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D&D (2024) How Does Greyhawk Fit In To The New Edition?

Dungeon Master’s Guide contains a sample setting—and that setting is, indeed, Greyhawk.

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According to Game Informer — “the surprising importance and inclusions of what is arguably the oldest D&D campaign setting of them all – Greyhawk.”

So how does Greyhawk fit in? According to GI, the new 2024 Dungeon Master’s Guide contains a sample setting—and that setting is, indeed, Greyhawk. Not only that, but the book will come with a double-sided poster map with the City of Greyhawk on one side and the Flannaes on the other—the eastern part of one of Oerth’s four continents.
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Even as the multiverse of D&D worlds sees increased attention, the Dungeon Master's Guide also offers a more discrete setting to get gaming groups started. After very few official releases in the last couple of decades, the world of Greyhawk takes center stage. The book fleshes out Greyhawk to illustrate how to create campaign settings of your own. Greyhawk was the original D&D game world crafted by D&D co-creator Gary Gygax, and a worthy setting to revisit on the occassion of D&D's golden anniversary. It's a world bristling with classic sword and sorcery concepts, from an intrigue-laden central city to wide tracts of uncharted wilderness. Compared to many D&D campaign settings, it's smaller and less fleshed out, and that's sort of the point; it begs for DMs to make it their own. The book offers ample info to bring Greyhawk to life but leaves much undetailed. For those eager to take the plunge, an included poster map of the Greyhawk setting sets the tone, and its reverse reveals a map of the city of the same name. "A big draw to Greyhawk is it's the origin place for such heroes as Mordenkainen, Tasha, and others," Perkins says. "There's this idea that the players in your campaign can be the next great world-hopping, spell-crafting heroes of D&D. It is the campaign where heroes are born."
- Game Informer​

 

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Sure, absolutely. Doesn't mean they won't present an attractive basic Setting that people won't like (I mean, doesn’t mean they will either, time will tell).
It will be fine, it will be the same as any other vanilla setting. Which is probably an important lesson to learn: a lot of players aren’t interested in the setting, elaborate lore will just make their eyes glaze over, so keep it minimal.
 

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Micah Sweet

Level Up & OSR Enthusiast
It will be fine, it will be the same as any other vanilla setting. Which is probably an important lesson to learn: a lot of players aren’t interested in the setting, elaborate lore will just make their eyes glaze over, so keep it minimal.
I really wish society didn't constantly see the need to cater so heavily to the easily bored.
 

Parmandur

Book-Friend
It will be fine, it will be the same as any other vanilla setting. Which is probably an important lesson to learn: a lot of players aren’t interested in the setting, elaborate lore will just make their eyes glaze over, so keep it minimal.
The thing is, if they succeed at keeping it minimal, but still usable and mildly evocative..they will have succeeded in generating a new wave of nostalgia for the future, as a ton of Middleschoolers will just run with it.

Yhe 3E mistake was to fronload the "assumed Setting" with jiat some nouns in the PHB, rather than providing new DMs pre-prepared material.
 

I will again reference the 1e/2e setting book Greyhawk Adventures.
Here are some places. And here are some factions. Just like every other setting. It was deadly because 1st edition rules were deadly. It was mercenary because 1st edition rules where based around the acquisition of wealth, it had strongholds because 1st edition rules were cobbled together from a war game, it was human-dominated because 1st edition rules punished players for being non-human, it was racist and sexist because 1st edition rules were racist and sexist, it had a bazillion different pole arms because 1st edition rules etc

Oh, and it had some stuff on heraldry, just because.
 

Von Ether

Legend
Greyhawk is very Human centric and also very much based on Medieval Fantasy. I don't think this is going to fly well with the current player base that prefers Tieflings, Tortles, and Top hats.

I don't think Greyhawk could survive the new player base and still keep the flavor people want from Greyhawk.

Hindsight being 20/20, GW would have been a perfect setting for the free Basic Rules PDF. And perhaps GW will make more sense with their next entry level box product as the pregens will probably be the classic 4 races, 4 classes.

At this point, I'd rather run GW with B/X rules to reinforce the vibe. -- After I got a Mystara campaign out of my system first, though. :ROFLMAO:
 



Micah Sweet

Level Up & OSR Enthusiast
Here are some places. And here are some factions. Just like every other setting. It was deadly because 1st edition rules were deadly. It was mercenary because 1st edition rules where based around the acquisition of wealth, it had strongholds because 1st edition rules were cobbled together from a war game, it was human-dominated because 1st edition rules punished players for being non-human, it was racist and sexist because 1st edition rules were racist and sexist, it had a bazillion different pole arms because 1st edition rules etc

Oh, and it had some stuff on heraldry, just because.
Sounds like 1e sensibilities, for good or ill, are part and parcel of what Greyhawk is about. I see no problem with deadly, mercenary, and stronghold-focused. I have no issue with racism and sexism being in the game provided those are presented as bad things. What you're suggesting is that the flavor of Greyhawk is inappropriate for the WotC D&D of today. You are probably right. Best to let it go and use some other setting as their example of what they want players to think D&D is. Like Eberron. All the young folks love Eberron.
 

Mournblade94

Adventurer
Here are some places. And here are some factions. Just like every other setting. It was deadly because 1st edition rules were deadly. It was mercenary because 1st edition rules where based around the acquisition of wealth, it had strongholds because 1st edition rules were cobbled together from a war game, it was human-dominated because 1st edition rules punished players for being non-human, it was racist and sexist because 1st edition rules were racist and sexist, it had a bazillion different pole arms because 1st edition rules etc

Oh, and it had some stuff on heraldry, just because.
People are still on about this nonsense the 1st edition rules were racist? There's no evidence for that. Sexist. OK they limited Strength ability.
 

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