Eberron General Thread

[0Megabyte]

So, I read the Mournland thread recently and I was thinking: What are everyone's thoughts on the Eberron campaign setting in general, here on GitP?

I personally enjoy it! I've done some campaigns in it, and one player/co-DM has described Eberron as a balls-to-the-wall action movie. At least, that's how it apparently goes when I DM it.

In any case, besides mere personal opinion, and the drama and arguments that will ensue... I also have another reason for bringing it up!

I'd love to hear the opinions of anyone knowledgeable about Eberron, about their own take on the setting, interesting details they add to their campaigns, ways they portray the setting characters, ways they deal with the mysteries, etc.

Here's a half dozen things I like, either lesser-known facts, subtext, or ideas that just sound fun to me, to get things started!

1.) Dragonshards are essentially oil. They're used for practically all magical matters in the setting, and are the lifeblood of the magical economy. That magic sword you've got? It has a dragonshard in it. That scroll you're using? Dragonshard dust is an ingredient in the ink. (Hence explaining why the ink is so expensive!) Weapon crystals? Just a specially tuned dragonshard. Basically, where does the "cost" for making these items magical come from, above and beyond the cost of the masterwork weapon/item itself? Specially tuned dragonshards, mostly.

2.) Fun Fact: House Lyrander is doing a lot of administrative work in Valenar, and are working to make themselves very valued by the Valaes Taern, who aren't much interested in the day-to-day activities of running a country.

How very interesting, that the international super-corporation is becoming tied ever more closely to the running of a nation... it's not that I'm saying they have any plans to take over, or anything so crass as that... but I'm sure there are benefits to gaining so much influence and power in a nation...

3.) Weird Thought: Could the moons be related to the various planes in any way? It would certainly be interesting, and there's no guarantee that the moons are actually anything like the sorts of moons that inhabit our solar system, after all. Or maybe they're something completely unrelated? It's fun to bring up in a session, at least. Especially putting a big, blue planet with an obviously Khorvaire-shaped landmass in the distance of Thelanis's sky.

4.) The real King Kaius III. I read once in a Dragon magazine article about a very special prisoner at the Dreadhold, or whatever the Kundarak-run prison in the Lhazaar Principalities was called. A prisoner from Karrnath, who is trapped in an iron mask...

5.) The original predecessors of the warforged. Built not by giants, but first by the Quori of the previous age so that they could manifest into a construct body in Xen'drik, and then co-opted by the giants into at times sentient (like Xulo from the end of the Forgotten Forge adventure path) constructs? That was a fun bit from the Secrets of Xen'drik book, that's for sure...

6.) Who else here thinks it'll probably be Queen Aurala who starts the Next War? From discussions in the past, I really do think Aundair and its queen (who is Neutral Good, even) will be the ones to start it.

Speaking of which, the Next War itself: How many ways could it go? I figure... there's so many possible triggers for the inevitable, that the question for any set of PC's isn't "how do you stop the Next War?" but instead, "how do you stop the Next War from happening right yet?" and "how do you keep the Next War from happening in a way that might Mournland-ize the entire continent?"

7.) Keith Baker once mentioned that in his opinion, character advancement didn't happen the same way for NPC's as it does for PC's. He even quoted a line from Knights of the Old Republic 2, the one where a character asks if the protagonist hadn't noticed that others don't get ridiculously powerful by killing things.

In other words, NPCs might have a maximum level of potential that's different from the PC's. After twenty years in the army, the grizzled veteran might only be a 3rd level warrior, because that's his maximum potential. It's the PC's who have unlimited potential... nobody else gets XP for killing things.

---

Anyway, those are just a few thoughts. If anyone else wants to talk about the campaign setting, any part of it at all, then why not here? I've noticed there isn't a thread for the setting, or really a general thread for any setting... so why not have one?

So, anybody want to talk about the setting?

[Kol Korran]

i'll respond to the main things i have opinions on/ anything to contribute



3.) Weird Thought: Could the moons be related to the various planes in any way? It would certainly be interesting, and there's no guarantee that the moons are actually anything like the sorts of moons that inhabit our solar system, after all. Or maybe they're something completely unrelated? It's fun to bring up in a session, at least. Especially putting a big, blue planet with an obviously Khorvaire-shaped landmass in the distance of Thelanis's sky.

there is some confusion amongst people. some think the moons ARE the planes, perhaps due to the way they are portrayed. though there isn't an official link to the planes, there is a sort of link to the dragonmarks as can be read in this article. (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ebds/20050307a)

i may run a campaign during the lycanthropic purge a few months from now. if so the moons are going to play an important part. perhaps with slightly different effects on the lycanthrope depending on the moon/s in the sky.



