In general what setting do you tend to gravitate to.
Quote from: VarajIn general what setting do you tend to gravitate to.
I really enjoyed Forgotten Realms, mostly because my DM didn't really follow the meta-plots very much. I also have a great fondness for Planescape, even though I didn't get to play in it much. I also love the setting for RIFTS, though I hate the system.
Homebrew or Greyhawk run with not much more than the 1983 boxed set (which ends up being effectively homebrew.)
Quote from: ZalmoxisI really enjoyed Forgotten Realms, mostly because my DM didn't really follow the meta-plots very much. I also have a great fondness for Planescape, even though I didn't get to play in it much.
Does Wizard's try to enforce meta-plot using rule changes? I have a huge rant about White Wolf's meta-plot and rule changes. :)
I always write my own so those are my favorites.
Nobody ever enforced following a metaplot, it's just that sourcebooks do not assume it wasn't followed. So it requires a lot of work to reajust the informations from subsequent books to what the situation actually became.
I've been enjoying Eberron lately. I like the post WWI feel of the thing, I like the pulp adventures spin, I like that it is easy to put a Cthulhu touch on it...I just plain like it.
FR, so much stuff, colorful characters, places, events, lots of magic = fun!
Greyhawk, nothing like the original gansta. That and Blackmoor.
Wilderlands, the 3.5 remake is inspiring. I love it.
The Black Company , though I have not had a chance to play it yet I really like what I see.
Homebrew, I've just started to pool together what I've learned from other campaign settings into something all my own. Once I'm "done" (I've come to understand you're never really done) we'll see if I've learned anything or not. ;)
Big Forgotten Realms fan here. I also pretty much ignore the metaplots from the published materials. It has a tendency to take away from the PC's to much. I take a couple of the things that I like and just come up with my own stuff for the rest. Hell if you go by canon most of the heartland Realms has been in warring conditions for the past 5-10 years in Realms time. What with the City of the Shade, the Phaerimm, and the Dragon in Cormyr.
I also really liked Planescape as a setting. I used it a lot as a slap in the face for over powered or over enthusiastic parties. They'd end up in Sigil and would be all confused. Yes here's a place were there's things walking around that can wipe you off the face of the plane. And you can't start anything without ending up in the deadbook.
Oh and by the way. It so nice to hear some love for the Forgotten Realms instead of the hate I usually run across. :D
I'm familiar with the Forgotten Realms and Eberron. A bit with Planescape. Of those, I prefer Eberron to the FR, by a long shot -- I like the Realms, but there is too much emphasis on the elves to make this setting really palatable to me. Eberron gives us goblinoid at least some modicum of respect, with a glorious past and a real political presence in the rest of the world.
Greyhawk interests me, but mostly because I don't know much about it. Same thing for Mystara and Spelljammer. I've heard a lot of good of Dark Sun, but it never really interested me. I guess I don't like the idea of countless competitors on the mental battlefields. Of course, my personal universe is the one I prefer.
Outside of the carcerodraconis universes, I've eventually grown bored of the World of Darkness, and I haven't had any curiosity toward its reincarnation. Well, no, I don't find much settings I liked that weren't produced by my own brain.
Quote from: Ottomsoh the ElderlyIGreyhawk interests me, but mostly because I don't know much about it. Same thing for Mystara and Spelljammer. I've heard a lot of good of Dark Sun, but it never really interested me. I guess I don't like the idea of countless competitors on the mental battlefields. Of course, my personal universe is the one I prefer.
Lets see Greyhawk has a pretty good history but not as wide and varied as the Forgotten Realms. Think of it as the Realms minus the drama, the long detailed history, the expansive list of gods and goddesses, the high magic. Greyhawk is great especially for a starting DM as it is rather vanilla and subdued.
Spelljammer for all intents and purposes is Forgotten Realms in space. Along with the emphasis on elves again. Its interesting but is really just a gadget setting.
Dark Sun is for power gamers and people who like psionics. I like it because it has some very different ideas.
I'm a fan of the Realms, even though I feel it's a little overdeveloped at this point. I've always wanted to play a Scarred Lands campaign, as I like what I've read there.
But ultimately Warhammer Fantasy might be my favorite, both from the novels and the game.
Quote from: KnightcrawlerOh and by the way. It so nice to hear some love for the Forgotten Realms instead of the hate I usually run across. :D
I completely relate to what you're saying. There are settings I dislike, but I just don't play them.
Quote from: KnightcrawlerSpelljammer for all intents and purposes is Forgotten Realms in space. Along with the emphasis on elves again. Its interesting but is really just a gadget setting.
Of the published settings Spelljammer was my favorite and I still use elements of it regularly.
Quote from: LimperOf the published settings Spelljammer was my favorite and I still use elements of it regularly.
Oh it definitely has some good ideas I don't dispute that. Its just that its a fad setting. Its really neat and cool, has some good ideas. But doesn't really hold up under extended play.
