tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post8226565579013994282..comments2024-03-25T21:52:03.310-05:00Comments on Hill Cantons: Worldbuilding in a Single Night?Chris Kutalikhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01414743509426875792noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-20827181433987535842013-01-09T21:31:01.163-06:002013-01-09T21:31:01.163-06:00Hadn't heard of Microscope before. Checking i...Hadn't heard of Microscope before. Checking it out now. Thank you for the tip!PatrickWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02083947433803227063noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-46789959492892346342013-01-06T13:06:00.931-06:002013-01-06T13:06:00.931-06:00Agreed. And if your players take part in the sess...Agreed. And if your players take part in the session, they already have an investment and knowledge of the world.. Fun to play as well. kokigamihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02739583055984589365noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-8475540039061621912013-01-05T18:28:10.879-06:002013-01-05T18:28:10.879-06:00I was going to suggest The Hyborian Age essay as w...I was going to suggest The Hyborian Age essay as well.jbeltmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02264520619277158883noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-83817266445731104192013-01-05T14:34:54.945-06:002013-01-05T14:34:54.945-06:00Back in the old days, we didn't care about thi...Back in the old days, we didn't care about things like "world-building" and just played. The environment grew organically, out of our own heads, instead of as some sort of deliberate undertaking. I imagine all the good fantasy worlds developed in a similar way.Bradhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06596247660364673313noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-87759714487080449262013-01-05T11:41:42.864-06:002013-01-05T11:41:42.864-06:00I'm gonna bounce off of this and say that yeah...I'm gonna bounce off of this and say that yeah, world building is not something you do entirely beforehand. Typically, I have a campaign in mind and then the little details are worked out through the player's actions. <br /><br />In regards to creating just enough to be comfortable answering questions, I totally agree. However, I'd have to add in: Be a really fast note taker. You never know when a character's action will turn into something important down the line. My players always love it when something they do comes back to them, either good or bad, because it shows them they are having an effect on the world.<br /><br />As for reading...well, I don't know if she'd accept this given that she rejected the "bottom up" approach, but the affiliations chapter in 3.5's Players Handbook 2 always sparked ideas for me. Instead of starting with a town, start with an organization. Why that organization exists and its goals is a great starting point for what the world is like. Plus, it gives the characters starting out a push forward in where to go.Odynushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04132675607963982819noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-65464346369148713522013-01-05T07:16:14.776-06:002013-01-05T07:16:14.776-06:00tell her also that world-building is a game in its...tell her also that world-building is a game in itself and not something that you do before the game.<br /><br />it is not a chore or preparation but a beautiful creative endeavor.<br /><br />also, renegade crowns for warhammer 2e is a nice supplement to create and detail a part of the world (relatively smallish one but...) opossum101https://www.blogger.com/profile/14918781180223282882noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-43720053319625017152013-01-04T21:43:30.495-06:002013-01-04T21:43:30.495-06:00That's a tall order, I looked at the Appendix ...That's a tall order, I looked at the <a href="http://www.alesmiter.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html" rel="nofollow">Appendix N</a> I put together for my fantasy Roman campaign and there are weeks, if not months, of reading history involved in it. But I would recommend that you read the first two books of Herodotus Histories, covering the rise of the Persian empire and the peoples they conquered. It gives a brief description of many of the lands and peoples to provide a good background. He was credulous enough that there are a number of tall tales in there that can be sparks for adventures Together the first two books are less than 200 pages. Reading it inc conjunction with trollsmyth's excellent recommendation of the Hyborian Age will show you how it can be used to create a fantasy world. Rod Thompsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12824146866756155345noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-9276888446377244952013-01-04T20:12:28.358-06:002013-01-04T20:12:28.358-06:00Posted the following on Google+, along with the li...Posted the following on Google+, along with the link to this post. I hope it helps.<br /><br />A couple thing off the top of my head, that might help...<br />From the +Gnome Stew crew: Never Unprepared and Eureka - 501 Adventure Plots<br />From +Frog God Games: Tome of Adventure Design<br />From an old Dragon Magazine Series (available in PDF on the internet): Ray Winniger's Dungeoncraft Essays<br />From Hero Games: Fantasy Hero (5th Edition)Xiawarrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01688440667096938002noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-45641884894689471302013-01-04T17:57:04.359-06:002013-01-04T17:57:04.359-06:00Collect pictures you like.
Here's a way: goog...Collect pictures you like.<br /><br />Here's a way: google image search for strings of search terms you like.<br /><br />Like google "horror funny knight lizard city"Zak Sabbathhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08812410680077034917noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-30199877879528741642013-01-04T15:10:32.573-06:002013-01-04T15:10:32.573-06:00Google search [Analogous City or Country] history ...Google search [Analogous City or Country] history wiki<br /><br />Repeat as neededJebhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01627388826719997843noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-55730953216736641832013-01-04T15:02:59.199-06:002013-01-04T15:02:59.199-06:00Excellent post. A good exercise for me as well (a ...Excellent post. A good exercise for me as well (a bottoms-up sort of guy I am). I tend to focus on places to drink.Teenage Visigothhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01326660312992790705noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-61977066245208088162013-01-04T14:21:26.682-06:002013-01-04T14:21:26.682-06:00I was about to suggest the very same thing.
Anoth...I was about to suggest the very same thing.<br /><br />Another suggestion to create the characters and initial hooks: <a href="http://www.bullypulpitgames.com/games/fiasco/" rel="nofollow">Fiasco.</a> with a playset (fiasco environment, they have one for standard fantasy) tailored for your campaign.<br /><br />redbeardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04600098550347299095noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-65543188270991652172013-01-04T13:45:55.319-06:002013-01-04T13:45:55.319-06:00Good suggestion, evolving things out of play alway...Good suggestion, evolving things out of play always beats the pants off cold design. <br /><br />You know I've been wanting to run that myself for about a year now (even bought a couple extra boxes of index cards). Chris Kutalikhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01414743509426875792noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-86409324384237534752013-01-04T13:41:27.382-06:002013-01-04T13:41:27.382-06:00The section on geography and weather in the back o...The section on geography and weather in the back of the 1e Wilderness Survival Guide. It's quick, it's simple, and it'll make her world look believable (assuming that's something she wants).<br /><br />The Hyborian Age: http://hyboria.xoth.net/history/hyborian_age.htm<br /><br />1e DMG pp 86-92 (Yeah, I know, but even if she doesn't want to do the top-up stuff, there's a lot of good info on there).<br /><br />1e DMG pp 104-105: Monsters and Organizationtrollsmythhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01895349218958093151noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1389986049507804094.post-89771407800295299162013-01-04T12:51:31.577-06:002013-01-04T12:51:31.577-06:00Tell her to get her gaming group together and play...Tell her to get her gaming group together and play Microscope for a night. By the end, she'll have a diverse setting she can use for her games, and any time she needs to expand some details, she can run it again, starting from one age or era.Mortainehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04164332589347394628noreply@blogger.com