Published AD&D 1st Ed Settings

[Havard]

Which settings were supported for 1st Edition?

Published Settings

• The World of Greyhawk
• The Forgotten Realms
  • Kara-Tur
• Dragonlance
• The World of Conan
• Pelinore
• Zhalindor

With Cosmologies in Deities & Demigods

• Elric
• Cthulhu Mythos
• Lankhmar

Havard


----
D&D Worlds (all editions),OD&D Settings, Classic D&D Settings, AD&D 1st Ed Settings, Savage Worlds Settings, WEG Settings, RuneQuest Settings, BRP Settings, d20 Modern Settings, Pathfinder Settings

[night_druid]

Which settings were supported for 1st Edition?

Havard

Greyhawk, Dragonlance, and Forgotten Realms, IIRC. Could make a case for Aquaria (sp?), although it was never given a true setting book. There was also Kara-Tur as well.

[Havard]

Which settings were supported for 1st Edition?

Havard

Greyhawk, Dragonlance, and Forgotten Realms, IIRC. Could make a case for Aquaria (sp?), although it was never given a true setting book. There was also Kara-Tur as well.

Thanks!
The Known World/Mystara had conversion guidelines to 1E in every single Gazetteer booklet. Does that make it count?

Havard

[night_druid]

Thanks!
The Known World/Mystara had conversion guidelines to 1E in every single Gazetteer booklet. Does that make it count?

<shrug> I suppose so; its about what Kara-Tur got, at least in terms of amount of it recieved in the days of 1e (most of the setting detail was 2e, IIRC). Heavy setting detail is more a 2e thing than any other edition.

[Greywolf]

Which settings were supported for 1st Edition?

Havard

Lankhmar and Hyboria

[cab]

And of course Pelinore.

[Greywolf]

Greyhawk by extension gives us Blackmoor.

Ravenloft, not yet a full campaign, is found in its initial stages in two modules.

[rabindranath72]

Which settings were supported for 1st Edition?

Havard

Lankhmar and Hyboria

\nitpick on
Actually Hyboria is a bit of a misnomer which is sadly quite diffused. Howard only used the words Hyborian Age. The actual land is the Thurian continent.
\nitpick off

[Greywolf]

Which settings were supported for 1st Edition?

Havard

Lankhmar and Hyboria

\nitpick on
Actually Hyboria is a bit of a misnomer which is sadly quite diffused. Howard only used the words Hyborian Age. The actual land is the Thurian continent.
\nitpick off

It is fine to clarify my statements. I want to get them correct. I am neither an expert of R. E. Howard nor of Conan (just a couple of books and movies).

I got my information from the 1985 core rules which has a book called "The World of Hyboria" and a map titled "Hyborian World". It constantly refers to 'lands of Hyboria'. So if Hyboria is a misnomer, I guess that TSR got it wrong.

[rabindranath72]

Which settings were supported for 1st Edition?

Havard

Lankhmar and Hyboria

\nitpick on
Actually Hyboria is a bit of a misnomer which is sadly quite diffused. Howard only used the words Hyborian Age. The actual land is the Thurian continent.
\nitpick off

It is fine to clarify my statements. I want to get them correct. I am neither an expert of R. E. Howard nor of Conan (just a couple of books and movies).

I got my information from the 1985 core rules which has a book called "The World of Hyboria" and a map titled "Hyborian World". It constantly refers to 'lands of Hyboria'. So if Hyboria is a misnomer, I guess that TSR got it wrong.

Yes I have those modules, too, and they were definitely wrong. The latest Howardian scholarship considers this use of the word totally inappropriate.

[Havard]

Wow,
I am really surprised that there were so many settings introduced for 1E. So far I think this thread mentions the following:

Greyhawk
Blackmoor
Dragonlance
Forgotten Realms
Aquaria
Kara-Tur
Mystara (Known World)
Lankhmar
World of Conan
Pelinore


Havard

[night_druid]

Wow,
I am really surprised that there were so many settings introduced for 1E. So far I think this thread mentions the following:

Greyhawk
Blackmoor
Dragonlance
Forgotten Realms
Aquaria
Kara-Tur
Mystara (Known World)
Lankhmar
World of Conan
Pelinore


Havard

Just keep in mind that few of those settings had much in the way of actuall support. Its more a case of a series of modules was set in those settings, but there wasn't an actual boxed set devoted to the setting.

