American Mythology Setting (Help is welcome!)

[Zap Dynamic]

I want to make a campaign setting that's inspired by America's collection of myths. What might this look like? Help us build it!

Setting & History: Steampunk. Other elements include:

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• Pirates
• Revolutionary War
• The Kinstrife, a violent war when the Empire turned against itself over the rights of Ironmen.
• Wild West
• Opium Wars

Races:

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• Imperials: Mmmmm, vanilla.
  Jamatu: Imperials that are a creole of a cultural minority from the East and natives from the marshlands of the New World. Voodoo is their religion (name pending)
• Natives:
  Plains: Several tribes allied with the Empire, but there are several other tribes (ousted from their eastern homelands by the Empire) that act as guerrilla terrorists.
  Northwest: Fisherfolk who are constantly bickering with each other, and also with the Empire.
  Mountain: These guys consider the mountains to be the birthplace of all life, and guard their homes fiercely.
  Wild Men: Natives who reject all human social order. They roam in packs, speak in a rudimentary tongue, and attack Imperials and other Natives alike.
• Boradoans: Natives hailing from the southern desert, consisting of two major groups.
  The Devout: These Natives protect and guard the palaces of their Old Gods.
  Nuevo Boradoans: These Natives are a breakaway faction from the Devout. They settled on the northern fringes of the desert, slowly salvaging the secrets of a small Palace of the Old Gods.
• Warforged: These will serve as a slave race, either pre- or post-freedom.

Politics:

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• I think an empire is definitely necessary, made up mostly of humans, with a lot of smaller kingdoms scattered everywhere else.
• Powerful economy with lots of steampunk industry.
• Military might. The Empire's military should be the baddest thing anyone's ever heard of. Undefeated.
• Lots of secret organizations scattered everywhere.
• The Empire should profess the freedom of all people, perhaps while crushing those who choose not to join the Empire.
• The Empire has a huge amount of pride despite/because its people come from all other nations.
• The Empire expanded West because of dwindling resources, and is currently fighting a war against the Boradoans and some other natives.

Factions: Essentially, this is a list of approved cultures, organizations, and religions.

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• The Empire: A democratic Empire made up of immigrants from across the Eastern Ocean, this nation is a major contender for control of the entire continent.
  Progeny of Freedom - The group responsible for building, staffing, and caring for monuments to national heroes. "Temple" of the Empire.
  The Lightborn - The major religious presence in the Empire, these folk preach the damnation of all that is arcane, especially the Undead. Most Imperials are at least nominally members of the Lightborn, though many are far from orthodox in their lifestyle.
  The Academy of Steam - Dr. Steam's center for research. "Temple" of knowledge and the enlightenment movement.
  The Gardens of Nostalgia - A society dedicated to the preservation of nature into national parks, and also to instilling a love of nature into the populace. "Temple" of nature and the romantic movement.
  Rectorum - A secret society rumored to be pulling the strings behind every major Imperial organization. Thought by many to be a fiction.
  Voodoo - The religion/magic system of the J'amatu.
• Borado: Nomads from the southern desert, this folk guards the secret places of their gods from all outsiders.
  The Devout - A stalwart group of rangers and warriors dedicated to guarding the Place of the Old Gods.
• New Borado: A mix of the blood of Borado and Pre-Imperial immigrants from the east, this nation dwells in great cliff cities in the canyons that riddle the Northern Desert.
  Temple of The Heavenly Host - Considered to be profane by the Boradoans, this place of worship seeks to harness the power hidden away in the artifacts of the Old Gods.
  Hand of Fire - The Military of New Borado, these individuals use strange weaponry evolved from the study of the Old Gods' artifacts.
• Natives: Once scattered across the entirety of the New World, now these folk are constrained to the northern plains and the western frontier.
  Plains - Once living in vast underground cities, these people are now seminomadic, and work as transporters for the Empire's farming industry in the plains region.
  Mountain - Revered as shamans and sacred protectors by all native factions, these folk live in the Western Peaks. They consider all life to have started in these mountains, and guard them fiercely against all encroachment.
  Northwestern - Truly a multitude of bickering tribes, these people are nevertheless bound by a common culture. They all live in communal lodges and live off of the bounty of the sea, and most of them are very antagonistic towards the encroaching empire.

Map:

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Geographical:

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Political:

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The Kinstrife:

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Locations:

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• The First Canton of the Empire of the New World, also known as "Norton, C.E." for Emperor Norton I, is the capital of the Empire of the New World.
• Coterois, Gateway to the West, City of Crossing Paths, and home to the underwater playground of Aqualuxia
• Mahigan, Gateway to the Plains
• Platarena: Capital of Nuevo Borado, and a hotbed of Strange, Ancient Technology.
• San Bernardo: A thriving immigrant city on the Western coast, this city was rocked by a violent earthquake. It had since been rebuilt in absurd fashion by Dr. Steam.
• Tree Island: One of the few law-bound towns in the region just East of the Sacred Mountains, this is a gambling haven as well as the sight of many famous gunfights.
• The Palace of the Gods: A mythical city of long lost secrets. The nomadic Boradoans--and, it seems, the desert itself--guard it fiercely against all incursions.
• Tokareville: A flying city powered by the wonders of steam. Originally invented by Dr. Tokarev himself, he quickly abandoned it for other projects, and it was soon usurped by pirates.

