Eberron...is it worth picking -up?

[Anti-Sean]

If they just had a place wiht some good Orinetal influence for ninjas to come from instead of a half-elven house of spies and actors, it would be nearly perfect.

The Dhakaani have the Shaarat'khesh; the Silent Knives provide you with all the excuse you need for ninja-y goodness in a convenient goblin-sized package without having to worry about using analogues of real world cultures. According to the Monastic Orders Dragonshard, members of other races are even granted entry into the clan under exceptional circumstances.

 

[BluSponge]

Just curious. Aside from the campaign and Sharn books, what do others consider to be the most essential books in the line? Which one do you find yourself referencing most often?

Tom

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

If they just had a place wiht some good Orinetal influence for ninjas to come from instead of a half-elven house of spies and actors, it would be nearly perfect.

Who says half-elves can't be Asian flavored? Not all members of the House would be spies or actors, but a spy = ninja anyway.

 

[ssampier]

I don't have Eberron, but I like the way you think.

 

[Anti-Sean]

Just curious. Aside from the campaign and Sharn books, what do others consider to be the most essential books in the line? Which one do you find yourself referencing most often?

Tom

I have all the Eberron books except for Player's Guide to Eberron and Secrets of Xen'Drik. I'd rate them for quality & usefulness to me as follows:

ECS
Sharn: CoT
--
Races of Eberron (one great fluff chapter (Kalashtar) one terrible fluff chapter (Changelings) two weak/forgettable fluff chapters (Warforged & Shifters) but some excellent, excellent, *excellent* crunch - some great feats & PrCs in this book.
Five Nations (I liked this one for its background information - it helped round out the setting outside of Sharn for me.)
Faiths of Eberron (this book really made the Sovereign Host click for me)
--
Dragonmarked (the fluff was nice, but I expected a bit more - great crunch, worth it just for the expanded info on/options for aberrant dragonmarks. I use the Houses quite a bit in my current campaign, so this is very good for me right now.)
--
Secrets of Sarlona (fantastic fantastic book, but doesn't have as much immediate use to my current campaign. I'm planning a few future campaigns around its contents, though)
Explorer's Handbook (I like it, it's got some great adventure locales/ideas and nice PrCs (the ever-lovin' Windwright Captain - greatest. PrC. evar.)
--
Magic of Eberron (this one left me feeling a bit cold - can't quite put my finger on it. The PrCs all seemed to be duplicates of one another. (ok, here's another transformative PrC, but to a *different* creature type! Yaaaay! It's not bad, per se, just doesn't seem to live up to the high mark set by most of the other books for this setting. I do like the ancient treasure tables in the back, though, particularly the Dhakaani relics.)

 

[Missywelden]

I definatly enjoy Eberron. I don't use everything in it, but things can be easilly changed to fit what you want, without screwing around with the whole world.

I find that the warforged act just like any other race...they have their differences. They are really not at all like robots, just a construct.

The modes of transportation never pose a problem. I find that many PCs can't afford lightning rails or airships until later. I DM in Eberron and they have had to use a wagon and donkies (yes, donkies LOL) for quite and few levels now.

Eberron has a lot of flavour to it and has new lands and countries to explore.

 

[Prince of Happiness]

*WHUMP!* Ah! Ah! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!

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*splat*

 

[Grymar]

I find that the warforged act just like any other race...they have their differences. They are really not at all like robots, just a construct.

Thank you. I hate the warforged-are-robots concept. They are more like children. 400 pound, adamantium plated children with an advanced grasp of battlefield tactics, but children nonetheless.

 

[Solarious]

Who says half-elves can't be Asian flavored? Not all members of the House would be spies or actors, but a spy = ninja anyway.

You're thinking Elves, not half-elves. There are technically 2 houses, but only 1 mark really, as there is a major split in ideology within the original house. Half-elves get the marks of Storm and Detection. It's the elves' seco-*gack*

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It is the elves' only Dragonmark. Do not knock off their only Dragonmark.

... Ugh... Gotta lay off the all-nighters. Where was I?

For a free, and excellent look at The Houses, by The Fireballed Mage. It's some of the best portrayal/writing I've seen on Eberron, ever, right up there with Keith Baker's writing. It's verification of my hope one day that Eberron will be well written by people other than Keith himself, who lends his magic touch to just about all of the best Eberron books around.

 

[Destil]

The Dhakaani have the Shaarat'khesh; the Silent Knives provide you with all the excuse you need for ninja-y goodness in a convenient goblin-sized package without having to worry about using analogues of real world cultures. According to the Monastic Orders Dragonshard, members of other races are even granted entry into the clan under exceptional circumstances.

Samurai also fit well into the Dhakaani culture for the more martially inclined hobgoblins and bugbears.

If you want the analogues of real world cultures you can also turn Adar into a bastion of Asian themes and psionics.