What Campaign World Rocks your Socks?

[Gunner Scott]

Hi-

Been playing a lotta of D&D lately, no not the CRPG's or muds but honest to goodness paper and pencil D&D. I'm now in three campaigns, one is in Ravenloft, another in Greyhawk and I DM my own Forgotten Realms campaign on sundays (my players are half my age yikes!)

But to me, FR is the best campaign world around, the cool history and NPC's coupled with Magic items with personality just ooze with FR goodness. But am I the only one here that plays in FR? are there others? For that matter, what is your favorate campaign setting?

Oh ya, I still get the occasional ASL game once in a while.


Scott

 

[Dr Zaius]

It's been a LONG time since I played D&D (I just play Baldur's Gate now). Back when I did I ran my own custom campaign world.

 

[Aries]

I seem to like FR most.

But I was part of the suckers that bought and bought and bought all that 2nd edition FR stuff till one day I realised "****, this is getting stupid".

Sold the whole lot off, I got tired of needing to drag around my body weight in books.

Today, I run my gaming out of the Players and Gamemasters books for the Alternity design.
It's simple straight forward and one size fits all. It's compatible with any d20 design which means I can harvest from anything TSR originating.

I have basically built my own fantasy genre variant of the system (which really is just custom careers, and magic system that isn't assumed to be secondary). In the same books though, I can blend any amount of real world or scifi without a need for any additional books.

That's what REALLY amuses me. Two books, a binder of notes, and I'm good to go.

 

[Rockhopper]

Like many people, I started gaming with the Basic D&D boxed set. I don't remember what it was called (or even if it had a name), but I actually loved that setting. I don't remember a helluva lot, but I remember one of the best Companion set modules was "Test of the Warlords," in which the players basically attained their own small duchies, and they had to deal with the politics of leading a small country in addition to destroying various evil-doers. Great fun.

My main game though was Twilight:2000. I absolutely loved that game. And when the 2nd edition came out we went straight into the Merc:2000 variant rules, as this was closer to real life. In the Merc:2000 timeline, there was no 3rd World War; the players played modern-day Spec-ops types running around bagging terrorists, working as mercenaries in 3rd world countries, fighting drug lords in Thailand, taking out militant ecoterrorists, etc. Fantastic campaign.

 

[Dr Zaius]

I actually got into MERP for quite a while and dropped D&D for several years. I don't even know if MERP is still around or not. I found the character system to be more flexible than AD&D's, and I also liked the carnage of the critical hits in the combat system. Instead of losing "20 hit points," you could lose a hand instead. Cool! That made for some interesting adventures.

MERP also had spells that went up to 100th level instead of 9th. There were some spells in there that you really didn't want to be on the receiving end of, let me tell you!

 

[RobAPol]

Glorantha in Runequest. I have played a lot of campaign settings and this one continually draws me back. It has a depth that a lot of the D&D ones lack.

 

[Double Deuce]

I used a hybrid system when I DM'ed. My campaign setting was Harn with an AD&D character creation/magic system and the Rolemaster combat system.

 

[JR Mapes]

Greyhawk primarily with a lot of my own tossed in.

We still only play AD&D 1e or OD&D (Little Brown Books).
Never cared for 2e and the newer stuff but we did play some
Basic/Expert way back when.




Knights & Knaves - OD&D/AD&D Info & Downloads
The Knights & Knaves Alehouse - OD&D/AD&D Discussion Forum

 

[Leftie]

I much prefer GURPS to DnD. I like the Traveller series and have even tried the Classic Battletech RPG stuff as well. I have recently read about the Iron Kingdoms world which is getting excellent reviews over at rpg.net. I play the tabletop boardgame (Warmachine) and thought about picking up the RPG books since I like the fluff so much. It's a steampunk fantasy setting which works out better than you would think it would.

Ben

 

[Palantir]

I jumped on the D&D bandwagon early with "Chainmail/D&D" and even set in on an early mass gaming session with the MASTER himself Gary Gygax when I bought it! Didn't know what a "D4" was but it was an experience.