6.) Who else here thinks it'll probably be Queen Aurala who starts the Next War? From discussions in the past, I really do think Aundair and its queen (who is Neutral Good, even) will be the ones to start it.

Speaking of which, the Next War itself: How many ways could it go? I figure... there's so many possible triggers for the inevitable, that the question for any set of PC's isn't "how do you stop the Next War?" but instead, "how do you stop the Next War from happening right yet?" and "how do you keep the Next War from happening in a way that might Mournland-ize the entire continent?"

i actually think that a new war is fairly unlikely. the people are tired, the rulers are fairly tired and Kaius and Boranel were in contact even before Cyre was destroyed. and the threat of the mournland is still too big to neglect. i think some conclusion or reassurance about that needs to come first.

if there will be a war, my bet is that it will start with the Valenar, Darguun or Droaam, and it won't be continent inclusive


7.) Keith Baker once mentioned that in his opinion, character advancement didn't happen the same way for NPC's as it does for PC's. He even quoted a line from Knights of the Old Republic 2, the one where a character asks if the protagonist hadn't noticed that others don't get ridiculously powerful by killing things.

In other words, NPCs might have a maximum level of potential that's different from the PC's. After twenty years in the army, the grizzled veteran might only be a 3rd level warrior, because that's his maximum potential. It's the PC's who have unlimited potential... nobody else gets XP for killing things.
i read similar things as well, and my take is this:
- most people gain XP by a very low measure, usually just with practice and time, at about 1/10-1/15 rate of PCs.

- some people have exceptional talent and can gain more complex professions. they are the elite of the society, and thus can gain PC CLASSES.

- another talent will be to gain XP faster- better learners, who come close to PCs (about 1/3-1/5 the rate of PCs). these are often the "high levels" of the setting (levels 9-12 mostly)

- legendary heroes (PCs) gain the benefit of action points.

for the record, i'm a big fan of the setting, and have nearly finished a long heroic campaign in it (in my sig). but my players haven't read much about it, so we play it "Eberron light" so far.

[supermonkeyjoe]

3.) Weird Thought: Could the moons be related to the various planes in any way? It would certainly be interesting, and there's no guarantee that the moons are actually anything like the sorts of moons that inhabit our solar system, after all. Or maybe they're something completely unrelated? It's fun to bring up in a session, at least. Especially putting a big, blue planet with an obviously Khorvaire-shaped landmass in the distance of Thelanis's sky.


I think the planes are very definitely linked to the moons, when the giants of Xen'Drik forced Dal Quor out of planar alignment, the 13th moon Crya also vanished (or they vanished the moon and thus broke the link to dal quor). In keith bakers book Gates of Night it also alludes to this SPOILER ALERT
when the macguffin is repaired by Lei and the link to dal quor is restored it also made the moon reappear

[0Megabyte]

i actually think that a new war is fairly unlikely. the people are tired, the rulers are fairly tired and Kaius and Boranel were in contact even before Cyre was destroyed. and the threat of the mournland is still too big to neglect. i think some conclusion or reassurance about that needs to come first.

if there will be a war, my bet is that it will start with the Valenar, Darguun or Droaam, and it won't be continent inclusive.

The people, certainly, are tired. But really, Khorvaire is a powderkeg, and it seems to me as though the peace is mighty fragile.

I certainly agree that the Next War shouldn't happen in the next... five-ten years. (Though certain horrific disasters could always trigger it sooner. That's where the PC's come in, after all. Preventing it from happening unnaturally soon!) And I also agree that if there will be wars before that point, they'll mostly be smaller wars, between two or three nations tops. After all, Valenar warbands are still fighting skirmishes with Karrnathi and Talenta forces.

Still, back to the powder-keg: With Aundair, we have multiple potential conflicts: Perhaps after a few years Aurala, or one of her ministers, decides to try to retake the Eldeen Reaches. This might not trigger a continent-wide war, but if the Eldeen calls for help from someone else, like Thrane, it might quickly begin to spiral. Furthermore, Thaliost is a major problem for Aundair and Thrane. Thrane wants to keep it, the Thaliostians want to go back to Aundair, and Aundair wants it back too. If, say, the riots and civil unrest grow to a full-on insurrection, thanks to one influence or another, would Aundair really not take advantage of the opportunity?

