World of Greyhawk Fantasy Game Setting

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World of Greyhawk Fantasy Game Setting
The cover of the World of Greyhawk Fantasy Game Setting (1983).
Type: Campaign setting (boxed set)
Edition: AD&D 1e
Author(s): Gary Gygax
Editor(s): Steve Winter
Publisher: TSR
Pages: 48 (Glossography)
80 (Catalogue)
ISBN: ISBN 0-88038-344-5
Class: Canon
Setting date: 576 CY

The World of Greyhawk Fantasy Game Setting is a Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting boxed set released by TSR in 1983.

It consists primarily of two sourcebooks:

  • A Guide to the World of Greyhawk: Volume III; A Catalogue of the Land Flanaess, Being the Eastern Portion of the Continent Oerik, of Oerth, an 80-page sourcebook generally referred to by fans as the Catalogue or the Guide.
  • A Glossography for the Guide to the World of Greyhawk, a 48-page referred to by fans as the Glossography

It is a revised and expanded version of Gygax's original The World of Greyhawk Fantasy World Setting (1980), also called the Folio.

Content[edit | edit source]

Catalogue[edit | edit source]

The Catalogue or Guide is largely an expanded and revised version of the 1980 Folio, increased from 32 to 80 pages.

The calendar has been expanded from 360 to 364 days by extending each of the four festivals from six to seven days, allowing the days of the week to fall on the same numeric days each year. New information is given on trees of the Flanaess. The major human ethnic groups are described in terms of skin, hair, and eye color and traditional colors and styles of dress. Uncommon languages are described.

The list of runes and glyphs is reduced from four pages to one, and the runes themselves have changed. Various small changes are made to the list of realms, with the notable addition of names of rulers. As with the original Folio, the list of geographic locations appears.

A notable addition is Deities of the World of Greyhawk, introducing numerous gods of the Flanaess. The deities listed are the greater gods Beory, Boccob, Incabulos, Istus, Kord, Lendor, Nerull, Pelor, Procan, Rao, Tharizdun, Ulaa, Wee Jas, and Zilchus; Cyndor (listed as both greater or lesser); the lesser deities Allitur, Atroa, Beltar, Berei, Bleredd, Bralm, Celestian, Delleb, Ehlonna, Erythnul, Fharlanghn, Fortubo, Geshtai, Heironeous, Hextor, Joramy, Kurell, Lirr, Llerg, Lydia, Myhriss, Norebo, Obad-hai, Olidammara, Phaulkon, Pholtus, Pyremius, Ralishaz, Raxivort, St. Cuthbert, Sotillion, Syrul, Telchur, Trithereon, Velnius, Wenta, Xan Yae, Xerbo, and Zodal; and the demi-gods Iuz, Rudd, Wastri, Zagyg and Zuoken. Of these 59 deities, 22 are described in more detail.

Glossography[edit | edit source]

The Glossography is a 48-page work framed as the work of Pluffet Smedger, the Elder, of the Royal University at Rel Mord. It bears an in-world publication date of the year 998 CY, or 422 years after the "current day" of 576 CY.

A foreword describes that the other book in the 1983 box set, the Guide, was actually written by a character called the Savant-Sage who lived circa 576 CY, and is an incomplete copy of the third volume of his seven-volume Catalogue. The Glossography is in turn described as a supplement to the Guide, containing among other things mathematical models and games invented by Smedger to recreate historical events.

The Glossography describes travel rates across various terrain, settlement population and map keys, random encounter tables for various regions and types of terrain, and the distribution of high-level NPCs. The names, class and level of the rulers of the realms of the Flanaess are listed (although they are also named in the Guide).

Tables and rules to determine weather are listed, along with the effects of inclement weather on player characters, position of latitude of the Flanaess and the mapping of 2D hexes considering that the world should be spherical.

Suggested scenarios are given, including ideas for adventures and the locations of prewritten adventures within the World of Greyhawk. There is a random table to determine a character's place of birth.

Rules for the "Comeliness" stat are included, which represents physical attractiveness. It appears in a chapter describing the quasi-deities Heward, Keoghtom, and Murlynd, and the hero-deity Kelanen. Rules for divine abilities of gods are given, as are statistics for several important deities and special rules for clerics of certain deities.

Darlene map[edit | edit source]

Like the 1980 Folio, a copy of the Darlene map is included.

Publication History[edit | edit source]

Development[edit | edit source]

Release[edit | edit source]

The World of Greyhawk Fantasy Game Setting was released in 1983 for the cover price of US$15.00. A second printing was released made in October 1983.

Reception[edit | edit source]

Chris Hunter reviewed the boxed set in Imagine magazine, giving it a balanced review.[1] Hunter had some problems with the map (the two halves did not fit together well; he thought rivers flow up into hills and deserts were too close to forests). However, he liked the Guide, noting that it "gives the DM an excellent base on which to construct a campaign".[1] Further, Hunter said those who did not have "a grand design" for a campaign world and who do not mind "the restrictions imposed by using someone else's", the box "will prove a worthwhile purchase".[1]

Other recognition[edit | edit source]

A copy of the World of Greyhawk Fantasy Game Setting is held in the collection of the Strong National Museum of Play (Object ID: 110.2001).[2]

See also[edit | edit source]

External links[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

Notes[edit | edit source]

Citations[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ a b c Hunter, Chris (November 1984). "Game Reviews". Imagine (20): 42. TSR (UK).
  2. ↑ Game:Approved For Use with Advanced D&D Rules World of Greyhawk Fantasy Game Setting. Google Arts & Culture.

Bibliography[edit | edit source]

Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index

The Index is based on previous work of Jason Zavoda through '08, and his work as continued and updated by Eric Johnson, Richard DiIoia, Jason "PupickDad" Jacobson, a French fan group, and numerous other fans over the years. The wiki page for the EGI has a list of sources, full product names, abbreviations, and a link to the full, downloadable index.

Topic Type Description Product Page/Card/Image

World of Greyhawk Boxed Set Publication Supplement, Bastion of Faith 53, 92
World of Greyhawk Boxed Set Publication Supplement, CGR1 The Complete Spacefarer's Handbook 10
World of Greyhawk Boxed Set Publication Supplement, The City of Greyhawk: Gem of the Flanaess 6, 9
World of Greyhawk Boxed Set Publication Supplement, Dungeon Master's Guide II, D&D 3.5e 120
World of Greyhawk Boxed Set Publication Supplement, DMGR4 - Monster Mythology 128
World of Greyhawk Boxed Set Publication Supplement, Dragon magazine #200 106
World of Greyhawk Boxed Set Publication Supplement, Dragon magazine #241 47, 75
World of Greyhawk Boxed Set Publication Supplement, From the Ashes: Atlas of the Flanaess 2
World of Greyhawk Boxed Set Publication Supplement, Living Greyhawk, Living Onnwal Gazetteer, D&D 3.5e 6
World of Greyhawk Boxed Set Publication Supplement, Living Greyhawk Journal #2 19
World of Greyhawk Boxed Set Publication Supplement, Return of the Eight 43, 58
World of Greyhawk Boxed Set Publication Supplement, SJR6 Greyspace 9, 20
World of Greyhawk Boxed Set Publication Supplement, LT1 The Star Cairns 9
World of Greyhawk Boxed Set Publication Supplement, WGS2 Howl From the North 44
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