D&D 5E Castle Greyhawk and World of Greyhawk Gazetter for 5E

[meomwt]

While we are fantasizing, can we throw in a Maure Castle boxed set in for fun too?

I'm not sure that is likely to happen, unless Rob Kuntz manages to sort out the Rights Issues.

What we have in the Dragon issues (plus the Warlock's Walk testing ground, which went on line a few years ago) is plenty for now. It's not complete, but it is pretty darned huge.

 

[aramis erak]

I might buy it, but only if it's reasonably priced and playable in 5E.

 

[Odhanan]

Fantastic, all. Thank you for making the adventure compatible with 1st Edition AD&D first.

Thanks SirAntoine! Not a problem. It'll be presented with 1st edition compatible rules because it was conceived that way, matters to the original play style it was used for, and also matters in order to reproduce the original material of 1977/78 as faithfully as we can.

From there, you can take the dungeon and setting and use them in any number of ways, which includes the original play style of Lake Geneva we're going to go through and explain in detail, i.e. running games in big dungeons with open tables this or that week at the hobby shop, what to expect from the games, how you get it off the ground and so on.

That also means you can use it in other ways, for instance as a set piece in a different type of campaign with long plot arcs and the like. Or as part of a game with a different way to abstract the exploration of the dungeon and wilderness, like say, Torchbearer or other newfangled games like this. Or maybe you want to customize it for a different setting, one of your own perhaps, or a different game altogether, like say, in a sci-fi context, or in modern horror games and so on. It's not impossible, and we're going to explain how to work with the setting to make it work in a variety of contexts, whether that's in terms of genres or play styles. You could also have several versions of the dungeon in different worlds reflect one another, mix and mash play styles, and those possibilities are talked about and integrated in the design of its world and cosmology, if you want to use them.

Regardless of all the options and advice and possible conversions we'd add on top of this, it'll be playable as it was originally played and intended, for 0e/1e games. We wouldn't have it any other way.

 

[DMZ2112]

I voted 'definitely would buy,' but I should be clear that I don't think this is possible.

I'd love for Castle Zagyg to be completed, but Castle Zagyg isn't Castle Greyhawk. Castle Greyhawk has been done in D&D. Twice. Three times, if you count the actual eponymous joke adventure. And I'm not interested in a third Greyhawk Ruins rehash. As I keep repeating, I'm not repurchasing old material, this edition.

The most important part of this proposal is that it would /have/ to pick up where Castle Zagyg left off, which means it would have to retcon the existing Castle Greyhawk material. I doubt Wizards would do that. I'm not even sure I would want that.

On the other hand, respecting the spirit of the poll, I would absolutely buy a Greyhawk megadelve adventure path that also gave us some new details about parts of Greyhawk we don't know well.

 

[Odhanan]

WGR1 Greyhawk Ruins was written in 1990 by Blake Mobley and Timothy B. Brown, and has actually little to do with the Original Castle of Gary Gygax.

Expedition to Castle Greyhawk is more of an adventure path based on WGR1, and therefore isn't Gary Gygax's Castle either.

WG7, the joke module, is not it either.

So if you exclude Castle Zagyg (which is by and large the most direct descendant of the original Castle, its fourth incarnation to be precise, from the original creator himself, but significantly different and not published in its entirety either), then you've got just a few tidbits of the original castle that made it to print, really --namely, in the form of EX1 Dungeonland, EX2 The Land Beyond the Magic Mirror and WG6 Isle of the Ape, since these were pocket planes accessible via the original Castle.

And that's it. The original castle never made it entirely in print.

 

[carmachu]

You are so 2008 with this post. Seriouly, those who followed the whole Castle Zygyg/Troll lord games fiasco came to this conclusion years ago. Well it was one of them anyway.

The only one that really makes any sense at all is that indeed WOTC made a agreement with Gary's family for Castle Zygyg.

I for one never doubted that this happaned, though it was perhaps a wise move for the family it was a bitter pill to swallow at the time.

Can someone explain what happened in that castle zygyg/troll lord games fiasco? I seemed to miss something here.

 

[GameOgre]

Can someone explain what happened in that castle zygyg/troll lord games fiasco? I seemed to miss something here.

Ok first off I'm lazy and in a hurry so forgive if this is only my take on what happened with a faulty memory of what happened years ago.

Gary hooked up with Castled and Crusades/Troll Lord Games and they did a deal to produce Castle Zagyg. They put out the first few areas (surrounding countryside/ the exterior of the castles ect..) Then they decided to get all serious and really went into overdrive with the whole thing loosely mapped (and figured out)out and combined what they had into a hardback(or boxed set can't remember) along with the entire first level of the megadungeon. They were really talking the entire thing up and it was just starting to roll out.....when Gary died.

Then Gail (his wife, a really awesome lady btw) pulled Troll lord games license. They had a total time of 1 month (from day it went on sale to time they couldn't sell it anymore).

there was a guy (freelancer I think...good can't remember his name) who had been working with Gary to get it out and everyone involved had spent a LOT of time and money gearing up for the upcoming releases and BAM it was over.

Then Gygax Games (run by Gail) put out statements saying they were going to put the dungeon and Gary's other works out themselves and that many things were happening behind the scenes. There was a press release from them and another company saying books were coming out(I want to say Mongoose Publishing but not sure).

Next thing we know and Gygax Games was gone with hardly a word and the other company said it was not happening. That was it. That is the last I have heard of anything at all about Castle Zagyg.

at the time some speculated(wild internet theories) that WOTC had made Gail a offer and she had taken it(WOTC could probably offer a lot more than anyone else and with Gary gone it was(again wildly) speculated that They sold it to WOTC in order to take care of the family.

ok,thats it. All I know.

Please please take into account that this is only my totally NOT in the know(about any dealings official or otherwise with the family or even the business end of things) knowledge and memories of how it went down.


Note- I left out all the internet nerd rage and not very nice speculation and feedback that really mad this entire thing so much worse. It's out there if you really want to taint your soul with some really unpleasant posting by fans who lost there minds and did not treat a grieving widow very well very soon after her husbands death.

 

[MerricB]

Jeff Talanian (@ghul) was the guy working with Gary on Castle Zagyg, btw.

Cheers!

 

[carmachu]

Thank you. I owned one or two parts- I think the hardcover and something else. But I apparantly missed alot.

 

[Khasimir]

Jeff Talanian (@ghul) was the guy working with Gary on Castle Zagyg, btw.

He also created Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea, which is a fantastic game system. I can't say enough good things about it.