Star Man's Son also known as Daybreak 2250 is a novel originally in hardcover i in 1952 by Andre Norton by Harcourt, Brace, and Co., 1952. Star Man’s Son,has reprinted over the years by several publishers,generally paperback editions by Ace Publishers, Littlehampton Book Services Ltd (March. 1968) Paperback Publisher: Del Rey; Reprint edition (Sept. 12 1985).Each edition has,new cover art with Fors either with shorf hair or long hair.
Plot[]
The story takes some 200 years after a nuclear war,the survivors call the Great Blow up. Fors was a mutant,who had silver hair,keen eye sight and hearing.. He did not know what drove him to explore the empty lands to the north, where the great skeleton ruins of the old civilization rusted away in the wreckage of mankind's hopes. But he could not resist the urging that led him through danger and adventure, to the place where he faced the menace of the Star Men .Fors wants to finish his fathers work,by discovering the lost treasure s of humanity before the atomic wars and prove to the Star Men,he is worthy of acceptance. This is the story of Fors of the Puma clan, of the people of the Smoking Mountains. Fors's father was of the famed Star Men- explorers of the blasted wilderness beyond the mountain stronghold of the Star Hall. The brotherhood of Star Men sought to carry on the tradition of their research scientist ancestors- to seek out new knowledge for the betterment of the tribe- and of the world. This was to be Fors's destiny also, except that his father failed to return from his last mission and there was no one to speak for him at the last choosing of apprentices. So, rather than accept the insult of a lesser life, Fors took up his sword, bow, and his father's pouch, and along with his great mutant hunting cat, Lura,about the size of Puna,but looked like a house cat went out to find the great lost city of the Old Ones,called the Blow Up Lands that his father's last journal entry spoke of.
A vast, hostile wilderness scarred by an atomic war that had destroyed civilization two hundred years before; deserted cities choked with wreckage; misshapen creatures, once human, whom radiation had changed into subhuman Beast Things – this was the strange, little-known world that lay just outside the mountain stronghold of the Puma Clan.
All his life Fors had dreamed of becoming one of the leaders of the Clan – A Star Man – like his father, of exploring the mysterious country, mapping roads and trails and searching the old cities for forgotten knowledge to bring back to the Eyrie. Now he realized he could never be a Star Man because he was a mutant – set apart from the rest of the mountain survivors by his silver hair, his night sight, and too-keen hearing. Nevertheless he determined to continue his dead father’s search for a lost city somewhere to the north, a city free from the poisonous radiation that killed men. With his hunting cat, Lura, his primitive weapons, and his father’s fragmentary map, Fors set off alone into the alien void.
Thus begins an imaginative tale of adventure, by the author of Sword in Sheath and Scarface, in which readers will find, as did Fors, that only when the peoples of the earth forget their suspicions of each other and learn to work together can they build a world once more fit for men. Nicolas Mordvinoff’s drawings realistically depict the frightening but fascinating world of the book.
The holocaust had ravaged the world 200 years before. Survivors were scattered across the frightening wastelands. Some struggled merely for life… others, like Fors the Star Man’s son, dared the terrifying unknown to recapture the knowledge… the knowledge that could once again destroy them… “Good adventure… thoughtful… festinating… reading it is like the murderer’s return to scene of the crime.” – Denver Post
“Imaginative and Exciting!” – San Francisco Chronicle. The holocaust had ravaged the world 200 years before. Survivors were scattered across the frightening wastelands. Some struggled merely for life… others, like Fors the Star Man’s son, dared the terrifying unknown to recapture the knowledge… the knowledge that could once again destroy them… “Good adventure… thoughtful… festinating… reading it is like the murderer’s return to scene of the crime.” – Denver Post “Imaginative and Exciting!” – San Francisco Chronicle
Fors is a member of the Puma Clan — mountain-dwellers whose leaders (Star Men) are determined to recover knowledge of the past. He has dreamed all his life of becoming a Star Man like his father and of exploring the mysterious, hostile wilderness surrounding his mountain home—that vast country where civilization was destroyed by atomic war 200 years before. its wreckage-strewn, deserted cities and its inhabitants—creatures known as Beast Things, misshapen by radiation — hold secrets that Fors longs to reveal. But because he is different -- he has silver hair, night sight, and a highly-developed sense of hearing- Fors can never be a Star Man. However, his fascination for uncovering the secrets of the past leads him, rebelliously, to continue the search started by his father — for a lost city free from the radiation fatal to man. So Fors sets out with his hunting cat, Lura, and an incomplete map left by his father, to explore unknown lands.
This imaginative novel realistically depicts a whole strange world peopled with such diverse and interesting things as the Puma Clan, the Plains People, and the Beast Things. This is an exceptionally brilliant adventure novel, universally praised and respected as one of the field's most important, and the author's best.
==Retrospective== Edit Postapocalyptic fiction in the tradition of Mad Max II and Planet of the Apes was not merely a byproduct of seventies era dystopianism. Indeed, the genre goes back surprisingly far. Just seven years after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Andre Norton presented everything you’d need to run a pretty fair Gamma World campaign. It’s got disparate tribes of human survivors struggling regain even a fraction of the know-how of their expired civilizations. It’s got modest mutant abilities like night vision, acute hearing, and animal empathy. And it has vicious humanoid rat creatures and small (but cunning!) lizard people. Best of all, it has cities ripe for looting right up against the deadly irradiated deserts of the Blow-up Lands.
But though Norton’s novel was ahead of its time in so many ways, it often seems to be more than a little mired in the social issues of its day. While it is interesting that the author managed to produce a credible multi-racial “buddy” story about twelve years before I Spy would be a hit television show, she nevertheless lays on the moralizing rather thickly at times. Take, for example, this exchange between Arskane and the leader of his tribe: the deadly irradiated deserts of the Blow-up Lands.
