Dungeons & Dragons May Not Come Back to Greyhawk After 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide

Wizards of the Coast does not appear to have future plans for the Greyhawk setting past the 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide. Speaking at a press event earlier this month, Dungeons & Dragons game architect Chris Perkins explained that the inclusion of Greyhawk campaign setting material in the upcoming rulebook was meant to stand on its own. "Basically, we're saying 'Hey DMs, we're giving you Greyhawk as a foundation on which you can build your own setting stuff,'" Perkins said when asked about future Greyhawk setting material. "Whether we get back to Greyhawk or not in some capacity I cannot say, but that's our intention for now. This is the sandbox, it's Greyhawk. Go off and run Greyhawk or Greyhawk-like campaigns with this if you wish. We may not come to this version of Greyhawk for a while because we DMs to own it and play with it. This is not a campaign setting where I think we need to go in and start defining large sections of the world and adding more weight of content that DMs have to sit through in order to feel like they're running a proper Greyhawk campaign."

The 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide includes a campaign setting gazetteer focused on the Greyhawk setting, one of D&D's earliest campaign settings. The use of Greyhawk is intended to be an example for DMs on how to build a full-fledged campaign setting, with an overview of major conflicts and places to explore within the world. New maps of both Oerth and the city of Greyhawk are also included in the rulebook.

However, while it seems like Wizards isn't committing to future Greyhawk campaign setting material, Perkins admitted that the fans still have a say in the matter. "We're not so immutable with our plans that if the fans rose up and said 'Give us something Greyhawk,' that we would say 'No, never,'" Perkins said. "That won't happen."

Perkins also teased the appearance of more campaign settings in the future. "We absolutely will be exploring new D&D worlds and that door is always open," Perkins said.

 

[Hussar]

The Forgotten Realms has often been used as the Setting for Adventures is because it is easy to transfer across to other Settings or homebrew.

And it is notable that there has been one Advebrure book in the last three years primarily set in Faerûn, anyways, and that was a reprint (Shattered Obelisk). Most recebt 5E books are Setting neutral.

Shhh, stop with all your factualizing. It gets in the way of a good rant.

 

[Hussar]

We don't talk about those queer and disreputable folk in Bree.

My point was there is no great metropolis where all the races live side by side like Water deep or 5e's City of Greyhawkm

ROTFLMAO.

When was the Free City of Greyhawk EVER not a metropolis where all races live side by side?

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Look, it is really simple. You HAVE all that Greyhawk stuff already. You have everything you could possibly want. Instead of contantly bitching about how the kids these days just don't respect things, why not actually maybe crack open your mind just a tiny, tiny bit and allow the next generation of gamers to have their own Greyhawk which isn't your Greyhawk? Why insist that you must force your version and your vision of the setting down the throats of everyone in the fandom?

Greyhawk is the ULTIMATE homebrew setting. That was ALWAYS the baseline for Greyhawk. THAT'S what sets Greyhawk apart from things like Forgotten Realms. In FR, if you want to know the shape of windows in Cormyr, you can actually find that out. It's actually canon. In Greyhawk? It's whatever floats your boat baby. You do you and I'll do me.

Instead of constantly bitching about how they are changing the setting, why not celebrate the ten thousand different versions of Greyhawk?

 

[Stuart Kerrigan]

ROTFLMAO.

When was the Free City of Greyhawk EVER not a metropolis where all races live side by side?

Sure, but it was the Tolkienen races back in the day. If you follow the thread of the civil discussion I was having with the other poster that was what I meant. However I get the impression you'd rather strut your feathers and be hostile.

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Why insist that you must force your version and your vision of the setting down the throats of everyone in the fandom?

Again, re-read what I posted earlier. It includes statements like "There's nothing wrong with liking 5e D&D lore and 2024 Greyhawk." This is a discussion forum, we're allowed to discuss.

Instead of constantly bitching about how they are changing the setting, why not celebrate the ten thousand different versions of Greyhawk?

Watch this space.

 

[Stuart Kerrigan]

There absolutely is a default, it's FR.

Well, that's not baked into the game and can certainly change. In 3e the default was explicitly Greyhawk. In BECMI OD&D the default was Mystara. In the Black Dragon OD&D boxed sets it was a mini-setting called Thunder Rift. I don't think 5e has a declared default setting, but given FR gets all the love it's fair to assume it is for now. The default setting for 6e in 10 years could be Spelljammer or Ravinica for all we know.

By contrast, my other favourite game WFRP has been set in the Old World for all 4 of its editions, even the weird one with all the FFG tokens. Shadowrun is always set in a Cyberpunk version of our world etc.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Sure, but it was the Tolkienen races back in the day

Only because there was a fad for Tolkien in 1970s USA. Given that it is no longer the 1970s, and many players do not live in the USA, it’s not particularly relevant now.

If Tolkien is what you like, there are Middle Earth products available, or you can homebrew your own Middle Earth.

It’s a shame they got slapped down for using Barsoom races, D&D would have looked very different.

 

[Stuart Kerrigan]

If Tolkien is what you like, there are Middle Earth products available, or you can homebrew your own Middle Earth.

Oh ironically I wouldn't touch One Ring, not because I hate Tolkien but I'm such a purist I wouldn't do it justice.

It’s a shame they got slapped down for using Barsoom races, D&D would have looked very different.

Probably like this?

 

[mamba]

Being Tolkenien is the most vanilla a setting can be.

That was true for 1e, I assume they meant it sets it apart from the other 5e settings, which are the new vanilla by supporting all the 5e PHB races

 

[Paul Farquhar]

That was true for 1e, I assume they meant it sets it apart from the other 5e settings, which are the new vanilla by supporting all the 5e PHB races

Greyhawk supports all the PHB races, always has.

 

[Stuart Kerrigan]

Greyhawk supports all the PHB races, always has.

I think my view was, why not have Greyhawk embrace its 1e roots and still have the quirky old feel to it? Have a newer setting (or god forbid, release a brand new non-MTG setting) be the poster-boy for 5e. Or just use the Realms.

 

[mamba]

Greyhawk supports all the PHB races, always has.

yes, that was the point, it is why it is vanilla in both 1e and 5e