Looking for a new campaign setting

[Geoffrey]

The Gelspad Gazettier (That was the first one, right?) was what put me way off running the SL, and drove me to world building. Now if the big fat book had come first...

I'm in the opposite camp. I own and admire the gazetteer. It cost me only $8.95 for an entire continent. It's enough to get my imagination going. But when I saw the fat hardback I thought, "Ugh, who needs this? All I need is my little gazetteer."

 

[Wraith Form]

Scarred Lands is good if you want a setting that sets everything up for you, fills in all the blanks, and gives you a complete package with a strong thematic hook to base your campaign on (standard, but well done, apocalypse hook). This hook can be overbearing if you want to focus on your own ideas.

Kalamar is good if you want a world that focuses on providing great detail (have you seen the Atlas?) but remains flexible enough to handle any kind of campaign you want, any kind of flavor, and any type of adventure. Instead of one big event defining the entire world (ala Scarred Lands), lots of very interesting and very different things are happening all over the world. You get lots more flexibility this way, but because it lacks a strong central theme/hook some people find it boring and harder to grasp immediately.

In all, Scarred Lands focuses more on giving you completed pre-packaged plotlines whereas Kalamar focuses more on giving you open ended tools to invent your own plotlines. I think what you choose should depend on your DM style.

Scarred Lands is a bit higher magic/fantasy than Kalamar. Kalamar is very well suited toward political campaigns, whereas Scarred Lands is very well suited toward save-the-world-from-evil campaigns. Kalamar expresses more of a moral relativism than Scarred Lands. In Kalamar it is often not clear at all who is good and evil -- in fact these terms are wholly irrelevant in most of the world's conflicts. In Scarred Lands, you are pretty much told who the good guys and the bad guys are.

DANG, am I in complete agreement with the above! Bravo!

*meekly raises his hand in the Kalamar camp*

 

[Nightfall]

Nightfall, if I understood you right, you're part of the Scarred Lands design team. Can I ask you a question?

No I am NOT a part of the design team. I have no influence in that. I don't shape or control what comes out or what decisions get made in terms of products, who gets hired or anything like that. I'm just a fan that happens to be a friend of one of the designers/developers. That's it. I can however try to answer your question to the best of my ability.

Why did you release the Gazettier thingys? The Gelspad Gazettier (That was the first one, right?) was what put me way off running the SL, and drove me to world building. Now if the big fat book had come first...

-Alla, who thinks SL AND Kalamar are great pieces of work!

As I said I didn't release them. But I have heard from the TRUE designers say they wanted to see how much interest was there for the Scarred Lands. So out game the Gazetter for Ghelspad. That's what I've heard.

 

[Nightfall]

I'm in the opposite camp. I own and admire the gazetteer. It cost me only $8.95 for an entire continent. It's enough to get my imagination going. But when I saw the fat hardback I thought, "Ugh, who needs this? All I need is my little gazetteer."

To each his own Geoff. I like the hardback but I do think the Gaz is nice for players to have.

 

[ColonelHardisson]

Well, since the discussion has boiled down to Kalamar vs. Scarred Lands, I'd have to say that both are fine settings. If I were to pick one over the other, I'd pick Scarred Lands. Very distinctive setting, and the supplements for it have been outstanding, more so than the supprot for Kalamar has been, except in a few cases. Any setting that gives us supplements like Hollowfaust is tough to beat.

 

[Nightfall]

Well dunno about versus Coln, but I would say we are debating the merits of each. In any case again must say props to the Kalamar fans as they've been nothing BUT polite and friendly. Thanks guys. (And thanks to my friends/fans as well)

 

[Oni]

I cannot speak as to the quality or feel of Kalamar.

However I am a big fan of the Scarred Lands campaign setting. It is gritty without being oppressively so. By it's nature magic is pretty much everywhere in one form or another, but it doesn't hit you over the head with it like some other settings might. It really has a flavor all it's own, but it's still very much dnd and it embraces that.

 

[ColonelHardisson]

Not "versus" in a combative way; it's just that there are a lot more settings out there than these two, but these two are pretty much the only ones being discussed in detail here. What I've seen of the Iron Kingdoms, in the modules, the Monsternomicon, and Lock and Load, has been outstanding also, and I'd probably rate it up there among the top ones.

 

[WayneLigon]

Adapt some of the other worlds out there.

Harn
Uresia: The Grave of Heaven

 

[mikep18103]

it's just that there are a lot more settings out there than these two, but these two are pretty much the only ones being discussed in detail here

The reason it is only these two worlds is that when I went looking for a new campaign world I had decided that I wanted either SL or KoK and wanted to get some opionions on both worlds from people playing them.

Both sides have been very helpful and last night I got my Ghelspad book and the DM screen and I'm awaiting the arrival to my CC books from White Wolf.

Mike.