Mostly as the faction; the tribes, nations, and raiders that exist on the edges of the more established nations. But the progression of barbarians into civilized peoples mean that Hungarian knight in fine chainmail and a library of three whole books is the great-great-grandson of a screaming Magyar warrior. So how you set up your barbarian states has an impact on the character class and other characters. A Lombard fighter might be one generation removed from his nomadic ancestors, but have been assimilated enough to consider himself a Tuscan.
The cultural assumptions behind "barbarian" is going to be unique to each campaign world. For us, it meant "not Roman and can't speak Latin/Greek." In a fantasy setting, it could mean anything that sets the culture apart from the mainstream. I could see a state with a strong tradition of traditional book-based wizardry looking down their noses at a nation where instinctive sorcery or spiritualism is the rule.
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Date: Thursday, March 8th, 2012 10:24 pm (UTC)The cultural assumptions behind "barbarian" is going to be unique to each campaign world. For us, it meant "not Roman and can't speak Latin/Greek." In a fantasy setting, it could mean anything that sets the culture apart from the mainstream. I could see a state with a strong tradition of traditional book-based wizardry looking down their noses at a nation where instinctive sorcery or spiritualism is the rule.