just noticed a new page has been added to the MOrient webpage on Pandius. I assume that these are all old files and that the project is long dead?
Has anyone else done any thinking on Skothar in their campaigns?
Should the Chinese inspired cultures of Mystara be limited to Ochalea or is there room for more?
Is there any chance that there _could_ be an Empire of the Great Khan on Skothar?
Havard
Should the Chinese inspired cultures of Mystara be limited to Ochalea or is there room for more?
Is there any chance that there _could_ be an Empire of the Great Khan on Skothar?
IMO, it's already quite difficult to explain the formation of an M-Chinese culture in Ochalea, so another M-Chinese culture in a remote area would only add to the problem.
OTOH, there is space for some other Asian cultures (Indonesian e Tibetan are known to be present), possibly not the same already present on Myoshima.
Also, there should be a number of M-African cultures in Skothar, making up for their absence in Davania.
GP
Should the Chinese inspired cultures of Mystara be limited to Ochalea or is there room for more?
There's thousands of years of chinese history so there's room for at least several different aspects of China. I'm working on a history of dravya and the great northway and I'm thinking of giving the area an oriental feeling. The idea came about from reading "Myoshima, Bellayne, and things Feline" by Bruce Heard. Dravya had "portals to everyland" teleportation circles that linked the three dravyan cities. What if the name was more literal and the gates allowed for travel further afield like myoshima or maybe ochalea.
There's the Japanese raksata nomads on the yazak steppes and humaniods who worship the same immortals as the ethengar and could have a similar culture. Maybe a country like cropland could be Chinese.
Hi,
just noticed a new page has been added to the MOrient webpage on Pandius. I assume that these are all old files and that the project is long dead?
yeah it's not a "new" new file but a "new" old file.
Should the Chinese inspired cultures of Mystara be limited to Ochalea or is there room for more?
I definitely think there's room for more (of course, I'm one of those who thinks there is room for many Chinese types of cultures within Ochalea itself- based on Known World Compression notions).
Frankly, I could see squeezing some into the Isle of Dawn and onto Alphatia itself (there is little enough info on many of the Alphatian nations that- naming conventions/Mandarin-esque languages aside, existing nations could be given Chinese type flavor, which would be in keeping with the notion that the Ochaleans are Alphatian).
I think one of the great things about Mystara is that you can put cultures pretty much anywhere. I've actually developed (at least in my mind) the aboriginal Yanifey as a Mystara-Inuit analogue.
1) Divvy those areas into Known World-sized or Savage Coast-size regions.
2) Each region is a mini-setting with its own overarching theme(s), like how SC has the Red Curse and swashbuckling. An example would be a region with close ties to the Nightmare Dimension, or one that has a lot of Blackmoorian technology. Despite its apparent obsolescence, the Masters Set map's region boundaries and names might in some cases be used as inspiration.
3) Give the region a spiffy name and a logo, typically (though not necessarily) composed of two words, like "Known World" or "Savage Coast".
4) Divvy each of those regions into countries that are about the same size as countries within the KW and SC (in other words, tiny countries).
5) Base the cultures of those tiny countries on:
[INDENT]a) Real World cultures that haven't been done yet in Mystara. AND[/INDENT]
[INDENT]b) A few "invented" cultures (not clearly RW analogues) -- especially cultures tied to already-existing "invented" Mystaran cultures such as Alphatia and Cynidicea. For example, a region might have a country of Beltharian or Gammarian immigrants. AND [/INDENT]
[INDENT]c) A few elements of Laterre origin, directly tied into Clark Ashton Smith settings, like Nouvelle Averoigne. For example, a region might have one country that is an extradimensional colony from CAS' Hyperborea or Xothique. The same might be done for other Mythos writers (Robert E. Howard, H. P. Lovecraft) since Laterre is conceivably "Mythos Earth". Also, a similar thing might be done for other writers (such as Edgar Rice Burroughs) that Frank Mentzer and other Mystaran designers used for inspiration.[/INDENT]
6) Use sentient Mystara/OD&D-specific races as the basis for some of the RW-based cultures, like how the SC setting used Phanatons for Tupi-speaking Amazonian Indians, the Araneas for Canaanites, Rakastas for England, Lupins for France, Chameleon Men for Australian Aborigines, and so on.
7) All of the abovementioned principles would be tied neatly into canonical Mystaran history, though in some cases it'd be okay to do some retconning like Bruce Heard did for the Savage Coast (versus the depiction of the Southold in older modules as a mostly uninhabited wilderness).