Religion:

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• The Dwellers in Light: An Old World religion worshipped by most Imperials to one degree or another. It condemns undeath as the most abominable sin, and shuns the practice of magic.
• The Old Gods: The religion of both Borado and Nuevo Borado.
• Native religions: A collection of beliefs that vary widely by region, but nonetheless share many common themes.

Myths:

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• Concho Tex, The greatest cowboy in the New World.
• Blackfox, with his erstwhile companion the Masked Imperial!
• Sergei Tokarev, aka "Dr. Steam." He will be a prominent figure for the Enlightenment faction.
• Iron John, Ironman Martyr.
• Tribulation Jenny, the Most Magnificent Woman in the World.
• Daniel Brockett, King of the Wild Frontier.
• Slate the Killer, greatest Lawman of the West.
• Thomas "Tommy" Oakenstride, a nigh-mythical figure and a figurehead for the Romantic movement.
• Usher Ravenholme, famed Imperial Poet, madman, and rumored dabbler in dark arts.
• Isaiah Copperton, Champion of Freedom, and greatest Emperor of the New World.
• Albus Politus and Jonathan Norton, two of the Four Fathers, the most influential men in the birth of the Dominion.
• The Gentlmen, the iconics of the setting.
• Headless horseman
• Voodoo (Baron Samedi)
• Paul Bunyan
• Bigfoot
• Casey Jones
• Uncle Sam

Monsters: There will probably be a lot of carry-over between this and Myths.

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• Zombies
• Bigfoot
• Aliens
• Jersey Devil
• Cthulhu
• Demonic Possession: Paranormal Activity? The Exorcist???
• Witches: Nothing says "America" like the Salem witch trials.
• Mad Scientists: This could be reflavored as Mad Wizards/Sorcerers pretty easily.
• Native Monsters:
  Lake Monster: A lake that pursues and kills you if you drink out of it. What?
  Obsidian Giant: A giant covered in/made of big plates of obsidian. Weakness in the armpit.
  Thunderbird: Maybe big/important enough for deification. Controls/summons storms. Killed and replaced the dragons a long time ago. Can shapeshift into humans by tilting back their beaks like a mask and removing their feathers like a cloak.
• Giants
• Gremlins

Classes, Homebrew, Etc.

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We will be using Legend for this setting. If you don't have it, then you should.

OP (If you're interested)

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I read somewhere not too long ago that Tolkien created Middle-Earth partly because he wanted to create a distinctly British mythology. Whether or not that was his intention, I'd say he did a good job of creating not only a British mythology, but also a mythology for the entire western world at the time of his life, and that mythology has extended forward to today.

Here's what I've been thinking: What would a modern mythology look like? I think most of the people on this board are from the states, right? In that case, what might a distinctly American modern mythology look like?

This may turn into a pretty cool setting, but right now it's just a thought experiment.

If you were going to build a setting that would serve as an "Modern/American Mythology," what would you include?

[boomwolf]

Well, I can think of a few ideas:


-Urban setting, naturally.

-Zombies, as said we got hooked on them, but plague variant, not magic one.

-Aliens as the non-human races. maybe robots too? tons of alien stories, and we are not far from quashi-sentient robots. (and some conspiracy loonies claim they already exist but hide the fact)

-Religious war, but its rather vague and nobody actually understand what the war is ABOUT because there is nearly no difference between the religions. they just each claim to be BETTER, not even bothering to explain how they are any different. {{Scrubbed}}

-MUTATIONS, radiation-infected far beyond what is possible in real life. (like, comic-book level.)

-Secret organizations, EVERYWHERE. for no apparent reason too, some of them hold massive power and don't even to have any agenda at all. (because if you examine most secret society conspirations, the secret societies don't seem to do anything expect hiding their existence, EVER.)

-Martial arts is Manga-level (not supernatural, but way beyond human edge), because that's what many people seem to believe. (no, real ninja's CANT cut a bullet mid-air with a gun, in game they can!)

[Zap Dynamic]

I'm thinking about a few different "ages" for this potential setting. To introduce them, let's compare Tolkien.

Tolkien fought in WWI, and was exposed to the horrors of war that ravaged Europe at the hands of the Germans. By comparison, Frodo fought in the War of the Ring, and was exposed to the horrors of war that ravaged Middle-Earth at the hands of Sauron and his orcs.

Now, this is a gross oversimplification, and I don't know that Tolkien was using Frodo as an autobiographical character, but I think you'd have a hard time arguing that the arc of Tolkien's epic wasn't informed by his experiences in life.