I ran "D&D" until I found "Rolemaster" (MERP), a complex syatem that I soon combined w/ AD&D/Arduin Grimore/etc into my own system that I've ran for 20+ years. (& some form of D&D now for 30 yrs)

Currently the 7 players in the group are using a portal to travel between my world & Middle Earth (post Sauron).

The most interesting thing I've noticed about it all was that the original idea of D&D was that the "rules" were all just guidelines & the GM's could modify them anyway they wanted- for their world. Now everything is a cold hard FACT & their way (AD&D) is the only "official" way to play.

I've been to a number of AD&D conventions dating back to the 70's and each one got more "boring" and linier. Those once fun freeflowing games were beaten down to "exact" components and last square foot.

But to answer the post question (finally)- Forgotten Realms seems to be the best. I use the "Waterdeep" world as the players home base set in a modified Europe setting (done by Gygax).

 

[freightshaker]

The most interesting thing I've noticed about it all was that the original idea of D&D was that the "rules" were all just guidelines & the GM's could modify them anyway they wanted- for their world. Now everything is a cold hard FACT & their way (AD&D) is the only "official" way to play.

3 and 3.5 really ushered in the rules lawyers. They've turned a RPG into a wargame: plus this, minus that but only if 2nd Tues of the week, etc. Not that wargaming is bad (obviously) but I don't want it mixed into my RPG. They've also removed any class identity so that you now can be a Mage/Thief/Fighter/Cleric, just like many CRPG (especially MMORPG's). I started with the old Basic edition (still have Keep on the Borderlands among others) and ran my own world as a DM since no preconcieved worlds existed at the time. I prefer FR now but still harken for the days of Greyhawk when magic was something unusual and cherished, not sold because you already have one.

 

[Aries]

Recently I have been wandering through a wealth of designs.

It appears, since the d20 thing became a free for all, a bajillion persons thinking they can actually re invent the wheel successfully, have shown up.

Now it's almost impossible to determine how many books exist out there based on the d20 concept.

D&D3 has become something of a sucked dry cash cow.
Some call it D&D while others call it d20 system. But in the end, it appears it all assumes you have the D&D3 (or D&D3.5) Core manuals.

Man I got overwhelmed and a bit put off when AD&D 2nd edition was king. I thought IT had too many frigging niggling detail superfluous manuals. It was nothing compared to the current over indulgence.

It happened with the card game glut, and you can bet it will have to happen with the insanity that has become the d20 license.

Really, there is only so many ways to do some things eh.
Your character either uses what's between his ears, or what passes for muscles to accomplish anything.

How many bloomin types of elves do you think you can squeeze out of Tolkien's fantasy.
I don't really think the devil himself has the imagination needed to invent all the myriad denizens attributed to his backyard hehe.

Most of the "official" worlds invented out there, often look painfully similar after a point. Low tech midieval for the most part. Or some very dark form of cyberpunk.
About the only refreshing stuff, seems to be the potentially silly opportunities available with an anime based system. But I want to watch anime, not play in one hehe.

I think it's time a lot of these rushed out the door attempts to grab some of my very limited cash hurried up and died off so we can have a little less noise in the hobby.

 

[AGKurland]

Things I like

I really enjoy the Forgotten Realms Campaign setting... but the D&D 3.5 rules are not to my liking. I've been currently playing an underdark campaign setting from the perspective of the drow elves.

 

[Dr Zaius]

It's pretty obvious what happened with D&D, and it's also understandable to a large extent.

D&D is a business, and that means they have to keep putting product on the shelves in order to bring in a viable revenue stream. After all, there are only so many potential RPG gamers out there and once they all own the basic manuals, what is left to do? Close up shop and declare bankruptcy?

So they reinvented the "improved" system, which would entice many gamers to buy the core all over again. In addition they broke the core down into more components with more detail, meaning a more viable revenue stream.

Now, was all of that a good thing? Depends on whether you like the enhanced level of detail. But it also means one other thing: the company remained profitable and didn't go out of business or turn to producing other products in order to stay afloat. D&D could have easily died had its owners not taken steps to ensure they could survive as a business, and the game along with them.

Judging by the continued strength of the brand and its diversity into PC games, I would guess D&D is doing pretty well.

