Help With Eberron

[Mjolnirbear]

I'm currently DMing Out Of The Abyss as my second time DMing. I'm enjoying it but I'm tired of the Realms. So with the Storm King's Thunder, I'm considering setting into Eberron.

The problem is that I've never actually played Eberron before, though I've been keenly interested. I don't know what's essential, and what can wait. I'd like help with figuring what I need, whether borrowing someone's home-brew races, or feats, or whether I need to rebuild Psionics from the ground up.

Here is my to-do list so far:
* find a good Warforged
* find a good artificer
* make a dragon mark feat EDIT: UA has one, I missed it
* make sure I balance the Mystic at least until real Psionics come out
* make a PC version of goblinoid races

I've got a creation rules home-brew that can help with the artificer, I haven't heard many complaints about the UA shifter or changeling, but I'm not sure what else I need or even if I need more than this.

I've posted this here instead of home-brew because I'm not actually brewing yet, just making a to-do list that I hope the folks here will help with. any ideas?

Update 1:

Thoughts so far
1. I'm going to have stout halflings as city halflings, and lightfoot as Talenta ones. I am considering using ghostwise to represent the bond with dinosaurs. Point wise halflings are on the very low end of the races, so I might just give the telepathy strait up?
2. High elf are Aerenal, Valenar are wood elves. Not going to allow drow. Probably need to do some tweaking.
3. Don't know if there is a point to forest gnomes in Eberron. Might stick to rock gnomes.
4. All dwarves are from Mror Holds, so not sure why or if I should distinguish them. I'm tempted to have them just be Hill dwarves, but there is still a lot of tribe mentality.
5. I have a pdf with lizardfolk races but not sure yet if I'm going to allow it. It will hinder the party socially, and really, why would they leave Q'Barra? Might not allow them for the same reason I won't allow drow...the mentality is so insular.
6. No duergar, tiefling, svirfneblin or dragonborn.
7. Pretty sure I want warforged subraces. Not sure if I'm going to allow 'pimp my warforged' though

I'm frankly uncertain the extant subraces adequately capture the flavour of eberron.

[Dragolord]

I'm currently DMing Out Of The Abyss as my second time DMing. I'm enjoying it but I'm tired of the Realms. So with the Storm King's Thunder, I'm considering setting into Eberron.

The problem is that I've never actually played Eberron before, though I've been keenly interested. I don't know what's essential, and what can wait. I'd like help with figuring what I need, whether borrowing someone's home-brew races, or feats, or whether I need to rebuild Psionics from the ground up.

Here is my to-do list so far:
* find a good Warforged
* find a good artificer
* make a dragon mark feat
* make sure I balance the Mystic at least until real Psionics come out
* make a PC version of goblinoid races

I've got a creation rules home-brew that can help with the artificer, I haven't heard many complaints about the UA shifter or changeling, but I'm not sure what else I need or even if I need more than this.

I've posted this here instead of home-brew because I'm not actually brewing yet, just making a to-do list that I hope the folks here will help with. any ideas?

If you aren't planning to use the Inspired and Kalashtar, and can make sure that the players don't go near Sarlona, you can ignore psionics almost completely. The UA Changeling and Shifter are adequate, although shifting is only once a day, which does make it less useful. You do need better Warforged and Artificers, but the Dragonmarks will probably be fine, as long as you don't rely too heavily on them. I'm not sure what to do about PC goblinoids. Feel free to ignore me, though. I'm sure that someone else can come up with something much more useful.

[JackPhoenix]

You only need what you players will want to use. If nobody is interested in playing goblin, you don't have to look for playable version, NPCs don't need that. The same is true about other races or classes: in my game, when the players fought few warforged mercenaries, I just used Thugs from MM, increased their AC a bit (to account for plating) and described them as WF. Done. While I'm interested in seeing stats for playable goblinoids, none of my players showed the slightest interest in playing one, so why should I waste time looking for them? The option is on the table, if any of them change their mind, I'll (or they) look for working stats.

