The Known World Gazetteers - the official campaign setting for BECMI Dungeons and dragons

The Known World was a collection of nations on a continent that first appeared in X1 The Isle of Dread adventure module. This Known World was later developed into the Gazetteer series, becoming the official setting for BECMI Dungeons and Dragons, which later became known as Mystara.
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[@erc1971erc1971]

I know this is personal subjective taste, but what I loved about the old stuff (Mystara and Greyhawk for example) is these fantasy settings were more grounded in real world cultures of the time. While I am sure having gonzo games with tieflings, dragonborn, etc. running around everywhere can be fun; there is something magical that you come across when you restrain the setting and explore the different cultures of these older campaign worlds.

[@PGIFilms]

Unfortunately, the entire collection of BECMI Gazetteers would be cancelled by "modern" D&D players for "Cultural Appropriation" and "Cultural Insensitivity" just like the did to the 1E Oriental Adventures/Kara Tur and 2E Al-Qadim/Arabian Adventures. I think part of the reasoning behind making the highly eclectic Forgotten Realms as the base setting for 5E was to remove the game from it's "problematic" campaign settings that mimic real world cultures. I think I read maybe 4 or 5 Forgotten realms novels 30+ years ago, and they were all different in story, history, and setting. I don't see how any DM for 5E could make a cohesive setting that fits everything from the Forgotten Realms novels and have it make any sense or provide a believable campaign world.

[@GeneWarren]

TBF Mystara had a lot of *extremely* gonzo settings, from Glantri and Alphatia to straight up real-magic Fantasy Island in the Kingdom of Irendi. This doesn't even get started on BECMI's Orcs of Thar and Creature Crucible series which had more options for "nonstandard" PCs than any version of D&D until 5e.

[@PGIFilms]

@@GeneWarren But the big difference between 5e and Forgotten Realms combo and BECMI and Mystara Combo was that players (and particularly DMs that had the burden to come up with themes, characters, creatures, and story plots for their adventures that kind of made sense) could pick and choose what elements from which Gazetteer they wanted to put into the game. With 5e all the crazy mish-mash of every Forgotten Realms novel is default and that means that DM's have to constantly fight with players about what races, classes, subclasses, equipment, lore, etc. are acceptable just so they can come up with a reasonably cohesive adventure. The TSR-Era D&D were "Start simple, start small, then add on and build out" in their design. BECMI excelled regarding this style of game design. AD&D 1E was admittedly a little messier about it, but still in the general scheme, while 2E, even as complex as its rules were, was much more organized with the same kind of "Start simple, start small, then add on and build out" and you can see this in the way that the core PHB, DMG, MM alone were highly flexible in creating custom worlds and settings without locking you into anything and then you simply added on to the core books with the splat books and expanded with the campaign setting box sets like Ravenloft and Dark Sun. Both BECMI and 2E, in the way their products were designed and released, were near identical in that you only needed the core books to play anyway you wanted and each product beyond the core books were options to pick and choose from on how you wish to enrich your game. The design and culture of 5e strikes my as "here's the core books to play D&D with a bunch of crazy stuff players may like, and here's a bunch more books with more crazy stuff players may like. You DM's have fun trying to make sense of it all and don't tell your players they can't use stuff otherwise you're an -ist and a -phobe that's playing the game wrong, because catering to every whim of the players is how everyone is supposed to have fun."

[@andrewmichaelschaefferXIV]

I'm fond of all the cleavage Poor Wizard's Almanac is a freat geographical resource I loved the Saga of the Shadow Lord (Denegoth Setting)

[@Bobfish03]

@@andrewmichaelschaefferXIVI’m currently running saga of the shadow lord with my D&D group in BECMI. It’s been their favourite out of all the adventure modules so far.

[@paulvalentine4157]

You and Mr. Welch are doing wonders for BECMI and Mystara! Thank you!

[@donrosavelli8869]

Agreed. 2 of my favorite channels. 😊

[@Rashman101]

Absolutely! Totally agree!

[@SentientSoup]

Yes! Thank you

[@captcorajus]

Great video! Nice overview! I consider the 'Shadow Elves' one of the best of the Gazetteers and the Atruigan clans the worst. All the Demi human Gaz's are must haves, as is Karameikos, and The Principalities of Glantri. The Orcs of Thar is just fun to read and hilarious, and a great addition to the rules for player characters. Mystara is indeed a very rich and rewarding setting!

