Lavender
Master
What sort of foods exist in your world? My characters eat a lot of nuts, berries and pickles - lots of non perishables they can eat while travelling as they're almost constantly on the move. How about you guys?
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Food in your world...
- Thread starter Lavender
- Start date
Saigonnus
Dark Lord
Typical fare in my world while traveling is smoked beef/lamb etc like jerky, dried beans or lentil soup (which doesn't take long to cook) potatoes and turnips (they have a pretty good shelf life if kept in a cool/dry place) hard biscuits and of course whatever animals they can scavenge along the way. Also consider dried grains like wheat, oats etc for gruel (oatmeal) that can be seasoned with the fruit you can find. You can also find bird/lizard eggs to eat.
Scouts for medieval armies would often keep an eye out for rabbits/pheasants etc as they went around looking for enemies because they could easily suppliment their diet. They typically went for smaller game so they didn't waste any of it but with a large enough party you could probably get away with a small deer.
Also, cheese is taken, but usually has to be eaten within a couple weeks or so (if packed in wax), or else you're cutting off the "moldy" bits to eat it and alot of it goes to waste.
Scouts for medieval armies would often keep an eye out for rabbits/pheasants etc as they went around looking for enemies because they could easily suppliment their diet. They typically went for smaller game so they didn't waste any of it but with a large enough party you could probably get away with a small deer.
Also, cheese is taken, but usually has to be eaten within a couple weeks or so (if packed in wax), or else you're cutting off the "moldy" bits to eat it and alot of it goes to waste.
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SeleneHime
Grandmaster
In my main novel universe, travel fares range from smoked foods (beef, mutton, venison if available ... though one character is willing to try smoking warg, for which I'm going to go out on a limb and say it probably wouldn't taste all that great), hardtack, gruel/oatmeal if spices are to be had, some dried vegetables/fruits - or, if a mage that practices more fluid elements is convenient, frozen in a metal box - and then you have whatever you can scavenge or hunt.
For ordinary people in my primary nation - grain in the form of bread or porridge for the one meal, sometimes with an egg or two. The other meal is often a stew or soup, with the emphasis on garden grown veggies, and sometimes a bit of fish or other meat tossed in (probably chicken or rabbit). Meat/Veggie pies - including varients of what is now called 'shepherds pie' also turn up on the table fairly often.
There are exceptions to the above standard - areas with large orchards will see fuit on the table fairly often; people in places near the seacoast will eat lots of fish, crustaceans and even seaweed; and those in cattle country (or goat country or sheep country) would eat meat much more often.
Those at the bottom of the social heap (and 'fortunate' enough to dwell in a major city) are often on the 'Dole' - they get a daily ration of grain, sometimes just grain, other times bread, and depending on availability, a few pieces of fruit, vegetables, and if real lucky, maybe dried fish.
Common soldiers, as part of their kit, lug around a couple weeks worth of grain/bread, dried meat (beef or fish), and dried fruit or veggies. These are...well, not 'emergency rations', exactly, though that term will have to do. Usually, they draw similiar fair from the supply trains with each legion.
Those at the top or close to it...well...the world is their palate. (Which means I gotta do some research).
There are exceptions to the above standard - areas with large orchards will see fuit on the table fairly often; people in places near the seacoast will eat lots of fish, crustaceans and even seaweed; and those in cattle country (or goat country or sheep country) would eat meat much more often.
Those at the bottom of the social heap (and 'fortunate' enough to dwell in a major city) are often on the 'Dole' - they get a daily ration of grain, sometimes just grain, other times bread, and depending on availability, a few pieces of fruit, vegetables, and if real lucky, maybe dried fish.
Common soldiers, as part of their kit, lug around a couple weeks worth of grain/bread, dried meat (beef or fish), and dried fruit or veggies. These are...well, not 'emergency rations', exactly, though that term will have to do. Usually, they draw similiar fair from the supply trains with each legion.
Those at the top or close to it...well...the world is their palate. (Which means I gotta do some research).
Queshire
Dark Lord
Food isn't an issue in my world.
First off there's two magic disciplines specifically designed around food. Burgermeistry and Gourmancy are both primarily Goblin magic disciplines. Goblins were created by the Elves as servants and their natural magic tends to reflect that. As these disciplines don't have any real biological requirement, anybody can learn them, however nobody is going to be as fast (in Burgermeistry's case) or as good (for Gourmancy) as a Goblin. Both disciplines are variants of Alchemy.
Burgermeistry was created to feed the large Orc armies serving the Elves during the Great War that ended the Age of Legends. Burgermeisters can transform anything organic (and most things inorganic) into a nutritious, warm, and filling food in mere minutes. Admittedly their food is utterly bland, and you REALLY don't want to know what it was orignially made of, but beggars and soldiers can't be choosers. Since the Great War shut the book on the Age of Legends a thousand years ago, and the Age of Chaos following that has started to settle down, the remaining Goblin Burgermeisters have taken to use their abilities to sell cheap, fast food to the masses in a chain of inns spread across the face of the globe as well as selling Burgermeistry insta-spells to travellers.
...
Yeah, it's basically fast food for fantasy. That was the whole idea.
Gourmancy unlike Burgermeistry was designed to feed the Goblin's Elven overlords as opposed to the Orchish grunts. It's more like traditional cooking but relies on various monster parts and magical plants to infuse the dish with special properties. While any Alchemist can make a healing potion, only a Gourmancer can make a cupcake that not only heals but has no calories.
