Which Area Speaks to You?

[capitalbill]

I've been enjoying reading through the Gazetteer and some of the threads here (Benoist's game set on the Savage Boreal Coast, Morgan's game set in the Lug Wasteland, and Jason's work on his Catacombs of Ptolemides). So, the question is- which area of the setting speaks the most to you? Where would you set a game if you were kicking one off in Hyperborea?

I have come across a score of intriguing possibilities, with the leading contenders:
1) Alus Mercury: exploring the buried ruins of the Hyperborean city of untold mysteries
2) Black Forest Inlet: exploring the overgrown forested ruins of the Viking King Omo populated by his people's wild cannibal descendents
3) Xenadon: exploring the overgrown snake-infested ruins of a Xathoqquan city populated by a witch-woman, her renegade Amazons, and savage beasts
4) Khromarium: exploring the vacated and "haunted" twisting Hyperborean towers of the Old City

At the moment I am favoring Alus Mercury and Khromarium the most. Thoughts?

[mabon5127]

Hey Capitalbill!

I'll give you the wimpy answer first...they would all be good! Each place you have mentioned has been left vague enough to make your own yet been made interesting enough to start a campaign.

I chose the area around Khromarium for practical reasons. With the diversity of the worlds largest port nearby I could justify nearly any race or class so the players would not be artificially restricted. I also enjoy adventures at sea. If I wanted a far flung adventure in one of the other interesting places its only a sea voyage away!

That being said the dark places of Khromarium would be a fantastic adventure. One that scares me as a GM. Khromarium is so important to the feel of Hyperborea that "getting it right" put me off a little. I want to do the dark underbelly of the ancient city campaign but I want to make sure as a GM I understand Hyperborea a little better. I know its just a game but I'm weird that way.

Hyperborea is the only setting I have used whole cloth. I have stolen ideas from various places over the last 37 years but never used a setting as is. I'm comfortable in this place.

Morgan

[Ghul]

Interestingly, I kicked off my own Hyperborea campaign on Xenadon, with a made-up adventure that combined elements inspired by Merritt's Dwellers in the Mirage, CAS's Tale of Satampra Zeiros, and (sorry if this last one throws you off) George Perez's Wonder Woman.

That being said, Khromarium has been a staple of the campaign. You mentioned the twisting towers of Old Khromarium. I actually adapted Matt Finch's Tower of Mouths to suit the campaign, turning it into one of those towers. It worked out quite well.

Whatever you decide, please keep us updated!