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Olde Greyhawk

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
zombiegleemax
Feb 04, 2005 21:57:36 I picked up Gygax's "Artifact of Evil' today at a used book store, and am floored at how freakin' good it is...

That sayed, If I were to go 'purely Gygax' with Greyhawk, what sources would I look for?

ie. Anyone have a list of solely Gygax material for Greyhawk, or of material produced by others that he agreed with/sanctioned?
#2
zombiegleemax
Feb 05, 2005 2:42:49
I picked up Gygax's "Artifact of Evil' today at a used book store, and am floored at how freakin' good it is...

That sayed, If I were to go 'purely Gygax' with Greyhawk, what sources would I look for?

ie. Anyone have a list of solely Gygax material for Greyhawk, or of material produced by others that he agreed with/sanctioned?

You should check out the Dragonsfoot site. They have a Greyhawk forum that is all about Gygax's Greyhawk.

The other novels are the best resources. The original folio and modules as well. It is a much different kind of campaign. Of course his original stated idea for the published campaign was to allow DMs to develop most of it on their own while he simply provided an overall framework.

Not to every DMs liking or ability to make the time, but extremely rewarding.
#3
faraer
Feb 05, 2005 12:13:45 The main Gygax-Greyhawk sources are the original D&D and AD&D rulebooks and accessories (especially the DMG), the World of Greyhawk folio and boxed set, Gary's modules, his Dragon articles, the TSR and New Infinities-published Gord novels, Living Fantasy (which outlines how an AD&D-type world, of which the World of Greyhawk is an example, works), and the forthcoming Castle Zagyg volumes.

Gygax's original Greyhawk certainly has its own nature, consistency, and appeal, which is the setting's chief appeal for me. The idea is not to follow any particular canon but to tap into this most rewarding style of worldbuilding and play. (And all the partisan bickering and recrimination over which version of Greyhawk, or D&D, is best has never been anything other than a stupid waste of time.)
#4
zombiegleemax
Feb 05, 2005 15:22:37 I always thought that Gygax was good at creating fun dialog and situations, but terrible at plotting. I'm glad you enjoyed the book overall, though. I was about 50/50 on it for the reasons mentioned above.
#5
i-m_batman_dup
Feb 06, 2005 5:08:15 I need to get my players to think more Greyhawkian and less Faerunian. They love to read D&D novels for some reason, but they keep bring Forgotten Realms novels to the game. Which Greyhawk novels should I suggest they try? (I assume there are some, right?)

(And all the partisan bickering and recrimination over which version of Greyhawk, or D&D, is best has never been anything other than a stupid waste of time.)

It's the meaning of life!!!

So, yeah, basically what you said. ;)
#6
zombiegleemax
Feb 06, 2005 5:32:03
I need to get my players to think more Greyhawkian and less Faerunian. They love to read D&D novels for some reason, but they keep bring Forgotten Realms novels to the game. Which Greyhawk novels should I suggest they try? (I assume there are some, right?)

It's the meaning of life!!!

So, yeah, basically what you said. ;)

There are 7 Greyhawk novels by Gygax. They are worth reading and for the DM they are priceless treasures detailing the aspects of the setting and providing atmosphere for the campaign.

There are 6 atrocious novels by Estes that are best for camping trips but I'd suggest just taking some real toilet paper since it burns as well and is more absorbent.

There is an early novel by Norton that isn't really Greyhawk called Quag Keep.

There is a novel called Nightwatch by Bailey that isn't bad but doesn't really feel like a Greyhawk novel to me.

There are 2 novels by Emerson but she unfortunately seems to know nothing about D&D or AD&D or the Greyhawk setting.

There are 2 novels by Kidd (or is it 3?) that have a humorous take on the Greyhawk setting. O so I've been told, but I haven't read them.

There is 1 novel by Reid called The Temple of Elemental Evil.

There is 1 novel by Strohm called The Tomb of Horrors.
(Haven't read either of them).

Those are the only ones I can think of off hand.

I'd suggest just reading the Gygax novels.
#7
thanael
Feb 06, 2005 10:10:52 Here`s a rundown on all the GH books:

http://www.canonfire.com/htmlnew/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=815&sid=2997bd49e6714fc1849cbcdd761e198c
#8
Mortepierre
Feb 06, 2005 11:50:02
There are 2 novels by Emerson but she unfortunately seems to know nothing about D&D or AD&D or the Greyhawk setting.

That isn't very fair. Her "Against the Giants" novel wasn't that bad. Fact is, I rather liked the way it was done (even if the area she placed the Hill Giant stronghold was far from "canon"). Of course, it doesn't hold a candle to that piece of sheer genius Jason Zavoda has been publishing regularly at Harvester's Heroes (Nosnra's Saga, not to name it), but it was decent. Well, compared to Estes' work, that is *cough*

As for the EGG novels, people unfamiliar with the whole story need to be aware that those published after the second (Artifact of Evil) use quite a few locations whose "canon" names had to be altered by EGG (probably due to TSR's lawyers, bleh!). But anyone who knows GH will recognize instantly those places, so no harm done.

A good way to "browse" through the content of those novels is to visit Chris Siren's website:

http://home.comcast.net/~chris.s/gordmain.html

WARNING! That website contains a lot of spoilers!
#9
zombiegleemax
Feb 06, 2005 13:43:36 I don't have a problem with Emerson's writing, but I wish someone had given her a rundown on the magic system and a copy of the Greyhawk folio at the very least. And her combat was very strange. I kinda remember her heroes kept bringing down giants by hitting them in the head frequently. Her novels just didn't seem to have much connection to the setting either.