Travis
P.S. The Hollow Moon setting in the Vaults follows several of these design principles (e.g. Principles 2, 3, 5, 6, and 7).
1) Divvy those areas into Known World-sized or Savage Coast-size regions.
2) Each region is a mini-setting with its own overarching theme(s), like how SC has the Red Curse and swashbuckling. An example would be a region with close ties to the Nightmare Dimension, or one that has a lot of Blackmoorian technology.
3) Give the region a spiffy name and a logo, typically (though not necessarily) composed of two words, like "Known World" or "Savage Coast".
4) Divvy each of those regions into countries that are about the same size as countries within the KW and SC (in other words, tiny countries).
5) Base the cultures of those tiny countries on:
[INDENT]a) Real World cultures that haven't been done yet in Mystara. AND[/INDENT]
[INDENT]b) A few "invented" cultures (not clearly RW analogues) -- especially cultures tied to already-existing "invented" Mystaran cultures such as Alphatia and Cynidicea. For example, a region might have a country of Beltharian or Gammarian immigrants. AND [/INDENT]
[INDENT]c) A few elements of Laterre origin, directly tied into Clark Ashton Smith settings, like Nouvelle Averoigne. For example, a region might have one country that is an extradimensional colony from CAS' Hyperborea or Xothique. The same might be done for other Mythos writers (Robert E. Howard, H. P. Lovecraft) since Laterre is conceivably "Mythos Earth". Also, a similar thing might be done for other writers (such as Edgar Rice Burroughs) that Frank Mentzer and other Mystaran designers used for inspiration.[/INDENT]
6) Use intelligent Mystara/OD&D-specific races as the basis for some of the RW-based cultures, like how the SC setting used Phanatons for Tupi-speaking Amazonian Indians, the Araneas for Canaanites, Rakastas for England, Lupins for France, Chameleon Men for Australian Aborigines, and so on.
7) All of the abovementioned principles would be tied neatly into canonical Mystaran history, though in some cases it'd be okay to do some retconning like Bruce Heard did for the Savage Coast (versus the depiction of the Southold in older modules as a mostly uninhabited wilderness).
Travis
P.S. The Hollow Moon setting in the Vaults follows several of these design principles (e.g. Principles 2, 3, 5, 6, and 7).
have been away for a few days since I started this thread, so it is good that it has stayed alive
I can't comment on everything right now, but I have to say I agree that there is room for more Asian/Chinese inspired cultures on Mystara. I think the MOrient group were on the right track in suggesting that most of these cultures should be located on Skothar.
Does this create complications taking into account the origins of Ochalea? Maybe. One way out of that could be the fact that "Chinese" is a term that describes quite a wide range of cultures. Looking at an ethno-linguistic map of China ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:China_ethnolinguistic_83.jpg ), I note that Han Chinese, which I guess(?) is what Ochalea is most similar to, only makes up about half of what is modern day China. I am sure that can be further diversified. According to the Wikipedia article, the rest of China is strongly influenced by Han culture aswell. Perhaps Ochalea could have had a similar effect on large portions of Skothar without actually occupying it?
We already know that large portions of the eastern mountains of Skothar contain Tibetan-style Rakastas, possibly other Tibet influenced cultures as well.
I am also not totally abandoning the Empire of the Great Khan. Most of this community seems to disregard(?) this concept since we already have a mongolian nation in the Known World, but how about this theory: The Great Khan is a historical (or current) adventurer from Ethengar who founded an empire on Skothar? Another alternative is that the empire is named after Akkilah-Khan or a similar humanoid who went to Skothar in his later days. The size of the actual empire could (should) ofcourse be reduced compared to the Mentzer map.
Havard
I prefer that unmapped areas of Mystara be developed according to these principles:
Overall, I really love these ideas Travis! Lets look at them in detail
1) Divvy those areas into Known World-sized or Savage Coast-size regions.
OldDawg did a good job with this in the Systemless Guide preview. The regions may still be a little large, but it could be a good starting point.
2) Each region is a mini-setting with its own overarching theme(s), like how SC has the Red Curse and swashbuckling. An example would be a region with close ties to the Nightmare Dimension, or one that has a lot of Blackmoorian technology. Despite its apparent obsolescence, the Masters Set map's region boundaries and names might in some cases be used as inspiration.
Excellent ideas! I love the concept of overarching themes. Using already existing Mystaran concepts which currently lack a focus as in the examples you mention would be a great way to preserve the "Mystaran" flavour and giving each region a distinct identity....