That said, it retains a medieval fantasy setting. The most important figure in British mythology is arguably King Arthur, and most iterations of his tale (especially in Tolkien's day) place him in a medieval time. I don't think this is a coincidence.

So here's what I'm thinking. Perspective-shaping events that have happened recently might include the war on terror and the financial crisis, so we could use those as inspiration for plot devices. What are some others? (If this is skirting too close to the "no politics or religion" policy, I am very sorry!)

Extant myth elements from American history include the age of Caribbean pirates, the revolutionary and civil wars, and the wild west. These would all make for interesting ages to set the story, and could also provide a lot of plot device inspiration. As a bonus, they're far enough away from the present to provide a nice "fantastic vacation."

Alternatively, we could stick with a more traditional medieval fantasy setting. I think the events and spirit of these eras would be recognizably "American," and could be placed into a medieval setting without much hullabaloo.

[Gemini Lupus]

I actually think that American Gods by Neil Gaiman paints an appropriate picture of what a modern mythology might look like. A hodgepodge of different myths and characters from the old world mixed with the "gods" of modern society, Media, Celebrity, Technology, etc.

[Ninjadeadbeard]

I actually think that American Gods by Neil Gaiman paints an appropriate picture of what a modern mythology might look like. A hodgepodge of different myths and characters from the old world mixed with the "gods" of modern society, Media, Celebrity, Technology, etc.

Curse you for mentioning my favorite book before I could. As for my thoughts:

-Because I like to be contrary, I'd like to remind people that America has a fairly rich mythology ripe for plumbing. Paul Bunyun. Pecos Bill. Louisiana Voodoo. Zoro. Casey Jones. Bigfoot. Jackalope. For Giant's sake, anything and everything written by Mark Twain.

Basically, I'd advise looking through 19th Century and Early 20th Century Literature. Drop a few lines from TS Eliot's Hollow Men. Have a mad sorcerer Tesla battle Babe the Blue Ox. Johnny Appleseed is a druid. Headless Horseman, amirite?

[Zap Dynamic]

Curse you for mentioning my favorite book before I could. As for my thoughts:

-Because I like to be contrary, I'd like to remind people that America has a fairly rich mythology ripe for plumbing. Paul Bunyun. Pecos Bill. Louisiana Voodoo. Zoro. Casey Jones. Bigfoot. Jackalope. For Giant's sake, anything and everything written by Mark Twain.

Basically, I'd advise looking through 19th Century and Early 20th Century Literature. Drop a few lines from TS Eliot's Hollow Men. Have a mad sorcerer Tesla battle Babe the Blue Ox. Johnny Appleseed is a druid. Headless Horseman, amirite?

I think this is all great info! My question now is if these myths can be taken out of their elements and still remain true to their spirit. In general, I feel like it would be best to "re-skin" these myths so they all look like they're from the same era/region/whatever.

Maybe the voodoo is the source of the zombies? That's actually got a LOT of historical precendent. Maybe the headless horseman is a zombie king? Or even a lich that lost his head somehow?

I'm thinking that a classic medieval fantasy setting might be the best ticket at this point... but it might be appropriate to build a world like Eberron. How else can we re-skin what we've got so far?

I'm going to update the first post, to include a list of the things we've got so far.

[Ninjadeadbeard]

Maybe the voodoo is the source of the zombies? That's actually got a LOT of historical precendent. Maybe the headless horseman is a zombie king? Or even a lich that lost his head somehow?

Like the Voodoo angle. Although since the Headless Horseman was (according to most tellings) a Hessian Mercenary during the Revolutionary War, you could tie in this version with the past of the setting. Like, if there were a similar war at the founding of this America, then the Horseman is a warrior for the losing side that was cursed to guard a particular region against outsiders, particularly his own kind. But since centuries may have past since then, demographics have changed, and so everyone is considered an outsider by the spell requirements, and so the Horseman rides throughout the land at night, decapitating all who enter his territory, his boundaries marked by crossroads and old wooden bridges. Inside his territory is basically an undead realm for all those zombies you're so keen on.

I'm thinking that a classic medieval fantasy setting might be the best ticket at this point... but it might be appropriate to build a world like Eberron. How else can we re-skin what we've got so far?

I'd personally set it either right at a Civil War style era or the 1890's. I had a setting like this once, but after trying to make American history more Medieval I gave up. Cowboys aren't the same without six-shooters. So, yeah. 1860-1890 would work best. You've still got vast, truly vast wilderness and deeply urban centers to explore. Also, more urban means more jazz, the true American music.

[Zap Dynamic]

I'd personally set it either right at a Civil War style era or the 1890's. I had a setting like this once, but after trying to make American history more Medieval I gave up. Cowboys aren't the same without six-shooters. So, yeah. 1860-1890 would work best. You've still got vast, truly vast wilderness and deeply urban centers to explore. Also, more urban means more jazz, the true American music.

Here's my deal: I'm thinking of this from a pathfinder perspective, and I think the way they handle guns is laughable. I also like the idea of there being melee characters. I'm totally down for guns in the setting, but can we make it work with other weapons too? Is there a fix somewhere for the Gunslinger class, or just a better system for integrating guns?

