Blackhawk748
2015-04-04, 02:08 PM
Ok ive had this weird idea for a setting floating around in my head for a long time and i want to use it, but i feel it needs a second set of eyes.
The setting is basically a fusion of Medieval Ireland, Scotland, and Japan. Ya i know its weird.
It started out as a joke on my part. Me and some friends were discussing what the most terrifying warrior would be. Viking Spartans and Mongol Vikings got thrown around (basically Viking + anything got thrown around) and i countered with Samurai Highlanders. Well needless to say we all thought that sounded incredibly awesome as thoughts of Kilt wearing Samurai with epic beards charging into battle to the tune of Bagpipes went through our heads. So i started making a setting out of this idea and i decided to add Irish culture to this when i saw this on Medieval 2 Kingdoms:
A king's son is not nobler than his food.
Which i took to mean that, until your actually a noble, being the child of one gets you no special treatment, which i thought was cool.
Now on to actual setting stuff. The primary setting is a large Island to the West of the main continent (about as far as Iceland is from Europe). The Island looks like if you stuck Ireland to Britain and is about the same size. It is home to the Jade Empire (better name pending) which is an Empire that is a conglomeration of two cultures. The first culture is your basic Fantasy Feudal Japan, the only difference is that their adherence to protocol and order is slightly less. (IE if Japan was a 10 on the Honor and Proper Form scale, the original Jade Empire would be like an 8). The second is the Scot/Irish people, who are refugees from the main continent, having been forced out by a larger Empire to the east. They view Honor and Protocol as good things but they are less formal about it (so they are like a 6 on the scale). The big difference is that the Jade Empire viewed Nobility as Descended from Heaven and Ordained by the Gods and thus rule by right, the Scot/Irish viewed Nobility as Ordained by the Gods, but it was a duty bestowed upon them by said gods because they would be the most capable.
So in short, Jade Empire Nobility does the standard, passes to oldest child, whereas the Scot/Irish people's Noble title passes on to the one the title bearer names (usually a relative, though not necessarily) Obviously this caused some problems when the Scot/Irish (i really need to call them something else :smalltongue:) landed on the Island. In short a war broke out shortly after they landed on the main Island (they had settled on a few islands off the cost that the Empire didnt care about, thus why they didnt really notice). This war went on for a few years, only ending when the Firstborn Daughter of the Emperor (so shes the heir) was saved by the son of The Chief of Chiefs (the elected head of the Scot/Irish Nobility, where each clan is led by a Chief of the Name, who is also elected. Under this is the rest of the nobility) After her rescue she fell for him (oh sweet trope laden love) and they were married. After her fathers death the First Empress created the current noble structure and helped shape the current culture.
Nobility starting from the top:
Empress/Emperor
The Chief of Chiefs (the Husband or wife of the Emperor/Empress, they deal primarily with the clans)
Shogun, Chief of Names (these are the respective titles for the heads of the two major clan types, both continue to function as they did before the merge, ie Chief of Names are still elected, whereas Shoguns are appointed and then pass the title to one of their children)
Daiymo, Laird (these are the standard landed nobility)
Samurai, Muire or Ridire (These are the Bonded Warrior caste and their title depends on their preferred fighting style)
Everybody Else
Now nobility in the new Jade Empire is closer to the Scot/Irish (screw it going with Celtic) Celtic style of nobility, where they see it as a duty and responsibility not some right, so the common people get treated rather well as the nobility is aware of how life is without money or position. This is because until they are old enough to help their parents with the work of running the family estate they are treated like any other child, and not just by their parent. Being the son of a Shogun gives you no more special treatment than being the son of a Farmer. Even the Imperial Children arent treated all that differently (though they tend to have discreet bodyguards nearby) and while the families of the Original Empire may still pass their holdings to their oldest child, this is usually because they have been groomed for the job.
So ya thats the gist of it, im planning on having a Shadowlands like Rokugan in the north. Probably just call it the Demonwastes or something similar, oh and the clans (on both sides) are made up of several races, so an Elf, a Dwarf, a Halfling and a Human may all be in the same clan. This is because i want to try out a non-racial culture setting. Ok, start ripping this apart. *hides behind a riot shield and dons helmet* im ready!
