How cultural different a fantasy campaign inspired by the roman era would play out, beside the army and guards being legionaries?
This is important for reasons
>>44407983
Go watch "Something Funny Happened On The Way To The Forum". For a Borsht Belt musical comedy it gets a lot right.
>>44407983
subjugated people, religious minorities and enemies of the state would be killed off in gruesome fashion in a big colosseum.
Well, the important things to remember about the Romans are what they had a habit of doing when they conquered people, as that's what would shape the fantasy setting, as well as real life.
The first thing is that everywhere Roman armies went, they built the world's first proper roads, connecting previously isolated people with a larger community. Along with this, they'd build various marvels of engineering, such as aqueducts along the way. Famously, Pontiac Pilate took money from a Jewish temple to do so.
Further, unlike future conquerers, the Romans didn't give two shit who you worshipped so long as you paid your taxes. However, they would insist on trying to "link" similar gods together. To use Judaism as an example, they'd basically go, "Oh hey, guys, couldn't help but notice you worship a sky god. We do too! They must be the same guy! Tell you what, we're gonna build a new temple to Jupiter-Yahwe for you guys to worship them!"
So, out on the edges of the empire, you have cultural erosion as Romans move in and build their shit everywhere and try to get filthy barbarians to wear tunics without pants like civilized people, teach everyone Latin, and start replacing people's gods when possible.
For an example of fantasy Rome, Valyria is a good example.
Play vanilla rome total war and find out
>>44408402
>Further, unlike future conquerers, the Romans didn't give two shit who you worshipped so long as you paid your taxes. However, they would insist on trying to "link" similar gods together. To use Judaism as an example, they'd basically go, "Oh hey, guys, couldn't help but notice you worship a sky god. We do too! They must be the same guy! Tell you what, we're gonna build a new temple to Jupiter-Yahwe for you guys to worship them!"
Quaint, I remember hearing something about.. the persecution of christians sometime.
But I suppose that must have never happened, like the holocaust.
>>44408402
That sounds pretty good for basics. Thanks.
>>44408402
Carthage did all that first.
Persia did it before them.
>>44407983
Slavery is the norm. Slaves are everywhere. I'm not sure what laws or traditions existed regarding the treatment of slaves but you'll want to look into that and hammer it into any of your lawful stupid players.
>>44408533
Yes. I was planning on doing this. Lawful Neutral Slavery, they're not paid but they're well treated and have several lawful ways to buy their freedom, such as paying their debt or army enrollment.
>>44407983
"Contractual religion" is the big one. Mars isn't worshiped out of love, or because he'll be one's saviour in the afterlife. Sacrifices to him are payment for divine services, either as a general "keep the crops and children coming" deal or a specific pact like "if we beat Hannibal today I'll build you a temple".
It's also worth noting that almost all of the principal Roman deities have serious influence over agriculture, fertility, and war.
>>44408451
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_ancient_Rome
Here, read something basic other than religious texts.
The Romans left most religions be as long as they paid taxes. The Judeo Monothiesms weren't prosecuted for worshipping others, in fact huge amounts of Romans converted to Christianity, and the Roman Empire became officially Christian later. They WERE persecuted in part because many Christians who were later declared saints tried to oppose Roman laws/interests. Romans were more concerned with political interests than any religion.
Christian Kingdoms in Europe that arose later...they weren't as forgiving over beliefs. They weren't as strict as common media stuff shows, but large minority religions were impressed in Empires.
>>44407983
Why don't any of the barbarians have weapons?
>>44408715
It's a way of conveying their powerlessness against the might of Rome
>>44408451
Christians were persecuted, you are correct. They were seen as troublemakers who disturbed the peace. They had the unique pleasure of being one of only two banned religions in the empire, the other being the druids.
What I was referring to was the fact that Romans didn't just tear down foreign temples and kill all the non-Roman priests when they conquered a place.
>>44407983
Important in understanding Rome is that "Roman" wasn't an ethnic group. Similar to how "American" is understood today, the term "Roman" was a product of Civic nationalism, in this case to the city of Rome. The "Roman" citizenry consisted of numerous Latin people's, as well as some non-Latins such as Greeks, Phoenecians and Iberians. You usually earned citizenship as a Non-Latin through military service, which is why you see so many Germanic tribes joining the Roman military in an attempt to be officially "Roman".
