Dragonlance DRAGONLANCE LIVES! Unearthed Arcana Explores Heroes of Krynn!

The latest Unearthed Arcana has arrived and the 6-page document contains rules for kender, lunar magic, Knights of Solamnia, and Mages of High Sorcery.

In today’s Unearthed Arcana, we explore character options from the Dragonlance setting. This playtest document presents the kender race, the Lunar Magic sorcerer subclass, the Knight of Solamnia and Mage of High Sorcery backgrounds, and a collection of new feats, all for use in Dungeons & Dragons.

Kender have a (surprisingly magical) ability to pull things out of a bag, and a supernatural taunt feature. This magical ability appears to replace the older 'kleptomania' description -- "Unknown to most mortals, a magical phenomenon surrounds a kender. Spurred by their curiosity and love for trinkets, curios, and keepsakes, a kender’s pouches or pockets will be magically filled with these objects. No one knows where these objects come from, not even the kender. This has led many kender to be mislabeled as thieves when they fish these items out of their pockets."

Lunar Magic is a sorcerer subclass which draws power from the moon(s); there are notes for using it in Eberron.

Also included are feats such as Adepts of the Black, White, and Red Robes, and Knights of the Sword, Rose, and Crown.

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[Micah Sweet]

That's a distinction without a difference. Both of them are "A Wizard Did It" justifications for their supernatural behaviors. It's still magic either way.

Okay. How about this. If they got rid of the Greygem origin and changed it to something else that wasn't "Feywild BS" that was equally unique to the Greygem origin . . . would you still dislike the change? Or do you just not like this change because it's a change?

Personally. I liked the Greygem orign and see no reason to change it. But ultimately it doesn't matter. As has been said i have what I need, and am just glad this will open the setting to the Guild.

 

[ersatzphil]

Dark Sun turned the Grey into the Shadowfell and the Dray into the Dragonborn (and Half-Giants into Goliaths, etc, etc)

...wait, what? Is this all from the 4e Dark Sun books?

 

[Demetrios1453]

Reading over this thread (and Facebook and Twitter) how so many people have "heard" about bad players playing a bad kender in some game they weren't apart of and immediately take it as gospel.

"Well Ive heard Kender are bad so im glad for the change".

I can tell you Ive dealt with far more crappy Drow characters than i have Kender in my 2 decades of playing.

I played a lot of Dragonlance back in its heyday in the late '80s/early '90s, and kender players could be annoying. They weren't necessarily so, and I do remember one player who played the wide-eyed child-like wonder version that they're supposed to be. But most often, people would play them to cause drama by stealing things from other characters or important NPCs (not fun to be driven out of every town since the kender "borrowed" from the innkeeper/storekeep/mayor). One character of mine literally picked one up, turned her upside down, and shook out all the "borrowed" items after yet another important item disappeared, much to that player's objections and much to my immense satisfaction...

 

[Dire Bare]

The reason why this change is good is because it gets rid of the #1 reason why people have hated Kender for decades; their kleptomania. That's just an objectively good reason to make a change. If a D&D race has been nigh-universally hated for decades, changing it to get rid of the thing that makes people hate them is just overall and objectively good thing.

Getting rid of the kender's kleptomania is a good thing. But count me in as one who doesn't like how it's done here. Certainly some get into the crusty, "WotC is just changing things for the sake of change" canard (a mindset I loathe), but not all of us fear change.

To me, I love the character of Tasslehoff Burrfoot from the novels . . . and later Sindri Suncatcher from the "New Adventures" series . . . but generally found the portrayal of the kender race extremely problematic and irritating . . . . and kender "handling" was just the start.

Portraying them as a race of child-like innocents was not handled well past Burrfoot himself, with perhaps a few other exceptions. It's not a bad concept for a fantasy race, but hard to write well for authors/designers, and hard to roleplay well for players. That coupled with many players confusing "handling" for kleptomania . . . . is why the kender race has become as controversial as drow rangers with panther companions. Also the fantasy racism directed at kender, in-setting, is also hard to write and roleplay well. And I've always disliked the kender taunt . . .

The kender aren't going to be an easy update for WotC, IMO. I wish them luck. They'll need it before getting to gully dwarves . . . .

My current (and evolving) thoughts on the classic kender tropes and traits:

• Kender child-like nature: Are kender truly child-like . . . or is that a part of the stereotype other races have of kender? I would avoid describing kender as inherently child-like . . . I find too many writers and players don't really know how to pull that off well.
• Kender innocence and curiosity: Make these qualities a part of their description, but not a part of their game traits. Describe innocence as kender rarely experiencing negative emotions such as hatred, fear, and anger, and also struggling to understand those emotions in others. But kender can learn to experience those emotions as they wander the world. Make it clear these qualities do not equal stupidity or foolhardiness. Kill the idea that their curiosity is "supernatural". I see these qualities as psychological, or inherent, but a bad fit for game mechanics.
• Kender bravery: Are kender inherently brave? I'd rather see them as fearless, as a part of their innocence above. I think the current "Brave" trait works well, but I'd rename it to "Fearless". A subtle distinction, perhaps, but a meaningful one IMO.
• Kender handling: Are kender kleptomaniac thieves, or does kender society lack the concept of personal property? I feel handling can stay, but has to be toned down and carefully done. I think I'd move it from a racial trait to a feat, and boost the effectiveness. Being curious and not understanding personal property doesn't have to equate to kleptomania, and kender can learn (even before leaving Kenderhome) that big folk society does value personal property and that should be respected. Kender can be innocent and curious, but don't have to be stupid. Respecting the property of others outside of kender society is a way to survive outside of kender society. And, this is a cultural, or learned trait, not something inherent to kender biology . . . at least if you drop the supernatural explanation.
• More handling: In a previous edition, probably 3E, there was a kender handler subclass of thief/rogue. I'd bring it back! It could represent kender who decide to capitalize on this quality rather than respecting other people's values . . . and master the art of pick-pocketing and sleight-of-hand. But with a sidebar warning against stealing from your fellow PCs . . . or again, being a klepto constantly getting the party in hot water.
• Kender taunting: I wouldn't mind keeping this . . . but only by ditching the supernatural explanation again and also moving it away from being a child-like trait. Make the art of insulting a part of kender culture . . . it's how kender solve disputes with other kender, by carefully crafted and artistic insults that the loser will congratulate the winner over. And move it from a racial trait to a feat. A master kender taunter is a learned skill, not something inherent to the race.

I reserve the right to change my mind on any and all of these!

 

[Marandahir]

...wait, what? Is this all from the 4e Dark Sun books?

Yes. They got to use their relevant Athasian names but they functioned similarly enough that they just re-used those concepts. This is normal and optimal re-usage of core materials, rather than having to republish everything from the PHB in a slightly new variation for every setting that comes out. Even Tieflings and Minotaurs found comfortable homes in Dark Sun!

However, the Grey is in a part of the Deep Shadowfell close to the Domains of Dread (Ravenloft), and as such it can be crossed into through the Mists from other worlds, but you can't really escape from Athas through the Grey into other Planes. This is a very similar functioning to Athas' Feywild being isolated pocket Domains of Delight (or Demesnes, as they were called in 4e).

 

[Demetrios1453]

Personally. I liked the Greygem orign and see no reason to change it. But ultimately it doesn't matter. As has been said i have what I need, and am just glad this will open the setting to the Guild.

It's not hard to make it so the Greygem infused Kender with some sort of fey energy during their creation. One origin does not preclude the other.

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

Personally. I liked the Greygem orign and see no reason to change it. But ultimately it doesn't matter. As has been said i have what I need, and am just glad this will open the setting to the Guild.

So you're just going to cop out, then? Ignore everything in my post and just say "It's just my opinion, I don't have to justify it." Okay. Proves my point, then.

 

[Von Ether]

Eberron 5e was released before the new Fey craze began.

I think one of the recent releases has made Changelings fey or something.

The only annoying kender experience I had was in reading one of the novels - I don't remember the title.

An older character who kept trying to fix things and made them worse. The running gag got old real fast.

 

[ersatzphil]

Yes. They got to use their relevant Athasian names but they functioned similarly enough that they just re-used those concepts. This is normal and optimal re-usage of core materials, rather than having to republish everything from the PHB in a slightly new variation for every setting that comes out. Even Tieflings and Minotaurs found comfortable homes in Dark Sun!

However, the Grey is in a part of the Deep Shadowfell close to the Domains of Dread (Ravenloft), and as such it can be crossed into through the Mists from other worlds, but you can't really escape from Athas through the Grey into other Planes. This is a very similar functioning to Athas' Feywild being isolated pocket Domains of Delight (or Demesnes, as they were called in 4e).

Ah well. Personally I always liked that Dark Sun and Eberron had different cosmologies than the other worlds of D&D - part of what made them feel unique. I'm certainly not here to yuk anyone's yum, but I think it kind of diminishes the setting to made everything homogenous - and I say that as a huge Planescape fan.

 

[Marandahir]

I think one of the recent releases has made Changelings fey or something.

The only annoying kender experience I had was in reading one of the novels - I don't remember the title.

An older character who kept trying to fix things and made them worse. The running gag got old real fast.

Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse revised Goblinoids and Changelings into Fey-type or Fey Ancestry lineages (alongside reprints of Fairies, Eladrin, Sea Elves, Shadar-Kai, Centaurs, and Satyrs which were all already Fey). Notably, 5e gives Feywild backstories or connections to the following lineages without giving them fey ancestry or Fey type:

• Gnomes
• Firbolgs
• Harengons
• And now Kender

I would note that Keith Baker was asked about Fey Changelings on his blog, and he said in HIS Eberron, Changelings are not Fey as a rule because that's not the story role that they represent in HIS Eberron. But he acknowledged that some Changelings might be considered Fey, and that perhaps even if they weren't Fey, they might have Fey-like resistances if one was to adopt the new write-up without adopting the new lore into Eberron.