So, below is a 'cheat sheet' (sort of) for players in a setting i have created. Its intention is to try and get the basics of the setting across to the players, with out overwhelming them with information. Some of my group like this way of presenting setting information, others like a more detailed brief, which i have also prepared for them. The below fits on one side of A4, the more detailed brief (which once i have edited a bit i can link to as an example of a longer form brief) is 10 pages.
Which do you prefer when playing in a new setting? (just for my own personal interest), the more brief example below, or something that has more detail?
The Ashlands: setting information for players.
This world was once a green and pleasant land – until the great disaster struck. The world suffered a series of natural disasters, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and terrible storms, which destroyed the old world and its civilisations.
The survivors of this cataclysm found ways to persist. The humans gathered under a great leader known as the Prophet, and the dwarves under a gifted dwarf known as the Maker. Together they built great cities in the wastes, using sorcery and engineering, and created a new society. The elves became nomadic “Ashland tribes”, wandering the ash wastes, refining their traditional survival methods to live in this changed world.
Other survivors of the cataclysm were not so lucky, and became known as the Changed, who roam the wastes in raider tribes, considering themselves stronger for the changes inflicted upon them long ago. The Changed are like beast-men in their form.
The cities built by the survivors are made of stone, shaped and formed with sorcery, protecting those within from the dangers of the ash lands. They are ziggurat-like in shape, enclosed and fortified, their internal environment controlled by engineering tricks and sorcery. The cities are nearly self-sufficient, growing their own food in chambers beneath.
The cities are linked by roads, and along these roads are outposts: small settlements placed either to exploit a resource, or provide a trade and rest stop along the way to another city or outpost. Outposts that thrive are built-upon to become cities. Another form of transport between cities are the new airships, though there are not many of them yet.
The ash lands have many terrain features: dead, ash-blown forests; streams, pools and lakes of magma; ruins of the former age long gone; strange forests of hardy fungi (mushroom like plants); and many dangers as well: insect- and reptile-like creatures hunted by (and sometimes hunting) the Ashland tribes; the tribes of the Changed; ash-wyverns and other such creatures – all adapted to this new world.
Technology wise, all weapons and armour of the cities are made of steel, as iron is an abundant resource. Black powder weapons have been made, though they are mainly in military hands. Sorcerous artefacts help the cities survive, as do clever engineering solutions. The main beasts of burden and riding beasts are domesticated reptilian animals, as horses seem not to have survived the cataclysm.
The folk of the cities and outposts revere the great figures of Prophet and Maker, and the Four: the Farmer, the Healer, the Warrior, and the Hunter, who helped them build the cities and society they live in now.
The Ashland tribes worship their ancestors, but their way is not truly understood by those of the cities. Who the Changed worship, if anyone, is unknown to those of the cities.
Magic is taught in the cities, the cult of the Prophet provides common and divine magic to those who become priests, as do the cults of the Farmer, Healer, Warrior and Hunter; and the cult of the Maker teaches sorcery to its students. In the cities independent teachers will pass on their knowledge of common magic, and small groups of sorcerers will teach sorcery that is not part of the training of those who follow the Maker’s path.
Crime is punished in but two ways in the cities and outposts. For lesser crimes such as theft, the guilty party will be assigned a term of hard labour lasting a minimum of a year. This labour will involve working at tasks that help keep the city maintained, like clearing ash from the city’s defensive dry moat, maintaining the condition of roads between cities and other such work. Major crimes are punished by exile to the wastes. The guilty party is branded and expelled, the brand ensuring that no one will aid them at outposts or other cities.
Which do you prefer when playing in a new setting? (just for my own personal interest), the more brief example below, or something that has more detail?
The Ashlands: setting information for players.
This world was once a green and pleasant land – until the great disaster struck. The world suffered a series of natural disasters, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and terrible storms, which destroyed the old world and its civilisations.
The survivors of this cataclysm found ways to persist. The humans gathered under a great leader known as the Prophet, and the dwarves under a gifted dwarf known as the Maker. Together they built great cities in the wastes, using sorcery and engineering, and created a new society. The elves became nomadic “Ashland tribes”, wandering the ash wastes, refining their traditional survival methods to live in this changed world.
Other survivors of the cataclysm were not so lucky, and became known as the Changed, who roam the wastes in raider tribes, considering themselves stronger for the changes inflicted upon them long ago. The Changed are like beast-men in their form.
The cities built by the survivors are made of stone, shaped and formed with sorcery, protecting those within from the dangers of the ash lands. They are ziggurat-like in shape, enclosed and fortified, their internal environment controlled by engineering tricks and sorcery. The cities are nearly self-sufficient, growing their own food in chambers beneath.
The cities are linked by roads, and along these roads are outposts: small settlements placed either to exploit a resource, or provide a trade and rest stop along the way to another city or outpost. Outposts that thrive are built-upon to become cities. Another form of transport between cities are the new airships, though there are not many of them yet.
The ash lands have many terrain features: dead, ash-blown forests; streams, pools and lakes of magma; ruins of the former age long gone; strange forests of hardy fungi (mushroom like plants); and many dangers as well: insect- and reptile-like creatures hunted by (and sometimes hunting) the Ashland tribes; the tribes of the Changed; ash-wyverns and other such creatures – all adapted to this new world.
Technology wise, all weapons and armour of the cities are made of steel, as iron is an abundant resource. Black powder weapons have been made, though they are mainly in military hands. Sorcerous artefacts help the cities survive, as do clever engineering solutions. The main beasts of burden and riding beasts are domesticated reptilian animals, as horses seem not to have survived the cataclysm.
The folk of the cities and outposts revere the great figures of Prophet and Maker, and the Four: the Farmer, the Healer, the Warrior, and the Hunter, who helped them build the cities and society they live in now.
The Ashland tribes worship their ancestors, but their way is not truly understood by those of the cities. Who the Changed worship, if anyone, is unknown to those of the cities.
Magic is taught in the cities, the cult of the Prophet provides common and divine magic to those who become priests, as do the cults of the Farmer, Healer, Warrior and Hunter; and the cult of the Maker teaches sorcery to its students. In the cities independent teachers will pass on their knowledge of common magic, and small groups of sorcerers will teach sorcery that is not part of the training of those who follow the Maker’s path.
Crime is punished in but two ways in the cities and outposts. For lesser crimes such as theft, the guilty party will be assigned a term of hard labour lasting a minimum of a year. This labour will involve working at tasks that help keep the city maintained, like clearing ash from the city’s defensive dry moat, maintaining the condition of roads between cities and other such work. Major crimes are punished by exile to the wastes. The guilty party is branded and expelled, the brand ensuring that no one will aid them at outposts or other cities.
