Campaign Settings We Hate

[Storminator]

I thought it was generally accepted that everyone hates Eberron.

Edit: For the record, the only setting that I never really liked was Spelljammer. Although, I do like Giffs - go figure.

I struck all my votes when I found out I couldn't vote for Eberron!

PS

 

[Klaus]

Another setting I love to bits that wasn't mentioned:

Masque of the Red Death - Awesome setting, amazing research done for it, kickass art!

 

[Mikaze]

Voting options are way too extreme.

The idea of actually hating a campaign setting is an utterly alien one to me. At the very worst I just pick and choose what I want and leave out what ever doesn't work for me, like Egg Shen.

I especially don't get the seeming rage that has flown towards certain settings over the years, particularly Eberron in recent years.

I mean, hell, I don't have a lot of interest at all in playing Birthright, but there are definitely some things about it that intrigue me that I'd like to learn more about, especially when I might be inspired by some of it.

 

[Jhaelen]

The idea of actually hating a campaign setting is an utterly alien one to me.

My hate is reserved for the Forgotten Realms setting.

Apart from that I dislike Spelljammer and Al-Qadim.

I'm neutral towards Greyhawk and Birthright.

I like both Dragonlance and Planescape - but not as settings for my games. I just like them as a setting for novels and the fantastic Planescape computer rpg.

Both Eberron and Ravenloft are very cool settings that I like a lot, but Darksun will always have a special place in my heart!

 

[JediSoth]

I don't hate any of the settings listed, though there are several about which I am thoroughly ambivalent and others I just like, rather than love.

So here's my REAL breakdown:
Greyhawk: I like it. I voted Love/Hate because I like the setting as a whole, but don't like the post-from the Ashes stuff and I don't like how it's been totally abandoned...though, I suppose that keeps anyone from doing more damage.

Forgotten Realms: This is the only one for which I have an actual Love/Hate relationship. I loved the first incarnation of the setting. I hated how it became bloated by its own canon and how the über-powerful NPCs were show-stealers from those who should have been the real heroes: the PCs. (Yes, I know that a good DM avoids this, but all I ever hear about is Drizzt this, Elminster that, the Symbul the other. If they're ALL THAT, what's the point of the PCs? To save Village Doesn't-Matter-to-Elminster from hungry goblins, eh? B-O-O-RING!)

Dragonlance: OK, I lied. I have a love/hate relationship with this one, and I don't even think I voted that way. I loved the setting for the stories. I hated everything that caused the Fifth Age and the Fifth Age itself. The Heroes of the Lance should have been allowed their happy ever after following the Legends series. There were plenty of stories to tell without screwing them over the rest of their lives (though I admit I wasn't sad when Tanis met his fate and I liked the stuff dealing with Kang's Regiment).

Planescape: I love this setting. I'm only sad I didn't really discover it's virtues until Planescape: Torment, and by then 2E was on its way out and the Planescape materials were hard to find. Thank goodness for Half-Price Books!

Dark Sun: I am ambivalent about this setting. It didn't grab me back in the day, and it doesn't really grab me now.

Spelljammer: I like this setting, but I'm not sure I'd go so far as to say I love it. Some of my fondest 2E memories as a player come from a campaign that utilized Spelljammer.

Ravenloft: I don't really care for this setting, but I wouldn't say I hate it. It's far enough down on the Scale of Ambivalence as to be dislike, though.

Birthright: I know less about this setting than I do Dark Sun. It just didn't grab me.

In addition, some not mentioned but put out as Campaign Settings (though several were folded into Faerun):
Kara-Tur: I think this would have worked better as a stand alone setting, ala Jade Empire, rather than being shoe-horned into the Forgotten Realms. WotC has never handled Asian settings well, in my opinion.

Maztica: Kinda interesting from a fluff perspective, but I can't see ever being interested in it for a long-term campaign. I guess it's OK being shoved into the Forgotten Realms. Wasn't very popular as I remember.

Al-Qadim: I really liked this setting. Reminded me of 1001 Arabian Nights (I mean, you never read 1001 Aztec or Mayan Nights). I think this should have gotten the stand alone treatment as well, rather than being shoved into the Forgotten Realms, but I guess it made for some good fish-out-of-water campaigns by enterprising DMs.

Masque of the Red Death: Like Birthright, I don't know much about this setting. I don't even know enough to be ambivalent. I saw ads for it, but they didn't grab me.

Known World/Hollow World: I don't remember much about this one. It's OK, I mean, I grew up playing around the proto-version of this world.

Eberron: I like Eberron. Of all the TSR/WotC settings, it's probably the one I would use in a future 3.X+ game. I wouldn't use it for anything before 3.X, though.

And that's to say nothing of non-TSR/WotC settings like Midnight, Ptolus, and the Diamond Throne.

 

[Silverblade The Ench]

PS
another point about campaign settings, is: what they inspire in you!
hence I've been doing Dark Sun and Spelljammer art for years (and lesser extent Forgotten Realms art)

there was a great beauty and vision in the worlds of D&D, as well as some of the greatest arists in the world illustrating it, IMHO

The Elven Man-O-War form Spelljammer is just a gorgeous design

and the stark, even horrific, beauty of Dark Sun is haunting.