But though Norton’s novel was ahead of its time in so many ways, it often seems to be more than a little mired in the social issues of its day. While it is interesting that the author managed to produce a credible multi-racial “buddy” story about twelve years before I Spy would be a hit television show, she nevertheless lays on the moralizing rather thickly at times. Take, for example, this exchange between Arskane and the leader of his tribe:
“This is he of whole I have told you– he has saved my life in the City of the Beast Things, and I have named him brother–“
There was almost a touch of pleading in his voice.
“We be the Dark People.” The woman’s tone was low but there was a lilt in it, almost as if she chanted. “We be the Dark People, my son. He is not of our breed–“
Arskane’s hands went out in a nervous gesture. “He is my brother,” he repeated stubbornly. “Were it not for him I would lave long since died the death and my clan would never have known how or where that chanced.” (page 178)
This theme of overcoming racism is echoed in the main protagonist’s relationship to his own tribe where he is an outcast due to his being a mutant. And though the need to pull together in the face of overwhelming odds makes the increasingly forward thinking bent of the characters a bit more believable than it would be otherwise, Norton betrays not one hint of irony when she portrays the savage Beast Things as being anything other than subhuman.
Nevertheless, for Gamma World game masters this book is a gold mine. The premise of pure strain humans sending out scouts to explore, to keep tabs on rival groups, and maybe come back with a little loot is as gameable as anything you’re liable to find in the Appendix N list. The chapter where the protagonist “Fors” enters a largely intact city on horseback with his giant mutant cat friend can be played practically as is in a game session.¹ For people looking for a way to incorporate larger battles into their game, the final chapters featuring elements of three competing tribes coordinating against a potentially overwhelming incursion of mutants should be inspirational. The rest of the book is practically one good random wilderness encounter after another.
To top it off, the novel even concludes with a premise that could support a whole series of adventures. You see, there’s much more to the titular “Star Men” than just a cool name:
Our forefathers were brought to this mountain hiding place because they were designed to be truly men of the Stars. Here were they being trained to a life which would be theirs on other worlds. Our records tell us that man was on the eve of conquering space when his madness fell upon him and he reached again for slaying weapons.
We who were meant to roam the stars go now on foot upon a ravaged earth. But above us those other worlds still hang, and still they beckon. And so is the promise still given. If we make not the mistakes of the Old Ones then shall we know in time more than the winds of this earth and the trails of this earth. (page 222)
This is of course the premise of the adventure module series for third edition Gamma World that began with “Alpha Factor” and that was meant to conclude with the unreleased “Omega Project” adventure.
The world of Andre Norton’s Star Man’s Son is far more understated than either the Gamma World game or Sterling E. Lanier’s Hiero’s Journey. Enough generations have passed since the Blow Up that new tribal cultures have developed that are largely ignorant of the past. But there hasn’t been enough time to completely erode the cities of the Old Ones. The most dangerous irradiated regions are becoming less and less deadly as well. If these hardscrabble survivors could just hang on and maybe find a few libraries, they could be on their way to conquering space in no time. That is… unless they fail to set aside their racism, their tribalism, and their propensity to wage war amongst themselves, as Norton reiterates time and again. Failing that, of course, the Beast Things will inherit the earth.
==Plot== Edit Fors was a mutant. He did not know what drove him to explore the empty lands to the north, where the great skeleton ruins of the old civilization rusted away in the wreckage of mankind's hopes. But he could not resist the urging that led him through danger and adventure, to the place where he faced the menace of the Star Men.
Two centuries after an atomic war on earth, a silver-haired mutant sets out on a dangerous search for a lost city of the ruined civilization. Daybreak Originally published as Starman’s Son, 2250 A.D., Norton’s first science fiction novel has been also titled Daybreak — 2250 A.D. (the version I have) and Starman’s Son. Ace seems to have preferred the Daybreak variant and I think it is because they were worried readers might be misled by the title. This is not a world where young men [1] find their destinies between the stars. It is one where they struggle to find a better way of life on the radioactive ruins of Earth.
Life two centuries after atomic war is hard enough, but orphaned Fors of the Puma Clan of the hidden city Eyrie has it worse than many. His silver hair and enhanced senses mark him as not just the product of out-breeding, itself scandalous by Eyrie mores, but as that most despised kind, a mutant. Although the Eyrie has been charitable enough not to simply dash his brains out, those who rule have also made it clear Fors will never be allowed to become a Star Man, an adult male with full rights.
Affronted by the slight, Fors gathers up some of his late father Langdon’s effects and heads out on an unsanctioned mission of exploration, hoping to prove himself. He is searching for the remains of a city that Langdon believed he was on the cusp of finding. Fors’ actions mark him outlaw, but he hopes that if he can present the Eyrie with a new city to sift for useful relics, he will be forgiven.
Fors is accompanied by a giant, semi-telepathic cat named Lura because Norton [2], but even with such a companion, the wilds are a dangerous place. Predators abound and some walk on two legs. Not only are all strangers enemies by default but there are stranger and more terrible beings than mutants like Fors; Langdon himself fell to the Beast Things that lurk in the ruins of cities.
Fors finds his lost city. He also finds Arskane, whose people are the dark-skinned descendents of a Great Blow-up bomber crew. In a moment of charity entirely atypical for this era, Fors rescues the trapped Arskane from a pitfall; although strangers are by rights enemies, the pair of explorers become close companions.
Fors and Arskane picked a good time to transcend the taboos of their era, because while the tribes and clans of man may kill each other while jostling for position, they seldom engage in genocidal war (at least not since the Great Blow-up). Now, deep in the remains of Old One cities, someone — something — has transformed the monstrous Beast Things into an army, an army that will sweep all human life from face of the planet. All humans — Eyrie, Plainsmen, and others — must learn from Fors and Arskane’s example, or die.
It would not be surprised to learn that Norton, along with so many others, was influenced by Stephen Vincent Benét’s 1937 classic short story, “By the Waters of Babylon.” To Benét’s hauntingly prescient depiction of post-apocalyptic collapse, Norton adds a healthy dollop of post-atomic anxiety, as well as many of the themes and tropes one learns to expect in later Norton novels. Fors’ world isn’t just smashed flat and depopulated; it has been bathed in mutagenic radiation. As Fors points out, it is not at all clear that the Old Ones responsible for the Great Blow-up and modern humans are the same people any more. Perhaps all people are mutants.
