Excellent video and thoughtful advice! Really helpful to the beginning DM/GM - or even an old grognard that feels a little stale in their approach to world-building. Subscribed! Can't wait for more content.
I love a realistic, geographically correct world for the players to explore. I feel if I'm invested in it I convey the world much better to the players
I'm trying to imagine a system where major landmarks are generated as you go. Not sure how to do that while still having things spotted at reasonable distances. Kind of want things to be a surprise for me, too. Thinking about, if it's going to be hexes, using player sigh distances as a way of forcing generation of the contents you could see at those distances, but not sure if someone's already come up with a better, probably simpler way to have some surprises without overwhelming the person running it. Sensible advice as far as not making things too magical (Edit: Sigh distances would be pretty awesome but I meant sight distances)
Thanks! Yes I agree, that can be tricky. If you are procedurally generating as you go.. your players may go from a plains a couple hexes away into a mountain and wonder why they didn't see the mountains off in the distance in the first place. I'm sure some people have some good advice for it, but I don't have any direct sources to point to at the moment.
@@Earthmote The only thing I can think of right off the top of my head is like an overlay system, where areas explored are filled in, maybe by the GM/DM off to the side. Within the hexes explored there are different sight ranges that allow for things of a certain height to be seen, mountains, towers, towns (due to smoke from chimney fires), that sort of thing. Roll on those charts (once for 3 hexes (mountains, towers, cities), once for 2 hexes (forests, towns, villages) and place them where sensible or sort of randomly. Those places are considered explored for the purpose of bigger things. But other stuff that's lower that has to be seen within one hex, (swamp vs. plain, big hole in the ground, lakes), and flatter stuff or smaller stuff means exploring the hex itself (generation on the spot when you enter, or when you explore). Maybe long distances would give a hint as to the terrain, but getting close lets you know where the borders are and how big it really is? I wonder if video games have spoiled me a bit since it's all handled behind the veil
I like Earthmote videos.
Excellent video and thoughtful advice! Really helpful to the beginning DM/GM - or even an old grognard that feels a little stale in their approach to world-building.
Subscribed! Can't wait for more content.
Thank you! Glad it was helpful
I love a realistic, geographically correct world for the players to explore. I feel if I'm invested in it I convey the world much better to the players
I agree, Its my preferred approach too, with some blended fantasy mixed in!
I'm trying to imagine a system where major landmarks are generated as you go. Not sure how to do that while still having things spotted at reasonable distances. Kind of want things to be a surprise for me, too. Thinking about, if it's going to be hexes, using player sigh distances as a way of forcing generation of the contents you could see at those distances, but not sure if someone's already come up with a better, probably simpler way to have some surprises without overwhelming the person running it.
Sensible advice as far as not making things too magical
(Edit: Sigh distances would be pretty awesome but I meant sight distances)
Thanks! Yes I agree, that can be tricky. If you are procedurally generating as you go.. your players may go from a plains a couple hexes away into a mountain and wonder why they didn't see the mountains off in the distance in the first place. I'm sure some people have some good advice for it, but I don't have any direct sources to point to at the moment.
@@Earthmote The only thing I can think of right off the top of my head is like an overlay system, where areas explored are filled in, maybe by the GM/DM off to the side. Within the hexes explored there are different sight ranges that allow for things of a certain height to be seen, mountains, towers, towns (due to smoke from chimney fires), that sort of thing. Roll on those charts (once for 3 hexes (mountains, towers, cities), once for 2 hexes (forests, towns, villages) and place them where sensible or sort of randomly. Those places are considered explored for the purpose of bigger things. But other stuff that's lower that has to be seen within one hex, (swamp vs. plain, big hole in the ground, lakes), and flatter stuff or smaller stuff means exploring the hex itself (generation on the spot when you enter, or when you explore). Maybe long distances would give a hint as to the terrain, but getting close lets you know where the borders are and how big it really is? I wonder if video games have spoiled me a bit since it's all handled behind the veil