Suland

The inland reaches of the Eastern Continent are dominated by wilderness, with much of the northern half of the continent split by a large river system. At the center of this is a settlement inhabited by a tribal people Dragon Quest III calls the Soo. They're clearly supposed to be based on Native Americans; when you consider that Japanese is a heavily phonetic language, "Soo" is a transliteration of how they would write "Sioux." Although the region these people inhabit isn't named, for The Saga of the Ortegids, I'm going to be calling it Suland, and its people Sulanders. "Sooland" just kind of looks goofy.

We see some elements of romanticized portrayals of Native American societies in the Soo people. They value honesty and seem self-sufficient, and have been fighting back against Edinan incursions for at least two generations. However, unlike the Great Plains tribes, they do not seem to be nomadic - they have a village of permanent timber structures, complete with farms, shops, and an inn. While this might just be for gameplay convenience, it is compelling from the perspective of a worldbuilder, as it suggests their society is not a mere copy and paste from the real world, and deserves a deeper look.

They don't have a temple, so it seems unlikely they would be followers of the Nine Gods, perhaps instead worshiping the Beast Gods. I'd wager that the Great River they live on likely plays an important role in their culture, given that it would provide easy access to most of the continent - I can certainly see multiple villages in the region trading and fishing along these waterways. Perhaps it may even be venerated as a deity, maybe as part of a greater animistic tradition.

They also have a talking horse. That doesn't really relate to anything, I just wanted to point it out. Why does the horse talk? Who knows! It's never explained. And I kind of like that sort of unashamed fairy tale logic. Sometimes, things in fantasy can just happen with no particular explanation. It makes the world seem fantastic and full of potential when you get the sense that truly anything can happen.

We can also garner some clues from how other people talk about the Soo. A noble in Edinbear describes the people as...something. You see, this is somewhere we need to look into the history of DQ3's various translations. The original NES translation outright calls them "Indians," and the same word is used in the fan translation of the SNES remake, so it seems to be what they're called in the original Japanese. For obvious reasons, and because it's a real-world reference divorced of its context (there's no "India," only Baharata), this won't do. The Game Boy version refers to "the New World of the Soo," but as previously stated, the Eastern Continent doesn't actually seem to be much of a New World - if they fought the Edinans two kings ago, it seems odd to still refer to the area as though it's a newly discovered frontier. The more recent releases, meanwhile, use the terms "barbarians" and "nomads," and this is where things get interesting.

Given how the rest of the Eastern Continent is ripe with pulp sword and sorcery tropes, a tribe of barbarians fits right in. I would argue it wouldn't be out of place to turn Suland into Robert E. Howard's Cimmeria. This is a gloomy land that seems to hold all winds and clouds and dreams that shun the sun, with dark woodlands and cloud-piled hills, inhabited by dark-haired, sullen-eyed folk hunting and warring with axe and flint-tipped spear. If the Aliahanians are the historical barbarians of the Dark Ages, with their round shields and chain hauberks, then the Sulanders are the pop cultural, axe-hefting, loincloth-wearing barbarians off the canvas of Frazetta and Vallejo. A basis in Cimmeria would be a closer match to the geography of Suland, which seems far more dominated by forests than the real-life Great Plains, and would explain the more sedentary culture we see hints of in the game. And, in writing this, I realize that there's a lot of overlap with stereotypical Native American imagery here anyway.

Alternatively, you could split the difference and base the Sulanders on Howard's Picts. Certainly the presence of settlers on their borderlands, and their conflict with foreign powers, is perfectly in keeping with some of his Pictish Wilderness stories. It's a big enough area that you could probably even draw inspiration from both with different tribes.