[Greywolf]

Wow,
I am really surprised that there were so many settings introduced for 1E. So far I think this thread mentions the following:

Greyhawk
Blackmoor
Dragonlance
Forgotten Realms
Aquaria
Kara-Tur
Mystara (Known World)
Lankhmar
World of Conan
Pelinore

Havard

Just keep in mind that few of those settings had much in the way of actuall support. Its more a case of a series of modules was set in those settings, but there wasn't an actual boxed set devoted to the setting.

Would Greyhawk and Conan be the only settings that had a boxed set for 1ed AD&D?

Certainly, Dragonlance, Lankhmar, and Kara-Tur had the hardcover books. Pelinore is found in articles from Imagine magazine. Ravenloft grows out of two modules.

[rabindranath72]

Wow,
I am really surprised that there were so many settings introduced for 1E. So far I think this thread mentions the following:

Greyhawk
Blackmoor
Dragonlance
Forgotten Realms
Aquaria
Kara-Tur
Mystara (Known World)
Lankhmar
World of Conan
Pelinore

Havard

Just keep in mind that few of those settings had much in the way of actuall support. Its more a case of a series of modules was set in those settings, but there wasn't an actual boxed set devoted to the setting.

Would Greyhawk and Conan be the only settings that had a boxed set for 1ed AD&D?

Certainly, Dragonlance, Lankhmar, and Kara-Tur had the hardcover books. Pelinore is found in articles from Imagine magazine. Ravenloft grows out of two modules.

As an AD&D setting, Conan had only two modules (plus one "heretic" module dealing with Red Sonja). The boxed set was a proprietary system, close to Marvel's color-coded table.
Forgotten Realms had a boxed set, the famous Grey Box, which IMO is still the best introduction to the setting.
Greyhawk had initially only a folio, later to be expanded into a boxed set.
Kara-Tur was a boxed set, too, designed as an expansion to the generic Oriental Adventures.
And Lankhmar had a softcover (perhaps the worst of the batch. Tons of typos and missing information).

[Greywolf]

Just keep in mind that few of those settings had much in the way of actuall support. Its more a case of a series of modules was set in those settings, but there wasn't an actual boxed set devoted to the setting.

Would Greyhawk and Conan be the only settings that had a boxed set for 1ed AD&D?

Certainly, Dragonlance, Lankhmar, and Kara-Tur had the hardcover books. Pelinore is found in articles from Imagine magazine. Ravenloft grows out of two modules.

As an AD&D setting, Conan had only two modules (plus one "heretic" module dealing with Red Sonja). The boxed set was a proprietary system, close to Marvel's color-coded table.
Forgotten Realms had a boxed set, the famous Grey Box, which IMO is still the best introduction to the setting.
Greyhawk had initially only a folio, later to be expanded into a boxed set.
Kara-Tur was a boxed set, too, designed as an expansion to the generic Oriental Adventures.
And Lankhmar had a softcover (perhaps the worst of the batch. Tons of typos and missing information).

I forget about the "Grey Box" which I do have. I have heard that many prefer this set for the FR setting, as you opined.

The Kara-Tur boxed set is really for 2ed AD&D. And if we bring in 2ed AD&D, we might double the number of settings.

[Shiftkitty]

I know I for one greatly prefer the grey box tot he point of pretty much ignoring almost everything that came after. I stick the major NPCs into the background, though. This game is about our heroes, not Ed Greenwood's. (I think a lot of DMs for get that when they send in Elminster to save the day.) The closest any party has ever come to meeting one of these uber-heroes was during a tongue-in-cheek game when they were trying to save "their tree" from the impending "Great White Death". (They were w group of drow determined to return to the surface and live in peace. It played out a lot like "F-Troop".) As they slashed furiously at the snowflakes, I described a drow with two scimitars hanging off his belt and a great panther sitting beside him, both looking on curiously. (Oh, and one group in a serious game is working directly for Gromph Baenre, but we haven't done much with that lately.)

I was trying to think if somethign was missing from the list of covered worlds. I feel there is, but can't place it at the moment. Argh!

[Hugin]

I stick the major NPCs into the background, though. This game is about our heroes, not Ed Greenwood's. (I think a lot of DMs for get that when they send in Elminster to save the day.)

Very good advice!

[rabindranath72]

The Kara-Tur boxed set is really for 2ed AD&D. And if we bring in 2ed AD&D, we might double the number of settings.

Nope. Kara-Tur is for 1e. It's built on Oriental Adventures, which was a 1e hardback.

[Greywolf]

The Kara-Tur boxed set is really for 2ed AD&D. And if we bring in 2ed AD&D, we might double the number of settings.

Nope. Kara-Tur is for 1e. It's built on Oriental Adventures, which was a 1e hardback.

