Eberron Campaign Guide June 09

[Kobold Avenger]

Generally I don't think every campaign setting's player guide will have a new class, it's just that a few of them might.

While I could see a Dark Sun player's guide having either a Templar or Defiler class, I couldn't see what a Greyhawk player's guide might have. As a Planescape fan, I'd be really hard pressed to come with a new class if there was a Planescape Player's guide.

I remember with Eberron they were thinking of advancing the timeline by 2 YEARS, but there was such an outcry about even 2 years, that the designers decided not to go ahead with that... I seems that the FR fans certainly got the worse deal.

I wouldn't care how many years they advanced Planescape's timeline (though I have my preferences), simply because it was left in a very different shape at the end of 2e with Faction War. Neither would I care too much about how many years Dark Sun or Ravenloft would be advanced, but I'd assume there would be some years to account for some 4e'isms.

My hope with those campaigns, are they're advanced to a good starting point, with many of the familiar and popular elements of the setting, but not to the point of being completely the same as they were in past editions.

 

[ProfessorCirno]

Hopefully there will be excerpts and previews long before then.

As to whether they'd do it right, I guess the FR setting books will show how 4e's gonna be tackling the old campaign worlds.

That's very worrisome because:

I'm hoping and praying that the job they will do on Eberron is not in any way similar to the hack job they have done to FR. I'm actually looking forward to see 4E Eberron, and I want to keep that positive anticipation going for as long as I can.

This is how a lot of people think. I think the "new and improved FR" is a sticking point for a lot of people, even hardcore 4e fans. Wizards needs to make some changes (or more hopefully, undo some changes) in FR or get another campaign setting out if they want to draw in the old fans.

 

[Rechan]

That's very worrisome because:



This is how a lot of people think. I think the "new and improved FR" is a sticking point for a lot of people, even hardcore 4e fans. Wizards needs to make some changes (or more hopefully, undo some changes) in FR or get another campaign setting out if they want to draw in the old fans.

I do not speak for Keith Baker, Eberron's creator. However, he has spoken on "What's in store for 4e Eberron".

Namely, that when the books come out, they're not going to be a re-printing of the 3e Eberron Campaign Setting. The books will not change anything, but they will give more emphasis to areas that were glossed over in the ECS. Also, they will be adding things, specifically new villains (Keith said a Magebred Human, and some sort of bad guy rising from the sea).

The assumption Keith was giving was, "All of your 3e Eberron fluff will not be invalid".

This may change, since Keith does not have full control of it - he is just a freelancer. Regardless, I trust him and James Wyatt.

 

[Hellcow]

Also, they will be adding things, specifically new villains (Keith said a Magebred Human, and some sort of bad guy rising from the sea).

Actually, I think it was Chris Perkins who said this particular piece. But the rest of it was me.

 

[Keefe the Thief]

This is how a lot of people think. I think the "new and improved FR" is a sticking point for a lot of people, even hardcore 4e fans. Wizards needs to make some changes (or more hopefully, undo some changes) in FR or get another campaign setting out if they want to draw in the old fans.

Of course, these concerns by "a lot of people" are important enough to repeat them in nearly every thread. Well, it´s good to sail the calm seas of Eberron for a while, to escape the dark clouds which currently hide the Realms from our view.

 

[Rechan]

Actually, I think it was Chris Perkins who said this particular piece. But the rest of it was me.

Hey Keith! I rarely see you on EnWorld. Welcome to our little corner of the internet.

 

[Spatula]

I'm happy that they are planning on leaving Eberron more-or-less as-is. I am not so happy at the lack of psionics. And instead we get... the sorcerer? A class created on a mechanical distinction in 3e that no longer has any meaning. A primal & psionics PHB2 would have made a lot more sense for the Eberron roll-out.

 

[Rechan]

And instead we get... the sorcerer? A class created on a mechanical distinction in 3e that no longer has any meaning.

It does not have the meaning in the context that it used to have. It has different meaning now.

It is also hard to claim that instead of Psionics we get the sorcerer. More like Sorcerer, Bard, and whatever Divine classes we get, instead of Psionics.

 

[drothgery]

I'm happy that they are planning on leaving Eberron more-or-less as-is. I am not so happy at the lack of psionics. And instead we get... the sorcerer? A class created on a mechanical distinction in 3e that no longer has any meaning. A primal & psionics PHB2 would have made a lot more sense for the Eberron roll-out.

Really, I'd've ditched the (presumably 2) divine classes to be named later in favor of soulknife and telepath, which is enough to go on for quite a while, I think (you can make a quite passable PsyWar with a swordmage, paladin, or multiclass fighter, or kineticist with a wizard). Or cut primal back to two classes (just barbarian and druid).

 

[Kobold Avenger]

I suspect the "areas glossed over" in the 3.5 ECS that will be in the 4e ECS is probably a lot of the subjects covered in the earlier Dragonshard articles.

Something tells me that Mordain the Fleshweaver might be getting more than a paragraph, they'll elaborate more on the Lord of Blades, there'll be something detailing the Shulassakar and differences between Xendrik and Sarlonan Yuan-Ti, the Umbragen will be mentioned, there might be more details on Darguun and it's culture, and maybe they'll give every dragonmark house at least one page.