What is the most detailed setting available?

GreyLord

Legend
I would say Frog God Games The Lost Lands, just for the amount of material. Their setting guide is also available to subscribe as a World Anvil world, which is very nice.

I got some items for that I think, Rappan Athuk? and Barakus?

How much stuff is on it?

Could you give me a list of the different books (or at least a starting point). I think I found the ideas intriguing from what I read originally, but no idea how much more there is out there or where to start.

Thanks
 

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If looking for detailed mapping, look no further than Kingdoms of Kalamar. It has an atlas that is hundreds of pages. It features borders, roads, trails, villages. The detail is unbelievable.
 

If looking for detailed mapping, look no further than Kingdoms of Kalamar. It has an atlas that is hundreds of pages. It features borders, roads, trails, villages. The detail is unbelievable.
It isn't bad, but both Harn and Runequest maps are much better quality.

And the latter is free: Argan Argar Atlas - Chaosium | RuneQuest Classic | Jonstown Compendium | DriveThruRPG.com

The Harn region map is free: Harn Region Map - Columbia Games Inc. | Atlas Maps | Kingdoms and Regions | HarnWorld Promotion Items | DriveThruRPG.com

You can buy national maps of the kingdoms of Harn, and even smaller, high detail maps of about 1:25,000 quality of the inhabited areas.
 
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Jacob Lewis

Ye Olde GM
Faerûn is littered with many city-states, as well as proper kingdoms, states, and regions of governed and ungoverned populations that can be drawn with political boundaries.

But is this topic about the most detailed maps, or the amount of content written for a particular setting? Because I can tell you a lot about The Blade and Stars Inn, for example. It is located in Baldur's Gate, charges 3 cp for a pint of ale, and that it gets its name from the enchanted sign board looted from a ruined village in Amn after a trade-war. On cold nights, the proprietor, Aundegul Shawn, serves ruby cordial on request—a sweet, syrupy concoction of cherries dissolved in sugared red wine. (Volo's Guide to the Sword Coast, page 19).

Or, Hiexel trees are very common in the Dales, growing in thickets in ravines and on hillsides. They are rarer in the North, but can be found scattered there everywhere south of the Nether Mountains, particularly in the Rauvin and Delimbiyr vales. (Silver Marches, page 39)

Or, Midsummer and Shieldmeet are the most sacred days of the Oghmanyte calendar since they occasions when agreements are made or renewed and many contracts, bonds, and the like are drawn up. However, a priest of Oghma must observe two solemn rituals every day: the Binding and the Covenant. The Binding is a morning service wherein the symbols of Oghma are written in the dirt, in ashes upon a stone altar, or in the mind if a clergy member happens to be shackled or otherwise unable to write, while a silent prayer of loyalty and praise is made to Oghma. The Covenant is an evening service during which a passage from some work of wisdom is read aloud or recited from memory, a song or poem is offered up to Oghma, and some item of knowledge that the clergy member has learned during that day is spoken aloud to the god and to any fellow clergy present. (Faith's and Avatars, page 133).

But I suppose maps that lack political borders are stifling to the imagination. Hope this helps! ;)

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pming

Legend
Hiya!

Not sure if anyone mentioned this...but what about Mystara? It's got all manner of interesting fantasy countries/races/regions/etc. Just the Gazateers alone give us about, what, a thousand pages? And this doesn't even go into the extra boxed sets like Dawn of Alphatia, Hollow World and all it's books, or the 2e "Red Steel" ones. Mystara's got it all, really. If you want a campaign with any "semi-real-world fantasy flavour", Mystara's got it. :)

^_^

Paul L. Ming
 

Faerûn is littered with many city-states, as well as proper kingdoms, states, and regions of governed and ungoverned populations that can be drawn with political boundaries.

But is this topic about the most detailed maps, or the amount of content written for a particular setting? Because I can tell you a lot about The Blade and Stars Inn, for example. It is located in Baldur's Gate, charges 3 cp for a pint of ale, and that it gets its name from the enchanted sign board looted from a ruined village in Amn after a trade-war. On cold nights, the proprietor, Aundegul Shawn, serves ruby cordial on request—a sweet, syrupy concoction of cherries dissolved in sugared red wine. (Volo's Guide to the Sword Coast, page 19).

Or, Hiexel trees are very common in the Dales, growing in thickets in ravines and on hillsides. They are rarer in the North, but can be found scattered there everywhere south of the Nether Mountains, particularly in the Rauvin and Delimbiyr vales. (Silver Marches, page 39)

Or, Midsummer and Shieldmeet are the most sacred days of the Oghmanyte calendar since they occasions when agreements are made or renewed and many contracts, bonds, and the like are drawn up. However, a priest of Oghma must observe two solemn rituals every day: the Binding and the Covenant. The Binding is a morning service wherein the symbols of Oghma are written in the dirt, in ashes upon a stone altar, or in the mind if a clergy member happens to be shackled or otherwise unable to write, while a silent prayer of loyalty and praise is made to Oghma. The Covenant is an evening service during which a passage from some work of wisdom is read aloud or recited from memory, a song or poem is offered up to Oghma, and some item of knowledge that the clergy member has learned during that day is spoken aloud to the god and to any fellow clergy present. (Faith's and Avatars, page 133).

But I suppose maps that lack political borders are stifling to the imagination. Hope this helps! ;)
Harn lists the heraldic arms, crop acreage, and servile population for every landed knight in every kingdom.

As well as the full details of every tavern in every capitol, most major cities, and scores of others.

Plus every business of any sort in every capitol and most major cities.

I've never bothered with the religious system, but the book is over a hundred pages on a small pantheon. Plus there are amendments listing the most popular hymn-books, prayer books, and religious journals. Others listing shrines and holy sites.

It details the political and military maneuvers of two major wars and several smaller ones, both past and future.

The military forces of every kingdom are detailed down to arms, armor, and location.

Plants, trees, and beasts are covered in great detail, particularly dogs and horses.

And the maps depict borders. Down to 1:25,000 scale.

And everything is carefully inter-related and well-researched. You don't have a region housing a half-dozen sentient races and twenty+ 'monsters' in populations too small to be a sustainable gene pool.

:cool:

That said, I use Faerun myself on occasion, because if you toss in a fantasy post-apoc history and take a chainsaw to the monster listings, it can work. And the maps are free.
 

Bluenose

Adventurer
An issue with Glorantha - and I say this as a fan - is that there's a lot of repeated material across different editions. There's large parts of the world with a bare minimum of information, others which have had multiple books including repeating information that was in previous books. The information is often detailed and addresses aspects that most setting books don't, but the volume is a little misleading in terms of what actually is new.

Of course other settings - like FR - have the same issue.
 

Aldarc

Legend
This isn't 'what setting is best'; it is just people presenting settings with the most detail, and discussing them.
Tékumel is an inspiring setting that has many elements that I enjoy from a world-building perspective, but I don't actually think that Tékumel is the best setting. It's a highly detailed one. At times while reading through the materials, it feels as if one needs an anthropology and linguistics degree to penetrate the dense layers of Tsolyani society. I remember needing a chart, for example, that layed out Tsolyani clan and family relations, such as who counts as your sibling, mother/father, aunt/uncle, cousin, or not. The social values and structures of Tékumel are quite alien to contemporaneous Euro-American societies.
 
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Its only one book and a few supplements, but A/State has a depth of detail that is very hard to top. It is the only RPG book I've ever read for reading's sake.
 

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