Even ignoring Burgermeistry and Gourmancy, there's plenty of ways to get food. Monsters are common and tend to be safe to eat if you follow a couple simple rules, such as:
1) Only eat monsters that attack you first. (Predators don't have the nasty defensive surprises that prey species tend to have)
2) Don't eat the part of the monster that injects you with poison, or don't eat monsters that have poison at all if you can help it. (Pretty self explanitory, poison is bad)
3) If it's dead before you kill it, don't eat it. (So no zombies)
4) Look for the parts that taste like chicken. (If it tastes like chicken, you're almost gaurenteed that it's safe to eat)
Finally, there's plenty of magical fruits and plants that you can forage in the wilderness, though there's always the risk of some unexpected magical sideffect when you eat it.
First off there's two magic disciplines specifically designed around food. Burgermeistry and Gourmancy are both primarily Goblin magic disciplines. Goblins were created by the Elves as servants and their natural magic tends to reflect that. As these disciplines don't have any real biological requirement, anybody can learn them, however nobody is going to be as fast (in Burgermeistry's case) or as good (for Gourmancy) as a Goblin. Both disciplines are variants of Alchemy.
Burgermeistry was created to feed the large Orc armies serving the Elves during the Great War that ended the Age of Legends. Burgermeisters can transform anything organic (and most things inorganic) into a nutritious, warm, and filling food in mere minutes. Admittedly their food is utterly bland, and you REALLY don't want to know what it was orignially made of, but beggars and soldiers can't be choosers. Since the Great War shut the book on the Age of Legends a thousand years ago, and the Age of Chaos following that has started to settle down, the remaining Goblin Burgermeisters have taken to use their abilities to sell cheap, fast food to the masses in a chain of inns spread across the face of the globe as well as selling Burgermeistry insta-spells to travellers.
...
Yeah, it's basically fast food for fantasy. That was the whole idea.
Gourmancy unlike Burgermeistry was designed to feed the Goblin's Elven overlords as opposed to the Orchish grunts. It's more like traditional cooking but relies on various monster parts and magical plants to infuse the dish with special properties. While any Alchemist can make a healing potion, only a Gourmancer can make a cupcake that not only heals but has no calories.
Even ignoring Burgermeistry and Gourmancy, there's plenty of ways to get food. Monsters are common and tend to be safe to eat if you follow a couple simple rules, such as:
1) Only eat monsters that attack you first. (Predators don't have the nasty defensive surprises that prey species tend to have)
2) Don't eat the part of the monster that injects you with poison, or don't eat monsters that have poison at all if you can help it. (Pretty self explanitory, poison is bad)
3) If it's dead before you kill it, don't eat it. (So no zombies)
4) Look for the parts that taste like chicken. (If it tastes like chicken, you're almost gaurenteed that it's safe to eat)
Finally, there's plenty of magical fruits and plants that you can forage in the wilderness, though there's always the risk of some unexpected magical sideffect when you eat it.
studentofrhythm
Master
Queshire, that's nifty. A cupcake that not only heals but has no calories? Dang, where do I get one of those? And I love the chain of fantasy fast food restaurants!
Also, I can't help but recall Peter Gabriel's "Moribund the Burgermeister" from his first solo album -- delightful song about an outbreak of St. Vitus' Dance I think. But I digress.
Some foods and drinks have been important in my present WIP. Chocolate is one notable specific: characters meet in chocolate houses frequently to sip and socialize. There are or have been ideologies about food: there are various vegetarian sects in various degrees of strictness, and wheat and maize have been class markers as well as carrying religious significance -- like in our world.
I very much enjoy writing about my characters eating: pies, fruit soup, kefir, bean burritos, stewed sauerkraut, hominy and grits, chile con carne, strained yogurt with various flavorings, etc. Since I enjoy reading about a good meal I hope to learn to write meals that others can enjoy reading about too.
Also, I can't help but recall Peter Gabriel's "Moribund the Burgermeister" from his first solo album -- delightful song about an outbreak of St. Vitus' Dance I think. But I digress.
Some foods and drinks have been important in my present WIP. Chocolate is one notable specific: characters meet in chocolate houses frequently to sip and socialize. There are or have been ideologies about food: there are various vegetarian sects in various degrees of strictness, and wheat and maize have been class markers as well as carrying religious significance -- like in our world.
I very much enjoy writing about my characters eating: pies, fruit soup, kefir, bean burritos, stewed sauerkraut, hominy and grits, chile con carne, strained yogurt with various flavorings, etc. Since I enjoy reading about a good meal I hope to learn to write meals that others can enjoy reading about too.
SeverinR
Valar Lord
I just started my food and drink list yesterday.
The first drink; Elvin vine juice or evin juice,(spiced grape juice) for the youngsters whos mother won't let them drink the harder stuff.
Was looking for a site I found along time ago, it listed alot of unique fantasy foods.
One site I found the real recipe dragon bread yum. (simple as 1-2-3, one can dark beer, 2 cups sugar, three cups self rising flour)
The first drink; Elvin vine juice or evin juice,(spiced grape juice) for the youngsters whos mother won't let them drink the harder stuff.
Was looking for a site I found along time ago, it listed alot of unique fantasy foods.
One site I found the real recipe dragon bread yum. (simple as 1-2-3, one can dark beer, 2 cups sugar, three cups self rising flour)