From: Harald Smith 617 726-2172 (SMITHH@A1.MGH.HARVARD.EDU)
Date: Mon 20 Jun 1994 - 09:22:00 EEST
When blank lands first appeared (way back in Griffin Mountain), I thought the idea was a good one. You could play in Balazar, move off into a "published" area like the Lunar Empire, or create your own not- for-publication bit for your personal campaign in an area like Garsting.
We have since seen Balazar turned into a Blank Land and a whole group added as part of the Genertela pack. Of course, we keep getting references to primitive Balazar, to Rigtaina the Hunting Nymph, to the rivalry between the Telmori and the Dog-people of Balazar, etc. So much for a blank land! (And to a minimal extent Garsting was subject to this in the History of the Lunar Empire where a couple of cities sacked are mentioned and cities are shown on the maps of the empire.)
One reason, though, that I decided to develop in Imther was that it was next to a Blank Land. I can say that a Common Event is a raid from Garsting without worrying about who they actually are (of course, the fact that there's a lot of woods between Garsting and the Imtherian population centers helps here). If this material is ever published, GMs can use Garsting as they will--friend or foe, place to venture into without fear of being Gregged, etc.
So I still like the idea of the blank land and leaving Garsting as one. What I suggest is that we develop Jarst. In my campaign the two are culturally the same (hence the more or less common name), but politically opposed (usually), though they almost always unite to fight off the horse nomads. If Jarst is there, then it can be used by those GMs who want to extend their campaign into Garsting.
Now, on the other hand, I believe strongly that Balazar should be restored to its original form. FREE BROTHER DOG NOW!
--Harald
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