[Ninjadeadbeard]

Here's my deal: I'm thinking of this from a pathfinder perspective, and I think the way they handle guns is laughable. I also like the idea of there being melee characters. I'm totally down for guns in the setting, but can we make it work with other weapons too? Is there a fix somewhere for the Gunslinger class, or just a better system for integrating guns?

You know...I've never looked at Pathfinder. I probably should.

Okay. I guess (accounting for my lack of knowledge on Pathfinder) the best bet would be to homebrew. If this America only has muskets and early breech-loaders, then melee is still a very viable option. Those old guns weren't particularly well known for accuracy or fast reload.

You could either handwave repeaters out, or perhaps in this setting luck is a quantifiable power available to some. If a shot should have hit, a PC can say "Luck!" and the shot magically is retconned into passing harmlessly through his clothes. George Washington is a good precedent. When he served with the British in the French-Indian War, two horses were shot out from under him and he later found four bullet holes in his coat. He spent his Luck points wisely.

[Zap Dynamic]

You could either handwave repeaters out, or perhaps in this setting luck is a quantifiable power available to some. If a shot should have hit, a PC can say "Luck!" and the shot magically is retconned into passing harmlessly through his clothes. George Washington is a good precedent. When he served with the British in the French-Indian War, two horses were shot out from under him and he later found four bullet holes in his coat. He spent his Luck points wisely.

Integrating luck into the game is something worth considering, and may actually be present in Pathfinder with the Gunslinger's "grit" ability. I feel like taking chances and catching breaks is a pretty central part of American history.

As far as firearms are concerned, what if we were to re-skin wands? A friend of mine made a pretty sweet sorcerer or bard (I can't remember which), who was basically a medieval cowboy, and used two wands of Fireball and Magic Missile the way you might use six-guns.

[Ninjadeadbeard]

I have this wonderful image in my head now: A cowboy holds out two wands and empties both into a bunch of outlaws. When he runs out of shots, the outlaws leap from cover to kill him, only to see his jacket has 50 wands while he's reaching for more.

[Machinekng]

Interesting.

If focusing on the idea of American mythology, here's a few more american myths and concepts.

-American Superiority: The idea that America is superior to all other nations in a variety of ways. This concept, while not nesecarily true, is believed by many Americans

-The Melting Pot/Salad Bowl: The concept that all Americans are descended from somewhere else, combined with the idea that an American can still be true to his/her ethniticity/nationality and still be a pariotic American.

-Freedom: America has a reverence for freedom. We fight wars for the sake of freedom. This coupled with a longstanding belief in free market capitalism.

[Zap Dynamic]

Interesting.
-American Superiority...
-The Melting Pot/Salad Bowl...
-Freedom...

I like it! After updating the first post, this is what it looks like we've got:

• An Empire composed of immigrants (maybe refugees) from a continent across the sea.
• A region in the east that's heavily-settled, and has a significant infrasctructure.
• A region in the West that's essentially wild, still being settled.
• At least one indigenous kingom (probably with some tribal cultures, too) that has either been destroyed, or is currently losing a war against The Empire.

The more I think about it, the more I'd like to set it in a medieval world. I get the feeling that it would keep the world from being a copy of America's history. Dungeon punk a la Eberron is definitely a possibility. Thoughts?

Also, I found a map like this while chilling out at the history museum a few weeks ago, and it gave me an idea. The map for this setting could look generally like North America, but what if the Gulf of Mexico stretched all the way up to the top of, say, Missouri? That would provide a lot of coastline for things like voodoo swamps and piracy, but there would still be a land bridge to spur westward expansion.

Also: be sure to tell any good world builders you know about this project! I'd like to get a few more high-quality voices in the conversation.

[Ninjadeadbeard]

The more I think about it, the more I'd like to set it in a medieval world. I get the feeling that it would keep the world from being a copy of America's history. Dungeon punk a la Eberron is definitely a possibility. Thoughts?

Probably, although since technology and industry have always been something of a hallmark of American folklore (John Henry for instance, as well as the Disney short about Paul Bunyan), I'd suggest Clockpunk tech as the hottest tech around.

Also, I found a map like this while chilling out at the history museum a few weeks ago, and it gave me an idea. The map for this setting could look generally like North America, but what if the Gulf of Mexico stretched all the way up to the top of, say, Missouri? That would provide a lot of coastline for things like voodoo swamps and piracy, but there would still be a land bridge to spur westward expansion.

Like this, maybe?

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Put it together in an hour. I love maps. Close? Not close?

[Zap Dynamic]

Very close! Did you use Ascension's tutorial? It's nice to see a fellow map lover!

The only things I don't like are the size of the desert, and possibly the size of the Gulf.

