Whilst traveling to the western frontier, you have undoubtedly heard tales of the natives that lurk the paths that lead to the promising frontier. Two of these tribes, the Shoshone and the Paiute, have territories that reach throughout California, Oregon and Utah, and so one must be wary not to offend, lest they decide to attack you.
The first tribe to mention is the Shoshone, also known as the snake people. These people make their home in the states of Wyoming, Utah, and Idaho. They have created villages high up in the Wind River Range so they can harvest piñon nuts during harvest season. The Shoshone worship Wolf as the creator of the world, with his brother, Coyote, acting as a trickster god to sometimes oppose him, although occasionally the two worked together for the good of all. While the Shoshone have been known to raid farms for food, they were an ally to the US in the Battle of the Rosebud, so don’t blindly attack them!
Another tribe that you will likely run into is the Paiute, or the “Water Ute.” They live in California, Oregon and Nevada, in the Great Basin. This group of Native Americans got along well with their Shoshone neighbors, and general had no problems with them. They did however, have a less than diplomatic relationship with their other neighbors, the Washoe. The religious beliefs of the Paiute mostly mirrored that of the Shoshone, with the belief that the world was created by Wolf, and that Coyote was his brother, and served as both a trickster figure, and an important ally to Wolf. The Paiute has several disagreements with the nearby settlers, but more were killed by diseases contracted by the settlers than by fighting between the two groups.
The Native American groups that line the path to the great west were varied and wondrous, and while they acted as savages sometimes, they also helped the American settlers sometimes. The Shoshone and the Paiute where just two of these groups, and one can only imagine what other, societies of native people were like.