D&D 5E How Strange should Flora and Fauna be in the Default 5E Setting?

[NewJeffCT]

When you say Flora & Fauna, do you mean are the trees your standard earth trees, or are they pink with purple polka dots that shoot poisonous gas at anybody within 20 feet of them? Are the forests populated with typical earth like deers, foxes, coyotes, etc, or are they populated with strange 4-headed, 8 legged insectile fauna?

When I think flora & fauna, I think of things that I do not consider typically "encounter" worthy - I don't think of dragons, bulettes, owlbears, treants, etc. I think of flora & fauna as more background stuff (i.e., the party ranger went out & brought home a deer for dinner, instead of a 4 headed, 8 legged creature...)

I would prefer a default to be more standard stuff. I think it is much easier to add exotic flora & fauna to a standard setting, than it is to dial down a more exotic setting to something more standard.

 

[Mark CMG]

When you say Flora & Fauna, do you mean (. . .)?

I mean the plants and wildlife but not necessarily the "monster" and non-human sentient species. I meant more the background stuff as you mean but it may be that some folks want to include the others and that's fine too.

 

[RangerWickett]

Dragons are in decline because humans competed with them as top predator, killing all the megafauna. Dragons lack the numbers necessary to herd livestock, so either they dwindle, or they become tyrants who rule through fear and force their human chattel to raise cattle.

 

[Mark CMG]

Here's a new video from the TerranScapes YouTube channel showing how he deals with jungle terrain for tabletop wargaming that makes some interesting observations about flora.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGbUzEUb91I]junglepieces.mp4 - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Kzach]

I've been working on my homebrew setting for umpteen years and one of the things I decided that I wanted to be a core concept within the setting is that I took magic into account, not just in terms of technology or societal impact, but as a holistic effect that had repercussions throughout the entire history of the world.

That meant doing away ENTIRELY with real-world flora and fauna. That's not to say that things look alien and surreal, just to say that I've gone to the effort to invent various things and make certain assumptions like there only being dire versions of animals (they're the only ones who could survive in such a world), making up a few major trees so instead of saying you're entering a pine forest, I can say you're entering a meloch forest, etc.

It's a lot of work but I also feel it gives players a much greater sense of being in a fantasy world where elves, dwarves, humans and fantastical creatures live alongside each other and compete for survival and it all making 'sense' instead of feeling as if it's all just shoe-horned in for the sake of living up to certain tropes.

 

[Ratinyourwalls]

Ironwrought Hounds, domesticated dinosaurs, undead krakens, living spells.... yeah that's right Eberron should be the default.

 

[variant]

I'll just stick with European flora and fauna...

 

[steeldragons]

Great topic, Mark!

The flora and fauna of the world will, most likely, follow standard real life Earth creatures and species. We all need a starting point that we understand and can relate to. That's basic for any fantasy. So, in desert areas, I expect to see camels, scorpions, asps, the occasional elephant, etc. In temperate forests, yes deer and foxes and squirrels should exist. Tundra plains should have great herds of caribou or musk oxen, yaks, snowy owls, etc.

But then, from there, throw in a sprinkling of talking animals, or a turquoise crested gale (some harmless bird with bright blue-green crest that has a beautiful singing voice much sought after by the aristocratic/noble classes as "pets"), red weasel/fox creatures domesticated by the folks of Swampytown to ferret out snakes and rats...some great bison-esque beast of burden...that is pink to purple spots used by the farming folk of a particular region.

Throw in a "vallenwood" or "silverleaf" or "bronzewood" tree or a "moonrose bush" (bright white rose, sacred to the druids -or just appreciated for their beauty and scent, that only bloom at night and give off a silvery glow) or some "black ginger root/plant" used to create a spicy tea...Disney-esque "snapdragons" that actually are carnivorous beautiful flowers feasting on your garden variety insects.

Nothing you necessarily have to fight or that, necessarily, would be able to kiil you. But flavor....flavor, flavor, flavor. Things that give the palyers an immediate immersion to the world beyond "it's Earth with dragons, orcs and fairies in it." Just a sprinkle of fantasy that, ironically, gives the setting a "realness" I often find lacking in published settings.

I've been doing this in my own game world for years and years, but would definitely like to see "official D&D" take a slight turn in this direction.

--SD

 

[trancejeremy]

If humans (and their mythological brethren like elves and dwarves and trolls) are the main species on the planet, then it should be an Earth like setting in terms of plants and animals.

Unless it's a lost colony type thing, like say, the Pern series or some other early fantasy ones, like I think Darkover

 

[Aristotle]

I've been lovingly crafting game worlds for more than two decades. I've absolutely built a world with con-langs, unique plant and animal life, and strange new cultures. Some of it was a success, all of it was fun, but here is the lesson I've learned in actual play.

I think that you have to pick your battles. The basic, real world, biomes provide a common point of reference for the players. The game already assumes quite a bit of additional fantasy content. Adding to that can bring value, but you need to keep the additions relevant in some way.

Players don't necessarily want to memorize a list of plants and rodents that, despite your beautifully rendered "ecology of the ___" handouts, are really not that different from what already exists in the real world. Stick to the things that provide the most campaign setting immersion, or are the most vital to the campaign. The big trees that house whole towns are immersive. The patches of grass that store water in melons wrapped up in their roots aren't really campaign vital, unless the campaign is water-poor and those melons are a valuable resource.

I'm not saying you can't enjoy detailed world building, or even provide the details of your beautiful creation to individual players who express an interest. I do think you need to be ready to dumb things down and refer to "massive evergreen trees" or "fields of tall grass" rather than expect your players to all want to remember the names and details of each plant species.

On a commercial level I don't see much need for a product that is just a bestiary of fantastic new vermin and plants. Adding smaller sections of such (keeping to the immersive/vital paradigm) to a larger product is very welcome though. It could just be a chapter in a campaign setting or a regional detail book, or a "survival guide" style product that details various terrains and how they are used in play.


Yes. This coming from the guy who wrote the guides detailing the various campaign specific cat, dog, and horse breeds for his setting.