Indian Tribes by Region
Tribes of this region included;
The tribes of this area were master woodworkers, building lodges of cedarwood, boats, and tools. They fed on small game, wild roots, and were expert fishermen. Different families amongst the tribes chose different animal totems to represent their status, some of these wood carved totems reached over 50 feet in height. The Lewis & Clark expidition of 1805 came across the Chinook tribe in this area and was one of the first encounters between red and white in the area. One way of gaining respect amongst a tribe was to organise a potlatch, a kind of free for all party where the host would cater for hundreds of people in a show of wealth, showering them with food and gifts. The potlatch was such a huge event that organising it could often ruin the host, as he would often be left with nothing and the potlatch ceremony could last up to 10 days!
This probably affected the lifestyle of the Nothwestern tribes the least, as life has changed little since before 1863 - with the exception of the appearance of Wendigoes! In Indian folklore the "Windingo" was the terrible cannibal spirit of the cold, and with their worst fears being made into reality the Indians of this region keep their children extra safe during the cold winters, lest they be devoured by a Wendigo. There is rumour of a secret tribe of Indians in the Northwest who actually worship the Wendigo as a benevolent Spirit who will destroy their enemies if properly appeased...
Besides this the Reckoning has passed by this region fairly unnoticed - no rail barons are interested in the lands (just yet), encounters with the white man are rare, no wars take place here, and so far the coastal Indians have resisted joining the Sioux Nations, although many tribe elders have strong ties with the new Necessity Alliance of the Maze Indians. A change of lifestyle to the plains is a bit much for these sea-dependant tribes
To the Native Indian the area of California was once a garden of Eden. The area of the Siskiyou mountains near the Oregon border, west of the Cascades near the Nevada border, and north of the Mojave Desert that stretches from southern California into Arizona and northern Mexico was a temperate land. It had good soil and sufficient rainfall, with generally good weather. There was, before the Reckoning, little interaction between the tribes of this area owing to a diversity of language in the region. Since food supplies were relatively abundant little warring took place. Because they became rather docile the Californians were easy targets when the Northwestern tribes came in search of slaves.
The native people of California lived in simple hide, bark, or lean to houses and subsided on fish, game, and wild plants & berries. Tribes of the region included;
The Indians were first encountered by the Spanish conquisators and later Spanish missionaries, who transplanted a lot of their culture and religions in this new land. In contrast to the more warlike tribes of the plains and elsewhere, many of California's Indians willingly became "mission Indians", working at the Spanish missions and gradually adopting the more elaborate Hispanic culture. As a result by the time Spanish rule had ended in the 1820's the population had been decimated by European diseases and it's culture lost. As rule passed to first the Mexicans and then the C.S.A the Indians began to adopt American and Mexican culture
You can read more about the Maze tribes in detail in the Great Maze sourcebook
The Sioux Nations dominates the plains of the Dakotas, Wyoming, Nebraska and parts of Kansas, Iowa and Colorado, and a few tribes still live in the plains land around the Sioux Nations - from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and from Canada to Southern Texas. This is an area of vast oceans of plains grass where the tribes hunt buffalo (which were in abundance before the coming of the white man). This was the home of the legendary "Redskins" which have now become typified and immortalised in stories and dime novels, however innacurate they may be.
Tribes of the Plains tended to be nomadic and lived in teepees or wigwams (although southeastern tribes of the plains sometimes remained fixed, in semi-subterranean houses) and lived off wild game and sometimes planted corn or other crops
Tribes in this region include;
Of all these the Sioux are now the most powerful, having a whole new country to themselves - although many other tribes have joined this brave new land and made peace with the Sioux (bearing in mind that in real life most Plains Indians were enemies with at least two other tribes - if it weren't for their own internal squabbling and fighting over land and food then the Native Americans may never have lost their homeland to the white man in the first place). The Sioux can now deal with the white man on their own terms, and know how to fight if it comes to it - General Custer can bear testimony to that himself...
The Coyote Confederacy is of course another strong nation but this group of tribes have more connections with their southern white brothers, occasionally helping out with their war efforts by raiding US army outposts and supply convoys in return for food and weapons from the CSA. Not all tribal elders look on this deal with a happy smile...
Game Note - Any Shaman attending a Sundance ceremony may add +2 to any ritual rolls during the three day period ,and +6 to the Ritual rolls of the following; Dance, Maim, Fast, and Chant - useful for storing up those favours by way of the "Pact" Favour
The plains Indians made use of horses much more than their neighbours did (having all that open space to run around on) and the Commanche were the greatest of them all - posessing horse riding abilities above and beyond those of the white man, who were the ones who introduced horses to America in the first place!
