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Scalenex
2008-12-10, 03:01 AM
First, a specific question. I'm homebrewing a world where there is a wasteland tainted by an evil goddess poisoning the water so that it sickens, mutates, and/or kills who ever drinks it. I was calling the poisonous water black water and the tainted area the Black Water Wastes and the barbarous inhabitants the Black Water Mutants (all of whom have the corrupt subtype from Book of Vile Darkness though a few manage to be Neutral rather than evil). Naturally the locals of the Wasteland don't actually call themselves that, but no one civilized bothers to learn their self referential term and the various tribal units in the wasteland can't even agree.

My friend points out that "mutant" is a little sci-fi. So what's a good "fantasy" friendly word for "mutant".

Ravens_cry
2008-12-10, 03:04 AM
The Tainted

Burnt Folk

Scarred Ones

Cursed

Bent

Twisted

The Sickened

***
just some ideas.

Asbestos
2008-12-10, 03:04 AM
Aberrant.

Done.

Sstoopidtallkid
2008-12-10, 03:07 AM
The Unclean.

The Wrong.

The Cursed.

Touched by (god of corruption/evil).

JeminiZero
2008-12-10, 03:32 AM
Black Water Beastfolk (or Beastmen, or whatever). Presuming of course they are sufficiently mutated to be mistaken for monstrous humanoids.

BobVosh
2008-12-10, 03:32 AM
Do they consider it a curse or a blessing?

Said God's Children
Evolved


They may not even have a name for themselves, but for the ones who aren't. They are just "the people."

Talic
2008-12-10, 03:34 AM
"Blighted"

"Chosen"

depending on your view of the affliction.

xPANCAKEx
2008-12-10, 03:58 AM
depends whos talking about them - enemies will have less than polite terms for them trying to depict them as abnormal/evil freaks, where as those more sympathetic will probably have a name based more on pity

Thurbane
2008-12-10, 04:38 AM
The Mutes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amtrak_wars).

Scalenex
2008-12-10, 05:20 AM
Do they consider it a curse or a blessing?

Said God's Children
Evolved


They may not even have a name for themselves, but for the ones who aren't. They are just "the people."

Some consider a Curse and a Blessing. Those who apply religious connotations to their condition call themselves Children/Spawn/Get of Greymoria/Turoch. I like the idea of them calling themselves "the people" and the many names are intriguing, no reason they can't have lots of nicknames though I'm partial to tainted ones. Thanks everyone.

AslanCross
2008-12-10, 07:34 AM
The Wayward.

The [Black Water] Drinkers.

Illkind.

The Wastrels.

The Sharers of [Evil Goddess's] Cup. <--- good name for clerics to address them by, works well with the Drinkers.

The Partakers.

The Ulcerants.

newbDM
2008-12-10, 10:24 AM
Can ships sail on this dark water (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=0pUCSsAo638)?

Scalenex
2008-12-11, 07:05 AM
Can ships sail on this dark water (http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=0pUCSsAo638)?

I miss the Pirates of Dark Water, but but black water isn't as destructive as dark water. Nor did it inspire it. I actually got the idea from from the poisonous water in Flash Gordon.

To answer your question, no you can't sail on it. The Black Water Wastes are landlocked. This is to partially explain why it hasn't spread everywhere.

Also the goddess of the sea, Mera, has a divine artifact capable of purifying just about anything. Why hasn't she purified the Wastes. She has, the borders of the Wastelands contract by about an inch a year. It's done slowly so as to sneak the cleansing past her evil sister and because she can't purify the land in broader strokes without killing people and she still hopes she can bring some/all the Black Water barbarians towards being Good.

Oracle_Hunter
2008-12-11, 07:11 AM
I'd say it depends on their organization. If they are united, then they probably have a name for their "people." Otherwise, they're more likely to refer to themselves by tribal affiliation, or whatever society they belong to. And those can be named normally.

For individual mutants, I've always been a fan of naming them after their deformity. It paints a crude picture of their society, and dehumanizes them nicely - if they're supposed to just be mooks to be killed. Otherwise, give them normal names based on their tribes.