3) Give the region a spiffy name and a logo, typically (though not necessarily) composed of two words, like "Known World" or "Savage Coast".
I like the idea of logos. It gives us a fun opportunity to poke around with Photoshop. How about using the names from OldDawg/Mentzer, but adding conceptual names like Red Steel?
4) Divvy each of those regions into countries that are about the same size as countries within the KW and SC (in other words, tiny countries).
Good point. There should be room enough for every good idea a Mystara fan could come up with if we make the countries KW country size rather than making new areas into gigantic megaliths.
5) Base the cultures of those tiny countries on:
[INDENT]a) Real World cultures that haven't been done yet in Mystara. AND[/INDENT]
Good.
[INDENT]b) A few "invented" cultures (not clearly RW analogues) -- especially cultures tied to already-existing "invented" Mystaran cultures such as Alphatia and Cynidicea. For example, a region might have a country of Beltharian or Gammarian immigrants. AND [/INDENT]
Indeed. Hmmm...this gives us a chance to revisit some old modules that are set on other planes etc and make them more directly relevant for Mystara. "Where Chaos Reigns" and "Five Coins for a Kingdom" are a couple of examples of such realms.
[INDENT]c) A few elements of Laterre origin, directly tied into Clark Ashton Smith settings, like Nouvelle Averoigne. For example, a region might have one country that is an extradimensional colony from CAS' Hyperborea or Xothique. The same might be done for other Mythos writers (Robert E. Howard, H. P. Lovecraft) since Laterre is conceivably "Mythos Earth". Also, a similar thing might be done for other writers (such as Edgar Rice Burroughs) that Frank Mentzer and other Mystaran designers used for inspiration.[/INDENT]
I'm a little ambivalent to LaTerre, but if done right it could work very well, especially if focusing on the Mythos-ish aspects and using names like Averoigne and Fenwick rather than "France" or "England"...
6) Use sentient Mystara/OD&D-specific races as the basis for some of the RW-based cultures, like how the SC setting used Phanatons for Tupi-speaking Amazonian Indians, the Araneas for Canaanites, Rakastas for England, Lupins for France, Chameleon Men for Australian Aborigines, and so on.
Yep. Lupins and Rakasta have already been given (Rightfully so) quite large terretories, but many of the other races could also be given more than one country/culture of their own. And lets not forget the Dwarves and Halflings in the process.
Also, is there room for both a human and a non-human variant of more or less the same culture? For instance, do Japanese Feudal Rakasta mean there cannot be Japanese Feudal humans somewhere else?
Thanks for sharing these thoughts Trav!
Havard
OldDawg did a good job with this in the Systemless Guide preview. The regions may still be a little large, but it could be a good starting point.
Where can I find this document?
How about using the names from OldDawg/Mentzer, but adding conceptual names like Red Steel?
Yeah, I envision there could be names like "Nentsun: The NIGHTMARE PENINSULA".
Also, is there room for both a human and a non-human variant of more or less the same culture? For instance, do Japanese Feudal Rakasta mean there cannot be Japanese Feudal humans somewhere else?
There are examples of RW cultures that are multiply represented in Mystara such as Egypt (Thothia, Nithia, ancient Ylaruam), India (Sind, Jaibul, Shahjapur, Rajahstan), Balkans (Traladara, Boldavia, City States). Still, I think its better to first use RW-cultures that haven't been done yet.
Travis
I can't comment on everything right now, but I have to say I agree that there is room for more Asian/Chinese inspired cultures on Mystara. I think the MOrient group were on the right track in suggesting that most of these cultures should be located on Skothar.
I have a different perspective. Patera clearly contains Mystara's "Oriental Adventures" region. If the Mystara product line had survived for another ten years or so, there'd likely have been a boxed set for Petera as a subsetting (perhaps something like INVISIBLE MOON or SPIRIT MOON). I think its redundant to make another Oriental-themed region when there's already a canonical region with that overarching theme.
Patera would contain mostly Asian-style cultures, but there might be some non-Asian-style cultures that fit with other themes of that subsetting.
However, for other regions, I prefer there typically be a KW/SC/HW-style grab-bag of European, Asian, African, Oceanian, and American cultures.
Travis
I have a different perspective. Patera clearly contains Mystara's "Oriental Adventures" region. If the Mystara product line had survived for another ten years or so, there'd likely have been a boxed set for Petera as a subsetting (perhaps something like INVISIBLE MOON or SPIRIT MOON). I think its redundant to make another Oriental-themed region when there's already a canonical region with that overarching theme.
