Editing Greyhawk (section)

===A new vision of the Flanaess (1991–1997)===
Game designer [[Rick Swan]] noted the apparent lack of a central vision for Greyhawk material, describing the Greyhawk setting up to this point as "a crazy quilt, where odd-shaped scraps of material are randomly sewn together and everybody hopes for the best. How else to explain a setting that encompasses everything from the somber A1-4 ''Scourge of the Slave Lords'' adventure to the King Kong-inspired WG6 ''Isle of the Ape'' to the cornball humor of WG7 ''Castle Greyhawk''? It makes for an interesting mess, but it's a mess nonetheless... ''[[The City of Greyhawk]]'' [is] the most credible attempt at smoothing out the rough spots".<ref name="Dragon #198">{{cite journal | last = Swan | first = Rick | author-link = Rick Swan | title = Role-playing Reviews | journal = [[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]] | issue = #198 | pages = 49–51 | publisher = [[TSR, Inc.|TSR]] | location = [[Lake Geneva, Wisconsin]] | date=October 1993}}</ref>

In 1990, TSR decided that the decade-old world of Greyhawk needed to be refreshed. Rather than follow through with Gary Gygax's plan to develop new regions beyond the boundaries of the [[Flanaess]], the decision was made to stay within the Flanaess and reinvigorate it by moving the campaign time line forward a decade, from 576&nbsp;CY to 586&nbsp;CY. The main story vehicle would be a war fomented by an evil half-demon named Iuz that involved the entire Flanaess, which would allow TSR to radically alter the pattern of regions, alliances, and rulers from Gygax's original setting.

====The ''Greyhawk Wars''====
In order to move players from Gygax's familiar ''World of Greyhawk'' to their new vision, TSR planned a trilogy of modules that would familiarize players with events and conditions leading up to the coming war, and then take them through the war itself. Once players completed the war via the three modules, a new boxed set would be published to introduce the new storyline and the new Flanaess. Two ''World of Greyhawk Swords'' modules, [[Five Shall Be One|WGS1 ''Five Shall Be One'']] by [[Carl Sargent]] and [[Howl from the North|WGS2 ''Howl from the North'']] by [[Dale Henson]], were released in 1991. These described events leading up to the war.

The third module was reworked into ''[[Greyhawk Wars (game)|Greyhawk Wars]]'', a strategy [[Miniature wargaming|war game]] that led players through the events, strategies, and alliances of the actual war. A booklet included with the game, ''Greyhawk Wars Adventurer's Book'', described the event of the war. In 582 CY (six years after Gygax's original setting of 576 CY), a regional conflict started by Iuz gradually widened until it was a war that affected almost every nation in the Flanaess. A peace treaty was signed in the city of Greyhawk two years later, which is why the conflict became known as the ''Greyhawk Wars''. On the day of the treaty-signing, Rary—once a minor spellcaster created and then discarded by Brian Blume, but now elevated by TSR to the Circle of Eight—attacked his fellow Circle members, aided and abetted by Robilar. After the attack, Tenser and [[Otiluke]] were dead, while Robilar and Rary fled to the deserts of the [[Bright Lands]]. Rob Kuntz, original creator of Robilar, objected to this storyline, since he believed that Robilar would never attack his old adventuring companion Mordenkainen. Although Kuntz did not own the creative rights to Robilar and no longer worked at TSR, he unofficially suggested an alternate storyline that Robilar had been visiting another plane and in his absence, a clone or evil twin of Robilar was responsible for the attack.<ref>{{cite web | title = Robilar Remembers: Lord Robilar & Co | publisher = Pied Piper Publishing | date = 2007-01-29 | url = http://site.pied-piper-publishing.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=58&Itemid=65 | access-date = 2009-05-16 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090221002750/http://site.pied-piper-publishing.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=58&Itemid=65 | archive-date = 2009-02-21 | url-status = dead}}</ref>

====''From the Ashes''====
In 1992, after the two ''World of Greyhawk Swords'' prequel modules and the ''Greyhawk Wars'' game had been on the market for some months, TSR released the new Greyhawk setting, ''[[From the Ashes (Dungeons & Dragons)|From the Ashes]]'', a boxed set primarily written by [[Carl Sargent]] that described the [[Flanaess]] in the aftermath of the ''Greyhawk Wars''. It contained a large 4-color hex map of the area around the city of Greyhawk; two full-color, 32"x21" fold-out poster maps of the continent (east and west), and 20 ''quick adventure cards'', and two 96-page books.

The first book, ''Atlas of the Flanaess'', was a replacement for Gygax's original ''World of Greyhawk'' boxed set, with some changes. Many human gods from previous editions were not included, although one new demigod, [[Mayaheine]], was added. This had the net effect of reducing the total number of human deities from fifty to twenty-eight. Deities of other races were increased from twenty-four to thirty-eight, but unlike the full descriptions that were given to the human gods, these were simply listed by name. Like Gygax's original boxed set, each region was given a two to three hundred word description, although some details included in the older edition, such as trade goods, total population and racial mixes, were not included in this edition. A number of regions—Ahlissa, Almor, Medegia and South Province—no longer existed after the Wars or had been folded into other regions. One new region—the Olman Islands—was detailed. This had the net effect of reducing the total number of regions from sixty to fifty eight. {{smallcaps|[[Darlene Pekul|Darlene]]}}'s map of the Flanaess included in Gygax's setting was reproduced as an 11"x17" black-and-white map printed on the inside cover of the ''Atlas''.

The second book, the ''Campaign Book'', was designed to supplement, rather than replace, the four-year-old ''City of Greyhawk'' boxed set. It included updates to the city and its environs, and gave details of some new non-player characters and possible adventure hooks.