[@becmiberserker]

Hi, praise! Love your videos - you set the bar very high, which is great of course. Have to agree with you about the Atruaghin book. If you could spot the decline of TSR in any product it would be this one.

[@dougmartin2007]

What is still like about Mystarra is how they handled gods and religion. It left the opening there to become an immortal yourself, which was lacking in most other settings.

[@newtpondskipper]

I still read these for ideas for current games. Glantri js one of the best books I've ever read.

[@anarionelendili8961]

I fell in love with Gazetteer series. I am still kicking myself for selling them off when I moved. They were a big part making Mystara the living, breathing, 'real' setting that it was.

[@captcorajus]

They have all been moved to POD at drivethru RPG!! So you can recollect them!

[@anarionelendili8961]

@@captcorajus Not quite the same as having the ones I originally collected as a teenager and read through. :)

[@cragland94]

so cool that they included blackmoor into the timeline. RIP dave arneson ❤

[@jasonnewell7036]

Mystara is still my favourite campaign world. It is a great combination of the familiar and the fantastical, and is a perfect place to start.

[@godlaydying]

This setting reminds me of the setting for the Conan stories, where you have ancient Egypt and French knights and the American frontier all happening at the same time so that Conan can interact with them all.

[@midshipman8654]

the one thing I found a little odd is in this veriety of real world analogs, there really isnt really a feudal western european state. I guess Galantri a bit with its fuedal nature, but no real heavy cavalry knights in shining armor types like in conan’s Aquilonia.

[@Bargletheinfamous]

Best setting for BX and BECMI

[@andrewrockwell1282]

I am definitely interested in hearing about the Hollow World in the future. I like the sendoff, keep making your saving throws. 😁

[@davidcook8230]

I remember the Known World from my expert set, but we really used the World of Greyhawk for AD&D. I still wish my father had not tossed both while I was living overseas for 15 years.

[@bentmetal666]

My mom did the same thing, she chucked all my OD&D stuff all the AD&D1e and 2e . I started playing in 1975. I had almost everything and poof it was gone. sad alot of collectors wouldv'e been happy.

[@Taranchule]

I was an AD&D 2E kid, so I only ever knew the setting as Mystara. My main experience with the setting came from the two Capcom developed arcade games. On the tabletop I mainly focused on my homebrew setting that I still tinker with to this day. That said, I have bought PDFs of the Gazetteers over the years, and ingredients of the Known World have made their way into my homebrew. For example, my primary kingdom of Matergrath has more than a little Darokin in it's DNA.

[@iantaran2843]

Unique Magic Swords of Mystara has more creativity in it than the entire collection of 5e content. I love it, everyone needs to look through it.

[@davidpaul1970]

Realizing that this comment comes to you a year after posting this video, but I wanted to let you know this particular video has been helpful in my building a database for what I call Dungeons & Dragons Classic. Thank you.

[@becmiberserker]

You are more than welcome. 🙂

[@SimonAshworthWood]

One of my favourite things about the Known World is the Thyatian empire. As a DM, I intend to have them waging wars of expansion like the Roman empire did, in Celtic & African type lands, enslaving people and so on.... I am inspired by the real life history (and TV & movies) of Spartacus, Vercingetorix, Arminius, etc., to set up opportunities for the players to help a slave uprising, help local Celtic & African types to fight off the Thyatian invaders, to help "pirates" to attack Thyatian slave ships to free the slaves, etc..

[@eliasferdinandsson1719]

Just got all the books in print on demand from drive through RPG. This is my new favourite setting. I also got the wrath of the immortals, RC, hollow world and B1-9. You are doing wonders in this video !

[@MarkGoldfine]

Great video, Berserker 👍 The Known World, or Mystara, is by far my favorite D&D setting. Keep up the great content 🤘

[@MarkHyde]

Thank you so much for this overview showcase of BECMI's The Known World/Mystara setting - great video - looking forward to your views on each of the individual published Gazetteers going froward. There is a wealth of fan/support material that has been created over the decades for it via/and hosted on the Vaults of Pandius web site. Just demonstrating its legacy as one of the most popular D&D settings out there. I particularly like the digital maps that have been re-created too via the Atlas of Mystara project. So much to build from and support adventures and campaigns. Really loving this BECMI focused content - sad I didn't have the internet/YT - yours and others channels when I was a teen in the 80s trying to find my way through the rules etc lol :)

[@anarionelendili8961]

Vaults of Pandius is great. I don't suppose you know any BECMI (Old D&D) forums or Discords? I'd be quite keen on joining one and talk about my favorite campaign setting as well as the game that started my RPG hobby.

