D&D5 Build a World for SS19's next game

A big part of RPGs, for me, is the collaborative storytelling element, and a big part of that is the creation of interesting and new details. A lot of this is for character history and background, but it's also fun to do an idea session for the world itself: the cosmology, the geography, the history, the system of magic, etc.

So, I fully intend to run some more D&D5 games here on GP, and I'd like your help to create the world that we'll play in.

Such exercises can start from a variety of different considerations, such as:

* how common is magic in the world at large (aside from the PCs)?
* how was the world created?
* how do the races feel about each other?
* is there one dominant species on the world?
* what's life like for an average resident?
* what is the dominant ethos in the world? Is good prevalent, or evil?

Please, if you like, post some ideas that you find compelling and interesting enough to incorporate into a world that you might like to experience in play.

One idea is that there is some sort of race (or even a single being) that pulls the strings in the world. It is simply a rumor, through all parts of the world. No one knows for sure but sometimes they find themselves doing things that they didn't really plan on doing without remembering when they actually changed their minds.

Alternatively, a world where the gods have left inexplicably. They use to be well-known to be real, with agents honestly acting one their behalf, and divine beings sometimes seen. Then suddenly they were gone. The magic was still there but there is suddenly a lack of something that they were unable they even felt before. This has, of course caused a lot of panic.

Just some ideas, I like collaborative world building :)

Outrageous landscapes! Such as:

a waterfall down a 120-mile high cliff
* tribal people live in caves widely varied in size and magical affinity
* the latter defines the main mood and style of a particular tribe's "magic"
* vines and trees everywhere, and residents can climb up just as fast as down

Ex-giant-termite plateau
* once the termites invaded from below and constructed gigantic stalagmite structures
* after an epic battle, the six nations scoured most stalagmites
* now they are sparsely inhabited by guardian orders from the nations
* the remnants of the orders fly around on pterodactyls / pegasi / drakes / wyverns / etc.
* politics, desperate commoners, gathering threat from below / above

I like the idea of mixing up the racial stereotypes significantly. For example -- rather than the elves being standoffish and majestic, perhaps make them somewhat like CJ Cherryh's Aetvi from the Foreigner series. A highly ordered society that looks to numerology for guidance and has a strong assassin's guild that operates under strict rules for settling disputes/etc. This is a definite head-flip for your typical elvish storylines.

Etc. :)

I really liked the setting from Magic: the Gathering called Ravnica. Several elements made for a very interesting world.

1: The world is one giant city. City parks make up some of the green space, but also abandoned city sectors, whole neighborhoods devoid of civilized life, but rampant with wild life. Trees growing through floors, replacing support structures of skyscraper sized buildings.

2: Guilds, rather than governments run life. If you don't have the support of the guilds you have a hard time living.

3: The dead are just around the corner. For some reasons souls of the departed continue to exist in the same space as the living. They work in their own circles, but ghosts can help out if you meet their price (set by a guild of course)

I've always been fond of trope mashing or flipping. Things like the variation on elves suggested above, or settings like Necessary Evil (a Savage Worlds setting, and my favourite) which is "aliens invade earth and kill all of the superheroes. Only the super villains are left, and must save the planet if they ever hope to dominate it themselves" (naturally, the players are a team of villains).

Something a friend of mine does, that I think is rather genius, is he uses the real world and builds fantasy analogs of it. He builds his world as the players explore it, and creates societies, and regions based on societies and regions from human history (and sometimes the present). He actually just uses a slightly doctored map of the earth as his world map (and he started the adventure in central asia, but uses wikipedia and google maps to give him a sense of the geographical features of the area).

OK, I'm liking what people have suggested so far, and on the scale of variation from baseline D&D, it's pretty far out there. Here's my attempt at combining the great suggestions you've made.

The world is called Mittas. Mittas consists of a gargantuan continent surrounding a vast ocean fed by a waterfall that tumbles eternally from the moon. Some legends say that the world is actually a vast creature called the Gethri and its mate, the Gethra, and the two orbit around each other in loving matrimony. In ancient times, a race of sentient creatures called the Pelagitash crafted Mittas into a vast city; every inch of the world was remade into a structure or landscaped into a garden that served purposes both practical and aesthetic. But their culture was destroyed by the Revrotex, a species of parasitic sentients that grow more intelligent as their colonies grow. The Revrotex colonized Mittas, chewing up many of the structures and gardens and reforming them into vast hives that grew higher and higher, reaching toward Gethra, the moon. With them, the Revrotex brought various subjugated races, for use as servants and food while the colonies were being established. One of these races were elves. Eventually, all of the Pelagitash were devoured, and in turn, the Revrotex slowly died off without hosts.

