Statistics: HârnWorld

Core Game Ratings

Rating: 7.6 / Ranking: 24

These ratings are based on 23 ratings with 2.00 average weight and 4 reviews.

This is compared to an index-wide 3.64 average ratings and 1.98 average weight.

This rating earns an average level of trust.

Ratings + Reviews:

0%
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1%
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5%
3%
11%
62%
19%
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Index Ratings Only:

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9%
4%
18%
35%
32%
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RPGnet Reviews Only:

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100%
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Core Game Comments

All User Comments

Rating User Comments
10 / 10NipvetHaWorld is a low-fantasy RPG setting. The focus is on a misty island dotted with feudal manors, barbarian tribes and unexplored wilderness. It's gritty, muddy and down to earth. Unlike other settings, Harn pays attention to the fundaments of a pre-industrial world, i.e., the numbers of soldiers, castles, mines are "realistic" in a given area, because they arise from the estimated agricultural produce. The society, trade, and politics are in harmony with these numbers. For the GMs and players alike, the world makes sense. This does not mean Harn is all about socio-demographic number-cruching. The gaming in Harn needs not to pay attention to this. There is rich historical, mythical and political background, to which one can build adventures and campaigns. The campaigns can be built around long-term goals, a political theme, trade, chivalry, regions, religion. What ever it is, there is a wealth of NPCs, story hooks, and details to back it up. You can have dragon-bashing, but you can build a realistic story around it.
10 / 10CajetanI first read HarnWorld about 20 years ago when I picked it up in the vendor room at GenCon (1986). I was so absorbed by the quality of the maps and the consistency of the awesome amount of information that I was inspired to set up a camapign that ened up running 5 years. I tried a few other campaigns in GURPS and Call of Cthulhu, but kept coming back to HarnWorld. The newest material is even better than the original, with great depth of detail about culture and economics. These things make it easy to spin an adventure out of almost nothing - wherever the PCs go, the adventure almost writes itself. That is the big value for me, now that I am a busier man than I was when I began. The huge amount of quality fan support makes it easy to get NPCs and detailed sites, too, tho for the most part I enjoy developing my own.
10 / 10MertenProbably the best (fantasy) setting I own and will own. Simply unmatched in terms of realism and detail.
10 / 10SkiorhtThe overview module of one of the best traditional fantasy settings ever. If you want a highly detailed and plausible take on a Tolkien-style RPG setting, look no further. The cartography is beautiful, there is enough information to run a ten-year campaign stragiht out of the box/folder, and best of all - it is completely systemless.
9 / 10JiawenOne of the best pre-packaged medieval fantasy settings on the market. Not utterly self-consistent, but certainly no better has been published.
6 / 10Simple ManOne of the prime examples of how to write a fantasy setting well. By today's standards, an ugly product (save the maps), but no less useful.

Core Game Reviews

All RPGnet Reviews

[ Link 97 Possible Reviews ]
Rating User Summary
3 + 5Jason W. TiceHârnWorld.
4 + 5Edwyn KumarHârnWorld.
4 + 5Elton RobbHârnWorld. HarnWorld 2nd Edition is an excellent world system, low magic, low monsters and low treasures encourage not Hack'n'Slash, but actual Roleplaying. Definitely not for the Hack'n'Slash GM!
3 + 5AndrewHârnWorld. A refreshing and realistic fantasy setting with unique opportunities for Role-playing.

All Magazine Reviews

Year Magazine Synopsis
1984Fantasy Gamer #4"To enjoy Harn, you will have to send your characters there, or start a whole new campaign with Harnian folk"
1990White Wolf #22Rating: 4/5.
1983Dragon #77"I recommend Harn for experienced referees"

Ratings Explanation

The following components make up a rating:

Ratings. The ratings that users enter into this index are each averaged into the final rating with a weight of between 0 and 4, with weight based on trust algorithms.

Reviews. Each review is averaged into the final rating with a weight of 8. Sometimes reviews can skew high, but they also display fan interest (or disdain) in a product.

Content. The average rating of each content--before its own bayesian weight is inserted--is averaged into the final rating. The weight of a content is equal to its own weight divided by the number of contents, and divided again if it only appears in a fraction of editions.

Bayesian Weight. A rating of 5.00 is inserted into the final rating with a weight of 35. This is an arbitrary weighting of the average rating that keeps things toward the center until they're better rated.

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