Quote from: KnightcrawlerOh it definitely has some good ideas I don't dispute that. Its just that its a fad setting. Its really neat and cool, has some good ideas. But doesn't really hold up under extended play.
We played 5 campaigns in it two of which lasted for more than 2 years. If you like steampunk its a great system for it.
Now that I have thought on it a bit more I suppose its what you do with the setting that makes or breaks it. We did a LOT with SJ not much of which was in the published books (aside from various hooks).
Quote from: BillyBeanbagI'm a fan of the Realms, even though I feel it's a little overdeveloped at this point.
A little? If by little you mean like Los Angeles County, then yes. :) It's way overdone, but it also has so many hooks and micro-plots that you can pull from it is virtually limitless in its offerings. All it takes is a DM who is willing to do it his way, and players who aren't going to quibble when the DM pulls away from any of the hundreds of meta-plots.
Quote from: KnightcrawlerOh and by the way. It so nice to hear some love for the Forgotten Realms instead of the hate I usually run across. :D
You find people saying bad things about FR? Must be a matter of "opposites attract", since I seem to run across all the slobbering fan-boys (not directed at you or anyone else).
Anyway, my best experiences -- on either side of the screen -- have always been homebrew. Greyhawk is nice for "stock" D&D and casual play. I'm starting to really like Eberron, despite the Warforged.
For non-D&D/d20, I rather liked the WoD, if taken with moderation. Shadowrun is also the only magic/tech mix that ever resonated with me.
Quote from: KnightcrawlerOh and by the way. It so nice to hear some love for the Forgotten Realms instead of the hate I usually run across. :D
I don't really get the hate for FR. It is too developed and dense for my taste, but a lot of the support material is very well-written IMO. 3.0 FR was rather poorly balanced in places, but they seem to have fixed that for the most part in 3.5.
I forgot to mention AE and Dark Sun earlier. I've played both recently, and I find both pretty enjoyable. Eberron edges both of them out, but that isn't a slam on them.
Quote from: SobekYou find people saying bad things about FR? Must be a matter of "opposites attract", since I seem to run across all the slobbering fan-boys (not directed at you or anyone else).
Anyway, my best experiences -- on either side of the screen -- have always been homebrew. Greyhawk is nice for "stock" D&D and casual play. I'm starting to really like Eberron, despite the Warforged.
For non-D&D/d20, I rather liked the WoD, if taken with moderation. Shadowrun is also the only magic/tech mix that ever resonated with me.
There was always a lot of hate for FR when I brought it up on NTL and ENWorld was even worse most of the time. Got so bad that I went and found a FR specific forums at one point.
I'm a fan of settings that the Storyteller is into. If the Storyteller is passionate about the settings, I'll have fun.
My personal preference is towards fixing broken settings. I like being somewhere that life is hard and things aren't good to start and to see the effects of success impact on that campaign and have it become a better place.
Examples : Dark Sun, Ravenloft, Darwin's World, World of Darkness, etc...
Quote from: LimperWe played 5 campaigns in it two of which lasted for more than 2 years. If you like steampunk its a great system for it.
Now that I have thought on it a bit more I suppose its what you do with the setting that makes or breaks it. We did a LOT with SJ not much of which was in the published books (aside from various hooks).
I also had a lot of positive experience with spelljammer. I loved the hell out of it, and still treasure my complete collection of spelljammer books & boxsets i've got here at home...
Quote from: Vermicious KnidI don't really get the hate for FR.
I got the original gray box and found it to be a pretty cock-eyed setting. That was 20 years ago, so I don't remember exactly what bothered me. I didn't hate it, but I did not think it had anything that'd set it apart, in a good way, from Greyhawk or other vanilla settings (of course, I'm still flabbergasted that "Spelljammer" wasn't laughed out of the design meeting, so what do I know).
At some point, probably because of not seeing any reason to use FR of Greyhawk (and liking the latter), FR came to represent all the stupid shit that TSR did during 2E. I still have a certain amount of animosity toward the setting and still think that it's a combination of sub-par original ideas and stealing things from other settings.
I'll admit that I haven't looked too closely at 3E FRCS. But what I've seen has looked top-notch, in terms of production quality. I've even enjoyed some FR PBEMs, if the GM kept in pretty vanilla. I'm afraid that "don't remind me what I'm playing" is about as positive (right or wrong) as I'm likely to ever be about the Realms. If I knew a good GM were to be running a game in the Realms, I'd suck it up and play along, but it would affect things like my backstory and involvement in politics.
I'm basically at the point where I just try to avoid thread-crapping. Hope this doesn't come off that way, but I figured I'd take a shot at answering the question.
Quote from: AelfinnI also had a lot of positive experience with spelljammer. I loved the hell out of it, and still treasure my complete collection of spelljammer books & boxsets i've got here at home...
