What are the pros and cons of the different campaign settings?

[MrFilthyIke]

My players,...

I love Kalamar myself, got hooked on it at MegaCon02 when I played a Living Kalamar mini-adventure. I honestly WISH I could tell you what made me twig to it, but I can't. The first time I went through the basic Kalamar books, I at first thought, "Huh...this is so...normal! " But, after playing in the setting, talking to one of the people trying to develope Living Kalamar, and rereading the books, it kina hit me.

It was like reading one of my old textbooks (BA in Anthroplogy). So, I approached the world from the mindset of studying "another culture" and
it just kinda came together. I'd say it's definately not for everyone, but if
you want standard D&D fantasy, go Kalamar or Greyhawk.

The rules are dicey as (I think Psion) mentioned, but the group working on
it is dedicated, and their rules compatibility is getting MUCH stronger.

That help at all?

 

[Buttercup]

Thanks for reminding me, johnselmack!

Sovereign Stone: Love the magic system! I will find an excuse to use it one of these days. The tweaks they've made to the races are quite interesting too. Dwarves become mongol hordes. Orcs become a sea-faring race with water magic affinity. I'll agree that the geography of the world seems slapped together to support the designer's "cool" ideas. To me, the campaign book and the magic book are useful to pillage for ideas, but I would never use them off the shelf to run a campaign.

Nyambe: I haven't spent the time delving into this one that I should have. But I have skimmed it while looking for ideas several times. What I know of it is quite interesting, but I would probably use it as one region in a larger world rather than setting a whole campaign in it. The ghosts/ancestors play a big role. The armor and weapons are cool. It's just a dang good idea. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for something different.

And then I should probably mention a sub-setting I picked up a few months ago:

Redhurst Academy of Magic: This is a great concept, and the book is physically gorgeous. For those who don't know, it's a school of magic that you can plug into a larger campaign. Supposedly it plane hops, so some days it's in FR, others in Kalamar, and so forth. Actually, this is the part I liked the least, because some of the places they tried to integrate do not work. Then too, the book has some serious problems with grammar and spelling that should never have gotten past a competent editor. In spite of these flaws, I would use this book to run a short campaign for young teens. The book has plenty of plot hooks for a group like that, and since the school teleports, when your players know the rules well enough to be released into the world, you can have a graduation ceremony and dump them out of the gates into any place you choose.

 

[MrFilthyIke]

Mea Culpa. I thought I had remembered the half-hobgoblins using odd stat modifiers. Wonder what I was thinking of.

Psion,

I believe you're remembering there being an error with 1/2Hobo status. In one table they were one type, then listed differentlf elsewhere in the book. It's part of KenzerCo's errata section. Maybe that was it?

 

[MrFilthyIke]

Kalamar's "schtick" seems to be that it's a realistically presented and crafted world, while still faithful to the D&D mileu. There's typicall a lot of fans of Kalamar hanging around on these boards; I'm surprised none of them have shown up here yet.

I'm here! I own quite a few KoK books! That count?

 

[Pseudonym]

I'm a little suspect of that Welren claim.

The person who posted the errata has also implied at a later date that he's just a level 13 aristocrat:
http://www.kenzerco.com/forums/showflat.php?Board=KalamarErrata&Number=147653
http://www.kenzerco.com/forums/showflat.php?Board=KalamarGeneral&Number=361436#Post215041

This is something I suspect still needs to be recorrected back to the way it is listed in the main book, or some other fix.

Sayburr's a moderator, true, but posting it to the errata forum aside, did he write it? Since it's listed as both "official" on the Kenzer main site and the Kalamar errata forum, I'm content to say it's legit.
I'm content to leave Welren as Wiz 18/Ari 13 in my game, mainly because with him being the leader of Cosdol and my players in Zoa, he's a non-issue. I recall there being some outrage a year or so ago on the Kenzer boards about Welren's levels, but it seemed mainly to be an over reation from the anti-Forgotten Realms crowd there. The high level mage automaticaly equals Elminster meme there got entierly out of hand, IMO.

That being said, Kalamar is my favorite setting, for reasons that have been detailed by many above. Kalamar gets pegged as being low magic, but that isn't necessarily the case. Again, I attribute that sentiment from it's initial 3E launch and the anti-Forgotten Realms folks who gravitated to it. It think it's a matter of perspective. For example, in the Coin Trilogy, there is a section where the PCs encounter 5 swordwraiths attacking a town. If the PCs manage to kill them, they will aquire 5 +1 longswords, 5 +1 heavy crossbows, 5 +1 breastplates, 5 +1 large metal shields, and 5 +1 cloaks of resistance. Granted the items are all +1, but 25 +1 items in one encounter isn't my idea of "low magic"

 

[MrFilthyIke]

That being said, Kalamar is my favorite setting, for reasons that have been detailed by many above. Kalamar gets pegged as being low magic, but that isn't necessarily the case. Again, I attribute that sentiment from it's initial 3E launch and the anti-Forgotten Realms folks who gravitated to it. It think it's a matter of perspective. For example, in the...[edit]...but 25 +1 items in one encounter isn't my idea of "low magic"

I agree with you Pseu...the above encounter a case in point. I think the anti-FR people want low level NPCs so they don't get in the way of the PCs. Welren is an exception. Very FEW characters in the base book are over 13th level!

