I was just thinking about the various ways that Motorcycles could be put to a horse's work, just for the sake of imagination. Then I thought about Mongolians.
Now, I haven't fleshed out this idea much at all, which is kind of why I want y'all to be a part of the conception. What ideas pop into your head at this concept? What are the implications with this theoretical nation/army? Inspire me!
Posted Apr 1, 2015, 1:54 AM UTC
I'd like to politely point out that the general idea we have of bikers is akin to that of raiders. Mongolians on the other hand were conquerors. Personally I feel motorcycle gangs are more comparable to the early Germanic tribes. That said bikers and steppe tribes are well-known for substance abuse. I think it was Genghis's grandson that was an alcoholic, and his brother tried to limit him to one cup a day, and his way around this was to just drink from one really big cup.
Anyway, the reason the Khans were so successful in their campaigns was A) the amount of horses they had and B) their sheer brutality and ability to strike fear in everybody who heard the Mongols were nearby. They had loads of horses (sometimes as many as five to one soldier in case he needed to switch) because the steppes are prime grazing land for horses. So I'm thinking that if you're going to have a nation of bikers they'd need to have 'risen' in a land with a large amount of oil or whatever.
The Mongolian war tactics were interesting too. They would frequently send out too few units or engage with a larger force, then retreat for a few miles. This is a fake retreat. There aren't as many casualties in battle as there are in retreats, so when your opponent high-tails it you pursue so you can hemorrhage their ability to reform and cause you trouble later on. So when soldiers pursued the Mongolians, thinking they'd 'gottem' a ton more Mongolians would appear from nowhere on the route trail and fall on the pursuers. As well as that the Mongols, on conquering a city were ruthless. They came into a city and killed everyone. Even cats and dogs were put to death. Read up on the Mongol sacking of Baghdad. It's believed that the population of Baghdad didn't recoup until the twentieth century.
I'll give you one more point. The best thing about Eastern cavalry was that it ran around a force of foot soldiers and peppered them with arrows. Foot soldiers couldn't match up because, obviously, they're not as fast as horses. The reason cavalry fell was mostly because of guns. See, archery, to be effective needed training. Strenuous training that lasted for months. Even years, especially if you were training for mastery of the longbow. But guns? If you can lift one you can shoot one. So that solves the problem of foot soldiers vs. cavalry. It's just something to consider if you like to play it closer to realism.
So that's that. I learned what I have about steppe combat and warfare from this guy: http://www.dancarlin.com/hardcore-history-series/ You'll like it, I think. Or at least you should start researching here.
They had loads of horses (sometimes as many as five to one soldier in case he needed to switch) because the steppes are prime grazing land for horses. So I'm thinking that if you're going to have a nation of bikers they'd need to have 'risen' in a land with a large amount of oil or whatever.
The sprawling urban wastelands of NeoMongolia could be great grazing lands with all of their electrical outlets. Oil reserves have long been depleted and the Cyber-Khan's forces now rely on electric engines.
Ooh! I didn't think of cyber-bikers! That's sick, though! For some reason (Hunter Thompson, probably) I always equate bikers with anti-hippie culture. Anti-anti-culture :/
Immediate thought: a divide between the still-nomadic bands of the steppes and the Buddhist ex-bikers in Xanadu^2 and the Neo-Muslims of New Ilkhanan.
My first thought was of the Great Khans from Fallout
That said, there are a lot of things that would be different with a motorcycle gang. You can't get milk or meat from a motorcycle for one thing. Also, while it's often shown in movies and tv, I'm unsure of how practical it is to fire a weapon or swing a blade from a motorcycle (I could be proven wrong).
However, since a motorcycle only requires fuel (and some maintenance), they would prove very useful in an open plains/steppe area in a (semi)nomadic society. A bike can stay at 60mph for the duration of its fuel tank if the rider and conditions allow. A horse can't come close to that. Also there are sidecars which would be useful for transporting other people and supplies. Headlights would help for riding in the dark. And if equipped with some sort of radio system, would allow for long distance communication much more quickly and far easier.
There's also the White Scars Space Marines from Warhammer 40k.
Also some things to consider are where do these bikers get their fuel? Are they Mad Max-like marauders, fighting for every drop of gasoline? Do they have millions of slaves digging oil wells? Do they trade for it?
Could be crop grown oil, or something similar.