Where to start?

[socmajor]

Ok, my first substantive post ;)

It's going to be several months before I start playing again (I move back down south in August or September), but I'd like to have my setting and rules ready to go before I move.  I have a basic theme in mind.  It's going to be low fantasy, think around 900-1100 AD, very low and unpredictable magic, human only (well, undead too, but humans are the only playable race).

I've started with the region that the players will start in, a Barony of almost 15,000 people.  I've drawn out the map and placed the major towns and villages (11 of them, ranging in population from 220 to 1,879).  I also went to the medieval demographics site and figured out the number of butchers, bakers, and candlestick makers, where to put them, etc...

I know that the answer to this question is entirely subjective, but where would the rest of you go from here?  I'm sort of torn between to different methods.  The first is to detail each of the towns in order.  Draw out the maps for each of them, create the npcs, etc.  The second method is to create a rough outline of each of the towns, then delve into each of them individually after that.  The advantage of the first method (IMO) is that I get right into developing personalities that can help me flesh out the other areas.  The advantage to the second method is that I get a better picture of the entire barony, which could make building the individual areas fit into a broader picture a little better.

As I write this, a third option has come up...  Each of the towns is a focal point for the region that it's in (with each region being governed by a knight or magistrate).  I suppose I could sketch out the regions first, then follow that with the towns.  

*coughs* Anyway, I'm sure there are more than those three ways available.  I'd just like to hear how others approach this.

Thanks!

[Numinous]

I would start by defining themes of each region, and then characterizing the leaders to reflect the region's idea.  Perhaps an area of corruption and noble hedonism, a utopian area with a dark secret, and a realm of virtuous people who are slowly being crushed under the heel of a tyrannous representative of the baron.

Also, I would outline the faith systems of the region, but I'm just really into faiths and their effects on culture.

Anyway, good luck and I hope some others stop by and donate ideas, as this could make a nifty resource.

~ Crit

[Stargate525]

What nat 20 said, and I would also look at the kind of power plays that are going on within your little Barony. This is a feudal era, so the infighting should be immense.

I would also at least have on hand the names of the people directly above the Baron in power, just so you have an answer if the topic comes up.

[socmajor]

Also, I would outline the faith systems of the region, but I'm just really into faiths and their effects on culture.

That was a tough decision for me- do I outline the faith system first so that I can develop npcs and social structures around their faith, or do I develop social structures first, so that I can make religion model society?  (Late Catholicism and feudalism vs. Reformation Protestantism and early capitalism) I know that faith will play a HUGE part in these people's lives, but part of me wants to know who they are before I decide how religion affects them.  I already know that their religiosity will come more out of a "fear of the devil" (or Bane *cough*) than any "love of the god," but I'm not sure how it will look yet.  Some advice on how others have faced that would be helpful, too. ;)

I would also look at the kind of power plays that are going on within your little Barony. This is a feudal era, so the infighting should be immense.

Yeah :)  That's going to be a big part of the setting.  There are 11 domains in the barony, each of them locked in a bloodless power struggle with the others.  Once I have the major npcs developed, I'll start looking at how they interact and play off of each other.  When I drew the map, I looked at which areas would be more fertile, and decided then which people would be the baron's favorites.  Now I just have to write them up and figure out why they're his favorites, and what exactly that means.

[Stargate525]

Yeah :)  That's going to be a big part of the setting.  There are 11 domains in the barony, each of them locked in a bloodless power struggle with the others.  Once I have the major npcs developed, I'll start looking at how they interact and play off of each other.  When I drew the map, I looked at which areas would be more fertile, and decided then which people would be the baron's favorites.  Now I just have to write them up and figure out why they're his favorites, and what exactly that means.

If I could interject some (unwanted) advice, I would assume that the Baron's favorites are those that control the most fertile or otherwise resource-rich areas. And unless your Baron is a moron, those favorites probably aren't the brightest light bulb in the knife drawer...

[socmajor]

Yeah, the implication was that those in the most fertile areas were the baron's favorites, and I'm sure that some of them will be there because of their "yes-baron" mentality, but certainly not all of them.  1 or 2 of them will likely be there at the "request" of the baron's senior (thanks for that idea) and another 1 or 2 will be there because of religious pressure (thanks Crit, for bringing up religion and making me think of that).

After some thought on the general social structure, I've decided that the districts/domains will be called Parishes, and now I'm going to have to start thinking about religion.  It's going to have a major impact on the setting as a whole, and I'm pretty sure that whatever standard I set for this barony will be followed for the majority of them.

I'll use the search function, of course, but I wouldn't mind some examples of how people have looked at faith in gritty, low fantasy settings.  Because of the time period I'm looking at, I don't want a large (or even mid-sized) pantheon.  I'm thinking that, just like in the real world, there is one god that people (generally) agree on, though everyone is pretty damn sure there's is the right way of worship.  I have no experience with implementing something like that in a game, so any anecdotes would be appreciated.

[Thanuir]

Start with all the material most relevant to those power struggles. That is: Religious differences, resources (food, iron, trade routes), interesting ruler personalities, general strength of armed forces...
Assuming they are the important part, of course.

These articles, especially the fourth one, may or may not help with the religious aspect specifically.

[Dyne]

I always tend to start with a big picture, then go into detail on some of the smaller areas after that. Then again, my method is rather random, and I tend to write down whatever seems to pop into my head.

So use whatever works for you. Except in my experience, it helps to have a general overview worked out so you can better make the individual parts fit together.

As far as religion, one of the biggest disagreements (in my experience) has been on how to obtain "salvation". Perhaps one group believes they must give up every luxury and dedicate their entire lives to following their god, whereas another group believes you just have to be a generally good person and you're set. And of course everyone will be trying to convert everybody else, for various reasons ("spreading the word," power over more people, money from tithes and such). If you really wanted to mix it up, you could introduce a group of people with more naturalistic/pagan views on religion, and such practices are considered by the others to be primitive, savage witchcraft. Enter the druid and wizard/sorcerer classes.

[beejazz]

I personally think it depends on what you want to do in your campaign. Think about it: Is the main conflict going on inside the starting town or between multiple towns? Is there some specific goal for the degree of cohesion between towns? To give an example, if you want to have a murder mystery, a focus on that town for its own sake is warranted. For a war campaign not so much.

Remember: It's not just a setting; it's a campaign setting.

[Numinous]

You asked about as low-magic religion, and I think I have something worked out.  I've been brainstorming for a few hours, ever since my original post was lost when IE 'sploded.

If you're looking for a religion with effects on the world, instead of deities, you should calculate how the environment affects the people, and how they might interpret that.  Compare the fickle and malicious sea-gods of Greece to the benevolent of Egyptian mythology.  

What I would use for the barony is a triple god system.  A warrior type deity, representing the nobility and their protection of the weak, a provider goddess which represents the main source of income or food for the people, and a dark god which characterizes the fears of the people.  This draws logical lines, as human nature is to personify what it does not understand, and it also shows the aristocracy's manipulation of belief to maintain power over those weaker than themselves by casting themselves as heroes.

You don't have to sue this idea verbatim, but the framework should let you build up society accordingly without worrying about ignoring religion.