Campaign vs. Setting [Archive] - Wizards Community

Campaign vs. Setting [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
halzmar of geoff
02-08-04, 01:28 AM I started thinking about this on another thread. I was wondering if anyone else feels that there is a difference between a campaign and a setting.

It seems to me that a campaign is the series of adventures the characters go through during a certain time period. The adventures can be tied together by theme, enemy, or simply the group going through it. While a setting would be the backdrop or world in which the campaign occurs.

Thus the City of the Spider Queen, and Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil would both be considered campaigns and FR or GH would not be considered campaigns, but would be settings.

Just wondering if anyone else differentiates between campaign and setting? And which is more important in your game the setting or the campaign?
Fi'Irdray
02-08-04, 01:50 AM granted that I'm new at this, but I see teh campeign as the major goal at the time, full of smaller side-quests that may or may not take you too the final goal, campeign setting is just the world where they play...

I don't see any as more important than the other, I need the campeign to play the game, but I need the world, the locations, the people to give purpose behind the campeign
Incenjucar
02-08-04, 01:54 AM Campaign: The series of adventures.

Setting: Where the campaign takes place.
ThoughtfulOwl
02-08-04, 10:14 AM The difference between them also depends on how broadly and deeply the setting is defined; for example, for some of the homebrew campaigns I've DMed, I didn't bother defining the world; rather, I developed each small tidbit as soon as the campaign approached it. So I would split the definition of setting in two:

- Setting: a cohesive, comprehensive view of a game world (or a significant part of it); while it might geared toward certain styles and themes (like a swashbuckling setting or an horror setting), it can be the ground foundation of many different campaigns; in fact, some of the best published settings are those who can accomodate a great variety of different campaigns.

- Campaign background: essentially a watered down setting, all its contents are geared toward a given campaing and its planned outcome. Adapting it for another campaign is bothersome, so it is usually found in campaign-specific homebrews and standalone adventure paths. In fact, being campaign-specific means that it might be seen as part of the campaign, rather than a separate element.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
halzmar of geoff 02-08-04, 01:28 AM	I started thinking about this on another thread. I was wondering if anyone else feels that there is a difference between a campaign and a setting. It seems to me that a campaign is the series of adventures the characters go through during a certain time period. The adventures can be tied together by theme, enemy, or simply the group going through it. While a setting would be the backdrop or world in which the campaign occurs. Thus the City of the Spider Queen, and Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil would both be considered campaigns and FR or GH would not be considered campaigns, but would be settings. Just wondering if anyone else differentiates between campaign and setting? And which is more important in your game the setting or the campaign?
Fi'Irdray 02-08-04, 01:50 AM	granted that I'm new at this, but I see teh campeign as the major goal at the time, full of smaller side-quests that may or may not take you too the final goal, campeign setting is just the world where they play... I don't see any as more important than the other, I need the campeign to play the game, but I need the world, the locations, the people to give purpose behind the campeign
Incenjucar 02-08-04, 01:54 AM	Campaign: The series of adventures. Setting: Where the campaign takes place.
ThoughtfulOwl 02-08-04, 10:14 AM	The difference between them also depends on how broadly and deeply the setting is defined; for example, for some of the homebrew campaigns I've DMed, I didn't bother defining the world; rather, I developed each small tidbit as soon as the campaign approached it. So I would split the definition of setting in two: - Setting: a cohesive, comprehensive view of a game world (or a significant part of it); while it might geared toward certain styles and themes (like a swashbuckling setting or an horror setting), it can be the ground foundation of many different campaigns; in fact, some of the best published settings are those who can accomodate a great variety of different campaigns. - Campaign background: essentially a watered down setting, all its contents are geared toward a given campaing and its planned outcome. Adapting it for another campaign is bothersome, so it is usually found in campaign-specific homebrews and standalone adventure paths. In fact, being campaign-specific means that it might be seen as part of the campaign, rather than a separate element.