So a Fantasy Roman can be of almost any race, as long as they adhere to Roman traditions and values.
Thanks, cool thread.
Just remember to throw in some invulnerable orc Gauls and you're golden.
>>44408579
The treatment of slaves depended on the market. I mean, after Rome conquered someone and made lots of slaves, they were cheap, easily replaced when it came to manual labor and house keeping.
But if there were few at the local market, one had to make sure his slaves lasted longer, and if this went long enough, laws could be made to ensure it.
The concept of universal liberty doesn't exist. Liberty itself exists, and is strongly associated with having slaves instead of being one. A former slave would agree with that.
They had a form of psychological warfare in which a ritual would "imprision" the god of their besieged enemies, at a time when every hill-fort would worship a particular hero or ancestral as a god. Enslaving their's supernatural entity of choice meant they were fucked forever.
>>44408451
>I remember hearing something about.. the persecution of christians sometime.
For their first five hundred years, the Romans did not persecute Christians, because they did not yet exist. Then this rabble rouser comes along and gets a previously cooperative region all worked up, gets convicted and crucified, and still manages to keep people worked up enough that they start popping up *everywhere*, won't pay their taxes, and keep exciting even more rabble. Bunch of criminals, all of them. "Persecution" suggests there weren't good reasons to feed a few to the lions.
Of course, a couple centuries later those same loons were running the Empire, moved the capital east to Constantine's old digs, and generally allowed the western Empire to go to shit.
The eastern part of the Empire lasted another thousand years until being overrun by an entirely new desert loon's followers, but not before being mobbed by their long-forgotten western relatives at least once.
Persecution. Sure. They had to be strapped to the hood of the car for a road trip before they could earn the right to drive it instead.
The literati and philosopher classes were down to earth sophists while the pagan gods worshiped by the romans were more materialism and sensuality oriented.
The fashion and relatively open sexuality of our time has more in common in theme with ancient Rome than with medieval Paris.
>>44409287
Do you want me to dump my ancient fantasy folder?
The gods were dicks and had to be paid for services rendered both now and in the future. Mortals could become gods, the Emperor and his Sol Invictus cult for one thing.
Cults dedicated to the mysteries and reference for a particular god was also pretty important.
The Mediterranean sea during the height of the empire was at complete peace.
Rome the city survived and prospered on conquest and tribute of defeated cities. The grain for the citizens often being subsidized by the wheat of Egypt. In good times this was no problem but the theme of an ever demanding and capricious mob that could be roused for political purposes can be ingrained into the campaign.
>>44409433
please do
>>44409433
please do
>>44407983
>roman era
A lot more butt stuff happens. Not the lady kind either.
>>44407983
Legionares were for the most part not guards.
Also Auxilia. Auxilia everywere.
>>44409497
Ok. Be warned that a lot of it is real stuff which didn't look out of place in fantasy, like overcompensating war galleys.
>>44410354
>>44410368
>>44407983
>>44410390
>>44410412
>>44410429
>>44410452
>>44410478
>>44410499
>>44410596
>>44410611
>>44407983
Well, they'd build an empire, subjugate the lizardmen, steal their necromancy, then almost destroy the world with it.
Name one woman of Rome who fought, as a warrior, commander, or gladiator.
>>44410708
>>44410721
>>44410741
It should be noted that the romans came very very close to losing on numerous occasions on their way to the top of the western world. Inferiority complex like defence of the greatness of your rome should be a thing.
A good example of this would be the early roman/gaul interactions, causing their armed forces to reform.
>>44410766
>>44410806
>>44410822
>>44410841
>>44408402
>>44408451
>>44408478
Besides Christianity, druids and several Egyptian cults were also banned. Roman society had no problem censoring religion if they thought it was incompatible with their existing way of life
>>44410889
>>44410910
Primary reason the romans tended to ban anything was if it challanged their authority.
Celts got the short end of the stick since their druids contained the majority of their cultural identity, and the romans had a serious hate boner for them for past humiliations.
>>44410950
don't fuck with roman dragons
>>44410973
>>44410965
And they also were what came closest to political unification among gaul's tribes. Destroying them was a big divide-and-conquer move.
