I have not really looked into the D&D worlds much in the last 15-20 years. When I played, it was always in some vaguely Tolkeen European land. We never really gave the scenario much thought or care.
Last year or so, I found the Eberron universe. Then they changed the game system. It seemed streamlined and for someone not particularly invested in the 3.5 mythos, it seemed more fun.
I’m looking forward to getting the Eberron players guide and campaign guide in October to compare.
While waiting, I got the 4.0 "Forgotten Lands" players guide and campaign guide from the public library. I didn't know anything about the FL so I came in with fresh eyes. I like the land motes. Visually fun. The world seems a bit kitchen sink-ie to me. Like they tried to cram everything in. If in Eberron, there was a place for every race known so far, it seemed that in FL they tried to make a place for every plot device or story idea ever created. Playable but awful dense and keeping track of the 8 billion city states was mind boggling.
I did some searching of the Pazio archives. I found there was a huge amount of history and back story invested in FL. It feels like the first Legion of Superheroes reboot. I like the 4.0 version, but I can see why people might be upset.
If Eberron doesn't pan out, Forgotten Realms 2.0 looks like a good second choice.
I have not really looked into the D&D worlds much in the last 15-20 years. When I played, it was always in some vaguely Tolkeen European land. We never really gave the scenario much thought or care.
Last year or so, I found the Eberron universe. Then they changed the game system. It seemed streamlined and for someone not particularly invested in the 3.5 mythos, it seemed more fun.
I’m looking forward to getting the Eberron players guide and campaign guide in October to compare.While waiting, I got the 4.0 "Forgotten Lands" players guide and campaign guide from the public library. I didn't know anything about the FL so I came in with fresh eyes. I like the land motes. Visually fun. The world seems a bit kitchen sink-ie to me. Like they tried to cram everything in. If in Eberron, there was a place for every race known so far, it seemed that in FL they tried to make a place for every plot device or story idea ever created. Playable but awful dense and keeping track of the 8 billion city states was mind boggling.
I did some searching of the Pazio archives. I found there was a huge amount of history and back story invested in FL. It feels like the first Legion of Superheroes reboot. I like the 4.0 version, but I can see why people might be upset.If Eberron doesn't pan out, Forgotten Realms 2.0 looks like a good second choice.
Its got lots of big time fans - I always felt it was just too crowded IMO. I like my fantasy worlds more like one finds in books were there are only so many cities and that number is small enough that players can name all the ones worth talking about.
The world seems a bit kitchen sink-ie to me. Like they tried to cram everything in.
If you think it's crammed full of everything now, you should have seen it pre-Spellplague.
I'm glad you're getting acquainted with some of the more popular campaign settings, though. Eberron in particular is compelling in a ripe-for-storytelling kind of way. It's the sort of world that any number of fantastic movies could be made in (not that they should be, mind you!).
If you think it's crammed full of everything now, you should have seen it pre-Spellplague.
I got that impression from of the threads in the archives. They had a laundry list of favorite characters that were apparently killed off. That and some love hate thing for a drow named Izzy or something.
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While the pre-Spellplague Realms was gigantic, that was what made it so exciting. It was almost as detailed as our own world, and there were tons of pockets ripe for customization. To actually play in the Realms doesn't require anywhere near the knowledge you'd expect. Because of the Realms' vastness, you can place a campaign nearly anywhere without too much interference from other lands. It's a lot like Golarion in that respect. Some parts of it weren't the greatest (Maztica is one land that was left as a carbon-copy of the real world, to the chagrin of many), but as an overall whole, it felt very "realistic" and alive with its great diversity.
I am among the grognards (even if I am a youngun) who was very peeved at the nuking of the Realms. The Realms had already seen a nuking of sorts (The Time of Troubles), but this was on a completely different scale. I understand the rationale behind the vast restructuring (making it all a little more manageable), but a lot of the flavor that I loved about the Realms has been lost. I haven't played a Realms campaign since 4e was released (my group got really depressed by that and abandoned the setting), but if I did, I would reduce the impact of the Spellplague and retain all of the cool nations that it destroyed.
If you are interested in the Realms, I recommend you also look at stuff from previous editions. The 3rd edition campaign guide is almost all "fluff," and the information you find in it would be very easily imported to a 4e campaign. It's also what I consider to be the best book WotC ever published. That guide makes the Realms seem like a vast place that isn't intimidating, but inviting. I want to explore all of it!
I hope you get to explore more of the Realms, it really is a great setting that is very classic Fantasy with many opportunities for adventure.
Not being familiar with Forgotten Realms from before, can someone explain what the Underchasm is? That big black blot on the map titled Underchasm is where a huge underground chamber hundreds of square miles that collapsed? I assume everything underground was crushed to pulp.
A theme seems to be the underground kept the Drow contained. If the Drow are down there, and now they don't have a roof for several hundred miles, why don't they they just climb out/fly out/get out?
The thing on the map of the East Rift that looks like an outline of a stomach, is that chambers that are still underground?