Replacement: Settings that made a difference.

[DreadPirateMurphy]

This posting replaces the previous two, which each had poll problems. [sigh]

I have determined from my previous two polls that Iron Kingdoms is definitely worth a look. I also may pick up some of the Green Ronin books, since I like their books.

This last posting is a more general question. Which D&D/D20/OGL game has made the most difference to you or to the hobby? You may like a specific set of mechanics, or some aspect of the setting, or maybe it was just your first setting.

Feel free to vote for as many as you wish, and to post on why you think different settings were special. I'm only listing settings of high fantasy here.

 

[Aus_Snow]

I'm only listing settings of high fantasy here.

Some of them don't strike me that way, but yeah, YMMV. I think some are still missing too. . . Ah well. :\ I voted anyway.

 

[Mark CMG]

I'm only listing settings of high fantasy here.

Is this still the case or a carry over from a previous incarnation of the poll?

 

[catsclaw227]

I have used and been impressed with:

Scarred Lands
Arcana Evolved (Diamond Throne)
Oathbound
Wilderlands
FR
Freeport
Midnight


But I also own and would really like to play or GM:
Black Company
Blackmoor
Arcanis
Iron Kingdoms
Dark Legacies

 

[DreadPirateMurphy]

Is this still the case or a carry over from a previous incarnation of the poll?

Still the case. Admittedly, high fantasy is subject to interpretation. There is no real reason why you couldn't add in some additional ones, but I think the 41 I have listed are a fairly good selection.

You could also argue that Conan or Grimm don't qualify, etc., based on different criteria. Oh well.

 

[Zethnar]

For the purposes of this poll, I voted for the midnight setting simply because I like the magic rules introduced in it and they are something I plan to use in my next campaign (I'm not a fan of slot based magic).

I'd like to note however that I'd have voted for Iron Heroes but I didnt see it until about 10 minutes after I'd already selected midnight. Personally I feel, after reading through the rulebook, that it has eliminated almost every problem I've had with the core DnD rules. The only thing I'm not entirely sure of is the magic system, I'd have to see it in play before deciding whether it works properly or not.

 

[Mark CMG]

Still the case. Admittedly, high fantasy is subject to interpretation. There is no real reason why you couldn't add in some additional ones, but I think the 41 I have listed are a fairly good selection.

You could also argue that Conan or Grimm don't qualify, etc., based on different criteria. Oh well.

Naw. I get you. Better to be thorough and let the voters sort it out as it goes.

 

[Ktulu]

I purchased the Kingdoms of Kalamar setting because I wanted to use the map for a homebrew game I was planning to run. The book sat on the shelf for something like 9 months before I took any sort of real look at it. I didn't immediately fall in love with the setting, nor did I go fanwank on any message board. It took me a while to understand the flow of the cs book, as it is written more like a history book than a game book.
Once we started playing, the difference was instantly visible. There are no super dark elves chewing up scenery, no epic super level wizards sitting around telling stories about how they've been there and done that. It was just D&D at its' core. A few things that stand out to me are:

The frozen timeline. You'll never have to buy another book, because there are no novels changing the course of your game.

The Atlas. No game has ever put out a true atlas for their world before. You get millions of little hamlets, the tradewinds, an elevation chart! It's very awesome, and used constantly.

The kenzer&co message board. I logged on to the site looking for something. I don't remember what, but that's moot. There I found a group of people that loved the setting like I did. Not only that, but there's a very nice excell calendar that tracks the 3 moons and their phases for you.

Gods with no statistics.

The two big race books: Gnomes&Kobolds & Elves&Bugbears. Both of these books are awesome! You'll never treat kobolds the same again, and the sections on the gnomes are very well done!

I could go on for a while, but I'll stop, hopefully short of boring you.

Ktulu

 

[Desdichado]

I have determined from my previous two polls that Iron Kingdoms is definitely worth a look. I also may pick up some of the Green Ronin books, since I like their books.

This last posting is a more general question. Which D&D/D20/OGL game has made the most difference to you or to the hobby? You may like a specific set of mechanics, or some aspect of the setting, or maybe it was just your first setting.

I voted (as the question asks) for which settings I think made a difference to the hobby. Although there's some overlap, that is not necessarily the same set of settings that I'd vote for if the question were "which settings would you play now, if given the chance to pick your setting?" I hope you're not using the results of this poll to go out and buy stuff. I voted for plenty of stuff that I don't like much at all, because I think it made a difference (FR and Greyhawk, for example.) On the other hand, I also didn't vote for some settings that I think are marvelous, because I don't think they have necessarily really changed the hobby any (Dark Legacies comes to mind here.)

 

[DreadPirateMurphy]

Voting the WotC settings for influence is kind of a no-brainer, I guess. Eberron is the first to hit 70 votes. I am curious about some of the folks who voted for settings that got relatively few (less than 15) votes. What was special about them that caused you to vote?