Warcraft anyone?

[Calico_Jack73]

Just out of curiosity, does anyone here play/run a game in the Warcraft campaign setting? I'm a big fan of the computer game but I really haven't heard anything about its success/failure as well written campaign setting for D&D. I just want to hear some of it's good and bad points from people who know.

 

[Estlor]

I've not run a Warcraft D20 game yet, but my take from reading the book is that Azeroth would work fine for a DM that wanted a small-scale, semi traditional fantasy setting to play in. Since the setting is in post WC3 reality, you're kind of limited by what happened to Lorederon unless you really want to center the campaign around gnomes, dwarves, and stomping undead. It strikes me as a setting that promotes "low fantasy" until characters are at the point where they can afford to go up against the Burning Legion or the Scourge en masse.

Probably the biggest roadblock to the setting is how the books are setup. The campaign setting book is insufficient to run a Warcraft D20 game unless you're a big fan of the computer games and know enough from that alone. You really end up needing the Alliance & Horde Compendium, the unreleased magic book (for all the technology they claimed would be in A&HC but left out in exchange for Cry Havoc material), and the unreleased setting book. That's four books just to even start running it, two of which aren't even out yet. Without them you'll have to do a lot of tweaking to the setting and adjudicating things like technology and modified spells.

It strikes me that the better use of the Warcraft D20 book is to drop elements into other campaigns. That's primarily what I'll be doing.

 

[Calico_Jack73]

Thanks for the info... you've saved me a bunch of money!

 

[Ghostwind]

I'm using the stuff from my copy to supplement my homebrew and to tie in elements from Privateer's two books since the PP campaign setting is taking a very long time...

 

[Dark Jezter]

Despite what Estlor says, it is possible to run a Warcraft campaign using nothing but the basic Warcraft RPG book, just like it's possible to run a Forgotten Realms campaign using nothing but the FRCS. The basic Warcraft RPG book includes races, classes (both core and prestige), feats, spells, geographical information, adventuring hooks, background information on the Horde and Alliance, etc. Basically, it has everything you need to get a campaign going.

The other Warcraft RPG books add a lot, but they aren't essential for running a Warcraft campaign. The Manual of Monsters (my favorite of the Warcraft books) contains lots of new creatures to throw at your PCs, while the Alliance & Horde Compendium contains some new races, prestige classes, feats, and a set of Mass Combat rules.

 

[MarauderX]

If you want to know more you can sign on to the Warcraft messageboards, which gives a good perspective of things that are missing, confusing or 'unbalanced' along with solutions to the respective 'problem.'

All in all I am glad I got the 1st book, haven't scoped out the second, and if I start a new campaign I might decide to run it if I have enough material and it's all cool with Fields O' Blood.

 

[Impeesa]

I have the first book and the Manual of Monsters, and I must say they are pretty cool. Haven't had a chance to really use any of it yet, aside from looting the odd bit for another game. I've always wanted to run a game starting right before the first war and running right up through the events of Frozen Throne. That would be epic.

--Impeesa--

 

[Chain Lightning]

Out of curiosity, how does the magic system work in the Warcraft d20 setting? What's your thoughts on it?

 

[Dinkeldog]

As a non-D&D d20 game, this should be discussed in this forum that I've moved it into.

You're also likely to get some more focused info on the game.

 

[Dark Jezter]

As a non-D&D d20 game, this should be discussed in this forum that I've moved it into.

You're also likely to get some more focused info on the game.

Actually, the Warcraft RPG IS a D&D setting. Heck, the Campaign Setting book even has the D&D logo on the cover.

So this thread has as much buisiness being in General RPG as threads releated to Forgotten Realms, Scarred Lands, Midnight, Greyhawk, etc.