[INDYSTAR188]

You only need what you players will want to use. If nobody is interested in playing goblin, you don't have to look for playable version, NPCs don't need that. The same is true about other races or classes: in my game, when the players fought few warforged mercenaries, I just used Thugs from MM, increased their AC a bit (to account for plating) and described them as WF. Done. While I'm interested in seeing stats for playable goblinoids, none of my players showed the slightest interest in playing one, so why should I waste time looking for them? The option is on the table, if any of them change their mind, I'll (or they) look for working stats.

I agree with this both for OP and in general. I can certainly understand wanting to be ready, a player might want to see which version of Artificer you're going with before they decide. I think getting a sense for what they want from an Eberron game is a really good starting point.

Regarding essential Eberron, I think the tone you set is most important. Play up the magi-tech awesomeness. I really love Sharn, the electric-trains, the pulp feel and the backdrop of the Last War.

[Saidoro]

When my group did Eberron we used this take on dragonmarks (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?418990-Grek-and-Weyroc-s-Eberron-Homebrew)(Because the official one is lame) and this take on the artificer (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=19072479&postcount=1)(Because the official one is lame).

We didn't have any warforged party members, but here are some stats by Kieth Baker (http://keith-baker.com/extra-life-hacking-the-warforged/).

No idea what to do about goblins or psionics, we didn't use them.

I'm also going to take a second to plug my fixed item prices (https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8XAiXpOfz9cMWt1RTBicmpmUDg/view?usp=sharing) since Eberron is a setting with (low level) magic marts, and you'll probably be better off using these than the official prices(They were actually created for the Eberron game).

Hope these help.

[Regitnui]

You're welcome to PM me for any lore questions, and there's also a Eberron Q&A thread over in the 3.5 forum. :smallwink: Unfortunately, I'm no help with mechanics, and may be cribbing a few of these for myself. I own all the 3.5 books, so it's easy enough for me to play the Library of Korranberg and provide information, whether theorized or canon.

[EvilAnagram]

I took the UA Warforged and ran with it for my friend's Eberron game.

Warforged
Traits
As a warforged, you have the following racial traits.
Ability Score Increase: Your Strength score increases by 1 and your Constitution score increases by 2.
Size: Warforged are generally broader and heavier than humans. Your size is Medium.
Speed: Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Composite Plating: Your construction incorporates wood and metal, granting you a +1 bonus to Armor Class.
Living Construct: Even though you were constructed, you are a living creature. You are immune to disease, poison damage, and the poisoned condition. You do not need to eat or breathe, but you can ingest food and drink if you wish. Instead of sleeping, you enter an inactive state for 4 hours each day. You do not dream in this state; you are fully aware of your surroundings and notice approaching enemies and other events as normal.
Compartmentalized Body: You can customize your artificial body by installing items into it. Over the course of a short rest you can attach a piece of armor, a weapon, or a magical focus to your body. You can conceal an attached item as a bonus action, requiring a DC 20 perception check to see it. Attached armor cannot be concealed. It takes an hour to remove an attached item from you. You can only have one attached item at a time.
Languages: You can speak, read, and write Common and one other language of your choice.

[JackPhoenix]

I took the UA Warforged and ran with it for my friend's Eberron game.

Warforged
Traits
As a warforged, you have the following racial traits.
Ability Score Increase: Your Strength score increases by 1 and your Constitution score increases by 2.
Size: Warforged are generally broader and heavier than humans. Your size is Medium.
Speed: Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Composite Plating: Your construction incorporates wood and metal, granting you a +1 bonus to Armor Class.
Living Construct: Even though you were constructed, you are a living creature. You are immune to disease, poison damage, and the poisoned condition. You do not need to eat or breathe, but you can ingest food and drink if you wish. Instead of sleeping, you enter an inactive state for 4 hours each day. You do not dream in this state; you are fully aware of your surroundings and notice approaching enemies and other events as normal.
Compartmentalized Body: You can customize your artificial body by installing items into it. Over the course of a short rest you can attach a piece of armor, a weapon, or a magical focus to your body. You can conceal an attached item as a bonus action, requiring a DC 20 perception check to see it. Attached armor cannot be concealed. It takes an hour to remove an attached item from you. You can only have one attached item at a time.
Languages: You can speak, read, and write Common and one other language of your choice.