This gave me a strange/weird/rather silly thought that Patera would be a perfect place to have oriental 'wire-fu' style games utilizing the moon's weaker gravity. :P
I have a different perspective. Patera clearly contains Mystara's "Oriental Adventures" region. If the Mystara product line had survived for another ten years or so, there'd likely have been a boxed set for Petera as a subsetting (perhaps something like INVISIBLE MOON or SPIRIT MOON). I think its redundant to make another Oriental-themed region when there's already a canonical region with that overarching theme.
Patera would contain mostly Asian-style cultures, but there might be some non-Asian-style cultures that fit with other themes of that subsetting.
Interesting idea. I really like the name "Spirit Moon" BTW..
I don't know if I would rule out some Asian cultures on Skothar though. We already have canon suggesting a Tibetan realm. OTOH, the Tangor area is more likely African-derived.
However, for other regions, I prefer there typically be a KW/SC/HW-style grab-bag of European, Asian, African, Oceanian, and American cultures.
Hmmm...I don't know. While I am not suggesting there shouldnt be exceptions, I would prefer some overarching cultural themes to each region. The Known World is mostly European anyway, and the Savage Coast always felt mainly Spanish/Post-Colonian Latin American to me even though many countries there don't fit under that label.
Havard
I don't know if I would rule out some Asian cultures on Skothar though. We already have canon suggesting a Tibetan realm. OTOH, the Tangor area is more likely African-derived.
While some culture from RW Asia can be found in Skothar (not only the Tibetan Tagh, but also the Jennites and the M-Indonesian Sherkasta and Cloud Pardasta). It's also likely that other M-Asiatic cultures exist for the Lynxmen and Snow Pardasta (possibly M-Siberian and/or M-Nepalese), Travis' reasoning is IMO sound.
A large part of Skothar (basically, the eastern part) should indeed be reserved for M-African cultures, that have little space in Davania, and are also present in canon (Tangor, and the culture of origin of the Gombar and Suma'a Ogrekin).
We also have the Minaean coast, which has a (vaguely) Mediterranean feel, and the bay of Thorin (what remains of Thonia).
Hmmm...I don't know. While I am not suggesting there shouldnt be exceptions, I would prefer some overarching cultural themes to each region. The Known World is mostly European anyway, and the Savage Coast always felt mainly Spanish/Post-Colonian Latin American to me even though many countries there don't fit under that label.
You are right indeed -- though the SC has the Latin American feel only in the Baronies, as the rest is clearly European, and the western part is Middle Eastern (Herath, Nimmur, Eshu).
Also, the KW has its share of exceptions: Ylaruam, Atruaghin, the Broken Lands and Ethengar are definitely non-European, and Ierendi is modern Hawaii.
However, note that Skothar is too large to be locked in a single cultural area. There are at least five such areas: Tangor, Minaea, the Bay of Thorin, Nentsun (for which, BTW, there's a nice take by our Iulius Scaevola), and the Steppes of Jen (including Esterhold). Plus, there's a buch of M-Asian cultures more or less in the middle of the continent.
GP
I don't know if I would rule out some Asian cultures on Skothar though.
I wouldn't rule them out either. You and Agathokles have listed several canonical Asian ties to Skothar. However, I'd still leave them as secondary elements within regions having other overarching themes, while leaving Patera as the paramount Asian-themed region of the Mystara Campaign Setting. Just as the presence of two canonical African cultures on the Serpent Peninsula doesn't mean that the SP should be the Africa-themed region instead of Tangor.
While I am not suggesting there shouldnt be exceptions, I would prefer some overarching cultural themes to each region. The Known World is mostly European anyway, and the Savage Coast always felt mainly Spanish/Post-Colonian Latin American to me even though many countries there don't fit under that label.
Yep, I do recognize there is a theme of the SC as a "New World" versus the KW as "Old World".
Travis
You are right indeed -- though the SC has the Latin American feel only in the Baronies, as the rest is clearly European, and the western part is Middle Eastern (Herath, Nimmur, Eshu).
Also the Ottoman Empire (Hule) which is not just European, but "Euro-afro-asian", Australian Aborigines (Wallara), Amazonian Indians (Jibaru), and American Old West (Cimarron County)! And at least one product considered the Serpent Peninsula to be a part of the SC, which would give two African cultures (Ulimwengu = Pygmies; Yavdlom = Swahili Coast).
