Picts as villains

[Faraer]

When thinking of villains for the Hyborian Age, what comes to mind? ... Are they the worst the Hyborian Age has to offer? This book suggests that they are not. There is a darker and more sinister presence in the world

I'm still perplexed by this treatment of Picts as villains and adversaries. Yes, Conan fights Picts in a couple of stories. But in Howard's work as a whole he is overwhelmingly on the Picts' side. Even in the Conan stories he writes them, I think, more sympathetically than the Hyborian nations. And since most Conan RPG campaigns, I would think, would feature barbarians in civilized lands because the element of barbarism is crucial to the themes of the Hyborian Age, a lot of PCs are going to be Picts because there are only so many barbarian lands to choose from. This seems to be a secondary concern in Across Thunder River, judging from its blurb quoted from above.

 

[Ranzadule]

I think the people of Western Aquilonia likely have a dark opinion of Picts much like settlers in the US West. Picts as PCs seems weird to me as they seem like "stone-age" savages as opposed to the Nordic and Celt types in Aesgard, Vanaheim and Cimmeria.

Picts are not "Evil" just territorial and savage.


Ranz,

Never Pict on when I was a lad.

 

[cornelius]

If Pirate Isles is anything to go by , ATR will effectively be the " Pict Handbook " so I can't see how it will reinforce negative Pict stereotypes . If anything it will be a sympathetic look at the race as a whole and how to implement them in the game . Anyway , in a week or so it'll be on sale so we'll all know how to use them properly !

 

[The King]

When thinking of villains for the Hyborian Age, what comes to mind? ... Are they the worst the Hyborian Age has to offer? This book suggests that they are not. There is a darker and more sinister presence in the world

I'm still perplexed by this treatment of Picts as villains and adversaries. Yes, Conan fights Picts in a couple of stories. But in Howard's work as a whole he is overwhelmingly on the Picts' side. Even in the Conan stories he writes them, I think, more sympathetically than the Hyborian nations. And since most Conan RPG campaigns, I would think, would feature barbarians in civilized lands because the element of barbarism is crucial to the themes of the Hyborian Age, a lot of PCs are going to be Picts because there are only so many barbarian lands to choose from. This seems to be a secondary concern in Across Thunder River, judging from its blurb quoted from above.

Picts aren't depicted the bad way; they are just depicted when they are at war. As most tribes are almost continually at war with their neighbours, be it another Pict tribe or just another nation (Cimmeria, Aquilonia), we only see their dark side.
The Essay "Hyborian Age" from Howard (that can be found in the core book) presents more details on the Picts.