tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post1717205901514113944..comments2024-03-28T03:23:34.498-05:00Comments on Save Versus<br> All Wands: Your Campaign Setting: Middle-Earth or Narnia?Oakes Spaldinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08078500142758654392noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-4820687625753554942017-07-01T14:44:43.700-05:002017-07-01T14:44:43.700-05:00Interesting distinction between the Middle Earth a...Interesting distinction between the Middle Earth and Narnia; for me the distinction between both of them is anagogy/symbolism versus allegory, respectively.Axel Castillahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09603801985068174718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-55824579745018344742016-07-30T10:50:22.162-05:002016-07-30T10:50:22.162-05:00Narnia is surprisingly dark if you just look at th...Narnia is surprisingly dark if you just look at the setting itself apart from the gentleness of Lewis's narrative voice: cannibal giants, immortal half-demon enchantress as regicidal serpent, pretender king sets out to murder his nephew, dwarven necromancy ... leave the setting the same and switch the narrative voice to John Bellairs and you've got a grim world to explore. Jarrett Perduehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09781934913113611353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-23046713393989812462016-06-21T20:15:30.508-05:002016-06-21T20:15:30.508-05:00The Broken Sword by Poul AndersonThe Broken Sword by Poul AndersonRainforest Gianthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15385869309076485429noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-46475089276529759992015-08-02T02:59:57.836-05:002015-08-02T02:59:57.836-05:00Sorry to comment so late, but I just found your bl...Sorry to comment so late, but I just found your blog. <br /><br />I disagree with your premise. D&D campaigns do not have to <i>be</i> Narnia or Middle Earth. Nor Oz or Xanth or Gloriantha, or Shanarra, Pern, Darkover, Arthurian England, Harry Potter, Wheel of Time, or Game of Thrones...<br /><br />My campaign world of choice is and always has been the World of Greyhawk. Even before the Folio was published in 1980, I'd seen enough fascinating glimpses of Gygax's home game in the rulebooks, the modules, Dragon magazine, Norton's <b>Quag Keep</b> and various articles and interviews to know that was my fantasy world. <br /><br />If forced into your false dichotomy, Greyhawk is hands down Middle Earth, even though both Gygax's world and mine grew organically according to the imaginations and whims of the players rather than being carefully designed. Despite using Gygax's source material, my Greyhawk is different from his. And it's entirely incompatible with Carl Sargent's take in <b>From the Ashes</b>.<br /><br />But I also think you're unfairly seeing Narnia where it isn't, and failing to see Tolkien where it clearly is. <br /><br />Case in point, your creature list: Middle Earth has vast areas that were never explored. Who can say what lives there? Aside from elves going to and from Valinor, no one ever recorded an ocean voyage. That makes it kind of difficult for characters to meet Mermen, Squid or Sea Serpents (but there was a lake monster in the pool outside Moria). No characters ever travelled to the jungles where Oliphants originate, But if they did I'd bet there's Apes & giant bats too. Just because we didn't actually meet various types of elementals, demons or undead doesn't mean they aren't there. One of Sauron's titles was "Lord of Werewolves", QED, there were Werewolves. Bear tracks were found all around Beorn's house. QED, there were bears. Pork and Ham are mentioned. QED, there were boars. Perhaps there were no Gnomes, but there may as well have been: he called them Hobbits. All that is speculative. On the other hand, you must have just flat out missed or ignored Tolkien's Giants, Ogres, Trolls, Evil Wolves and Wraiths.<br /><br />Everything in Tolkien's work either came from carefully selected mythologies, legends and folk traditions, or was invented by him. On the other hand, Lewis' anything goes approach to Narnia allowed him to draw story elements from just about anywhere, but also meant he invented fewer things that were uniquely his.own. Tolkien's influence is clearly identifiable throughout the early D&D material. TSR tried to disclaim it because they were terrified by the prospect of being sued by the Tolkien Estate. But I can not think of a single thing in any version of D&D that was unique to Narnia, or invented by C.S. Lewis. There were some coincidental elements that were <i>also</i> in Narnia, but probably derived from other sources in D&D. This is not to say that he didn't heavily influence D&D <i>as played</i> by many people, but only that nothing unique to him found it way into any of TSR's published rules, settings or adventures that I am aware of.tomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06653459162258850269noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-8482178756483379752014-10-20T04:52:45.069-05:002014-10-20T04:52:45.069-05:00NRA Santa handing out plussed-up lewts to kids? He...NRA Santa handing out plussed-up lewts to kids? Hell yeah!<br /><br />And in OD&D you can't really ignore the influence of post-apocalyptic weird fiction like Hiero's Journey. http://rolesrules.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/hiero-and-d.htmlRoger G-Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08594440701279968693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-49340674816923713882014-10-19T19:38:22.101-05:002014-10-19T19:38:22.101-05:00I noticed that most fantasy game world are describ...I noticed that most fantasy game world are described using things like solar systems, number of moons, orbital periods, rotation rates, weather patterns, etc. The exact kind of stuff you'd expect from a science fiction RPG. <br /><br />The only one I can think of that doesn't follow this pattern is Glorantha. A world clearly more fantastic than realistic.Hedgehobbithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17606283586332210195noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-15682650472557725092014-10-19T15:46:10.983-05:002014-10-19T15:46:10.983-05:00Oakes, wow, thanks for another really helpful post...Oakes, wow, thanks for another really helpful post. Yes, Narnia for gaming, of course. Lewis has another legendarium as well, though. And that is the implicit "dark ages" Arthurian legend implicit in his