As for magic, what IS low-magic? I think a 15th level chacter with a +2 weapon, +2 armor, and a couple of mid-level wonderous items to be a strong chacter...talk to others, they expect all items +3 or higher, with a slew of "kewl items". It think its just taste. And hey, what's STOPPING you from running KoK with a tons of magic, if you want it?

 

[Gothmog]

Forgotten Realms

CONS: Bloated pantheons of disparate gods that were cobbled together with the skill of a rank amateur; a completely nonsensical geography; a world that is beholden to junk novels; a legion of 2D, overpowered NPCs; Ed Greenwood; magic is too ubiquitous.

PROS: Good product support. However, if WOTC lavished the same attention on Greyhawk, a far worthier setting, Forgotten Realms would become just that.

Wow, looks like someone here actually understands the Realms in all of its infamy. You have eloquently summed up why I will never play in another realms game again.

As for other worlds, most have been hit already. Kalamar is a great world, very detailed, and a quick readthrough of the books I do own shows its probably THE top-notch world out there. There is a ton of background info (which can be good or bad depending on your view), but unlike the Realms, the background isn't restrictive- its simply a history that can be brought into advantures to give them a sense of context. I haven't used Kalamar yet since my 11 year campaign in my homebrew is still going, but if I were to choose a world to run my next campain in, it would be Kalamar or....

Arcanis:A great world with an authentic and dark feel, this is the world where the flavor text and cultural backgrounds really grab me. Its got tons of cool ideas, from the magocracy of Ymandragore that sends out operatives to "harvest" spellcasters, to the Roman-esque Coryani Empire, to the insidious Theycracy of Carceri (the best evil empire EVER in a fantasy setting), to the yuan-ti goodness of Ssethregore- this world has it all. I'd say its a mid-magic level, well thought out, and has enough material in the main book for years of campaigning. All of the modules and sourcebooks have been good too, although material for Arcanis isn't really prolific.

Finally, there is Midnight. I can't say how much I love Midnight. Its just so dang cool. Its like a Middle Earth where everything went wrong, and the characters are TRUE heroes who don't struggle for money, power, or fame, but for what is RIGHT against all the odds. I would love to run a heroic epic type of game in Midnight, and I just about have my group convinced to do it. The only problem with Midnight is that a lot of gamers don't want to play something dark and gritty, but this is the main appeal of Midnight to me. I have played in a Midnight campaign, and its probably the best roleplaying experience I have ever had.

 

[Reprisal]

As for magic, what IS low-magic? I think a 15th level chacter with a +2 weapon, +2 armor, and a couple of mid-level wonderous items to be a strong chacter...talk to others, they expect all items +3 or higher, with a slew of "kewl items". It think its just taste. And hey, what's STOPPING you from running KoK with a tons of magic, if you want it?

Exactly, it often seems easier to add "levels" of magic to taste than it does taking them away...

An absentee KoK advocate,

- Rep.

 

[Nightfall]

Arcanis is nice. I do miss Dark Portal Games. Well probably cause they used some R&R stuff.

While I do understand some points here folks regarding KoK and increasing magic items...I think if you start having wizards with staffs of power along with 40 or so Ioun stones, you start owning a lot of the world.

 

[DragonLancer]

Just my personal views. These are the two best settings out there IMO.

Dragonlance.
Pros:
Dragons, Draconians and Dragonspawn.
Doesn't have dozens of high level characters for the players to sit in the shadow of.
More romanticised fantasy setting.
Kender, Gully Dwarves, Minotaurs and Tinker Gnomes.
Doesn't have hundreds of prestige classes.
Doesn't revolve around dungeons.

Cons:
You do need to have read a fair few novels to get the real feel of the setting.
More than one Age that you can play in (4th age is best).
Other gamers seem to hate it just because of events in the novels.

Scarred Lands.
Pros:
Scope for real heroics.
The Divine War.
Rich but not overally detailed history, politics and background.

Cons:
Although at first glance appears based on Greek creation myth, really isn't (I consider this a bit of a downer).
Far too many books released too quickly.
Too many prestige classes.