Post/Author/DateTime	Post
bhu 09-02-07, 04:10 AM	Im going to eventually design a Lovecraftian horror campaign set in colonial america. It will take place after the Revolutionary war, and something has isolated the US because all ships that leave sight of shore never return, and no ships from overseas ever come anymore (the players goal will be to find out what the heck is going on). I know I want it to be set in a coastal city of the time (Boston is the only one I know by name I may be able to find a period map for), but I'm unsure what date. Shipping problems start immediately after the war ends so preferably not too far into the future from then. Anyone know of some decent books or sites I should check out? Finding web sites is usually easy but that doesnt mean they know what they're talking about or have any useful info. I'll be hunting down a timeline of the period if i can find one too.
yellowdingo 09-02-07, 06:54 AM	You want the Fog...a wall of devouring mist that settles in along the Coast and feeds on the minds of Sailors... As to the history thing...
Heros_Backpack 09-02-07, 07:34 AM	Hm. I see someone rather adventurous breaking the isolation by sailing up the West coast to Alaska and then hopping over to Russia without ever going out of sight of land. But maybe that's just me. :)
GoriceXII 09-02-07, 09:32 AM	Perhaps it could be set in the early 1790s? Basically by this time the French Revolution had broken out and the subsequent wars in Europe were beginning. Wiki is one of the best ways to readily look up stuff for history, I strongly recommend that. I use it all the time.
GawainBS 09-02-07, 10:30 AM	I second that. Wiki is quite accurate, certainly accurate enough for this. Even just googling might turn up unexpected nice results. For some decent maps, maybe pay a visit to the local library?
Draco Strang 09-02-07, 01:24 PM	Wikipedia is great as a primer on historical events. If you want to get into the nuts and bolts (and one of my majors is history, I KNOW nuts and bolts...ugh) you'll need to move to respected authors on the period and primary sources. However, for what you need, Wikipedia will be fine. If you google "colonial america" you'll get enough stuff to keep you in business. As for the accuracy? Read three sites. If they all agree, you can basically take it as gospel, as far as major events and overbearing themes work. When you start nitpicking the style of buttons Washington wore during the Valley Forge campaign or the exact population of slaves in South Carolina during the Yorktown siege, you'll want to hit primary sources. :D
Rhineglade 09-03-07, 12:02 AM	As far as major sea towns during the Colonial period, certainly Boston is an important port. There are many others though like: Philadelphia (pop. 40,000), New York (pop. 25,000), Savanah, Charleston (called "Charles Town" in those days, pop. 12,000), Salem, Portsmouth, Williamsburg, Jamestown, Norfolk, Newport (pop. 11,000), etc. Perhaps if you supply some more details on the type of world you are creating, that might help others provide you with thoughts and ideas. I assume since you are using the Lovecraft approach, you will not be using other character races like halflings, elves, dwarves, gnomes and half-orcs? Is that a correct assumption? You might also look into the Crucible, a play by Arthur Miller based on the events of the 1692 witch trials of Salem, Massachusetts during the Colonial period which was well written and an interesting read. In terms of why the Colonies would suddenly become isolated, you can take a great number of reasons: England is ticked about losing the war and effected a blockade/trade embargo; a leviathan-like creature has awoken within the Atlantic and destroys any vessel attempting to cross; a massive plague has wiped out most of the population from the Old World, leaving the Colonial Americans to start life anew, etc. Some facts about the Colonial Period: - The Revolutionary War ended in 1781 with the surrender of the British General Cornwallis at Yorktown when he was bottled in by the forces of Washington on the land side and the French fleet at sea. The actual Peace Treaty wasn't signed until 1783 in Paris. The Treaty established the American territory extending from the Atlantic coast to the shores of the Mississippi River and from the Great Lakes to the 31st parallel in the South. - Population estimates for Colonial America were about 2,500,000 around 1775. - Virginia was the most populated colony and it is thought that the Southern Colonies had more people living there than the New England and Middle Colonies combined. - Slavery was a fact of life in these times. - The existance of the Native American Indians played a factor during the Colonial Period. In some places, the Indians were helpful but in others they tried to drive the colonists out of their traditional hunting grounds. - Women had few legal rights at the time lacking the power to vote or hold political office. - Each colony was run by a Governor and legislature called an "Assembly." - Colonial Society was made up of several classes with the rich merchants and planters known as the "gentry," the "middling sort" including farmers and shopkeepers and the "meaner sort" including the poor, unskilled laborers, slaves and indentured servants. - Several important colleges were already in existance including Harvard (founded in 1636), the College of William & Mary (founded in 1693), Princeton (founded in 1746), Brown University (founded in 1764), College of Charleston (founded in 1770) and Columbia College (founded in 1754). - Following the Revolution, it is estimated that the colonies lost from 4,435 to 12,000 people and that the war cost an estimated $101 million dollars. Remember also that not having access to Europe will be difficult for the young colonies of your game world since they relied heavily on trade. The colonies had plenty of raw materials but little in the form of manufactured goods.
bhu 09-03-07, 02:18 AM	The idea is that its pretty much our worlds timeline with one exception: magic does exist in some form, but much like in Call of Cthulhu few people know about it, and fewer use it because of hte possible consequences. During the war both sides attempt to open gates to places better left alone, and manage to figure that out just in time to stave off disaster (or so they both believe). Not long after the war ends (both sides leaders are quite shaken by the incident), beings on the other side try pounding their way through to our reality. Leaving a few adventurous souls to figure out whats going on and stop it. The first adventure will be soemthing similar to Phantoms. An entire nearby town has vanished and hte PC's have to find out why. Shipping is cut off because a major gate opened briefly undersea and its teaming with monsters from a dozen realities now. Race will be human only, spellcasting wil be a hard to qualify for PrC as of now.
heftyj 09-03-07, 03:17 AM	I agree with wikipedia. It helped me during highschool, and still does.
bhu 09-04-07, 04:21 AM	Thanks guys Off to peruse the history sites...