one way to run the Wörld of Metal

So if I was going to run a Wörld of Metal campaign... here is one idea for how to do it. This would work pretty well sitting around a tabletop but it is really well-suited to an online Google+ game with a fluid playerbase.

1. One week (or more?) before each session, I pick one of the players at random to be the party leader. If we're on G+ then it's their job to pick a time and assemble whatever other FLAILSNAILS players they can get.
2. In addition, the leader has to choose a metal album that will form the seed for the adventure.
3. If they want, they can also pick which region they want to go to. If not, the region will be the same genre as the adventure seed. (This is mainly so that you can visit the Land of NSBM without actually having to listen to NSBM, because fuck that.)
4. I will write an adventure based on the album. This may involve repeated listens to fully understand the album's lyrical themes or I may just look at the cover and take a good guess.
5. When we start playing, any form of travel is handwaved immediately. If the last session was in the far western isles and the next one is in psuedo-Japan, I will just say "Well, you spend about three years travelling across the continent, having many adventures along the way. No, they don't give you any XP." Think of each session as a different sword & sorcery story; Fritz Leiber and Robert E. Howard* never felt the need to document every last detail of the characters' travels from one adventure to the other.
6. Of course this structure is flexible. If the adventure takes more than one session to run then the players can stay in the same place. If they start generating their own objectives then they can do that also.

The advantages of this system would be that it would be relatively low-prep, and the prep would come at a steady pace rather than frontloaded. I would try to make the adventures open-ended and interesting, but the fact that the players themselves picked the adventure (in a sense) means they are motivated to engage with it. And the one-session time limit could (maybe) encourage forwardness rather than dithering. I think this system works particularly well for the Wörld of Metal because the setting is very big but it only really works if you get to experience many different parts of it. If the whole campaign was stuck solely in the Land of Death Metal, then it wouldn't be engaging with what makes the setting cool.
The main disadvantage would be that outside the adventure locations, the rest of the world is fairly empty and/or handwavy. The players don't get much choice about which adventure hooks they engage with. On the other hand, the details of the world would get more fleshed out with each session we played.

*Probably. I've never read any of the original Conan stories, so I'm guessing based on the Robert Jordan ones.

Wörld of Metal Gazetteer: Races of the Wörld

The denizens of the Wörld of Metal are strange and varied. The following are descriptions of the most common playable races, along with stats and abilities for OSR-style games. Demi-human races have maximum stats (i.e. to play a Dwarf, you must roll CHA no greater than 7.)

Humans

The most common (some would say virulent) sentient species in the wörld, humans have taken root in every land from far northern Vikrölsandr to the distant Thundersands. They may be screaming berserkers, shrewd city-dwellers, Gothic nobles, eerie woodfolk, rugged nomads, gold-toothed pirates, savage samurai, cybernetic street thugs or a hundred other types.

Humans do not gain any special bonuses or abilities, nor do they have special requirements or handicaps.

Dwarves

Dwarves live in Vikrölsandr, and usually spend their entire lives underground. They dislike and distrust humans, and are always looking for new ways to trick the tall-folk to their doom. Those dwarves who do go abroad are often outcasts from their clan, or lured out by love of treasure. Dwarves are all fine smiths, and many are enticed by the prospect of forging strange foreign metals.

Maximum CHA: 7
Special abilities: Infravision; +5 save vs. poison.

Wörld of Metal Gazetteer: Beyond the Wörld

The Dreamsky

Land of Progressive Metal

Above the Wörld of Metal there is a blue sky, often obscured by dark clouds, but otherwise unremarkable - or so they believe, who lack the eyes to see its true nature. For the sky is filled with dreams and dream-images, floating up from the sleeping denizens of the wörld, intermingling in strange patterns, dissipating into yet higher dimensions. The precise nature of the Dreamsky depends on where one is exploring it: the people of Fyrotherre dream blood and conquest, the dreams of the Svetsmelt are dark and gentle, and the sky above Elf Peak is weirdly, terrifyingly absent of any dreams at all.