Me as well.
Quote from: SobekI got the original gray box and found it to be a pretty cock-eyed setting. That was 20 years ago, so I don't remember exactly what bothered me. I didn't hate it, but I did not think it had anything that'd set it apart, in a good way, from Greyhawk or other vanilla settings (of course, I'm still flabbergasted that "Spelljammer" wasn't laughed out of the design meeting, so what do I know).
At some point, probably because of not seeing any reason to use FR of Greyhawk (and liking the latter), FR came to represent all the stupid shit that TSR did during 2E. I still have a certain amount of animosity toward the setting and still think that it's a combination of sub-par original ideas and stealing things from other settings.
I'll admit that I haven't looked too closely at 3E FRCS. But what I've seen has looked top-notch, in terms of production quality. I've even enjoyed some FR PBEMs, if the GM kept in pretty vanilla. I'm afraid that "don't remind me what I'm playing" is about as positive (right or wrong) as I'm likely to ever be about the Realms. If I knew a good GM were to be running a game in the Realms, I'd suck it up and play along, but it would affect things like my backstory and involvement in politics.
I'm basically at the point where I just try to avoid thread-crapping. Hope this doesn't come off that way, but I figured I'd take a shot at answering the question.
I hear you. I just prefer to pretend that 2E didn't happen.
I never played Greyhawk, so to me, Forgotten Realms is the vanilla setting. I also started with AD&D 2e, so that was the standard system for me. Since then I have played AD&D 1e and a bunch of others, but I still think AD&D 2e is a decent system. The problem with it, and Forgotten Realms as I see it, is a lack of consistency and an overall bloated approach. It's the ultimate kitchen sink system and the ultimate kitchen sink setting. Now, if you have a clear idea of a character you want to play and a clear idea of what you want to do with the setting, then it's great. However, I can certainly understand the heartburn some have with them both.
If there's one thing about the Forgotten Realms that never seems to dissapoint, setting threads no matter what they are about always eventually revolve around it. Why is that I wonder?
Quote from: Ragnarok N RollIf there's one thing about the Forgotten Realms that never seems to dissapoint, setting threads no matter what they are about always eventually revolve around it. Why is that I wonder?
It is the most published and most developed setting that is out there, barring White Wolf's WoD.
Quote from: franciscaHomebrew or Greyhawk run with not much more than the 1983 boxed set (which ends up being effectively homebrew.)
What he said but just add Conan to it.
Quote from: VarajIn general what setting do you tend to gravitate to.
D&D has always been home-brewed settings.
I have always liked the Star Wars universe.
I always really enjoyed the Rifts setting, but hated the ruleset. I wonder how it would work with Spycraft 2.0...
Quote from: CyclotronI always really enjoyed the Rifts setting, but hated the ruleset. I wonder how it would work with Spycraft 2.0...
I'm with you on that. I got into it when it first came out in the late 80's. But after nearly getting into a fist fight several times over vague or nonexistent rules we stopped playing.
Quote from: KnightcrawlerIt is the most published and most developed setting that is out there, barring White Wolf's WoD.
Truth. It's nearly impossible for me to avoid FR, despite my best efforts.
One of the most irritating responses I've seen lately was on ENWorld, in a "future Frostburn-like book" thread. I said that I'd love to see a forest/jungle/swamp (seconded the idea, actually) book. Someone (hopefully no one here, but I don't remember) said, basicly, "They did that. It's called 'Serpent Kingdoms'."
Grrr....
You just can't escape the thing.
Quote from: SobekTruth. It's nearly impossible for me to avoid FR, despite my best efforts.
One of the most irritating responses I've seen lately was on ENWorld, in a "future Frostburn-like book" thread. I said that I'd love to see a forest/jungle/swamp (seconded the idea, actually) book. Someone (hopefully no one here, but I don't remember) said, basicly, "They did that. It's called 'Serpent Kingdoms'."
Grrr....
You just can't escape the thing.
Whoever said that was an idiot. Serpent Kingdoms is a monster book. While books like Sandstorm and Frostburn are terrain books. I know their supposed to come out with another terrain book sometime this year and I think it might deal with swamps. :D
That said, Serpent Kingdoms and Underdark are both valuable resources even outside of the FR context.
Quote from: Ottomsoh the ElderlyThat said, Serpent Kingdoms and Underdark are both valuable resources even outside of the FR context.
This is very true. But a lot of people would say that anything underdark/drow has been done to death. But I like underdark/drow stuff so they can suck it up and deal.
Quote from: KnightcrawlerBut a lot of people would say that anything underdark/drow has been done to death.
*Raises hand*
I actually don't much like the concept of the Underdark. Sure, you need it in a "kitchen sink" world, but it seems contrived.
Khyber is the most interesting variant on the theme, and I can accept that.
I hate the Underdark, but man does it have some super-cool critters.
