http://www.peldor.com/world/gridgeo.gif
Now as you can see if you follow the link, it shows most of the area of Zindia as desert. Does anyone know if this is "official"? That is, does this desert appear on the '83 Glossography map that it was based on?
I'm 3,000 miles from my copy of the Glossography (in India by strange coincidence) - so any help would be appreciated.
P.
Given the original map was B&W, it's difficult to make out anything apart from mountain ranges.
However, methink they based the desert on the latitudes shown on the map. The temperature range in that area *could* warrant a desert. Then again, it could warrant a subtropical jungle too, so...
Actually I made that map several years before the Dragon Annual map came out. I tried following real world desertification patterns based on landmass shape, air and water currents, and allow a place for the bakluni to be the middlemen between the "asian flavored" lands. I also used info from the Gord books, but most of it was me trying to make a more Al-Quadim like area for Greyhawk. I did have an "indian flavored" area (Changol, according to the Gygax books) where the annual map put their "japanese flavored" area.
Now of course you can ignore it at will.
Also of note, deserts come in many different forms, and are not all sand dunes like the sahara, so alot of those desert lands are just dry rocky areas like say Iraq.
Halber
The name I'm currently toying with is "Zahind," which is an amalgamation of "Zindia" and "Jahind," the latter being Gygax's name for an Indian-like nation in exactly the same place.
What do people think?
--Erik Mona
Editor-in-Chief
Dungeon
Originally posted by Erik Mona
The name I'm currently toying with is "Zahind," which is an amalgamation of "Zindia" and "Jahind," the latter being Gygax's name for an Indian-like nation in exactly the same place.
What do people think?
--Erik Mona
Editor-in-Chief
Dungeon
Given Gygax went with Jahind, why not simply use it as it is
IMHO, "Zindia" is too close to its real world counterpart. "Zahind" is fine but I would rather stick to the original Gygax material than, once again, try to change all the names.
Unless it's a copyright issue?
"I think I might make it something other than a desert, since that is sort of played out with the Sea of Dust so close by. I've done some very basic thinking on "Zindia," and will use it in Dungeon if I ever get a decent "Indian"-themed adventure.
The name I'm currently toying with is "Zahind," which is an amalgamation of "Zindia" and "Jahind," the latter being Gygax's name for an Indian-like nation in exactly the same place.
What do people think?"
Meaning no disprespect to Halberkill's geographical expertise, a jungle/forest type terrain would give more of an Indian style taste (as would a tonne of curry powder ;P). Plus if the prevailing winds are coming up off the warm Sea of "N-------", that'd probably give a more moist monsoonal type climate - leaning towards forests rather than deserts. That said - there's a desert in India (Great Thar) and very cool (or not, as the case may be) it is too.
Name - anything other than Zindia!
I had Zhindyaranashtra (Land of the Zhindyarana; shortened to Zhind by Scarlet Brotherhood/Olman explorers/traders?), as a working name, but Zahind is as good as anything.
Another question relating to that map - it appears to show a corner of the old Suel Imperium (just over the mountains from the Z-place) that's not covered by the Sea of Dust...interesting, no?
P.
Most of the arabian style adventures I have ran are in the Drawmij with emphasis on Sinbad-genre stuff.
But a different Hindu-type culture might be interesting with vast tracts of wet jungle and... a large were-tiger culture that has civilized contacts with the Zahindi, might be cool. And of course there would be a large contingent of evil rakasa perhaps ruling a coastal island area much like Indonesia.
Originally posted by Erik Mona
I think I might make it something other than a desert, since that is sort of played out with the Sea of Dust so close by. I've done some very basic thinking on "Zindia," and will use it in Dungeon if I ever get a decent "Indian"-themed adventure.
The name I'm currently toying with is "Zahind," which is an amalgamation of "Zindia" and "Jahind," the latter being Gygax's name for an Indian-like nation in exactly the same place.
What do people think?
--Erik Mona
Editor-in-Chief
Dungeon
I too would prefer to go the Gygax way if there were any way possible. Who knows with this era of new co-operation Mr. Mona has helped bring on.
Also, medieval India was pretty much a whole bunch of separate small states, hence there many varied languages, until the muslims came in and set up a sultanate in the north, and even afterwards southern India was still a whole bunch of small states.
And being that there is a rather large desert in india, I included it in my map to be Jahind from the Gord books, Zindis/Zahind/whatever under Baklunish rule, and then Changol was the Zindis that lived to the south in the Jungle area. Of course with the advent of the Annual map, things would have to be moved around on my map.
Some thoughts.
Halber
Originally posted by Woesinger
Another question relating to that map - it appears to show a corner of the old Suel Imperium (just over the mountains from the Z-place) that's not covered by the Sea of Dust...interesting, no?
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Well, in the Gord books, and I think even the first Greyhawk Folio, the land there actually had green flowering plants, where the caustic lye of the desert didn't reach. The sea of dust is an unnatural desert caused by the rain of colorless fire, though even if that hadn't happened the area still may have become drier over the thousand years since the suel imperium, who knows...
Halber
--Erik
Originally posted by Erik Mona
Gary owns all of the non-TSR stuff that appeared in the later Gord books, so simply using his names for places is probably out of the question.
Then "Zahind" is a perfect compromise.
About the region being a "desert", as Halber said, it doesn't need to be a landscape of sand dunes.
Regardless, there are a great deal of factors that would geologically create arid regions. One of the greatest factors are the rainshadows caused by mountains. The northern-most portion of "Zahind"/"Zindia" probably would be an arid region naturally. For that matter the entire Sea of Dust region would have been an arid region before the Rain of Colorless Fire.
I could see, however, that the melting snowpack from the mountains that surround the Sea of Dust region, during the reign of the Suel Imperium, would have created some large river systems. Like Mesopotamia, the rivers would have been diverted off by the inhabitants into great irrigation networks to make the arid region literally bloom... as long as the water continued to flow!
The Rain of Colorless Fire not only would have scorched the flora and fauna, it would have effectively "salted" the soil from ever being productive again. The Rain caused the southernmost Crystalmists to become volcanic, it is now called the Hellfurnaces. The change into a volcanic chain very likely also now prevents the old snowpack from developing ever again... thus the old river systems that fed into the region will never come back to nuture the land. A truely farsighted cataclysm!
The main area of "Zahind"/"Zindia" would benefit from prevailing winds carrying moisture off the ocean... at least seasonally, like monsoons that pelt the realIndia. Only the pocket to the north would likely be arid due to the mountains that shield it... very much like the real Kashmir region.
Regards,
Eric Anondson
Originally posted by Erik Mona
Gary owns all of the non-TSR stuff that appeared in the later Gord books, so simply using his names for places is probably out of the question.
--Erik
I knew that...but sometimes asking the same question over and over occasionally gets a different answer.
While on the topic of Gygax copywright, what if say WotC, whether with agreement or not, used everything from the Gord books in a D&D accessory, but changed all of the names, pretty much like Gary had to do with the Gord books for sections of the Oerth that he had not already written about? (i.e. Jakif/Zeif, Yoll/Ull, ect.) I know something like that most likely wouldn't be probable, and may even be unwanted for the fans' sake, but I would like to know your thoughts on the matter.
Halber