(1)
I know you just recently answered this question for someone else, but I can’t seem to find it.
It was about the Realms and real world analogs. You stated along the lines, that you tried to avoid Realms cultures mimicking real world cultures?(2)
The question came up in a group chat, and people were equivilating things like Cormyr = France, or Amn = Spain.
I just seem to recall you saying at one point that you wanted to avoid these type of equivalencies when you began forming the Realms.— Dwaine Spradling (@DwaineSpradling) November 22, 2019
1)
That’s right. The problem is, it jolts some gamers out of immersive roleplaying and into “what I learned in history class about this or that real-world culture” (e.g. “But stirrups weren’t in use in…”) rather than experiencing the Realms. 2)
The problem is, TSR's need, back in the day, for a world that would host "Oriental Adventures," 'Arabian Adventures,' jungle adventures, pirate adventures, and so on meant that some TSR designers and artists directly embraced real-world analogues, and presented…#Realmslore— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) November 23, 2019
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…regions of the Realms that way. Resulting in some clumsiness and awkwardness that evokes such gamer questions as, “But how come we have pyramids next door to–?” and suchlike. All of which could have been avoided in favour of a richer FR world that might ECHO 4)
…some real-world elements or historical cultures, without copying them. It's not just jarring for those wanting to roleplay, it's lazy design work that heads us straight at looming consistency problems.#Realmslore— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) November 23, 2019
5)
However, if emulating a real-world historical culture or even going with the "these real-world people got through a gate into the Realms and now live there" works for you and your campaign, do it! It's whatever floats YOUR boat, as a player, DM, or worldbuilder.#Realmslore— Ed Greenwood (@TheEdVerse) November 23, 2019