Given that the Beast Men come from the cities and having encountered Ralestone Luck’scasual racism, It was somewhat worried that the was about to encounter Slum-Dwelling Mutants: They Want Welfare! I should have trusted Norton. She goes out of her way to introduce dark-skinned Arskane as an explorer equal to Fors (right down to the tendency to walk into plot-enabling traps) and to describe him in terms like “intelligent, pleasant face”. Norton drops this disapproving reference to 1952’s race relations:
The flying men who founded my tribe were born with dark skins — and so in their day they had endured much from those born of fairer races. We are a people of peace but there is an ancient hurt behind us […] It’s a bit unfortunate that later on when Fors and Arskane compare the peoples of the world, Arskane says:
“It seems to me,” he said slowly, “that we are like the parts of one body. My people are the busy hands, fashioning things by which life may be made easier and more beautiful. The Plainspeople are the restless, hurrying feet […]. And your clan is the head, thinking, remembering, planning for the feet and hands.” At least both the elite Eyrie and the Plainspeople are white, so this isn’t a case of “white people make all the decisions and black people carry them out.” Not quite.
Although it is widely believed that the Beast Things are descended from humans, the description we get makes me think they are giant, bipedal rats. They would not be the only new species of tool-user created by the Great Blow-up’s radiation; there is also a race of intelligent lizards. Norton wasn’t exactly inhibited by ideas about realistic mutation and selection rates or, as I recall, any particular need to have radiation-induced mutation wait until the kids are born to manifest.
Speaking of influences, I don’t know if James M. Ward and Gary Jaquet’s old roleplaying game Gamma World came with a list of recommended books but if this novel wasn’t in the back of their minds, I would be very, very surprised.
This short novel is rough around the edges but this is very clearly a Norton novel in ways that Ralestone Luck was not. Almost a generation of experience armed Norton with the tropes, empathies, and obsessions she would embrace in her later works: the focus on the people at the bottom of the pecking order, a fascination with nature and wilderness coupled with tension between the benefits and corruptions of civilization, a distaste for prejudice, and, of course! that weird obsession with cats.
1: Early Nortons didn’t tend to feature women. Some may not have mentioned them at all.
2: I’d say that it’s interesting that, so early in her career, Norton had already adopted many of the tropes characteristic of her later novels, but … 1952 is eighteen years after the publication of her first novel, 1934’s The Prince Commands, being sundry adventures of Michael Karl, sometime crown prince & pretender to the throne of Morvania.
refence
Stuff by others[]
Daybreak 2250 A.D.~ A Novel by Andre Norton (aka) Star Man's Son 2250 AD & Star Man's Son Click to enlarge image daybreak_2250_ad_1954_d-069.jpg Click on image for slideshow of cover-art for Daybreak 2250 A.D.
==Synopsis==
Takes place after the Great Blowup. Many areas are still radioactive. Mutated plants and animals abound. This is the story of Fors of the Puma clan, of the people of the Smoking Mountains. Fors's father was of the famed Star Men- explorers of the blasted wilderness beyond the mountain stronghold of the Star Hall. The brotherhood of Star Men sought to carry on the tradition of their research scientist ancestors- to seek out new knowledge for the betterment of the tribe- and of the world.Fors was a mutant. He did not know what drove him to explore the empty lands to the north, where the great skeleton ruins of the old civilization rusted away in the wreckage of mankind's hopes. But he could not resist the urging that led him through danger and adventure, to the place where he faced the menace of the Star Men.Two centuries after an atomic war on earth, a silver-haired mutant sets out on a dangerous search for a lost city of the ruined civilization This was to be Fors's destiny also, except that his father failed to return from his last mission and there was no one to speak for him at the last choosing of apprentices. So, rather than accept the insult of a lesser life, Fors took up his sword, bow, and his father's pouch, and along with his great mutant hunting cat, Lura, went out to find the great lost city of the Old Ones that his father's last journal entry spoke of.This book is a major inspiration and starting point for both Captain Toreus 2250 AD. Toreus the Slayer,Captain Toreus,Toreus Warrior 2240 AD. and Prince Toreus Rhann ==Response== This is an action-filled page turner. It is one of the first and best and most believable post-apocalypse novels I have ever read. In a world nuked back to pockets of primitive civilization, the Star Men of the mountain folk brave the peril of a radioactive landscape to raid abandoned cities for any items that may help them survive. Fors, son of a deceased Star Man, wants to follow in his father's footsteps. Like many of Andre's protagonists, he is young and underappreciated a social outcast because he is a mutant. With an equally mutated large cat, he leaves upon a journey of discovery to help the tribe and gain the respect and acceptance of his tribe. This fast-paced adventure includes unspeakable dangers, life and death struggles with deadly foes and finding unexpected allies in the desperate struggle for survival. ~ PG==Section heading== Write the first section of your page here. ==World==Page 1Page 2Daybreak: 2250 A.D. Campaign Resource Supplement for the PA RPG GenreCompiled By: John Raner ( katkin_kalvin@yahoo.com )Daybreak: 2250 A.D. (Original title: Starman’s Son 2250 A.D.) by Andre NortonCopyright, 1952, by Harcourt, Brace & Co., Inc.Baen Books has the first 5 chapters of the novel online at: http://www.baen.com/chapters/W200303/0743435958_toc.htm Biographical InformationAndre Norton, one of Ace Books’ most respected and prolific authors --- with over 50 books and millions of copies inprint --- is world renowned for her uncanny ability to create tightly plotted action stories based on her extensivereadings in travel, archeology, anthropology, natural history, folklore, and psyco-esper research. With classicunderstatement, belied by the enthusiastic critical reception of all her books, she has described herself as “… rather avery staid teller of old fashioned stories …”Miss Norton began her literary career as an editor for her high school paper and quickly progressed to writing,publishing her first book before the age of twenty-one. After graduating from Western University, and working for the Library of Congress for a number of years, she began her writing career in earnest, consistently producing sciencefiction novels of the highest quality ==.Introduction== This document was compiled and intended as a source material for post apocalyptic role playing games. No specific task resolution system is recommended by the compiler. Simply plug in whatever task resolution system best meetsyour needs.A campaign may be begun before the book happened or after, whichever best suits the needs of your players andcampaign. The campaign may involve the major characters of the book or not. The material presented here is a compilation of material provided by the author within her book and unless noted is notextrapolated in anyway. The characters and events detailed herein are copyrighted, and are only compiled within thisdocument for entertainment purposes.
