Lands of Mystery

The last print issue of Dungeon magazine came with this map:

That is an awesome map. I want to run a campaign there someday. The map key points out several locations that link to other maps Christopher West did for Dungeon magazine (most of which I have). The place names seem so evocative. It strikes me as a good setting for a pulpy, sword and sorcery-type game.

And I just discovered that Goodman Games is putting out a Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG. It looks like a trimmed-down d20 game really trying to capture the feel of old S&S stories. Things I like that I've heard about it:

• Magic is unpredictable, with spells having variable effects based on how you roll on a spell check, random side effects (flavor mostly), and options for gaining power by hurting yourself or calling on supernatural powers (and bad side effects potentially)
• A leaner system would be great for a fast paced game, and plus I don't want to learn another complex set of rules
• May seem small, but a saw a message board reference about trying to come up with cool abilities for warriors that aren't dependent on just weapon specialization. I hate limiting characters to one weapon because they've invested feats or whatever into it. Pick up that weapon you found in the Atlantean tomb and use it, dammit!

So that's another pipe dream for a campaign. I'll try to outline some ideas for the setting as I remember them.

P.S. This totally seems like a good system for random houserules like Shields Shall Be Splintered or Consolation-Prize Weapon Damage.