Quote from: ZalmoxisI hate the Underdark, but man does it have some super-cool critters.
QFT.
Now, if I could just figure out what to do with them.
Exalted has hands down my favorite setting. I also like a historical 1890s very much, as well as Pendragon's Arthurian setting.
Quote from: ZalmoxisI hate the Underdark, but man does it have some super-cool critters.
Any particular reason or just the standard drow hate.
I don't have an underdark. I have the Plutonic Realms. ;)
Anyway, I'm a homebrewer and can't imagine ever running anything outside of a one-shot that was not in something I cooked up.
But back in the day in my first campaign world, "Ourphe" I stole a great deal from "The Known World" (aka Mystara), which was the first setting I really knew anything about. I had some Greyhawk stuff, too, but the Known World had fired my imagination a lot more.
Quote from: LimperI always write my own so those are my favorites.
Ditto. Not Limper's but my GM's. He's written almost every setting we've ever played in, so I'm actually pretty unfamiliar with the published settings.
I'll skip the licensed settings like Call of Cthulhu and Star Wars 'cause I think that's cheating. Here's a big-ass list of original RPG worlds that turned me on:
Warhammer / Warhammer 40K, Judges Guild's Wilderlands, Uresia: Grave of Heaven, BESM Dungeon, TSR's Gamma World, octaNe, Grimm, Spellslinger, Pumpkin Town, Little Fears, NightLife, Stalking the Night Fantastic, Kult, Changeling: The Dreaming, In Nomine, Starchildren: Velvet Generation, BTRC's Macho Women with Guns, Fringeworthy, FTL:2448, GDW's Traveller, and various All Flesh Must Be Eaten deadworlds.
I liked enough of Birthright, Ravenloft, and the Arduin Grimoires to borrow material from them for an AD&D 2E campaign so they deserve a mention. Same goes for a few Savage Worlds like Necessary Evil, Rippers, and Deadlands.
D&D's Known World (a.k.a. AD&D's Mystara) is a personal favorite too and the first setting I ever ran, but I'm afraid the HackMaster version is vaporware.
Exalted's world is the shizznit, though it is so *hard* to get a handle on. Especially when you're playing a Sidereal and you get to actually see most of the many, many layers.
I love the Shadowrun world, warts and all, but the rules set has always sucked. (I haven't played 4e, but up through 3e the rules sucked.)
In D&D, I started with Greyhawk, so I know it well. I've also played a lot of the Known World and the setting books for it kicked ass. Forgotten Realms has always seemed like a cheap knockoff to me. The only part of it that I actually dislike is the drow, however. Drow in the GDQ module: cool. Drow in the FR: suck ass.
I like homebrew D&D settings, but I'm never really satisfied with any of mine. Too much of a perfectionist. :)
2300 AD is my number one favourite setting I never got to play. Cool, but nobody played it.
I haven't played all of these, but have used at least elements of them in various campaigns:
Greyhawk - It was called "vanilla" above, and I can see that. It is, indeed, subdued due to it never being as developed as Forgotten Realms. This makes it easy for the individual DM to customize it to his taste. The later "From The Ashes" box made it seem too much like fantasy Twilight: 2000.
Garweeze Wurld/Aldrazar - the setting for HackMaster. You see B.A. using this for his campaigns in Knights of the Dinner Table. I have the pdf's for the setting, which are pretty good. It "feels" like a more "wahoo" Greyhawk.
Cerilia (Birthright) - The entire BR concept has interested me. They came up with an interesting setting for it with a cool history. I like how many of the movers and shakers are unique monsters with strange backstories. Too bad it languishes, despite a fan-based 3e adaptation and a few odds and ends in Dragon and UA that help update it.
Al Qadim - At its best, this setting evokes a dreamy, Arabian Nights feel.
Tekumel (Empire of the Petal Throne) - A truly unique setting. It's tough to describe it briefly.
Ravenloft - the original boxed set was the one I liked. I never got why they changed so much of it later on. Strange and creepy, especially since Stephen Fabian did so much of the art for it and its sourcebooks.
Wilderlands - This is a true artifact of the early days of D&D. It really is freewheeling and fun. Tone of adventure hooks and the most wild city in RPGs.
Hyboria (Conan) - Howard's original work has been nicely adapted by (in large part) Vincent Darlage for Mongoose's "Conan" RPG. Dark swords & sorcery, with magic really being creepy and dangerous. I picture it all as one big Frazetta painting.
Atlantis (or whatever it's called) - This is the setting for the Arcanum D&D clone from way back. The setting book is called the Lexicon. It's a "fantasized" Earth from before Atlantis fell. This is a "kitchen sink" setting, with pretty much any type of setting showing up somewhere. You could set a Conan game in one area (like, say, Cimmeria), a Pendragon game in another, a Greek-type setting here, an African (Nyambe) game there, etc.