Then there's Karrnath. Many of the Karrnathi warlords want the war to continue, and might well plot with unsavory forces to get things going. I wouldn't be surprised if the Blood of Vol has ties with at least a few such warlords. Of course, even so, Karrnath under Kaius "III" isn't very likely to start a new war, except against the Valenar.

Thrane, well, there are plenty of reasons. Self-same conflict with Aundair, a call from the Silver Flame itself (that is, the rajah inside the flame, probably) or various other situations.

Breland... again, probably won't trigger the full-scale war. As long as Boronal lives, anyway.

I can't see Zilargo, the Mror Holds, Q'barra or the Lazhaar Principalities triggering a major war.

If Darguun has a war, it'll probably end up becoming a conflict with Breland, one way or the other. And if the Daughters of Sora Kell want a conflict, it'll probably, again, be with Breland. As we agreed, probably not continent-wide conflicts, though.

So really, the only main thing I can see triggering the next war outside of something PC-worthy like revealing Kaius to be a vampire, or a massive international incident, would be the Thaliost situation. And I believe, that for me, that's what's going to trigger it. Not within the next ten years... but from 1010 onward, it'll become more and more likely. I figure the Next War will start, at latest, somewhere around 1018-1020.





for the record, i'm a big fan of the setting, and have nearly finished a long heroic campaign in it (in my sig). but my players haven't read much about it, so we play it "Eberron light" so far.

That sound like a lot of fun. Good job!

[Hiro Protagonest]

Eberron's awesome. It's the only campaign setting where orcs are the stewards of nature and elves rampage across the land in destructive hordes. :smallcool:

But Dark Sun is awesomer. :smalltongue:

[Lord Raziere]

Why not both?

Dark Sun Eberron.

[Prime32]

Why not both?

Dark Sun Eberron.Because Eberron is about magic-rich metropoli and Dark Sun is about magic-starved wastelands?

I suppose you could transplant some ideas to the Mournland though.

[Urpriest]

I've always thought that Eberron would be a great setting for a D&D movie with potential mainstream appeal. It would both be odd enough to draw interest and flashy enough to hold it. A rugged half-orc inquisitive and his warforged assistant investigating crime on the mean streets of Sharn, for example.

[Madcrafter]

I've always thought that Eberron would be a great setting for a D&D movie with potential mainstream appeal. It would both be odd enough to draw interest and flashy enough to hold it. A rugged half-orc inquisitive and his warforged assistant investigating crime on the mean streets of Sharn, for example.

Strange, I have always thought the same. Not so fantasy enough to put off a lot of people, and similar enough in technology to the modern day that people would be able to relate. And the plot works well because it doesn't have to be around a magical macguffin and saving the world.

[0Megabyte]

I've always thought that Eberron would be a great setting for a D&D movie with potential mainstream appeal. It would both be odd enough to draw interest and flashy enough to hold it. A rugged half-orc inquisitive and his warforged assistant investigating crime on the mean streets of Sharn, for example.

Oh man. This sounds really Asimov-y, for some reason. I like!

[Hiro Protagonest]

I've always thought that Eberron would be a great setting for a D&D movie with potential mainstream appeal. It would both be odd enough to draw interest and flashy enough to hold it. A rugged half-orc inquisitive and his warforged assistant investigating crime on the mean streets of Sharn, for example.

I think it would be about a female changeling acrobat who served as a spy in the war, male hobgoblin merc, female Valenar merc that's a heavy rival of the hobgoblin but all in good sport with him, male orc Gatekeeper that's taken a proactive stance and tries to find out about strange things and ancient ruins, and male human scholar wizard trying to uncover secrets in ancient ruins.

So basically, two people who are interested in the secrets of ancient artifacts, two people who are interested in loot and fighting and come from cultures that hold those values, and someone who's along for the ride. Sounds like an Eberron game.

[Urpriest]

Oh man. This sounds really Asimov-y, for some reason. I like!

Hmm, I was thinking more ****. A little like Blade Runner.

Edit: For filter's sakes, it's the man's name! Poor Philip K.