Abilities seems fine... perhaps having options of choosing either +1 Str and Medium size (default model) or +1 Dex and Small size? (WF scout model)

Complete immunity to poison seems a bit too much, even if it fits the race (and I remember taunting fleshy party members by taking showers in poison spray traps in DDO, and the nasty surprise when a patch changed it to immunity to non-magical poison only...ouch, should've read the patch notes). Resistance and advantage on saves like dwarf would be better balanced, IMO

Why extra languages? Everyone who commisioned WF during the Last War spoke Common. Seems weird anyone would waste time teaching them other languages. It is a slight disadvantage compared to other races, but they were build as soldiers, not diplomats.

[EvilAnagram]

Abilities seems fine... perhaps having options of choosing either +1 Str and Medium size (default model) or +1 Dex and Small size? (WF scout model)
My Warforged experience started in 4e, where the alternate was a +1 Int. Is a small scout model in other editions?



Complete immunity to poison seems a bit too much, even if it fits the race (and I remember taunting fleshy party members by taking showers in poison spray traps in DDO, and the nasty surprise when a patch changed it to immunity to non-magical poison only...ouch, should've read the patch notes). Resistance and advantage on saves like dwarf would be better balanced, IMO
These are good points.


Why extra languages? Everyone who commisioned WF during the Last War spoke Common. Seems weird anyone would waste time teaching them other languages. It is a slight disadvantage compared to other races, but they were build as soldiers, not diplomats.

That was in the UA article.

[Gastronomie]

IMO, whenever you run a campaign in a particular "world", what's most important is not the mechanics, but the atmosphere you set. Research about Eberron, or whatever world you want to use, and explain it in great detail to the players during the sessions. Make it a special experience. Otherwise, it can easily become no different from "Forgotten Realms with Artificiers and Warforged and the other unique races".

I have actually experienced one such campaign in PbP. It was set in Eberron, but TBH I found nothing in the campaign to be very Eberron-like - and it died out quite quickly due to lack of posting. It's probably a common mistake, and more so if you get too focused on the mechanics.

The mechanics and numbers are nothing but a mere "representation" of the world's unique points. They need attention, but if you get satisfied with the mechanics alone, that isn't enough to "set a feel".

[Mjolnirbear]

When my group did Eberron we used this take on dragonmarks (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?418990-Grek-and-Weyroc-s-Eberron-Homebrew)(Because the official one is lame) and this take on the artificer (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=19072479&postcount=1)(Because the official one is lame).

We didn't have any warforged party members, but here are some stats by Kieth Baker (http://keith-baker.com/extra-life-hacking-the-warforged/).

No idea what to do about goblins or psionics, we didn't use them.

I'm also going to take a second to plug my fixed item prices (https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B8XAiXpOfz9cMWt1RTBicmpmUDg/view?usp=sharing) since Eberron is a setting with (low level) magic marts, and you'll probably be better off using these than the official prices(They were actually created for the Eberron game).

Hope these help.

Can't actually see the artifice. It won't finish loading the page.

I think I'll stick with the dragon marked feat. I give my players a feat at first level and it fills the requirements.

I actually have that item prices PDF. I quite like it and will be incorporating it into my next campaign.

[Mjolnirbear]

You're welcome to PM me for any lore questions, and there's also a Eberron Q&A thread over in the 3.5 forum. :smallwink: Unfortunately, I'm no help mechanics, and may be cribbing a few of these for myself. I own all the 3.5 books, so it's easy enough for me to play the Library of Korranberg and provide information, whether theorized or canon.

Thanks. I've been reading a ton but there are still unanswered questions, like syberis dragonmarks——can't find any info on them.

[JackPhoenix]

My Warforged experience started in 4e, where the alternate was a +1 Int. Is a small scout model in other editions?

