Where is the best place for a newbie to start a Greyhawk game

[Remathilis]

Ok, lets assume I want to use Greyhawk/Oerth for a fairly standard D&D game (possibly using some classic modules along the way). I don't want to delve too deeply into the socio-political aspects, just a nice backdrop for dungeon delving.

What is the best country/area to begin in?

bonus question: where is the best places to get further material. I'm thinking the LG regional websites would be a start. I own the D&D Gazetteer, but not the LGG. I own The Adventure Begins and Scarlet Brotherhood for 2e as well.

Some starting points would be appreciated.

 

[tahsin]

Hi Remathills

Try starting with the adventure "The Sunless Citadel" published by Wizards. I'm not sure if it's located somewhere specific, but you can set it about a week's journey from the main city in Greyhawk, I think it's called the city of... Greyhawk. Anyway, that's a good place to start. Once the players finish the adventure, you can have them journey to the city for more intrigue.

 

[The_Gneech]

Hommlet, outside of Verbobonc!

Actually, I seem to remember that the Keep on the Borderlands was in the Yoemanry somewhere, wasn't it?

-The Gneech

 

[Mycanid]

Well ... it really depends. How experienced are the players with older 1e and 2e adventures? Have they read them? Also ... what is the timeline for you? Or are you even playing with timelines?

The city of Greyhawk proper is a popular place to begin, but for myself I enjoy keeping a lot of the adventures and such in a "localized" area (i.e. one country) for some time. (For example, my present campaign is being developed in the southern parts of Keoland.)

The Scarlet Brotherhood is located in the southeastern portion of Oerth ... so perhaps you might consider the kingdom of Aerdi? But that is a pretty terrible place to live in. Hmm. One possibility, of course, is the Lordship of the Isles or even the Kingdom of Ahlissa. There is even Hepmonaland if you want some jungle-delving stuff to go on (like C1 or I1, for example). Of course the Lendore Isles are kinda nearby (the setting for L1-3) but then again chronology could be important for you.

Hope this helps a little....

 

[Remathilis]

Well ... it really depends. How experienced are the players with older 1e and 2e adventures? Have they read them? Also ... what is the timeline for you? Or are you even playing with timelines?

The city of Greyhawk proper is a popular place to begin, but for myself I enjoy keeping a lot of the adventures and such in a "localized" area (i.e. one country) for some time. (For example, my present campaign is being developed in the southern parts of Keoland.)

The Scarlet Brotherhood is located in the southeastern portion of Oerth ... so perhaps you might consider the kingdom of Aerdi? But that is a pretty terrible place to live in. Hmm. One possibility, of course, is the Lordship of the Isles or even the Kingdom of Ahlissa. There is even Hepmonaland if you want some jungle-delving stuff to go on (like C1 or I1, for example). Of course the Lendore Isles are kinda nearby (the setting for L1-3) but then again chronology could be important for you.

Hope this helps a little....

I'm bouncing in at the @ 581 ish mark. My players know something about the Flanaess, but not alot and they are familiar with some of the modules. I'm willing to overlook some stuff after, but I'm trying to keep some of the stuff before (Greyhawk wars, Ivid the Undying) as potential fluff or even a plot-hook or two.

Potentially, I want to keep it as generic as possible and still be Greyhawk.

 

[Mycanid]

I'd definitely go with the newly formed Kingdom of Ahlissa then. Ahlissa has a great variety of types of terrain and is a normaly formed (still amorphous and changing?) state. Hepmonaland and the Scarlet Brotherhood are nearby, as is the kingdom of Aerdi (Ivid the Undying and all that, like you said). The dwarven city of Irongate is also nearby (underdark possibilities?) and there are plenty of islands about. I'd give Ahlissa a try.

Afterthought edit: Of course I don't know if this would necessarily be a good or bad "newbie" environment. Kinda hard to tell. But if you did go to Ahlissa as a starting point and I lived in Detroit I'd ask if I could join in!

 

[Kormydigar]

Hommlet, outside of Verbobonc!

Actually, I seem to remember that the Keep on the Borderlands was in the Yoemanry somewhere, wasn't it?

-The Gneech

The Keep on the Borderlands was a Basic D&D adventure set in the Known World (some call it Mystarra) somewhere in the vicinity of The Grand Duchy of Karameikos. I don't have my books handy at the moment but that seems to be where I remember it.

 

[Mycanid]

Hmm ... maybe Gneech was thinking about the return to the keep on the borderlands' module location as being the same for the original? The original WAS set in Mystarra I believe.

 

[The_Gneech]

Well, my copy doesn't mention a world at all, so I can't really say. I did see a reference on Canonfire to it being in the Yoemanry, but that might be from the Return to... version.

FWIW, I kinda like Sterich/Geoff/Gran March area as a launching point -- lots of potential intrigue, lots of danger (giants still stomping around, even if you've liberated Geoff), and a wide variety of terrain types.

-The Gneech

 

[Rhun]

Hommlet, outside of Verbobonc!

Absolutely. Temple of Elemental Evil, here we come!