Lankhmar - The original city book was pretty cool, even if the attempted adaptation of Nehwon magic to D&D was pretty weak and half-assed. I liked the way the city was extremely customizable, so no two Lankhmar's are alike. A great campaign site for those who like city adventures.
2300 - The 2300 universe is one of my favorite scifi settings, in or out of RPGs. The aliens are really alien, and the setting seems plausible. No Federation or United Earth here; individual nations colonize space - hell, an entire planet became a state for the United States.
The Imperium - Traveller's setting is a huge, sprawling playground for a scifi game. Books like the Spinward Marches and the Solomani Rim give the GM thousands of worlds to throw at the players.
Quote from: KnightcrawlerAny particular reason or just the standard drow hate.
I just don't like the way it's done, as a facsimile of above-ground dwelling, just a bit different. I would rather it be done like "the Underworld" of mythology, but then that's just peculiar to my tastes I guess.
Quote from: ColonelHardissonAtlantis (or whatever it's called) - This is the setting for the Arcanum D&D clone from way back. The setting book is called the Lexicon. It's a "fantasized" Earth from before Atlantis fell. This is a "kitchen sink" setting, with pretty much any type of setting showing up somewhere. You could set a Conan game in one area (like, say, Cimmeria), a Pendragon game in another, a Greek-type setting here, an African (Nyambe) game there, etc.
I have never heard of this, but it piques my interest.
Quote from: ZalmoxisI have never heard of this, but it piques my interest.
I picked this up at a used bookstore back in the early 90's:
(http://asta-www.informatik.uni-hamburg.de/users/afterglo/rpg/nontsr/others_ak/bard1080.jpg)
By modern standards it's
very old school.
Quote from: SatyrI picked this up at a used bookstore back in the early 90's:
By modern standards it's very old school.
The books I have don't include that one. The Arcanum is a black book with a pentagram, the Bestiary has some critter or other on the cover, and the Lexicon, my favorite and the one I recommend the most, depicts a market scene crammed with a lot of colorful beings.
Quote from: SatyrI picked this up at a used bookstore back in the early 90's:
By modern standards it's very old school.
That also looks cool, Satyr. Maybe I can hunt them down somewhere.
Quote from: ZalmoxisThat also looks cool, Satyr. Maybe I can hunt them down somewhere.
As I mentioned above, the specific book I recommend is the Lexicon. The book Satyr shows isn't one of those I have, but I'm sure it's related. Perhaps a revision or a distillation of them.
Quote from: ColonelHardissonAs I mentioned above, the specific book I recommend is the Lexicon. The book Satyr shows isn't one of those I have, but I'm sure it's related. Perhaps a revision or a distillation of them.
I think it's a combination of The Bestiary and The Lexicon.
I may still have the Arcanum book for "Atlantis" somewhere around. Man, that was totally a "kitchen sink" book.
It had like two dozen classes in it.
I play almost exclusively in the Forgotten Realms. It is way overdeveloped, and Ed Greenwood is the king of the fatbeards, so a lot of stuff in the sourcebooks is silly and in many cases, contradicts itself. So, I change the Realms to suit my needs, and heavily butcher the source to get it the way I like it.
Planescape, though, now that is my favorite setting of all time. I had the most fun playing it, and even now want some good source material to start playing there again.
Quote from: AelfinnI also had a lot of positive experience with spelljammer. I loved the hell out of it, and still treasure my complete collection of spelljammer books & boxsets i've got here at home...
I loved it better never got to play it. I had the entire collection also, but I sold it on eBay a few years ago.
I started with and have always loved Known World / Mystara. My most successful 2e campaign was set there, ranging from Karameikos, to Glantri, esat to the Northern Reaches (east to the north?), and south to the Isle of Dread.
I've played plenty of Greyhawk and have considered breaking out a bunch of old 1e modules to update and run there.
Forgotten Realms: The most successful game that I was in as a player was set here. Unfortunately, I got burned out on the setting as it seemed it had a new sourcebook every week. Today, I use some of the "crunch" from it for other campaigns, but I will probably will never run it again.
I've played Birthright, Dragonlance, Dark Sun, Al Qadim (once?). I didn't dislike any of them, but none of them really did anything for me either.
I enjoyed Planescape quite a bit.
I would have to say my favorite at the moment is Kingdoms of Kalamar. I wasn't really shocked not to see it mentioned as I've not found many others that like it. The ones that do, REALLY DO LIKE IT. I guess it's one of those love it or hate it settings. *shrugs*
Quote from: GeoFFieldsI would have to say my favorite at the moment is Kingdoms of Kalamar. I wasn't really shocked not to see it mentioned as I've not found many others that like it. The ones that do, REALLY DO LIKE IT. I guess it's one of those love it or hate it settings. *shrugs*
we are ambivalent about KoK. While it is an interestingly desinged setting with much going for it in the way of history, we feel that the poor quality of the modules which have been released for the setting, when combined with the failure of the setting to provide anything truely interesting or unique holds it back from being a truely memorable game setting.