Yep. It was a creature in 3.5's MM3 named Warforged Scout, with added stats for a player race. Basically halfling-sized Warforged. There was also Warforged Charger, gorilla-sized and shaped heavy armored frontline model, but with only limited intelligence.And there was a bunch of feats for the base warforged representing different armoring, all available at first level only, as warforged couldn't wear armor back then: mithral body for breastplate equivalent, adamantine body comparable to adamantine full plate, darkwood body (non-metallic for druids), unarmored body (no spell failure chance for arcane casters and no metal to mess with druids, could wear normal armor or robes) and psiforged body (stored extra power points for psions, illegally created after the war. There were some hints of something weird going on with them, possibly Quori or Mourning related, as their crystals came from Mournland)


Thanks. I've been reading a ton but there are still unanswered questions, like syberis dragonmarks——can't find any info on them.

Siberys marks would IMO work better as unique effects than feats, similar to blessings or epic boons from DMG.

[Mjolnirbear]

I took the UA Warforged and ran with it for my friend's Eberron game.

Warforged
Traits
As a warforged, you have the following racial traits.
Ability Score Increase: Your Strength score increases by 1 and your Constitution score increases by 2.
Size: Warforged are generally broader and heavier than humans. Your size is Medium.
Speed: Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Composite Plating: Your construction incorporates wood and metal, granting you a +1 bonus to Armor Class.
Living Construct: Even though you were constructed, you are a living creature. You are immune to disease, poison damage, and the poisoned condition. You do not need to eat or breathe, but you can ingest food and drink if you wish. Instead of sleeping, you enter an inactive state for 4 hours each day. You do not dream in this state; you are fully aware of your surroundings and notice approaching enemies and other events as normal.
Compartmentalized Body: You can customize your artificial body by installing items into it. Over the course of a short rest you can attach a piece of armor, a weapon, or a magical focus to your body. You can conceal an attached item as a bonus action, requiring a DC 20 perception check to see it. Attached armor cannot be concealed. It takes an hour to remove an attached item from you. You can only have one attached item at a time.
Languages: You can speak, read, and write Common and one other language of your choice.

I can use this actually. I want it to have a few options and I'd probably have advantage/resist poison though. It looks balanced. Should the bonus to armour class function with defense, or unarmoured defence, or mage armour? I'm thinking yes to be honest.

[Saidoro]

That's odd, here's the text from the artificer post:

What this is: An Archtype available to 5e Bards, Clerics, Druids, Sorcerers and Wizards to make them feel like Eberron setting artificers. It aims to let you do artificer/magitech stuff like making magic items and industrializing magic without actually disrupting the 5e "Magic Items are at DM discretion only" economy too badly. It does this by letting you give rituals, concentration spells and cantrip-casting wands to non-magical characters: stuff that was already available to the other PCs for a feat if they were interested, but which is generally not available to D&D's hypothetical 1st level commoner outside of magitech settings. The War Wand is basically an invention of my own. It seems like the sort of thing that would have existed during the Last War, but has no particular support in the Ebberon setting as far as I know. Likewise, infusions aren't exactly the same thing as artificer infusions in 3.5e, and I feel like that is probably for the best.

Crafting Proficiencies: At 2nd level (or at 3rd if you are a bard) you gain proficiency in the use of a herbalism kit and two sorts of artisan's tools. If your DM allows players to create magic items, you know how to create kinds made using tools you are proficient with.

Prepare Infusion: At 2nd level (or at 3rd if you are a bard) you learn to prepare infusions. An infusion is a magical drink similar in nature to a potion, but of a far more temporary nature. An infusion contains one spell of duration of 'concentration' and a range of 'self'. The drinker of the infusion gains the benefit of the spell for as long as they continue to concentrate. Drinking an infusion disrupts concentration on existing concentration spells. Preparing an infusion requires a vial of water, the use an herbalism kit, ten minutes and a casting of the spell to be infused. An infusion remains potent until the spell slot used to cast it is regained.

Etch Schema: Starting at 6th level, you gain the ability to etch magical schema of any ritual spell you know. A schema is a magical writing similar in nature to a scroll, but written on permanent materials such as stone tablets or metal plates. Each schema contains step by step instructions for casting a single spell, allowing anyone, spellcaster or not, to cast the spell as a ritual once per day. Etching a schema takes an hour and costs 200 gold per spell level of the spell contained within. Schema for cantrips cost 50 gold to make.