The setting is basically a fusion of Medieval Ireland, Scotland, and Japan. Ya i know its weird.
It started out as a joke on my part. Me and some friends were discussing what the most terrifying warrior would be. Viking Spartans and Mongol Vikings got thrown around (basically Viking + anything got thrown around) and i countered with Samurai Highlanders. Well needless to say we all thought that sounded incredibly awesome as thoughts of Kilt wearing Samurai with epic beards charging into battle to the tune of Bagpipes went through our heads. So i started making a setting out of this idea and i decided to add Irish culture to this when i saw this on Medieval 2 Kingdoms:
A king's son is not nobler than his food.
Which i took to mean that, until your actually a noble, being the child of one gets you no special treatment, which i thought was cool.
Now on to actual setting stuff. The primary setting is a large Island to the West of the main continent (about as far as Iceland is from Europe). The Island looks like if you stuck Ireland to Britain and is about the same size. It is home to the Jade Empire (better name pending) which is an Empire that is a conglomeration of two cultures. The first culture is your basic Fantasy Feudal Japan, the only difference is that their adherence to protocol and order is slightly less. (IE if Japan was a 10 on the Honor and Proper Form scale, the original Jade Empire would be like an 8). The second is the Scot/Irish people, who are refugees from the main continent, having been forced out by a larger Empire to the east. They view Honor and Protocol as good things but they are less formal about it (so they are like a 6 on the scale). The big difference is that the Jade Empire viewed Nobility as Descended from Heaven and Ordained by the Gods and thus rule by right, the Scot/Irish viewed Nobility as Ordained by the Gods, but it was a duty bestowed upon them by said gods because they would be the most capable.
So in short, Jade Empire Nobility does the standard, passes to oldest child, whereas the Scot/Irish people's Noble title passes on to the one the title bearer names (usually a relative, though not necessarily) Obviously this caused some problems when the Scot/Irish (i really need to call them something else :smalltongue:) landed on the Island. In short a war broke out shortly after they landed on the main Island (they had settled on a few islands off the cost that the Empire didnt care about, thus why they didnt really notice). This war went on for a few years, only ending when the Firstborn Daughter of the Emperor (so shes the heir) was saved by the son of The Chief of Chiefs (the elected head of the Scot/Irish Nobility, where each clan is led by a Chief of the Name, who is also elected. Under this is the rest of the nobility) After her rescue she fell for him (oh sweet trope laden love) and they were married. After her fathers death the First Empress created the current noble structure and helped shape the current culture.
Nobility starting from the top:
Empress/Emperor
The Chief of Chiefs (the Husband or wife of the Emperor/Empress, they deal primarily with the clans)
Shogun, Chief of Names (these are the respective titles for the heads of the two major clan types, both continue to function as they did before the merge, ie Chief of Names are still elected, whereas Shoguns are appointed and then pass the title to one of their children)
Daiymo, Laird (these are the standard landed nobility)
Samurai, Muire or Ridire (These are the Bonded Warrior caste and their title depends on their preferred fighting style)
Everybody Else
Now nobility in the new Jade Empire is closer to the Scot/Irish (screw it going with Celtic) Celtic style of nobility, where they see it as a duty and responsibility not some right, so the common people get treated rather well as the nobility is aware of how life is without money or position. This is because until they are old enough to help their parents with the work of running the family estate they are treated like any other child, and not just by their parent. Being the son of a Shogun gives you no more special treatment than being the son of a Farmer. Even the Imperial Children arent treated all that differently (though they tend to have discreet bodyguards nearby) and while the families of the Original Empire may still pass their holdings to their oldest child, this is usually because they have been groomed for the job.
So ya thats the gist of it, im planning on having a Shadowlands like Rokugan in the north. Probably just call it the Demonwastes or something similar, oh and the clans (on both sides) are made up of several races, so an Elf, a Dwarf, a Halfling and a Human may all be in the same clan. This is because i want to try out a non-racial culture setting. Ok, start ripping this apart. *hides behind a riot shield and dons helmet* im ready!