For more details read about the Sioux Nation and the Coyote Confederacy in The Quick & The Dead
The dense woodland that stretched from the Atlantic coast to the Mississsippi River and from northern Tennessee to the St Lawrence Valley took in the rocky coastlines, fertile meadows and an abundance of mountains, rivers, and streams that supported a rich variety of plant and animal life
Of all the tribes of the Americas the Indians of this region were the most politically advanced, and had many meetings and alliances with one another as a means of dealing with mutual problems - such as the coming of the white man. The tribes of this area fed mainly on cultivated plants and small game and many of them lived in bark lean-to's or wooden "longhouses"Tribes of this region included;
Wars were common between alliances of the area and males became warriors at puberty, after proving their bravery by way of bashing themselves against large rocks watched by the tribe Shaman. During the Anglo-French wars of the 18th Century and the Anglo-American wars of 1776 and 1812 the local Indian tribes were used extensively in the war efforts by both sides. Indian tribes were played off against the enemy and each other in return for food, weapons and the promises of peace afterwards. Most of the time the local Indians were more than happy to oblige, war being the best way to prove ones worth.
With the English defeated in the war of Independance many Indian tribes who were loyal to the Crown were dispersed and moved Northwards into Canada where they were able to maintain their cultural heritage. The remaining Indians were assimilated to a certain degree into "civilised" society - educated by white men and converted to the white man's religion, but this didn't always work.The territory from the Atlantic Coast to the western Mississippi Valley and from the Gulf of Mexico to Virginia in the north was the home of a large array of tribes that spoke many different languages but were united by their lifestyle and a healthy respect for nature and the environment. They were blessed with a mild climate, ample rainfall, and an abundace of fish and berries. The people lived in villages and were primarily argricultural
Tribes of the SouthEast included;
The Sotheastern Indians were expert potters, fishermen, and basket weavers with the roles of men and women being clearly divided. Men went to war and hunted, whilst women cleared the fields and raised the children. Indians of the Southeast were among the more liberal and marriages were decided by the couple in question, whilst premarital sex was acceptable. Polygamy was also common - but only if the first wife agreed
Unfortunately this region saw the coming of the Spanish in the early 16th century, the newcomers included the infamous Hernando Cortez who dealt with the Indians harshly and slaughtered tribes in the area before moving into Mexico. During the early 19th century the Indians suffered again at the hands of the White Americans as they were moved onto reservations and had their land taken from themBetween the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada of California and the Cascade range of the North-west lies a vast basin. Bounded on the south by the Colorado river and Arizona, the Great Basin stretches up through Nevada and Utah to southern Idaho, central Oregon and Washington and on up to British Columbia. The southern part of the basin is desolate and unforgiving desert, with the northern region being a little more hospitable. Tribes in this area built their life and activities around mere subsistence. Like the plains Indians they were nomadic people eternally in search of food and water, one of their main meals was jackrabbit (but not Jackalopes!) - not only good to eat but their pelts were used for clothing. Other foods included mice, insects, berries and pinon nuts
Tribes of the region included;
Peace was not to last, however, and the mid-nineteenth century saw the first friction between red and white after a preacher and his flock were slaughtered at Fort Walla Walla. The subsequent white retaliation restored peace for another 20 years until the Nez Perce wars of the 1870's which saw a brilliant new leader emerge from the Indian tribes - Chief Joseph
In the forests and canyons of Arizona and New Mexico amid the spectacular red sandstone mesas, there arose one of the most complex of pre-historic North American cultures. The Anasazi people flourished peacefully between 700AD and 1100AD and built cities with multi-story apartment houses, such as the ones at Canyon de Chelly, Arizona. Their culture collapsed around 1350 due to drought and natutal disaster but their cities have been preserved by the dry air of the high desert. Replacing the Anasazi are the tribes that exist today who now live in adobe cities similar to those of the Anasazi - called Pueblos by the Spaniards who first encountered them
Tribes of the Southwest included;
Life in the arid regions was genearlly hard and bred a tougher variety of Indian. The Apache tribes were fierce warriors who inspired fear in all their enemies, whether of red or white skin. The Apache tribes did have a tendancy to fight amongtst themselves over horses, land rights and water. The Mescalara and Chircahua Apaches were famously bitter enemies and many skirmishes took place between the two. Life wasn't all about war however and the trribes of the region found time to become expert potters and built their own adobe houses. The tribes farmed their own corn and squash and hunted deer and rabbit. Horses were a valuable commodity in the region and a mans wealth was measured by the amount of horses he owned - more so than any other tribes of North America. SouthWestern tribes had a knack for stealing horses from the white man which not only earnt them their chief currency but also put one over on the ignorant white men.
More info can be found on the Apache Indians in the Deadlands sourcebook "The Quick And The Dead"
All the above info was taken from the "Pictorial History of the North American Indian" by Bill Yenne & Susan Garratt - thanx a buch, fellas!