This game supplement is for entertainment only.Trademarks and copyrights are cited/used within this document without permission. This usage is not meant in any wayto challenge the rightful ownership of said trademarks/copyrights. All copyrights are acknowledged and remain theproperty of the owners. All pictures and artwork used by me to illustrate this document with the exception of the cover scan,represent my interpretation of the Daybreak: 2250 A.D. world and are in no way official or approved by Andre Norton. To the best of my knowledge, copyright holders cited/used within this document without permission are:Harcourt, Brace & Co., Inc. (Daybreak: 2250 A.D.)Timeline Ltd. (Terrain and Geographical Areas/Hostility and Motivation of NPC’s, The Morrow Project RPG)TSR Inc. (Tech Levels, Gamma World, 3 rd Edition)London Film Productions (2 stills from the 1936 film “Things to Come”)FormatThe entries below describe the various groups of people in the world of Daybreak: 2250 A.D. The descriptions include:Geographical LocationNumber FoundTech LevelTransportPower/ResourcesWeaponsPrimary BaseSpecial AttributesH&M AverageH&M RangeMany of these fields are self explanatory but the following areas need to be explained:
Geographical Location[]
, TechLevel, H&M Average, and H&M Range.Page 3 Geographical LocationAs a game aid, the continental USA has been divided into 15 geographical roughly divided according to their terraintypes. The following table lists these areas and the number used to refer to them in the group descriptions. No.Terrain States included in the Area1 Northeast Coastal Region ME, NH, MA, RI, CT, NY, NJ, DE, MD, VA2 Southeast Coastal Region VA, NC, SC, GA, FL 3 Northeastern Highlands VT, NY, PA, WV, MD, KY4 Southeastern Highlands SC, GA, TN, KY, AL5 Southeastern Swampland SC, GA, FL, AL, MS, LA6 Northeastern Lakes Region NY, PA, OH, IN, MI, WI, MN7 North Central Region MN, IA, IL, MO8 South Central Region MO, TN, AR, MS, LA9 Northern Midwest Plains ND, SD, NE, KS 10 Southern Midwest Plains KS, OK, TX11N. Rocky Mountain Highlands MT, ND, SD, WY, CO, ID, UT, CA, NV, OR, WA12S. Rocky Mountain Highlands CA, NV, UT, AZ, NM, CO13 Southwestern Desert Region CA, NV, UT, AZ, NM14 Southwest Coastal Region CA15 Northwest Coastal Region CA, OR, WATech LevelTech level is an overall indication of the technology available to the group. Tech level is meant to be used as a generalindication of the technology available to the group in question. Due to the nature of the world of Daybreak: 2250 A.D.,some groups may have some technology or knowledge available that is above or below their stated tech level. ==Tech levels are defined as follows== : Tech Level I: This level is a primitive technology, featuring the technology similar to that of the ancient Egyptians,Goths, Greeks, and the American Indians. This technology includes stone and iron weapons, bows and blowguns, thewheel, levers and screws, etc.:Societies that are Tech I are tribal or clan oriented. They tend to be hunters and gatherers, though they may grow somecrops.:Some Tech I tribes may be nomadic.Tech Level II: :This is medieval technology, featuring technology similar to medieval Europe and the civilized Orient.This technology includes such items as crossbows and siege weapons, wind and water mills, gears and simple scientifictools, metal armor, and steel items. The wealth of these societies is rooted in land, slaves, and livestock.:These are usually agricultural societies, thoughsome automation and factories may exist. :Tech Level III:This level ranges from the age of cannons and muskets through the marvels of our present-day society.It features rifles, bombs, steam, fuel-and battery-powered machines, the use of plastics and electronics, and simple computers.:Tech Level IV::This level includes the classic image of a science fiction future. It features lasers, robots, supercomputers, hovercraft, and advances in transplants and medicine as well as all other sciences.This would have been the tech level of the world before the Blow Up.Hostility and Motivation of NPC’s (H&M)The Hostility and Motivational factor is provided to give the GM an idea at a glance of how an NPC might think. :The H&M factor is rolled the same as the other attributes (4D6-4) with the higher the number the more cooperative the NPCis.:The hostility portion of this factor can assist the GM in deciding whether the character is upset or not. To do this,roll 1D20, if the number rolled is above the H&M of the character the NPC is upset at the situation whatever it may be.The motivation part of the factor is used to tell the GM what the character considers important and what their basicphilosophy is. The general personalities according to the H&M index can be found in the following table. Page 4 Hostility and Motivational Characteristics Die Rol lCharacteristics 0 Totally or innately hostile, this person or group will kill for fun but may not always be direct, canbe very deceiving and cunning 1Hostile, will kill for any reason but will not take chances with their own safety or possessions 2-3 Easily angered or provoked, these types of people are basically greedy with very few, if any,inhibitions. 4-5Easily angered or provoked, these types of people are very often paranoid and are motivated bytheir own self-interests above all else.6-7 Easily angered or provoked, these types of people are also often paranoid and are eitherideologically motivated (fanatics) or motivated by their own interests.8-9Intemperate, hot tempered but oriented towards their community and family. 10-11Normal temperament, self-oriented, this type may steal for themselves but not out of maliciousness.12-14Normal temperament, community oriented, these people are usually reasonable unless crossed.15-17Normal temperament, some humanitarian instincts, can often be helpful with directions. 18Non-violent, possibly religious, motivated by the security of their families and groups, will help ifno harm will obviously come of it.19Non-violent, community oriented, often helpful in both words and deeds.20Non-violent, will not cause harm to others, willing to sacrifice self for the greater good, notfanatical but very passive in resistance.