The Dreamsky is not merely a reflection of the lower world, for the astral currents carry images back and forth, mixing them together in bizarre ways. Travellers to this realm usually come in the form of astrally projected souls, and are thus also beholden to the currents. Learning to operate by dream logic is crucial to survival here. The dangers of the Dreamsky are sometimes obvious - the ravening nightmare horrors that sweep through on shivering steeds - and sometimes subtle - the gentle lilting of the dreamsong that beckons the sleeper to dissolve themselves into the dream, never to return to the mortal world. And far out at the top of the Dreamsky there lies the Great Dark, where nameless eldritch things gibber and twist, locked in the throes of inhuman madness. It is said that these things are merely the dreams of another entity, older and deeper than humans can possibly imagine.

Progressive Metal is a substance that forms when banks of raw dream-protein build up and coalesce into a solid mirror, glistening with all the colours of the rainbow. When an image is reflected in the mirror, one can step through it to 'make progress' toward whatever is reflected. For example, reflecting a mountain might allow one to step through to instantly reach the mountain's peak. However, the destination is somewhat erratic: it is also possible to step into another person's mind, or be shrunk down to fit into a small space, or any number of other things. It is always best to approach the mirror from the side, so as not to see one's own reflection, for those who step inside themselves are never seen again.

Sounds like: Dream Theater, King Crimson, Between the Buried and Me.

Wörld of Metal Gazetteer: Beyond the Dead Kingdoms

Kristhall

Land of Unblack Metal

This small state exists in a sheltered valley to the north of Magherall. It is ruled by an iron-fisted theocracy presided over by the Witchfinder General Arteus Radiant. All the people of Kristhall are devout and militant worshippers of the Crucified God. They price they pay for order and unity is the oppressive harshness of the regime and the constant crusades into Fyrotherre and Vikrölsandr. Foreigners are disliked and mistrusted in Kristhall, and pagans if discovered are executed and hung from the church towers.

Most adherents of the Crucified God live in Kristhall, but they are also allowed to go abroad and give up the more aggressive aspects of the religion in a practice called taqiyya. Such wanderers often serve as missionaries, witchfinders or secret agents of Kristhall, and are usually called by the general term of cleric.

The blacksmiths of Kristhall have taken the Black Metal of the mountains and forged it into Holy Unblack Metal, which as the name implies is brilliant white. Holy Unblack Metal is antithetical to magic, which is considered inherently evil by the faith. Spells cast on Unblack armour will fizzle, Unblack weapons will dispel illusions, and Unblack Metal dust, if inhaled or ingested, will wholly nullify a wizard's spellcasting abilities until it passes out of the body. Outside of Kristhall, this metal is most prized for its ability to banish extraplanar monsters back to their home plane.

Sounds like: Horde, Antestor, Armageddon Holocaust.

Wörld of Metal Gazetteer: The Volklands

The Svetsmelt

Land of Folk Metal

The River Svets is the broadest and longest in the known wörld, making its way from far northern Vikrölsandr, down through the dead kingdoms of Magherall and Carceron, to finally reach the kinder lands of the Svetsmelt in the south. The river is known for its unnatural chill and lumps of black ice, which absorb all the vile taint of fallen Carceron. But where the river enters this verdant valley, there are ancient warding-stones built to purify the river and melt the ice: hence, Svetsmelt.

The Svetsmelt is a place of thick woods, small river villages and ancient pagan magic. The people who live here are simple folk, but they are defended against invasion by powerful spells bound to the land itself and maintained by the enigmatic druids. Those who have tried to conquer the Svetsmelt have found the very earth and trees rising against them, to say nothing of the terrible finntrolls and coiling wyrms. Even travelling peacefully through the Svetsmelt is risky, for the land cares little for outsiders and the druids often devour living victims as part of their ecstatic blood rituals.