 

[Hertston]

It just amazes me D&D/AD&D has survived so long.. that's what a 'name' does, I guess. Its been hopelessly outdated and outclassed as an RPG since Runequest first came out (and I dread to to think how long ago that was). In a world with such gems as 'Stormbringer', Call of Cthulhu, GURPS, and even MERP if that's still around, who on earth would want to play the clumsy monstrosity that is AD&D?

Rhetorical question, I know. :surprise:

 

[Whizbang1963]

Hi-

Been playing a lotta of D&D lately, no not the CRPG's or muds but honest to goodness paper and pencil D&D. I'm now in three campaigns, one is in Ravenloft, another in Greyhawk and I DM my own Forgotten Realms campaign on sundays (my players are half my age yikes!)

But to me, FR is the best campaign world around, the cool history and NPC's coupled with Magic items with personality just ooze with FR goodness. But am I the only one here that plays in FR? are there others? For that matter, what is your favorate campaign setting?

Oh ya, I still get the occasional ASL game once in a while.


Scott

The Forgotten Realms...all else is just dead pressed wood....
Where else do you find Drizzt and Waterdeep?

 

[Palantir]

I have some of the DragonLance stuff, but I just incorporated into my world along with the FR & GH...

 

[Whizbang1963]

I have some of the DragonLance stuff, but I just incorporated into my world along with the FR & GH...

Do you create your own NPC's and then place them in the DragonLance setting having them run into "officially" published characters from Novels and Supplements?

I try to do that with the realms, as it makes it more real to me and hopefully those who play in my borrowed worlds...

 

[Aries]

I exploit what I can out of published materials, but essentially what a player encounters in my games, are routinely fresh unique original content NPCs.

It's enough to know Elminster is out there somewhere, but don't expect to meet him.

 

[Palantir]

Do you create your own NPC's and then place them in the DragonLance setting having them run into "officially" published characters from Novels and Supplements? I try to do that with the realms, as it makes it more real to me and hopefully those who play in my borrowed worlds...

I take the core material and then twist it to fit into my own world & the running campaigns. There was a underwater modular about some "water god" that I re-worked to be an "astrological" scenario instead. I "raised" it, put in on a small island and away we went.

The Dragonlance stuff I used almost as designed (but it was a long time ago so its a bit fuzzy now). I had it set in the SE Asia area. I do remember that my players were running on a seperate adventure just a few days ahead of the "storyline" in which the book NPC's were doing. (which I altered to fit into my world arc). So my players were having to battle into the "modulars" to accomplish their mission and the NPC's were basically walking in free to finish theirs.

It was quite funny as I knew what was going on behind the scenes. :clown:


Incorporating "book" characters can be a slippery slope. The RPG world is much different than book worlds. Most books have short time-lines or fail to account for what the "high levels" do the "rest" of the time.

Does anyone really think that the in an RPG world the LotR Middle-Earth Elves who lived forever never traveled? Tolkien has them almost oblivious to anything more than a weeks travel away. Hobbits? What are they? Rohan? Never heard of it. There's no way in an RPG world that the most powerful humanoids who live for 1000's of years would not know exactly what's a few days travel way from them. (And I love LotR's!)

What high level "character" would be content to sit in a village with nothing? How did he get to be high level (besides thats just the way it is)? The "evil" characters are always "plotting" never doing until the book moment.

Sauron was ultra-high level but what was he doing? Sitting & plotting until again-the book moment.

Sure they give some history but that's just it. If the high levels were turned loose & adventuring / doing things all the time as RPG characters do all heck would be breaking out all the time.

So- I incorporate book characters only if I can explain/justify what they've been doing with the "rest" of their time.

Which brings me back to another post- why I "de-leveled" the FR Waterdeep Lords. Those guys are high level, but what are they doing now? Just sitting around & plotting/waiting. With all the adventures going on around/in the city if they came out & "adventured" as they did to get to those high levels the city & area would be cleared out & peaceful just like that.

But if they did go adventuring & cleared out the problems what would the PC's have to do? Which is why in most storys the "high levels" are always just sitting around waiting & plotting. But if I can justify & incorporate a "famous" character into a scenario I will.