Also, the KW has its share of exceptions: Ylaruam, Atruaghin, the Broken Lands and Ethengar are definitely non-European, and Ierendi is modern Hawaii.
Besides those (and Sind, which later products considered to be part of the KW), there's some additional smaller exceptions: The M-Tibetan Village of Lhamsa in Glantri, the M-Carib Caymen in the Blight Swamp of western Karameikos (from AC2), and the M-Melanesian Kara Kara of the Isle of Dread (though I know that's only debatably part of the KW).
However, note that Skothar is too large to be locked in a single cultural area. There are at least five such areas: [snip]
I agree. A couple others would be Zyxl and a region comprising the area of the "Empire of the Great Khan".
A large part of Skothar (basically, the eastern part) should indeed be reserved for M-African cultures, that have little space in Davania, and are also present in canon (Tangor, and the culture of origin of the Gombar and Suma'a Ogrekin).
Based on those canonical bits, it does seem reasonable that the region of the "Empire of Tangor" from the Masters Set have Africa as one of its themes. Another inspiration might be Edgar Rice Burroughs' Beyond the Farthest Star Soviet science-fiction story, since Mentzer admitted that's the source of the name "Tangor". If we were WotC (instead of fans), we could actually purchase rights to use elements of ERB's novels in Mystara in the same way that TSR acquired the right to use CAS's stories in Mystara. In that case, the region might include an extradimensional colony from the planet Poloda with sci-fi technology (underground railroads, plastic airplanes, compact cards, uni-sex clothing, exploding bullets, and solar energy) nestled among the M-African countries -- like Nouvelle Averoigne and Klantyre within the KW.
Even though this "Empire of Tangor" region (or whatever it would be called) is huge, it could still be divvied into a bunch of KW/SC-sized countries (or at least as small as the Alphatian dominions). Still, the ratio of African countries in Tangor might not be greater than the ratio of European countries in the KW. And there might be separate countries for African demihumans, goblinoids, and fey -- the African equivalents of Rockhome, Alfheim, the Five Shires, Wendar, Shadowelf Caverns, the Good Kingdom, and the Broken Lands.
Similar principles might be applied to Asian Patera.
Travis
I am also not totally abandoning the Empire of the Great Khan. Most of this community seems to disregard(?) this concept since we already have a mongolian nation in the Known World
Could it be actually the "Empire of the Great Jennite "Khan"?
And at least one product considered the Serpent Peninsula to be a part of the SC, which would give two African cultures (Ulimwengu = Pygmies; Yavdlom = Swahili Coast).
I'm not sure if Yavdlom should be M-Swahili Coast. Or, actually, not just it
There are some names that suggests other african cultures, such as Ekundayo (Yoruba) and N'Goro (Angola). There are possibly many others but, unfortunately, I know quite little about this subject. But at least having both helps a lot our Verdan culture to be more like RW Portuguese/Brazilian, especially because there is a verdan village called Cafundó (a bantu word) ;)
GP suggested that the Simbasta are good candidates for being M-Swahili, and this could mean that they got their language from yavi colonists in Davania or pehaps through trade.
I think a Khoi-San language is a good idea for Ulimwengu, which is somewhat (if not completely) unrelated to the rest of the tanagoro people at the Serpent Peninsula. That makes me wonder if the Kalimari are humans at all or pehaps dark skinned halflings...
I guess this means that the peoples of Tangor pehaps speak Nilo-Saharian languages. I guess Gombar and Suma'a could be a good place for confirm or not this idea, but unfortunately I simply don't know enough about these languages for that. OTOH, if the names of the cities at Gombar and Suma'a are rather bantu, pehaps that's because the yavis lived for some time at the AotI, and those who never returned to the Serpent Peninsula migrated to the west?
And just to make it clear, I'm not attempt to make any of these cultures a exact mystaran equivalent of RW cultures, I'm just trying to understand what Tangor should be, based on what others tanagoro cultures look like ;)
I'm in favor of the "Empire of the Great Khan", being replaced in eastern Skothar, past the Jennite steppes. This empire would be basically Chinese in flavor, though. Remember, China at the time of Marco Polo was ruled by the Mongols, though Kublai Khan allowed the Chinese to keep their cultural identity. I figure a similar concept could be followed here. The people would perhaps be a mixture of Jennite and Cypri-Alphatians from Ochalea. The culture could be imported from Ochalea.
