Ideas Needed

[EZ_Turlo]

I am currently working on designing a new campaign world, and I want it to be something a little different. I've got a few ideas in mind, but I like to hear additional input. Any suggestions out there?

[Nenjin]

Might want to state some of your criteria...so people know what kind of suggestions to give you.

[EZ_Turlo]

Valid point.

Ok, hypothetically....if you wanted to read a new series of novels, what would be a good setting? What would be an exciting setting? We have Ravenloft, Forgotten Realms, Greyhawk...but those have all been done before.

I just need a one or two sentence description with a new, revolutionary idea, that, with a lot of work on my part, will knock the socks of my players.

Must be D&D setting. Other then that, anything goes.

[EZ_pulid]

Travel through space and throw some random penalties and fun effects like near zero gravity when they get out of the space craft onto a random planet that's colony is surprise surprise is getting taken over by aliens, and guess who is the only one who can save the colonies? Potential for getting NPCs to help your party as well.

[EZ_Kintire]

The problem is that if the idea is too origional your PCs may have trouble getting a handle on it!

You could go exotic, Arabian, Chinese, Indian, Japanese etc.
You could try the supplement where people get to play Norse Gods.

Failing that, try a group of Wizards, Sorcerers, Druids etc Germany in 1650 or a close fantasy equivalent..... WITCH HUNT!

Or you could try Dark Sun. That's my personal favourite!

[Nenjin]

It's hard to be original when you've run all the major campaign settings. My best suggestion would be, since it's your world, start with the base that you like(horror, straight fantasy, exotic) then import the rules that you like from different settings. So like, start your campaign in a dark sun esq, then throw parts of the horror atmosphere from Ravenloft. Mummies in the desert ect...

As someone who has been through about 10 home made campaigns and more than enough modules, I know that having a campaign be original and exciting is tough when you've already been through a few.

[EZ_Kintire]

Pah! with immortal demonic wizards ruling the world, draining the life from it to maintain their power, and brutally repressing the desperate, violent, compassionless populace, with only a despairing death in the desert awaiting the few poor fools who seek escape, you don't need any Ravenloft borrowings to send people running for their mummies!

[EZ_Vorashus]

Coupla ideas to shoot at you -

Aside from occasionally trying a new campaign setting, my party has been playing in a custom world for the beter part of three years now. It isnt anything too special, but we all know it very well, and the players know that i have the ability to alter history slightly, or change whatever happened to an npc/pc in a different game. Its basically an amalgamation of different settings, but it works out well.

My favorite character ever was a half-dwarf warrior named Jonah Stormchaser. He was part of the first campaign into this world (friend DMed it, as i was getting the urge to play for once). This was by far the most epic game we've had. Pretty much everyone's favorite character was created in this game. Almost all of the characters ended up in a place of importance in our world. My warrior ended up as the commander of the army in the largest known kingdom of our world (this is what the players know anyways). Our Mage ended up turning evil and ambitious, and through the manipulations of one of our greater gods became a Demigod of the plane of evil magic (which screwed up magic all around the board, and still has a small chance of wild magic happening in our world at random when a spell is cast). The rogue vanished mysteriously not long after his capture at the hands of Drow forces, and his name is a whispered legend among other cutthroats in the world. Our Elven Ranger actually came to rule the elven kingdom.

Now whenever a new game runs near one of the last known residences of one of these characters, everyone gets excited. When Valon (name of our large kingdom) is at war, we all look for Jonah barking orders over the battlefield. Wanna see some great expressions on your players faces? Have them go on a long quest for a magical item, and when they finally get to the secret resting place of it and crack the room - they only find the calling card of the afore mentioned rogue. Little things like that add an unbelievable amount of spice to a game (not to mention watching my players yell at the person who originally played that rogue... ).

In my rambling i guess im just agreeing to add what you want from different worlds. The only strange thing about our world is that the dragons had been almost wiped out.

Other things of interest you might wanna look at -

We play a game based loosely off of the PC game Fallout, under Whitewolf rules. Let your players pick some sort of power/mutation. Dont let them pick anything too extremely powerful without big consequences, and just have fun making it up as ya go.

Also, if youre interested in a creative and original campaign world, try Scarred Lands. I cant say enough about the depth of that world. Theres quite a bit of material out there for it now as well. The two Monster Manuals are great. I use them in all of my D20 games.

[EZ_LordOfChains]

Well... I read one way to spice something up...

Try an underdark setting, but with the good guys underground, trying to banish the evil that took over the surface world...

Demon hordes or something.

[EZ_Vorashus]

Oh, forgot to mention -

you could also play a post apocalyptic sorta game. If youve ever seen the animated movie 'Wizards' youll kinda know what i mean. Nuclear war blasted the world, yadda yadda, elves and dwarves and such emerge from the chaos. most all technology has been destroyed, so you dont have to play with that. just an idea

[EZ_Kehvrynne]

This wouldn't, by chance, be related to the Wizards of the Coast contest mentioned in this topic would it? Kehvrynne Quickblade, Professional Damsel of Distress
No matter how subtle the wizard, a dirk between the shoulder blades will seriously cramp his style.

[EZ_Turlo]

Actually, I put this up here before I found out about the contest. Wizard's site is not one I frequent too often...the Pokemon blurbs scare me.

Oh edit I guess:
You have my word that nothing here was ever used by me. I totally forgot I put it up the day after I placed it. Edited by: Turlo at: 6/21/02 1:41:02 am

[EZ_kiyotee]

personally I liked the world Richard Knaak made called Dragonrealms, but if you want a world very much different than most D&D campaigns check out Steve brust's work in the Jhaereg books with Vlad Taltos. it's a GREAT world and very origional ideas. __________________________________________________ __________
Yes this is Kroe Magnon, I'm sick of switching accounts for each board. ;)