>>44411039
>>44411055
>>44411070
to the guy posting all these roman pics: thank you. i've looking for something like this for a campaign set in the roman republic.
>>44411111
>>44411111
Get out of here, Carthage, you're not Roman.
>>44411134
>>44411120
You're welcome.
>buildings' diagrams to use as combat grids is of interest?
>>44411164
>>44410965
I'm in agreement with you. If I remember correctly s
The phonecian deities were censored for similar reasons.(the child sacrifice thing didn't help either)
My point being that Roman religious tolerance only stretched so far as it was useful to Roman society.
>>44411176
>>44411164
everything is of interest!
>>44411203
>>44411221
>>44411297
>>44411316
I love this image. This is how amazons would look if they existed in real life, using equipment similiar to minoans/bronze age/trojan war. Even the cape and her hair follow this.
>>44411400
>>44411412
>>44411431
>>44411447
>>44411464
>>44411485
>>44411503
>>44411522
>>44410695
Bellona Achillia
>>44411538
Got any more roman faces for character portraits?
does anybody have a good picture to use for an emperor?
i need him to look 30ish, dark hair is preferred.
>>44411562
>>44411578
The only one you need.
;)
>>44411710
>>44411687
Does this works?
>>44411750
>>44411774
>>44411750
it's a nice picture, but it's not what i'm looking for, he looks too ancient
contributing with some clibanarii
>>44411786
>>44411798
Sorry, that's what I had.
>>44411687
>>44411829
>>44411829
no problem, i'll post some more romans, maybe someone will have a good picture for an emperor
>>44411864
>>44411842
yes!
that is perfectly what i had in mind for this emperor!
thank you, here's a sort of northern looking fantasy roman
>>44411885
>>44411911
>>44411936
>>44411963
>>44411984
>>44411898
and a statue
>>44411998
>>44409415
>>44412077
>>44412095
>>44412109
>>44412118
>>44411400
Actually not quite. Amazons were believed to have been barbarians who lived in the Pontic Steppes. It's thought that they (and for that matter Centaurs) might've been based on stories of the Sarmatians, who are known for (like the Scythians) having had some female warriors and warchiefs and (from what I've read) something approaching relative gender equality -- which, to a culture as patriarchal as that of the Greeks, would've seemed like a hardcore ultra matriarchy.
>>44412140
>>44412143
I know, I meant that if the amazons as they were portrayed by ancient greeks were real, this is what they would look like.
>>44412143
>>44411400
This is what they would've looked like, except with only one tit (because Herodotus said they cut their right breast to help their archery IIRC).
>>44412180
>>44412228
>>44412244
>>44412186
>because Herodotus said they cut their right breast to help their archery IIRC).
>Herodotus said
Found your problem. If you really get to a point where some idiot suggests lopping a tit off, you can bind your tits. Let's not propagate this any further.
>>44412303
female gaul clothing
>>44412269
I wasn't propagating anything though, as the amazons didn't actually exist outside of Herodotus's fictional exaggerated descriptions of Indo-Iranian nomads. I was just saying, and also posting a picture. I hadn't read >>44412180 when I posted.
>>44412361
>>44412377
>>44412361
Mostly I just wanted to post Caesar from Asterix.
>>44412415
>>44412431
Fair enough, more Asterix is always good.
>>44412321
This pic is how I imagine goblins make a huge fortified hut instead of a village, and expand it with tunnels.
>>44412269
>Dissing one of the best primary sources the western hemisphere ever had
Herodotus was the first guy to record this sort of stuff and regard it with critical thinking. He reproduced this info, but it didn't mean he believed on it.
There is some incorrect stuff on his writing, but it is a treasure of history, both the author and the literature.
>>44412478
Greek art wasn't so whitish as renaissance folks thought, traces of paint were found. They really painted those things like an old hooker face.
>>44412532
Should I cut down on the real life s
>>44412559
Here, to plan a grid defending the gate against the barbarian hordes.
>>44412478
It's also Herodotus, so I'll disrespect it with reckless abandon to whatever value I COULD attest to his work.
>>44412586
minotaur auxilia
>>44412606
>>44412631
>>44412603
Why?
>>44412475
Sarmatian waifu.