[@TKFKU]

Oh man, I can't wait to see if you cover Hollow World. That became our go to setting in the 90s.

[@sunsin1592]

Love the gazetteer series. The fan-made ones are pretty cool too. I don't play in Mystara anymore, but I rip off many of their maps & ideas for my homebrew setting.

[@KabukiKid]

A friend of mine gifted me the Hollow World boxed set years back and I was initially not overly interested, but I still was happy to get more classic D&D material. In the end, I am so glad I got it. Very cool D&D supplement. It's maybe a shame it didn't get more love.

[@iantaran2843]

I might be a 1st edition guy but I absolutely adore your channel.

[@becmiberserker]

Thank you!

[@mechaprawngaming7301]

Very nice videos my friend. Just getting back in to BECMI after oh….a 35 year hiatus. These videos have been invaluable. Thanks.

[@stefanjakubowski8222]

This is my second favorite published setting, and ported it to my favorite syatem In the 90s Thanks for the history

[@becmiberserker]

You’re welcome.

[@MizZar82]

Mystery Star A, one of the most epic and greatest RPG settings ever.

[@PvtSchlock]

I like the overview and big props man. If anything a mention of the Vaults of Pandius at the end might point up something for people to fill the hours between your awesome videos. Like hundreds and hundreds of hours and thats without cracking open a single copy of Threshold magazine... Good work and thank you!

[@ShadCorliss]

I am glad you have started the Gaz series. Everythin you do is appreciated... Thank you

[@SimonAshworthWood]

I like the idea that Elves migrated from the south pole after that world-altering event. I might place some elven realms that players can discover in the area between the south pole and Alfheim.

[@becmiberserker]

What a great idea! Lost communities of elves, each with their own archaic practices. Love it!

[@jeremygard]

Great video. Love your speech craft. Well spoken Queen’s English (old school, still getting used to saying King). I too had the same feeling when reading again through all the gazetteers. So much possibility. Yes, the known world is really just that, to the simple folk who lived there. I’m sure our ancient people didn’t understand Earth as a planet. Well done. Deserves a coffee for sure.

[@becmiberserker]

Thanks for the coffee! I too can’t stop saying “Queen”. I mean, she was there all my life! 🙂

[@ren_dhark]

And there hasn't only been the Gazetteer series that describe nations of the Known World to us, there is although the Champions of Mystara box, covering Sind, the Great Waste, Graakhalia, the Serpent Peninsula, Yavdlom and Ulimwengu, the Creature Crucibles series, covering the flying Sky Gnome city of Serraine, the Dreamlands of Alfheim, the Sea Floor of the Sea of Dread and the Valley of the Wolves, the Red Steel and Savage Baronies boxes covering the Savage Coast and beyond, the Wrath of the Immortals box replacing the immorts box and adding a living campaign for the years after 1000 AC and the Odyssey Books for Jakandor and the Savage Coast. And returning to the main regions, the AD&D 2nd Ed. boxes for Karameikos and Glantri are awesome as well. You've already mentioned the Hollow World, so there's a bunch of Gazetteers/Accessories for these as well. And this is only the official tip of the iceberg, there is a whole bunch of fan made gazetteers for other regions as well at the Vaults of Pandius. So in short, I can't wait for all of them to get covered by you (-; Thanks a lot for keeping the Known World alive!

[@becmiberserker]

I'm not sure I'll live that long, but thanks!

[@NefariousKoel]

I recall seeing the minimalist version of Mystara in X1 and loving the openness of that approach. Having just enough description of each nation to get a vague idea of the culture, many loosely based on some from history, was a good idea. Yet leaving so much open for the GM to fill in as needed. Great approach, especially with the hex map to fill in with whatever you needed as you went. I think the Midgard setting from Kobold Press is the only other one I've since seen which takes the same historically inspired culture approach to such an extent. Was pretty impressed with that too, even if simply taking bits & pieces from. The Midgard Worldbook is ridiculously packed with such things.