Craft War Wand: At 10th level, you are able to create spellcasting weapons usable by magical and nonmagical characters alike. These weapons, known as war wands, are constructed from ordinary spell foci and been imbued with two spells: one cantrip and one other spell. Both must be of instantaneous duration and lack expensive material components. By attuning to the war wand, the wielder may treat both spells as if they were known and currently prepared. Although no magical ability is required to cast a cantrip from a war wand, higher level spells require spell slots as normal and may be of little use to noncasters. Crafting a war wand takes one hour, a spell focus and 100 gold per level of the noncantrip spell to be imbued. A war wand containing two cantrips requires only the time and the spell focus. Despite the name, any spell focus may be used - wands are merely the most common form.

Create Warforged: Starting at 16th level, you rediscover the secrets of creating living constructs. With standard tools, it takes full month of effort and 1000 gold to assemble and enchant a single warforged. By spending six months and 10000 gold constructing a Creation Forge, you may cut the time to do so down to a single day. Regardless of the method used in their creation, these living constructs are not mindless servants. Though often quite fond of their creators, warforged have minds of their own and will leave if mistreated or if better opportunities clearly await them elsewhere. Note that in many settings the creation of warforged is illegal or restricted. With DM permission you may discover some other major innovation instead of or in addition to this one.
(The expanded dragonmarks thing actually keeps the feat around, it came about after a discussion about how the Cannith feat was completely useless to someone already playing a wizard, which continued on to a discussion about how the feats really don't allow the houses to have the giant continent-spanning monopolies that they're supposed to have. And it even has Siberys marks rules.)

[Mjolnirbear]

IMO, whenever you run a campaign in a particular "world", what's most important is not the mechanics, but the atmosphere you set. Research about Eberron, or whatever world you want to use, and explain it in great detail to the players during the sessions. Make it a special experience. Otherwise, it can easily become no different from "Forgotten Realms with Artificiers and Warforged and the other unique races".

I have actually experienced one such campaign in PbP. It was set in Eberron, but TBH I found nothing in the campaign to be very Eberron-like - and it died out quite quickly due to lack of posting. It's probably a common mistake, and more so if you get too focused on the mechanics.

The mechanics and numbers are nothing but a mere "representation" of the world's unique points. They need attention, but if you get satisfied with the mechanics alone, that isn't enough to "set a feel".

You hit the nail on the head, my friend. I can reskin anything. (I don't *want* to with options available to players, but I can in a pinch)

I've done a crapton of reading. Eberron seems very steam punk in a away, without the steam. I think I have the flavour for the halflings down hard and a decent grip on the other races. I haven't yet decided how to represent high magic in a 5e setting, but considering making it a mark of prestige for the rich and the dragonmarked. I want to avoid loot piñatas at all costs.

[JackPhoenix]

(The expanded dragonmarks thing actually keeps the feat around, it came about after a discussion about how the Cannith feat was completely useless to someone already playing a wizard, which continued on to a discussion about how the feats really don't allow the houses to have the giant continent-spanning monopolies that they're supposed to have. And it even has Siberys marks rules.)

Well, power of the dragonmarked houses doesn't come from being able to cast thematic spell few times a day: they have access to dragonmark focus items and other things that either don't work, or are hard to use without marks. Base of Sivis communication network aren't gnomes who can cast Message or Sending once a day, but Speaking Stones, that could do it all day long, over infinite distance, and without the need to know the gnome on the recieving side...and which can't be used without the mark. Airships can be controlled either by someone with a Mark of Storm... or you need a really powerful caster capable of mindcontrolling the elemental through magic. Creation Forge can't be used (or built) by just anyone...just ask LoBster how are his efforts to make new warforged going.

Unique items, rituals available only to members of dragonmarked houses, organisation, teaching new members and wealth and political influence gained over about 1500 years are the source of their power.

Keith Baker even said in a discussion on WotC forums dealing with the same question that some spells should be limited to members of appropriate dragonmarked houses.


