WotC comes to you and asks you to pick a setting...

[Pozatronic]

You idiot! You forgot The Diamond Throne/Arcana Evolved!

I don't mean the first part of course... just repeating what the poll says and all...

The problem with AU/AE is that it's pretty much an entirely different game. Different Races, Different Classes...different handbook. No D&D Standards. It doesn't fit with what Mouse is asking.

 

[Kae'Yoss]

GreyHawk.

Now, I really don't care for GreyHawk. If I want to play classical Fantasy, I choose the Forgotten Realms, or make a homebrew. But that's the point: FR is the setting if you want it all made for you - world, history, gods, and all that - so you can concentrate on the details.

The way it is handled now is best IMO: GH as standard setting, since it doesn't change many rules, so it can fade into the background (FR would force everyone to choose gods, for example).

Eberron is, IMO, a really bad choice. Sure, it's a genuine D&D 3.5 setting (though we're not talking about that, but about D&D 4), but it has too much that is not classical fantasy. It is "tainted" by magical trains and living constructs.

Better to have a standard setting that can step into the background almost completely.

 

[Kae'Yoss]

By the way: Where's Rokugan?

 

[Nyeshet]

Eberron required some changes (action points, etc) so it is out, and since they want to showcase D&D in all its glory it will have to be a higher magic setting (so psionic and low magic settings are out). Also, they'll probably want a setting less grim and gritty. They'll want a setting to glorify the game and the players, that has a lot of options and posibilities so as to match the interest of almost any player. Not to many in your list can do that, and when you take the rest of the factors into account there is really only one choice: Forgotten Realms.

Now, I'm not saying FR is the best setting. I'm just stating that it is the best representation of what D&D, under its current rule set, happens to be. It has regions and situations that allow for characters of any level to adventure, and its magic and magic item surplus allow characters of any level to have equipment equivalent to their PC ascribed character wealth (hard to do in lower magic campaigns). It also has a less grim / gritty feel, and while some may no doubt like that feel, such a feel is - in my opinion - less useful in advertising for a game. You want a game that allows the players a fun chance at glory.

Anyway, that is my take on the matter.

I see from the post Eberron, FR, and GH are the main contenders. I'm guessing the Eberron voters chose it because it won the recent contest - despite its need for rule adjustments. GH, I'm guessing, is mostly being chosen by those enamored of that setting, despite its darker feel (compared to FR) and lower magic setting (thus preventing overt use of the many magic item properties available in the current rule set). Whether we like it or not, the current rule set for D&D is high magic. I don't see GH as a possible realization of the current rule set. Although technically everything made outside of a campaign setting is 'for GH' how much of that is really true? How many warlocks, hexblades, and ninja are in GH, after all? Yet all of these are splat book creations, which technically is for the default setting. Whereas you could probably find (or place) any of these in FR with little difficulty.

 

[DMH]

I haven't voted yet and as much as I want to say Oathbound, I can't because of PRLs and the effects of the Forge on everything (roll hp twice and take the best among other things).

Morningstar is by the rules with only one exception (and that can be changed easily by rewriting 2 pages) and has an epic feel- something I think should exist in a core setting.

Murchad's Legacy is very vanila in terms of rules, but it is a tad, um, unexciting and I doubt it would get a large fan base. Ditto for Hunt: ROE.

Midnight, Iron Kingdoms, and Sov. Stone all require changes to the rules.

GH and FR are by their very nature core settings, but I want to vote for something else since there are great settings by 3rd party publishers. So with that in mind I am going to vote for Morningstar.

 

[Bobitron]

People are missing something important from Mouseferatu's initial post;

They've decided that for the next edition (or simple update of this edition)...

I picked Eberron because the additional rules presented therein would be pretty easy to integrate into a new or updated edition. I think it shows off the D&D 'feel' without requiring a major reworking of the game (ala my favorite setting, the Iron Kingdoms).

 

[Desdichado]

Eberron. I say this largely because of the ways in which the D&D 3.5 rules have been applied in such a way as to actually shape the campaign world itself -- e.g., Dragonmarks, magic item creation, etc. For showcasing what the RAW can do for you, it does a very good job.

I almost picked that too, because Eberron was really built to be a world that took into account the rules, rather than adding them to generic pseudo-medieval European but with a liberal North American slant fantasy. But I think Eberron also hangs it's hook on a handful of unique rules, like action points, some of it's unique races and classes, and whatnot, so in the end I went with generic pseudo-medieval European but with a libderal North American slant fantasy after all. Which means either Greyhawk or FR, and since I slightly like FR better than Greyhawk, I picked that one.

Kalamar would be a good choice too, although it doesn't take into account higher levels and magic very well.

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

I picked Eberron because the additional rules presented therein would be pretty easy to integrate into a new or updated edition. I think it shows off the D&D 'feel' without requiring a major reworking of the game (ala my favorite setting, the Iron Kingdoms).

But, no matter how much I do love Eberron, it DOES have a much different feel than the Core D&D setting. Eberron isn't the typical fantasy that D&D usually is represented by, but it DOES take those classic ideas to some logical conclusions.

Amazing how doing that can change the feel so much.

 

[Romnipotent]

There core setting should be flavour free, then have a set of chapters for the basic core of a couple of settings. Greyhawk, Faerun and Eberron being the core lines would be included. In truth if they came to me I'd tell them to stop bothering me, I play gurps now.

 

[Kesh]

Under the poll's constraints: Eberron. Hands-down, it has the best implementation of the 3.5e ruleset, and the "everything in D&D fits here" mentality.

However, if we're allowed to update things, I'd go with Mystara (Kingdom of Karameikos, specifically). Classic swords & sorcery fantasy. Now, outside of Karameikos it gets a bit... odd... but I still love that kingdom.