I'm a big fan of Dark Sun, to the point where I have a complete collection of all the stuff (except novels and articles - unfortunately most of my RPG stuff is in storage in a friend's basement). I also like many of the other oddball 2e settings (Planescape, Spelljammer, Al-Qadim), but Dark Sun edges out the others.
I'll be different and weird and say Magnamund from the Lone Wolf game books and rpg. I'm probably biased because the gamebooks were my gateway drug into rpgs, but I loved them when I was a kid (although the later ones did get kind of weird, with submarines and trains).
Not entirely thrilled about what Mongoose has done with it. I would have preferred to see basic classes with the specific ones as something like prestige classes. But I'm glad they resurrected it.
As far as FR, there are things I don't like about it, most notably:
1-The rabid fanboys who will call you on any deviation from canon
2-The high-powered magical nature of it. I prefer magic to be rarer and more mysterious.
3-Of course the high powered NPCs who are the real movers and shakers
But it is an incredibly detailed world with lots of plot and adventure hooks and one I'm pretty comfortable in, so I grudgingly have to name it my second favorite setting. Heck, despite the problems mentioned above, I never fail to have fun playing in it.
Iron Kingdoms. I love the look and feel of the setting. It grabs me like old Planescape used to, but for totally different reasons.
I'm going with good 'ole Greyhawk and a Low-magic touch.
Toss in a batch of honest-to-goodness actual (European) history and folklore and...Whammo! My setting.
Some call it "Grim&Gritty" , I call it "Realistic".
(And I don't make the mistake of making the NPCs more powerfull than the PCs , like so many losers , claiming the G&G-trend do....)
I'm really dedicated to my homebrew, which is influenced by George R.R. Martin and how I wish the High Middle Ages/Early Renaissance in Europe would have actually gone down.
I love the craziness of Arduin, the amazingly well-written and engaging Iron Kingdoms, and Epic's Atlas of Eslin, which is one of the more unique and superbly-done settings I've read in a long while, though it seems to be off the beaten path for many gamers thus far.
I love the setting for Buffy. With the overriding principle of 'if it's cool, it's in', the Buffyverse is perfect for an RPG. Exalted's Creation is pretty interesting too, though I prefer the fantasy parts over the magitech parts. But it was designed to be pretty easy to focus on whatever parts you prefer. And Armageddon has a really cool setting too, with all kinds of asskicking military gear fighting an enemy so mean that the angels, the Norse gods, and Lucifer team up to fight it.
The Traveller talk over at Websnark has gotten me all hot and bothered to pull out my old stuff and start something new. Maybe pick of some of the Marc Miller's Traveller/T4 stuff on when the Imperium was new.
Quote from: NicephorusThe Traveller talk over at Websnark has gotten me all hot and bothered to pull out my old stuff and start something new. Maybe pick of some of the Marc Miller's Traveller/T4 stuff on when the Imperium was new.
Interstellar Wars (http://www.sjgames.com/gurps/traveller/interstellarwars/) may be worth a look, though you'd have to port it over if GURPS wasn't your thing. The Terrans taking on the First Imperium and the Vilani?!? Woo hoo!
Providence setting. Interior of a world used as a prison maintained by magic of something which may or may not be failing and tied to a godlike thing of evil. Sun is a magical orb that dims at night and too distant for the winged pc races to reach, quite different and fun.
Birthright. Divine Right of Kings made real, as some gods died and imbued their followers with their nature, leaving their mark on the world and tying the rulers to the land. Very traditional fantasy world with an excellant and well done twist making it more evocative than most.
Analog Prime-My superhero world used extensivily over many campaigns, but also written up for my super rpg. Based heavily on comic book ages and following similar ups and downs.
Quote from: Zachary The FirstInterstellar Wars (http://www.sjgames.com/gurps/traveller/interstellarwars/) may be worth a look, though you'd have to port it over if GURPS wasn't your thing. The Terrans taking on the First Imperium and the Vilani?!? Woo hoo!
Thanks for the tip!
Man, I might have to get that, the translation to another Traveller system probably wouldn't be hard. I still have the GDW board game covering that era (Imperium? forget the exact name)
Settings I like, Licensed
Lankhmar
Angel/Buffy
Thieves' World
Hyboria (Conan)
Settings I like, Non-licensed
Third Imperium (Traveller)
Witchcraft
Greyhawk
Gamma World
Dark Sun was my favorite setting to date. I first played in it and loved the uniqueness to it. Later I ran the campaign and we got really into it. We even - god this is geeky - made a tape using a 4-track professional recorder and some soundtrack CDs - that was an introduction to the game. We would play it at the beginning of each sitting like a TV show plays its introduction. My voice - with some deepening effects - read the intro - the uber-cool blurb from the back of the box:
"I live in a world of fire... and sand..."