[@graham4885]

You have really shown the true breadth of the Known World and Mystara. I'm a fan of Mystara, BECMI and your videos. You are right about there being no living memory of the Nithians. Their architecture can be discovered by curious explorers across the Known World and Hollow World, showing the depth of Mystara's own history. Giving each land a theme has enabled players and DM's add colour without the lands becoming general.

[@SimonAshworthWood]

So true! Even though I have read some info about the Nithians, I still don't remember anything about them! 😜 (Ok, I do remember they were like the ancient Egyptians or something, but that's about all I remember.)

[@graham4885]

@@SimonAshworthWood Well I think they misbehaved and got banished to the Hollow World by the Immortals. Further info in Gaz2 Ylaruam and the Hollow World books. There is a ancient Egypt themed module called Dark Tower too.

[@patrickmosier3674]

I still have most of this stuff from the 80s in a plastic tub

[@jeremydurdil556]

I recommend throwing in a few of those silica gel packets you get with new shoes and the like. They really help control environmental moisture in an enclosed space.

[@n.ludemann9199]

Hey, I love your videos :) BECMI and BX are now my D&D home, after I stopped playing and DMing the 3rd and newer editions - I still play 1e and 2e AD&D, Gamma World and Star Frontiers though. On Good Friday, my party and I will give OD&D a one-shot-try. One of the greatest part of BECMI are those GAZ-Series books and the boxed set. My 80s and 90s parties never wanted to play basic D&D - they preferred the Advanced game and I could never convince them of the Basic games power of simplicity and versatility at the same time. Cyclopedia, GAZs and the Creature Catalogue are almost everything I use today (the weeeeee folk was a great addition though.)

[@becmiberserker]

Thanks for the kind comments! The ‘Advanced’ in AD&D was the biggest obstacle for BECMI. Nerdy kids, not unlike myself, couldn’t get past seeing BECMI as a simplified version.

[@kyzer42]

My favorite fact about Mystara is that the world map looks like prehistoric Earth, with the land of Alphatia where Atlantis would be. In a certain adventure, there's even a possibility that Alphatia could sink beneath the sea just like Atlantis...

[@xavierp7658]

What adventure is this?

[@kyzer42]

@@xavierp7658 The Immortals' Fury

[@kennetth1389]

This comment has nothing to do with the current video. However, I recently obtained the Rules Cyclopedia and have come across the best city encounter table I have ever seen since beginning play in 1977. Page 98, 160 random encounter possibilities, I am truly impressed by this book.

[@0den]

I enjoyed watching all of your videos (some of them more than once) and this one is the best so far. can't wait for your focus and expansion videos on each one of the gazetteers ! Thank you for this❤

[@becmiberserker]

Thanks for the kind feedback. Are you able to let me know why this one was better?

[@0den]

@@becmiberserker In general your videos make complicated things easier to understand. for example: I never really understood the immortals set, but the way you summarized it and presented the content step by step just made things clear and easy to digest. in this specific video, I liked how you overviewed the known world by briefly highlighting each of the nations. would be great also to learn how it might be possible for a DM to tie them all together.

[@becmiberserker]

@@0den This is really helpful. Thank you for your time. 🙂

[@AAron-gr3jk]

What I'm fascinated by is the tighter scifi elements in the background, in The secret history of the setting. The temple of the frog for example

[@markfaulkner8191]

Wonderful video! I will share this with my players. Thank you 🙂

[@AuthorTraceRichards]

Awesome vid. I’m currently running an ad&d 2e game set in Karameikos.

[@Arcboltkonrad13]

Such a fantastic setting and one which I turn to for inspiration more and more as I develop my own OSR setting.

[@paulofrota3958]

Thank you for another amazing video. Mystara has always been my favorite D&D setting.

[@turner42]

Amazing video as always!

[@davemills8193]

looking forward to it

[@docnecrotic]

A great introduction to a great series! I can't wait to hear your takes on the books.

[@circuithijacker]

The format and style of the Gazetteers remind me of the Birthright setting, which I very much like.

[@jeremydurdil556]

Thank you for such a great video. I appreciate the spotlight on this often overlooked gem of the hobby. Your pacing and timbre is easier to follow than many others on the topic. I am looking forward to your future installments.

[@becmiberserker]

Thanks for the kind comment. It really encourages me. 🙂

[@davidbrennan660]

Great video and world.

