Game News Lionheart items #7

[Ausir]

Tags: Lionheart: Legacy of the Crusader

There's another part of <a target=_blank href=http://www.rpgdot.com/index.php?hsaction=10053&ID=600>Lionheart ph4t l3w7 feature</a> at <a target=_blank href=http://www.rpgdot.com>RPGDot</a>. Here's a bit:
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<b>Belt of Voodoo</b>
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Imported from the dark continents of the Americas, this belt has a sickly-sweet smell about it that cannot be removed. While worn, this belt enhances all Tribal spell skills by 1 point. When it is combined with the Necklace of Voodoo, the wearer obtains one more skill point to spend per level up. (Developer's Note: There can be 1-3 magic additions put onto most magical items, such as belts, necklaces, boots, etc. This one only has one.)
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Unfortunately, Voodoo was brought to America by black slaves, so it would make more sense if it was from Africa, since America was never colonized in Lionheart world.

 

[Saint_Proverbius]

Yeah, Voodoo shouldn't exist at all since it's a blend of African folklore and Christianity that was developed by slaves in Haiti, IIRC. Slaves were used post colonization, so...

 

[IAPOTANIA]

there was something similar in africa before colonization but it wasn't called voodoo either.

 

[Sol Invictus]

Yeah, this item is definitely out of place. The Voodooine culture developed in the West Indies from black slave culture, amalgamating Haitian tribal mythology and Catholicism (specifically John the Baptist, who is the Patron Saint of Voodoo) which was later brought to America by slaves who had managed to become free and find themselves on a one-way trip to Louisiana, which under French law at the time guaranteed them some degree of freedom.

If anything, the Belt of Voodoo should be changed to some Mayan trinket or something Haitian.

 

[Astromarine]

The parallels between Voodoo and the Brazilian Candomble could justify introducing in a fictional setting a pure African tradition mixing Catholicism and local myths. Maybe in relation to the "kingdom of Priest John" myth

The whole issue could be skirted by naming the belt after a particular figure in Voodoo or Candomble (like Belt of Legba orBelt of Ogun)

Astro

 

[Sol Invictus]

Or better yet - The Necklace of the Baptist

It'd certainly fit into the game's setting (which I'm sworn not to disclose too much about) and those of us who are well-read, or at least 'read enough' into the Hermetic myths would very well appreciate the reference.

 

[Vault Dweller]

Yeah, Belt of Voodoo is too generic, it's like Belt of Catholicism - it does not have a ring to it and it does not make much sense. How about Belt of some famous voodoo practitioner or Belt of Caplatas or Belt of the Voodoo Lady from Monkey Island

 

[Sol Invictus]

Belt of Baron Mundi

But once again, I bring up the whole 'it don't fit into the setting' argument.

 

[Vault Dweller]

But once again, I bring up the whole 'it don't fit into the setting' argument.

Haitian voodoo does noit fit for all the good reasons you described in your earlier post, but what about west african vodun?

 

[Sol Invictus]

That'd work. Wonder why they don't just use that.

 

[Vault Dweller]

Dunno...I'm not sure if there woiuld be a way to go with Cortes to America or wait for his return and buy some trinkets from him, but why voodoo in the first place? I mean there should be endless supply of wicked shit in "the dark continent of Americas" related to rather colorful cultures often misunderstood for their fondness of human sacrifice.

 

[Eric Dallaire]

Dunno...I'm not sure if there woiuld be a way to go with Cortes to America or wait for his return and buy some trinkets from him, but why voodoo in the first place? I mean there should be endless supply of wicked shit in "the dark continent of Americas" related to rather colorful cultures often misunderstood for their fondness of human sacrifice.

That was sort of the idea of the Americas, that actually North and South America became the 'dark continents' brimming with beasties and such. It's not a huge stretch to imagine voodoo practices made their way over to the Americas. We're aware of the origin of voodoo, we just took a bit of creative license with the history.

 

[Vault Dweller]

Out of curiosity, why voodoo instead of some local cultures like Aztecs or Incas that were already there and had a lot of "experience" in dealing with spirits and such?

 

[Astromarine]

My question is different. Of course, this being alternative history, you could have voodoo is bleedin' Syberia if you wanted. But is voodoo used in more places than these 2 items and a few more? If it's just the trinkets, I'd say rename them. But since you're here defending them, I'd guess that Voodoo is a *bit* more prominent in the setting than that. Is this correct?

 

[Ausir]

A good explanation would be Aztecs taking slaves from Aftica .

 

[IAPOTANIA]

There are some cool divinities in 'voodoo' .
Ogun is the african god of iron and war,you can find him in voodoo,candomble,quimbois and most west-indian afircan mythologies.

 

[Vault Dweller]

By the same token there are some "cool divinities" in many other cultures:
Acolnahuacatl - The One From the Twisted Region (With a name like that does this guy fits into the setting or what? ) or Quetzalcoatl - the Feathered Serpent, the god Cortes was mistaken for.
Although, Ogun is much easier to pronounce, I'll give you that.

 

[Ausir]

I can understand the zombies (since they're a synonim to living dead now), i can understand Elizabeth I appearing 100 years early due to a temporal demon (although the explanation sounds a bit silly), but not Voodoo created by native Americans!
I don't think a creative license can go that far. It's like saying that Jesus was born in Iceland and Buddha in Australia, because of a "creative license"....

 

[IAPOTANIA]

By the same token there are some "cool divinities" in many other cultures:
Acolnahuacatl - The One From the Twisted Region (With a name like that does this guy fits into the setting or what? ) or Quetzalcoatl - the Feathered Serpent, the god Cortes was mistaken for.
Although, Ogun is much easier to pronounce, I'll give you that.

More than the pronuciation he is above all a very good excuse to have enchanted weapons (swords,knives).Real life witches use enchanted blades or invoke ogun when they want to use a machette or sthg like that.

 

[Constipated Craprunner]

Better relations with Muslim countries would have lead to greater ties with sub-saharan Africa by the Mali, which would have involved the tenuous hypothetical link between the gameworld and Vodun.
Anyway, I find the idea of Europeans selling Africans to Native Americans as slaves Ironic, and playful enough to fit in the setting.

 

[Sol Invictus]

Tezcatlipoca - the Smoking Mirror. The Aztec's answer to the Norse God of Mischief, Loki

 

[Sol Invictus]

You know, a lot of people make it sound like the Europeans were behind the whole enslavement of black people but the fact is that those people were already slaves when the Europeans went to Africa.

Of course, I don't think that the slavetraders should be excused for promulgating the horrible culture. But the fact is that this post has got absolutely nothing to do with the thread so I'll end it right here.

 

[Ausir]

Making Aztecs take slaves from Africa would be the easiest solution, which would only require Cabal to mention it in the boards, as opposed to changing the items description in the game .

 

[Astromarine]

Nah, sorry. An Aztec/African combination of myths would yield a vastly-different end-result than the African/Catholic one present in Voodoo and Candomble.

 

[Sol Invictus]

Yeah seriously, Eric. Fix this!