User blog comment:ChrisL123/Smarter or tribal?/@comment-32656-20110601013800

Quite. Just because 1400s North America was tribal, does NOT mean they weren't smart. Common misconception, and an incredibly racist one at that.

And, large brains does not definitely mean that they are smarter, either. Step in the right direction, true, but nothing definite.

What I would do is have them tribal, ala~ tribes in the Americas, but more like the Plains Indians from the early 1800s and late 1700s. Some more modern methods, but mostly basic implements, but with a sophisticated society, like all Indian groups actually had. Few meteor impacts would cause that from a more advanced civilization, easily enough, likely with a few small islands of greater stability throughout where they are set up more on the level of the 13 colonies from the same era.