You're in charge of D&D's setting! (here's the catch...)

[Trickstergod]

I concede defeat.

You're going about this all wrong.

The appropriate response is...

"You can call me Sir, whippersnapper. Get rid of both of those settings. They are someone else's homebrewed setting.
What you need to do is give the kids a way to build their own homebrew."

"You're fired."

...

Anyway, that said, I can only cringe at meshing together Greyhawk and Forgotten Realms. Both have worthwhile aspects, but something like that could only go down in flames, in my opinion.

The best bet would be to go with some Planescape-esque method of intertwining the two. An out-and-out mesh would not go well in my opinion.

Then again, a possibility of setting up, say, a three-part adventure or decent sized hardcover adventure detailing the converging of the two settings - some big, planar event book to draw them together - might work. It would go down a lot better than just putting out a new setting book where, bam, the two settings are combined.

It's along the lines of Faction War, as far as I'm concerned.

Of course...

1) I hate Faction War and...

2) I think a sizable amount of other folk do, too, as well as similar events and...

3) I hate advancing metaplot.

But if it had to be a catch like that, I'd start it out as a large adventure detailing the combining of the two settings in the form of some planar event. And then the campaign setting would come out. Possibly a war among the gods of each setting or some such and the exodus of integral NPC's in one setting to the other. Ilmater and Vecna, Drizzt and Mordenkainen.

Oh, and a dead Elminster somewhere along the way. But maybe that's just me.

But, yeah. I don't think the book would do well. And it wouldn't be one I'd like.

I do like campaign settings - they do a lot of a homework for a DM, set up plot hooks, offer up some common ground for DMs and players. Anyone looking to build their own homebrew has everything they need in the form of the three core rulebooks. Good for them. I've built a homebrew or two myself. But campaign settings are good as an option for the time I, or others, don't want to.

Even if I think this particular one is a little bit cringe worthy.

 

[painandgreed]

"2 possible ways -

One, which is what I did in college with the same settings and all my own homebrews, is put them on a ring world. You now have flat maps, definate world boundries, and infinate amount of space for new worlds. Get bored with a setting or want to change, they just catch a ship and sail west to the next setting. Most things are explained simply or with magic. Night and day are caused by other orbiting objects that eclipse the sun. Moons become problematic because you'll never have a full moon and they'll be out of the sky half the time. I just switched werewolves over to the new moon when it's the darkest.

-or-

Make the common setting Planescape and connect all the other settings to it via gates. Then all your product becomes one big setting that any product can be attached to. You could also do it with a less extreme setting and just add more gates."

Or I'd just say "I'll get right on that" and simply mash everything together without reguard for much of anything.

 

[diaglo]

Diaglo,
Do you remember which issue? I'll search tonight but if you can narrow it down to a range or even a year please do.

Yeti

don't know if it was an actual map or just the discussion of one.

the one where they steal beer from the authors fridge.

 

[pawsplay]

I'd start with Greyhawk as a base, then take the bits of FR I like and graft them on. The result would look basically like Greyhawk, but in print.

To me, FR is still that newfangled setting that came in and took over the AD&D 2e line. I preferred Mystara, or Greyhawk, of "implied setting."

FR is the opposite of the implied setting, and hence is the least useful to people who benefit from an implied setting, such as most D&D players. Most D&D players are not FR purists and find the level of detail stifling.

 

[Sir Elton]

Um, no way folks. Building your own homebrew takes wayyyyy too much time.

It's only good for those without responsibilities...like children. Or those without any life.

Hey!

That was rotten and uncalled for! Jeeze.

 

[painandgreed]

Actually, I'd rather do Greyhawk and Eberron mashup. I played in one and it was great. Sharn was where Greyhawk was supposed to be. The DM had really good descriptions of the industrial alchemical plants that put out such clouds of smoke over Iuz's capitol of Doraka that it blotted out the sun and vampires and other sun affected creatures could walk around during the day.

 

[diaglo]

Holy Christ, I agree with diaglo on something.

ha ha... don't you feel ...
hey, waita minute.

 

[HeavenShallBurn]

One, which is what I did in college with the same settings and all my own homebrews, is put them on a ring world. You now have flat maps, definate world boundries, and infinate amount of space for new worlds. Get bored with a setting or want to change, they just catch a ship and sail west to the next setting. Most things are explained simply or with magic. Night and day are caused by other orbiting objects that eclipse the sun. Moons become problematic because you'll never have a full moon and they'll be out of the sky half the time. I just switched werewolves over to the new moon when it's the darkest.

That's just what I did, except I used a dyson sphere co-orbiting with two suns. Since it has a bunch of captured moons orbiting it Lycanthropes can work just fine. And I did it for the same reason too, so I would only need to build one setting big enough to cover anything I wanted to include later.

 

[Nifft]

I don't recall a huge fan clamoring for a magic-punk setting with gnomish airships or lightning rails, but here it is, and there it sells. Good stuff will find a market, whether we knew we wanted it or not.

I was personally clamoring for a setting in which magic made sense (was internally consistent; where the mechanics of PC and NPC power fit the society).

Eberron does that fairly well.

Even if I don't really care for the magic-punk aspect, it's a more playable world, amenable to modern morality and modern moral quandaries.

Cheers, -- N

 

[Nifft]

That's just what I did, except I used a dyson sphere co-orbiting with two suns. Since it has a bunch of captured moons orbiting it Lycanthropes can work just fine. And I did it for the same reason too, so I would only need to build one setting big enough to cover anything I wanted to include later.

Aren't most Dyson spheres livable only on the inside? And aren't they primarily "one sun" affairs?

-- N