Art by William Stout

Other areas in Suland include:

• Aurhea's Spring: A body of water inhabited by a nature spirit who tests the honesty of travelers who drop their belongings into her pond. I've adapted this encounter here.
• Arp Tower: An abandoned tower to the southwest of the Great River. There don't seem to be many civilizations nearby that could have constructed it - it could be an ancient Aliahanian ruin, or perhaps a wizard's abode. It contains a magic flute which sends out echoes that pinpoint the locations of treasure when blown. To get it, one must climb to the top of the tower, where ropes are strung over a pit, and make a leap of faith from the right location to land on a platform below. This is one of my favorite puzzles in the game, and one I've borrowed for my own dungeons multiple times.

The Northmen

Among the most fearsome barbarians of the known world are the Northmen. Just about everywhere close to the coast has heard legends of their ferocity - if not experienced it face to face. As expert mariners, their ships have traveled far and wide across every sea, and they are merciless fighters in battle. Their name has passed into legends that speak of an invincible race of giants that descend from the coast and lay waste to everything in their path, burning villages, massacring townspeople, and carrying off riches. Although these tales are exaggerations of the truth - the Northmen are very much normal humans, if tall of stature - it speaks to the imprint these warriors have made on the world.

Traditionally, the lands of the Northmen are held to encompass anything north of the Kvessian city of Mordregaard and west of Ukiah. The true boundaries are fuzzier if one wishes to split hairs - the Kvessian ruling class is of Northmen descent, after all, and their progeny can be found further south yet - but it is these lands where the Northmen practice the way of life that has sustained their ancestors for generations.

Art by Jack Keay

The North has never been ruled under a single crown. It is the domain of countless kings, jarls, and tribes that hold stead over a few villages - some rulers are more powerful than others, but none have united the realm, and to do so would be a task not even the gods could perform, according to Northman tradition. Despite this, they share a common culture, and their languages are mutually intelligible. What unites the Northman clans are their belief in honor, martial valor, and their culture of raiding.

While they pay homage to Kerne and Kord, and while Old Faith practices are common, the Northmen hold Olmo, the god of the sea, as their chief deity, fearing him as a wrathful bringer of storms who must be appeased and placated. Many clans attempt to do so by human sacrifice, and many an unfortunate captive of the Northmen has met their end beneath the icy waters, where it is believed their soul will take the place of a Northman's in Olmo's quota so that the Northmen will not be harried at sea.

One of the most influential - and the most infamous - aspects of Northern life is the tradition of raiding. The lands of the North are poor in resources, with rocky soil and frigid winters; as such, the growing season is short and temperamental. In order to supplement their wealth, the Northmen turned to raiding along the coast during the summer months (taking advantage of warmer temperatures and longer days to navigate more comfortably), attacking seaside settlements and hoarding their treasure. The Northmen do not see such actions as immoral, as long as they do not bring harm upon one's own family.

Art by David Lozeau

As such, the Northmen began to value strength and bravery in battle to succeed in their bloody business. They became renowned as great warriors, some of them even channeling mystic power to shrug off pain in the heat of battle. It also became a point of pride for the Northmen to commit great deeds of bravery in combat, and to boast of them to advance their own status. In some Northman clans, strength alone determines authority, but even among those with traditions of nobility, it is expected that kings reward their most accomplished warriors with wealth and power. Many of these exploits pass into legend, and the Northmen are proud to count a storied hero among their ancestry, recounting familial sagas through a rich oral tradition.

In fact, the Northman tradition of raiding has led them to travel quite far from home. Most commonly, their targets are other Northman clans, or cities on the coasts of the Sea of Bartel and western Vardessy down to Sonderlund. But many Northmen, driven by greed, wanderlust, exile, or any combination of the three, have captained ships far afield. Their legacy is storied along the City-States and even as far as Quel'Ahma, and Northman treasure hoards have turned up in unexpected places.

The Northmen have a reputation in foreign ports - not entirely undeserved - as figures of terror and destruction. However, it should be noted that not all Northmen travel with hostile intent. Their expertise in seamanship and navigation has also made them great traders, and their longboats are a frequent sight at some of the richest harbors in the land. When their ships display shields on their sides, that is an indication that the Northmen have come peacefully to trade. But if there are no shields, that signals they are being held by the warriors on board - and that they have come to shed blood. That is a sight that strikes fear into many a heart.

