Been wondering about the New World, Golarion-style, and what the Paizo crew have in store for us there. It's an interesting situation, y'know? Like and yet extremely unlike the relationship between Eurasia and the Americas.
On the one hand, Avistani civilizations have known about Arcadia and been in intermittent contact with it for five thousand years. Let's let that sink in: five thousand years. That's ten times as long as it's been since that lucky idiot Columbus stumbled across the West Indies and kickstarted a new era of colonization and exploitation.
On the other hand, there are a LOT of factors preventing the Avistan cultures from overwhelming the Skraelings:
* Difficulty of the voyage. I get the impression that the actual distance is longer, plus it's not a simple sea crossing like the Atlantic -- you have to navigate the storm-wracked shattered remnants of Azlant, dodging sea monsters every step of the way.
* Lower population density than Europe (probably) means much less pressure to immigrate -- this isn't a world where humans can spread everywhere they want, there're too many monsters and savage races keeping the wilderness wild.
* Local Arcadian monsters and savage races, which the Skraelings will be used to and the colonists won't have been familiar with at first.
* The ubiquity of divine magic, and possibly even some of the same gods being worshipped over there already (as with Garund).
* Disease, working by Pathfinder rules, bears very little resemblance to real-world factors. (As far as I can tell, no one who isn't inherently immune to disease CAN develop immunity or even resistance to particular pathogens, so everyone on all continents and all situations is at identical risk to pretty much everything. That could maybe use some extra rules?)
...So even though there are apparently some current long-established colonies that are still in touch with and consider themselves to be part of their mother nations, the Skraelings probably haven't had near as bad a time as the Native American tribes did.
What I'm really wondering now is, with five thousand years of observation of, trade with, and adaptation to the Old World colonies, are modern Skraelings pretty much technologically on par with Avistan? Surely they should have gained not just horses but herd animals, crops, and the lifestyle that goes with it... not identical to the colonists' culture, but thoroughly adapting these tools to their own needs? Iroquois Confederation with actual cities and farmland? I really hope so...
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On the other hand, there are a LOT of factors preventing the Avistan cultures from overwhelming the Skraelings:
Really not wanting to derail the thread or anything, but this is why I really wish they hadn't introduced a historical slur towards a real ethnic group as a slur for their Golarion counterparts.
The general slow rate of development in the timeline(or maybe the high presence of one-step-forward-two-steps-back happening in many areas) might help keep Avistani influence to a minimum as well.
Not even counting South America, there were a number of cultures that built permanent settlements. I'm hoping most cities built by Arcadians lean more in that direction rather than adopting Avistani models of city planning wholesale.
Creative Director
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What I'm really wondering now is, with five thousand years of observation of, trade with, and adaptation to the Old World colonies, are modern Skraelings pretty much technologically on par with Avistan? Surely they should have gained not just horses but herd animals, crops, and the lifestyle that goes with it... not identical to the colonists' culture, but thoroughly adapting these tools to their own needs? Iroquois Confederation with actual cities and farmland? I really hope so...
We haven't said much at all about Arcadia, but what we do know is that the modern Inner Sea region has only scratched the surface of what's going on over there. It's an entire continent, and one that's several times LARGER than Avistan. The people of Arcadia themselves, btw, don't refer to themselves as skraelings.
We'll eventually have more to say about Arcadia... but not for a while.
We haven't said much at all about Arcadia, but what we do know is that the modern Inner Sea region has only scratched the surface of what's going on over there. It's an entire continent, and one that's several times LARGER than Avistan. The people of Arcadia themselves, btw, don't refer to themselves as skraelings.
We'll eventually have more to say about Arcadia... but not for a while.
I'll have to remember to call them Arcadians then. :) (Native Arcadians? No, it's not like they really need the qualifier.)
I have high hopes for your take on the New World. There have been a number of versions already... the various Oltec people in Mystara; Maztica in FR (which was apparently so unpopular it got edited right off the planet); that third-party 3.5 book where the "Indians" were furries (?!)... never quite liked most of them. (Much as I love the Known World, the Atruaghin Clans were just badly done -- several classic/stereotype Native American cultures living in noble savage splendor in a little pocket of land right next to the most advanced capitalist merchant society on the continent? Any way you slice it, that makes little sense.)
You've got an opportunity and the creative talent to do something different and glorious, and I look forward to seeing it. :)