Post originally by David Stallard at 2004-04-03 21:43:51
Converted from Phorums BB System

I feel like my review doesn't really describe the setting well enough, so below is a section describing the seven major regions of Talislanta. This is taken directly from the Gamemaster's Section of the Talislanta book, where it describes how you might use the different regions to kick off different types of campaigns:

1) The Seven Kingdoms - A microcosm of the Talislantan milieu, with seven different nation-states, terrains, races, and cultures. The capital city of Cymril is a crossroads for peoples from across the continent. This is a good starting place for players and GMs who are new to Talislanta, and also a good setting for Heroic Fantasy campaigns.

2) The Wilderlands - A hostile wasteland populated by bandit tribes, wild beasts, ancient ruins, and a handful of isolated outposts and settlements. This is a good starting place for a Grim Fantasy campaign.

3) The Western Lands - A temperate region of woods and deep forests surrounding the nation-states of Aaman and Zandu--bitter rivals since the Cult Wars of the early New Age. Opposing religious factions, witch hunters, and secret cults make this a good starting place for local-scale or epic-scale campaigns based on intrigue and subterfuge.

4) The Eastern Lands - Rugged territories dominated by the warlike Kang Empire, which controls much of the region. With the machinations of a powerful and repressive Empire as the backdrop, this is a good setting for combat-oriented or epic-scale campaigns.

5) The Desert Kingdoms - The deserts of central Talislanta are home to nomadic tribes of merchants and bandits, the wealthy citystate of Hadj, the powerful nation-state of Carantheum, and its sworn enemy, Rajanistan. This is a good starting place for mercantile or action-oriented campaigns.

6) The Southern Rim - A setting for adventures on the high seas of Talislanta, and in the sweltering coastal jungles and tropical islands of this region. Flamboyant Sea Rogues, blood-thirsty corsairs, slavers, plunder, and buried treasure make this an ideal setting for Heroic Fantasy games.

7) The Northern Reaches - A vast territory stretching from the savage land of Urag to the frigid tundra of Narandu, the ice-cities of L'Haan, and such strange places as the Sinking Land and Shadow Realm. A good starting place for Heroic Fantasy (L'Haan vs the Ice Giants) campaigns or those based on uncovering mysteries and exploring strange lands.