Dungeons & Dragons: 11 Best Campaign Settings For Expert Players
Summary
- Eberron: Blend epic fantasy with steampunk mechanics, exploring the post-war struggle concept.
- Ravenloft: Perfect for horror campaigns with difficult antagonists.
- Spelljammer: Introduces space travel, adding unique species & vehicle mechanics.
Choosing a campaign setting is always a difficult decision to make as a Dungeon Master in Dungeons & Dragons. If you're not going to homebrew your own world, and instead, want to set your adventure in a pre-established setting in the D&D multiverse, you might be wondering where to start, especially if your table is full of high-level, expert D&D players.
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Posts By Jack FilsingerThat's why we've created this list. If your table has run out of settings to try or your players have expressed the need for a greater challenge, check out these high-level, advanced campaign settings for your Dungeons & Dragons campaign.
11 Eberron
Eberron Cover Art by ChippyCampaign Motifs
Neo-Noir, Swashbuckling Adventure
Key Features
Warforged Robotics, Post-War Struggle, Magic as Science
Eberron is a fantastically inventive campaign setting that's tailor-made for expert-level Dungeons & Dragons players. The world of Eberron is characterized by perceiving magic as a form of science. There's an almost MCU-like quality to the way that science and magic work together.
This campaign setting is great for high-level play as it encourages players to blend epic fantasy with steampunk mechanics. It also encourages players to think from a roleplay perspective about how the previous century-long war has affected their character, and whether they have to currently work their way out of debt.
10 Ravenloft
Dark Gifts by Paul Scott CanavanCampaign Motifs
Horror, Multiverse Travel
Key Features
Highly Distinct Realms, Difficult Antagonists
The Domains of Dread, more commonly referred to as Ravenloft or simply the Mists, is a campaign setting that's perfect for horror campaigns. While you can use any of these settings individually, you can also string an adventure together by having players navigate through the mists one realm at a time.
In each Domain of Dread, players will need to unravel the mystery of the realm, discover who the realm's Darklord is, and take them down to escape. This can prove extremely challenging and also wonderfully rewarding for high-level players.
9 Ravnica
Guildmaster's Guide to Ravnica Cover Art by Magali VilleneuveCampaign Motifs
Political Intrigue, Urban Sprawl
Key Features
Magical Guilds, Extraplanar Adventure
Ravnica is a campaign setting borrowed from the world of Magic: The Gathering. In Ravnica, characters are tasked with pledging allegiance to various feuding magical guilds, which comprise the very lifeblood of this locale.
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Posts By Jack FilsingerThis campaign setting is great for advanced players as they'll be asked to meticulously track their guild relationships, understand a complex web of political intrigue, and manage their renown scores with various organizations. For DMs and players who like political intrigue, Ravnica is the campaign setting for your table.
8 Spelljammer
Light of Xaryxis by Ekaterina BurmakCampaign Motifs
Swashbuckling Space Travel, Cosmic Adventure
Key Features
Space Travel, Unique Species
One great way to take a campaign that's running a bit stale and breathe new life into it is to introduce space travel via the Spelljammer: Adventures in Space module. This module allows players to take to the skies and explore the far-flung reaches of Wildspace in their very own pirate-themed spaceship.
Spelljammer, or more aptly, Wildspace, is a great campaign setting for high-level players as it introduces new species, vehicle mechanics, spells, and magic items for them to sink their teeth into. What's more, having players manage their own Spelljammer ship is sure to prove a fun challenge.
7 Planescape
Smoldering Corpse Bar by Mike PapeCampaign Motifs
Multiverse Travel, Cosmic Comedy
Key Features
Extraplanar Adventure, Limitless Possibilities
Planescape is not just one campaign setting, but multiple campaign settings. If you're familiar with the greater D&D multiverse, you'll know that the world does not just comprise the Material Plane. There are also Outer Planes, Elemental Planes, and mirror planes of reality that players can explore. Anything can appear in a Planescape adventure.
This setting, or settings, are great for high-level play, as it allows you to bring in all manner of D&D creatures, NPCs, magic items, and more without having to worry about the campaign feeling 'grounded.' Plus, advanced players are likely to enjoy visiting famous D&D locales like the Smoldering Corpse Bar in Sigil.
6 Tal'Dorei
Tal'Dorei Reborn Cover Art by Genel JumalonCampaign Motifs
Epic Fantasy, Heroic Fantasy
Key Features
The World of Critical Role
Tal'Dorei is one of the official campaign settings gifted to players from the world of Exandria and Critical Role. Setting an adventure in this location is fantastic for high-level players for a number of reasons.
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Posts 2 By Aydan SattlerMainly, Tal'Dorei and the surrounding lands are very reminiscent of classic Dungeons & Dragons settings like the Forgotten Realms, but have their own unique spin. This means you can run a fresh, exciting new campaign for seasoned D&D players that has all the same tropes of classic D&D fantasy without having to worry about boring them with familiar locations from the Forgotten Realms.
5 The Plane Of Shadow
Book of Ebon Tides Cover Art via Wizards of the CoastCampaign Motifs
Dark Adventure, Cosmic Horror
Key Features
Ever-Shifting Landscapes, Status Effects
Some D&D players may be familiar with the Shadowfell and other similarly named planes of existence. Thanks to the Book of Ebon Tides campaign setting sourcebook, you can set an entire adventure in the Shadowfell, here named the Plane of Shadow. This sourcebook has a number of great options for advanced players.
First, there are a number of different species for players to interact with, as well as an ever-shifting landscape that constantly moves, keeping players on their toes. Plus, there are new subclasses and status effect mechanics for DMs and players alike to make use of, breathing a ton of fresh air into their campaign.
4 Obojima
Sky Whale by Alexander CloosCampaign Motifs
Cozy Vibes, Eastern Animism
Key Features
New Potion Brewing Mechanics, Extra Subclasses
Obojima is a campaign setting inspired by Eastern animism, anime, and the world of Studio Ghibli films. This setting has extremely cozy vibes, in addition to its own lore, new subclasses and species, and mechanics.
What's great about this campaign setting is that it's so distinct from almost any other D&D campaign setting out there, even on this list. For high-level players who want something completely different, Obojima is a must-have. Just be warned, this setting is extremely roleplay-focused.
3 Krynn
Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen Cover Art by Cynthia Sheppard & Chase StoneCampaign Motifs
War, Post-Apocalypse
Key Features
New Species, Deep Historical Lore
The world of Krynn, and more specifically, the city of Kalaman in the nation of Solamnia, is a fascinating campaign setting with a ton of dark motifs and themes for players and DMs to explore. This adventure module takes place during the mounting of an epic conflict between the Dragon Armies and the rest of the world.
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Posts By Jack FilsingerWhat makes this campaign setting so enticing to high-level players is how high-stakes it is. There are no soft edges, and DMs are encouraged to be ruthless toward their players. Any player looking for a great challenge should consider asking their DM to run a campaign in the Dragonlance adventure module.
2 Theros
Mythic Odyssey of Theros Cover Art by Jason Rainville & Kevin TongCampaign Motifs
Mythology, Feuding Pantheons
Key Features
Greek-Mythological Adventures, A Vast New Pantheon
Theros, found in the Mythic Odyssey of Theros campaign book, is a world inspired by the tales of Greek Mythology. This setting introduces an entirely new pantheon of gods and deities for players to get acquainted with, as well as new species and subclass options.
Much like some of the above campaign settings, the best part about this setting is how different it is from anything else in the D&D multiverse. Yes, there are still normal classes and subclasses and gods, but ultimately, the theming of this world is so unique that your seasoned players are sure to be energized by the change in pace.
