DF Novices - Campaign Languages
For the new game, I am using the GURPS language rules, rather than the simplified DFRPG system. I am also giving the same 2 free bonus character points for starting PCs to spend specifically on a secondary language. I did both these things in the last DF game.
I get that "everyone speaks Common" is a convenient hand-wave in a game that is mostly about hitting things. However there is always going to be some social interaction from time to time. I feel that languages should occasionally matter; or at least that the game can feel more real and the story more interesting, when language is occasionally a factor.
The following list is not exhaustive.
Human Languages
Common Tongue
- default for PCs
- spoken by most humans and PC races
- functions as the defacto trade-language between cultures
- known as "the Food Tongue" by some lizard-folk
Ancient Te-Minoan
- language of the original human empire that controlled much of the region
- precursor to the Common Tongue
- used in many religious texts
Gheltic
- language of the various so-called barbaric Ghelts bordering the former empire
- mostly an aural rather than written language
- those Gheltic peoples who now live in "civilised" kingdoms speak Common
High Vycenaean
- old speech of the empire that rose to supplant Te-Minoa in the second age
- still used by the elusive witch-breed, and by some Vycenaean nobles
- most Vycenaeans actually use the Common Tongue
Ianthean
- language of the city-state of Ianthe
- remnant of a strange human empire that mostly sank below the sea
Non-Human Languages
Demontongue
- language of truly Evil extra-planar beings
- those demons who wish to communicate with mortals will use Common
Elvish
- ancient language of the wood elves
- most elves now use the Common Tongue
Felinid
- old language the cat-folk brought with them from their world
- most cat-folk now use the Common Tongue
- spoken only - there is no written form
- non-cat-folk can only reach Accented proficiency, due to lack of a tail
Gnomish
- still spoken by those gnomes (and some halflings) that live apart from humans
- most gnomes now use the Common Tongue
Goblintongue
- spoken by goblins and hobgoblins, and other goblin-kin
- related to Orcish
Orcish
- spoken by most orcs, and some other goblin-kin
- related to Gobintongue
I've found in previous campaigns that naming 'Common' something else is useful. Call it something, anything, but then just say it's the lingua franca of the main campaign area. It does add a feeling of importance to the languages and some flavor to the game as well.
ReplyDeleteI didn't do this for Felltower, but I did in previous games.
Absolutely. The reason I didn't was that I started the original game without a clearly defined setting. DFRPG assumes "Common". And when I decided upon a published setting to use, it also assumed "Common". This new game is in the same world... So I stuck with it.
ReplyDeleteBut I totally agree that it would have been cooler if the default language had a more evocative name.