Heavy Metal Brainstorm

[O Senhor Leetz]

LET THERE BE ROCK

In light of some recent inspiration, I've started thinking about a setting that would take inspiration from classic heavy metal music: the life-style, the mythology, and the album cover art. This would still be a fantasy world, but, as mentioned, heavily influenced by rock n' roll and with a good dose of black humor and tongue-in-cheek parody. See the above Meatloaf album for a vague idea.

Different parts of the world would be subtly or not so subtly influenced by particular bands and genres. The Misty Mountain would be a convoluted fairy-tale land influenced by Led Zeppelin or Jethro Tull - like a Middle-earth that's thoroughly on drugs. Or a hedonistic city that would be a cross of Las Vegas and the Sunset trip with a heavy dose of the glam and hair metal of Mötley Crüe or Wasp. Or maybe a swampy industrial wasteland that would be something out of a Gwar show. Or a booze-soaked bikers town in the desert set to the soundtrack of Motörhead.

Music would have to permeate the setting and mesh with the fantasy as well. Rock bands would take the classic place of adventuring parties. "Classes" for the PCs would be something like Vocals, Bassist, Guitarist, Drummer, etc. PCs would fight with classic weapons (swords, maces, axes) but would be able to harness the power of rock and smite their opponents with righteous heavy metal through their instruments (like magic) all while clad in a mixture of fantasy armor and rock n' roll get up - skin-tight leather pants and giant shoulder pads shaped like skulls for example.

The monsters of the setting would mostly be classical monsters of metal album art - like dragons, demons, valkyries, etc. - but they would have some kind of heavy metal twist to them. Like a half-machine minotaur with smoke-stack horns or the Demon of Terrible Tuning who would use guitar strings as whips and scream in a horrible out of tune pitch.

In short, the setting would be a dark, epic, humorous, high-fantasy world thoroughly influenced by classic heavy metal and rock n' roll. Like I mentioned, this is just a brain storm, through through in and ideas.

Some good visuals to look at would be the art of Frank Frazetta; Meatloaf, Wolfmother, Molly Hatchet, the Darkness, and other album covers; the movie/comic of Heavy Metal, stranger cartoons such as Wizards or Treasure Plant and of course the music itself.
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Please comment with anything!

[sparkletwist]

This sounds like a more fantasy-oriented version of Warhammer 40000 from way back before it started taking itself seriously. :P :D

[Matt Larkin (author)]

In light of some recent inspiration, I've started thinking about a setting that would take inspiration from classic heavy metal music: the life-style, the mythology, and the album cover art. This would still be a fantasy world, but, as mentioned, heavily influenced by rock n' roll and with a good dose of black humor and tongue-in-cheek parody. Picture an sword-wielding brawler clad in biker-leather with sideburns and a cigar fighting giant mutant bats in a plain strewn with bones under a red sky with three suns while riding on a magic motorcycle who's attempting to rescue a scantily clad damsel - or something like that.

Sounds a lot like Brutal Legend. Which I admit I know very little about, other than the premise.

[Drizztrocks]

Yeah, the whole idea if brutal legend was to create a fantasy game in a world heavily influenced by metal music. They did the thing with using album art and all.

[O Senhor Leetz]

Oh, it was for sure inspiration, even though I was thinking of Meatloaf's "Bat Out of Hell" album cover.

[Superfluous Crow]

could be cool :)
that city-train in the first spoiler is damn awesome...

[Ninja D!]

I think I like this idea quite a lot.

[Llum]

Wow, the pictures in the first spoiler are pretty cool. I especially like the massive train :D

This might be something to gather inspiration from as well. Although it isn't oldschool normal metal :p

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[Superfluous Crow]

For a second i thought it was the Death Star in the background... that would have screwed Norse mythology up somewhat.

[Atsisodhi]

I like this idea if each genre had its own kingdom or realm or what-have-you. Like if you keep the Misty Mountain and the Sunset-strip as separated places. Perhaps a death metal underworld or cult? Perhaps NPCs could be roadies or the Vic Firth Club Craftsmen or something. I would definately like to see a setting out of this.

Had you seen the Heavy Metal Bard build somewhere? (I think there are many, but it might give you ideas for some song-based spells or ideas in general.)

[Superfluous Crow]

For fun, you could have them make contact with other genres from across the ocean... Or maybe have alternative planes of music: the plane of the fey could be associated with pop or celtic music or ballads, and jazz could be... something else. I'm no expert on music. But the idea still stands :)

[Furor]

You need a mythical Holy Diver (Dio), Cowboys from hell (pantera), a hall of the moutain king (savatage).

Motorcycles need to be the primary mode of transportation
everyone wears studded leather armor
a folk metal viking-palooza
fairies with boots

[O Senhor Leetz]

Well I haven't had too much time to keep thinking, but I know I want at least a religious pantheon based on KISS - The Demon, the Catman, the Starchild, and the Spaceman.
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And in response to other music lands - there may in fact be other lands of music, but their inhabitants would never survive the awesomeness of heavy metal land very well, for it is too metal for them.

And as of right now, I'm not really concerned with game play or trying to make a heavy metal conversion of 4e or 3e, as D&D parody certainly never hurt, but build something straight from the ground up.  

I'll start brainstorming something that's actually in-game so it can take off from somewhere.