[Prime32]

If more recent authors are allowed, China Mieville? :smalltongue:

[Dusk Eclipse]

A question for those who do play 4e, did they changed anything significant? I mean did something similar to the Spellplague happened in Eberron during the transition from 3.e to 4e.

[Urpriest]

If more recent authors are allowed, China Mieville? :smalltongue:

A tad dark for mass appeal. There's a reason there are Neil Gaiman movies and not China Mieville ones. Still, New Crobuzon is rather Sharn-y, I agree.

[The Reverend]

While I would lovers to see an eberron movie made I think if Hollywood did make one it would be depressingly formulaic. The studios these days use internet piracy as an excuse not to make anything edgy or original. They see those kind of films as being Most likely to be pirated therefore less likely to maximize their profits.....but i guess they got a point what sad sack of shame is going to pirate Jack & Jill.


Rant off

Depression on

[Kol Korran]

for me the three main selling points of Eberron were the following:

1) complex interpretations: nothing is clear cut and simple- the Karrnathi use undead soldiers, but most of them come from volunteers. the silver flame seems good, but it had done atrocties, but it's not comprized out of zealots. the ashbound druids may have a legitimate claim to their hatred of the arcane. the Mournland... well it's the Morunland. the warforged have spurred their own multitutde of opinions, who knows what the daughters of Sora Kell are up to, is Darggun a new promise or threat? and more...

i think it comes mostly to the fore in alignements and religions (i love the "faiths of Eberron" book. i think that on the whole it speaks to a more mature mind set.

2) the PCs are truly the main heroes from the get go. this is mostly an opinion stemming from my dislike of how the Forgotten realms do it (with super high level characters all over the place). level 5 and the characters are allready a power. level 10? they rival the highest levels in the five nations (Keeper of the flame is a special case). i like it that way.

3)opposing powers and villainous powers: lords of Dust as the EVIL EVIL, Aurum as bastards, The dreaming dark as the unfathomable, the Daelkyr as the weird and strange, the three sisters as the mysterious, the dragons of Argonessen as WTF factor.

and this is before we get to the five nations themselves... i just love these opposing forces. on different scales, and they feel unique and interesting to me.

[Yora]

A question for those who do play 4e, did they changed anything significant? I mean did something similar to the Spellplague happened in Eberron during the transition from 3.e to 4e.
The story goes that they planned to, but someone managed to explain them how awful an idea that would be. I think they advanced the year by two years, but that pretty much is it.

However, many of the things that were regarded as problems in the Forgotten Realms and were changed had already been adressed when Eberron was first created. Those obstacles had been avoided right from the beginning.

[Dusk Eclipse]

Thanks the Host, I was really worried something had happened to my favourite setting ever.

One of the things I love the most about Eberron is the moral ambiguity of everything, the idea that not everything is as clear-cut as it seems just feels right. My best example of this is the fact that the NE Vampire King is the one who strives for peace while the NG Queen thinks the world would be better under her banner and is plotting to actually do it.

And the fact it cans support all kind of types of games (with the exception of low-magic games; but if you want that... Why in Khyber are you playing in Eberron?!?) from low level protect the town from maruders, to political intrigue to even planar travels (Dal Quor is AWESOME for this).

[Yora]

Eberron is mundane in its dynamics, but fantastic in the tools it provides.

Since it's not classic fantasy and more pulp, you can run a much greater range of stories in the setting. Pretty much everything set from 1500 to 1940 can be translated to eberron without much changes, and there is a huge amount of popular stories that fall into that range and that lots of people would love to try out.
You could say, the 17th to 19th century were the golden age of adventure and Eberron provides a setting for exactly such stories.

[Vortling]

Eberron is my favorite official setting for D&D. I much prefer the high magicness of the setting to other published settings. The way that magic integrates into the lives of the npcs really brings the setting to life for me. It's the little things like taking the lightning rail across Khorvaire that highlight the differences between Eberron and other settings.
The other difference I immensely enjoy is the intentional writing for PCs to make their mark on the world. Regardless of whether they want to save the world, damn the world, or just have a very active hand in international politics the situation is ripe for the PCs to show up and make a difference.

On a slightly related note, I'm thinking about running an A-Team inspired game set in Eberron. I was thinking they'd be ex-patriots from Breland but I don't have a good crime to frame them with. Any thought on good crimes or if they should be ex-patriots from another one of the five nations?