>>44412652
>>44412652
Because of
>>>/his/
>>44412750
>>44412774
>>44412762
Didn't get it. Do they diss out Herodotus there?
>>44410695
>Name one woman of Rome who fought, as a warrior, commander, or gladiator.
>Gladiator
The Gladiatrixes were an entire group of women gladiators. Mostly noblewomen too. Very, very few fights to the death, granted, but it was an all women gladiator core.
>>44412828
>>44412847
>>44412865
>>44412891
>>44412828
It was more complicated than that at some point. Some people were being purposefully obtuse with quotations from Herodotus and taking threads on needless tangents about him. He should be left to his own worth, like all interpreters of history.
No fucking clue what's going on in there now. Probably something regarding spooks.
I'm sorry. I have a compulsion to post these in Roman Threads. I'm sorry.
>>44412606
I like the look on his face. Expressive without going full furry.
>>44412978
>>44412978
How could you?
>>44412606
I could imagine minotaurs living in old ruins and abandoned places
>>44413018
I'm sorry because I always have to end with this one.
>>44413080
This would be such a great piece but holy shit those boobs
>>44413080
Jokes on you I'll just appreciate the fact that someone wanted to draw roman legionnaires.
>>44412905
>>44412945
Fair enough. BTW, it was Hippocrates which said amazons cut their breast.
http://perseus.uchicago.edu/perseus-cgi/citequery3.pl?dbname=GreekFeb2011&query=Hipp.%20Aer.%2017&getid=2
>>44412992
Agreed. Considering the author posts at deviantart, she probably was thinking the same.
>>44413072
Since you posted minoan era.. an ancient fantasy campaign could have them ocupying the "cyclopic" ruins and such left from before the greek dark ages, hititte collapse etc.
>>44413215
Pic is a method of roman mining, and just the sort of nasty surprise I want to 'reward' players with
>>44413121
There is a dartfag which draws realistic-looking warrior women, including ancient. Should I post it?
>>44413215
SOMATA-PHOO-LATA STRATA-GAY-YOU
>>44413274
>>44413274
>There is a dartfag which draws realistic-looking warrior women, including ancient. Should I post it?
Not that anon but yes.
>>44413293
>>44413291
How do you know my real name?
>>44413215
Yes, we can't really hold either one of them responsible for writing down what people believed in or what was thought at the time.
But it's an easy, amusing way for simplifying historical accounts into characters that we do not have to consider as having been entirely human just like ourselves.
>>44413319
Ok
>>44413324
>>44413365
Agreed.
>>44413541
>>44413574
>>44413599
>>44413319
>>44413639
>>44413319
Why the fuck 4chan goes from no check to three times choosing the same fucking road signs now?
>>44413755
Anons, I'm having trouble here.
I'll finish posting the images in the morning.
>>44408402
>they built the world's first proper roads
>what is persia
>>44413755
>>44413821
4chan does that these days. It also loads super slow, and sometimes just doesn't work for no apparent reason (for me at least). The captcha system seems almost broken desu.
http://www.pompeiana.org/Resources/Ancient/Graffiti%20from%20Pompeii.htm
I guess this is obligatory then?
A half decent fantasy series based on Ancient Rome is the Codex Alera series. It's not the best written series in the world, but it's enjoyable and has a good mix of Roman culture (changed over the course of 2000 years) and high fantasy.
The premise is basically that the Legio IX Hispana was transported to the world of Carna, which is like a dimensional dumping ground for various creatures. Each intelligent species that landed there developed some kind of magical ability, with humans (of both Roman and Germanic stock) bonding with spirits to gain elemental magic. The lead character is the only human to not have any Furies (spirits) at his disposal.
Other races include the Marat (Neanderthals), who bond with living creatures to take on some of their characteristics. Canim, which are basically giant wolf-men with a small minority of blood mages. Ice Men, who are basically yetis with snow powers.
It's pretty cool in places, though there are some bits that reek of plot armour. Still, a decent read if you want some Roman High Fantasy.
Are there any good Roman splatbooks, for any game?
>>44414372
I don't even know, but I'm almost certain there's one for GURPS.
>>44414247
Might try it. Also, I heard there's a series of mystery novels set in the Roman Empire written by Lindsey Davis. I don't know if they're any good, anyone read them?
>>44414372
weird wars rome for savage worlds