Outsiders, of course, are prone to lumping various distinct peoples into broad categories (like barbars) so they will have one of those derogatory names for the Wastelanders.

Demented
2008-12-11, 07:18 AM
What was the area called before the "Black Water Wastes"?

Name the people after that, and give their name a highly perjorative perception. I.e. If it was "La La Land", people would speak about "la la landers" or "la las" as if the term were a slur. After all, everyone there is either sickened or a barbarous mutant, so you aren't going to be worried about accidentally flattering anyone...

newbDM
2008-12-11, 05:05 PM
I miss the Pirates of Dark Water, but but black water isn't as destructive as dark water. Nor did it inspire it. I actually got the idea from from the poisonous water in Flash Gordon.

Being someone who actually liked the new Flash Gorden series that was my second guess, but I figured I would go with the Pirates of Dark Water. (Boy, I wish there was an end to that series's plot. :smallfrown:)

Devils_Advocate
2008-12-11, 09:00 PM
"Blighted"

"Chosen"

depending on your view of the affliction.
The Blightchosen! :smallcool:

Fax Celestis
2008-12-11, 09:05 PM
"The Pure" or "The Purified", if you like irony.

mikeejimbo
2008-12-11, 09:07 PM
Why not "The Corrupt"?

Fax Celestis
2008-12-11, 09:08 PM
"The Pure" or "The Purified", if you like irony.


Why not "The Corrupt"?

I find the juxtaposition here hilarious.

mikeejimbo
2008-12-11, 09:19 PM
I find the juxtaposition here hilarious.

It is amusing. It all depends on which way the OP wants to spin it, though.

Mewtarthio
2008-12-11, 10:33 PM
It's a perjorative slang term, right? I'd go with something direct and obvious.

Uglies
Freaks

newbDM
2008-12-11, 10:40 PM
It is amusing. It all depends on which way the OP wants to spin it, though.

I personally think both should be used. It just makes sense that each side sees things from a different point of view.

Lemur
2008-12-11, 10:46 PM
The Wastedwellers, or the denziens of Black Water is fairly to the point. Although you probably have plenty of good ideas by now.


It's a perjorative slang term, right? I'd go with something direct and obvious.

Uglies
Freaks

To me, that's more post-apocalyptic/cyberpunk than fantasy. The Uglies sound like something from Mad Max or something that lives in the sewers of Proto Neo New York.

Prometheus
2008-12-11, 10:58 PM
Name them after a monstrous humanoid or creature that already exists in your world. So when the PCs go to fight "the Ogres" they find out they are really Ogres at all. The tribe might call itself "the Ogres" if they believe that they are making themselves stronger by making themselves ugly.

The Ogres-sounds like a sports team.

newbDM
2008-12-12, 12:17 AM
Name them after a monstrous humanoid or creature that already exists in your world. So when the PCs go to fight "the Ogres" they find out they are really Ogres at all. The tribe might call itself "the Ogres" if they believe that they are making themselves stronger by making themselves ugly.

The Ogres-sounds like a sports team.

That sounds like a neat idea.

However, I am guessing this might depend on certain factors such as how long this plague has been going on, how well know are/were the residents of that area(s) before it all started happening, and if any communication or trade still exists between the black water drinkers and the "untainted" races.

Stupendous_Man
2008-12-12, 12:21 AM
Children of Nurgle >.>

newbDM
2008-12-12, 12:59 AM
Children of Nurgle >.>

I feel even geekier than usual for knowing that reference.

Random NPC
2008-12-12, 01:12 AM
I'm partial to "the tainted"

newbDM
2008-12-12, 02:22 AM
I'm partial to "the tainted"

Agreed. However, does anyone feel it is too cliche and overused?

Oracle_Hunter
2008-12-12, 02:29 AM
Other thoughts: give them all a uniform mutation (glowing eyes, horns, etc.) which can provide a catchy name from the outside.