Dark Sun is by far my favorite published setting. Eberron and AE come in as close seconds. I am currently working on a homebrew setting that I hope combines the best of the three.
Quote from: BonesWhat he said but just add Conan to it.
Yeah. What I said, plus what Bones said, plus Lankhmar (The two core Lankhmar books TSR put out are pretty good, as well as the 1e modules. Almost all of the other 2e Lankhmar stuff is utter shit and shameful waste of woodpulp.)
My favorite setting is the Warhammer Fantasy setting. The world just seems so much more flushed out and alive then any of the D&D world setting books that I've read. People, places, things and events all exist in Warhammer and feel like they belong.
Forgotten Realms is so generic that it's hardly even a setting anymore. Darksun had good ideas but their reasons for them made no sense at all. Underdark is just fanboy masturbatory material and is probably my most hated setting of D&D.
Eberron is pretty entertaining actually if you can keep it feeling like an Indiana Jones style of setting an not fall into the classic D&D traps.
Darksun was good. Still have a soft spot for Greyhawk though...
I prepared the whole Vesve forest in CC, then found out it wasn't compatable with CC2...:mad:
I will always have a soft spot for Mystra. But I also like the Gurps Fanatsy setting too.
Mystara, Spelljammer, Greyhawk and TSR Gamma World, although there's furlongs of rippable stuff in every DnD setting.
Dark Sun is a setting I have always wanted to play in, but never got the chance.
I drift towards modern-times settings like the WoD where I can implement real-world developments and twist them to fit my whims. The alternative to that would be a low-powered medieval fantasy setting, especially a low-magic one.
Which means that my favorite settings are
- Trinity (future)
- Adventure (pulp era)
- and Planescape,
and we play in the Forgotten Realms.
Because I've got principles, and I know what I like and what I don't like.
Oh, and I forgot to add Arduin to my list.
Arduin, bloody Arduin... *sigh*
Quote from: sunfearDark Sun is by far my favorite published setting. Eberron and AE come in as close seconds. I am currently working on a homebrew setting that I hope combines the best of the three.
:ponder: Psionic Warforged Giant Traindrivers racing through the desert?
My favorite setting of all time to play in is Birthright, although I'm sure my DM at the time (the best DM I've found so far) had alot to do with that.
My current favored setting for DMing is Blue Rose. Get rid of the Rainbow Brigade/Grrll Power elements and what's left is a very cool setting to run gritty and/or horror fantasy stories in.
Like many here, long-time Forgotten Realms fan. Probably going to switch to Eberron, just because I feel I need a change of pace.
Other favorites include Spelljammer, Star Wars, and Dark Legacies.
Quote from: SigmundMy favorite setting of all time to play in is Birthright, although I'm sure my DM at the time (the best DM I've found so far) had alot to do with that...
You honor me, my friend. But a DM can't do anything without enthusiastic and willing players like yourself. You and the rest of the guys were every bit responsible for the success of that campaign as I.
Quote from: King_StannisYou honor me, my friend. But a DM can't do anything without enthusiastic and willing players like yourself. You and the rest of the guys were every bit responsible for the success of that campaign as I.
Ah, his Majesty is too modest.
I am currently prepping a campaign using elements from Spelljammer - travel betweens worlds, Dark Sun - lifeshapers, certain races, and strangely enough certain aspects of Planescape - the art, lingo and setting ideas. All the above worlds would constitute my favoutite settings...or at least parts of them.
Regards,
David R
Quote from: King_StannisYou honor me, my friend. But a DM can't do anything without enthusiastic and willing players like yourself. You and the rest of the guys were every bit responsible for the success of that campaign as I.
Agreed. I hate when people tell me "hey you ran a good game" like it was all me. It's as much the players as the GM. The guy running just sets the scene, it's up to the players to really make it come alive.
Quote from: MaddmanAgreed. I hate when people tell me "hey you ran a good game" like it was all me. It's as much the players as the GM. The guy running just sets the scene, it's up to the players to really make it come alive.
First, stop hating, it's bad for you.
Next, while a decent group of players is needed for at least a decent campaign, the work, wit, and life invested in a campaign is what will truely make it shine. KS there breathed life into the npcs, provided compelling and exciting challenges, created lots of fun props, and then tied it all together with logic and intelligence. The good DM needs to get the respect when it's deserved. To be fair, the group of players I had the priviledge of playing with in the game are a topnotch group who brought to the game humor (when appropriate), drama, and lots of great fun. On top of all that, I think the Birthright setting was the only one that could have worked for our game because it makes sense (as much as a fantasy setting can anyway), and is very flexible. It has an internal consistency and logic that satisfies my desire for "logic" while maintaining a sense of "fantasy". IME that's not so easy to do and that's why Birthright gets my vote as favorite setting. Harn is up there for me too, it's just a bit too "logical"...the fantasy side is kinda downplayed too much for me in Harn. Based on a thread on the True20 forums, I might even try a True20 version of Birthright one of these days.
