LOW FANTASY settings/adventures: WHERE? WHEN?

[Kaptain_Kantrip]

WoT is not something I'm interested in (books or RPG).

The CoC magic system is a good idea.

But what I want to know is why must everything these companies release contain the "obligatory" stupid gnomes, dragons and high magic? It's like these companies don't have any creativity at all and just dump everything in for no good reason other than "it's in the core rulebook, so we've got to have it in ours, too."

 

[MEG Hal]

WoT is not something I'm interested in (books or RPG).

The CoC magic system is a good idea.

But what I want to know is why must everything these companies release contain the "obligatory" stupid gnomes, dragons and high magic? It's like these companies don't have any creativity at all and just dump everything in for no good reason other than "it's in the core rulebook, so we've got to have it in ours, too."

Honestly...I think you give us d20 companies too much credit---- j/k.

If you look some companies have medium magic and add flavor to their settings but do not munchkin them.

As for why do all of us have gnomes etc.....one answer--------->
Marketing, if we do not have elves in our setting how many customers would not buy our stuff because they are playing an elf.

So we do do a lot of stuff because it is in the core books, it just makes sense.

Someone will do a varied setting but IMHO most of the bigger publishers will be mainstream in their general ideas.

 

[Master01]

Try our Seven Avengers Saga.
Heroes and Magic Sourcebook is available for free on our website.

 

[Voadam]

Ravenloft is default lower access to magic and has areas that vary a lot in their grittiness, also the more straight the characters are the better the horror works. It does have two kingdoms ruled by mages and gothic horrors are part and parcel of the setting.

Avalanche is a good look for lower magic historical settings as has been mentioned.

The Kalamar setting is supposed to be a bit lower magic than normal as well. But I don't have the setting.

A lot of the core system is balanced around the default level of magic so in a low magic world this balance gets skewed a bit.

 

[Thorin Stoutfoot]

low magic settings/adventures

Do any of you remember Harn? Back when it came out, the creators said something like: "We make it a low magic setting, because it's easier to put in magic than to take it out."

After reading about people's campaigns and beefs and wants, I've come to the conclusion that the opposite is true: it's far easier to strip out magic than to put it in!

Think about it: what are the implications of a world in which magic exists? How does it affect politics, day to day life, trade, and healing? Why would anybody bother with herbs when they can just walk down to the local temple (or be carried there) for a bit of good 'ol healing? In a world where miracles/monsters exist, how would the common people behave and think? Think of the implications of a world where Godzilla and Ultraman exist --- the citizenry would get good at rebuilding after buildings got demolished

How do you design adventures for a world where 20th level barbarians can take out hordes of men? Where wizards can teleport anywhere they can scry, and where high level rogues routinely dodge insane traps?

The long and short of this is that we all know what it's like to live in a low magic world, because in our world, magic doesn't exist, and doesn't work. So what I'd really like to see is a well thought out high magic setting (not a whole world, just a city or a town to get started), and let those who want low magic strip it down instead.

The other problem with low magic is that everybody's definition of low magic seems to be different. For some it means no magic-using PCs, for others it means that cost of magic items is doubled or triple (by DMG standards), so the "low magic market" turns out not to be that big after all, despite the constant kvetching over in the main forum about how magic item creation feats suck, and how spells are broken.

 

[Sayburr]

Check out Kalamar... it is not as low as you are asking for, but it is close.

http://www.kenzerco.com/dnd

 

[Mouseferatu]

Wait a year.

Some time around Summer, 2003, I think you'll see the release of something you'll like, from Monkey God Enterprises. It's low magic, it's mostly humans only--but it's like nothing you've seen before, Lankhmar included.

Wish I could tell you more, but we haven't made any announcements yet. All I can say is, be patient.

Edit: Suppose I should clarify. It's not "low magic" per se; it's low "big, over-the-top, showy magic." Not the same thing, really.

 

[der_kluge]

KK, contrary to popular belief, D20 publishers don't cater to your needs. They cater to what the majority want. I play a gnome, so yes, I would not buy any product that was geared towards only humans.

I'm sure someone will write the system you're looking for. Others have expressed a desire for such a thing as well, so while it is the minority, IMHO, you're not the only one.

While others have suggested alternatives, I think it would be relatively easy to do low magic with the D20 rules.

Use the grim-n-gritty rules.
Allow only humans as a race.
Drop Sorcerers as a class, and make wizards play "adepts". Perhaps use the CoC magic systems as others have mentioned. I've not seen it.
The rest you can control, like the world, the amount of magic in it, and the creatures that the PCs fight.

And, for inspiration watch Jabberwocky, and Excalibur.

 

[Kaptain_Kantrip]

KK, contrary to popular belief, D20 publishers don't cater to your needs. They cater to what the majority want.

How do you know you're the majority? Maybe they just put this junk in because they THINK its what people want. WoTC almost removed gnomes altogether from Third Edition (and should have IMO, esp. after reading "The Little Lympics" article in Dragon, LOL). Most fantasy stories do NOT include elves, dwarves, gnomes and halflings. It's mainly the ones everybody's heard of or read (Tolkien, Shannara, the crappy WoTC novels, etc.) that feature these races. Most serious fantasy novels or short stories deal with humans only (Thieve's World, Lankhmar, Conan, etc.).

IMO, the inclusion of the gnomes and other races in D&D is just catering to the lowest common denominator of what many people think of when they think of "fantasy" because they have been brainwashed by the media (cartoons, TV shows, Tolkien, RPGs, etc.) into thinking every fantasy product "must" contain these elements. I remember there was an ad for some RPG (PBM?) in Dragon years and years ago that had the tagline "No Elves!" I thought that was the coolest.

Maybe Earth: 1066 will be more what I'm looking for. Yes, I could make all this stuff up myself--and I have on many occasions--but I sure would appreciate some industry support for a change, so I don't have to do everything. A DM only has so much free time, after all!

 

[Kaptain_Kantrip]

Check out Kalamar... it is not as low as you are asking for, but it is close.

http://www.kenzerco.com/dnd

Didn't like it. Nope. Didn't like it at all. Boring.