Conhistory/Geography and Its Effects
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Contents |
[edit] Smaller Landform Features
[edit] Mountains and Valleys
Mountains form near where tectonic plates collide. Older mountain ranges tend to be eroded, and solitary mountains are usually volcanic. They often limit precipitation in the surrounding area, so deserts nearby are not uncommon.
[edit] Rivers and Lakes
A few rules to follow concerning rivers is that they always flow downhill and never branch except when near a body of water. Because they nourish the soil around them and provide a method of transportation, settlements will often form around them.
[edit] Climate (And Differences)
[edit] Natural Resources
[edit] Proximity to Others
[edit] Greater Landform Features
[edit] East and West vs. North and South
It has been said that one of the reasons that Eurasia tended to develop more quickly than the Americas as a whole, was the difference in their shapes. Eurasia mostly had distance going east and west, while the Americas went mostly north and south. When going north and south, there are various climate changes, so people generally don't travel far in those directions within a lifetime of their own accord. When going east and west, people are more prone to traveling great distances because the climate varies less often. Thus, technological and ideological advances are more likely to extend east and west, instead of north and south. Thus, Eurasia was more likely to share its advances. For example, the Maya developed a system of writing that never went south to the Inca, or north to the various areas there. However, writing in Eurasia spread easily after development. Writing, in and of itself, (not unlike computers or the printing press), speeds up technological advances because things can be saved through time verbatim in the written word, as opposed to more questionable oral tradition.
[edit] Ocean vs. Land
Obviously, unless you have amphibious creatures and/or vehicles, going over the ocean is not the same as going over the land. Oceans pose interesting military possibilites. If one nation develops an extensive navy, that nation may be able to rule the seas and use it for trade and transportation, whilst limiting the ability of others to do the same without permission. To other nations, the seas now become a limiter. To nations without the ability to construct seafaring vessels, it may become almost impossible to cross the seas. If your race is somehow water-based, the opposite may be true. Either way, it is almost impossible to amass great numbers across a distance in a short time over water without a great ability to transport people. Fishing is also a way of making a living for people. Coastal cities often develop for their ability to transport goods from land to sea quickly. Japan is especially capable of this, for example, because virtually every point in that country is less than two hundred miles from the coast. They also have a very large fishing industry.
