When most people think of early Dungeons & Dragons settings, their minds likely drift toward the World of Greyhawk or the Forgotten Realms. But before those well known worlds took root, there was Wilderlands of High Fantasy, a sprawling, chaotic, and gloriously open ended setting that captured the wild frontier spirit of early table top gaming. Brought to life by Judges Guild, this was a setting where adventurers weren’t held by the hand, they were tossed into a world with barely a compass and a prayer. And players loved it.

The Birth of the Wilderlands

In 1977, Judges Guild, the scrappy upstart of the RPG industry, released Wilderlands of High Fantasy. Unlike later, more polished campaign settings, Wilderlands was less about an overarching narrative and more about providing an enormous, untamed world for Judges (DMs) to populate as they saw fit. The original boxed set included a 32-page book detailing key locations, along with 18 glorious hex maps that would make any grognard’s heart sing.

The setting was heavily influenced by the pulp fantasy of the time, think Robert E. Howard’s Conan, Fritz Leiber’s Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser, and Jack Vance’s Dying Earth. This wasn’t a land of benevolent kingdoms and predictable quest givers. It was a dangerous, lawless place, filled with bandits, warring city states, crumbling ruins, and mysterious artifacts. Civilization was more of a suggestion than a reality, and players were expected to carve their own destinies out of the chaos.

What Made Wilderlands Unique?

While the Wilderlands setting shared similarities with other early D&D worlds, it had its own brand of mayhem that set it apart:

1. The Hex Crawl Supreme

Forget neatly structured adventure paths, Wilderlands was all about the hex crawl. With its massive hex maps covering thousands of square miles, the setting encouraged exploration like no other. Each hex had the potential for danger, discovery, or death (probably death). There were monsters, hidden ruins, strange societies, and pockets of civilization barely holding on against the wilderness.

Judges were given just enough detail to get started, but the real magic was in the improvisation. Want to place a hidden fortress in a random hex? Go for it. Need a mysterious wizard’s tower? Drop it wherever you like. Wilderlands didn’t just allow creativity, it demanded it.

2. A Sandbox Before Sandboxes Were Cool

Long before open world became a buzzword in video games, Wilderlands was pioneering the concept in table top form. There was no main quest or central plot—just a world full of opportunity. Players could ally with city states, become warlords, plunder dungeons, or get eaten by a manticore three hexes from town. It was up to them.

This openness was both the setting’s greatest strength and its biggest challenge. Some players and DMs thrived on the freedom, while others found the lack of structure overwhelming. But for those who embraced the chaos, Wilderlands was a dream come true.

3. City States and Civilization (Sort Of)

While much of the Wilderlands was untamed, scattered city states dotted the landscape, each with its own politics, factions, and ambitions. The most famous of these was the City State of the Invincible Overlord, a wretched hive of scum and villainy long before Mos Eisley made it cool. Here, adventurers could find work, get in trouble, or both.

Unlike later D&D settings where city states often had well defined ruling structures, Wilderlands settlements felt more like real, messy, corrupt places. Power was often held by those who could keep it, and players could just as easily find themselves recruited as mercenaries, arrested as criminals, or crowned as rulers, depending on how ambitious (or reckless) they were.

The Judges Guild Touch

One of the things that made Wilderlands so distinctive was Judges Guild’s unique approach to game design. Unlike TSR’s more polished products, Judges Guild had a DIY, kitchen-table aesthetic. Products were often packed with rough-hewn ideas, minimal editing, and a sense of raw creative energy that made them feel both exciting and unpredictable.

This looseness extended to Wilderlands, where much of the world was suggested rather than rigidly defined. Judges were expected to fill in the gaps, tweak details, and adapt the setting to their own campaigns. In this way, Wilderlands was less of a finished product and more of a toolkit, a box of creative dynamite ready to explode at the gaming table.

Expanding the Wilderlands

Over the years, Wilderlands of High Fantasy saw numerous expansions and revisions. Judges Guild released multiple supplements, fleshing out regions, detailing new city states, and providing more hex maps to explore. While later editions of D&D moved toward more structured storytelling, Wilderlands remained true to its roots as a sprawling, unpredictable playground.

In the early 2000s, Necromancer Games revived Wilderlands with a massive d20 version, updating the setting for the third edition of D&D. This version brought new detail and polish while maintaining the original’s open ended spirit. More recently, Goodman Games and other OSR (Old-School Renaissance) publishers have continued to keep the setting alive, proving that the wild frontier of Wilderlands still has plenty of life left in it.

Why Wilderlands Still Matters

Despite its age, Wilderlands of High Fantasy remains one of the best examples of a true sandbox setting in RPG history. It embodies the spirit of early D&D, a game about exploration, survival, and emergent storytelling. While modern campaign settings often provide intricate worldbuilding and epic narratives, Wilderlands reminds us that sometimes, the best stories are the ones players create for themselves.

For those willing to embrace the chaos, Wilderlands offers a gaming experience unlike any other. Whether you’re looking for a world of danger, a land of opportunity, or just a place to get lost in, the Wilderlands of High Fantasy is waiting. Just don’t expect it to hold your hand.