My favourite settings (in no particular order):
~ The Wilderlands: the best 'swords and sorcery' setting for a D&D-ish campaign.
~ Mystara:kind of crazy, kind of incoherent, but the 'Grand Duchy of Karameikos' is just too cool.
~ The Old World for Warhammer: I love the dark and grim nature of this 14th C setting.
~ Hyboria: the original (and still the best) S&S world ever.
Cheers! :)
Quote from: VarajIn general what setting do you tend to gravitate to.
In fantasy- Middle Earth and only Middle Earth. Although not in the typical late 3rd and 4th Age settings. Instead I like mid-3rd Age or earlier.
For some reason I like the Marvel Comics setting, this despite the fact that it is a terrible mess of changed writers and ruined characters. I've decided that what I really like is some small section of the whole here, so I grab what I want and level the rest. Toss in some of my own ideas, and it's an old stand-by for me.
The old Morrow Project concept of recovering a destroyed world also is a favorite with me. But I've never seen it done well enough to use as a setting. So I have my own home grown.
I used to like the Star Trek setting before they made any of the movies let alone the follow on TV shows. Sadly those additions have wrecked the setting for me and I just can't go there now. I'll likely replace it with something of my own again stealing bits and pieces from a number of sources.
I like some elements of Deadlands, but toned down and fitting into our real history. Deadlands is too much of a parody for my tastes.
BTW, were we suppose to be talking about published settings?
Never mind then.
Well, I guess ICE's Middle Earth books would count.
Quote from: gleichman... Well, I guess ICE's Middle Earth books would count.
Those were really great. The maps were
beautiful, and the campaign books included tonnes of useful information and material. The Angus McBride covers were generally very cool (but I also liked the earlier Gail McIntosh [sp?] covers as well), and the internal art by Liz Dansforth was also consistently good.
Good stuff, those ICE ME modules! My only complaint: the MERP/Rolemaster system was a poor fit for Tolkien (esp. the magic system).
Quote from: AkrasiaGood stuff, those ICE ME modules! My only complaint: the MERP/Rolemaster system was a poor fit for Tolkien (esp. the magic system).
I must agree with you. But likely for different reasons.
On the bright side, I had no trouble converting from their stats to the home brew system I used. So this downside didn't affect me.
All in all, the best published modules ever.
Actually, the mention of ICE reminds me that in addition to ICE's Middle-Earth stuff, I quite liked Shadow World by Terry K. Amthor.
It's a very cool setting (albeit with some background 'sci-fi' mixed into the fantasy, which I like but many do not).
Quote from: AkrasiaThose were really great. The maps were beautiful[/i
Here here! I really love maps, both real and fictional. RPGs often have decent and enjoyable maps, but the MERP ones really rock. I think all the maps associated with LotR are pretty cool, RPG or no.
Quote from: AkrasiaThose were really great. The maps were beautiful, and the campaign books included tonnes of useful information and material. The Angus McBride covers were generally very cool (but I also liked the earlier Gail McIntosh [sp?] covers as well), and the internal art by Liz Dansforth was also consistently good.
Good stuff, those ICE ME modules! My only complaint: the MERP/Rolemaster system was a poor fit for Tolkien (esp. the magic system).
I pretty much agree with all this. The only real complaint I have with these books is that some of them seemed to be written by people who really didn't know much about Tolkien or didn't really "get" the setting. The best example of this is in the Dunland book. I like the book, and there are some decent ideas that can be mined from it, but...
Spoiler
the elves living in the flying castle just don't seem very Tolkien-ish to me, especially the elf performing the "Doctor Moreau" experiments. A true WTF?
Quote from: SigmundHere here! I really love maps, both real and fictional. RPGs often have decent and enjoyable maps, but the MERP ones really rock. I think all the maps associated with LotR are pretty cool, RPG or no.
The ICE Middle Earth maps are my favorite Middle Earth maps. It's too bad they never made one giant poster out of the ones found in the sourcebooks. The one they made of all of Middle Earth is nice, but it has none of the beautiful detail of all those other maps.
Fantasy:
Greyhawk
Wilderlands
Turakian Age
Sci-fi:
Traveller
Terran Empire
Horror:
The real world, I guess.
Here are my votes...
Fantasy:
Hyboria
Tekumel
Dark Sun (1st ed. and without cannibal halflings...)
Warhammer Fantasy
Sci Fi:
Traveller (Hard Times/New Era)
3025 Mechwarrior (with Dune-ish elements emphasized)
Others:
The 1920s and 30s according to the Pulps
WW3 Homebrew (http://brassbricks.com/main/?cat=5)