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Thread: Wish List
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10-15-1997, 01:49 PM #11Neil BarnesGuest
Wish List
Brian wrote:
> As I'm sure some of the others are also going to tell you, the Brecht
> are the Germans. Rjurik are Norse. Vos are Russian. Khinasi are
> Arab. Elves are Celtic. This is by no means complete. These cultures
> just share certain characteristics. Also, the languages are not the
> same...just similar. Notice the card in the boxed set with name
> suggestions...those names match these Earth cultures. Anuireans best
> match England and France...
Actually the Brechts are more like the Dutch than the 'Germans'. I'd have
pegged Anuire as being a pretty close match for Holy Roman Empire Germany,
but with a different language.
Anuirean is one of the things that really impressed me about Birthright -
it sounds and feels like a real & consistant original language. So often
fantasy countries have names that are supposed to look weird, rather than
sounding like thay were made up by real people.
neil
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10-15-1997, 11:41 PM #12Rich BakerGuest
Wish List
At 08:17 AM 10/15/97 +0300, you wrote:
>> :) Doesn't seem like you guys have been have been reading the posts by=
some
>> of the Scandinavians on this list. I haven't posted on this earlier, but
>> I've seen posts from Espen Johnsen (I think) regarding this.
>>=20
>> The Rjurik names are wonderful translations from Norwegian, Swedish and
>> Danish. Since the culture itself is based on the Vikings, this is quite
>> logical. Odemark, for example, means Wasteland in both Norwegian and
>> Swedish. Some of the names actually mean stuff, but often the names have=
no
>> meaning what so ever. Hogunmark could be interpreted as High Ground, but=
is
>> written somewhat differently in Swedish. I don't know if it is Norwegian,
>> but maybe it is.
>
>There are some finnish places too. Oulu is a city in Finland and Jurva is
>a place in Finland too. Viborg (name it self is in svedish outfit) =B4is
>city in Russia, used to be part of Finnland before WWII. I'm not sure if
>how it's written in english. Some of the names can be seen as twisted
>forms of other places or cities.
>
In case you're curious, I used the Times Atlas of Europe and Northern
Africa as inspiration in cooking up Birthright place names, especially in
Rjurik, Brechtur, Khinasi, and Vosgaard. I figured everyone was getting
tired of "The Great Forest," and "Elvendwelling" type names, and I wanted
name sets that would seem to hang together as part of specific imaginary
languages. Sometimes I sawed off half of one name and stitched to half of
another, other times I just took most of a name and changed one or two
letters, and in a few cases I just made 'em up. Anuire is an exception; all
the names were taken from an imaginary language I cooked up years before
Birthright was even thought of.
Rich Baker
Birthright Designer
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10-17-1997, 04:30 PM #13Ed StarkGuest
Wish List
At 01:21 AM 10/13/97 -0700, you wrote:
>As I'm sure some of the others are also going to tell you, the Brecht
>are the Germans. Rjurik are Norse. Vos are Russian. Khinasi are
>Arab. Elves are Celtic. This is by no means complete. These cultures
>just share certain characteristics. Also, the languages are not the
>same...just similar. Notice the card in the boxed set with name
>suggestions...those names match these Earth cultures. Anuireans best
>match England and France...
>
Ahem ... that wasn't actually our intent. The Brechts are predominantly
Germanic--not just German--but that includes the Dutch and some of those
other nearby countries as well. The Rjurik have Norse qualities, but were
also heavily influenced by the Scottish, Irish, and other related cultures.
The Khinasi combine northern African, Arab, and Indian cultures to greater
and lesser extents, and only the language of the Elves is Celtic (they
range by area as far as culture goes). The Anuireans are certainly modelled
after the Britons and the Franks, though some other influences creep in.
The key word in all these statements is "modeled." "Influenced" is a good
word, too. Sometimes, our editors went a little overboard "correcting" some
of the names (as has been pointed out, many names have been simply taken
from maps--not all were designed that way), but I know that I, and at least
one of the other designers, made a conscious effort to inject originality
and fantasy into cultures following real-world models (and that included a
more original naming system).
As for the Vos ... well, you're going to have to wait. Some Russian, some
Mongolian, and some ... other. See for yourself in December.
Ed Stark
Game Designer, Wizards of the Coast/TSR Division
Asst. Brand Manager, BIRTHRIGHT/GREYHAWK/MARVEL Group
TSR Website: http://www.tsrinc.com
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10-17-1997, 11:34 PM #14Tripp ElliottGuest
Wish List
Ed Stark wrote:
>
> At 01:21 AM 10/13/97 -0700, you wrote:
> >As I'm sure some of the others are also going to tell you, the Brecht
> >are the Germans. Rjurik are Norse. Vos are Russian. Khinasi are
> >Arab. Elves are Celtic. This is by no means complete. These cultures
> >just share certain characteristics. Also, the languages are not the
> >same...just similar. Notice the card in the boxed set with name
> >suggestions...those names match these Earth cultures. Anuireans best
> >match England and France...
> >
> Ahem ... that wasn't actually our intent. The Brechts are predominantly
> Germanic--not just German--but that includes the Dutch and some of those
> other nearby countries as well. The Rjurik have Norse qualities, but were
> also heavily influenced by the Scottish, Irish, and other related cultures.
> The Khinasi combine northern African, Arab, and Indian cultures to greater
> and lesser extents, and only the language of the Elves is Celtic (they
> range by area as far as culture goes). The Anuireans are certainly modelled
> after the Britons and the Franks, though some other influences creep in.
I myself tend to think of the Rjurik as more like the Scottish
Highlanders. Possibly it's because I descend from that direction
myself, so I enjoy playing one in BR. To lend credence to the idea,
please note that the Rulebook lists the Claymore as a Rjurik weapon.
Nothing is more Scottish than the Claymore. Anyways that's how I play
them, others can of course use other Gaelic cultures in their campaigns,
but I've got a Bagpipe wielding, kilt wearing, Rjurik Bard that I love
to play.
Of course I also have a Female Khinasi Blade(Bard) who's fun to play as
well. I know the Blade Kit is not listed in the Rulebook, but my DM
bought the idea, so I've got her. She rules. She can't hit anything,
but she looks damn impressive missing.
Don't go thinking I always play bards, because I don't, in fact, playing
bards is rather new to me, but I'm enjoying it.
Ok, enough babbling from me for now.
Tripp
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