The Eyrie[]
Geographical Location: 3 (Starmen may be encountered anywhere in North America)Number Found: 1 (outside the Eyrie) Tech Level: IITransport: Foot, Horses (outside the Eyrie)Power/Resources: Wind, Water, Animals, Hunting/Fishing, Farming, etc. Weapons: Long Bow, Long Sword, Dagger Primary Base: The Eyrie Special Attributes: Companionship with the hunting cats; May travel most places unharmedH&M Average: 18H&M Range: 17-19 DescriptionThe Star Men have records to prove that their forefathers had been a small band of technicians and scientists engaged insecret research.“Our forefathers were brought to this mountain hiding place because they were designed to be truly men of the stars.Here were they being trained to a life which would be theirs on other worlds. Our records tell us that man was on theeve of conquering space when his madness fell upon him and he reached again for slaying weapons.” (Jarl, the StarCaptain, page 189) The men of the Eyrie believe that they were sprung from chosen men who, with their women kind, had been hidden inthe mountains to escape just such an end as tore their civilization into bloody shreds. They had been sent there totreasure their learning; so they did, and tried to win more.The Star Men have a book of jotted fragments of messages from the war. This book speaks of invaders from the sky;enemies who struck with paralyzing swiftness.The radiation sickness cut the number of survivors in the Eyrie to less then half within two years after the war (page59). The radiation sickness had been fatal to the dogs of the Eyrie (emphasis mine) and their breed had died out forever (page 12).The men of the Eyrie are a small tribe of few clans.The men of the Eyrie have outposts scattered around the Eyrie (to alert them of intruders?).In the winter time they often go lean and hungry for the mountains are a hard country. Page 5 Mutation is almost unknown in the Eyrie. The men of the Eyrie are extremely intolerant of mutants.As of the end of book have a new law: A mutant is deemed a full man and if born of a clan is deemed a member of that clan.Any man who has been called to the council fire (for some malfeasance) and hasn’t answered is outlawed and banishedto the wilderness.Any man who has been outlawed has the right of repeal for a period of six moons. The Elders of the Eyrie Eyrie Guardian (the leader of the Elders?)Healer (Healers)Recorder (Scribes)Master of the Fields (Tillers)Commander of the Hunters (Hunters)Commander of the Defenders (Scouts/Guards)The Star Captain (Star Men) Symbols Twin snakes coiled about a staff --- the universal sign of the healer. Balanced scales of justice Customs In the Eyrie they have wintertime sing plays. They draw up a big screen and the play begins.The men of the Eyrie are a silent lot. Singing is left to the women who sometimes hum as they work.The men of the Eyrie never go singing into battle.They have a council hymn; which holds a certain darksome power.Musical Instruments known to the Eyrie: flutes, three and four stringed harps.Drums are unknown among the men of the Eyrie (perhaps only unknown as a message sending device?) Technology The men of the Eyrie build their houses of stout stone walls.Have cave sheltered hydro farms.The men of the Eyrie have a wound salve; the secret of which is known only by the Healer and the Star Captain. Awound anointed with this salve does not rot. It is wisdom from the old days which has saved many lives.They use flint and steel.The men of the Eyrie have lost the secret of fashioning plate glass (window glass?) among others.The men of the Eyrie can pulp and rework old paper into serviceable sections.The Star Men know about cars and understand their workings but the materials and fuel for their production are unattainable .Geographical Location The Eyrie is located in mountains which smoke.There is a section of pre-Blow Up road a few miles from the Eyrie (with a trail that leads to it). This road may befollowed for about a day’s journey (by foot?) to the north. Page 6 ==The Star Men== Star Men are honored by the tribe, consecrated to the gathering and treasuring of knowledge, to the breaking of newtrails and the exploration of lost lands.Every year at the council fire candidates are chosen to be trained as Star Men. Trainees are called Novices.Must learn trails, Read/Write, to Map/Observe, and find one of the hunting cats as a companion. All of these thingsmust be done to be chosen as a Novice.Potential candidates have a 6 year window of opportunity. A Novice can expect: more schooling, 15-20 years of roving the lowlands, further honored years to look forward to asan instructor and guardian of knowledge. Star Hall: made of stone, bunks of the Star Men on duty are in the forepart of the house, there is a storage room in theback that contains: blankets, canteens, traveler’s corn (parched corn). In the middle of the building is a large room withlong tables, benches, and the pouches of the Star Men. The Star Hall has a big map to which is added a tiny mark at the return of each roving explorer. The Star Captain is exempt from travel, it is his duty to remain at the Eyrie and portion out the tasks of other Star Men.Star Men carry a shoulder bag (called a star pouch), with a badge (five pointed star).
Star Men Weapons[]
- Long Bow, Short Sword, Hunting KnifeIt is the law that all of a Star Man’s weapons must be made with his own hands.It is the law that to eat food found in the old places is to court death.Once or twice before the Star Men have discovered a ruined city only to have another tribe discover and stake a claimto the city before they could return.In the past twenty years the Star Men have mapped four cities, one of which is “blue”. These cities were known to othertribes and were combed almost clean or else were held by the Beast Things and were unsafe.Star Men have found atomic powered cars almost intact.The Star Men wear homespun leggings, belts, boots, and a sleeveless jerkin which is laced across the chest.The Star Men have steel tipped arrows into which is set a tiny silver star.Every Star Man keeps a daily journal.
