What Is/Was Your Favorite Gazetteer?

[CleverNickName]

What was/is your favorite D&D Gazetteer?

The Gazetteers were a collection of game supplements produced by TSR, for use with the Mystara game setting. The idea behind their development was to take one of the main countries in the default game setting, and then expound upon it in great detail. These books were like mini-campaign settings, with new spells and equipment, maps, background info, NPCs, history, and other world-building goodness.

The gazetteers are:

GAZ1 The Grand Duchy of Karameikos
GAZ2 The Emirates of Ylaruam
GAZ3 The Principalities of Glantri
GAZ4 The Kingdom of Ierendi
GAZ5 The Elves of Alfheim
GAZ6 The Dwarves of Rockhome
GAZ7 The Northern Reaches
GAZ8 The Five Shires
GAZ9 The Minrothad Guilds
GAZ10 The Orcs of Thar
GAZ11 Republic of Darokin
GAZ12 Golden Khan of Ethengar
GAZ13 Shadow Elves
GAZ14 Atruaghin Clans
Dawn of the Emperors (Boxed Set)

Alas, TSR would discontinue the line before they could release gazetteers for Norwold, the Thenegoith Archipelago, and other important parts of Mystara.

So which one is your favorite? What did you like about it?

 

[Zaukrie]

That's close to asking which child I prefer, btw.

I chose Glantri, because it offered so many role playing ideas and opportunities. Indeed, I was looking at it the other night as a possible addition to the 4E campaign arc I'm running.

But, there is some great, creative stuff in these that is still usable, any system, today.

 

[CleverNickName]

I voted for The Five Shires. I really liked the stuff in there for halfling spellcasters and the Blackflame artifacts, which was all relatively new stuff at the time. Until this gazetteer came along, I had never really thought of halflings as "badasses" before.

 

[GAAAHHH]

Grand Duchy of Karameikos.

This is one of the best locations ever for starting a campaign. There are lots of NPCs, politics, character background. There are plenty of adventure hooks and places for the players to forge their own territories (way ahead of Test of the Warlords).

Threshold is a perfect starting town. It is small enough that beginning players can feel important, while being large enough where they can resupply when they need to. It is far enough away from a large city that characters can't rely on NPCs or the duke's army to come bail them out of problems, but when they need to get to Specularum (the capital city), they can do so with little trouble.

This is by far my favorite in the gazetteer series. None of the others even come close. Glantri and Alfheim are tied for a distant second.

 

[CleverNickName]

Threshold is a perfect starting town. (snip)

I agree. In fact, in practically every adventure campaign I have run over the last 20-something years, I have always used this town as a starting point. Sure, I might change the name and move it around on the map, but all of the people, places, and politics are still there.

 

[JeffB]

I'm one of those people who prefers a "The less I know, the more I like it" approach. I loved the original bits in the Moldvay/Cook/Marsh sets, the B and X adventures that came out, etc.

I was out of D&D for a long time (coming back into the fold in late 2E), and I picked up some of the Gaz's and was not impressed at all- Yet another campaign setting TSR ruined by overwriting/overproducing. And the 2E AD&D Mystara boxed set/adventures were even worse.

 

[Delta]

I only got "Orcs of Thar" and really liked it, sometimes still mine it for ideas. (a) First cohesive rules for PC monsters. (b) Very nice Underdark-y campaign setting/map. (c) Pretty cool strategic wargame. (d) Nice use of Paranoia-like humor and artwork. (e) Handy pull-out mini-manual on life in an orc horde, that I've handed to players in other campaigns.

 

[MrFilthyIke]

Though I truly adore all of the Gaz series...

I chose GAZ13 Shadow Elves because it was a
new take on elves, and specifically subterranean
elves/dark elves. Also, it has what was (I think)
the pinnacle of Stephen Fabian's art that makes
the Known World come alive to me.

 

[S'mon]

For me, definitely Dawn of the Emperors. I ran a 40 year epic using that box + the Northern Reaches.

 

[The Highway Man]

Grand Duchy of Karameikos, for the reasons stated prior to this post, plus an excellent flavor that actually defines BXMC/Cyclopedia D&D to me.