Settings and Support

[Owen K.C. Stephens]

 

I don't know yet exactly what setting material will make it into the book, and likely won't know all the details until just before we go to print. But certainly there is going to be setting material. The current plan is that it'll come in three forms:

 

1. Assumed background. When writing the game rules, we will assume the material is going to be used for the core Warlords of the Apocalypse setting. The morlock write-up is an example of this -- in addition to game stats that write-up includes some information on morlock history and society that is what we envision as "standard" for the book's setting. Much like the information for elves and gnomes and such in the Pathfinder Core Rulebook this isn’t so heavy that it prevents players and GMs from thinking of other ways to use the races, but it’s enough to get a feel for the typical view of such characters.

The same will be true in classes, archetypes, monsters, and even equipment. It’s a little bit in each place, but it forms a cohesive tapestry, without that tapestry being so thick you can’t easily cut it up and rearrange it to suit your own needs.

 

2. Pick Your Apocalypse. As I have mentioned before, there will be a chapter on how to use different sets of the WotA rules to create different feeling apocalyptic settings, and it will present at *least* three different settings – Plan Z, Road Wars, and Warlords of the Apocalypse. I don’t know how much space I’ll have for each of these yet, though I believe they will at most be micro-gazetteers. But that will be focused campaign setting information, and form a basis we hope to build on in future support products.

 

3. Introductory Adventure. We plan to include an introductory adventure, and it should have some fungible campaign information. It’ll use the core Warlords of the Apocalypse setting, and should provide a good base for ongoing adventures past the introduction. My plan is for it to include a small settlement, more Sandpoint than Greyhawk in scale, with enough info and NPCs for a GM to run with it until we get some more material out.

 

And then there is the question of more material. While a lot of factors will go into final decisions, my *hope* is that we’ll have enough popularity to justify both pdf and print support. Small pdfs with new monsters, threats, and apocalyptic treasures will be easy. Bigger setting books (preferably with print options) require better sales, but I’d like to do them. An adventure path is not impossible.

 

What would you all like to see, both in the book and as follow-up products?