[@johnmccabe2687]

Very enjoyable video. Love your pronunciation for Ylaruam and Ierendi. Nice clearly spoken and natural delivery. An old teacher always said that when reading from a script, it shouldn't sound like you are reading from a script. "What's read is dead" he would always say. I don't play anymore but still have my books. Excellent introduction to each of the countries - nice teasers of what's to come. Look forward to the more in depth analysis and your take on each Gaz. Keep up the good work.

[@becmiberserker]

Thanks for that. I agree with your teacher! Thanks for watching and I’ll try to keep up with the pronunciations.

[@Rashman101]

I'm running a mystara campaign now and thoroughly running this content! Thanks!

[@nordicmaelstrom4714]

Mystara is an excellent campaign setting. I was very glad to find out that wotc would never touch it and I breathed a sigh of relief. I have the Grand Duchy of Karameikos, the Principalities of Glantri and the combined book for Alphatia and Thyatis. Would like to get the whole series eventually just to have them all. Gotta love DriveThruRPG for print on demand!

[@engbama]

Looking forward to this series.

[@roysummers1026]

Thanks for this. Great ideas for world building.....I am going to the DMs Guild to buy these.

[@retrodmray]

Great stuff, sir! Thank you very much!!

[@gleewind]

Great video! A minor suggestion for future videos, I think the word 'analog' is more fitting than 'parody'

[@becmiberserker]

You’re the second person to highlight my slip. I was supposed to say “parallels”. I was low on sleep whilst editing, so plead exhaustion. 🙂 Thanks for watching.

[@gregoryspurgeon8974]

A well constructed video on what sounds like a great setting that I'm sorry to have missed out on, thank you! You addressed this a little at the end of the video, but I wonder if in future videos you might expand on whether the sense of endless possibilities across a wild frontier was adequately preserved as the world was filled in by these Gazetteers. It seems to be an unavoidable tension in D&D settings, doesn't it? The format of the game demands an unexplored frontier, and DMs like to have something to put their own mark on, but one also always has a hunger for more world building content. Then, as that demand gets met, the world just fills up until there is no room for independent creation. I think that Forgotten Realms suffers a lot from an imbalance towards the latter side of that tension, and it sounds like perhaps Mystara did better. Did it? Anyway, great work!

[@becmiberserker]

A great point, and I absolutely agree with you in respect of Forgotten Realms. In my opinion, the Gazetteers do a better job at this by offering a backdrop and then lots of adventure ideas, none of which you have to take up. There’s very little in terms of dependencies between the books as well, which is actually a benefit. For instance, think what would happen if you removed the core factions from FR and suddenly there are no Harpers or Zhentarim. There is so much tied up with the factions that you just don’t want to deal with it. Those interdependencies become a shackle, which I’m pleased to say doesn’t exist in the Gazetteers. Anyway, I hope that helps. Thanks so much for watching and commenting.

[@FatalDevotee1]

Thanks!

[@becmiberserker]

Thank you so much!

[@jakobnoe-nygaard9548]

Thanks

[@becmiberserker]

Thank you!

[@nuriochi]

This is great! I’ve loved and used some of these myself but love your overview. And your presentation is lovely and easy to follow.

[@Axiie]

Thyatis and Alphatia are giving some heavy Athans & Sparta vibes, at least in pop culture and the classic oppositions they have; is that something you've seen with them? Must admit, I think shorter, quicker videos focusing in on each of these would be kinda cool, but I totally get that being beyond the scope of an overview look. I also like that you touched on the points of them being close to historic cultures, and the idea of tropes and cliches being good in some regards, mainly, for how easily it can be for newer people (and even experienced ones) to "attach" to the idea of them. I think that's part of the key to findinig inspiration with real world cultures and events; use enough to draw some familiarity, then diverge.

[@Axiie]

I commented just before the end of the video! >< I look forward to your deeper deep dives!

[@anarionelendili8961]

I'd go more Rome and Hellenistic Kingdoms, personally, but even that is a huge simplification. Still, the pop culture idea of Romans being practical and militaristic, with the Hellenistic Kingdoms being decadent, wealthy but with so much infighting that Romans managed to take them out one by one... Sounds a lot like Thyatis vs. Alphatia in that sense.

[@Axiie]

@@anarionelendili8961 I didn't even consider Rome/Greek comparison, but now you raise it its probably spot on. I always think of military/magic kingdom dichotomy as being Sparta/Athens inspired. Thanks for replying!