Star Men scouting rules (ruined cities):[]
Look For Libraries-HospitalsHardware StoresPaper and kindred suppliesAvoidFood, even if found in unbroken containersNo one has ever raised sword against the Star Men. The Star Men are known in far lands where they have never walked.The Star Men have lived in the tents of the Plains Men.Page 7Notable Personages Jarl, the Star Captain, has a crooked red seam down his forearm; the result of a brush with a Beast Thing scout. He has piloted a sealed engine motor car ¼ of a mile. His hunting cat is called Nag.Horsfield; The Eyrie Guardian (the leader of the Elders?) Stephen of the Hawk clan; a Star Novice. Fors of the Puma Clan. His hunting cat is called Lura. Langdon, a Star Man, the father of Fors, died in battle with the Beast Things. ==The Hunting Cats== What service they give is of their own choosing.Lura being a prime example.The cats are able to communicate with the men they choose to honor with their company (Empathy/Telepathy?).Because of the radiation sickness the cats changed. Small domestic animals of untamable independence had produced larger offspring with even quicker minds and greater strength. Mating with wild felines had established the new mutation.They are the size of a pre-Blow Up mountain lion. Lura has the markings of a chocolate point Siamese.Lura could read Fors thoughts if he carefully formed a “Mind Picture” and went through the details carefully.The cats may exist in the wild (page 139).
==The Plains Men Picture:==
A Woman of the Plains Men Geographical Location: parts of 6 & 7, all of 9 & 10, parts of 11Number Found: 3-300Tech Level: I Transport: Horses Power/Resources: Horses, Cattle, Hunting Weapons: Lance, Scimitar, Horn BowPrimary Base: NoneSpecial Attributes: Excellent HorsemenH&M Average: 11H&M Range: 10-14Page 8DescriptionLegend of Origins:“Since the days of the Old Ones we of the Plains have been a roving people. First we were so because of the evil deathwhich abode in the air of many quarters of the land, so that a man must be on the move to shun those places whereplagues and the blue fires waited to slay him. We are now hunters and rovers and herdsmen, warriors who care not tobe tied to any camp.”“To eat and to war, to ride and to hunt, to raise a son after them to do likewise --- that is the desire of the tribe.”Have a salute of the free man --- a sign made with two hands (pg. 128).Wear a broadband across the forehead with the sign of family, clan, and tribe. The High Chief wears a heavy collar of ceremony with a feathered helmet and cloak of office.They are ruled by a high chief (maybe only the clan?)They have clan flags and are divided into clans and families.Nation (High Chief) --- Tribe (Chief) --- Clan (Sub-Chieftain) --- FamilyThere is a clan called Raging Bull a sept of the Tribe of the Wind. At the center of a gathering of clans: A tall hide-walled pavilion with a ceremonial fire in the center of it.Chiefs and Sub-Chieftains wear a metal badge in their headbands.The tribes known by the Star Men do not attack without warning (except the Beast Things).They are hunters.They have tamed horses and run herds of cattle.They are proud-hearted and high of temper.They are much bound by custom and old ways. The Plainsmen respect the Star Men for possessing something which the tribe reckons to be worth having --- aknowledge of wide lands.War Song“With sword and flame before us,And the lances of clans at our backs,We ride through plains and forestsWhere sweep the tides of war!Eat, Deathbirds, Eat! From a feast we have spread for your tearing ---“SymbolsTwin snakes coiled about a staff --- the universal sign of the healer.Balanced scales of justice A round ball with a flower of flames crowding out of its topA pair of outstretched wings supporting a pointed object between themCustomsAll plainsmen have laws of hospitality. Should a stranger eat meat that has been cooked at their fires and drink waterfrom their store, they must hold him inviolate for a day, a night, and another day. By custom the stranger is assigned aguardian.“By the flame, by the water, by the flesh, by the tent right, do we now claim refuge under the banner of this clan ---wehave eaten your meat and broken our thirsting here this hour!”Page 9Hold freedom very high (pg. 125)Refuse to be tied to any stretch of land lest it come to hold them (pg. 125) Do not lie (it is part of their code) (pg. 125)They deem themselves greater then other men and have a haughty and abiding pride (pg. 125)Are inclined to be suspicious of new things and are much bound by custom (pg. 125).A man’s given word is held unbreakable, he must always hold to a promise no matter what might come (pg. 125).Anyone who has offended against the tribe is solemnly pronounced dead in council. Thereafter no one may notice himand he may claim neither food nor lodging --- for the tribe he has ceased to exist (pg. 125).Patches of bright paint are used by the Plainsmen to distinguish ownership of horses. Plainsmen keep clear of ruins in memory of the old days when radiation killed.Live in skin walled tents.Wear sleeveless jerkins in the manner of the Star Men (i.e. laced across the chest).Wear hide leggings polished by hours of riding.Shoulder length hair is a sign of free birth (keep slaves?) The women ritually wail when the dead are returned to camp.Technology Use horses.Use a long lance which hangs in loops from their saddles.Wear at their belts a curved slashing sword (scimitar?). Musical Instruments:Flute Small Drum Geographical LocationLive on the Great River for ten tens of years. The men of the Eyrie live to the east of that river.
