Use of stirrups and advanced saddles by 'primitive' cultures

Icelander · 09-24-2012, 10:27 PM

In my campaign, there is a society of nomads who have lived alongside TL3-4 societies for centuries, but who mostly consciously reject* the societal infrastructure and organisation required for metal-working and a lot of the other things that make up high TLs. In what they make themselves, they are mostly TL0, though individuals may well be familiar with concepts and equipment from other TLs. To add to their lack of metal-working, they also have extremely limited access to proper wood, seeing as the forested areas that adjoin their lands are claimed by unfriendly powers.

They do have horses large enough to carry riders into battle, though, something not true of most cultures we think of as TL0-1. So they are not a typical Stone Age or Bronze Age culture. Not all that far from Native Americans on the Great Plains, perhaps, come to think of it. At least after horses got there, since horses are a very important part of their cultures.

There is not much trade with these people, because they take pride in self-suffiency and pretty much despise their 'civilised' neighbours** for having succumbed to unnatural habits like living in crowded and stationary pestilent prison camps with wooden or stone walls. However, I imagine that they are willing to trade for steel weapons, on occasion, and that they'd also value anything relating to horseback riding. Again, parallels to Amerinds after first contact with Europeans.

How practical is it for them to make such items as war saddles and, especially, stirrups, without using any form of metal-working? I get the impression that war saddles are mostly just well shaped leather and maybe some wood, but do you need metal needles or tacks or nails or anything?

And most importantly, can you make functional stirrups from bone or other materials available to nomadic hunter-gatherers on horseback?

*The existence of divine magic and spirits that agree with their choices help them survive despite such Luddism. That, and no one has yet wanted their plains badly enough to mount a concentrated military expedition there, given that all the neighbours have more profitable areas of potential expansion, if they incline that way.
**Some of whom belong to more or less the same ethnic stock, but differ in having chosen to settle in acricultural societies a long time ago.

09-24-2012, 10:27 PM	#1
Icelander Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Iceland*	Use of stirrups and advanced saddles by 'primitive' cultures In my campaign, there is a society of nomads who have lived alongside TL3-4 societies for centuries, but who mostly consciously reject* the societal infrastructure and organisation required for metal-working and a lot of the other things that make up high TLs. In what they make themselves, they are mostly TL0, though individuals may well be familiar with concepts and equipment from other TLs. To add to their lack of metal-working, they also have extremely limited access to proper wood, seeing as the forested areas that adjoin their lands are claimed by unfriendly powers. They do have horses large enough to carry riders into battle, though, something not true of most cultures we think of as TL0-1. So they are not a typical Stone Age or Bronze Age culture. Not all that far from Native Americans on the Great Plains, perhaps, come to think of it. At least after horses got there, since horses are a very important part of their cultures. There is not much trade with these people, because they take pride in self-suffiency and pretty much despise their 'civilised' neighbours** for having succumbed to unnatural habits like living in crowded and stationary pestilent prison camps with wooden or stone walls. However, I imagine that they are willing to trade for steel weapons, on occasion, and that they'd also value anything relating to horseback riding. Again, parallels to Amerinds after first contact with Europeans. How practical is it for them to make such items as war saddles and, especially, stirrups, without using any form of metal-working? I get the impression that war saddles are mostly just well shaped leather and maybe some wood, but do you need metal needles or tacks or nails or anything? And most importantly, can you make functional stirrups from bone or other materials available to nomadic hunter-gatherers on horseback? The existence of divine magic and spirits that agree with their choices help them survive despite such Luddism. That, and no one has yet wanted their plains badly enough to mount a concentrated military expedition there, given that all the neighbours have more profitable areas of potential expansion, if they incline that way. *Some of whom belong to more or less the same ethnic stock, but differ in having chosen to settle in acricultural societies a long time ago. __________________ Za uspiekh nashevo beznadiozhnovo diela!