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.

 

[Zeromaru X]

Is it OK if I ask what language you're translating into? Apologies if this is rude.

Don't worry, is ok. Spanish is my native language.

 

[pemerton]

So besides the obvious ones like Geoff (), the oddball one that gets me is Ountsy.

I think I was looking for a coastal town once to use in GH near a big bad empire, so looking along the Great Kingdom I found the town of Ountsy and was just…”I’ve had it up to here with your BS names, Gary.”

Geoff doesn't bother me. I mean, I live in a country with a state called Tasmania (after Tasman) and Victoria (after the Queen) and many cities with proper names of then-significant British personages (Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, etc)..

And your profile lists you as being in Virginia! And the US also has Georgia.

I don't recall ever coming across Ountsy. It sounds vaguely British to me . . . or even some sort of pre-contemporary French.

 

[pemerton]

Don't worry, is ok. Spanish is my native language.

Thanks for the reply. And I could probably have had a guess by looking at your profile! (Which I just did.)

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Geoff doesn't bother me. I mean, I live in a country with a state called Tasmania (after Tasman) and Victoria (after the Queen) and many cities with proper names of then-significant British personages (Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, etc

It’s not just the name, it’s the conflict between the very formal “Grand Dutchy” and the very informal “Geoff” that sounds funny. The Grand Dutchy of Geoffrey works fine.

 

[Yaarel]

Victoria (after the Queen)

Heh. But would you look twice if the state is named "Vicky" after queen?

 

[Parmandur]

It’s not just the name, it’s the conflict between the very formal “Grand Dutchy” and the very informal “Geoff” that sounds funny. The Grand Dutchy of Geoffrey works fine.

I always found thst sort of thing part of the charm of Greyhawk...Gyhax sense of humor usually lands for me? Like, I juat know when he came upnwith it, he was sitting there chuckling "hehehe....Jeff"

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I always found thst sort of thing part of the charm of Greyhawk...Gyhax sense of humor usually lands for me? Like, I juat know when he came upnwith it, he was sitting there chuckling "hehehe....Jeff"

I find in-world jokes damage immersion. Let the players crack wise, but the world should be played straight.

 

[Parmandur]

Geoff makes more sense to me than Verbobonc. But that's perhaps English is not my native language, and Geoff can pass as sn European-like name.

I mean, the language barrier might make the wordplay and humorous angle a little less funny all around?

 

[DrunkonDuty]

For my part, I ignore that Gygaxian injunction.

Otherwise the names don't bother me too much. That said, Verbobonc has never figure much in my play. But the Gnarley Forest has . . .

Insert ninja turtles saying "narley, dude" here.

I love Verbobonc. I can imagine gnomes being very happy with that name. (Verbobonc has a large gnomish population.) And it's a much better name than Dyvers.

 

[pemerton]

Insert ninja turtles saying "narley, dude" here.

100% - I mean, I was playing with 18 to 20 years olds in 1990, with the action including the Gnarley Forest.

I love Verbobonc. I can imagine gnomes being very happy with that name. (Verbobonc has a large gnomish population.) And it's a much better name than Dyvers.

So much Dyvers hate!