The locals have traditions dating back many centuries, among them the secret to forging Folk Metal. This metal is a form of rusty iron that has been imbued with many generations of ritual and blessing by the family that owns it. Usually this metal takes the form of a horseshoe, a hammer or some other simple object. The exact power of the talisman depends on the family who made it, but common properties include warning the bearer against impending betrayal, or protecting the bearer from harm so long as they stay on a straight road to their destination. These powers only apply when the talisman is freely given; if it is stolen, then it will bring down a curse on the bearer. It is not unheard of for Svetsmelt families to loan their talisman for a generation or two as a sign of great gratitude.

Sounds like: Finntroll, Cruachan, Glittertind.

Wörld of Metal Gazetteer: The Southlands

Amaranth

Land of Gothic Metal

South of the Sea of Skulls lies the dark and brooding nation of Amaranth, marked by shadowy cyclopean palaces, winding narrow streets, and wooded countryside that gives way to desert as one travels further south. Due to its cloud cover Amaranth seems constantly shrouded in gloom. Its people are not numerous but are very powerful, many being magic-users. The social structure is feudal, with each area being ruled over by a Count or Countess from a castle. All the counties are answerable to the Maiden Circle, a group of sorceresses plagued by dreams foretelling doom.

On the western end of the continent is the County of Hunger, ruled over by a court of vampire aristocrats. They extract a blood tax from their peasants, who generally consider it a worthwhile price to pay for the protection they are afforded by their masters. On the other side of Amaranth, in the badlands near Scream Mountain, one finds the County of the Moon, whose rulers are a family of werewolves. The tax they levy upon their subjects is somewhat more harsh.

Amaranth is the source of Gothic Metal, a shiny purple-blue substance, which is renowned for its capriciousness. A sword of Gothic Metal may alternately shear through steel or turn back to cut its wielder; a helm of the same might turn aside a dozen sword blows, only to contract upon the wearer's head and crush them while they sleep. For this reason, along with the metal's rarity, it is not often used to make arms and armour. Instead, the nobility of Amaranth have it crushed to a powder and mixed into wine. The resulting concoction bestows a bout of maniacal genius followed by a period of debilitating melancholia.

Sounds like: Nightwish, Lacuna Coil, Evanescence.

Wörld of Metal Gazetteer: Beyond the Shores

The Sea of Skulls

Land of Pirate Metal

Between Fyrotherre in the north and Amaranth in the south, there is a dark and storm-tossed sea whose very waters have been turned black by the evil that they have borne witness to. These waters a crawling with pirates who prey upon the trade routes out of Fyrotherre or raid up and down the coast from Freehell to Harthrakken. The islands of this sea are inhabited by a variety of foul-smelling cutthroats, the dregs of society from every nation in the wörld. Walk into any tavern in the pirate port of Keelhaul and you may find a dragonborn playing dice with a sand nomad, or a halfling about to start a barfight with a robot. 

Despite its relatively small size, much of the Sea of Skulls remains uncharted due to its treacherous waters. Rumours abound of lost islands containing ancient temples and hoards of fabulous treasure. Others tell stories of Dead Jeremy, the Pirate of Pirates, a lich who pursues the brigands of the seas in his undying flagship.

The origin of Pirates' Metal is unknown, so none can say whether it originated in the Sea of Skulls or was brought here. Pirates' Metal is one of the rarest of all metals by quantity, but only a small amount is required to produce an effect. A talisman of Pirates' Metal will vibrate as it draws closer to a hoard or cargo of treasure, thus making it a prized possession for buccaneers who use it to track down rich merchant ships. Since Pirates' Metal is so valuable, a piece of it will also count as 'treasure', so it is possible for two pieces to home in on each other. But woe betide the fool who allows this to happen, for when the two pieces meet they will form a vibrational resonance that rapidly breaks down into an explosion capable of tearing a whole galleon to smithereens. 

Sounds like: Mastodon, Alestorm, Running Wild.

Wörld of Metal Gazetteer: The Western Coast

Harthrakken

Land of Industrial Metal

Just off the northwest coast of Fyrotherre, there is a long silty island almost entirely covered by one enormous city, the industrial wasteland of Harthrakken. The technological prowess of this nation is unparalled anywhere else in the wörld. The armies of Harthrakken roam far and wide in search of conquest and raw materials, commanded by the tyrannical Iron Duke, who is permanently encased in a life-giving artificial lung.