science fiction trilogy. It has a lot more overlap with Middle Earth, including Numenor. As soon as Merlin shows up at the house, he puts the old Scottsman to sleep. Nothing like a simple first level spell! I've been trying to "reverse engineer" a fantastical Christendom campaign setting by triangulation from Lewis' and Tolkien's Arthurian stuff, set as a giant hex-crawl in unexplored continental Europe some time after the Slavs have converted but before the schism. (So clerics are recognized by all.) The hex crawl with random rolls, especially if you roll random terrain, enchantments and attacks by moving trees (!) helps to keep that sparkling magical Narnian feel. Thanks for a great post! Anyway, I talked about this setting on the boards here: http://odd74.proboards.com/post/145324/threadTetramorphhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07253316716885460459noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-77675833145621046042014-10-19T15:41:09.232-05:002014-10-19T15:41:09.232-05:00Well, there is also the Horse and His Boy. So ther...Well, there is also the Horse and His Boy. So there is room for a little Middle Earth specificity in the grand wonder of Narnia in general, I would say.Tetramorphhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07253316716885460459noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-25410830901346158442014-10-19T14:23:47.743-05:002014-10-19T14:23:47.743-05:00As you put it, D&D "default game world&qu...As you put it, D&D "default game world" is more narnian that tolkienian. Running a Middle Earth D&D campain would require a lot of "substraction" (no high level spell, no cleric, and almost none of the Monster Manual). With Narnia you could keep "adding" . <br />besides , Narnia has more of the "Ren-fair" flavour of D&D (which is <b>not</b> only <i>Sword&Sorcery</i>: jousting rules, please?)porphyre77https://www.blogger.com/profile/07620350717226228078noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-20084628230099906862014-10-19T10:56:09.785-05:002014-10-19T10:56:09.785-05:00I just added your blog. Sorry for not seeing it. I...I just added your blog. Sorry for not seeing it. I didn't know very much about Fighting Fantasy either.<br /><br />Yes. That's a great post that precisely nails that sort of approach.Oakes Spaldinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08078500142758654392noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-22241199862381924492014-10-19T10:32:07.867-05:002014-10-19T10:32:07.867-05:00When I'm on a gaming hiatus - like I am now - ...When I'm on a gaming hiatus - like I am now - I find myself being drawn to naturalistic settings. Oh, I regret selling all my MERP stuff! My, wouldn't it be good to run a pseudo-historical low-fantasy game. And then I remember what I wrote about Titan (the Fighting Fantasy world) - which bears a striking similarity to what you have written here about Narnia.<br /><br />http://drbargle.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/titanic-bullet-points.htmlAndy Bartletthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06683770320671028815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-43597357465949027902014-10-19T10:13:15.318-05:002014-10-19T10:13:15.318-05:00Yes. Pauline Baynes, as we know. There's a gre...Yes. Pauline Baynes, as we know. There's a great tribute site at: http://www.paulinebaynes.com.Oakes Spaldinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08078500142758654392noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-77859092614558664032014-10-19T10:06:11.767-05:002014-10-19T10:06:11.767-05:00Narnia is what I want. Took me awhile to figure th...Narnia is what I want. Took me awhile to figure that out. It is hard to get that sense of wonder when it is all so familiar. For me that surprise is part of the draw.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18323401622178716738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-91356487684277384012014-10-19T09:44:04.710-05:002014-10-19T09:44:04.710-05:00I'm definitely more of a Narnian when I GM. Th...I'm definitely more of a Narnian when I GM. Though as of late I've become more of a Dying Earth sort of guy.Daniel Lucehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08688892205253323668noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-86033260986883058322014-10-19T08:11:11.020-05:002014-10-19T08:11:11.020-05:00It's funny. Whenever I set out to create a se...It's funny. Whenever I set out to create a setting for D&D, I want it to be "Narnia." Or rather, the D&D Cartoon from the 80's. Weird magical locations, unknown and unknowable creatures and stuff.<br /><br />Then I start working on this country and that section of the map, and pantheons and conflicts and legendary heroes... Before I know it, I've got "Middle Earth." Well, Middle-Earth-lite, anyway.Dennis Laffeyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03053699552003336733noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-91241442863494151302014-10-19T00:16:58.785-05:002014-10-19T00:16:58.785-05:00Hey, Sorry to double-post, Oakes... But that pictu...Hey, Sorry to double-post, Oakes... But that picture you have of the Narnia map is fricken' gorgeous, man! Forgot to mention that :PBurton Simshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15139325727020928325noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6560143148581212281.post-5401183845613645862014-10-19T00:15:49.227-05:002014-10-19T00:15:49.227-05:00Man, after just reading 6 of 7 of the Narnia books...Man, after just reading 6 of 7 of the Narnia books last week, I'd *positively love* to game in Narnia! <br /><br />I could care less if much of it is 'for kids'... Especially considering playing along those veins sparks a certain innocent charm that can be just as fun as the blood-royale, Tankards and Tavern-wenches style of swords and sorcery gaming that I also love so much. Either can be a whole lot of fun. And man, those Narnia books are chock-full of stuff to do and places to go! <br /><br />I suppose If I ran one, I'd start a game right after Peter, Susan, Edmond and Lucy just got back from their first time in Narnia so there quite a bit has already happened that can set a precedence of 'understanding' in the gamers who've read at least part of the series. Probably begin the campaign in that time and maybe before Prince Caspian shows up. <br /><br />And how could someone *not* want to play a reepicheep!!Burton Simshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15139325727020928325noreply@blogger.com