The various PC races have either arrived on Mittas since then, or managed to outlive their masters, the Pelagitash or Revrotex. The elves, having been brought as fodder for the Revrotex, have developed a brutal and regimented society that sadly mimics much of the Revrotex hierarchy, with strong cultural values toward logic, mathematics, and murder.

The races have populated the remains of continent-sized hives and the ancient ruins of the city neighborhoods that preceded them. Higher elevations mean more sunlight, and so the prime real estate is always at the tops of plateaus, where the prosperous and powerful reside. Lower and lower class citizens live further and further down, deeper in the ruins and further from the light. But there has been stagnation for many generations, with city-states vying for control of a few known "towers." Enterprising adventurers master methods of flight or gliding so that they can explore and find new towers, new locations for cities to settle and expand.

In many city-states, guilds maintain political control, such as the three primary guilds that control the city of Calaveras: the Soarers Guild, the Farmers' Guild, and the Aquaron (Water) Guild. Ancestor worship is common, and the spirits of the deceased are felt to be near - some gifted people can even commune with such spirits.

What additional details can we add to this world of Mittas? Is there a dominant PC race on the planet? What about each of the races: how do they differ from "vanilla" D&D? How common place is magic?

Kind of a Shotguns and Sorcery feel to that. Like it!

I might suggest that elves be the dominant PC/NPC race. Drow could be relegated to cast-off elves, fallen from the noble graces to live in the perpetual dark of ground-level. In-game maybe no sunlight restrictions, but also less of their fancy skills to fall more in line with the high or wood elves.

I could see the other races as being second-class citizens. A majority of humans could be living in the middle sections, above the ruins but never quite attaining the lofty status that the elves hold. Half-elves might be in this tier as well. Gnomes, Halflings, and Dwarves might be pushed further down, followed by Half-Orcs and Dragonborn (and possibly goblins or any other playable creature).

I don't know how it could be worked into the system itself, but magic could be considered along the same tiers as far as availability. All elves could have magic to some degree, which is what they use to enforce their position. Humans might dabble into it based on their connections to the upper level, while everything lower would find it rare and not easily accessed. The elves might go so far as to hunt out any possible magic users in the lower levels, seeing them as a threat to their own status.

Would gnomes and dwarves be master tinkerers and mechanics, able to build complicated devices that might mimic magic?

I ran a campaign once based on the idea that there was a finite amount of magic in the world, and in order to gain a spellcasting level, the PC had to defeat another spellcaster and absorb his magic.

I think for Mittas, perhaps we can say that magic comes from a few specific sources. Warlocks draw magic from a pact with some fell creature (the Gethri would be one). Sorcerers have magic inherently, from some ancestral connection with extraplanar creatures. Wizard magic comes from Gethra, either through the light cast by the moon (supporting CancerMan's sunlight idea) or through the water that falls eternally from the moon.

I would say, though, that while elves may be dominant in the particular nation that the PCs start in, there's at least the possibility that other races are ascendant in other parts of the world, because elves aren't evenly distributed throughout Mittas, shadowing the spread of the Revrotex as they are.

Now, an easy way to change how races are in a custom world is to address hair.

In Tolkein mythology (and thus default fantasy settings), dwarves are greedy creatures of the earth, with long beards because they've lived so very long, while elves are eternally young, so they have no beards. But I see no reason why male elves can't be hairy young men, and dwarves pale hairless creatures of the earth. It even makes sense, if we suppose that dwarves are inherently of the earth, rather than folk who liked mining (as in Tolkein): truly subterranean creatures (rather than creatures that burrow) are usually completely hairless. We'd play them up as having keen senses other than sight, for the sake of role-playing perception checks. How does that sound?

And what about humans, halflings, dragonborn, minotaurs, tieflings, orcs, and gnomes? Where did they all come from? I'd be open to have one of the races be the degenerated descendants of servants of the Pelagitash, perhaps the minotaurs or dragonborn. But what about the others?

Would it make sense to have humans, halflings, and gnomes be mutations of the elven race? Tieflings and orcs could be descended from the Revrotrex?