In Gygax's setting, the major conflict had been between the Great Kingdom and the lands that were trying to free themselves from the evil overking. In Sargent's world, the Great Kingdom storyline was largely replaced by the major new conflict between the land of Iuz and the regions that surrounded it. Southern lands outside of Iuz's were threatened by the [[Scarlet Brotherhood]], while other countries had been invaded by monsters or taken over by agents of evil. Overall, the vision was of a darker world where good folk were being swamped by a tide of evil.<ref>Sargent: "The cult of Mayaheine is one considerably on the increase in beleaguered non-evil Flanaess lands, for Mayaheine is a demipower of protection and survival". {{cite book | last = Sargent | first = Carl | author-link = Carl Sargent | title = From the Ashes | publisher = TSR | year = 1992 | location = Lake Geneva WI | page = 95 | isbn = 1-56076-341-8}}</ref>

Game designer Rick Swan concurred with this multi-step approach, writing that ''[[Greyhawk Wars (game)|Greyhawk Wars]]'' "took another step in the right direction by shaking things up with a much-needed dose of epic conflict... veteran designer Carl Sargent has continued the overhaul with the ambitious ''[[From the Ashes (Dungeons & Dragons)|From the Ashes]]''. By combining heroic tradition with elements of dark fantasy, he's come up with a Greyhawk campaign that is both familiar and refreshingly unexpected".<ref name="Dragon #198"/>

Sargent tried to generate interest for this grimmer vision of the Flanaess by following up with an article in ''Dragon'''s March 1993 issue, writing, "...the powers of evil have waxed strong. The hand of Iuz, the Old One, extends across the central Flanaess, and the cruel Scarlet Brotherhood extends its power and influence around the southern lands bordering the Azure Sea. The ''World of Greyhawk'' setting has become a truly exciting world again..."<ref>{{Cite journal | last = Sargent | first = Carl | author-link = Carl Sargent | title = Campaign Journal: Greyhawk Adventures risen from the ashes | journal = Dragon | issue = 191 | pages = 64–68 | date=March 1993}}</ref>

The boxed set was supported by the publication of two new source books in 1993, also written by Sargent. [[The Marklands|WGR4 ''The Marklands'']] provided information about the good realms of Furyondy, Highfolk, and Nyrond that opposed Iuz, while [[Iuz the Evil|WGR5 ''Iuz the Evil'']] detailed information about the lands of Iuz, and emphasized the prominent new role that Iuz now played in the world order.

In addition, a number of adventures were also published, as much to provide more source material as for adventure:
* [[Patriots of Ulek|WGQ1 ''Patriots of Ulek'']] was the first module published after ''From the Ashes'', and advanced the storyline in [[Ulek States|Ulek]], threatened by invasion from Turrosh Mak of the [[Pomarj]].
* [[Treasures of Greyhawk|WGR2 ''Treasures of Greyhawk'']], by Jack Barker, [[Roy Rowe (game designer)|Roy Rowe]], Louis Prosperi, and Tom Prusa, was a loosely connected series of mini-adventures—for instance, exploring Bigby's home, travelling to the demiplane called The Great Maze of Zagyg, and trading riddles with a [[sphinx]]. Each mini-adventure focussed on a unique treasure in the Flanaess.
* [[Rary the Traitor|WGR3 ''Rary the Traitor'']] by [[Anthony Pryor]] was both an adventure module and a source book about the [[Bright Lands]], the new home of Rary and Robilar following their murder of Tenser and Otiluke.
* [[The City of Skulls|WGR6 ''The City of Skulls'']], by Carl Sargent, and [[Border Watch|WGM1 ''Border Watch'']], by Paul T. Riegel, were modules highlighting the struggle between [[Furyondy]] and the lands of Iuz.

As Gygax had done ten years before, Sargent also used the pages of ''Dragon'' to promote his new world. He was working on a new source book, ''[[Ivid the Undying]]'', and excerpted parts of it in the April, June and August 1994 issues.<ref>{{Cite journal | last = Sargent | first = Carl | author-link = Carl Sargent | title = Campaign Journal: A strange alliance | journal = Dragon | issue = 204 | pages = 52–57 | date=April 1994}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal | last = Sargent | first = Carl | author-link = Carl Sargent | title = Campaign Journal: The Sea Barons | journal = Dragon | issue = 206 | pages = 34–41 | date=June 1994}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal | last = Sargent | first = Carl | author-link = Carl Sargent | title = Campaign Journal: The Adri Forest | journal = Dragon | issue = 208 | pages = 47–58 | date = August 1994}}</ref>

====TSR drops Greyhawk====
In late 1994, TSR canceled Sargent's new book just as it was being readied for publication, and stopped work on all other Greyhawk projects. Nothing more about Greyhawk was ever published by TSR, with one exception: in May 1995, a ''Dragon'' column devoted to industry gossip noted that the manuscript of ''Ivid the Undying'' had been released by TSR as a computer text file.<ref>{{Cite journal | last = Anonymous | title = Rumblings: TSR publishes lost Greyhawk manuscript electronically | journal = Dragon | issue = 217 | page = 98 | date=May 1995}}</ref> Using this file, several people have reconstructed the book as it might have appeared in published form.<ref>{{cite web | title = Ivid the Undying | publisher = The Acaeum: Dungeons & Dragons Knowledge Compendium | url = http://www.acaeum.com/library/ividundying.pdf | access-date = 2009-06-17}}</ref>

By the end of 1996, TSR found itself heavily in debt and unable to pay its printers. Just as bankruptcy in 1997 seemed inevitable, [[Wizards of the Coast]] stepped in and, fueled by income from its [[collectible card game]] ''[[Magic: The Gathering]]'', bought TSR and all its properties.<ref name=30years />