D&D (2024) WotC Invites You To Explore the World of Greyhawk

This week a new D&D Dungeon Master's Guide preview video was released. This one features the sample setting chapter in the book, which showcases the World of Greyhawk.

One of the earliest campaign settings, and created by D&D co-founder Gary Gygax, Greyhawk dates back to the early 1970s in Gygax's home games, receiving a short official setting book in 1980. Gyeyhawk was selected as the example setting because it is able to hit all the key notes of D&D while being concise and short. The setting has been largely absent from D&D--aside from a few shorter adventures--since 2008. Some key points from the video--

• Greyhawk deliberately leaves a lot for the DM to fill in, with a 30-page chapter.
• Greyhawk created many of the tropes of D&D, and feels very 'straight down the fairway' D&D.
• This is the world where many iconic D&D magic items, NPCs, etc. came from--Mordenkainen, Bigby, Tasha, Otiluke and so on.
• The DMG starts with the City of Greyhawk and its surroundings in some detail, and gets more vague as you get farther away.
• The city is an example of a 'campaign hub'.
• The sample adventures in Chapter 4 of the DMG are set there or nearby.
• The map is an updated version, mainly faithful to the original with some tweaks.
• The map has some added locations key to D&D's history--such as White Plume Mountain, the Tomb of Horrors, Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth, Ghost Tower of Inverness.
• There's a map of the city, descriptions of places characters might visit--magic item shop, library, 3 taverns, temples, etc.
• The setting takes 'a few liberties while remaining faithful to the spirit of the setting'--it has been contemporized to make it resonate in all D&D campaigns with a balance of NPCs who showcase the diversity of D&D worlds.
• The backgrounds in the Player's Handbook map to locations in the city.
• Most areas in the setting have a name and brief description.
• They focus on three 'iconic' D&D/Greyhawk conflicts such as the Elemental Evil, a classic faceless adversary; Iuz the evil cambion demigod; and dragons.
• There's a list of gods, rulers, and 'big bads'.

 

[Zeromaru X]

If FR gives you what you want, but Greyhawk doesnt, is it a lie, or are you just looking to play in Greyhawk, assuming you can alter it to your own personal desires?

If FR already has what you want, and GH would need to be adjusted to fit what you want, sorry but its not a lie at all. Let the settings be different.

They already ruined DL over this.

The problem is that neither FR or DL are presented as "sample starting settings". So, FR and DL don't need to include everything from the PHB. They are not starting settings, but settings for specific fantasy tropes. They can deviate from the basics if they want. It's even expected they do that at some point (though FR does feel like a less r*cist Greyhawk).

Greyhawk, on the other hand, is presented as the starter setting for new DMs to begin homebrew. It needs, per force, a place for every option in the PHB. It's not a setting for an specific flavour of D&D, it's supposed to be the setting for the basic D&D flavour. And basic means all in the PHB.

 

[Scribe]

The problem is that neither FR or DL are presented as "sample starting settings". So, FR and DL don't need to include everything from the DMG. They are not starting settings, but settings for specific fantasy tropes. They can deviate from the basics if they want. It's even expected they do that at some point (though FR do feel like a less r*cist Greyhawk).

Greyhawk, on the other hand, is presented as the starter setting for new DMs to begin homebrew. It needs, per force, a place for every option in the PHB. It's not a setting for an specific flavour of D&D, it's supposed to be the setting for the basic D&D flavour. And basic means all in the PHB.

If your argument is that after the last decade, FR is not the defacto default, you'll have to let me catch my breath.

 

[Zeromaru X]

If your argument is that after the last decade, FR is not the defacto default, you'll have to let me catch my breath.

At this point, I'm still wondering why they bothered with bringing back Greyhawk in the first place - then, I remember they are just capitalizing in the 50th anniversary thing...

 

[TwoSix]

If your argument is that after the last decade, FR is not the defacto default, you'll have to let me catch my breath.

I think the argument that "publishing the basics of a setting in a core rulebook establishes it as a de facto default" is certainly at least worth exploring.

 

[Scribe]

At this point, I'm still wondering why they bothered with bringing back Greyhawk in the first place - then, I remember they are just capitalizing in the 50th anniversary thing...

Yes, nostalgia and hopefully presenting a distinct setting true to its history.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

At this point, I'm still wondering why they bothered with bringing back Greyhawk in the first place - then, I remember they are just capitalizing in the 50th anniversary thing...

As an avowed Greyhawk fan (with the 3,472* essays to prove it!) I think that their approach works. Certainly for me.

I had four main asks for Greyhawk-

1. The Darlene Map. Okay, we didn't get that, but we did get a pretty cool map.

2. Back to 576 CY. No disrespect to the lovers of Living Greyhawk and post-war canon, but I was hoping that we'd go back to the classic Greyhawk, and we did!

3. Open up the DM's Guild to Greyhawk. Check! Let a million 3PPs bloom!

4. Finally, I wanted a Greyhawk that wasn't all crufted up- that just presented the basic scaffolding and hooks, so players and DMs today could have the same joy of making Greyhawk their own that I had. And putting in a barebones Greyhawk ... well, that's kinda perfect for that.

Would I have bought an awesome boxed set with the Darlene Map? Sure. But this presents Greyhawk for a new generation, and I hope that they have the same excitement and fun making it what they want it to be as I did. Don't play my Greyhawk- play your Greyhawk!

*The number is approximate, completely true, and so very sad and tiring.

 

[Parmandur]

Do you have an example of this? Because I haven't seen anyone complaining about how the N*z*s need more representation.




Are they?

Yes, they are in the art, and apparently liated as NPCs throughout

 

[Umbran]

with modernizing smurfs so as long these smurfing dragonborn...

Mod note:

Language!

 

[Zeromaru X]

Mod note:

Language!

Sorry

 

[TiQuinn]

Do you have an example of this? Because I haven't seen anyone complaining about how the N*z*s need more representation.