[Kol Korran]

On a slightly related note, I'm thinking about running an A-Team inspired game set in Eberron. I was thinking they'd be ex-patriots from Breland but I don't have a good crime to frame them with. Any thought on good crimes or if they should be ex-patriots from another one of the five nations?

this might deserve it's own thread...

but since we're here: first- i suggest it's a crime against a dragonmarked house, not a nation. (since then they can just go to another nation, some might gladly offer an asylum. the dragonmarks houses can go ANYWHERE and can pull all kinds of strings).

as to a crime:
against Breland- blow up a new super weapon (new construct type? a more advanced flying fort? a massive powerful flying ship?) or perhaps an assassination attempt against some high ranking noble, perhaps related to the king?

Against dragonmark houses- rob a major Khundarak bank? destroy Vadalis' carefully grown breeding vats? destroy house Cannit' new evolved warforged prototype? or perhaps you can take it even bigger- the team is framed to have destroyed some project that is important to SEVERAL houses (was being worked on in the Twelve), the houses powers are now geared to bear their combined prowess against the party (sentinel marshals with the best mercenaries of Khorvaire, riding Vadalis mounts, backed up by khundarak coin, with cannith toys, and the talents of the house of shadow, finding and detection used to find them?)

and yeah, it better go on a separate thread. :smallsmile:

[Urpriest]

The A-Team were jailed for robbing a bank that they actually robbed, they were just under orders and their commanding officer died before telling anyone else about it. Maybe something like that? The team was ordered to raid a House Kundarak bank by their commanding officer, but he died and no one will believe it was a sanctioned mission, so instead of the Brelish crown the blame rests on them.

[Vortling]

The A-Team were jailed for robbing a bank that they actually robbed, they were just under orders and their commanding officer died before telling anyone else about it. Maybe something like that? The team was ordered to raid a House Kundarak bank by their commanding officer, but he died and no one will believe it was a sanctioned mission, so instead of the Brelish crown the blame rests on them.

This has all sorts of merit. Especially if they rob a House Kundarak bank within Breland itself. Of course robbing a House Kundarak bank anywhere will be enough to bring down House Kundarak on their heads. And instead of Los Angeles they'll end up in Sharn. Now I must go watch the movie and old episodes again to prepare.

[The_Snark]

6.) Who else here thinks it'll probably be Queen Aurala who starts the Next War? From discussions in the past, I really do think Aundair and its queen (who is Neutral Good, even) will be the ones to start it.

Honestly, I've always been dubious about Aurala's supposed NG alignment. Don't get me wrong, I happen to kind of like Aurala, but what makes her good? We haven't seen anything to indicate she's a bad queen, and she probably cares for the welfare of her people, but... she'd also be willing to start a war of conquest if she thought she had a chance of winning, and she's characterized as a pretty ruthless schemer. I'd peg her as solidly True Neutral.

It sometimes feel like she was labeled Neutral Good just so that the setting could boast that it had a warmongering NG queen and a LE king suing for peace. And that's a cool idea, but... they didn't follow through and make the NG queen actually good.

I had a similar issue with Wroann, the supposedly-CG queen of Breland who helped kick off the Last War because she felt she'd be a better queen than her conservative (but hardly tyrannical) older sister, but the account of the War given in Forge of War manages to present her as pretty Good-sounding. A bit naive, maybe, but then nobody else managed to predict how badly out of control the War would get either.

This is not a big deal, since alignment is kind of fuzzy in Eberron. It's just something that occurs to me whenever I read mention of Aurala's alignment, and this seemed like the place to bring it up.


As for starting the Next War, it could be Aundair, though I don't think Aurala would intentionally start a full-scale war because she's better with diplomacy and espionage than she is with outright warfare (and her country is in no shape to fight right now anyway). I think she's more likely to try and maneuver somebody else into being the aggressor so that they take the blame for starting the war... but popular opinion or other factions in Aundair might take the decision out of her hands.

I think the most likely flashpoints are...

1. Aundair and the Eldeen Reaches. If Aundair were to invade anyone, it would most likely be the Reaches, who are mostly isolated from the other nations and who used to be part of Aundair. There are other nations that declared independence during the Last War, but the others aren't quite as tense: Zilargo and Breland were never hostile, Karrnath and the Mror Holds aren't exactly friends but are on good enough terms to do business, and Cyre is no longer around to complain about Valenar and Darguun. Aundair and the Reaches are pretty bitter towards one another: the Eldeen folk feel they were abandoned to the mercy of bandits and monsters, while the Aundairians think the Reaches stabbed them in the back when they needed help the most.

