theme for a fantasy campaign

[combatmedic]

Originally Posted by Asta Kask

I think dolphins are very big on forced copulations. And blowhole sex.

That makes me feel better about eating them.

[Astromancer]

Originally Posted by whswhs

I'd also note that if the males take, later, to going on long voyages to trade or whale, the females will be left alone. To keep up their protein and calorie intake, they may need to develop their own fishing customs. And if their fishing grounds are valuable, they may have to fight for them, against men or halflings or even trolls who want to muscle in.

Bill Stoddard

These Indonesian folks might serve as a model. They are famous both as pirates and traders and their women survive just fine.

[Astromancer]

Originally Posted by whswhs

In any case, this is a fantasy campaign. I'm not thinking that alcoholic beverages made from fermented urine are a thing I want to introduce into this particular fantasy.

Bill Stoddard

Grind acorns into mash, add honey. The mixture would ferment.

Certain wild fruits are easy to ferment. There's a fruit that Elephants are known to eat, and then drink lots of water. This causes symtoms that look like intoxication, and the elephants seem to like it. At other times the elephants eat the fruit and avoid drinking for an hour or so, and they don't get drunk.

Yes. I'm saying some elephants know how to get drunk and can choose to avoid getting drunk when they don't want to be drunk.

[jason taylor]

Originally Posted by Astromancer

These Indonesian folks might serve as a model. They are famous both as pirates and traders and their women survive just fine.

The poster did not say women cannot survive in such a society did he?

[Astromancer]

Originally Posted by Brett

I recall a ritual intoxicant consisting of the urine of people (shamans? medicine-women?) who had ingested hallucinogenic toadstools. A troll thing, perhaps.

Fly agaric mushrooms. Magic Mushrooms traditionally. The Elves would love them. The Hobbits smoke weed.

[Astromancer]

Originally Posted by whswhs

I'd just as soon not go for primarily arboreal elves, anyway; I don't see them as being as likely to come down to the ground and engage in horticulture. On the other hand, I'd be fine with elves who are a bit better at climbing, perhaps have more dextrous big toes, and maybe a keener sense of balance, to help them take refuge in the trees when endangered.

Years ago I read a short discussion of the tribal peoples of northern California. It mentioned that they had a great abundance of food from acorns and the like, and a fair amount of leisure, but had somewhat underdeveloped social structure, which they compensated for by elaborate anxiety-displacing rituals. I have to say it sounded oddly like northern California now. It really made me think there was something to this "spirit of the land" thing.

Bill Stoddard

Ursula Le guin's mom wrote this book. It might give you ideas for your Elves.

[Astromancer]

Originally Posted by jason taylor

The poster did not say women cannot survive in such a society did he?

Still, the folks in question live like the Selkies in this discussion. That gives precident.

[namada]

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

[Agemegos]

Originally Posted by fartrader

There's nothing in honey that would convert the starch of the acorn to sugar for the yeast to convert to alcohol - that's the problem here and the only way I know to get that conversion is with barley or saliva, but barley is better at it and less "ewwww" too.

Technically you are using malt, not barley as such; by allowing the barley to start sprouting you get it to produce an amylase to convert its internal starches to sugars, and once it has done so the ground or crushed malt will apply its amylases to other starches in the wort. In theory you could I think use any grain to make malt, but barley is the most efficient.

It occurs to me that when acorns and beechnuts spout they too might start converting their starches to sugars, which suggests that spouting acorns and nuts might contain amylases of their own, and that it might be possible to brew booze our of acorns without grain if you sprouted them, dried them, and then crushed or ground them.

Is there a plant physiologist in the house?

[namada]

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *