What setting to work on next?

[Grod_The_Giant]

I've been thinking about releasing a setting expansion or two for my homebrew RPG, STaRS. Something along the lines of the Plane Shift articles that have been released for 5e-- ~25 pages, describing the setting, the magic system, expanded rules to use with it, and a sample fractal (a plot hook-laden description of one particular place). I've got a couple ideas in development; which would you most like to see?

The Miasma (dieselpunk): The world was inhabited by giants, before they were wiped out by a still-unknown apocalypse. Now the landscape is haunted by the shattered remains of their cities, and filled with the reality-warping mist known as the Miasma. Survival is really only possible because of the presence of Goliaths, enormous kaiju big enough to support their own city-states. Technology is 1920s vintage, magic is all about commanding ghosts and trying not to go mad in the process, and the region I'd be focusing on is plunging towards the local equivalent of World War 1. I'd probably add expanded rules for sanity, and maybe nation-building.

Overwatch (superhero): Shut up, I named it before the video game came out. My standard superhero setting, used in countless games and stories. The pillars of the world are rocking in the aftermath of a biohorror war that pretty much wiped out South America-- to say nothing of super-genius technology begins to trickle down to common use-- and the arrival of alien refugees. Tonally, it's probably closest to Warren Ellis' runs on Stormfront and The Authority, if that means anything to you. Would by necessity have a *lot* about superpowers and competence levels.

The Swamp of Souls (plane-shifting): In my personal cosmology, there are 377 other worlds, distorted reflections of our own, created in an instant by a man who invented a reality-warping machine. Then he got in a fight with his son, breaking boy, machine, and worlds in that order. The son fell all the way to the bottom of the multiverse and became the ultimate evil, leaving behind a trail of sorts-- a haunted swamp in the center of each world. The same haunted swamp in each world-- you can walk from one to another, if you don't get lost and trapped. I have... no idea yet what the central premise would be (probably a pan-dimensional struggle against said ultimate evil and his attempts to subsume the multiverse), but the product would probably wind up a brief overview of a bunch of different settings, and discussion of translating power levels from one setting to another.

The Land of the Six Seas (swashbuckling fantasy): An ocean-heavy fantasy setting. There's a giant whirlpool in the middle of the world, constant hurricanes sweeping in from the east, a massive dragon in the west that eats anyone who sails there, weird psychic jungle-wookies in the south and the frozen swathes of the Dirge Empire in the north. Multiple different magic systems, and intentional vagueness about whether races like the Dirge are actually capital-R fantasy Races, or just a weird breed of human. Would by necessity have a bunch of naval rules.

Something Scifi, idk: It could be fun to work out good rules for spaceships and mechs. Might build off the world touched on in the "Superpowers of the Rippers" sample setting, for a spaceships-and-superpowers sort of thing. I've got a bunch of ideas for aliens and tech that only need proper glue.

Exalted Knockoff (epic fantasy): A while back I sat down and wrote a creation myth, roughly ending up with a world like Exalted's. If there's interest, I could build that into a broader setting (possibly marrying with the Land of the Six Seas above?). Would need to acquire rules for building nations.

[137beth]

The Swamp of Souls is the one that seems the most appealing to me.

[Man_Over_Game]

I particularly like the Rifts setting, which fits well between Scifi and The Miasma. Takes place post-magical-awakening Earth, but far less clunky and more apocalyptic than Shadowrun. It's a bit like Numenara, but less mystic and more grunge.

[Grod_The_Giant]

I particularly like the Rifts setting, which fits well between Scifi and The Miasma. Takes place post-magical-awakening Earth, but far less clunky and more apocalyptic than Shadowrun. It's a bit like Numenara, but less mystic and more grunge.

As in the Palladium game, or as in a homebrew grungy urban fantasy setting?

[Man_Over_Game]

As in the Palladium game, or as in a homebrew grungy urban fantasy setting?

The Palladium setting, as a homebrew grungy urban fantasy setting.

It's a great setting, just ruined by an overly complicated, unbalanced system.

[Grod_The_Giant]

The Palladium setting, as a homebrew grungy urban fantasy setting.

It's a great setting, just ruined by an overly complicated, unbalanced system.

Well, I'm certainly a fan of using STaRS to explore cool settings with over-complex systems... I intend to put the finish product up for sale, though, so other people's stuff is probably a no-no, and I'm not familiar enough with Rifts to do a fan-based take on it. I highly encourage you to, though!

[Man_Over_Game]

Well, I'm certainly a fan of using STaRS to explore cool settings with over-complex systems... I intend to put the finish product up for sale, though, so other people's stuff is probably a no-no, and I'm not familiar enough with Rifts to do a fan-based take on it. I highly encourage you to, though!

That makes sense! I like what you're doing, though. Keep it up!

I'd be most interested to see a swashbuckling fantasy work well. My main concern with the concept is that it would become stale, with only 3 types of scenarios (Fights, Naval fights, social environments), and I'd be interested to see how your system tackles it.

[Grod_The_Giant]

That makes sense! I like what you're doing, though. Keep it up!

