Will all of you Ebberon-buyers become Blackmoor-buyers?

[Ranger REG]

Hi Everyone,

The world of Blackmoor has been in development for quite some time. It has continued to evolve and is very much a living campaign setting. It's not crusty, it's not old, and Dave's game design skills are remarkedly relevant and progressive. If you want to see D&D through his eyes again or for the first time, Blackmoor can take you there.

Blackmoor is unique, interesting world that contined to grow and present players with new challenges. The only thing I would ask of anyone is to pick it up, take a look inside and just give us a shot. No setting can be all things to all people. If you find us lacking in some way, or have suggestions for improvement, drop me a line at dustin@zeitgeistgames.com.

I would also be happy to answer any other questions about the setting, but I don't want it to drone on and get annoying. Lets just say that I will follow the EnWorld lead on that.

I have a few questions, and I hope you can answer in more than one paragraph. How much difference will there be between Zeitgeist's version of Blackmoor and TSR's version? Last I heard of TSR's Blackmooor, they blew it up in some kind of nuclear-like explosion, and have gone the way of Atlantis.

Is there truth to the rumors that you will present Blackmoor in three different time periods (past, modern, and future)?

 

[Jakar]

Nope, not really interested. I have tomany other things to buy already.

 

[Plunderer of Planes]

Yes Reg I am aware that there are tw preferences to Gryhawk I would just like to see gary get it back since it was his to begin with....

Now on topic: I am interested and since I am a setting freak I'll probabbly get Blackmoor...Eberron just hasn't done it for me....

Anyway I would love to see all the quirkiness that is Blackmoor.....



BTW...Kanegrundar, contact me

 

[trancejeremy]

What I wonder about is, how much of it will be Dave Arneson's Blackmoor, and how much will be other peoples? Just how much of it did he actually write?

Still, mostly a moot point - I can't afford it at any rate.

 

[dead]

You'd be surprised by the number of GH gamers that prefers the Carl Sargent's version over the Gary Gygax's version.

I don't know I'd call it a version. Definitely he picked up where EGG left off and did a good job on some of his products (I'm not convinced his City of Greyhawk is good, though.)

But yes, it's been a long-abiding fantasy of mine to see Gary have GH back and take the setting back to where he left off in 1E.

I know this would never happen, though. What's more, I don't think EGG would be very interested in it. I think he's more into going forward than looking backward.

 

[Kanegrundar]

Anyways, the important thing is that Blackmoor is about as "play history-rich" a setting as you can get, being just about the oldest of all RPG settings.

Just because Blackmoor is one of the oldest settings doesn't mean that it will be presented in a way that gives it that "lived in feel." If nothing else, they have a rough road ahead. Let's face it, with any setting that has had a bunch of material put out for it, people will have some hefty pre-conceived notions that will be hard for any game company to live up to.

Good for me, I don't know much about Blackmoor...

Kane

 

[Kanegrundar]

BTW...Kanegrundar, contact me

Hey Plunderer, I posted to your website as Kanegrundar (original, huh?).

Sorry for the off-topic post.

Kane

 

[spectre72]

Blackmoor Dungeon (To be the greatest dungeon delve ever!)

This is going to be a HUGE task, especially with what I have heard about the new title being released by AEG at Gencon.

The World's Largest Dungeon - Huge Poster Maps and over 800 Pages of Encounters in a Hard Cover Book.

Not saying it can't be done, but at the same time how many different titles can we hand out.

Largest, greatest, best, smallest

Your responses have made me think I will buy it, so your presence has generated sales from another person

 

[DClingman]

Thanks for coming forth to clear a couple of issues, Dustin.

I for one am a bit more curious about the setting now than I was when I read through the website.

I would like the know more about the new races. Are they more akin to merely new types of Elves, Dwarves, Gnomes, and so forth, or are they totally new?

Could you expand on the technology immediately available in the Core Setting Book? You mentioned steamworks and clockworks, but I would like to know more specifics.

All in all, I would just like some more information on the setting.

Thanks,
Kane

Ok, I will try to make sure I hit everyone's questions going forward.

RACES
The classic fantasy races exist in Blackmoor. The halflings are bit closer to thier hobbit cousins in Blackmoor than in GH. We also have new halfling subrace called the Docrae. Those of you who saw the December Dragon (#312 I think) got to see the Docare Prestige class we printed up. The Docrae are alot more like GH halfings,but a bit more aggressive. The race was previously enslaved and they have alot of attitude.

The other major distinction in Blackmoor is between the elves. We have two major divides in the form of the Cumasti and Westryn. The Cumasti are on par with the High Elves of D&D, yet they have forgotten alot of the old traditions. The Westryn are a more base wood elf (even more base) that are xenophobic and keep close to home. They are deadly warriors and really powerful. The big swing here is that there was once a single Elven race that was torn asunder. That's one plot swing of the campaign.

Three major races of humans are in the world. Thonians (Normal Humans), High Thonians (High Men) and the Peshwah (Horse Lords).

High Thonians hail from a race of kings that held court in what may be more commonly known as the Valley of the Ancients. That line was thought destroyed in an event called Starfall (the only hint you will hear from me, I will say no more for now). Starfall resulted in a mass of destruction of the region leaving the North leaderless for a while. The High Thonians are generally the Nobles in Blackmoor. For reference, Blackmoor's King, Uther Andahar, is a High Thonian.

The Peshwah are a nomadic group that focuses on allegiance to nature and especially horses. They are powerful warriors who are seeking to return to the land from which they were ousted by the evil Afridhi (more on them in another reply).

There are indeed variants of dwarves, gnomes,etc. But those aren't detailed in the core book.


Specifically relating to tech items available to the characters. There are no listed stats/prices/etc in the book, just a detailed discussion of the technology, how it's used in the world and some examples of who is using it. The first web enhancement will introduce the first of these items. Right now, it's your imagination on how you would want to handle that. We only had 240 pages to get all the stuff we wanted in. We had to make cuts from the book just to fit it all in there. Trust me though, we have alot in store in this area.

I think that covers most of the questions that Kanegrundar had. (I hope).

Dustin

 

[DClingman]

Not bad, not bad.. I'm a bit disappointed to see that you won't be dealing with the high-tech stuff until a year or so down the road, as to me that's a big fun/selling point of Blackmoor.
But I do really like the addition of the steampunk stuff.

Thanks!

But just so people don't portray me as blindly anti-Eberron and pro-Blackmoor, would you say that the parts of Blackmoor that have developed the steampunk stuff are "medieval" or are we looking at a renaissance element to the setting here? I hope the latter.

That's a good question. Blackmoor is still a frontier and there are those in the world that marvel at how the dwarves could capture and control steam the way that they do. Honestly, we are really at a hybrid of the two. Areas that are well protected, have developed beyond the medieval level, but there are plenty of places that are unsettled in the Noth and are still a bit backwards.

Are there black powder weapons?

Per Dave, the answer is yes, but no stats are in the core book (just use the DMG if you want.) This element is definitely downplayed and will only be "pushed" at one point. If you want to have it, go for it. Just ask Dave and he will tell you why the magic sword is better than the gunpowder... He used to lightning bolt the donkeys carrying the powder kegs.

and where the hell is my laser sword!!?

Stick around and you may find it (or an equivalent).

Dustin