If I had to place a scale on it, this is roughly what I would imagine your map looks like:

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With the gulf that big, travel from East to West would require either taking a boat or going far north. In the winter, the land route would be all but cut off. The thing is, I really like the idea of wagon trains headed out West, so it's something I'd like to protect. The desert also seems like it's a little too big. Why would they journey out West if there's nothing but a giant desert out there? Restricting it to the other side of that long gulf would be better.

Here's the scale I was envisioning:

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There's enough water to make ship travel a viable option, but also enough land to tie the temperate parts of the land together.

As far as clockpunk is concerned, do you have any artwork or video recommendations to help me visualize it? Wikipedia basically says "robots in the renaissance," and if that's the case I figure we might as well do steampunk.

[An Enemy Spy]

It should be the Old West. that era is the true age of legends of America.

[Zap Dynamic]

It should be the Old West. that era is the true age of legends of America.

Heh heh heh...

[Ninjadeadbeard]

Very close! Did you use Ascension's tutorial? It's nice to see a fellow map lover!

I learned at the feet of a master. Love doing maps, although I try to branch out in terms of styles, Ascension's is the best looking (for geographical maps anyway).

The only things I don't like are the size of the desert, and possibly the size of the Gulf.

I live out in California (southern) and so I generally see the West as a great big desert. There's some green from time to time, but on most maps I've seen it looks like everything from Eastern Texas to the coast is desert. So that explains my scale. I'll tone it down and see what you think. I'll also shrink the gulf size.

With the gulf that big, travel from East to West would require either taking a boat or going far north. In the winter, the land route would be all but cut off. The thing is, I really like the idea of wagon trains headed out West, so it's something I'd like to protect. The desert also seems like it's a little too big. Why would they journey out West if there's nothing but a giant desert out there? Restricting it to the other side of that long gulf would be better.

Like I said, it always looked to me like the west was all desert. And the route west historically was exceedingly dangerous regardless of weather. Still, I'll look to fixing it.

As far as clockpunk is concerned, do you have any artwork or video recommendations to help me visualize it? Wikipedia basically says "robots in the renaissance," and if that's the case I figure we might as well do steampunk.

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Although really, Clockpunk can also include most of the tech seen in Fable 2, or the Golden Army in Hellboy 2. As long as clockwork mechanisms provide the movement and power. The problem with steampunk is that I feel it's hard to sell a medieval society with steampunk as opposed to the less advanced clockpunk. Also, Clocks were something made by hand, by craftsmen once. It would seem likely in a medieval society (ie: One lacking assembly lines and mass production) that this ethic would fit right in.

[Zap Dynamic]

I learned at the feet of a master. Love doing maps, although I try to branch out in terms of styles, Ascension's is the best looking (for geographical maps anyway).

I'm a big fan of the Ascension tutorial, but I've been gravitating towards this tutorial because I prefer the way they handle mountains. I've also been scouring the internet in search of a nice tutorial on making "hand-drawn" looking maps without a wacom tablet.

I live out in California (southern) and so I generally see the West as a great big desert. There's some green from time to time, but on most maps I've seen it looks like everything from Eastern Texas to the coast is desert. So that explains my scale. I'll tone it down and see what you think. I'll also shrink the gulf size... And the route west historically was exceedingly dangerous regardless of weather.

We're on the same page now. I think making the westward journey dangerous is important, and I agree that the desert should dominate the western half of the continent. However, I want to preserve the "central plains," preferably on the western edge of the gulf. The continent's going to need a bread basket, and I like the idea of easterners having to cross the gulf to get there.

We also need to make sure there's some reason that the empire would expand all the way west. Or do we? I guess the gold rush is what spurred the initial big push out west, so maybe that's the way to go.

Although really, Clockpunk can also include most of the tech seen in Fable 2, or the Golden Army in Hellboy 2. As long as clockwork mechanisms provide the movement and power. The problem with steampunk is that I feel it's hard to sell a medieval society with steampunk as opposed to the less advanced clockpunk. Also, Clocks were something made by hand, by craftsmen once. It would seem likely in a medieval society (ie: One lacking assembly lines and mass production) that this ethic would fit right in.

I keep going back and forth! The thing I like about a medieval setting is that it provides a solid break from the typical "American Myth" setting, not to mention that I think most RPG systems are medieval-themed anyway. The thing I DON'T like about a medieval setting is that it's hard to fuel that huge, "American" level of industry without resorting to magic.

The thing I like about steampunk is that it does provide the industry, but it does so at the cost of melee combat... maybe? I'm not sure.

What are your thoughts on the issue? Which do you think is more appropriate for American Mythology?

p.s. - I've updated the first post with a little more summary info.

[Istari]

Make sure you think about what happens to the environment when the gulf is expanded like that. Anything near the Gulf is going to be considerably greener than normal.

[Ninjadeadbeard]

I'm a big fan of the Ascension tutorial, but I've been gravitating towards this tutorial because I prefer the way they handle mountains. I've also been scouring the internet in search of a nice tutorial on making "hand-drawn" looking maps without a wacom tablet.

Ooh! I'm the same way. I'd love to make hand-drawn maps without needing to spend money on a tablet. I've tried making mountains using pencil line and embossing, but it never looks right. I'll try out this tutorial. Thanks!