Glowing Eyes = The Watchers, Devilfire Men
Horns = Children of (insert Evil God here), The Helltouched
Claws = The Reavers, Beastmen
Boils = The Unclean, Plaquebearers
Albinism = The Ghostmen, Fades, Dark-dwellers

This doesn't have to be the only mutation, but having a physical trait is the easiest way to figure out how to name folks. After all, the normals aren't going to get all fancy with the names here - they just want something that is obvious and dangerous-sounding.

newbDM
2008-12-12, 02:35 AM
Other thoughts: give them all a uniform mutation (glowing eyes, horns, etc.) which can provide a catchy name from the outside.

Glowing Eyes = The Watchers, Devilfire Men
Horns = Children of (insert Evil God here), The Helltouched
Claws = The Reavers, Beastmen
Boils = The Unclean, Plaquebearers
Albinism = The Ghostmen, Fades, Dark-dwellers

This doesn't have to be the only mutation, but having a physical trait is the easiest way to figure out how to name folks. After all, the normals aren't going to get all fancy with the names here - they just want something that is obvious and dangerous-sounding.

And would having a uniform dominant mutation allow for Scalenex to create an entire race from this, or a template for all/any of the standard races who live in the affected area?

If you want an already made template Scalenex, I believe there is one in the Drow of the Underdark book (for 3.5) which has something you might like. I believe it is called the Chaos Touched, or something on those lines. I get the same feel from it as I do your plot concept.

Scalenex
2008-12-14, 09:55 AM
This got more hits than I thought it would, so I'm going to elaborate on my whole idea cause there seems to be an interest in it.

For a long time, there was no real contact between "normal" people and the Tainted Ones. Every once in a while a would-be evil mastermind would look for the source of all the Black Water, some believed that blackwater leaked from one of Turoch's dismembered body parts (for those who didn't read my pantheon, Turoch is the evil god the current gods had to overthrow and finding a piece of his corpse is rumored to be able to make one a god). Centuries of no one finding anything has gradually put an end to these quests. Less ambitious evil masterminds have tried to recruit minions but the Blighted don't take orders easily. On a still lower scale, some people adventure to the Wastes in order to collect blackwater for it's use its poisons or as a magical item component.

On the opposite end of the morality spectrum, some would enter in to try to stop the Drinkers from making their raids (or at least to retaliate for them). Also some have gone out seeking the source of the Black Water with the hope of purifying the whole area and it's people facing no more success than those who want to wield the area's magic to become gods.

Now there is a new reason to brave the Wastes. Drugs. There is a plant that grows commonly in the Wastes that can be processed into a highly addictive drug so mercanary inclined groups have begun visiting the area more and more. Most just to gather the plants quickly and leave before the Drinkers find them, but a few daring individuals have managed to strike up trade agreements with some of the locals. The Cursed are naturally better at finding the plants than visitors are. Also, they can harass other would-be drug traders as part of their trade agreements to help their partners maintain exclusivity. Along the other side of arangements, tribes that trade with civilized people are apt to have better weapons, armor, and equipment than the other tribes. It's now increasingly possible that one or more tribes will gain enough of an advantage over the others that they could unify the tribes of the Chosen at pose a real threat to those near the waste.

Note that while this is going on, King Drosst, the immortal ruler of the nation of Nactra last three campaigns of expansion have stalemated so he's encouraged his citizens to tame some frontier areas with the hope that it'll allow his nation to support a larger population and thus a bigger army for his next campaign in a century or so. Namely he's encouraging/forcing his citizens to settle areas near the Blackwater Wastes. While these areas aren't in danger of being tainted, they are the first places hit when the Scarred Ones venture outside the Wastes.

So now I have lots of potential adventure stories (I say potential because I'm still in my world building stage), where the scale increases as the PCs level up. The players could start out trying to stop drug traffickers moving from urban areas to the Black Water Wastes themselves. Finally the PCs can deal with a massive army of the Twisted hell-bent on conquering the lands outside the wastes led by powerful Barbarians and Sorcerers complete with established spies in civilization from the contacts they made earlier.

I've been switching up the names of the barbarians to see which I like best. Right now, I still like the variety.