Which is the Best WOTC Setting to Purchase?

[Teflon Billy]

Of the two options given I would choose Eberron by a long shot.

But Both FR and Ebberon are way down on my list of favorites. Whoever told you that 3rd party settings are bunk was filling your head with lies

 

[Nightfall]

He doesn't want an official setting he wants a good setting and was told only those two are good.

Yeah well again the bias and the subliminal mind(insert word that you wish) of WotC blinds everyone to its warts

That's MerricB's job!

What! Who said that?

No one did but that's what I come across every day when people post "What's the best "OFFICAL" adventure?" or "What's the best rule suppliment for Paladins, etc" kind of thing. Seems like unless it's WotC branded to its behind, it's not worth your time.

T-Billy,

Preach it Brother-man!

 

[Mystery Man]

Hi-

I'm think about buying either Eberron or Forgotten Realms but can not decide which to get, so why not ask you guys which setting should get my hard earned $$. I thought about a Non-WoTC setting but I heard most of those other setting are pretty bad.


thanks guys


Scott

I'll answer your question now. For me personally I will never run an Eberron campaign, and I sold my remaining two Ebberon books for trade. I've always been fond of the Forgotten Realms through books and video games and when the 3E setting book came out it was gorgeous, and I've a staunch advocate of FR ever since.

My suggestion to you would be to go to the book store and sit down with both setting books in front of you and see which one perks your interest. Look at races, feats, that sort of thing. Most of all look at the fluff, descriptions of places, NPC's etc. You'll have a pretty good picture of what fits your taste in a short amount of time.

And yeah, there are plenty of really great 3rd party D20 settings out there.

 

[Nightfall]

Mystery,

Yeah for me if setting doesn't have the fluff (insert GH for me folks. Sorry it might have been the basis for all D&D for many times, but still pretty bland unless you add in the Archfiends)

And yes d20 fluff is often WAY better than WotC fluff. (Since I doubt they remember it half the time...)

 

[mhacdebhandia]

T-Billy's response was helpful.

Like I said - it's one thing to correct misapprehensions about third-party settings, but if that's all you're doing you're not actually helping answer the question.

 

[Shemeska]

I'm the pimp daddy of SL stuff much like Shemmy is our PS guru.

*chuckle* I get tagged with 'guru' status when at least one of the original setting authors posts on Enworld every so often?

*'loth in headlights look. Like a dear in headlights, but evil*


And on the topic of the thread, I like FR and Planescape as TSR/WotC settings, and Planescape 3e is my favorite setting to run. Though to be honest my favorite setting to -play- in, is Shadowrun, far and away.

 

[TheAuldGrump]

Well, who ever you heard that no WotC settings are bad lied to you. In fact I would argue that most non WotC settings are actually better then Wizard settings. But a lot of that deals with what people like, its easy to not like the high power of Oathbound, the darkness of Midnight, or the politics of Kalamar. Just like its easy to not like the magic tech of Eberron.

I would not argue that most non-WotC settings are better, but the best non-WotC settings are much better than WotC's best.

Iron Kingdoms currently tops that list, at least when that list is mine...

Scarred lands is uneven - the best is better than most WotC, the worst is worse than most WotC. In all I think that it is about par with Eberron, and is better than either Greyhawk or Realms.

As you might guess from this last, I would choose Eberron if I were limiting my choices to WotC.

The Auld Grump

 

[Turjan]

No one did but that's what I come across every day when people post "What's the best "OFFICAL" adventure?" or "What's the best rule suppliment for Paladins, etc" kind of thing. Seems like unless it's WotC branded to its behind, it's not worth your time.

Yes, this attitude can be very frustrating. In my opinion, the official sources hold neither the title for "best adventure" nor the one for "best setting". Which doesn't mean that they are bad, either.


As to the decision between the Forgotten Realms and Eberron, it's lastly a matter of taste. Do you like airships, trains and skyscrapers in your fantasy, want to see standard races from slightly new angles, have a relatively open world and low-level NPCs, then Eberron might be the way to go. If you are more into "standard" fantasy, like a plethora of high-level movers and shakers, a world of sheer endless adventure potential with countless supplements, then the Forgotten Realms might be the right thing. Personally, I prefer them over Eberron. You don't have to buy them sight unseen, because there is lots of material available for free under "Classic Realms Products" on this WotC page. With that material alone, you can play for several years .

This said, quite a few 3rd party settings are definitely worth looking into, like The Wilderlands of High Fantasy, Midnight, Dawnforge, Iron Kingdoms, Kingdoms of Kalamar, Oathbound or the early Scarred Lands. Not all of them can compete with WotC's production values, but that's not always decisive for how well they can evoke excitement with players and DM alike .

 

[Nightfall]

Grumpy,

Yeah well something I plan to rectify when I get my SCLS: Revised, done and everything...

Even so, I'll take the not so much daming with faint praise as praise with only slightly damning.

mhac,

yeah well T-billy is kind of being nicer than I am.

Shemmy,

Well maybe so, but few can say that they are one of the premier NPCs in a setting. Such as myself in the Scarred Lands.

 

[Nightfall]

Yes, this attitude can be very frustrating. In my opinion, the official sources hold neither the title for "best adventure" nor the one for "best setting". Which doesn't mean that they are bad, either.

Mmm true. There are some that are good and some that are not so good. But honestly while separating Dungeon from WotC makes for a hard call, most Dungeons have had "official" D&D designers do their mods. And let's face it, of late Dungeon rules for majority of mods. (Course I still hold Necromancer Games as king of "Mods I want to run if only to prove Dungeon Crawling isn't for the weak of heart!")

*doesn't care THAT much about art and stuff but does understand the need for good editing AND especially good layouts*