For those who need a quick summary, the Wilderlands is the classic campaign setting that is home to the City State of the Invincible Overlord. Imagine a classic, gritty fantasy setting based on Conan, Elric and Fahfard and the Grey Mouser instead of Tolkien.
Anyone who is frustrated that WotC has dropped the ball with Greyhawk will want to check out this setting. And anyone who is frustrated at how the Realms are no longer truly the "Forgotten Realms" but instead could be called the "Overdetailed And All-Too-Well-Known Realms That No Longer Hold Any Mystery Since My Players Have Read All 1000 Novels And Know the Setting Better Than I As The DM Ever Could" also needs to check out this setting.
Here is the back of book information and a clip about the setting.
Wilderlands of High Fantasy: Player’s Guide™
Welcome to the Wilderlands of High Fantasy!
Whether you are a veteran Judges Guild fan or a new player just now discovering the Wilderlands, this Player’s Guide introduces you to the classic Judges Guild epic fantasy setting and provides you with everything you need to begin a campaign in the Wilderlands, including the classic City State of the Invincible Overlord!
A Deadly World of Epic Adventure
This Player’s Guide includes a large full color fold-out map and details on the history and background of the Wilderlands. At your fingertips is information on the important cities and geographical features of the Wilderlands as well as information on the gods and monsters unique to the setting. The Player’s Guide also includes details on the City State of the Invincible Overlord, allowing you to run a campaign set in the Wilderlands right away!
And now the blurb from the intro:
The Wilderlands Setting
The Wilderlands setting details an area slightly smaller than the Mediterranean sea and surrounding lands. Unlike many current published settings where everything has been discovered and most of the world is known, the Wilderlands are largely unexplored and overland travel is dangerous. There are few “nations.” Instead, the lands are dominated by “city states,” principle among them being the City State of the Invincible Overlord and Viridistan, the City of Spices—also known as the City State of the World Emperor. The City State of the Invincible Overlord so dominates the Wilderlands, that many campaigns run in this setting are often called City State Campaigns.
The civilization of the Wilderlands centers mostly on the largest city states: Viridistan, the City State of the Invincible Overlord, Tarantis, Valon, Rallu and Tula. But these locations are small in comparison to the vast forests, expansive plains, open seas, trackless deserts, imposing mountains and wild rivers. The light of civilization in the Wilderlands is a dim spark against the dark wilds.
The Wilderlands is a setting in decline. Long ago empires covered the region. But great wars, with the gods themselves fighting alongside men, has reduced the splendor of those past civilizations, leaving them in ruins. The most recent such war was the War of the Pious and Philosophers, pitting the followers of magic against the followers of science. That war was some 6000 years ago (though that date is disputed). Cities that do exist today are generally built on the sites of ancient cities, some among the ruins themselves. Broken roads, crumbled walls, sunken buildings and half-ruined towers dot the landscape, a constant reminder of the faded past.
Life in the Wilderlands can be summed up for the average commoner as follows: Solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short. The average life expectancy is twenty years unless one lives in a walled city or town such as the City State, Viridistan, Thunderhold, Modron, Warwik or other large cities, in which it is only a little higher. Almost all Human families produce at least ten children, of whom two or three may live long enough to have children of their own. In the wilderness villages, wandering monsters and the raids of nomads, brigands and various humanoid species which are inherently evil are the bane of many. Rampant, unchecked disease is common to both walled city and wilderness village; so is infant mortality. The dangers of wandering monsters are lessened in a walled city or town, but the concentration of people in a small area leads to a high crime rate and poor sanitation; therefore, instead of being slain by a marauding dragon, a city dweller may have his throat slit for the contents of his purse. Few men manage to live past the ripe old age of thirty-five, and the fact that a man is fifty or sixty years old indicates great wisdom on his part (or an incredible run of luck).
Welcome to the Wilderlands, where life is cheap, travel is dangerous and a strong sword arm is worth more than a purse full of gold.
Oh yeah, and did I meantion cover art by FRANK FREAKING FRAZETTA!!!
I think the biggest thing about the setting is its flexibility. The Wilderlands (and all JG products) are all about being YOURS to expand. There will be the Player's Guide, the City State, the Boxed set and a module or two perhaps. Thats it. You wont have to feel like you have to buy 100 products to "run the setting right." There are no insane Weigels screaming at you because you did something different from Bob Bledsaw, the creator of the setting. Heck, Bob himself says he changes the setting every time he starts a new campaign. There are no novels. No saturday morning cartoons. There are not 300+ supplements that your players have bought and now know the setting better than you. This setting gives you everything you need and then lets you make of it what YOU will, not what some marketing department that is interested in novel tie ins and movies wants. To me, that is a setting I want.
Clark
