Talk:5e Campaign Settings

I made the following comments elsewhere, I'm quoting them here in case anyone finds them helpful.

• A campaign needs: 1) An interesting hook, something that distinguishes it from a vanilla D&D campaign (I've seen lots of campaigns here that just seem to be the usual tolkeinesque world, quite boring). 2) Information on the history, land, people and organizations of the campaign area. This doesn't have to be a whole world, it could be as focused as just one city or region. 3) How do the races and classes fit into the campaign. 4) How does magic and divinity work (e.g. what is the pantheon) if it is different from vanilla. 5) Story hooks - in what ways can an adventuring group come together? Who can they work for? Give some adventure ideas. (Many campaigns here miss this step, and to me missing it makes a campaign almost unusable). And new to 5e: 6) New character backgrounds specific for your campaign.

Marasmusine (talk) 01:53, 23 January 2015 (MST)

Right now this page just uses Add Instructions, however if we want to treat this otherwise we could add something like 4e Race Add Instructions. Do we agree that this knowledge should be shared so that users stop creating terrible campaigns? --Green Dragon (talk) 12:11, 25 January 2015 (MST)

This is an aside, but would it make sense to have the default template be more like the one used by Dominaria (and that I tweaked for Orizon)? It seems a lot more accessible and easier to navigate and read than the default. Lemiel14n3 (talk) 13:02, 25 January 2015 (MST)

The preload for campaign settings is awful! Nobody uses it, and it has cryptic headers with no explanation! I mean, if you're writing up a setting here, you've probably already been working on it and know what you're doing, but even so, I wish there were some sort of commonality or useful elements in the preload. In regards to the first message on this page, a campaign setting needs:

1. A list of content from the core rules which is allowed, altered, or banned in the setting. (For example, a no-magic setting would ban all spellcasting classes and archetypes, alter backgrounds which lead to spell casting, and create new content to replace their mechanical importance.)
2. Lists of unique content created and intended for the setting. (Equipment, spells, classes, archetypes, races, backgrounds, monsters, feats, etc.)
3. A list of variant rules inherent to the setting. (For instance, a setting which decides your school of magic based on the current phase in the lunar cycle would need a rule explaining how to do so.)
4. A cosmetic description of the setting and its content, covering the Who, When, Where, Why, and How of it all. Not all settings have a complex geography, but by their nature as a setting will at least have a place.
5. Major factions in the setting if it had any. (A setting with more than 2 people and no factions is honestly unrealistic and inhuman- people disagree with each other by instinct.)
6. A rundown of any prologue essential to play. In a tolkeinesque setting, this would likely be in the form of a historical report, but more unique settings may have an explanation of the current situation, for example. --Kydo (talk) 10:48, 21 July 2015 (MDT)

I like your ideas. Just to get some more information, what do you think about the current preloads. Are they useful? How exactly would you organize the preload options that this page provides? --Green Dragon (talk) 13:10, 21 July 2015 (MDT)

To be clear, I'm not the most knowledgeable when it comes to technical wiki stuff. I think "preload" refers to the default formated information generated when you use one of those "add a page" buttons. Your reply makes me think I am using the wrong word though. Is the preload the button I pressto add a page? If you're asking what I think of the buttons, I think they're great. Don't change the buttons please. If you're asking me what I think of the default page information they generate, I think they're pretty accurate and useful with the exclusion of campaign settings. This is why I bring it up. If you go and try to add a background, for example, it gives you a meaningful and well-organized set of headers with comments explaining the basics of what needs to be done to fill them out. With a campaign setting, you get five headers of information I wouldn't even consider to be especially important, sorted in no apparwnt order, two of which are totally meaningless to me. Each section's comments only tell you that you can add additional pages for them and how to do so. Just what is the "Signs" section for anyways?? Sign languages? Religious signs? Signs of prophecy? I don't get it. --Kydo (talk) 19:35, 22 July 2015 (MDT)

Also, when I try to add one of those supplemental pages, I get even less explanatiom. They have one header for a title and a comment that says "supplemental page information". I might as well just type my new page title into the search bar and hit "create this page" on the results screen. --Kydo (talk) 19:38, 22 July 2015 (MDT)

OK, so I did a search and found 5e Campaign Setting Preload. Yes. It is the preload I have a problem with. The supplemental page preloads are even worse, why do we have multiple buttons to produce identical pages? The main page should be an objectively written introduction and description of the setting and a directory to supplemental pages. Should be sorted something like this:

1. Campaign Rules. (List banned or altered rules here. Add a supplemental page if new rules are being introduced by putting your setting category on a new 5e rule page.) Followed by a context list of pages containing your campaign name as a category.
2. Races. (List allowed and banned races and subraces here. List cosmetic or stylistic changes to allowed races and subraces. Add a supplemental page for each new race or subrace introduced by putting your setting category on a new 5e race page.) Followed by a context list of race pages containing your campaign name as a category.
3. Classes. (List allowed and banned classes and archetypes here. List cosmetic changes to allowed classes and archetypes. Add a supplemental page for each new race or subrace introduced by putting your setting category on a new 5e class page.) Followed by a context list of class pages containing your campaign name as a category.
4. Equipment (List any banned or altered equipment here. Add a supplemental page for any new items introduced by putting your setting category on a new 5e equipment page.) Followed by a context list of pages containing your campaign name as a category.
5. Spells (List any banned or altered spells here. Add a supplemental page for any new spells introduced by putting your setting category on a new 5e spell page.) Followed by a context list of spell pages containing your campaign name as a category.
6. Monsters (List any banned or altered monsters here. Add a supplemental page for any new monsters introduced by putting your setting category on a new 5e equipment page.) Followed by a context list of monster pages containing your campaign name as a category.
7. Who. (Describe the cultures, nations, corporations, religions, romantic pairings, and other social groups which define the setting. You should also give important figures for each group, such as the deity of a religion. You may add supplemental pages for this.) Context list of supplemental paged in category.
8. Where (Describe the place(s) the setting is all about, be it a sprawling fantasy world, a galaxy of advanced space knights and space princesses, or the back seat of a car.) Context list.
9. When (Describe the events of the setting. This could be a brief back story of immediate events, a long historical exposition detailing the events of a world, or even a prophecy describing a future state. This can be used by players to understand where their actions fit into the events of the setting. If the setting has its history fleshed out from the dawn to the dusk of all time, one could also use it to choose a period in which they may play.) Context list.

Each header should have a comment with a brief explanation of what to include on the main page, and what should be made a separate page. The preload also needs to be included in a category with the campaign setting title as its name. For example, Alcon (5e Campaign Setting) would automatically be in Category:Alcon when the page is added. This would allow editors to copypasta the pregenerated category onto whatever supplemental pages they create. A preload like this would be clear, easy to navigate, well organized, and give explanation of what is expected from a campaign setting. --Kydo (talk) 19:58, 7 August 2015 (MDT)

I have since realized that such an organization would only be clear and useful to people who are competent with the basic user-interface of a computer. People who can barely spell, can not type, and look at wiki markup like it's advanced physics would die. In other words, we need a preload that an idiot can use. Now that I understand how preloads and input boxes work, I could make an effort to improve the situation. I have noticed that most users don't even use the preload. They wipe the slate clean and instead use some other setup. The arrangement they use looks pretty standard, too. Where are they getting this alternate page layout from? --Kydo (talk) 11:01, 5 October 2016 (MDT)

I think that if you can honestly develop a preload that any "idiot" can use this would already be a huge step forward. As soon as you make this prototype I will give my input without a question! --Green Dragon (talk) 17:32, 5 October 2016 (MDT)

I need to do a lot more research to actually do it. I need to read other campaign settings that have done well, and see how they're organized, then find a way to streamline and simplify their most effective techniques. --Kydo (talk) 17:54, 5 October 2016 (MDT)

Requested Edit

Please add Campaign Setting Help somewhere in the intro. Not a admin so can't edit this one. Thanks!   Hooper   talk    contribs    email   20:49, 2 November 2016 (MDT)

So...

Just what in Sam Hill are signs? Quincy (talk) 15:17, 16 September 2018 (MDT)

R1 Settings

I am not an expert on this site's infrastructure, so if any of this is impossible or just a bad idea let me know, but would it be possible to have rating 1 campaign settings count as !'s? The description explicitly states that they are most likely stubs, a user who actively cares about and is working on their setting will change the rating when appropriate, and it would make sorting through incomplete pages without edits in x time for abandoned/delete templates include settings. --Ref3rence (talk) 12:26, 7 July 2020 (MDT)

That's a good idea. I implemented it now. --Green Dragon (talk) 10:34, 8 July 2020 (MDT)