When I see a Greyhawk banner on something I'm always hoping for Greyhawk content.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 zombiegleemax Feb 04, 2005 21:57:36	I picked up Gygax's "Artifact of Evil' today at a used book store, and am floored at how freakin' good it is... That sayed, If I were to go 'purely Gygax' with Greyhawk, what sources would I look for? ie. Anyone have a list of solely Gygax material for Greyhawk, or of material produced by others that he agreed with/sanctioned?
#2 zombiegleemax Feb 05, 2005 2:42:49	I picked up Gygax's "Artifact of Evil' today at a used book store, and am floored at how freakin' good it is... That sayed, If I were to go 'purely Gygax' with Greyhawk, what sources would I look for? ie. Anyone have a list of solely Gygax material for Greyhawk, or of material produced by others that he agreed with/sanctioned? You should check out the Dragonsfoot site. They have a Greyhawk forum that is all about Gygax's Greyhawk. The other novels are the best resources. The original folio and modules as well. It is a much different kind of campaign. Of course his original stated idea for the published campaign was to allow DMs to develop most of it on their own while he simply provided an overall framework. Not to every DMs liking or ability to make the time, but extremely rewarding.
#3 faraer Feb 05, 2005 12:13:45	The main Gygax-Greyhawk sources are the original D&D and AD&D rulebooks and accessories (especially the DMG), the World of Greyhawk folio and boxed set, Gary's modules, his Dragon articles, the TSR and New Infinities-published Gord novels, Living Fantasy (which outlines how an AD&D-type world, of which the World of Greyhawk is an example, works), and the forthcoming Castle Zagyg volumes. Gygax's original Greyhawk certainly has its own nature, consistency, and appeal, which is the setting's chief appeal for me. The idea is not to follow any particular canon but to tap into this most rewarding style of worldbuilding and play. (And all the partisan bickering and recrimination over which version of Greyhawk, or D&D, is best has never been anything other than a stupid waste of time.)
#4 zombiegleemax Feb 05, 2005 15:22:37	I always thought that Gygax was good at creating fun dialog and situations, but terrible at plotting. I'm glad you enjoyed the book overall, though. I was about 50/50 on it for the reasons mentioned above.
#5 i-m_batman_dup Feb 06, 2005 5:08:15	I need to get my players to think more Greyhawkian and less Faerunian. They love to read D&D novels for some reason, but they keep bring Forgotten Realms novels to the game. Which Greyhawk novels should I suggest they try? (I assume there are some, right?) (And all the partisan bickering and recrimination over which version of Greyhawk, or D&D, is best has never been anything other than a stupid waste of time.) It's the meaning of life!!! So, yeah, basically what you said. ;)
#6 zombiegleemax Feb 06, 2005 5:32:03	I need to get my players to think more Greyhawkian and less Faerunian. They love to read D&D novels for some reason, but they keep bring Forgotten Realms novels to the game. Which Greyhawk novels should I suggest they try? (I assume there are some, right?) It's the meaning of life!!! So, yeah, basically what you said. ;) There are 7 Greyhawk novels by Gygax. They are worth reading and for the DM they are priceless treasures detailing the aspects of the setting and providing atmosphere for the campaign. There are 6 atrocious novels by Estes that are best for camping trips but I'd suggest just taking some real toilet paper since it burns as well and is more absorbent. There is an early novel by Norton that isn't really Greyhawk called Quag Keep. There is a novel called Nightwatch by Bailey that isn't bad but doesn't really feel like a Greyhawk novel to me. There are 2 novels by Emerson but she unfortunately seems to know nothing about D&D or AD&D or the Greyhawk setting. There are 2 novels by Kidd (or is it 3?) that have a humorous take on the Greyhawk setting. O so I've been told, but I haven't read them. There is 1 novel by Reid called The Temple of Elemental Evil. There is 1 novel by Strohm called The Tomb of Horrors. (Haven't read either of them). Those are the only ones I can think of off hand. I'd suggest just reading the Gygax novels.
#7 thanael Feb 06, 2005 10:10:52	Here`s a rundown on all the GH books: http://www.canonfire.com/htmlnew/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=815&sid=2997bd49e6714fc1849cbcdd761e198c
#8 Mortepierre Feb 06, 2005 11:50:02	There are 2 novels by Emerson but she unfortunately seems to know nothing about D&D or AD&D or the Greyhawk setting. That isn't very fair. Her "Against the Giants" novel wasn't that bad. Fact is, I rather liked the way it was done (even if the area she placed the Hill Giant stronghold was far from "canon"). Of course, it doesn't hold a candle to that piece of sheer genius Jason Zavoda has been publishing regularly at Harvester's Heroes (Nosnra's Saga, not to name it), but it was decent. Well, compared to Estes' work, that is cough As for the EGG novels, people unfamiliar with the whole story need to be aware that those published after the second (Artifact of Evil) use quite a few locations whose "canon" names had to be altered by EGG (probably due to TSR's lawyers, bleh!). But anyone who knows GH will recognize instantly those places, so no harm done. A good way to "browse" through the content of those novels is to visit Chris Siren's website: http://home.comcast.net/~chris.s/gordmain.html WARNING! That website contains a lot of spoilers!
#9 zombiegleemax Feb 06, 2005 13:43:36	I don't have a problem with Emerson's writing, but I wish someone had given her a rundown on the magic system and a copy of the Greyhawk folio at the very least. And her combat was very strange. I kinda remember her heroes kept bringing down giants by hitting them in the head frequently. Her novels just didn't seem to have much connection to the setting either. When I see a Greyhawk banner on something I'm always hoping for Greyhawk content.