I've done a crapton of reading. Eberron seems very steam punk in a away, without the steam. I think I have the flavour for the halflings down hard and a decent grip on the other races. I haven't yet decided how to represent high magic in a 5e setting, but considering making it a mark of prestige for the rich and the dragonmarked. I want to avoid loot piñatas at all costs.

I've seen Eberron described as magicpunk or dungeonpunk.

Magic in Eberron is omnipresent, but not omnipotent. Weak and practical effects are common, Everburning Lanterns, magical fridges, innkeepers using Prestidigitation instead of a rag to clean the tables, businesses based on magic. Powerful magic should be rare...certainly rarer than in FR, where there is a ton of overpowered NPCs and the innkeeper in random tavern is a retired high level adventurer. I think 5e represent this better than 3.5, where even weak magic items were prohibitevely expensive. You can give NPCs magic cloaks that protect them from weather, magic swords that don't give combat bonuses, but won't break, rust or dull, magic lighters...that sort of things won't break the game balance. Sure, the characters can loot those items and either use them themselves...which won't do much, as they don't hace combat application...or sell them for gold...which will be worse, but they still shouldn't be able to buy powerful things.

+1 swords may be available from House Cannith in any large city, but for +2, you'll have to commision it first...and they'll only serve important individuals or someone who did something for then, not any random hobo with a pile of gold. And +3? Forget about buying that, search records in Morgrave University library about the possible location of lpowerful weapon, then make an expedition to that location, racing against time as Emerald Claw party learned about it too...and end up facing its owner, powerful Rakshasa who doesn't want to share it's favorite toy with anyone.

[Saidoro]

Dragonmark stuff
All true enough(if mechanically sketchy), though I'll point out that a big part of the goal was also to make it so that any character could have any dragonmark they want without some of the choices just being a way to set feats on fire for no real benefit at all.


I've seen Eberron described as magicpunk or dungeonpunk.

Magic in Eberron is omnipresent, but not omnipotent. Weak and practical effects are common, Everburning Lanterns, magical fridges, innkeepers using Prestidigitation instead of a rag to clean the tables, businesses based on magic. Powerful magic should be rare...certainly rarer than in FR, where there is a ton of overpowered NPCs and the innkeeper in random tavern is a retired high level adventurer. I think 5e represent this better than 3.5, where even weak magic items were prohibitevely expensive. You can give NPCs magic cloaks that protect them from weather, magic swords that don't give combat bonuses, but won't break, rust or dull, magic lighters...that sort of things won't break the game balance. Sure, the characters can loot those items and either use them themselves...which won't do much, as they don't hace combat application...or sell them for gold...which will be worse, but they still shouldn't be able to buy powerful things.

+1 swords may be available from House Cannith in any large city, but for +2, you'll have to commision it first...and they'll only serve important individuals or someone who did something for then, not any random hobo with a pile of gold. And +3? Forget about buying that, search records in Morgrave University library about the possible location of lpowerful weapon, then make an expedition to that location, racing against time as Emerald Claw party learned about it too...and end up facing its owner, powerful Rakshasa who doesn't want to share it's favorite toy with anyone.
This I absolutely agree with, Eberron has tons of magic items all over the place, but they aren't ultra-powerful. Cheaper items should be purchasable at any major population center, mid priced ones should be purchasable if you've got an in with a dragonmarked house, really expensive stuff should only be loot or maybe a thing you can commission if Merrix d'Cannith owes you a big personal favor.

[rlc]

You hit the nail on the head, my friend. I can reskin anything. (I don't *want* to with options available to players, but I can in a pinch)

I've done a crapton of reading. Eberron seems very steam punk in a away, without the steam. I think I have the flavour for the halflings down hard and a decent grip on the other races. I haven't yet decided how to represent high magic in a 5e setting, but considering making it a mark of prestige for the rich and the dragonmarked. I want to avoid loot piñatas at all costs.

Yeah, worry about the story firat. If your players are interested in helping you with the mechanics, take advantage of that.

[Regitnui]

Thanks. I've been reading a ton but there are still unanswered questions, like syberis dragonmarks——can't find any info on them.