[@stillmattwest]

Okay kids, this is what we’ve been waiting for from the Berserker. I’ve already learned that I’ve been mispronouncing the names of these books for the last thirty plus years.

[@jamesmaclennan4525]

My Favourite was the Five Shires where you found that the most feared Pirate Captains of the Known World were a trio of Halfling Lasses...with distinctly non-halfling feet

[@DjigitDaniel]

Absolutely brilliant work, sir. Thank you for making these videos. I keep wanting to get into KZbin video production, but haven't pulled the trigger. What inspires you to make this content?

[@becmiberserker]

I think you just bought me a coffee, so many thanks for that. 🙂 Inspiration comes from two things. First nostalgia, but second is the need to present these products to a new generation. So many of WotC’s recent campaign and adventure material is of less than ideal standard. By showing the quality of work from the past, I hope to highlight how much material there is for people to delve into without thinking they need the next new shiny thing all the time. And if I convince a few people to play BECMI on the way then all the better. Thanks for watching!

[@DjigitDaniel]

@@becmiberserker , hear hear. I will seek similar inspiration to step forth on similar questing.

[@stevefugatt7075]

A fine video! These things were great sources of ideas for my own world I had at the time. Are you planning on doing any videos on any individual Gazetteers in the future?

[@becmiberserker]

I hope to do all of them. Might take some time though. Still, let’s hope I get there.

[@anthonyisback]

Awesome content!!

[@becmiberserker]

Thank you. ☺️

[@APaganPerspective]

Hope you do Hollow World

[@LangeloScuro]

As an old grognard, it is always entertaining to see videos like yours. I'm looking forward to your future Gazatter videos as well as the Hollow World and Thunder Rift. Will you be creating a new 'Mystara' playlist for them or file them under your current 'BECMI' one?

[@becmiberserker]

I think I’ll do a separate playlist.

[@midshipman8654]

I really like the balance of mystara. not so much stuff that it feels stifling, but enough stuff to really get your imagination going. It’s a balance thats really hard to strike, but an absolutely fruitful one for creation and play.

[@jasonnewell7036]

I am actually going to run a 5E intro for new players at my FLGS, and I am setting it in Mystara.

[@charlesvincent4127]

I really missed out on these because the group I games with created their own world to adventure in, perhaps picking these up along with a rule's cyclopedia would be prudent.

[@becmiberserker]

I highly recommend it!

[@anarionelendili8961]

@@becmiberserker Ditto!

[@anarionelendili8961]

BTW, you don't need to pick up all of them. For instance, you can start with the Karameikos one, together for the B1-9 In Search of Adventure - adventure module set, and you are off to the races. Hours of fun. Note though that B-series does have some of its... I won't call them stinkers, but let's say that they show the lack of careful world building, with the low level characters running into ancient lost civilizations, princesses etc. I'd hack those into higher, Expert level adventures, once the PCs start exploring outside of Karameikos. I am thinking particularly Hall of Rock, Silver Princess and The Lost City. However, The Veiled Society is one of the best adventures out ever, regardless of system, IMHO. Once the characters are up some levels, then it is time to expand outside Karameikos, and you can get whatever Gazetteers that the campaign is growing towards. Darokin offers a lot of possibilities, for example, and is the starting point for some of the better Expert adventures, too.

[@charlesvincent4127]

@@anarionelendili8961 IF only it were that easy, lol my completionist nature is hard to deny sometimes.

[@estelaplateada4]

My appetite has indeed been wet

[@rollwight5228]

I really like the concept of the gazeteers, and the way they expanded the known world. It was an amazing feat of ... gazeteering ... I would've like a compendium book though, which brought the rules they expanded together. Just from a ease of use perspective. Searching digital copies probably makes this unnecessary now!

[@edackley8595]

BRAVO!

[@chrissangenette6359]

Looking forward to more gaz videos. Any chance of videos on the creature crucibles?

[@becmiberserker]

One day! I’ll be doing Ierendi pretty soon though.

[@user-pg3pe4gx4p]

The good old days of high adventure.

[@Eron_the_Relentless]

Based on this video and your GAZ1 video I dropped ~$400 on Known World-related PODs. I'm still waiting for them to be printed but wanted to let you know that these are moving the needle for me. Here's hoping Wizards finishes PODing the Hollow World supplements and creature collections (can't remember proper name, sorry).

