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<blockquote data-quote="JohnSnow" data-source="post: 3027603" data-attributes="member: 32164">*nodding vigorously*It's definitely a good idea to hang a setting on some kind of hook. That way, if you say &quot;Celtic,&quot; your players know to expect cattle raids, the giving of gifts, boar hunting, etc. A setting where they play &quot;knights errant&quot; or &quot;ronin&quot; is very different, but has its own assumptions. For example, my last DM (Akrasia on these boards) described his campaign &quot;feel&quot; as &quot;Excalibur meets Cthulu.&quot; Okay. Check. Got it.For the best guide I've ever read on campaign and world design, I recommend Ray Winniger's excellent Dungeoncraft articles. If it helps, I'll post Winniger's rules of Dungeoncraft and his basic design steps.First Rule of Dungeoncraft: Never force yourself to create more than you must.Second Rule of Dungeoncraft: Whenever you design a major piece of the campaign world, always devise at least one secret related to that piece.The Third Rule of Dungeoncraft: Whenever you have no idea what the probability of success should be for a particular situation, consider it 50%.Fourth Rule of Dungeoncraft: Always challenge both the players and their characters.Fifth Rule of Dungeoncraft: What's done is done.Basic World Design Steps:1. Come up with a world &quot;hook&quot; - culture, environment, class/race, opposition, situation.2. Consider the implications of your &quot;hook.&quot;3. Set up a Home Base (City, Stronghold, Town, Farming Village, or Wandering Tribal Camp)4. Determine Local Government and Economy5. Determine &quot;National&quot; Government6. Determine Something about Neighboring Governments7. Develop Your Religion&nbsp;- Choose Polytheism or Monotheism&nbsp;- Determine the nature of the major god(s)&nbsp;- Describe the faith and worshippers&nbsp;- Create Two Myths&nbsp;- Imagine Other Faiths8. Start Naming Things9. Design the Homebase - make sure it includes the following features:&nbsp;- A Local Authority&nbsp;- Townsfolk&nbsp;- Shops&nbsp;- A Temple or Church&nbsp;- Fantasy Elements&nbsp;- The Rumor Mill&nbsp;- Interesting NPCs&nbsp;- Something Related to a Secret10. Map the Base11. Map the Region around the base&nbsp;- Start with the Familiar&nbsp;- Include the Unknown&nbsp;- Plan Ahead for adventures&nbsp;- Integration of the Local Economy&nbsp;- Monster Lairs&nbsp;- Hard to Reach Areas&nbsp;- Clue Pointing to a Secret12. Design the First AdventureThat's it. Although the actual articles are more helpful, hopefully this brief outline is a good start. I have the articles if anyone wants them, but I don't think I can post them - copyright laws and all that.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="JohnSnow, post: 3027603, member: 32164"] *nodding vigorously* It's definitely a good idea to hang a setting on some kind of hook. That way, if you say "Celtic," your players know to expect cattle raids, the giving of gifts, boar hunting, etc. A setting where they play "knights errant" or "ronin" is very different, but has its own assumptions. For example, my last DM (Akrasia on these boards) described his campaign "feel" as "Excalibur meets Cthulu." Okay. Check. Got it. For the best guide I've ever read on campaign and world design, I recommend Ray Winniger's excellent [i]Dungeoncraft[/i] articles. If it helps, I'll post Winniger's rules of Dungeoncraft and his basic design steps. [i]First Rule of Dungeoncraft:[/i] Never force yourself to create more than you must. [i]Second Rule of Dungeoncraft:[/i] Whenever you design a major piece of the campaign world, always devise at least one secret related to that piece. [i]The Third Rule of Dungeoncraft:[/i] Whenever you have no idea what the probability of success should be for a particular situation, consider it 50%. [i]Fourth Rule of Dungeoncraft:[/i] Always challenge both the players and their characters. [i]Fifth Rule of Dungeoncraft:[/i] What's done is done. [i]Basic World Design Steps:[/i] 1. Come up with a world "hook" - culture, environment, class/race, opposition, situation. 2. Consider the implications of your "hook." 3. Set up a Home Base (City, Stronghold, Town, Farming Village, or Wandering Tribal Camp) 4. Determine Local Government and Economy 5. Determine "National" Government 6. Determine Something about Neighboring Governments 7. Develop Your Religion - Choose Polytheism or Monotheism - Determine the nature of the major god(s) - Describe the faith and worshippers - Create Two Myths - Imagine Other Faiths 8. Start Naming Things 9. Design the Homebase - make sure it includes the following features: - A Local Authority - Townsfolk - Shops - A Temple or Church - Fantasy Elements - The Rumor Mill - Interesting NPCs - Something Related to a Secret 10. Map the Base 11. Map the Region around the base - Start with the Familiar - Include the Unknown - Plan Ahead for adventures - Integration of the Local Economy - Monster Lairs - Hard to Reach Areas - Clue Pointing to a Secret 12. Design the First Adventure That's it. Although the actual articles are more helpful, hopefully this brief outline is a good start. I have the articles if anyone wants them, but I don't think I can post them - copyright laws and all that. [/QUOTE]

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