D&D 5E New D&D Survey, with some in-depth setting questions

[Henadic Theologian]

But that's just what's so crazy: Mytara and Birthright got some of the most detailed and in depth options here, like they have put more thought into what makes them tick specifically. And never say never.

I'll add that while Mystara was a Tier 3 setting now, there was a time when it was one of TSRs most popular settings.

Wasn't there even Mystara and Birthright video games?

 

[The Glen]

Quite a few Mystara video games. Fantasy Empires, Warriors of the Eternal Sun, Order of the Griffon, Tower of Doom; Stronghold, Shadow over Mystara, Chronicles of Mystara

 

[Henadic Theologian]

One thing that I think is a miss is that they mention DL's novels, but not it's video games, my first experience with DL was playing its DL Gold Box game.

And my first experience with Mystara was a Mystara novel.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

Quite a few Mystara video games. Fantasy Empires, Warriors of the Eternal Sun, Order of the Griffon, Tower of Doom; Stronghold, Shadow over Mystara, Chronicles of Mystara

Birthright even had a video game called Gorgon's Alliance.

I think just about all the D&D settings had at least some novels and video games.

 

[TheSword]

I'll add that while Mystara was a Tier 3 setting now, there was a time when it was one of TSRs most popular settings.

Wasn't there even Mystara and Birthright video games?

There was a very enjoyable (if flawed) game for Birthright called The Gorgon’s Alliance. Where you could play pretty much any kingdom. I really liked it as you could do battles, adventuring locations or the kingdom management element. It definitely was buggy and had some difficulty issues but it was a lot fun… reminiscent of a very rudimentary Total War game, with first person shoota adventuring added.

For me Birthright has a few opportunities:

• Kingdom building
• Mass combat
• Rules to spend cash on castles and manors etc
• An opportunity to portray non Western cultures in a reimagined way.
• Tap into the Game of Thrones market… Birthright had an iron throne two years before GRR Martin published GOT.
• Offer an alternative to the King Maker AP.
• Taps into the same faerie tale mythology as the Witcher.

I actually don’t think it was core D&D at all. It’s a ‘Narrow Magic’ world. Dragons were exceptionally rare. Elves more like those from the Witcher series. There’s even a wild hunt. Monsters act as rulers. Everyone is a little bit Demi-god.

It’s a cool setting, that would benefit from modern editing, Adventure design and publishing.

 

[Bolares]

I’ll never understand this.

You just…tell a new story.

Woooow, how did I never think of telling a new story?! You just saved my life!

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Well, as one example...one of my friends DMed a Wheel of Time RPG campaign for a few weeks in College. One of our players really hated Rand from the books, so when he cameoed in the adventure...she set out to kill Rand. And the disconnbetween our free-form roleplay and the murder of the Dragon right after the events of The Great Hunt really hampered and eventually ended the campaign. Telling a story in a broader universe that the players have meta investments in can be weird.

I guess a game set in a novel universe requires a little more player buy-in, but in that case Rand is literally ta'veren it's cromunent in universe to have a deux ex machina save Rand. That, and talking with the player, and basically saying, "Look, I really don't appreciate you trying to derail the entire campaign and game world because you the player hate a character from a book. We can go forward and the weave can save him via deus ex machina, or we can rewind a minute, and you can not try to murder a character that your character has no reason to try and murder."

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Woooow, how did I never think of telling a new story?! You just saved my life!

I mean...that is genuinely how weird the criticism you're throwing out seems to me. Your characters don't ever have to meet book characters. The events of the world don't have to follow canon. The world is big and full of dangers and people who need saving from them. Just...don't tell a story that is super closely tied to the novel story, where the novel protags can loom over the PCs. Like, it's literally just a choice you can make.

 

[Parmandur]

I guess a game set in a novel universe requires a little more player buy-in, but in that case Rand is literally ta'veren it's cromunent in universe to have a deux ex machina save Rand. That, and talking with the player, and basically saying, "Look, I really don't appreciate you trying to derail the entire campaign and game world because you the player hate a character from a book. We can go forward and the weave can save him via deus ex machina, or we can rewind a minute, and you can not try to murder a character that your character has no reason to try and murder."

No disagreement here, because you are right, and certainly that is an extreme case! But, playing in a world that doesn't have that sort of built in investment or structure (like Greyhawk, or the Forgotten Realms for people who never got into the fiction, but if anyone is into Drizz'tthen the issues persist) circumvents that entirely, as the story us freely the DM and players to mold.

I love Star Wars, but DMing a Star Wars game for a bunch of series fans is a daunting prospect compared to "here's a thing I made up, let me tell you how it is."

 

[Bolares]

I mean...that is genuinely how weird the criticism you're throwing out seems to me. Your characters don't ever have to meet book characters. The events of the world don't have to follow canon. The world is big and full of dangers and people who need saving from them. Just...don't tell a story that is super closely tied to the novel story, where the novel protags can loom over the PCs. Like, it's literally just a choice you can make.

In my experience, everytime my group played in a famous place, their expectations got tied to the stories they heard about those places. Every single one of them read the war of the lance. If I say, lets play Dragonlance, their expectations go right to that. So, I prefer to play in worlds that wont have that effect on them. Saying "just do something different" won't work for my table. I've never said it wouldn't work for anyone, I talking about why I don't want to DM there....