We're on the same page now. I think making the westward journey dangerous is important, and I agree that the desert should dominate the western half of the continent. However, I want to preserve the "central plains," preferably on the western edge of the gulf. The continent's going to need a bread basket, and I like the idea of easterners having to cross the gulf to get there.

We also need to make sure there's some reason that the empire would expand all the way west. Or do we? I guess the gold rush is what spurred the initial big push out west, so maybe that's the way to go.

Well, I shrunk the desert a bit, and I filled in about half of the gulf. I left a bit there because it provides more bayou-type areas.

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As for why the Empire would go out west...The gold rush wasn't the original reason. It caused one of the bigger population shifts of the era, but the real reason America tried to expand west was slavery. Cotton destroys the land it's planted in, so you have to constantly move your plantations west. The major Slave States needed to move west, so they provided a lot of the push for the Mexican-American War (Texas split with Mexico in order to keep slaves). So, I don't know how you want to play that card. To extend a dwindling resource? To claim material wealth? A War? Dunno. Your thoughts?

I keep going back and forth! The thing I like about a medieval setting is that it provides a solid break from the typical "American Myth" setting, not to mention that I think most RPG systems are medieval-themed anyway. The thing I DON'T like about a medieval setting is that it's hard to fuel that huge, "American" level of industry without resorting to magic.

The thing I like about steampunk is that it does provide the industry, but it does so at the cost of melee combat... maybe? I'm not sure.

Thinking about it, I realize that the hand-crafted feel of Clockpunk doesn't fit well. Steampunk, or Teslapunk provides the whole Machine vs Man thing you typically see in American folklore (again, John Henry). Industrialization might be too big of a thing to ignore.

[Zap Dynamic]

Looks much better! As far as the desert is concerned, I think it would be safe to extend the golden-deserty terrain all the way up to those southern mountains, and only start to get green between those mountains and that arm of the gulf.

@Istari: I agree, especially East of the gulf. Even moreso than the U.S., I think the eastern portion of this continent is going to be heavily-forested. Or at least it was before the Empire arrived...

@Ninja: Slavery is something that I think is worth exploring, but I'm always SO hesitant to do it. What are your thoughts?

Just brainstorming a few reasons worth going out West:

1. More farmland is needed.
2. Initial exploriation sparked a war with an already-established western nation, and now people are moving out there to help the effort.
3. Some fancy resource is dicovered in the desert... maybe something that's a boon to steampunk and/or magical in nature?

I think Steampunk is just the way things are going to have to be. Not the worst of situations! Does anyone know of a good Steampunk-themed rpg? I'd love to take a look at the rules.

[Ninjadeadbeard]

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Alright. I swept the desert north, but I left the coast a bit green as a sort of California analogue.

Not sure about the slavery thing. I tried getting past it when I did a pseudo-American setting by having the mass-production of Homunculi remove the need for human slavery. For you, I don't know. It might be better to use Old World slavery as a model, but that was a lot different as it was debt slavery. American-style slavery was unheard of before recent times. We bred slaves. That was unusual, historically.

As to why people are moving west: Rapid industrialization is quickly destroying the agricultural base of the east. Expansion west is needed to keep food supplies up. While moving west, contact with natives and a similar empire (founded by a different nation around the same time as Pseudo-America) turned violent, leading to several wars, including a war of extinction against some of the natives. While moving west, Unobtainium was discovered in the deserts, leading to a new boom in mining and population westward.

[Zap Dynamic]

So we Americans essentially created our own slaves, eh? I think I have just the steampunk-appropriate solution.

Instead of being created as soldiers, they were/are being created as laborers. Unintentionally, they became sentient, feeling beings, and either there was a war fought to free them, or there's currently a lot of controversy about their enslaving.

That map looks great, by the way! I don't think it's essential, but if you want you're welcome to make the southern desert a little more arid.

For the unobtanium bit: I like it, so let's find out some reason why it's there. Maybe the briefly-mentioned alien race is out in the desert, and they've got the monopoly on the resource? Maybe the aliens are actually long-gone, but their civilization is left behind, ripe for the plundering. The natives left it alone because they feared the aliens or something, and maybe shun the desert entirely. Thoughts?

Next up: I want a New Orleans-esque city in the gulf, which will serve as the "Weird Tales" area of the continent. Zombies, queer magic, and dirty deeds are the Soup of the Day in this place. That big tributary system near the northernmost point of the gulf is a likely candidate but I'd almost like to have it further south, where it could be hotter. Thoughts? I'm okay with it being either an old city (Eastern region) or a new city (Western region), but direct access to the gulf is a must.

[Ninjadeadbeard]

So we Americans essentially created our own slaves, eh? I think I have just the steampunk-appropriate solution.
Instead of being created as soldiers, they were/are being created as laborers. Unintentionally, they became sentient, feeling beings, and either there was a war fought to free them, or there's currently a lot of controversy about their enslaving.