Only Breland and Droaam have worse relations... and not only is Boranel unlikely to start a war of any sort, Droaam isn't part of the Treaty of Thronehold. The Eldeen Reaches are, and I suspect Breland and Thrane would assist them if Aundair invaded: Breland because the king wants to discourage that sort of move, and Thrane because it's an excuse to invade Aundair. Speaking of which...

2. Aundair and Thrane. Thaliost is the most obvious flash point but not the only one: there's lots of bad blood between the two countries. They don't trust one another, they don't like one another, and they already have armies stationed on the border. Disaster waiting to happen, really.

3. Thrane and Karrnath. "Religious differences" is about all I need to explain this. Thrane has always had trouble with religious tolerance, and Karrnath is the easiest target to stir up righteous wrath against if someone decides to start rabble-rousing. It doesn't help that both nations did some rather unpleasant things to one another during the war.

You'll notice that Aundair and Thrane are involved in two of them. Those two are volatile.


Also, it's worth noting the Riedran presence in Aundair! I suspect the quori would like to see the Last War continue. They conquered Sarlona by triggering a series of long, bloody wars and setting themselves up as saviors, and it's not hard to imagine that they have similar designs in Khorvaire. They're probably worried about the Mourning too, assuming they weren't behind it, because they want Eberron to remain stable to stave off the eventual turning of the age in Dal Quor... but their plans are long-term anyway, so they have plenty of time to investigate.

[supermonkeyjoe]

The greatest part of Eberron for me is that the usual D&D conventions can be completely discarded.

When you amass a horde of wealth, you can deposit it in a bank.

When you're wounded you go to a hospital instead of a church.

When you do amazing deeds, It's reported in the newspapers.

You don't need to be a murderous hobo anymore, rent an apartment in Sharn and get the train to adventure!

When you need a specific service or spell you can go to one of the Dragonmarked houses instead of hoping that some random wizard can cast the spell you need.

Adventurers have never had it so easy.

[Prime32]

On the A-Team topic...

Mr. T is a warforged, right? Y'know, assuming he's not a night elf mohawk.

[Yora]

Of course, what else? :smallbiggrin:

Maybe orc, but that's not as funny.

Hannibal is a human fighter.
Face is a half-elf rogue.
Murdoc is gnome.

[Lateral]

I love this setting so much. There are just so many awesome character concepts that wouldn't work in other settings- only in Eberron could you make a boomerang-slinging dinosaur rider. (I've got a campaign going on where my character is that on a Swift Hunter build. It's a lot of fun, and our first combat isn't even resolved yet.)

[beyond reality]

In my Eberron there definitely is another major war on the horizon: The War of The Forge. Basically the Lord of Blades decides to strike first against the human nations which I consider the most likely "trigger" for a new war.

The biggest challenge for the new war is the fact that the nations of Khorvaire are extremely exhausted by war and unwilling to fight. This not only makes them vulnerable but it also means that when the Lord of Blades strikes at one nation the other are extremely reluctant to provide aid (this is of course where the PCs come in, forging alliances and so on).

This does involve a few assumptions of course. First and foremost the Lord of Blades has access to Cyran creation forges allowing him to produce more warforged (forged of mithral, adamantine and arcane steel salvaged from the massive battlegrounds in the mournlands). Thus he has forces far, far larger than any of the nations expect him to. Still a tiny army compared to any one of the five nations but it's supported by scavenged war machines from Cyre and the Cannith main hall and the secret aid of Merrix D'Cannith who's basically started turning himself into a warforged through the Renegade Mastermaker class. The warforged troops are also incredibly elite compared to regular human forces: possessing PC levels and the ability to cross terrain at about 8 times the speed of even mounted cavalry (running without tiring). The only military that can hope to match them is the Karnathi undead legions and Kiaus is the most reluctant to start a new war.

[Urpriest]

IMO, the Next War has to at least by partly started by Sarlona. If the Last War was World War One, the Next War needs a Japanese element. The question is, who is Manchuria?

[Lateral]

IMO, the Next War has to at least by partly started by Sarlona. If the Last War was World War One, the Next War needs a Japanese element. The question is, who is Manchuria?