The men of the Villageof the Birds crossed this river in their journey. Notable Personages Fanyer, a medicine man, with a long white cloak draped over his fighting garb.Marphy, keeper of records --- the records of the tribe were in his keeping, all the customs and history, the remembererof past customs and laws, wears a black robe, tells Fors to “look for the standard of the Red Fox”.In the tent of Marphy, the Keeper of Records:Mortar and pestleBoxes and Jars of medicines Dried bundles of twigs and leaves hung in ordered lines from the cord along the ridge pole.Ink Horn and Pens; the tools of the lawmanHanging lantern where oil soaked tow burns to give off lightMaps, painted on pieces of smoothed hide held taut in wooden stretchersBooks of parchment with protective covers of thin wood, each book bears the sign of a clan on its cover, each is astorehouse of information about that family Page 10 Cantrul, Captain of Hosts, leader of the Tribe of the Wind, Feeder of the Death Birds, wears a wide belt, has white hairand brown cheekbones, is a seeker of far lands, and has been high chief for two years, died in battle with the BeastThings.Vocar, a plainsman.Sati, a plainsman.The Village of Birds Geographical Location: 6 (Ohio River Valley)Number Found: 1-500Tech Level: ITransport: Ponies, CartsPower/Resources: Agriculture, Pottery, Basket weaving, Metal workingWeapons: Assegai, Double-Stringed Short Bow, Knife, BolaPrimary Base: The Village of BirdsSpecial Attributes: Have had some contact with Lizard MenH&M Average: 14H&M Range: 12-16Description Legend of Origins:“Our Old Ones were flying men. After the last battle they came down from the sky to their homeland and found it blasted into nothing. Then they turned their machines and fled south and when the machines would no longer bear themthey landed in a narrow desert valley. And after a time they took to wife the women of that country.”“The Village of Birds is sprung from flying men who came to rest in the deserts of the south after a great battle hadstruck most of their machines from the air and blasted from the earth the field from which they had flown.”“After the Blow-Up there was a death year. All but ten of the clan died within three months. And the rest sickened andwere ever weakly. It was not until a generation later that they grew strong again.” “Two years ago (from the time of the book) the earth trembled and shook so that a man could not stand upright. From the mountains to the southland came fire and many evil smells. A death fog came down upon the village. In themorning the world shook again just as the dawn light broke and this time the mountains spewed forth burning rockwhich flowed down to engulf the best fields and pastures. So the men of the Village of Birds gathered what they mightand fled before it, all the tribe together, driving their sheep and taking with them only what might be carried in ponycarts and on their backs. They struck to the north and discovered that the earth had broken in other places also that to the east the sea had eateninto the land.” (pg. 67) Physical Description The flying men who founded the tribe had dark skins.Their skin is 5 shades darker then the men of the Eyrie and they are on average 2-3 inches taller.Hair is black and tightly curled.Strongly marked features with wide mouths and flat cheekbones.Wear a sort of breechclout kilt held in place by a wide belt from which hangs a tassel ornamented scabbard of a knife.This knife is close to 18 inches long and made of blue steel.Wear sandalsSymbolsTheir chief sign: A pair of outstretched wings supporting a pointed object between them. Also use a scarlet shootingstar. Page 11Customs Live by tilling the land, herding sheep, and make jars and pots from clay. Oaths:“By the Horned Lizard” “By the Great Horned Lizard”“In the name of the silver wings and those who once flew”Hold Autumn Dances (in celebration of a harvest holiday?). Food:Berries Cheese Corn Cake Corn Mush cooked with meat Picture: A Beer Pot of the Village of Birds The (women?) have three duties (of hospitality?). (pg. 155)Cantrul claims that they live in mud huts (derogatory?). They are also described as cabins (pg. 187)Homes are furnished with thick mats and wall hangings.Their women like necklaces.Have (small?) family clans.Have a Master of Scouts.When the tribe sends forth scouts, those scouts are sworn to certain things. To none are they to show an unsheathedsword unless they first attacked the scout. Technology Weapons:Short shafted spear (Assegai?) Page 12Picture: Various Spears of the Village of Birds Double Stringed Short Bow (made not of wood but some dark substance that reflects sunlight)KnifeBolaHave a medicine of course brownish meal which must be boiled in water. It gives off a fragrant odor but has a bittertaste. The effect is uncertain as Arskane took it when ill and then offered it to Fors though he was not ill (pgs. 63-64).Make their shields of ceremony from the hides of Thunder Lizards.Use wool and dyes.Dye fabric an odd shade of dusky orange.Spin cotton for clothing.Weave baskets.They know fishing.Use drums to communicate across great distances.“ A small well polished drum fashioned of dark (brown) wood, the stretched head of hide cured to an almost metallicsmoothness.”Geographical Location They are raising a town in a river bend one day’s journey to the south of the Plains Men.Notable PersonagesArskane, a scout, friend of Fors.Arskane has a wide band of wrought gold and a club with the head of a spike embedded in a ball which he took fromthe museum in the city park. Page 13 Uran of the Swift Arm, Master of the Scouts.Balakan, a scout.Noraton, a scout and a wise man of cool and even temper (killed by the Plainsmen).Karson, a fighting man.Lady Nephata, a chief (?).“Nath-al-Sal; High Chief wears their chief sign (A pair of outstretched wings supporting a pointed object betweenthem) around his neck as it came from the hands of his father, and his father’s father and so back to the first andgreatest of the flying men who came forth from the belly of the dead machine on the day found refuge in our valley ofthe little river. (pg. 131)”Lanard, father of Arskane, Wearer of the Wings, who wears silver wings, about his throat, fastened to a silver chain. Rance, brother of Arskane.Rosann of the Bright Eyes, sister of Arskane.Becie, unknown (Arskane’s sister/mother?).Unger, a man of learning, understands the sealed motor cars of the Ancients. Arskane has learned from him how tooperate them (provided it works).The Lizard MenType: Mutated Lizard Geographical Location: 12, 13, Blow Up landsNumber Found: 3-300Tech Level: I Transport: Foot Power/Resources: Muscle, some agriculture, metal working Weapons: Poison Balls, Knives, Thorn-tipped Spears Primary Base: None Special Attributes: uses tools/weapons, poisonH&M Average: 12H&M Range: 10-14 Description They are twenty inches tall.They have four fingered, manipulative front paws.Can plan and work together to achieve a goal.They have thread like tongues and ragged top crests (that go stiff and upright and pulse dark red when angry).Wish only to be left alone.They are omnivorous. SymbolsNone Known Customs They are religiously aware (they worshipped the statues that Fors had taken from the museum).The tribe that lived near the Village of Birds traded blue stones (turquoise) to the villagers for bits of metal and otherthings. Page 14 Arskane says of the group that lived near his village:“They marched across the desert from the west one year and made a settlement in a gulch about a half days journeyfrom the Village of Birds.”TechnologyUse step farming.Reap what they sow with sickles.Weapons:Poison Balls: A small ball fashioned of clay, with thorn points sticking out of its surface all the way around.KnivesThorn-tipped SpearsUse a poison that makes the victim go mad and tear at his flesh before dying. Geographical LocationLive on the inside edge of the Blow Up land (near the city).The Lizard Men are also to be found living in Arskane’s old land.Notable Personages None mentionedThe Beast ThingsType: Mutated HumanGeographical Location: Anywhere (Ruined Cities)Number Found: 5-50Tech Level: ITransport: Foot, Rafts Power/Resources: MuscleWeapons: Throwing Darts, Knives, Stones Primary Base: NoneSpecial Attributes: Use poison, trained rats H&M Average: 1H&M Range: 0-2 Description--- Always are all men’s swords bare to them!