Sure, we could take a page from Doctor Who: humans, halflings and gnomes in the elven realms are considered "Mutos." While aloof and generally chaotic, orcs are believed to have descended from the Revrotex, so they are feared, respected and resented by all. Not truly a separate race, as any race can exhibit tiefling offspring, tieflings are believed to be the consequences of horrible experiments that the Revrotex conducted, dealing with extraplanar beings; they do not breed true, but rather appear occasionally in some tainted/blessed (depending on whom you ask) bloodlines of any of the other races.

So I have to pause here and ask the community before I go any further designing this setting (because I'm itching to do so):

Is this a campaign setting that interests you?

I don't want to create an interesting setting that no one will play, so I just want to get a sense of interest.

I'd play, for sure.

I would as well.

I'd play it

As would I - though i kinda get the idea that this is for a special group... if so, how does one go about joining? Or do you all just know each other and/or play with each other a lot. SS19, I'm a big fan of your games, btw...

If orcs are descended from the Revrotex, maybe dragonborn (and/or minotaurs) are descended from the Pelagitash?

I would definitely play in this setting, it sounds really engaging.

How about "technology" as magic items? Like sliding doors, elevators, sensors, maybe even "guns", vehicles, droids (golems), etc. However, since each magical item must be powered up regularly by spellcasters, there is a serious limit on the number of them that can be maintained continually. So each group (elven houses, dwarven clans, greenskin tribes) or individual has to choose carefully what tech to keep, they can't just manufacture tons of them and rely on them like in a high-tech setting.

I have always like the idea of two distinct kinds of humans existing. Just never could decide how that would happen. Maybe this would be the avenue.

Perhaps your now died off Revrotex once took the world from humans. Then over time and servitude all knowledge of human beginning and origin was lost. They were used as slaves, and were magically/genetically (not sure you defined tech level of the previous world owners) modified with greater ability and other qualities that would make them a good slave. Some managed to escape and hang onto life in the "wilds" of the world.

You could do two things with that. The modified slave Humans were crafted into Dwarves over time. Small, stout, and strong, with hard bones and tough constitutions. The humans that escaped slavery built colonies in the wild, with the soul purpose of avoiding becoming slaves, and over time morphed them to Elves. Sharp hearing, reflexes, one with the "wilds" of the world (be that a giant city or actual wilds) and due to some event, longer life spans. Or maybe it would be interested to give them Human life spans, and figure in what difference that would make to the pre-defined "Elf" race.

You could also just have two versions of the Humans, completely different from the others. One is strong and enhanced, but not built for intelligence and self-reliance. Maybe they are like "Clone Troopers" in Star Wars. The age fast and die young. The other Humans lived in the wilds trying to avoid capture and enslavement for how ever many years, and maybe they get some Elf like traits. I am thinking Human Sub Races kind of thing here, not just cultural and skin color changes, but a separation of the one species into two distinct.

(I've been wanting to hit this thread and lurking around. Love what your are doing here man.)

I like the idea that both the Pelagitash and the Revrotex civilizations left artifacts - not capital "A" Artifacts in the sense of unique and awesomely powerful items, but artifacts in the sense that they are ancient relics - that are closely guarded and used by the existing powers that be. Either they've lost the ability to make more and can only maintain the existing ones, or they only know how to make a few (or one) type of artifact device, which is important for trade and/or military control.

Elves were Revrotex fodder, so if anything, it would be the other way around: humans are degenerate elves, along with halflings and gnomes (see this post). Dwarves are a subterranean species completely separate. Orcs are descended from the Revrotex themselves. Tieflings are mutations that appear in every race's population. Minotaurs and Dragonborn are somehow related to the Pelagitash.
I really like this idea. The other races in the game have sub-races; humans will, too: the Free People and the Slave People. But in terms of mechanics, would we treat these like the demihuman sub-races with bonuses to only some ability scores (a primary and secondary)? If we did so, what game mechanic benefits should we grant to humans (since their primary benefit in the base rules is +1 to all abilities)?

This is straight off-the-cuff, but maybe restrict the +1 to all attributes to one subrace of human, and the variant rule to the other?

Brilliant! I'd give the Subservient Humans the variant rules, and the Free Humans the normal rules. I might consider some social variations, too.