No, but, see, the Last War ended with the fantasy equivalent of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Obviously, the Next War would be World War II, but with the ending of some other war. The Korean War, maybe?

...Damn, now I have to run a campaign that's M*A*S*H in the Next War. :smallsigh:

[Urpriest]

No, but, see, the Last War ended with the fantasy equivalent of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Obviously, the Next War would be World War II, but with the ending of some other war. The Korean War, maybe?

...Damn, now I have to run a campaign that's M*A*S*H in the Next War. :smallsigh:

Well, I could see the DMZ between North and South Korea being a planar boundary. Maybe part of Sarlona gets sucked back to Dal Quor, and Dal Quor is sealed off permanently. The Quori empire is pretty much North Korea already.

[0Megabyte]

Well, I could see the DMZ between North and South Korea being a planar boundary. Maybe part of Sarlona gets sucked back to Dal Quor, and Dal Quor is sealed off permanently. The Quori empire is pretty much North Korea already.

Well, North Korea if it had the resources and military/political might of the United States, maybe...

[beyond reality]

You could always do something between bordering Brelish knights or lords and groups of Droaam monsters for a South/North Korea Vibe. Or if you want things to be extra morally ambiguous it could be between Aundair and the Eldeen Reaches.

[Nerd-o-rama]

IMO, the Next War has to at least by partly started by Sarlona. If the Last War was World War One, the Next War needs a Japanese element. The question is, who is Manchuria?

Q'Barra is full of natural resources, the closest point on Khorvaire to Sarlona, and needs to be "civilized" in spite of the presence of a large number of the dominant Khorvarian culture there.

That said if you're looking for a thus far largely unknown power that's won a few small wars and might be hungry for more, and that's controlled politically and culturally by militarists, rather than just something with artistic nods to the Japanese, the Valenar are good candidates.

[The Reverend]

If we are going with the theme of advancing wars then dont forget that invading Vietnam and settling in for a decade long war was option number two. Option number one was to nuke north Vietnam....a whole lot. its a good thing Eisenhower asked the British how they felt about the plan...surprise they thought it quite daft.

[GungHo]

4.) The real King Kaius III. I read once in a Dragon magazine article about a very special prisoner at the Dreadhold, or whatever the Kundarak-run prison in the Lhazaar Principalities was called. A prisoner from Karrnath, who is trapped in an iron mask...
That's just Leonardo Di Caprio.


Because Eberron is about magic-rich metropoli and Dark Sun is about magic-starved wastelands?

I suppose you could transplant some ideas to the Mournland though.
I like the idea of Dark Sun being what used to be Eberron. Dark Sun's mythic past is actually quite intriguing and given the scale of disaster in the Mournland, it doesn't take too much of a stretch to see it happen again on a much larger scale and end up with the post apocalyptic wastelands of Dark Sun. You'd have to move some of the cities around, figure out Warforged are doing, etc. You can even keep around fun people from either universe... maybe the Lord of Blade gets along swimmingly with Gallard, Bane of Gnomes. You could also remove some of the Champions of Rajaat and just have a lucky 13, and they could be the last of the Houses.

[Kol Korran]

i had once tried to plan a game of "fallout- meets- Eberron" where due to the Mourning, the dragonmark houses start serious research that culminates in creating the vaults. then some selected people hide, mainly of dragonmark houses, nobility and darn useful people, just before some of the remaining people start another war, that somehow brings another cataclysm.

considering the high level of urban magi-tech, Eberron could fit in nicely with a Fallout theme.

i originally planned it for 4E, but it could fit 3.5 i guess.

damn i need to find those notes! :smallannoyed: i remember there were some interesting concept there...

[Yora]

Who is to say that there isn't an underground-Cyre still existing below the Mournlands? Maybe some nobles prepared just for such an occasion.

I think the Forgotten Realms had just such a thing.

[GungHo]

A couple of examples of that in FR, actually.

[hamishspence]

Deep Imaskar is a close parallel- what's the other one? Maybe Shade after the Fall of Netheril? Not "underground" exactly- but on the Plane of Shadow.

[GungHo]

There's one town under Haluraa that hid out in the Underdark right before the Spellplague.

[hamishspence]

Didn't know about that one.

[Yora]

How completely original. It isn't as if they have such a place already. Twice!