I like it. But, just to make one point: Maybe the Warforged were always sentient. Look at it this way. Laborers are needed (in the fields, in the factories, etc) and so the wealthy landowning class basically pooled resources to fund a wizards' project to make these warforged (probably need to call them something else since they weren't made for war. Tin-men? Then you could play up a Wizard of Oz angle if you were inclined ). The finished product were technically living beings born full grown. So, the warforged looked and sounded like automatons basically because it takes a few years for their personalities to form (like babies).

When it was discovered that they had created a living race, the landowners just didn't care. If RL Americans were willing to enslave their own fellow man, I don't think they'd have a problem with something that looks more like a machine. The Abolitionist movement has sprung up because the industrialized region's population has risen to the point that factory jobs can't just rely on the warforged (or else MASSIVE jobless rate), and so they were allowed to leave and pursue other professions. But the agricultural region is absolutely economically dependent on warforged, and so can't free them without their economy tanking and their political power drying up.

That map looks great, by the way! I don't think it's essential, but if you want you're welcome to make the southern desert a little more arid.

I don't precisely know what you mean. Looks pretty gosh darn arid. I made the colors less solid to show ecological variety, so some parts of the desert don't look too bleak at times. I imagine it as more of a rocky desert rather than a dune desert, so we can still have cowboys...with swords... and wands... and...

For the unobtanium bit: I like it, so let's find out some reason why it's there. Maybe the briefly-mentioned alien race is out in the desert, and they've got the monopoly on the resource? Maybe the aliens are actually long-gone, but their civilization is left behind, ripe for the plundering. The natives left it alone because they feared the aliens or something, and maybe shun the desert entirely. Thoughts?

I refer you to my bad cowboy impression:

“Go West, young man! Out der, yonder Calixeria, ye can pract'clly pick a nugget o' Mana straight outta da river. Course, y'ed hafta deal wit 'em Unspeakable Beings what feed off the stuff. And those 'orrible Natives'll drive ye mad wit der hullabaloo like, “Why you kill River God?” an' “Smoke'em pipe”.

“On second thought, stay East young man. West is more trouble than it's worth!”

Next up: I want a New Orleans-esque city in the gulf, which will serve as the "Weird Tales" area of the continent. Zombies, queer magic, and dirty deeds are the Soup of the Day in this place. That big tributary system near the northernmost point of the gulf is a likely candidate but I'd almost like to have it further south, where it could be hotter. Thoughts? I'm okay with it being either an old city (Eastern region) or a new city (Western region), but direct access to the gulf is a must.

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These should be good places to start the search. The whole region I imagined to be just Louisiana but bigger. A would be my first choice, although D, H, and B are close seconds. C looks too far North, but that's just my opinion. E has the same advantages as A and D, that is being right in the center of East and West. I like H because it's right on the seaboard and could be both hurricane prone and a magnificent trade post. F and G are not my first choices, obviously. Although they are in prime swamp area, they might be too near the arid region.

Finally, I put down I with an asterisk because, while it would also be a good candidate, I would suggest making that the capital for the whole country. Kind swampy, trapped between better land. It's a dead ringer for DC.

[Zap Dynamic]

I like it. But, just to make one point: Maybe the Warforged were always sentient. Look at it this way. Laborers are needed (in the fields, in the factories, etc) and so the wealthy landowning class basically pooled resources to fund a wizards' project to make these warforged (probably need to call them something else since they weren't made for war. Tin-men? Then you could play up a Wizard of Oz angle if you were inclined ). The finished product were technically living beings born full grown. So, the warforged looked and sounded like automatons basically because it takes a few years for their personalities to form (like babies).

I like all of this, but not so much the name. It brings up an important question, though: How lighthearted should the tone of this setting be? How tongue-in-cheek? If it's supposed to be fairly lighthearted, then Tinmen would work just fine. If it's tone is a little more serious, what about Ironmen? That makes me think of railroad workers a la John Henry.

When it was discovered that they had created a living race, the landowners just didn't care. If RL Americans were willing to enslave their own fellow man, I don't think they'd have a problem with something that looks more like a machine. The Abolitionist movement has sprung up because the industrialized region's population has risen to the point that factory jobs can't just rely on the warforged (or else MASSIVE jobless rate), and so they were allowed to leave and pursue other professions. But the agricultural region is absolutely economically dependent on warforged, and so can't free them without their economy tanking and their political power drying up.

I like it.

I don't precisely know what you mean. Looks pretty gosh darn arid. I made the colors less solid to show ecological variety, so some parts of the desert don't look too bleak at times. I imagine it as more of a rocky desert rather than a dune desert, so we can still have cowboys...with swords... and wands... and...

Looking at it again, I think it's fine.

What do you picture the scale of this place being? I imagine the RL Canadian border just north of those Rocky Mountain equivalents, roughly where the land starts to turn to a paler green. I imagine the RL Mexican border roughly where those southern desert mountains pop up, where the desert expands to the East.