*cough* Lorewise, siberys dragonmarks are incredibly rare; most Houses can go for a human generation without anyone manifesting one. Cannith almost certainly lacks one; the faction with a Siberys mark would have a great advantage over the others and would hardly be quiet about it. Siberys dragonmarks are also incredibly large; where a least mark covers a few square inches, up to a greater covering half of the bearer's chest or an entire forearm, a Siberys mark covers the entire torso, visible on the neck, arms and even upper legs, if centered on the bearer's heart. As with all other marks, though, a Siberys dragonmark can centre anywhere on the body, so may cover the head, chest and an arm, both legs up to the navel, etc.

Mechanically, the Siberys mark in 3.5 required devoting 3 levels to the Heir of Siberys prestige class. Unlike the others. Which could be gained with a feat and improved over time with more feats, an already-dragonmarked character was disqualified from the Heir of Siberys prestige class. Given that it offered a 1/day 7-8th level spell, this was probably balanced. I can't judge. At 2nd level of this class you could get one of the following spells 1/day:

Moment of Prescience (Mark of Detection)
Discern Location (Mark of Finding)
Awaken or summon nature's ally VI (Mark of Handling]
Mass heal (Mark of Healing)
Refuge (Mark of Hospitality)
True creation (Mark of Making)
Greater teleport (Mark of Passage)
Symbol of death (Mark of Scribing)
Mind blank (Mark of Sentinel)
Greater prying eyes or greater scrying (Mark of Shadow)
Storm of Vengeance (Mark of Storm)
Prismatic Wall (Mark of Warding)

A full Heir of Siberys could use their chosen spell twice a day. I'll let others speculate what appropriate spell replacements would be and an appropriate penalty for that level of spell twice per long rest. Of course, there's the social penalty of having your dragonmarked house literally watching your every move because you're worth more than your weight in platinum in magical power.


Yep. It was a creature in 3.5's MM3 named Warforged Scout, with added stats for a player race. Basically halfling-sized Warforged. There was also Warforged Charger, gorilla-sized and shaped heavy armored frontline model, but with only limited intelligence.And there was a bunch of feats for the base warforged representing different armoring, all available at first level only, as warforged couldn't wear armor back then: mithral body for breastplate equivalent, adamantine body comparable to adamantine full plate, darkwood body (non-metallic for druids), unarmored body (no spell failure chance for arcane casters and no metal to mess with druids, could wear normal armor or robes) and psiforged body (stored extra power points for psions, illegally created after the war. There were some hints of something weird going on with them, possibly Quori or Mourning related, as their crystals came from Mournland)

You know, I've only ever seen most of those referred to in the books they were introduced in. I get the Reforged/Juggernaut thing as a character levels, but psiforged (meh) and scouts (ehhh) both struck me more as forced options rsther than a coherent part of the world. Almost like someone on the dev team back them said "I want to play a psychic/scout warforged" and didn't try to play it back into their character, instead going for the global retcon of "These have always existed even though you never heard of them. They're not bad, but I prefer to follow Baker's line of thinking on all the subraces introduced for the then-PHB races and ignore them.

There was no reason to use warforged scouts over human ones, barring a severe lack of manpower. Not to dismiss those who like them, but just as an example.

[JackPhoenix]

You know, I've only ever seen most of those referred to in the books they were introduced in. I get the Reforged/Juggernaut thing as a character levels, but psiforged (meh) and scouts (ehhh) both struck me more as forced options rsther than a coherent part of the world. Almost like someone on the dev team back them said "I want to play a psychic/scout warforged" and didn't try to play it back into their character, instead going for the global retcon of "These have always existed even though you never heard of them. They're not bad, but I prefer to follow Baker's line of thinking on all the subraces introduced for the then-PHB races and ignore them.

There was no reason to use warforged scouts over human ones, barring a severe lack of manpower. Not to dismiss those who like them, but just as an example.

