Historical settings: Medieval vs everything else

[mondblut]

Swamps and wilderness of Batls? Kievan Ruthenia? North Africa? Anatolia? Armenia? Steppes of Khazaria? Poland? Hungary?

He said "Europe".

 

[Zed Duke of Banville]

What about a semi-historical "Phoenician/Greek/Roman ship gets lost on the high seas and gets stranded on the Mexican coast, meets native American civs".

sounds awesome

Sounds like the proposed sequel to Age of Decadence.

Spoiler

Expedition from a Rome-inspired culture (the setting of Age of Decadence) crosses an ocean to reach a continent populated by a Native American-inspired culture (who are also featured in the backstory to Age of Decadence).

 

[Aemar]

If you go for it and need someone to help you with historical research, ring me up. I have a full time job and can't devote too much to side projects but I can provide you with proper sources and give you feedback on historical accuracy, that kind of stuff.

Thanks a lot for your offer, I'll definitely keep this in mind. My historical research skills are quite good, but I won't refuse extra help.

Honestly, while a true Historical RPG would be really cool, I was saying that a fantasy RPG that incorporated elements of the actual political climate of i.e. the 10th century AD would be really interesting, with a really morally gray world filled with choices that are neither good or bad.

What I have in mind is something that takes place in a morally gray world, akin to real life, where the player's choices and actions are driven mainly by self-interest. No world-saving, knights in shiny armour or anything like that.

One of the most interesting things about medieval times was the feudal relations, and complex conflicting loyalties that could come from them(you are a vassal of king A for one fief and king B for another. How do you handle a war between them without looking like a traitor?). It is much more interesting than choosing between the good and the evil option to me. But if you don't plan to make it a core component of the game, another period might be better.

The whole concept revolves around these very same aspects that you mention; humbleness aside, I'm fairly confident that I've been able to put together a system that can work quite efficiently when it comes to transforming these ideas into gameplay.

Tbh, if you want historical rpgs instead of fantasy one, we should ask for more people reading historical books instead of LotR. We also need someone making a historical rpg(that doesn't suck) to show people that one can sell this kind of game. No one wants to develop a long game if there is 0 proof it's going to sell, that is the true.
I remember how Sawyer said he took inspiration from historical events, yet he never had the opportunity of making a historical rpg, sadly.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance has proven there could be some sort of niche for this particular kind of games. I know, you'll probably reply that Vavra's project was backed by a ton of money, and I won't contradict you. But there is a chance people might want to try something different, something that is closer to historical reality, instead of what's usually on the market.

What do you mean by Medieval Europe? You mean Early, High or Late Middle Ages? Which part of Medieval Europe? Generic XIII-XV century England and France? Swamps and wilderness of Batls? Kievan Ruthenia? North Africa? Anatolia? Armenia? Steppes of Khazaria? Spain during reconquista? Mighty Holy Roman Empire? City states of Italy? Poland? Hungary? There are endless posibilities in Medieval Europe, however few can see outside XIII-XV century England and France.

If you mean what particular Medieval setting did I have in mind, I must say that it was the very late Middle Ages in Northern Italy. After a careful thought I've finally opted for Early Renaissance, same place.

 

[AdolfSatan]

My gristle is throbbing.