The Commonwealth of Angam, a new setting for 5th edition D&D in a Psychedelic Gothic Horror Fantasy campaign I've just started planning. Now that the map of the main setting is complete and I have a rough outline of the world map already on paper, I'm going to set about detailing each area with specific encounter and region maps to give my players a better idea of the key locations they'll be exploring.
For example:
- Darmor: a dense cursed swamp swarming with monsters, voodoo shaman, and lots of grisly investigations involving the local townspeople being ripped to shreds
- The Pale: a mutated Fae wilderness inhabited by bizarre reformations of classic creatures (mostly NPC), some monsters, and lots of alien flora/fauna.
- Müth: the shrouded city, a walled metropolis where you can only enter by invitation, steeped in rumor and myth.
- Calatria: the underwater home to thousands of Triton citizens situated just off the eastern seaboard.
The vibe I'm going for is a Witcher/Red Dead/Hunt Showdown aesthetic with gritty monster hunter action set in a swampy dark fantasy world around the late 19th century (technologically speaking). A huge inspiration for the locations in this world came from a couple of my favorite novels: The Vorrh by Brian Catling and the Southern Reach Trilogy by Jeff Vandermeer. Take Annihilation (if you haven't seen the film, go watch it), set it in a Witcher/RDR environment, add magical monster hunting action and throw a biopunk heart in it.
I'm creating tons of original monsters using the LOTFP Esoteric Creature Generator and I'll be introducing psychedelic/biopunk elements using alien flora and fauna coupled with a few bizarre twists involving magic and the way casting works. Since none of my players are classic archetypal mages—I have a Blood Hunter, an Aasimar, and a Hexblood—I'm veiling magic in superstition and forcing players who want to use spells or wards to take the components from their own bodies or other organic substances, like animal parts and plants. I plan to create a blog or wiki to chronicle some of the ongoing adventures, and we've talked about recording the sessions in podcast format so people can listen along. Should be fun!