Right on. I think I read that post, but when I start going on something I just go. :)
That's a tougher question. The variant in the PHB says +1 to two abilities and an extra skill and feat (if you use them). That's a far cry from +6 it seems though with the standard array. Maybe +2 strength +1 Con for Slave sub-race, +2 Dex +1 Wis for the Free. Just off the top of my head. Strength and Con justified by selective breeding for the slaves, Dexterity and Wisdom for the Free because they move around a lot and know more of the world beyond slavery.

You could give them an extra skill from a small list even, and take that +2 down to a +1.

Well, no, it's not a select group, it's just an awesome group of gamers who jump on open games. Generally, it's first-come, first-in-the-game, and everyone I've played with is great. It's one of the reasons I keep coming back to Gamers' Plane every day.

So here's what I envision: at some point, I will start a game in this campaign setting. I may make an Obsidian Portal wiki for the setting, also. If that game goes well, I may run other games in the setting. Of course others are welcome to run games in the setting, too, if they like. It is a collaboration, after all.

So far, we have some world-building ancient history (Pelagitash overwhelmed by the invading Revrotex) in a fantastical setting (a world-wide ring city ruin surrounding an ocean supplied by an eternal waterfall dropping from the moon), and we have a nice web of racial attitudes.

Generally speaking:

Elves, descended from slaves of the Revrotex, fear and respect orcs (and half-orcs), who are descended from the Revrotex themselves. Elves consider humans, halflings, and gnomes to be disgusting mutations of the elven standard, while they consider dwarves to be beasts. They feel that dragonborn and minotaurs, as creatures of the Pelagitash, are alien enemies who should naturally be subjugated.

Humans are educated second-class citizens in the elvish civilization, but in the wilds roam free and ignorant. Tame humans view elves and orcs with awe and resentment, while Free humans are somewhere between indifferent and xenophobic. Free humans consider halflings lucky (and generally can't tell gnomes and halflings apart), while tame humans are generally envious of the halflings and gnomes, for the cushier jobs they tend to get (humans tend to do heavy labor for the elves). Free humans view dwarves, dragonborn, and minotaurs as dangerous, while tame humans adopt the manner of their masters, viewing dwarves as sub-human animals, and dragonborn and minotaurs as fearful foes.

Dwarves are hairless subterranean creatures that resent the occupation of the Pelagitash and Revrotex both. They pay little attention and have little interaction with other races, so they don't bother to make a distinction between those races and their descendants. So they despise the "Pegtash" (what they call dragonborn and minotaurs) and "Revex" (what they call elves) both. They have pity for tame humans, halflings, and gnomes as weaklings who cannot escape the Revex. They respect the free humans as much as they can respect anyone so alien as to live aboveground.

The dragonborn and minotaurs both believe that they are descended from the Pelagitash, and that the other race is descended from their slaves or companion races (depending on whom you ask). Elves are oppressors.

How do halflings, gnomes, dragonborn and minotaurs feel about the other races?

My first thought is that dragonborn and minotaurs harbor a deep resentment of orcs and half-orcs, viewing them as an eternal reminder of their lost world. They likely view elves and the sub-elves in the same light, while dwarves are probably ignored or thought of as quaint and unassuming.

I think if you still want to incorporate the PHB halfling and gnome personality traits, they could be one of the world's most-tolerant and equal-opportunity of races. Perhaps their different height-perspective has garnered them a new philosophy and find it difficult to understand why everybody just can't get along. They'd likely find kinship in the dwarves, but wish those hairless beings would also lighten up.

I hadn't assumed that we'd keep any of the base racial personalities - no one I know has played to racial type, opting instead to rely on background to provide direction for role-playing.

But it is a good thought, and an example of why this is a great exercise for me. I would never have thought of that on my own. I like the idea of either the halflings or the gnomes generally having personalities that are completely out of sync with everyone else's. Baseline, normal individuals of one of them - gnomes, perhaps? - have an innocent childlike, trusting attitude, like Eloi in The Time Machine. They'd been created by the Revrotex to be cheerful slave technicians, after all. Any PC gnomes would likely by antisocial monsters compared to "normal" gnomes, though still remarkably credulous from the point of view of any other race.

Sorry I'm drawing this out, by the way. This first week of Christmas has had me busy enough I haven't spent much time thinking about a game to run in this world (much less a campaign). So I'm going to mull it over for a while and continue to hash out ideas here, before I start an actual game in the setting.