My bad. I just checked my Kara-Tur set and was reminded that the box set is indeed for 1ed AD&D. 2ed AD&D came out the year after the Kara-Tur box set. The key change to Kara-Tur that I was thinking of that happened between the OA book and the box set is that, with the latter, Kara-Tur becomes a place in FR. In the OA book, it is setting neutral even though it was originally intended for Western Oerth in the Greyhawk setting.

Thank you for setting the record straight.

Of course, Kara-Tur will not return to the shelf with spending some more time in my hands.

[Big Mac]

Could make a case for Aquaria (sp?), although it was never given a true setting book.

I've started up a thread about Aquaria in Other Worlds called: Anyone know anything about Aquaria?

The setting has been mentioned a couple of times, but mostly in the contest of other settings.

The Known World/Mystara had conversion guidelines to 1E in every single Gazetteer booklet. Does that make it count?

I've got two questions about this:

1. Has anyone every used this to make 1e conversion stats for the Mystara content? and
2. Has anyone ever compiled these guidelines to make an OD&D to AD&D conversion guide?

[Havard]

The setting has been mentioned a couple of times, but mostly in the contest of other settings.

The Known World/Mystara had conversion guidelines to 1E in every single Gazetteer booklet. Does that make it count?

I've got two questions about this:

1. Has anyone every used this to make 1e conversion stats for the Mystara content? and
2. Has anyone ever compiled these guidelines to make an OD&D to AD&D conversion guide?

I'm not a 1E expert, but from what I've been told, BECMI and 1E are highly compatible. I think a guide like that would be useful, but I think the most important differences are stuff like BECMI having race classes, so that a BECMI dwarf becomes a 1E Dwarf Fighter etc.

Havard

[rabindranath72]

The setting has been mentioned a couple of times, but mostly in the contest of other settings.

The Known World/Mystara had conversion guidelines to 1E in every single Gazetteer booklet. Does that make it count?

I've got two questions about this:

1. Has anyone every used this to make 1e conversion stats for the Mystara content? and
2. Has anyone ever compiled these guidelines to make an OD&D to AD&D conversion guide?

I'm not a 1E expert, but from what I've been told, BECMI and 1E are highly compatible. I think a guide like that would be useful, but I think the most important differences are stuff like BECMI having race classes, so that a BECMI dwarf becomes a 1E Dwarf Fighter etc.

Havard

Compatibility seems fine on a first read, but there are some tricky points, namely:
1) AD&D 1e spellcasters have a wider spell choice, and in the case of clerics, they typically cast many more spells per day (starting from 1st level).

2) AD&D 1e demihumans have much lower level limits than BECMI's racial classes, even without considering attack ranks. The level limits also depend on ability scores. So for example, if you have a BECMI 12th level Dwarf, it would convert in a dwarf fighter of 7th to 9th level (depending on whether his strength is 16 or less, 17 or 18).

3) AD&D 1e has a much larger choice of magic items and treasures.

In my experience the above are the main stumbling blocks for a conversion, which may force to (boring) rewritings of material.

[night_druid]

I'm not a 1E expert, but from what I've been told, BECMI and 1E are highly compatible. I think a guide like that would be useful, but I think the most important differences are stuff like BECMI having race classes, so that a BECMI dwarf becomes a 1E Dwarf Fighter etc.

Given that many, many gamers use modules from either system interchangably, I'd say they're pretty compatible, at least from low-to-mid levels. I think once you get into the 15th level area, that's where the two start becoming more difficult to use interchangibly (anything D&D that's 20th+ level is probably difficult to use with 1e).

[DaGrizz]

Also Judges Guild put out their City State of the Invincible Overlord during 1E as well as their campaign setting (wilderlands I think) along with a few other supplements before TSR started wielding the Iron fist of copyright law (which is strangely after they Ousted Gary and his wife took over)

[BotWizo]

I'm not a 1E expert, but from what I've been told, BECMI and 1E are highly compatible. I think a guide like that would be useful, but I think the most important differences are stuff like BECMI having race classes, so that a BECMI dwarf becomes a 1E Dwarf Fighter etc.

Given that many, many gamers use modules from either system interchangably, I'd say they're pretty compatible, at least from low-to-mid levels. I think once you get into the 15th level area, that's where the two start becoming more difficult to use interchangibly (anything D&D that's 20th+ level is probably difficult to use with 1e).

Back in the Day (80s) we used BECMI modules straight up for 1e and didn't notice any big issues. night_druid is correct you only really notice the issues at higher levels, where issues that rabindranath was pointing out probably should be corrected.