I'd be most interested to see a swashbuckling fantasy work well. My main concern with the concept is that it would become stale, with only 3 types of scenarios (Fights, Naval fights, social environments), and I'd be interested to see how your system tackles it.

Thanks

As for getting stale... by that reduction, couldn't you say d&d only has 2 types of scenarios (Fights and social environments)? It's all about the richness of the world, and how readily that lends itself to plots and adventures.

(It also wouldn't be straight Pirates of the Caribbean; there are a few big landmasses and plenty going on inland.)

[Man_Over_Game]

Thanks

As for getting stale... by that reduction, couldn't you say d&d only has 2 types of scenarios (Fights and social environments)? It's all about the richness of the world, and how readily that lends itself to plots and adventures.

(It also wouldn't be straight Pirates of the Caribbean; there are a few big landmasses and plenty going on inland.)

With DnD, there are a lot of different terrains to travel, you interact with multiple different types of creatures, and one adventure isn't going to be much like any other.

But with a high-seas adventure, I foresee a lot of boats, a lot of interacting with people who work with merchants, pirates, or nobles, and a lot of violence over treasure. I guess it's hard for me to envision a swashbuckling fantasy that could

1. Encourage more diversity in the environment to keep it interesting while still keeping it a Swashbuckling Fantasy
2. Have interesting enough mechanics to make the reoccurring environments still feel rich and interesting after experiencing them a few times.

[Grod_The_Giant]

With DnD, there are a lot of different terrains to travel, you interact with multiple different types of creatures, and one adventure isn't going to be much like any other.

But with a high-seas adventure, I foresee a lot of boats, a lot of interacting with people who work with merchants, pirates, or nobles, and a lot of violence over treasure. I guess it's hard for me to envision a swashbuckling fantasy that could

1. Encourage more diversity in the environment to keep it interesting while still keeping it a Swashbuckling Fantasy
2. Have interesting enough mechanics to make the reoccurring environments still feel rich and interesting after experiencing them a few times.

I think we're looking at subtly different shadings of the genre-- you seem to be focused on the naval implications, whereas I'm thinking more "any sort of story where you'd find Errol Flynn." But a fair point. The second isn't really a strength of STaRS*, but the first is probably key. And not just a variety of places to go, but a variety of plots to get caught up in. Even if the core gameplay loop is similar, plotting sabotage to keep the Dirge Empire from resuming their conquest should feel pretty different from trying to make a living as a "trader" in the Free Cities, or from exploring the haunted jungles of the Swordmarch, or fighting in the Casac/Pastela civil war, or trying to spread the word of the Draconic Church beyond the shores where it was born, or...


*Although its environmental conflict rules do make challenges like "survive this storm at high seas" a lot more fun to run than many other systems.

[Beleriphon]

I think we're looking at subtly different shadings of the genre-- you seem to be focused on the naval implications, whereas I'm thinking more "any sort of story where you'd find Errol Flynn." But a fair point. The second isn't really a strength of STaRS*, but the first is probably key. And not just a variety of places to go, but a variety of plots to get caught up in. Even if the core gameplay loop is similar, plotting sabotage to keep the Dirge Empire from resuming their conquest should feel pretty different from trying to make a living as a "trader" in the Free Cities, or from exploring the haunted jungles of the Swordmarch, or fighting in the Casac/Pastela civil war, or trying to spread the word of the Draconic Church beyond the shores where it was born, or...


*Although its environmental conflict rules do make challenges like "survive this storm at high seas" a lot more fun to run than many other systems.

My vote is swashbuckling. Anything from something akin to the Three Musketeers, Scarlet Pimpernel, Red Sonya (not the other one), Zorro, to Pirates of the Caribbean. Of those only one has boats as a mainstay.

[2D8HP]

I've been thinking about releasing a setting expansion or two for my homebrew RPG, STaRS. Something along the lines of the Plane Shift articles that have been released for 5e-- ~25 pages, describing the setting, the magic system, expanded rules to use with it, and a sample fractal (a plot hook-laden description of one particular place). I've got a couple ideas in development; which would you most like to see?...

The Land of the Six Seas (swashbuckling fantasy): An ocean-heavy fantasy setting. There's a giant whirlpool in the middle of the world, constant hurricanes sweeping in from the east, a massive dragon in the west that eats anyone who sails there, weird psychic jungle-wookies in the south and the frozen swathes of the Dirge Empire in the north. Multiple different magic systems, and intentional vagueness about whether races like the Dirge are actually capital-R fantasy Races, or just a weird breed of human. Would by necessity have a bunch of naval rules.....

This.

You had me at "swashbuckling"

[Tvtyrant]

Swamp of Souls seems most fun to make as a DM, but as a player it seems hard to really explore being so big.

Swashbuckling is my preference as a player.

I really wanted to make a mishmash setting sharing the Spelljammer and Dragonmech rules to make fantasy gundam adventures, mechs in space is awesome.

[Grod_The_Giant]

Well, then. The Land of the Six Seas it is.

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I really wanted to make a mishmash setting sharing the Spelljammer and Dragonmech rules to make fantasy gundam adventures, mechs in space is awesome.

Gunstar Autochthonia?

Fantasy mechs in space does sound awesome.