As to how it was imported, I figure that this culture should have at least one unique Immortal of their own, perhaps Ochalean in his/her mortal life, who encouraged a group of his people to migrate to Skothar, maybe even visiting Ethengar as well. This Immortal would be concerned with protecting his people from invaders, and thus would have created a "great wall" to protect against the more aggressive Jennites, and, borrowing from the MOrient project, some sort of powerful illusion to protect them against the Alphatians (which would also explain the "wrong names" comment from Champions of Mystara--since the Great Khan's empire would be hidden and unknown). This illusion could have been dispelled during or after the events of Wrath of the Immortals.
This Immortal and possibly successor Immortals from the culture over time, created a lot of unique creatures as servitor races: lung dragons, spirit folk, nezumi, vanara, korobukuru, hengeyokai, oni, and other creatures from Oriental Adventures. Evil creatures such as kappa, gaki, hopping vampires, tasloi, and so on could be created by either a new Immortal of Entropy or an existing one. The hidden and isolationist nature of this culture explains why these creatures are not found anywhere else on Mystara, and likewise explains the absence of traditional western races like elves, dwarves, halflings, etc. Possible Mystaran extant creatures that could be present: rakasta, gold dragons, lupins, guardian warriors, jade dragons, jade living statues, bhut, pachydermion and aranea.
Or you could use this excelent fan-made Gazetteer wrote by GP for Ochalea instead ;)
Yeah, I saw that and it is pretty good, but I feel Mystara needs more than just Ochalea for Asian-styled adventures.
(don't get me started on Patera)Yeah, I saw that and it is pretty good, but I feel Mystara needs more than just Ochalea for Asian-styled adventures.
I do agree that Ochalea does not cover all the possible Asian-themed settings, but, in addition to Ochalea, we do have Patera (6,000,000 inhabitants, covering M-versions of India, Burma, the Philippines, Borneo, Singapore and Japan), Sind and Shajahpur (two more versions of India), Ethengar and the Yellow Orcs (Mongolia), part of the Midlands (former Soviet Asia nations), the Skotharian Rakasta tribes (Indonesia and Tibet), and the Jennites (both in the HW and in the OW, more steppe nomads).
Specifically for M-Chinese cultures, Ochalea is already pretty underdeveloped, so I don't really see the need for more M-Chinese nations -- it's not like Ochalea hasn't got space for several different takes on China.
However, to each his own...
GP
I do agree that Ochalea does not cover all the possible Asian-themed settings, but, in addition to Ochalea, we do have Patera (6,000,000 inhabitants, covering M-versions of India, Burma, the Philippines, Borneo, Singapore and Japan), Sind and Shajahpur (two more versions of India), Ethengar and the Yellow Orcs (Mongolia), part of the Midlands (former Soviet Asia nations), the Skotharian Rakasta tribes (Indonesia and Tibet), and the Jennites (both in the HW and in the OW, more steppe nomads).
Specifically for M-Chinese cultures, Ochalea is already pretty underdeveloped, so I don't really see the need for more M-Chinese nations -- it's not like Ochalea hasn't got space for several different takes on China.
However, to each his own...
GP
I dislike Patera because it's an invisible moon populated by nonhumans. I want a human asian culture, one that can sport samurai and ninja and wu-jen and shukenja. The rakasta are a cool race, but I think WAY too much attention was paid to them in late Mystara products, and I think it's silly that the only japanese culture in the setting is a bunch of furries from space and I'm told it should stay that way.
I dislike Patera because it's an invisible moon populated by nonhumans. I want a human asian culture, one that can sport samurai and ninja and wu-jen and shukenja. The rakasta are a cool race, but I think WAY too much attention was paid to them in late Mystara products, and I think it's silly that the only japanese culture in the setting is a bunch of furries from space and I'm told it should stay that way.
I actually like furries from space :P
And, if you think about it:
(a) furries are quite appropriate to an M-japanese setting (you'd have hengeyoukai anyway, and they do give a manga/anime feel),
(b) another M-China in Skothar is not going to modify the fact that there is a single M-Japan, and,
(c) England is only represented by a Rakasta nation in the Savage Coast :D
So, if your interest is simply in a setting where the oriental classes can be used with humans, then I'd say Ochalea is the right place (of course, you'll have chujen, dang-ki and tong affiliates instead of samurai, shukenja and ninja, but it is the same in Shou Lung or Tou Lung).
OTOH, it you actually want an M-Japan populated by humans, central Skothar is probably not the right place. Zyxl has been proposed (and is indeed the most likely choice), but there are the usual continuity problems (how could two M-Japanese cultures develop in such remote places?), unless one pulls another Laterran transfer.
GP