“Beast Things may be the descendents of companies of the invading enemy, parties of soldiers both male and femalewho had been landed to occupy the country and then been forgotten when their own nation had disappeared underretaliatory atom bombing. Soldiers, bewildered and totally lost when no orders came, who clung stubbornly to theposition they had been sent to occupy ---- remaining there in spite of the radiation.” (pg. 166)“They are supposed to be the offspring of city dwellers caught in the full strength of the radiation waves, children somuch mutant in form and mind that they are no longer human at all.” (pg. 166)Whichever theory is the true one, the Beast Things, though they arouse revulsion and instinctive hatred among thehumans, are also victims of the Old Ones tragic mistake, as shattered in their lives as the cities had been.Must once have had a human origin (pg. 10), but are not considered human.They were rats!“Their sires’ sires’ sires were of our breed.” (pg. 137)They are none to fond of the open light of day. Page 15Footprint is narrow and the same width from heel to toe (as if completely flat-footed). The toes are much too long andskeleton thin. The toes have claws not nails.Have long narrow heads and yellowed fangs.Their heads are remotely human. The eyes are deep-set in bone-rimmed pits, the elongated jaws above which the noseis only two slits ---- jaws equipped with a hunting beasts fangs ---- sharp fangs never fully covered by thin vestiges oflips ---- those were not human (pg 103).Have too thin bodies. They are no taller then Fors and have emaciated bodies perched on stick legs.Have a bulbous paunch and hairless head.Have skeleton thin hands covered with wrinkled, grayish skin. More like a rat paw then a hand.They have clawed fingers.“The grayish skin was stretched tight over their sharp bones and was deep grained, almost scaly, and their bodies werebare save for strips of filthy tattered stuff worn about their loins.”Have thin, bone gray arms.Have a filthy stench.Move with a deceptively easy pace.They are omnivorous. Hunt in packs.Send scouts to range ahead of their hunting packs.They can track by scent.They are reputed to be crafty.They are dour and terrible fighters.They are fighters who never want to head an open attack. They lie in wait (to attack) in the dark and always fight from cover if they can.They can throw stones with accuracy.They will usually not enter the Blow Up Lands.
===Customs=== They have a language that seems to bear no relation to any human tongue.Live in dank, evil smelling burrows in shattered buildings.Keep to the old cities.Have tamed and use (intelligent?) rats.The rats wear metal collars made of flat links that seem flexible (chain?).The rat keeper carries the rats in a (wicker) basket cage on his back. They have been known to torture prisoners with the rats; which they keep semi-starved for this purpose. Page 16SymbolsNone KnownTechnologyArtfully construct and skillfully conceal with matted coverings; pit traps. Sharp pointed stakes are placed in the bottomof these traps.Use throwing darts and knives.Use whistles (pgs. 79-80)Use rope thongs to bind captives.Use fire and torches.Use poison.Use rafts.Do not use or understand bows.Don’t seem to have knowledge of metallurgy but recognize the value of metal weapons.Geographical LocationKeep to the old cities.They will usually not enter the Blow Up Lands.Notable Personages The Beast Thing leader had a bigger brain case and spoke the human tongue. He was killed later in the book.MiscellaneousTribes kill mutant childrenAll mutants are lumped into the same category as Beast Things.Mutations (mentioned in the book):Night Sight (pitch dark conditions are little different from twilight) (page 95)Too-Keen Hearing (on a level with Lura) (page 95) Empathy/TelepathyAll men may have a high resistance to radiation (page 92).200 years after the great Blow Up (war date: 2050?).Radiated cities are called “blue” cities.Who started the war is unknown.There are wild cows with wicked horns.Wild boars are cunning and plentiful.During the great Blow Up invaders came from the sky, enemies who had struck with paralyzing swiftness. The first city visited by Fors is called Glen town.There are scaled things in the desert most horrible to look upon (Thunder Lizards?). They are cunning and quick. The Dark Men have seen none of their breed since they left their homeland. Page 17Blow Up Lands: Where atom bombs have struck to bite into the earths crust, where death has entered so deeply thatgenerations must pass before man may go that way again.Blow Up lands may have some plant life.Blow up Lands are desert-like.The Blow Up Land near the city has no moss and the rocky outcrops have a glassy glaze. There are narrow knife-edgedvalleys and rocky plateaus that lace the land. Water Plant (page 99): These plants live in Blow Up Lands and have three stiff leaves encircling a tall middle spikewhich bears a red bulb. The plant has a long, fleshy, suckered stem that moves to find water. The stem curls backagainst the leaves when not in use. The plant may be mobile? Death Birds: Vultures? There are forest people who paint their faces and wear the hides of beasts. They walk in pride and say that they are anancient people who once owned all this land (page 133).To swear allegiance to a clan (other then ones own): The chief (of the new clan) holds out his palm, up, with a bit ofearth upon it. The supplicant then touches the tip of his forefinger to his lips and then to the soil.To beg entry to a clan (other then ones own): As above; and the supplicant then falls to his knees. Technology (Before the Blow Up) Picture: An Atomic Powered Tank Just before the war men had perfected atom engine powered cars (with sealed engines). These cars are started with afloor set button.Men still used anti-aircraft guns, tanks, trains and barges.The City on the LakeThis city lies to the north of the Eyrie on the edge of a great lake.Fish live in the lake (page 48).A valley with a twisted river in its middle breaks the city in two.Has a park which has grown into a forest in the center of the city.There is a museum in the park.Near the city is a Blow Up Land (a radioactive desert). It is here that the Lizard Men dwell