Background: Northman

Suggested Names: Old Norse or Anglo-Saxon names.

Skill Proficiencies: History, Intimidation

Tool Proficiencies: Navigator's Tools, Vehicles (Water).

Languages: Northern

Starting Equipment: A drinking horn, a tunic and fur-lined boots, a seax (stats of a dagger), 50 feet of rope, and a pouch with 25 GP.

Feature: Ancestral Saga. You have been taught of the heroic deeds of your forefathers throughout the North and beyond. If the DM mentions a location, you can declare (with the DM's permission) that your ancestors have visited that place before; the DM will tell you any relevant information you would have gleaned from the sagas. This feature can be used for three locations in the North and one location beyond the North per campaign.

Barbarians in Golnir

The term barbarian, in much of the settled world, is understood to refer to any number of pastoral peoples living outside of feudal society who are perceived to be rough and brutish in character - Northmen, Ukians, Levics, orcs, hillfolk, and Sonderlunding Highlanders, to name a few. In Golnir, however, the term refers more generally to foreigners of any sort, or more specifically, anyone who does not speak Golniri - early traders noted that foreign languages sounded like "bar-bar-bar" noises. The Golniri elite hold that their kingdom is the epicenter of splendor, culture, and sophistication in all the known world, and have come to look down on outsiders as backwards and crude - it is this attitude that gave rise to the negative connotations of the term.

Despite this, barbarians have their place in Golnir. The kingdom has not needed to fight a large-scale foreign war in many years (civil wars are another story, of course), and the nobility has grown lax in enforcing their borders, believing that they have attained such a glorious peace through their wealth and unity as to make further military action unnecessary. As such, standing armies are rare and small in size, paling in comparison to those of their neighbors. But the strife between Golnir's feuding nobles is well-attested, and no Golniri of any notable power would be so foolish as to leave their holdings unguarded. Many have thus turned to the barbarians to supplement their ranks. Foreign mercenaries may come from far afield to enjoy respected careers in Golnir, and many bands have found steady employment under Golniri masters. For some nobles, barbarians form an important component of their forces. Some have entire companies from foreign crowns in their service, and more than one noble has found that it was more efficient to pay the neighboring clan of orcs to raid their rivals on their behalf than to deal with them themselves.

In Golnir, it is understood that there are some tasks too unsightly for the nobility to sully their hands with. They may be too dangerous, like clearing bandits from a pass, and threaten the safety of important officials should they get involved. They may be considered too lowly and dishonorable for the upper classes, like thievery, blackmail, and assassination, and it would surely be a scandal if word of such deeds got out, no matter how well they may advance one's standing (in Golnir, it is considered acceptable to go the low road to get ahead, but it is shameful if you are found out). They may be both, such as recovering loot from the catacombs of the Fedrelines. In any case, it is preferable to turn to foreigners to handle the dirty work. There is no risk to the noble Golniri sorts that way, and who cares if a couple of barbarians die in the process?

In effect, the customs of Golnir have given rise to a strange sort of economy, where barbarians are sought out to do the kind of work that the elite cannot or will not engage in openly, and this has led to many wandering mercenaries and landless knights-errant in seek of work and a roof over their heads flocking to Golnir to find a patron. Many large Golniri cities have sizeable communities of barbarians, descendants of those who came to the kingdom under such pretenses.

Another benefit of hiring barbarians is that foreigners have no stake in the cutthroat politics of Golniri nobility. Golniri citizens may be loyal to a particular count or prince, and this may prove troublesome if the nobles they are in service to develop competing interests with those whom they support. But barbarians only need to care about who is paying them, which is usually a matter where allegiances are far less fluid and there is less worry about people climbing over each other. The personal bodyguard of the queen of Golnir is made up of Northman mercenaries, chosen not only for their ferocity in battle but because there is little worry of putting people with axes so close to the head of state if they can't possibly come from families with royal ambitions.