Real Life Places That Inspire You As A DM

[WolfhillRPG]

Wieliczka Salt Mine, Krakow, Poland

I've been to this salt mine and I can tell you photo's do not do it justice. Malbork Castle is also worth seeing with your own eyes.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Sequoia National Park, California.
Those trees are huge.

In my buddy's world, in the far north, there is a mountain range with far more flora and fauna than it should have, because the fey magic that used to infuse the land meant that animals and plants could live there in the cold and high altitude, and thus the soil is less thin and more full of plant food, and more plants means the animals have an easier time, too.

In that same region, there used to be trees with trunks as big as small towns, and their smaller cousins, which are giant redwoods. Now, all the ancient trees are broken (by demons, a thousand years ago), and their offspring aren't old enough to have reached anything like their legendary size. The biggest trees are about as big as the biggest redwoods IRL.

The stumps of the old trees do make good clan holds for the native forest gnomes, though.

 

[Darth Solo]

Big cities.

It's the "anything that can happen" aspect of them. I've gotten story ideas walking downtown SF and overlooking San Diego from Sunset Cliffs. Cities breed wild stories, even from overheard conversations at a cafe.

I'm a hard introvert who loves the peace of Nature. Birdsong, the sound of sunlight and the whisper of the wind. But, that blend of "civilization" carries a strong undercurrent that feeds my adventures.

 

[Fenris-77]

Sequoias aren't the only big trees. I find Japanese Camphor trees quite evocative:

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Another dose:

 

[Retreater]

I agree with @wingsandsword. As a Kentuckian who lives about an hour from Mammoth Cave, I've found the entire cave country to be inspirational.
I've also taken inspiration from Disney World for a Gamma World campaign. You never know where you will find inspiration.