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Mystoerth map revealed at last!
Posted on Wed, July 20, 2005 by Dongul
chatdemon writes "A whimsical look at an alternate version of the world of Oerth, one which melds locations from the Greyhawk and Mystara settings onto one globe.

Mystoerth map revealed at last!
By: chatdemon
Used with Permission. Do not repost without obtaining prior permission from the author.

Map of Mystoerth! Click here to download the full size version (426kb GIF file).

Tip: You can use the right click/control click "save as" option in your browser for a faster download

Attempts at making a smaller, "thumbnail" version of this map have caused Canonfire's Killer Kobolds much grief, so instead they provided us with this full sized sample section. The download version (above) includes the entire world world map.

"
 
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Re: Mystoerth map revealed at last! (Score: 1)
by cwslyclgh on Wed, July 20, 2005
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Nice, a very intersting idea to go with, certianly more interesting then using the chainmail lands etc.



Re: Mystoerth map revealed at last! (Score: 1)
by GVDammerung on Wed, July 20, 2005
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This is, IMO, the most interesting and therefore "best" map of Oerth that I have seen.

The Dragon Annual Map is frankly dull. Chainmail in the NW corner of that map did not make it any more interesting.

While there is something to be said for putting Kara-Tur back in Greyhawk - reversing the map - even adding in the Hordelands and Al-Qadim, that is likely an unsatisfying answer.

As I understand it, Mystara once had parts of this map as "official" "Known World" but then disavowed it. I remember a picture in Dragon I think with "WRONG" stenciled across the map. That engenders two thoughts.

First, if Mystara is not using this map in the main, it should be free for Oerth to take.

Second, Mystara has already set a prescedent for "disavowing" maps previously deemed "official." So, getting rid of the Dragon Annual Map would not prove an insurmountable hurdle. Given that Gygax is not fond of the Dragon Annual Map, as well, that should be some salve to those who might otherwise want to stick with the Dragon Annual Map.

Third, Greyhawk has already "borrowed" the Isle of Dread from Mystara. And they were even still using it in that case!

If one really wanted to go the distance, I suppose, one could even say that Mystara and Oerth share the same globe! After Oerth, Mystara is by far my favorite setting, so I would have no problem with that.

I think this map should be made "official" by publication in the Dragon or Dungeon, or at least as an "alternative" or "rumor" as juxtaposed with the Dragon Annual Map.

I know Chatdemon is very modest about this map, or has been in the Thursday Greychats, but I really think this map has so much potential that the Dragon Annual Map does not and which leaps off the page that he deserves very high marks for putting this together.

Propose this to Mona, Chatdemon! Get it in the Dragon or Dungeon - maybe even as just a "Map of Mystery" - a feature that Dungeon is starting up again! This map needs to be published!



Re: Mystoerth map revealed at last! (Score: 1)
by chatdemon on Fri, July 22, 2005
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I too was never satisfied with the cheesy names and overall emptiness of the Dragon Annual map, and was disappointed to see it canonized on the LGG map insets.

When I stumbled upon James' concept map for this merging of worlds, I was seriously impressed, and toyed around with ideas for further mixing of the settings for quite a while before finally deciding to make it official and work up a pretty version, which yall see here now.

The "modesty" about it that you refer to comes from the fact that I owe a great debt of credit to James for the idea and the initial layout of the map.

Again, all I have done is reformatted and prettied up his work, I can't take credit for the concept, which I do agree is really cool.


]


Re: Mystoerth map revealed at last! (Score: 1)
by grodog on Thu, July 21, 2005
(User Info | Send a Message) http://www.greyhawkonline.com/grodog/greyhawk.html
This is a great map Rich! I haven't seen the full expanse of the Mystara setting (just stuff from the old Expert and a few of the Companion-level modules): how much of the western sections are you own work vs. from those sources?

Also, what can you tell us about your creative process behind how you decided what to retain from the Dragon Annual map (it doesn't look like much) and where you had to have GH over-ride the original Basic/Expert lands (like the Grand Duchy of Karemeikos, for example).

Lastly, did you draw this before Gary's and Erik's adoption of the Isle of Dread into GH, and if so, what would you do with that island now???

Thanks again, this is quite cool!



Re: Mystoerth map revealed at last! (Score: 1)
by chatdemon on Fri, July 22, 2005
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Well, as I've mentioned, the concept came from James Mishler, a noteable Mystara fan. All I really did was realign the map to center the continents and then give it an artistic touch.

Being a fan of both Greyhawk and the Known World, and to a far lesser extent, the Mystara 2e material, I loved the idea of combining the two worlds, effectively doubling the material available to a campaign. From my vague recollections of Gygax and Kuntz tales of the early GH campaign, there seemed to be somewhat frequent portals and gates to the opposite side of the world, and though neither Greyhawk or Mystara now has a strong asian culture that I think Gygax had in mind, it may be time to open those portals back up, and let the people of the settings interact. Also, as I follow up on this, as mentioned in my response to Scott below, it will become apparent that there are still huge swaths of land left undeveloped, so dropping an asian culture, or any other material a DM might find interesting, into the world will still be easy. This is not an attempt to codify the entire contents of the world map.

As you guessed, the contents of the Dragon Annual Oerth map are ignored totally. A large portion of Mystara's 'Skothar' continent was removed, and Oerik, as depicted in the 83 box maps, was grafted on. Karameikos, Alphatia and the rest of the Known World and Mystara developed regions are far to the west of Oerik, and intact on this map.

As for the Isle of Dread, it lies far to the west, in the center of the sea of Dread, south of Karameikos. I disliked the idea of moving it to Greyhawk.


]


Re: Mystoerth map revealed at last! (Score: 1)
by abysslin (abyss@canonfire.com) on Thu, July 21, 2005
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2 thumbs up.



Re: Mystoerth map revealed at last! (Score: 1)
by Scottenkainen on Fri, July 22, 2005
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I must be missing something. All I see is a map that shows the shape of continents and where the major mountain ranges and rivers are. It would be of little use to me for either a Greyhawk or a Mystara campaign. It looks instead like only the start of a larger project that could prove interesting, of course.

~Scott C.



Re: Mystoerth map revealed at last! (Score: 1)
by chatdemon on Fri, July 22, 2005
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I was mainly waiting to gauge the response to the idea among GH fans, since when James originally sketched up the idea for Mystara fans, there didn't seem to be a whole lot of interest in dropping Oerik into Mystara.

Since reception has been good, I do plan to do some follow ups, zooming in on the various areas and explaining what is there, referring GH fans to the appropriate sources (canon and fanmade) for info on the realms of the Known World and its surroundings.

My Classic D&D (Cyclopedia with Gazetteers version) campaign has adopted this merging of the two worlds as 'canon', so I definitely plan to develop the connections more, eventually leading up to contact between the major powers of both settings.


]


Re: Mystoerth map revealed at last! (Score: 1)
by Valkaun_Dain on Thu, July 28, 2005
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So where abouts is the Karameikos? It's been so long I can't remeber what that continent looked like.



Re: Mystoerth map revealed at last! (Score: 1)
by Darva on Fri, July 29, 2005
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http://photobucket.com/albums/v684/chatdemon/?action=view¤t=004.gif

Rich posted that image, which shows the location of the original Isle of Dread (in the circle) and the rough location of Karameikos and the known world, marked by the big K.

It also shows the assumed location of the north and south poles of the globe, as well as the equator, to give a better idea of how the planet is laid out.


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