D&D General The Homebrew Settings of your campaign

[EzekielRaiden]

Welcome, friend, to the land of a thousand tales...and a thousand vices! I merely jest, of course. There are surely many more than that, should you fancy to look in dark corners and partake the salt of questionable tables...whether it be tales or vices you seek! But let us not place the caravan before the camel, yes? Welcome to Al-Rakkah, the shining city of the Tarrakhuna, the Jewel of the Desert. Ruled by the beautiful and beloved Sultana Thuriya Salah al-Din bint-Karim Zaman sitt-Rakkah--may her reign be eternal and her coffers overflow--whose mettle has been proven in dire danger and determined diplomacy alike, Al-Rakkah fair glows with health and prosperity. There are, of course, dangers lurking in the desert sands and distant shadows, as ever there were and ever there shall be, as like as not, but that's what all those determined Adventurers are for, yes? Oh--perhaps one such as you! Should you have the coin in hand already, and find yourself in need of derring-do more than a good banker, make your way to Lady Safiyya's Coffehouse, where all the most impressive and lucrative--though perhaps not the safest--contracts are signed. Should you do so...may the Great Architect watch over you, for the better angels of your nature do not! Hah!

 

[steeldragons]

My homebrew is a "kitchen sink" setting that's been getting built up and revised, edited and expanded, and edited and expanded, again, and again for some three decades. Pretty much any campaign can be easily fit into its myriad realms of magic, danger, glory and riches.

Do you want a heavy urban game with intrigue, courtly politics, temple conflicts and secretive guilds? Wander the streets and allies, innumerable markets and shops of the mundane to utterly bizarre goods of Andril, the Gem of the East. Dozens of wards, new and old cities, a wharf nearly a city all its own, and -of course- the Blue Crystal Tower of the city's three famous sorceress protectors, Andril's immortal Oracles.

Do you want to cross the high seas, visiting the continent's ports, whether the ancient Citadel of the Sea King in southern Mostrial or the kingdom of Grinlia's several trade hubs across the Arm of Tyris? Or seek exotic goods and unknown riches across the South Seas' pirate-haven isles? Enjoy respite and delights among the United Island Kingdoms? Find the mystic sea elf aquamancers said to inhabit a grand city deep in the Irion Ocean? Pick a port and set sail!

Do you want to delve the darkness of caverns and tombs... for wealth, for country, for glory, for power? Seek the ruined mountain fortress of Nor Tereth, felled to the forces of evil in the last age. Desire the legendary magics lost with the fallen empire city of Nane Tarem? Dare to trek the desolate monster-filled battle-plains of the Aeiri Kros? Covet the ancient treasures of the thrice-cursed spires of Nor Tyrilith if you can survive the surrounded lands infested with undead. Can you defeat the salamander soldiers of the flame-riddled Burning Desert in the Seven Sands of Thel? Or find the Black Desert's hidden Obsidian Abbey? Whatever did happen to that "Lost Land" of Yvir in all those stories? Venture to save the whole of the realms from the machinations of the lich-lord, Kren Dalek, or the dreaded dark drake, Ssenssaryn.

Visit the wizard of Towerton in his floating stronghold. Consult the vast libraries in sage-laden Flin, "City of Scrolls." Heed, carefully, the whispered warnings of the Emerald Tear's seers. Drink and hunt with the the Gorunduun barbarians in the frozen north. Learn the secret green paths of the Druids of the Ancient Order in their southern hold. Can you earn entry to the sealed elfin "immortal kingdom" of the ShiStaliir in the west? Sail to "the Magelands" of R'Hath to see their emperor's mystical gardens in the farthest east? Battle the Horken Federation in their "Broken Lands" of Thole. Ascend the "Holy Mountain" of Alhannan and beseech aid of its winged defenders. Have you a gift for (or require a favor from) the Witch-queen of Dunsmoor? Dare you accept the lovely Countess Karlith's invitation to dine?

Magics ancient and new, riches wondrous and unimagined, glory enough to live in song and myth through the ages, dangers to thrill and challenges to chill the soul... all yours to explore...here.

Adventurers! Champions! Heroes! I bid thee, most welcome, to...
the World of Orea.

 

[Greenfield]

My group has been running home-brew worlds for several decades now, each one home to the PCs as they ran from levels one up to Epic (D&D 3.5).

My favorite was fashioned around a fantasy version of Rome, late 5th century. In this world, however, there are Elves, Dragons, Dwarves, magic etc. The various nomadic tribes such as the Hun, the Vandal, the Goth and Visigoth were played by Orcs, Bugbears etc. We had to remove the sunlight penalty for some of thse races, when attacking in an army, though we kept it place for individual encounters.

We overlaid the standard D&D languages with the real-world ones: Dwarven was Germanic, Common was Latin, Elven was Gaelic, Sylvan was Greek, Draconic was Chinese etc.

Part of the beauty was that we had the deep, rich fabric of the ancient Mediterranean world to play with, including legends from Greece, Egypt, Norse and Celtic cultures

One house rule we had was that, to bring back the dead you had to venture to the lands of the dead, be it Hades, Tor', Hel, or the Egyptian Palace of Two Truths. There you had to find the soul of the fallen one and find your way back. No Raise Dead or Res' spells, PC death became an adventure hook.

We also eliminated Teleport and its variants: Over land travel tends to drop away from many games when the party gains the ability to just blip' to their destination. Besides, there weren't any legends of such things in Greco-Roman tales anyway.

I wrote up some of our adventures in that world, as stories. Look for "Curse of Darkness" in the "Story Hour" forum, if you care to. They might still be there.

 

[DeviousQuail]

My homebrews tend to be worlds on the brink of big change that the party is actively dealing with. One was an island built by a super powerful Sorcerer that was long gone and everyone was fighting over it and the powerful relics found there. Another was a world infested with titans and soul devouring winds that forced everyone to live in the few magically protected cities. Pretty much always something that lends itself to a big campaign that reaches high levels and things get insane.

Lately I've been trying to homebrew in a different direction. Inspired by some of my favorite video games I've been working on a setting that is heavily focused on one city and it's immediate area. I want to get away from the big overarching plots and instead build a place where the players come to live and become intertwined in the happenings of the city and it's residents. I'm planning on using time skips to allow for training, stronghold building, and other activities.