Unearthed Arcana Unearthed Arcana: Barbarian and Monk

Unearthed Arcana makes an unexpected return (the last one was back in May) with a three-page PDF containing two subclasses -- Path of the Wild Soul for the barbarian, and Way of the Astral Self for the monk.

 

[Parmandur]

That's fine in a comparative media context, the same as referring to Mr. Spock as a Half-elf. The problem with using robot instead of golem in a discussion of a fantasy setting is it brings along undue baggage. It leaves people with impressions that aren't warranted, most famously that Eberron is steampunk.

Steampunk, no, but it is magitech, which is a particular subgenre people are familiar with these days.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Steampunk, no, but it is magitech, which is a particular subgenre people are familiar with these days.

I’d argue that it’s only even magitech by a fairly loose definition. The train doesn’t even have wheels. It’s levitated and propelled by a spell. There are no guns, and no actually mechanical machines. By far, most magitech worlds have actual post medieval or even futuristic technology that is fueled by magic. Eberron doesn’t. It has magic that sometimes looks like things we did with tech IRL, and solves many of the challenges that we solved with tech.

That’s an important difference. It dramatically changes how people approach the setting.

There is no pseudo science running the airship, and the clever inventor is a magical enchanter, and the living golem isn’t mechanical at all, but has living wood that acts like muscle and bone, and either a soul or something like enough to it that they can be magically resurrected.

Those differences are absolutely vital to understanding the setting. Full stop.

But anybosy you pull off the street that will look at them and say "wow, is that a magic robot?" And saying that "they are not magical robots, they are sentient Golems" is going to be the case of using words differently from how people normally use them.

Anybody I pull off the street will immediately understand the difference, and their initial thought that this is some sort of magically animated mechanical creature will be successfully corrected, once I explain that it is in fact not a robot, but a sentient golem made of living wood and stone. I might have to explain what a golem is, because most people don’t actually know the term in any context, but that’s the main potential confusion.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

The Flumphs are probably a stand-in for something they didn't want us to see.

1) Stand in for what? Killer Rabbits? Drones? Miniature Giant Mutant Space Hamsters? What ever you substitute for flumphs it still reeks of comedy.

2) Unlike Ravnica, the Eberron book is announced. What would be the point of substituting text to conceal the existence of something that is not a secret?! If it was Eberron, they would say Eberron, and get feedback which was correctly contextulised.

 

[Arnwolf666]

The barbarian archetrype just doesn’t work for me. I do like the monk.

 

[lowkey13]

*Deleted by user*

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I agree that it would seem to be comedic (nothing wrong with that!).

Nothing wrong with it, but it does tell you something about the setting. Both Eberron and Planescape compensate for any tendency to seem over the top by treating the material with deadly seriousness.

If D&D has a comedy setting, it would be The Forgotten Realms, following the publication of Acquisitions Incorperated.

 

[Parmandur]

1) Stand in for what? Killer Rabbits? Drones? Miniature Giant Mutant Space Hamsters? What ever you substitute for flumphs it still reeks of comedy.

2) Unlike Ravnica, the Eberron book is announced. What would be the point of substituting text to conceal the existence of something that is not a secret?! If it was Eberron, they would say Eberron, and get feedback which was correctly contextulised.

Aa noted upthread, this could be related to the Rick and Morty box which is, yes, comedic.

Their history shows that they will avoid providing context at all costs. That is not the Unearthed Arcana way.

 

[Parmandur]

I’d argue that it’s only even magitech by a fairly loose definition. The train doesn’t even have wheels. It’s levitated and propelled by a spell. There are no guns, and no actually mechanical machines. By far, most magitech worlds have actual post medieval or even futuristic technology that is fueled by magic. Eberron doesn’t. It has magic that sometimes looks like things we did with tech IRL, and solves many of the challenges that we solved with tech.

That’s an important difference. It dramatically changes how people approach the setting.

There is no pseudo science running the airship, and the clever inventor is a magical enchanter, and the living golem isn’t mechanical at all, but has living wood that acts like muscle and bone, and either a soul or something like enough to it that they can be magically resurrected.

Those differences are absolutely vital to understanding the setting. Full stop.



Anybody I pull off the street will immediately understand the difference, and their initial thought that this is some sort of magically animated mechanical creature will be successfully corrected, once I explain that it is in fact not a robot, but a sentient golem made of living wood and stone. I might have to explain what a golem is, because most people don’t actually know the term in any context, but that’s the main potential confusion.

Magic as technology = Magitech. That the magical choo-choo trains don't have wheels doesn't make them not magitech.

People are more familiar with the Golem than you seem to think, and if they aren't, then they will be even harder pressed to disabuse of the idea of the Warforged as magic robots (which is appropriate, given that they are magic robots).

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Aa noted upthread, this could be related to the Rick and Morty box which is, yes, comedic.

Yes, I believe I was the first to mention it, and I think it probable.

Their history shows that they will avoid providing context at all costs. That is not the Unearthed Arcana way.

Rubbish!

We have had Eberron races, Eberron dragonmarks, and Eberron artificers. All UA, with no attempt to hide the context. The Ravnica races UA was published with context too.

The only time the context was held back was when it was an unannounced product (Ravnica).

Expecting to get reliable feedback without context is stupid, and the only time they did it was when there was a bigger secret to protect.

 

[Parmandur]

Yes, I believe I was the first to mention it, and I think it probable.


Rubbish!

We have had Eberron races, Eberron dragonmarks, and Eberron artificers. All UA, with no attempt to hide the context. The Ravnica races UA was published with context too.

The only time the context was held back was when it was an unannounced product (Ravnica).

Expecting to get reliable feedback without context is stupid, and the only time they did it was when there was a bigger secret to protect.

They are constantly putting out tests with zero context, as they are not concerned with that for playtest purposes. They have basically never said what they were testing for, other than the last Ravnica test. They dissembled about the Eberron hardcover, and people were saying there would be no Eberron book on these forums.