Tékumel, The First Setting TSR Published – PRIME

Before Greyhawk and Dark Sun, before the Forgotten Realms, there was the Empire of the Petal Throne and the world of Tékumel.

Dungeons & Dragons is known for its many worlds. From the barren world of Athas, which has been ravaged by corrupting magic, to the many-splendored worlds of Sigil, the City of Doors, or the Sword Coast, which makes up--as far as we can tell--90% of Faerun, Dungeons & Dragons is known for the adventure-filled worlds that make up its multiverse. But long before Greyhawk had a Gazzetteer, well before there was a boxed set that contained Volo's Guide to the Realms, TSR published a setting for a roleplaying game that had nothing to do with Dungeons and/or Dragons.
At the beginning of 1975, the first iteration of TSR--Tactical Studies Rules--dissolved in the wake of the death of one of the partners. The company would quickly reform as TSR Hobbies Inc., and would continue to publish Dungons & Dragons and many other roleplaying games over the years, but the first product they released as an RPG that someone outside of the company developed: Empire of the Petal Throne.

Empire of the Petal Throne and it's world of Tékumel, is one of the most richly d...