Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
"Monster density" and wilderness settlements in D&D campaign worlds
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Greg Benage" data-source="post: 6392427" data-attributes="member: 93631"><p>Some ideas...</p><p></p><p>"Dragonslayer" (1981). The town fathers cut a deal.</p><p></p><p>Periodic slaughter. The isolated settlement is, in fact, put to the sword/torch/tooth and claw on a regular basis. Pioneers are desperate enough that they keep coming back.</p><p></p><p>Diplomacy. If a frontier is dominated by humanoids or other intelligent monsters, you could reach a political agreement with them, and they in turn could offer some protection from other denizens in the area. This probably works best if it's the frontier of a realm more powerful than the humanoid tribes. The tribes might give in to temptation from time to time, and then the king has to send an army to punish them, but the arrangement allows for some kind of tenuous stability. Eventually, as the frontier develops and more settlers pour in, the tribes maybe realize this is a raw deal that won't end well and begin mobilizing for war.</p><p></p><p>Patron monsters. Powerful good monsters might offer protection.</p><p></p><p>Cost-benefit. The settlement is heavily fortified and dirt poor. The local hobgoblin chief (or whatever) figures he could take it (maybe he even tried, once), but it would expend a lot of resources and anyway his tribe enjoys relative abundance compared to the peasants living in abject poverty. Beyond a few raids on outlying farms, it's just not worth it. Plus...</p><p></p><p>Balance of power. The hobgoblin has the orc tribes to worry about. They're a much bigger threat than a few pitiful humans hiding behind their walls.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Greg Benage, post: 6392427, member: 93631"] Some ideas... "Dragonslayer" (1981). The town fathers cut a deal. Periodic slaughter. The isolated settlement is, in fact, put to the sword/torch/tooth and claw on a regular basis. Pioneers are desperate enough that they keep coming back. Diplomacy. If a frontier is dominated by humanoids or other intelligent monsters, you could reach a political agreement with them, and they in turn could offer some protection from other denizens in the area. This probably works best if it's the frontier of a realm more powerful than the humanoid tribes. The tribes might give in to temptation from time to time, and then the king has to send an army to punish them, but the arrangement allows for some kind of tenuous stability. Eventually, as the frontier develops and more settlers pour in, the tribes maybe realize this is a raw deal that won't end well and begin mobilizing for war. Patron monsters. Powerful good monsters might offer protection. Cost-benefit. The settlement is heavily fortified and dirt poor. The local hobgoblin chief (or whatever) figures he could take it (maybe he even tried, once), but it would expend a lot of resources and anyway his tribe enjoys relative abundance compared to the peasants living in abject poverty. Beyond a few raids on outlying farms, it's just not worth it. Plus... Balance of power. The hobgoblin has the orc tribes to worry about. They're a much bigger threat than a few pitiful humans hiding behind their walls. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
General Tabletop Discussion
*Dungeons & Dragons
"Monster density" and wilderness settlements in D&D campaign worlds
Top