D&D 5E Revising Classic Settings

[embee]

If you change something too far from its original base, you lose what made it popular. That's a problem with a lot of remakes in other mediums. The factions are an integral part of planescape. Greyhawk has to have it racial tensions and International rivalries. Mystara needs It's Cold War. You start changing these that people aren't going to like them because you've changed What drew them to it in the first place.

If you want to reintroduce these to younger players, showcase the features that made them great. Older players aren't going to mind if you rehash as long as they get to play in their favorite settings again.

 

[The Glen]

But GI Joe is fundamentally Hasbro, by Greyhawk is WotC and it seems that WotC has more autonomy than ever now. I think if WotC wants to do something for D&D's 50th, then Hasbro will not step in and sqaush it.

Hasbro is too busy botching GI Joe limited releases to worry about WOTC anniversary editions. The Baroness sends her regards. Or she would if she didn't sell out in seconds thanks to scalper bots.

 

[Mind of tempest]

scalper bots are in everything these days.

 

[The Glen]

scalper bots are in everything these days.

I discovered that the hard way. Target was supposed to have Cobra Island limited edition GI Joes. Only Hasbro let people pre order them online and the Bots bought every single one in seconds. It took them months to actually hit the store.

 

[Kobold Avenger]

I do agree though that the Xaositects and the Revolutionary League are good faction concepts and should stick around. I'd merge the two however, as the latter doesn't have a Factol and they overlap in many respects.

There's quite a difference between Dadaist or Absurdists which the Xaositects are based on, and Anarchists or parts of the Communist movements that the Revolutionary League is based on. Sure there's some overlap between the two, but one faction is basically an Artistic movement taken to an extreme, the other is more of a political movement.

 

[Mind of tempest]

I discovered that the hard way. Target was supposed to have Cobra Island limited edition GI Joes. Only Hasbro let people pre order them online and the Bots bought every single one in seconds. It took them months to actually hit the store.

could be worse. the franchise could be destroyed entirely.

 

[Urriak Uruk]

There's quite a difference between Dadaist or Absurdists which the Xaositects are based on, and Anarchists or parts of the Communist movements that the Revolutionary League is based on. Sure there's some overlap between the two, but one faction is basically an Artistic movement taken to an extreme, the other is more of a political movement.

I think you can have elements of both within the same faction. The problem for me is that the Xaositects are technically disbanded, and the Revolutionary League has no leadership. So it makes more sense that they merge into one thing, with a unifying ideology that says that Chaos is the only truth in the multiverse, and that all power structures and laws must be torn down to reveal that truth. And you can have elements of that that are more artistic (publishing articles and mobilizing peaceful protests) and more political (literally doing violence and other direct actions). And Karan is the leader (or figurehead) of this faction.

 

[Scribe]

gender flipping characters like Tassleholf or Flint.

Why in the name of all that is holy would they need to do that?

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

I would love to have a classic, full-size Darlene map that wasn't in two pieces, that's for sure. And the folio is so rules-light that it could easily be used with 5e. But how do you define a good Greyhawk, beyond just a product for us olds? I'm certainly glad I'd not be the one stuck in charge of figuring that out!

Two solutions-

1. Re-issue the old stuff. Just some sort of fancy "collector set" with reprinted big ol' Darlene Maps and charge a ton of money. It won't attract the new gamers, but will keep the olds happy, and would "celebrate" the setting. Of course, it will also result in the death of it ... given the lack of new gamers playing it, but still!

2. Make something good.

I want to emphasize (2). I mean.... what you were just saying could have been said about 5e. At the time, the D&D fanbase was passionate, and intensely fractured. Yet 5e worked, because it was good.

It's the same with anything. You can never please everyone. But when you make something that's good, that tends to work out.

 

[Mind of tempest]

I would love to have a classic, full-size Darlene map that wasn't in two pieces, that's for sure. And the folio is so rules-light that it could easily be used with 5e. But how do you define a good Greyhawk, beyond just a product for us olds? I'm certainly glad I'd not be the one stuck in charge of figuring that out!

well, what do the bickering faction think sells Greyhawk?