Thinking about real-world geography, we should probably move the trees on the eastern slopes of the Rockies to the western slopes (due to weather patterns) and get rid of that tributary system to the east of the Rockies. That would be the Great Plains area, which wouldn't receive all that much consistent rainfall.

These should be good places to start the search. The whole region I imagined to be just Louisiana but bigger. A would be my first choice, although D, H, and B are close seconds. C looks too far North, but that's just my opinion. E has the same advantages as A and D, that is being right in the center of East and West. I like H because it's right on the seaboard and could be both hurricane prone and a magnificent trade post. F and G are not my first choices, obviously. Although they are in prime swamp area, they might be too near the arid region.

A is a good choice, but my only worry is that it's too far north. A hot, sticky swamp with really mild winters is exactly what this city needs. Sorry to suggest this (because I understand the work it implies), but how would you feel about moving that whole long, western arm of the gulf south? Going so far as to close the gap between locations A and F?

After giving it some thought, I agree completely about I being a likely choice for the capital of the Empire. While I'm thinking about it, C might be a nice location for a St. Louis or Chicago-style city.

Hahaha, I just noticed that you've named the maps "Amerkuh." Bravo, good sir.

Has anyone thought about other names for the Empire, or for any cities? I figure we will need to start a separate thread soon to start the "final draft" is this discussion, and knowing what to title it would be helpful.

I haven't thought about a name for the Empire/continent, but here are a few city names:

• Redemption - Western Town
• Hidden Lake - Could go anywhere

[Zap Dynamic]

Mining for Inspiration in all the usual spots.

Steam Punk: This will be a linchpin of the setting, and will be especially prominent in the eastern region. Might also have a strong presence (airships?) in the gulf.
Cattle Punk: The natural progression as one moves west across the country.
Weird West: Elements from this could be present when dealing with these aliens we keep mentioning. There's also plenty of room for a race of magical natives.
Gaslamp Fantasy: This sort of thing could see a lot of action in the northeast, a la Cthulhu and his cronies. Could also see a lot of play in the New Orleans equivalent.
Gothic Horror Tropes: Plenty of good ideas here.

[Ninjadeadbeard]

I like all of this, but not so much the name. It brings up an important question, though: How lighthearted should the tone of this setting be? How tongue-in-cheek? If it's supposed to be fairly lighthearted, then Tinmen would work just fine. If it's tone is a little more serious, what about Ironmen? That makes me think of railroad workers a la John Henry.

Ironmen sounds awesome. Tone? You started the thread, so that's up to you. I can work with either.

What do you picture the scale of this place being? I imagine the RL Canadian border just north of those Rocky Mountain equivalents, roughly where the land starts to turn to a paler green. I imagine the RL Mexican border roughly where those southern desert mountains pop up, where the desert expands to the East.

I imagined Pseudo-Canada (Watchalcallit) would be just a touch more north so that Pseudo-America would have some towns on the southern banks of those northern lakes/seas. Pseudo-Mexico (Somborados) would start on the south side of those desert mountains like you said. I have no sense of scale, so asking me how many miles across the Empire is pretty futile. Like asking a cat how the water feels .

Thinking about real-world geography, we should probably move the trees on the eastern slopes of the Rockies to the western slopes (due to weather patterns) and get rid of that tributary system to the east of the Rockies. That would be the Great Plains area, which wouldn't receive all that much consistent rainfall.

A is a good choice, but my only worry is that it's too far north. A hot, sticky swamp with really mild winters is exactly what this city needs. Sorry to suggest this (because I understand the work it implies), but how would you feel about moving that whole long, western arm of the gulf south? Going so far as to close the gap between locations A and F?

Done.

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Hahaha, I just noticed that you've named the maps "Amerkuh." Bravo, good sir.

No names come to mind yet, but I'll think about it.

[Zap Dynamic]

Ironmen sounds awesome. Tone? You started the thread, so that's up to you. I can work with either.

Ironmen it is! Whenever I think about Steampunk, there are plenty of potential tones that come to mind, and I don't know that we need to be picky. The US is a big place in real life, and there are plenty of different atmospheres. Let's plan to include plenty of opportunities for both serious and comedic storytelling.

I imagined Pseudo-Canada (Watchalcallit) would be just a touch more north so that Pseudo-America would have some towns on the southern banks of those northern lakes/seas. Pseudo-Mexico (Somborados) would start on the south side of those desert mountains like you said. I have no sense of scale, so asking me how many miles across the Empire is pretty futile. Like asking a cat how the water feels .

Betrayed?

Call me crazy, but "Atchalca" and "Borado" are decent names.

The map looks great! I think the New Orleans place should be right on the stretch of land you created. Any chance we could get some swampy lakes slapped into that region?

[Ninjadeadbeard]

Betrayed?
...
Call me crazy, but "Atchalca" and "Borado" are decent names.

The map looks great! I think the New Orleans place should be right on the stretch of land you created. Any chance we could get some swampy lakes slapped into that region?

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Also, that pic you linked to? You are a monster.