Tapestries

A quick Google search of "tapestries" uncovers a world of ideas for how to decorate the walls of the castles in your game world.  Sure, you could just tell the players they depict battles and such but opportunities to pass along information to the players don't come any easier than this.  Here's a few of the tapestries I found particularly interesting.

The Harryhausen Creature Collection

If you're a fan of the old movies which feature the animation work of Ray Harryhausen like I am, you'll love The Harryhausen Creature Collection website.  Much setting creature inspiration can be had while sifting through the pictures of his work all housed there for your entertainment and nostalgia.  Enjoy!

"What Planet are We From?"

It's an interesting question and unless you are placing your campaign setting on an Earthlike planet in a solar system like ours, one worth exploring.  There's a lot to consider that will need adjusting if you don't use some sort of Earth analogue.  Just one sun?  How many moons?  How does this affect tides?  How close are other planets and how many are there?  It seems likely that unless you have a reason to not use an Earth clone, it might be the easy and maybe even the best choice from the perspective of player familiarity.  However, if you are looking to possibly do something unusual or unique, start with some basics from NASA regarding planets around other stars.

Violence in your Campaign Setting

Aside from the violence perpetuated by the player characters in your campaign games, a GM needs to consider how much violence is inherent in the campaign setting as a whole.  In a recent EN World thread on Banditry, EN Worlder (and friend of the show ;-) ) frankthedm pointed us to Chapter Eight - Violence and its Control in the Late Renaissance: An Italian Model by Gregory Hanlon a section of text book on googlebooks called A Companion to the Worlds of the Renaissance (edited?) by Guido Ruggiero.  It touches on banditry and violence in late Renaissance times that is good food for thought when designing your own campaign setting.  Check it out for yourself.

Living Bridges

"In northeast India, a giant cliff leads into a hidden world, Meghalaya . . ."  The living bridges of Megalia are a sight to behold.  Built over generations, they are the only way the people of the area can cross the raging torrents of the river during the rainy season.  Read more here and watch a video here.

Cyclops Shark

Some photos have shown up on National Geographic News of an albino cyclops shark, fetal and taken from the womb of an adult Dusky shark.  Fascinating!

Video of OSR Maps from Samwise7RPG

Some very nice OSR Megadungeon maps were recently shared by YouTube's Samwise7RPG in video form accompanied by Music in the form of "Foretold Revelation" by Severed Fifth (it kicks in rather loud after a minute or so, so be warned!).