What unique cultures are there in Dark Sun? I’m looking for major cultures, not just places/cities/towns. I’ve got:
–Tablelands:–
Tyr
Urikite
Balican
Gulgan
Nibenese
Raamite
Drajan
Kalidnayan (Brown Age)
Yarish (Brown Age)
Celekite (Brown Age)
Giustenese (Brown Age)
Major Trading Houses
Major Elf Tribes
Major Slave Tribes
Forest Ridge Halflings
Aarakocra
Pterrans
–Trembling Plains:–
Eldaarish
Kurnish
Eloi
Bandit States
House Azeth
–Cliffs–
Rhul-Thaun
Kreen Empire
–Other–
Ur-Draxan
Last Sea Lizardfolk
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Does this include non-canon cultures? I could add a few homebrew ones
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How about the Green Age cultures mentioned in FotFN:
- the Tanysh Empire
- Carsys
- Remaan
- the Goblins (with further mention of expanded influence in SotDL; ie. as in having a kingdom or empire)
and speaking of SotDL, perhaps:
- the cities of Ulyan
** not sure on any of the other Green Age “Cleansed” races??? - but consider: Kobolds, Ogres,Trolls, Orcs, Gnomes, Wemics, Pixies, and Taris
and Blue Age cultures:
- Rhulisti (Nature-Benders and Nature-Masters)
- the Kreen
- Nikaal??
I’d also add those cultures associated with followers of the elements
-Earth, Air, Fire, and Water
as well as the (present) racial cultures:
- Kreen (outside of the Empire)
- Dwarven (with subcultures present in the Last Sea and on the Road of Fire - the Moratuc)
- Giant
- Gith
- Nikaal??
- Ssurran
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What is your goal in collecting cultures?
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Conversation? 
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I’m not sure that I’d throw the elemental religions into a “culture” bucket, as there’s nothing particularly unifying about them – they exist within their home culture, and probably all have their own variants on worship. An Elf and an Aarakocra are going about their Air worship very differently, I’d say
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I was asking because I collect write ups on cultures, more comprehensive is generally better. I’m always looking for more source material.
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Good point.
I think I had in mind the cultural bits shown in the few city-state books (specifically pertaining to the elemental cults) and the examples given in Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. I do agree with you, however, that they would pertain more to a sub-category of culture within the greater whole (as pertaining to race or city-state cultural background).
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The venerable raddu offers a sizable list. Surely the autists among us might peruse every idle mention from canon, be it the Duchy of Carador in the Outlands as mentioned by Simon Hawke, or the lasks as brought up by Denning in the Crimson Legion, but for my purposes here I would rather focus on the classic Seven Cities:
Balic, parallel to Athenian democracy (clumsily confounded with the Roman dictatorship)
Draj, parallel to Mexica Aztecs
Gulg, parallel to Yorubaland
Nibenay, parallel to Khmer Empire
Raam, parallel to Mughal Empire
Tyr, parallel to late Roman republic (clumsily confounded with Hellenic tyranny)
Urik, parallel to Babylon (perhaps specifically Akkadian Ur under Sargon’s empire)
I have long enjoyed the cultures of these cities, but for more advanced or detailed play, issues quickly enough arise. As it is my particular focus at the moment, I shall use Nibenay as an example.
As a bald parallel of the Khmer Empire and its temple-capitals, it is part of the greater Indianized culture. How much of ancient Cambodian culture are we to find in Nibenay? Are the legendary creatures of their myths real? Angkor Wat is covered in depictions of the apsaras, celestial female spirits; did these at one time exist? If not, why not, and if so, what happened to them? The Naggaramakam literally evokes the Khmer legend of the Naga King, a spirit of the land that presided over the entire area, that was said to have lived in the center temple of Angkor Wat, and one which transformed into a woman each day so that the king might mate with her to keep the world in balance. Was there such a seven (or nine) -headed naga that ruled a more ancient Nibenay at one time? Are the templars this naga somehow, or did Nibenay defeat this naga king and take its place?
How many more Khmer legends am I to find in Nibenay? Do fireballs streak from the waters like they do in the Mekong? Regarding the Crescent Forest, am I to hear legends of a Himavanta, perhaps cleverly respelled (Phuonavanta)? Is the Naggaramakam filled with Nariphon trees and Kinnaree half-bird women? Are the two monastic orders, Exalted Path and Serene Bliss, stand-ins for Hinduism and Buddhism? Are statues of Lord Garuda, common in Angkor Wat, a parallel to some ancient powerful being like Taraskir the lion demi-god? And going deeper, do the cosmological and philosophical/religious beliefs of the Khmer inform such beliefs among the Nibenese? Must I explain the existence, absence, or substitution of the Rigvedic deities, the devas, and how come their absence (or presence)?
These are meaningful questions to anyone who wishes to explore the deeper culture of Nibenay, and I would argue there are similar problem sets with all the other cities.
I will be trying to parse much of this out, especially regarding Nibenay, and I welcome any thoughts on this and similar matters.
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This talk about the intersection of religion and culture made me recall that Athas has no cool snake cults. At some point I am going to homebrew a Dark Sun inspired setting. It will have Sorcerer-Monarchs and cults led by devils and demonlords, but not true gods. Oh, and rivers. Even in the desert setting, no rivers at all really strains suspension of disbelief.
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Don’t forget Yaramuke!
I tend to stick to the culture described in the 2e Wanderer’s Journal. Considering it post-apocalyptic, so Draj as a pyramid that looks, Meso-American, so we’ll consider them Meso-american, even though they really aren’t, so to speak.
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Is that you, Austin?
Ruve are as smart as humans, yet completely inhuman.
Telepathic.
Telekinetic.
What society and culture do they have?
I’m not going to lie, I’m ignorant enough that, even with fantasy counterpart cultures given, I would have no clue how to portray the cultures.
I do appreciate that the new 3.5e stuff, mentioning the Champions recruiting from various regions, gives an explanation of so many different cultures all in such a small area.
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