D&D 5E Is there even a new D&D setting?

Though we’ve been speculating about what the new setting recently pre-announced for D&D might or might not be (Icewind Dale being one suggestion), there's some doubt about whether it exists at all!

The press release that was sent out said:

Fans of D&D will learn all about the new setting and storyline as well as accompanying new products

The web page for the event says:

Fans of D&D will learn all about the new storyline as well as accompanying new products

The word “setting” is missing from the web page, but exists in the press release. The text is the same otherwise.

I don’t know which order the two were written in, or if the latter changed, or if the former contains extra information.

 

[Parmandur]

The problem with that is the average age of D&D players is higher than it was back then, so, whilst teen fiction was fine when most of your players where in their teens, its a bit juvenile for players in their twenties and thirties.

It's very much off topic though - this thread has already established that there is no new campaign setting announcement coming - it was a misleading communication that was soon corrected.

Well, the average age is actually pretty young, based on WotC data. Pre-teens, Teenagers, and College students are the lion's share of the market today, and they are aggressively producing material for kids.

 

[humble minion]

Well, the average age is actually pretty young, based on WotC data. Pre-teens, Teenagers, and College students are the lion's share of the market today, and they are aggressively producing material for kids.

It appears that to me as well. I'd been assuming for a long time that D&D was a thing of my (coughfortiescough) generation and the wider player base was aging similarly. But about 6 months ago I joined a boardgame night with some mates at a city gameshop/bar (in the pre-covid era) and the place was packed wall to wall with D&D groups made up of late-teens to early 20s kids.

Which was a surprise, but definitely a pleasant one.

 

[Enevhar Aldarion]

It appears that to me as well. I'd been assuming for a long time that D&D was a thing of my (coughfortiescough) generation and the wider player base was aging similarly. But about 6 months ago I joined a boardgame night with some mates at a city gameshop/bar (in the pre-covid era) and the place was packed wall to wall with D&D groups made up of late-teens to early 20s kids.

Which was a surprise, but definitely a pleasant one.

All the streaming shows like Critical Roll, plus the mainstream placement of the game, have really pulled in the younger crowd in the past couple of years. I think the first couple of years the average age was probably much higher, as all us older players got pulled back in by the new edition.

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

Dragonlance is a good example of how D&D also can suffer the "jumping the shark" effect.

Jumping the shark - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

My suggestion is allowing fandom to create and publish their own mash-up and uchronies. For example the future where Raistlin become the supreme deity, and the "parallel earth" of the story "There is Another Shore You Know, Upon the Other Side" where king-priest stole divinity to the complete Krynn pantheon. Raitslins god and some factions want to travel the past, or conquer some neighbour time sphere, but agents from the different factions arrived to other place, the akasha demiplane, a "backup" of space-time continium created by gods to avoid temporal paradoxes. The akasha demiplane shows how the past is remembered, not how happened really. Later some multiverse crisis event causes a patchworld with pieces of different settings, like the demiplane of dread, but without the troubles caused by the dark powers. The akasha demiplane is the battlefield of a conflict about who wants to keep the tradition and who wants to allow the change, the "reboot".

Dragonlance also will come back, but not in this phase yet. This setting needs a lot of work to avoid the rage by the fandom. Do you remember the controversies among fans of old and new Star Trek, or followers of the different Star Wars trilogies?

A cartoon Dragonlance movie was produced, and it was a flop (maybe too violent to be watched with little children). They can't allow themself to repeat the same mistake again.

I have said I would like to know how would be the Heroes of Dragonlances drawned with a Disney style. At least it could be used to sell merchandising (shirts, toys..).

 

[teitan]

Dragonlance at least made alignment relevant with mechanics relating to it with moon magic.

I don't think 5E can do Dragonlance well though. It fails hard at gritty, alignment doesn't matter, and I can't see them doing a Dragonlance that can one shot a dragon.

Basically not expecting 5E DL anytime soon if ever. House ruling AD&D would be easier and more faithful to the source material IMHO. Dump THAC0 for example add in 5E skill system

Counter to that, I think 5e is a very good chassis for Dragonlance because it isn’t a system married to magic items or to extreme super hero characters. 3.5 wasn’t a good fit but Basic D&D 5e is perfect.

 

[Zardnaar]

Counter to that, I think 5e is a very good chassis for Dragonlance because it isn’t a system married to magic items or to extreme super hero characters. 3.5 wasn’t a good fit but Basic D&D 5e is perfect.

They would tone down the Draconian thing, tone down the Dragonlances, and they removed alignment mechanics from the game. Which matters with moon magic.

Throw in a lot of races not existing in the setting and they'll probably redo Dragonborn into Draconians and mess it up.

If they were willing to replace phb with new options it could work. They don't need to 100% duplicate the AD&D mechanics but the red/white/black robes probably need some form of moon magic/alignment requirements to be faithful to the source material.

And if you don't join the wizard orders bad things happen.

 

[teitan]

They would tone down the Draconian thing, time down the Dragonlances, and they removed alignment mechanics from the game. Which matters with moon magic.

Throw in a lot of races not existing in the setting and they'll probably redo Dragonborn into Draconians and mess it up.

If they were willing to replace phb with new options it could work.

Well they’ve basically done the last with every version of Dragonlance except 2e and that one was awful. But if Cubicle 7 could make Middle Earth work on a 5e chassis then I think WOTC could, it wouldn’t require as much tweaking.

 

[Zardnaar]

Well they’ve basically done the last with every version of Dragonlance except 2e and that one was awful. But if Cubicle 7 could make Middle Earth work on a 5e chassis then I think WOTC could, it wouldn’t require as much tweaking.

It could be done but they would have to change a few things which they don't seem to want to do.

Moot point for me as I'm not a fan of Dragonlance. The 2E one was pants (I own it).

 

[Xenonnonex]

Dragonlance at least made alignment relevant with mechanics relating to it with moon magic.

I don't think 5E can do Dragonlance well though. It fails hard at gritty, alignment doesn't matter, and I can't see them doing a Dragonlance that can one shot a dragon.

Basically not expecting 5E DL anytime soon if ever. House ruling AD&D would be easier and more faithful to the source material IMHO. Dump THAC0 for example add in 5E skill system

Flavor of epic fantasy. Is what Dragonlance is according to the DMG. Which is it.

 

[Zardnaar]

Flavor of epic fantasy. Is what Dragonlance is according to the DMG. Which is it.

It's always been better as a story vs a game IMHO. Tuned out after Dragons of Summer Flame. Tried rereading a few years ago and not good.

Tried reading the Mina books as well early 2000s.
Eventually read the wiki to find out what happened.