can be dispelled by a sufficiently powerful caster, can't if it's an illusion effect, then what's the DC to disbelieve it?

[Steckie]

Caribbean

Sloths
Here's a thought: what if the sloths have parasites that are dangerous to every other creature apart from sloths.
Let's say some kind of Caterpillar crawls through their fur, it eats all other parasites and things that get caught in the sloth's fur. When a sloth gets physically attacked, the caterpillars easily transfer to the attacker where they do a poisonous bite or cause extreme itching or blindness or whatever floats your boat.
But, the reason the sloths and their caterpillars haven't been hunted to extinction yet is that the caterpillars become butterflies. Huge butterflies (20-30 cm?) whose wings are a powerfull alchemical ingrediënt. Or the wings are just so beautifull and easy to preserve that they're highly coveted.
It doesn't have to be catterpillars/butterflies. We could use larvae/beetles. Or some other kind of parasite that has two life stages.

Wont work for the aquatic ones though.

Trinidad & Tobago

Good point about the flags.
I completely forgot about the Haiyuanren. But we can still do something with this.
We keep the assassins in service of the Chief, we also give him a small police force that keeps order in Tobago city and the smaller towns inland. But nothing too big, the Chief needs to stick to his neutrality (compare it to Japan who after WW2 who had no army, just a home defense force).
Then there are the families. They aren't trade families, they are almost like modern maffia families. They do protection racketeering, thieving, loan sharking, trading in stolen and illegal goods and other smuggling and many other naughty things. They've got their little 'armies' of burly men that arrange the protection.

Basically we turn Tobago into a neutral tradeport that is filthy rich and ruled over by a Chief who keeps a light form of control over the local maffia families with his assassins and small police force.
Robbing a trader in the city is fine, but if that trader gets (accidentally) killed during the robbery the assassins get sent after the robber. The maffia families are powerfull, but there are limits on what they can do. And the Chief can't use his assassins too much or without a reasonable cause or the maffias would start an outright war.
Those families all have their little territories in Tobago city, they often have some sort of casino, wharehouse for stolen goods, distillery, drug selling place,....
Everybody knows they're there and what they do but most of their actions are directed at taking stuff from the people that come trade in Tobago. That and protection racketeering of the various shops and businesses.
People that come to Tobago to trade also know about this, but the profits are for most bigger than the risks. Besides, most of them hire one of the families to protect them while trading.

I'll need to think about how to tie the purchase of Trinidad into all of this.


Long story short: Chief with assassins, maffia families, foreign traders, pirates under false flag, loyal Christians and Voudou rebels all protected by a fragile neutrality.

Blackbeard's Island

I've never been a fan of the giant turtle. The fact that it's a classic makes me not want to choose it, there's the risk of it looking like a cliché. Plus we already have the earth turtles as spiritbeasts.

I like the Coral-covered solution a lot. A Manatee would fit the Caribbean theme. We could make the city-sized manatees native to the Sargasso Sea where they feed on the huge amount of seaweed, the ones in the Caribbean are just a smaller species.
The huge manatees live for centuries, and from time to time one of them comes to the warm Caribbean waters to go into some sort of hibernation for a few decades. During that time a reef usually growns on their back and a lot of current reefs still have a Manatee sleeping below them.

Oh, and we still need to decide how Blackbeard got the Island and how he controls it. I still like the erased mind that needs to be 'driven' by the mind of a humanoid.

By the way, during the Skype call we discussed maybe adding Manatee people. Is this still on the board or not?

Mermaids

In the myths mermaids are usually beautifull creatures that lure men to them. Sometimes just with their enchanting voice. So sumowrestler bodies doesn't quite fit with that. Well for the women at least, we could use sumo-mermen. Or the Manatee people are the males and mermaids are the females?
Also, using a spear underwater doesn't work at all. Unless you throw it into the water.

Nations

Columbia
I would seperate the Caribbean from Columbia.
French, English and Spanish colonies. The Knights Hospitaller. Trinidad Chiefdom. Blackbeard's Kingdom.
One question: do we add the Spanish colonies of northern Cabralia (Venezuala etcetera) to the Caribbean or are they going to be part of an expansion pack book? I think those colonies are tied closer to the Caribbean than to the rest of Cabralia.


The North
We could use more for the independant tribes, yes.
I like a defensive Alliance for the three big players, but they wont support each other on the offense. And from time to time there's still a war between two of them or all three of them.


The Heartlands

Splitting up Cahokia would mean giving more power to Cahokia itself and would mean we need to make up (or insert from history) a lot of mound builder cities along the Mississippi and it's tributary rivers.
A split might make things more interesting. I like a powerfull Cahokia and (decentralised as they may be) they're a bit big at the moment.

Alright, let's throw out some ideas: Cahokia is as i described above.
I don't much like the 'top dog' idea, too instable and easy to manipulate. Besides, why would all tribes follow the one that killed most of their warriors?
Maybe we could use a greek city-states vs persians thing for this?
Each tribe is independant and they are allowed to wage war on each other. But as soon as an outside threat appears all war stops and they focus on the threat at hand.
Ooh wait, we're talking about hurricane alley here, right? So what if as soon as they are attacked command of the tribes is given to a group combat oriented hurricane priests. Or druids, that could work as well. Basically they turn into a temporary theocracy when threatened and go back to fighting among themselves once the threat is over. They think fighting is honorable and don't want to become weak.