Campaign Settings: metaplot or frozen?

[Slife]

I heavily prefer Frozen. It can advance during an edition change but that's it. No adding in cannon in the middle of an edition.

Yeah, the addition of gunpowder weapons would change any setting significantly, and could really screw up your game.

 

[Philotomy Jurament]

I prefer frozen.

 

[Elodan]

I used to like the idea of the metaplot being advanced by the designers. It made the world seem more vibrant than what I could come up with on my own. There was a larger world outside of what the heroes do. It's one of the reasons I run the Realms.

Lately, I think that metaplots have become more of a problem. Before you can deal with the consequences of one, another one "shakes" things up. As Klaus said, I can ignore them but future supplements become more and more useless as they incorporate changes I don't want to use. Now, I can't really use other metaplots (too tied to the changes I don't like) so I might as well be using a static campaign setting. I've been debating on switching to another campaign that's "frozen."

Everything, Klaus has said in this thread so far has been spot on.

 

[evildmguy]

Great idea, its amazing what you can come up with when you're not 'fatigued'.

The idea of metaplot advancement without character participation is one reason I refuse to run published campaigns. While a lot of the material (crunch) is awesome and well thought out, the background (fluff) is often apparently cobbled together by monkeys on LSD, in the coffee room right before quiting time.

And each of us does what we like.

For me, having other thing happen at the same time my current group is adventuring is what makes the world come alive. Being able to bring these events back to the table are more interesting. Sure, at times I have had campaigns overlap so I can reference them for fun in the new one. But I like it that areas will continue without the PCs.

I mean, I like drama, but having everything be about drama and nothing advancing until the PCs show up would be too weird. As good as the movie was, I wouldn't want to DM the Truman Show, with people sitting there waiting for the PCs to show up to be able to move!

edg

 

[danbuter1]

I prefer frozen. Just like Harn.

 

[Kae'Yoss]

I prefer frozen. Just like Harn.

Ouch!

 

[mhacdebhandia]

Frozen frozen frozen.

Frozen.

Frozen.

I make exception for edition changes.

 

[cougent]

Frozen and static only.

New products should detail geography, politics, power groups, etc as of the date of the main campaign setting book.

No time advancement whatsoever, as the "living and breathing world" (the nonsensical argument used to try to justify metaplot) is to be determined by the DM and players.

Exactly.

I would restrict it even further that new products detail new, never before mentioned political and power groups. If the original setting mentions there is a group known as the "Wandering minstrels" and then 2 years later an expansion decides to detail that group it could very easily clash with the GM created version that is already 2 years old and an integral part of the campaign. Similarly if the "Kingdom of Bliss" is mentioned in the setting and the GM spends time and effort expanding it and basing your campaign there for 3 years only to have an official text say it was overthrown and absorbed by the Horde 2 years ago, that is a wrench in the works that I don't want or need. If the original mention of the group does not flesh it out, then leave it alone and use it as a GM hook to define for himself. New material should be only new material, not raimagining. Additionally, I like hooks that get left for me to detail on pupose, but that's just me.