Human Non-Universals, or: Make Your Own Vancian Culture (tm)

"Remember," Anacho warned, "the Khors are a sensitive people. Do not speak to them; pay them no heed except from necessity, in which case you must use the fewest possible words. They consider garrulity a crime against nature. Do not stand upwind of a Khor, nor if possible downwind; such acts are symbolic of antagonism. Never acknowledge the presence of a woman; do not look toward their children - they will suspect you of laying a curse; and above all ignore their sacred grove. Their weapon is the iron dart which they throw with astonishing accuracy; they are a dangerous people." 

"I hope I remember everything," said Reith.

-From Jack Vance, The Dirdir

One of Vance's neatest tricks and the secret of his worldbuilding success is to create a culture with unusual, even absurd, characteristics and then play out the consequences completely straight. You see this technique, if that's the right world, appear time and again in his Tschai and Gaean Reach books, and it is a large part of what gives them their appeal - if you want to learn 'What then?' worldbuilding from a master, Vance's science fiction writing is the place to start. 

But if you want to cheat, try this Make Your Own Vancian Culture Generator (tm):

First, determine the rough lifestyle technology level of the culture:

1 - Stone age, 2 - Bronze age, 3-4 - Medieval, 5-6 - Renaissance, 7-9 Industrial revolution, 10-14, Contemporary modern, 15-28 - Gaean Reach standard, 29-30 - Hyper-advanced 

This does not indicate the limit of technological advancement of the society, but rather the general level of social development enjoyed in the average settlement. 

Then, determine the culture's geographic origin:

1-2 - Swamp, 3-4 - Hills, 5-6 - Mountains, 7-10 - Forest, 11-14 - Plains, 15-16 - Jungle, 17-18 - Desert, 19-20 - Aquatic

Next, determine its d3 absurdities by rolling on the following table (adapted by subverting elements of the list of 67 'Human Universals' proposed by the anthropologist Donald Brown):

Dice	Absurdity
1	Lack of abstract thought
2	No affection expressed or felt
3	No distinctions made between different age grades (such as ‘child’, ‘middle-aged’, ‘old’)
4	No religion
5	No belief in fortune or misfortune
6	Biological and social mother are usually a different person
7	Abhorrence of body adornment
8	No classification of colours
9	No classification of flora or fauna
10	No classification of kin
11	No classification of weather conditions
12	No classification of sex
13	No conflict
14	No cooking
15	Taboo against sex in private
16	No cooperation
17	Absence of greetings
18	Absence of daily routine
19	No distinction between right and wrong
20	Nocturnal
21	No understanding that dreams are not reality
22	Lack of envy
23	No etiquette rules
24	No facial expressions
25	No fear of death
26	Lack of figurative speech
27	Generosity considered weak
28	Lack of gift-giving
29	Absence of group living
30	No attempts made to heal sick or injured
31	No concept of imagery
32	No rules concerning inheritance
33	No concept of inheritance
34	No concept of humour
35	Language is only a simply reflection of reality
36	No concept of law
37	No distinction made between general and particular
38	Women dominate public realm
39	Women more aggressive
40	Women more prone to lethal violence
41	Women more prone to theft
42	No concept of meal times
43	No concept of metaphor
44	No prohibition of murder
45	No numbers
46	No personal names
47	No concept of poetry
48	No concept of music
49	No concept of promising
50	No concept of revenge
51	Extreme risk-aversion
52	No concept of punishment
53	Lack of shame
54	Time only understood as cyclical
55	No concept of trade
56	Language has no verbs
57	Language has no nouns
58	No concept of weapons
59	No death rituals
60	No preference for one’s own children or close kin

Then, determine its d3 Suspicions and Taboos:

Dice	Suspicion or Taboo
1	Standing upwind of someone
2	Standing downwind of someone
3	Walking across somebody’s path
4	Entering a building without explicit invitation from someone inside
5	Sitting down in company
6	Eating in public
7	Being seen while asleep
8	Contact with animals
9	Being in the shade
10	Being in direct sunlight
11	Particular colour
12	Direct speech between members of the same sex, age category, etc.
13	Eye contact
14	Discussing intentions or desires in public
15	Refusing requests
16	Stepping on anything living
17	Being touched by rain
18	Laughing
19	Being seen to be bleeding
20	Shouting
21	Standing in front of, behind, or beside somebody
22	Encountering any acquaintance without performing extended ritualistic pleasantries
23	Being seen/heard to ask for, or accept, money
24	Being seen to be breathless, sweaty, or having otherwise striven in the performance of any task
25	Being visible through a window
26	Exposing one’s hands, feet, nose, ears, etc.
27	Carrying anything in one’s hands
28	Asking a direct question
29	Picking anything up off the ground
30	Whispering

Each of these suspicions or taboos might be vitiated:

1 - At certain times of day, 2 - After performing a particular ritual, 3 - While wearing a particular item of clothing or other body decoration, etc., 4 - On certain days each year, 5 - If performed by a person of a particular caste, or a particular type of person such as a man, woman, child, etc., 6 - After making a donation to a temple, etc.

The trick then is to combine all this into plausible societies. Hence:

The Sevelites inhabit the mountains of Sevel, where they have reached a comfortable level of technological development. They are a highly fastidious and taciturn people. Their language lacks figurative speech, and they communicate only to import or receive information. They also have a strict taboo against exposing their hands, and go about in gloves at all times; except for a particular hereditary servant caste they do not pick anything up off the ground unless it has been purified with a fine spray of salt water. A Sevelite's hands are seen only by a sexual partner; an ancient, secret tradition of pornography focuses on the hands as an erogenous zone, and complex codes and rituals concern its sale and usage.

The Masoon are native to the plains of Masurine, where they inhabit vast industrial cities refining crude resources for export. Their society is highly communal, regimented and homogenous: they make no classifications of colour (and themselves wear only white), make no distinctions between the general and the particular (considering themselves, and the resources they refine, to be part of unified wholes), and live in almost total harmony, having no understanding of the concept of conflict. They abhor being seen to be seated in company, lest they disrupt the tenor of communal exertion with perceived relaxation, and likewise consider whispering to undermine social cohesion with a desire for secrecy that must always be unnecessary.

See what you can come up with!