[@becmiberserker]

Wow! I hope you love them. Kind of feel responsible if you don’t. 😬

[@Eron_the_Relentless]

@@becmiberserker While a few may be missing pullouts (I did a quick scan of all of them, I haven't had nearly enough time to dive all the way through) They seem to be a pretty solid set. I've read some of the Grand Duchy and a little bit of Glantri in preparation for your video on the subject. The majority of the holes in the POD library is in Hollow World, where only the base campaign set, HWR2 HWA3, and PC3 are in print. I'm hoping you drum up enough interest that people buy the PODs I have and Wizards gets off their duff and PODs the others in the line. I thumbed through Hollow World as well, interesting how the mechanics of BECMI inform the setting and in some cases don't requiring rules expansion within the Gazetteers themselves.

[@raff3486]

I'd love to have a spotify version of this series so i could listen to it while doing work😅

[@becmiberserker]

I refer to a lot of on-screen stuff so probably wouldn’t work in its current narrative format.

[@Arnsteel634]

I much preferred it being called the known world

[@pancakewizard1533]

Great stuff! Thunder Rift on the cards?

[@becmiberserker]

Eventually!

[@PGIFilms]

Did they ever make a compilation book of the 15 Gazatteers like how the BECMI sets were compiled into the Rules Cyclopedia?

[@becmiberserker]

That would be some tome! No, they didn’t make such a compilation as far as I’m aware.

[@PGIFilms]

@@becmiberserker Just looked at DriveThruRPG and it would cost $250+ for the Rules Cyclopedia and all 15 Gazatteers. Never owned any of the original Gazatteers. DriveThru RPG mentions Player and DM booklets. Did the originals Gazzetteers come in boxed sets of 2 booklets like the core BECMI sets, or is the split Player/DM booklets something DriveThruRPG doing on their own?

[@becmiberserker]

@@PGIFilmsThe only boxed set was Dawn of the Emperors, which covered Thyatis and Alphatia. There was also Wrath of the Immortals but that didn’t fall within the Gazetteers series. Hope this helps.

[@becmiberserker]

@@PGIFilmsJust thought, many of the Gazetteers had player and DM sections, as I describe in my Gazetteer videos, but these were part of the same booklet.

[@PGIFilms]

@@becmiberserker Are your reviews based on the original 1980s Gazetteers or the DriveThruRPG reprints?

[@josephkrausz9557]

I'm hoping you'll eventually do a video on B10 and maybe X11.

[@becmiberserker]

One day! 🙂

[@josephkrausz9557]

@@becmiberserker Looking forward!

[@cb3391]

Awesome! Will yoy be doing a written narrative using basic rules?

[@becmiberserker]

Hi, CB. What do you mean? 🙂

[@cb3391]

I am a fan of your narrative from before, I was wondering if you will do another campaign using basic rules?

[@cb3391]

Ps ty again for this channel Basic truly is my d&d

[@michaelmiguelsanchez]

I hear that the elves of Alfheim are formidable warriors, perhaps you should try and recruit them.

[@graham4885]

Well the Duke of Karameikos did just that, well Elves that have settled in Karameikos anyway.

[@wilm3864]

Do you plan to do a video on the Hollow World?

[@becmiberserker]

One day, but it’s a long way off.

[@democracymmmk]

Instead of finding a pirated copy, does anybody know if each booklet has wandering monster tables for in each realm × hex area?

[@becmiberserker]

No wandering monster tables, but suggestions on what monsters live in some of the publications, so you may design your own.

[@XX-sp3tt]

And traveling there via Spelljammer is still cheaper and more reliable than taking the quick route via Sigil as you're likely gonna get gutted out of house and home for the privilege of using a portal.

[@becmiberserker]

I wonder what the key from Sigil to Mystara would be. 🤔

[@BlackJar72]

Funny that when I opened my Expert Set, I saw the "known world" maps as more an example than a setting to actually use, and never even interpreted "know world" as a name (instead taking it as simply meaning the part of the world known to PC and their culture -- much like talking about real world Romans having conquered "the known world"). I never actually really liked the setting that well, though, as it seemed unbelievable to have so many disparate cultures in such a small area, seeing as a "culture zoo" in the a way comparable to complaining about a "monster motel."

