Should Campaign Settings include a metaplot?

[ThirdWizard]

Is anything known about what these planned but not written adventures might have been like?

Unfortunately, I don't think anything is known.

Of this I am well aware.

But, you see, that doesn't excuse heavy handed metaplotting. Indeed, it's illustrative of the sort of mess-up that can come about because of it. Whether or not it was supposed to be continued, it is in the state that it is in and 3e material is still being written to it as canon.

Admittedly, I ignore Faction War for the most part. It's fairly easy to ignore, though. What I like most about PS are the various bits and pieces seeded in and expounded in, for example, the Factol's Manifesto or Modron March/Dead Gods. Those were perfect, AFAIC.

 

[Hemlock Stones]

METAPLOTS ARE THE "MR. HELPER" OF GAMING

GREETINGS!

Boy what a feisty topic this has become! I personally don't care for the metaplot. It causes a distraction for the players and gives them a means to disrupt the workings of "your" game. Metaplots can lend themselves to the background of the environs the game takes place in.

When you look at the shows we all know and love, Farscape, Babylon 5, Lost, and Serenity primarily, the plot focus succeeds because of the subplots involving the characters. An even better example of utilizing cohesive plot sturcture exists in the formula Lester Dent suggested for writing pulp type fiction. Believe me it works beautifully for making exciting memorable gaming.

My final consideration for the metaplot, gaming and you, is that making a role playing game enjoyable for everybody involves simplicity. I am all for enhancing the gaming experience. Yet, too many elements to the overall game and plot line confuses the players. Worse it may leave them disenchanted and pondering how to improve the game instead of playing the game.

That's all for me!

 

[Shade]

I prefer my settings to have a rich canon and metaplot. It doesn't have to be all-consuming, but I like a rich history and ongoing events (not necessarily of my own creation) to give the world a larger feel.

 

[Shemeska]

Yes

Metaplot =! railroading.

You have to have some form of metaplot in a setting, or else the setting remains static, sterile, and ultimately boring as all heck.

 

[Klaus]

And here's where I give my opinion:

A published campaign setting should be a "snapshot" of the world. Lots of adventure/campaign seeds, sure. But every single product to come after that should assume that the campaign is still in that "snapshot" state. A DM can advance his game in whatever direction he makes, adapting the setting to conform to what transpired at his table, not the other way around.

There are dozens of product ideas that can come out of a published setting that don't involve altering the status quo. Eberron released the ECS, Sharn: CoT, Five Nations, Explorer's Handbook, Magic of Eberron, Races of Eberron, Player's Guide to Eberron, 4 adventures and the upcoming Faiths of Eberron, Secrets of X'endrik and Dragonmarked, plus a dozen novels, and even as the setting gets more and more detailed (and there's much more to be detailed), the status quo is still respected (and I hope it remains so for quite a long time).

Because if suddenly WotC decides that House Cannith splinters in three, King Boranel dies, and Sarlonans launch a full-scale invasion of Khorvaire, all those books become invalidated, and future books become useless to players whose games still assume that none of that happened. Stuff like Greyhawk Wars and From The Ashes are, imho, a bad idea. If you want to have such a major upheaval, make it an add-on product, like a hardcover or boxed set, with means to make it happen and a summary of aftereffects, but make it an optional add-on, and keep on publishing material for the "snapshot" scenario.

 

[Sammael]

Metaplot =! railroading.

You have to have some form of metaplot in a setting, or else the setting remains static, sterile, and ultimately boring as all heck.

As long as it's a metaplot I conceived, and not the one made up by the marketing/novels department, sure. But that's not the case with current settings.

Oh, and the PS metaplot sucked big part. I am saying this as a great fan of the setting.

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

And here's where I give my opinion:


A published campaign setting should be a "snapshot" of the world. Lots of adventure/campaign seeds, sure. But every single product to come after that should assume that the campaign is still in that "snapshot" state. A DM can advance his game in whatever direction he makes, adapting the setting to conform to what transpired at his table, not the other way around.

There are dozens of product ideas that can come out of a published setting that don't involve altering the status quo. Eberron released the ECS, Sharn: CoT, Five Nations, Explorer's Handbook, Magic of Eberron, Races of Eberron, Player's Guide to Eberron, 4 adventures and the upcoming Faiths of Eberron, Secrets of X'endrik and Dragonmarked, plus a dozen novels, and even as the setting gets more and more detailed (and there's much more to be detailed), the status quo is still respected (and I hope it remains so for quite a long time).

Because if suddenly WotC decides that House Cannith splinters in three, King Boranel dies, and Sarlonans launch a full-scale invasion of Khorvaire, all those books become invalidated, and future books become useless to players whose games still assume that none of that happened. Stuff like Greyhawk Wars and From The Ashes are, imho, a bad idea. If you want to have such a major upheaval, make it an add-on product, like a hardcover or boxed set, with means to make it happen and a summary of aftereffects, but make it an optional add-on, and keep on publishing material for the "snapshot" scenario.

I fully agree with what you said ... but ironically, House Cannith has splintered into three. (This is in the ECS, however, and wasn't introduced by a splatbook or a novel.)

On the above post about comic books... comic books don't have PCs.

 

[Klaus]

I fully agree with what you said ... but ironically, House Cannith has splintered into three. (This is in the ECS, however, and wasn't introduced by a splatbook or a novel.)

On the above post about comic books... comic books don't have PCs.

I meant officially, like Phiarlan and Thuranni did, forming, for instance, Houses Cannith, Vown and Gyro Gearloose.

 

[kroh]

On the above post about comic books... comic books don't have PCs.

.

This is very true in that Comics do not have PC's. But what is a role playing game? It is a story written by a main author and several supporting authors. Most comics that tie into a central universe are not written by a single author. They are written by multiple authors trying to tell their own story while staying true to the universe.

I was using the comic book analogy to simply state that you can have a meta plot that either creates minimal or great change and the GM (writer) can either run with, away from, or along side of it and still run a great game.

What it all comes down to is whether or not you have a GM that runs a great game. Anything else is secondary. Who cares if it is in direct line to the cannon material. A good campaign setting is meant to be complete so you can use it. A great campaign is laid out so you can abuse it. Either way...who cares....have fun and play...

Regards,
Walt

 

[Ourph]

No, I don't like them at all. Metaplot foolishness ruined the Known World (a.k.a. Mystara). One of the great things about the Wilderlands is that it is metaplot free.

I'm surprised you say that, since I know you've mentioned before that you're a fan of the Warhammer FRPG setting and it's got one of the strongest metaplots in any campaign setting I've ever seen (WAY more intricately tied into the setting than Mystara or Forgotten Realms for example). The Chaos vs. civilization "subtext" of the campaign setting gives it essentially ALL of its flavor but doesn't hamstring the GM into following a single plot with his campaign.

That's why I voted "other". Metaplot, when executed well, can be a crucial part of turning a good campaign setting into a great one. When executed poorly, it can ruin an otherwise good one. But that's an author problem, not a problem inherent to the metaplot device.