Native american lifepaths

Burning Wheel Modifications, Hacks and Expansions
1

Hello everybody, first and foremost my english is far from perfect (not my native languague). I been working in a series of lifepaths for a semi-historical campaing scenario based around the iroquois confederation and his political and cultural relations with the europeans during the XVII and XVIII century. The european lifepaths are mostly the same has the ones presented in the Gold edition (with some modification concerning colonial professions and including firearms in many other LP’s) while these represent the setting for natives members of the federation (but i believe con be modified to emulate other tribal cultures).

Born Tribal 10 yrs 3 - Servitude.
Traits: 2 - Native trait…
Skills: 3 general

Adulthood rites 2 yrs 7 +1 M/P -
Traits 1 pts.
Skills 4 pts: Tribe history, Mending, Riding and choose one (Brawling/Inconspicuous).

Tribal wife 8 yrs 5 +1 M,P -
Traits 1pts: keen sense of taste
Skills 6 pts: Child rearing, firebuilding, cooking, mending, midwifery

Warrior 4 yrs 6 +1 P Servitude, outcast.
Traits: 1 pts.
Skills 7 pts: axe, spear, bow, climbing, intimidation, guerrilla tactics training

Hunter-Gatherer 5 yrs 7 +1 M,P -
Traits: 1 pts.
Skills 7 pts: foraging, tracking, hunting, stealthy, orienteering, tree cutting, Javelin or bow

Great warrior 9 yrs 20 +1 M/P Servitude, outcast
Traits 2 pts: Battlescars, cold-blooded, missing eye, missing hand.
Skills: 6 pts: Tactics, survival, field dressing, terrain-wise, gunpowder-wise.

Medicine man/woman 10 yrs 15 +1 M Leads…
Traits 2 pts: awkward silence, heavy smoker.
Skills: 6 pts Soothing platitudes, herbalism, herbs-wise, forest-wise, spirits-wise

Royaneh 12 yrs 35 - Leads…
Traits 2 pts: Sachem
Skills 6 pts: Great law of peace, Oratory, persuasion, Ancient history, council-wise, . 2pts: general

Old Man/Woman 15 yrs 10 +1 M Leads…
Traits 1 pts: Contemplative, weather sense, Wise aphorism.
Skills 6 pts: Observation, persuasion, any wise.

Head of the Owachira 15 yrs 30 +1 M Leads…
Traits: 2 pts.
Skills 7 pts: Almanac, Haggling, Ugly-truth, royaneh-wise, oyaron-wise.1 pts: general

Farmer 8 yrs 6 +1 P Leads…
Traits 1pts.
Skills 6 pts: Farming, weaving, cooking, potter, carpentry, crops-wise

Diplomat 5 yrs 16 +1 M Leads…
Traits 2 pts: Perfect accent
Skills 6 Foreing lenguage, Soothing platitudes, Persuasion, Intimidation, dominance-wise

Trader 6 yrs 15 +1 M Village, outcast
Traits 1 pts: always the last word, Deals with the enemy
Skills 7pts: Haggling, Foreing lenguage, Conspicuous, Falsehood, white man-wise

The number just after the years is resources…

The new traits are mostly character traits and a couple who give Affiliation/reputation with the tribe or the coucil. “Royaneh” is a fancy name for the Sachem while “owachira” refers to the matrilineal kinship and council system (im very excited to play all the politics of this systems in Burning wheel!)
a) About the native “cultural” traits is too powerful assing a trait that give an affiliation whit the tribe?
b) I’m also listening suggestions about modifications, new lifepaths or general advice. I love Burning wheel and I wish it were more popular in spanish speaking countries

Most of my “research” to make the Lp’s is from wikipedia and various random internet sites

2

Very interesting. What sources are you using for these?

3

I actually made the investigation (and these lifepaths) a couple o months ago so i can’t find all the source material, sadly, these are the ones than i remember

http://www.everyculture.com/multi/Ha-La/Iroquois-Confederacy.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iroquois
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clan_Mother
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sachem

Also the Encyclopedia of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois Confederacy) By Bruce Elliott Johansen, Barbara Alice Mann but as i say, mostly from wikipedia and various websites.
Thank for the interest!

4

FYI: I don’t have my book with me.

Since Native American Societies were Nomadic in nature, yes there were some exceptions, and tended to be hunter/gather societies the large number of resource points that get will more than likely go into Social resources. It is not a bad thing just something to keep in mind while you are running these paths.

Also with Native American tribes you researched the Iroquois it looks like but there was also Cherokee, Ioway, and a plethora of others. The thing is that they all had different cultures and hierarchy. This is a great start and could be a lot of fun. Waiting to see the colonials to start showing up and really making a mess of everything.

5

I’m by no means an expert, but my understanding is that the nations that made up the Iroquois Confederacy, and other eastern nations like the Algonquin and Powhatan (and many others) were not nomads. They were settled agriculturalists that cultivated maize, winter squash and climbing beans (though hunting and fishing were certainly important). I know the Powhatan would pick up and move their settlements when the soil was depleted, but they were still settled.

It’s one of the reasons early colonists had such an easy time (relatively). After Cholera and similar diseases wiped out huge swathes of the native population, they simply moved onto their farms and harvested crops that had already been planted.

6

I think you’re already focused your LPs on one specific region, era, and cultural group. That’s really great for avoiding pastiche and oversimplification.

The thing that sticks out most to me is that, right now, you don’t have that much space here for everyday professions. Tanners, woodworkers, fishers, et cetera. You may want to go through BWG and just copy down all the relevant crafter professions, then adjust their requirements, resources, and traits to better represent their place in society. On that same note, “hunter-gatherer” seems like it’s trying to force a label used (kinda clumsily, imo) for entire social systems into a lifepath; a straight-up “Hunter” would be a stronger and more evocative lifepath.

7

I believe you’re right, they were a very complex and very succesful politial entity and culture in general. I already re-skinned the farmer lifepath so may has well do something similar with other professions. I choose to name it “hunter-gatherer” and not “hunter” to not create confusion with the hunter (that I modified including firearms and probable a new wise) lifepath from the peasant setting but since i already repeat a farmer LP may has well change the name and stick with hunter or a proper native name.

Thanks for all the comentary, im already thinking new ways to make the native setting better, it’s supose to be a very “powerful” setting if you want to circle someone (because of its variety of professions, similar to the city setting), that should be reinforced with all the affiliation and reputations included in his unique traits to represent this highly connected society.

Im also enterteining the idea of open the lead to this setting from some settings (like slavery) or ciertains lifepaths (like outlaw in outcast and scout in soldier). I don’t know if was very common bur his a kinda popular trope (going native?). I need more research!

8

Do the LPs have requirements?

9

Yes, i will post all the requirements, new traits and skills very soon. This is what i am going with for now, i listen to suggestions or criticism
-Adulthood rites is mandatory for warrior and hunter
-Great warrior requires warrior
-Royaneh requieres Great warrior, old man/woman or diplomat
-head of the owachira can’t be the second lifepath of the character (and requires to be female)
-medicine man/woman requires tribal wife, adulthood rites or famer.

10

I think Soothing Platitudes doesn’t fit here. BWG has a skill called “Suasion,” representing giving spiritual counsel.