[@SimonAshworthWood]

Yeah... I agree to some extent... but I do like plenty about Mystara, so what I do is change the aspects that I dislike to make them how I prefer. E.g. I am fine with the countries of the Known World being something like they are in their summarised descriptions, but not being how they are detailed in their gazetteers. However, even these summaries may be stereotypes that ignorant foreigners believe about those countries, rather than a representative description of those countries. E.g. in my world, Ierendi is NOT a mass tourist destination. I find mass medieval tourism hard to believe, plus makes the world seem less dangerous and thus less exciting. The real medieval world of our Earth had a few rare instances of travel for leisure or learning & more so for religious purposes (pilgrimages), but it was not common enough for any countries to have their economies focussed on tourism. In real medieval times, a few nobles went from German lands to fight as "tourists" in the Teutonic crusades in the Baltic lands... that is more what I imagine might happen in the Known World. E.g. Glantri is ruled by magic users, and has a bit more magic than other countries, but it is not chock full of magic (I like settings with less magic and I find it hard to believe that a country could be chock full of magic yet not have conquered their less magical neighbours already). E.g. I also don't have the Darokin nor Minrothad merchant-type character classes. In my world, Minrothad has ocean traders and some pirates, and rivals Darokin. Maybe it is even dominated by a system of guilds. However, the guilds are not exactly as described in the gazetteer... and it is human dominated, and there are probably not entire guilds of sea-going demihumans.

[@Toreadorification]

I did not appreciate the Hollow World. They made a fantasy world, then they created a world of wilder and wilder magic (Glantri and Alphatia), then they tried with this Hollow World to do a more low-fantasy setting. I would have preferred it to be set in a separate dimension. Also because of chronological order Thyatis and Alphatia are introduced afterwards, but their power should have influenced the politics of the other lands more. Not very balanced as you have lands where magic is rare and relatively unknown next to magocracies. Still it is the Known World and we all love it!

[@RedJay81]

Were the Gazetters ever released in a single volume?

[@Eruidraith]

I confess I’m a bit skeptical of the native culture based book, but I’ll have to wait and see. Just too many really godawful native appropriations in games that end up a cartoonish mess. But this seems really measured, so perhaps it’s not that bad. I’m radically not into OSR at all, but I love the history of it all and if it were up to me I’d have all kinds of old sourcebooks cause I love them. Your presentation style is great and very soothing. This is good at-work listening

[@becmiberserker]

Thanks for the comment. Five down and ten to go. I hope you enjoy the series.

[@ToddPutnam]

Are you aware of any D&D B/X or BECMI monster initiative card products available for purchase?

[@becmiberserker]

I’m not I’m afraid.

[@ToddPutnam]

@@becmiberserker I'm sorry, I don't understand your response. I was asking if you were aware of any monster card initiative products that were compatible with either the B/X or BECMI sets.

[@becmiberserker]

@@ToddPutnam Hi, Todd. Sorry for twisting my words around. I meant I’m afraid not, as in I don’t know of any. 🙂

[@jorgeroblesreyes9254]

One question did it age wel?

[@becmiberserker]

Honestly, some parts did and some parts didn’t. I’m four reviews into the Gazetteers if you want to check them reviews, with Gaz5 up in a couple of weeks. I don’t hold back on things which I think are poor.

[@becmiberserker]

My review of Gaz4 is particularly scathing.

[@ejaedike]

Aargh! Book me passage south - Bargle must DIE!!!

[@wbbartlett]

While RuneQuest was publishing Glorantha, D&D was pumping out this derivative setting. Oh, and GAZ4 - so D&D settings have a thriving tourism industry? okaay...

[@becmiberserker]

Lol 😂 Oh yeah! I was as nonplussed as you when I re-read the books. I’ll certainly focus on the strange notion of this in my review of that book.

[@cpmf2112]

Sometimes I wish they wouldn't have named the Known World, took all the Mystara out of it 😂

[@randyping6036]

Is it me, or did they just draw John Wayne as Genghis Khan in there???? 😅

[@dr.death4377]

i'm a 50ish year old man and got told i know too much about the known world aka mystara.sorry if i own all the gazaetters 1thu 15. didn't want to play your way of running a game their.

[@dr.death4377]

sorry if youtube exist.

[@scottwalker6947]

Shame that most of these books are now considered...problematic.

[@stillmattwest]

Oh but they are, lol. The 80s were a decade that tried to be inclusive but they didn’t have the benefit of decades of attempts at that sort of thing behind them. It’s cringe worthy today, but they weren’t made with bad intentions. Gotta love the 80s perms in every culture.