Where does one start?

[cerin616]

I like the idea of makeing my own setting, but I have no idea where to begin. I have some ideas i have been throwing around, but I see some people quote this and that for balance (e8?)

are there any books or sources that talk about how to create balanced amounts of power?

[00dlez]

It sounds like you are more interested in creating your own system, not your own setting... right?

[cerin616]

Well, I wasn't planning on doing that just yet. It is an end goal to make a system at some point, but I was going to create a campaign setting to be used in 3.5 for now.

Reason being is we play 3.5, and I always just wing it with campaign locations. I occasionally recur some of the areas cross campaign (such as some large citites). I have been saving these different areas I created and writing down the "lore" of the areas that I gave/planned to give players, and slowly it patch working its way into a full setting.

I just was browsing through these forums and saw people say things like (restraints of a soft E8) and i dont know what that means.

TL;DR im not making a system yet, but will appreciate any advice on one.

[00dlez]

E8 is similar to E6... Hard to breifly explain... Look here: http://dungeons.wikia.com/wiki/E6_(3.5e_Sourcebook)

It sounds like you are already well on your way to building a setting, one location at a time. There's no single best way to go about it, It really depends on how you, as the creator, like to think about things.

Some start at a very broad level "In the beginning, there was nothing until the gods willed it. There are 6 gods... blah blah blah" and others start smaller and build out (like it seems you are) "There are two cities along this coast here and here, each goverened by one of two brothers who... blah blah blah".

I'm currently building my own setting and taking sort of a middle ground approach. I figured out my world/setting concept first, then went down to the nation building level and am setting that up before I figure out the small details and the setting/world level plots.

[cerin616]

The link you sent me appears to have no content. is there a source book that this would be in? Ill google it as well.

I also need to figure out how to draw a decent map.

EDIT: i googled "e6 dnd 3.5" and got the same article you linked, except with information...

I assume this means that a normal campaign in 3.5 is e20 by this article?

[Grinner]

E6 is basically D&D 3.5 cut off at level 6 with feats earned every 5,000 XP thereafter. E8 is the same thing, just cut off at level 8.

As for your original question, yes, there are books on worldbuilding. They're also very expensive.

I'm not sure by what you mean about balance, since that's a function of the mechanics, the crunch. It might help if you delineated your ideas here.

[Yora]

Where was that collection of advice on this topic we collected...?

Ah, here it is (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=227507). The combined wisdom of the Playground kitchen.

The correct link to the expanded E6 rules and commentary is here (http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?206323-E6-The-Game-Inside-D-amp-D). It also explains why it might be a worthwhile addition to a campaign or part of the creation of a setting.

[cerin616]

Where was that collection of advice on this topic we collected...?

Ah, here it is (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=227507). The combined wisdom of the Playground kitchen.

The correct link to the expanded E6 rules and commentary is here (http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?206323-E6-The-Game-Inside-D-amp-D). It also explains why it might be a worthwhile addition to a campaign or part of the creation of a setting.

you are a wonderful person

[Eldan]

Start with an idea. Not about what countries you want. Start with this thoughts:

"What will this world have that others don't?"
"What kind of stories can people tell with this world?"
"Why will the players be excited to play in this world?"

[JusticeZero]

And don't be too cleverbecause you'll fall on your face if you add lots of exotic stuff. Wild and strange settings will crash and burn. The setting is there to be a backdrop for your players to fit their ideas into, not to shock and awe them with your rampaging creativity while confusing them.

Good: "I have this idea for a barbaric warrior." "Okay, you are probably from the South Under Desert. There are a bunch of tribes there fighting snakemen." "That sounds cool. Can I be the son of a witch doctor?" "The god Zoogal is kind've witchdoctery." "Awesome."

Bad: "I have this idea for a barbaric warrior." "That's probably the Queegol Ash Mephits on Chessboard Four, fighting water ants trying to move hubward before the spin of the making of the world crushes them. Oh and you have to be female and have a telepathic clockwork squid familiar that lies to you.." "...."

[Gildedragon]

I want a telepathic mythomanaical mechanical cephalopod familiar.

[Mutazoia]

Honestly the easiest thing to do when desiging a setting is to start small. Get a general idea of where you want your campaign to end, such as foiling the resurrection of an ancient, evil God and saving the world and then flesh out your starting point. Just design the area where your players are starting out and where you intend to send them on their first adventure. That's really the only detail your going to need. For example, you could design a small village where your PC's are all childhood friends just itching to become adventurers, and the surrounding countryside. Next throw in an Orc raid that the PC's have to fight off...let them capture and interrogate a surviving Orc that leads them to investigate the next area, and so on.

You can do rough sketch outlines for other areas and flesh them out as needed as you steer your players toward new horizions, but trying to detail out your entire setting before hand is going to take way too much work and probably kill your entheusiasm long before you get to actually play your setting. Do a rough sketch map of the setting area if you like, to help you plot future adventures and, again, do rough sketch outlines of basic details for locations you may want your PC's to visit. For example:

Bumhaven:
Moderate sized city state
population: 40,000
located on the coast where whet river flows into suhmsutch sea
Hereditary ruled by Prince Hoozits and family
Thieve's guild
Mage's guild
Chief export: dung

Don't worry about too much else unless you send the PC's there or they decide to head in that direction if your giving them free will to roam at random. You can always throw in some random encounters to delay their arrival until you can flesh out the area before they get there.
Chief import: soap