I dunno, warforged scouts sounds damm useful: they don't need to eat, sleep or even breathe, making them perfect for extended mission, they are immune to exhaustion and many enviromental dangers, unlike "drones" (like homunculi), they are sentient and have unlimited operation range and don't need spellcaster or artificer controller, their small size is advantage for scouting, they are (in theory) perfectly loyal, and while expensive, they are replacable...if you lose one, just comission another from House Cannith, with all skills already included, instead of spending years on training human scout, or hiring unreliable types like Valenar elves or Talenta halflings.

Charger is more weird, it fits the same function as Titans, and it's mentally closer to them than their smaller cousins, but it's smaller and weaker...perhaps it's cheaper alternative? And then you have things like Steel Krakens and Warforged Raptors, or however was that flying thing from FoW called.

Psiforged, sure, as unique experiments, why not, as "subrace" with enough members, that's more iffy. But when you realise who created the original warforged, and for what purpose, version with in-build psionic batteries make more sense. I wouldn't be surprised if Merrix got the Inspiration to create them in his dreams...

[Mjolnirbear]

Syberis stuff

(then)

They're not bad, but I prefer to follow Baker's line of thinking on all the subraces introduced for the then-PHB races and ignore them.
.

I think I can probably pass on Syberis marks then. None of my players would take well to being forceably adopted back into the family, which I imagine would happen if anyone not already under the thumb of the house manifested the mark.

What's this about subraces? Because so many of them just don't make sense, and I'm wondering if I should make new ones or tweak them...

[Mjolnirbear]

That's odd, here's the text from the artificer post:

(The expanded dragonmarks thing actually keeps the feat around, it came about after a discussion about how the Cannith feat was completely useless to someone already playing a wizard, which continued on to a discussion about how the feats really don't allow the houses to have the giant continent-spanning monopolies that they're supposed to have. And it even has Siberys marks rules.)

The Schema... is that reuseable? Or is it one-use only like a scroll?

[Regitnui]

I dunno, warforged scouts sounds damm useful: they don't need to eat, sleep or even breathe, making them perfect for extended mission, they are immune to exhaustion and many enviromental dangers, unlike "drones" (like homunculi), they are sentient and have unlimited operation range and don't need spellcaster or artificer controller, their small size is advantage for scouting, they are (in theory) perfectly loyal, and while expensive, they are replacable...if you lose one, just comission another from House Cannith, with all skills already included, instead of spending years on training human scout, or hiring unreliable types like Valenar elves or Talenta halflings.

Not that I don't see the uses, but from another point of view it has little value over training a normally-sized warforged as a ranger.


Charger is more weird, it fits the same function as Titans, and it's mentally closer to them than their smaller cousins, but it's smaller and weaker...perhaps it's cheaper alternative?

Siege Monster. But of course the Titan already does that. I honestly don't know what else the charger has over the normal 'Forged. Limited production run at most.


And then you have things like Steel Krakens and Warforged Raptors, or however was that flying thing from FoW called.

Now those two I do understand; they're naval and aerial troops respectively. The Steel Krakens were specifically commissioned by Cyre. The Warforged Raptors were also noted to be prohibitively expensive. What 'prohibitively expensive' means to a War that eventually had combat airships, I'm less sure of. The fact that it needs a large amount of mithril might be more the problem.


Psiforged, sure, as unique experiments, why not, as "subrace" with enough members, that's more iffy. But when you realise who created the original warforged, and for what purpose, version with in-build psionic batteries make more sense. I wouldn't be surprised if Merrix got the Inspiration to create them in his dreams...

Well, that could be the more interesting background. But no, by the written lore they're mysterious constructions that even Merrix has no clue about. Also, they're carrying some sort of mysterious psionic plague. Both elements of which I find more interesting than the psiforged themselves. As a limited production attempt to replicate quorforged; great. As a player race? Nope.

[Saidoro]

The Schema... is that reuseable? Or is it one-use only like a scroll?
Reusable once per day.

[Regitnui]

Schemas by lore are essentially magic blueprints.

[EvilAnagram]

I can use this actually. I want it to have a few options and I'd probably have advantage/resist poison though. It looks balanced. Should the bonus to armour class function with defense, or unarmoured defence, or mage armour? I'm thinking yes to be honest.

Yes, the way it's worded intentionally allows it to stack with any AC calculation.