Larry Elmore's "Bloodstone Lands" is what I imagine the Realms is like (not the NPC driven, over mapped mess it became)

 

[Glade Riven]

Most of these I'm not too familiar with, but...

Darksun - sounds interesting, but never played it
Greyhawk - Never heard anything about it that stood out/too generic for my tastes
Forgotten Realms - By the time I was introduced to FR as a setting, 3.5 was out (I'm fairly new at RPing). The immediate turn-off is that it seems like every 5' square of the world is already mapped out. At best, a homebrew resource. Rather "meh" towards the 4e version.
Eberron - Like it, sans Kalashtar/Quari thing. I'm a fan of Pulp-Action fun
Iron Kingdoms - Nobody's talked about it yet, but Privateer Press's RPG setting for War Machine/Hoards is freaking awsome, if more than a bit brutal.
Ravenloft - I like it more as something that can be plugged into another setting than truly having it as a stand-alone setting.
Oriental Adventures - it's okay. Some interesting options, some setting stuff that's a little odd.
D20 Modern (& freinds) - I like, mainly as a resource to do some crazy homebrewing. Mixing and matching a few things with other settings, though, can lead to seriously jacked characters. Unearthed Arcana for 3.5 can help streamline (or complicate) things.

 

[GAAAHHH]

Greyhawk: Love
Forgotten Realms: 1E and 4E Love. 2E and 3E need a really good GM who doesn't overuse NPCs.
Planescape: Love
Dark Sun: Love
Ravenloft: Love, but needs a good GM who isn't using it to punish the PCs.
Mystara: Love. The Grand Duchy of Karameikos is one of the best setting supplements ever.
Al-Qadim: Love (but has too many similar sounding names )
Spelljammer: Love, but 2e Spelljammer wasn't enough of its own setting.
Birthright: Missed out on this.
Eberron: Love

 

[Ulrick]

Greyhawk: I like it--including the stuff after the Greyhawk Wars. I've run Greyhawk Campaigns throughout most of my 20 year history as a DM. The only thing better would be a homebrew campaign setting.

Forgotten Realms: This is the only one for which I have an actual Love/Hate relationship. I loved the first incarnation of the setting. I hated how it became bloated by its own canon and how the über-powerful NPCs were show-stealers from those who should have been the real heroes: the PCs. (Yes, I know that a good DM avoids this, but all I ever hear about is Drizzt this, Elminster that, the Symbul the other. If they're ALL THAT, what's the point of the PCs? To save Village Doesn't-Matter-to-Elminster from hungry goblins, eh? B-O-O-RING!)

I really wasn't all that familiar with the first incarnation, but I agree with Jedisoth. Many people I've encountered over the years also wanted to mimic these characters. ("I wanna play a dark elf ranger with two swords" and "I wanna play Elminister's nephew.")

I lump in Kara-Tur and Maztica with the Forgotten Realms because of their unoriginality (Forgotten Realms has a lot of that). And I agree with Jedisoth--Al-Qadim should have gotten its own treatment, separate from the Realms.

I also get the notion (from Dragon Mag articles I've read and elsewhere) that FR were developed so quickly to screw over Gygax. Not a fan of that either (but that is topic for another thread).

Dragonlance: I liked Dragonlance when I was growing up. Not a fan of th 5th Age stuff.

Planescape: Hands down one of my favorite settings. The only drawback is trying to convince others to play. ("Yeah, its a game where you character takes a philisophical attitude toward the multiverse." "Oh...I rather play Greyhawk.")

Dark Sun: I liked Dark Sun. Everything was overpowered. Should be perfect for 4e...or the worse setting for it. (Nobody likes to keep track of water rations).

Spelljammer: Meh.

Ravenloft: I like the concepts of this setting (Fear/Horror/Madness/Investigation) but not the idea of being inside a prison realm. The original Ravenloft module was great--even though it took awhile to get to the castle.

Birthright: Never played it. Only glanced at the books. I am Switzerland.

Mystara/Known World/Hollow World/Red Steel/etc. Maybe this world would have stuck out better in my mind if it had been AD&D. But since it was mostly made for D&D, I didn't pay much attention to it. Some cool concepts, but I'm not conversant enough to have much of an opinion.

Eberron I honestly forgot all about Eberron until I read this thread. I was never really sure what to think of it. I remember glancing through the rulebooks when they first came out thinking to myself: "Why would I want to invest in another setting that could end up being a fad and forgotten in a few years?"

 

[Ulrick]

I liked the character of Tasslehoff in the original books, as well as the silly gully dwarves and gnome characters . . . but you're right, the "races" are one-joke character types that soon begin to grate.

The tragic flaw of an otherwise great setting . . .

Just to let you know, one of my best experiences gaming was when my character destroyed half of a kender village. They had robbed me in the night--taking my dragonslaying sword. The kleptomania trait really really grated me. The DM said I was one step away from Chaotic Evil (ergo unplayable as a character). I said, "I was angry and I wanted my stuff back." A pity kender are immune to fear, too; they would have known when to run...