Harthrakken Island is the only known source of the bright chrome metal known as the Metal of Industry. The power of animation is somehow stored within this metal, so that it can be used to craft automatons with high levels of consciousness. All robots in Fyrotherre and beyond came originally from the great brick factories of Harthrakken. With these steel armies the Iron Duke has conquered a large stretch of the Fyrotherran coast. However, recently a large number of robots unexpectedly seceded from Harthrakki dominion and formed their own city-state on the mainland.

Despite the authoritarian government, the streets of Harthrakken are still rife with crime and violence. Half-human thugs, their limbs replaced by automail, murder each other in vicious gang wars and ambush unwary travellers who fail to notice the telltale signs of a 'fire zone', a district of the immense city where law and order has broken down.

Sounds like: Nine Inch Nails, KMFDM, Tool.

Wörld of Metal Gazetteer: The Dead Lands

The Brotherhood of the Sun

Land of Drone Metal

East of Fyrotherre is a thin sliver of grey land owned by the Brotherhood of the Sun, a mysterious order of cowled monks and their subordinates. Dwelling in cold stone temples amidst tangled forests, they are known to perform strange rituals involving sustained chanting and droning of instruments. On occasion they will hire mercenaries to perform tasks for them in other lands - assassinations, desecrations and thefts, none of which seem to conform to any discernible plan or motivation.

The nations of Fyrotherre dislike the Brotherhood, but grudgingly tolerate their existence because they maintain the wards that protect the western lands from the horrors of Carceron. For their part the Brotherhood are inscrutable and seemingly neutral. However, all those who have tried to infiltrate the Brotherhood or learn more about their religion have met with an awful fate.

The Brotherhood of the Sun has a monopoly on the lone mine that still produces Drone Metal, a blue-grey metal which at first seems dull, brittle and without value. However, if it is forged into a resonant instrument such as a tuning fork or a bell, it can emit a powerful subsonic tone. This tone causes unease, fear and even internal organ damage. The monks of the Brotherhood undergo severe bodily training to resist this effect.

Sounds like: Sunn O))), Earth, Jesu.

Wörld of Metal

This wouldn't be the first RPG setting which tries to capture the tone and style of heavy metal lyrics and artwork. But my Wörld of Metal (the umlaut doesn't affect pronunciation, of course) is a bit different to your standard 'heavy metal setting'. The idea here is that each region of the world corresponds to a different subgenre of metal. If you have any friends who are metalheads, you probably know that the easiest way to send them into a rage is to imply that all metal sounds the same, or that it all consists of shouting or growling into a microphone. The truth is that metal is one of the most diverse and varied genres of music! Or so they tell me. Sadly, I don't actually enjoy metal music very much, I just like the pictures.

Fyrotherre

Land of Power Metal

This volcanic region is constantly troubled by earthquakes and eruptions. Over a dozen warring city-states are built in the mountain crags, each fighting all the others for control of the harsh land's natural resources. The victors claim the prizes: vast fissures of molten gold, veins of iron and reefs of arcane weirdstone. The central location of Fyrotherre means that it is host to a variety of strange beings, ranging from bloody-bearded dwarves and cruel dragonborn to robotic warriors, minotaurs and berserkers. 

The mightiest of Fyrotherre's kingdoms is Destromon, a mountain fastness ruled by the warlord Zaugardan from his throne of fire-bleached skulls. He seeks to conquer Blood Mountain, a wild place in Fyrotherre's harsh interior, inhabited by terrible monsters and rumoured to contain relics of an ancient empire.

Some few mines in Fyrotherre have tapped into deposits of Power Metal, a bronze-coloured metal with the power to absorb and release energy. A weapon or shield crafted from Power Metal can absorb flames, electricity, magic and other such energies, glowing brighter the more power is absorbed. Then, when the weapon is swung, it releases the stored energy in a burst capable of tearing through solid rock.

Sounds like: DragonForce, Demons and Wizards, Manilla Road.