Kara-Tur

The lands of the East where ancient magic meets martial mastery.

Kara-Tur represents the Eastern lands within the Dungeons & Dragons multiverse, drawing heavy inspiration from East Asian history and mythology. First described in the 1985 Oriental Adventures book as a world-neutral setting, it was folded into the Forgotten Realms by the 1988 boxed set Kara-Tur: The Eastern Realms, which placed it on the eastern half of Toril's continent. It serves as a home for martial traditions, exotic magic systems, and unique cultures that contrast with the European-inspired lands of Faerûn.

Quick Facts

Setting type

Campaign Setting; Region

Geographic inspiration

East Asia (China, Japan)

First publication

Oriental Adventures Module (1985)

Planar location

Prime Material Plane

Key classes

Monk
Ninja
Samurai
Wu-Jen

Major region

Shou Lung, Wa

Facts from the source article.

Background

Kara-Tur was introduced to bring diverse cultural aesthetics into the fantasy genre during the early era of tabletop gaming. It features nations like Shou Lung, modeled after imperial China, and Wa, inspired by feudal Japan. These regions are separated by vast oceans or mountain ranges depending on the edition's geography. The setting emphasizes honor, duty, and the balance between physical prowess and spiritual energy known as Ki. Over time, its connection to Toril has fluctuated, sometimes appearing as a distant continent and other times as a separate world entirely within the Great Wheel cosmology.