Spelljammer Spelljammer Confirmed (MAYBE, April Fools?)

[Demetrios1453]

A question for those who know more about Spelljammer than I do: "Eberron: Rising from the Last War" details 17 locations and then has a large block of the book describing Sharn. "Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft" details 17 domains, and then has a block of minor domains. I would add that the outer planes of the great wheel plus the outlands also adds up to 17. Does Spelljammer have 17 of anything?

I noticed this previously, and, though not Spelljammer related, stated that there are 17 Outer Planes for a Planescape book to cover...

Also, the Great Modron March goes through the cosmos every 289 years, which is 17 squared (which has been lore since 2e at least). Sadly, there are only 15 types of modron - making that 17 as well would have really brought things full circle!

There aren't 17 "major" crystal spheres, but I'm sure if they want to keep the pattern up, it wouldn't be hard to write up the better-known spheres and then add more on (probably classic, but lesser known, ones, but they might very well add on one or more entirely new ones) to reach that number. I would assume that the individual focus would be on the Rock of Bral, and Realmspace as a whole (although less focused on), since it's canonically located there...

 

[Datactingguy]

Why would I? I hope it’s a Spelljammer book.

I just won’t be convinced it is until there’s a proper announcement with a title, release date, and price.

Because, unless I’ve been reading your posts wrong, you seem to think that WotC are horrible people for pretending a Spelljammer book is coming out, which means you don’t think they’re making one. So I figured a little bet might be fun.

 

[michaeljpastor]

Every one of the races in the UA were Spelljammer specific other than the Astral Elves, which are probably just re-skinned Imperial Elves. The ones you think are Star Frontiers races aren't - they're the suspiciously similar ones that appeared in Spelljammer products. The names of those are the Spelljammer versions, not the Star Frontier versions.

A rose by any other name much?

The difference is like Kiev and Kyiv to me. Star Frontiers can be/is a Prime Material plane in a cosmic Crystal Dyson Sphere. The races are like Daxam and Krypton, where each planet claims to be the Genesis Throne world and the other is the Colony. Who came first, Frontiers or Jammers? Is there a third option, of Spell Frontiers or Star Jammers? It so doesn't matter. Even mechanical differences can be explained away by isolated population evolutionary mutations. Is it soda or pop? Is it a Sub, a Grinder, or a Hoagie? Everyone in Pittsburgh and Appalachia knows the right answers are hoagies and pop.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

I’m sure folks are trying. I’ve seen some effort to try and make it a gift giving and decorating holiday too.

But it looks like it’s morphing into a PR/advert kind of holiday.

I like the holiday. I dint really understand the hate it gets.

Pranks are garbage and my opinion of people who habitually perform them can’t be expressed in a way that obeys forum rules.

 

[overgeeked]

Because, unless I’ve been reading your posts wrong, you seem to think that WotC are horrible people for pretending a Spelljammer book is coming out, which means you don’t think they’re making one. So I figured a little bet might be fun.

WotC’s been dropping Spelljammer hints in 5E books for years. And every time fans scream about how it’s “Spelljammer confirmed” and another year goes by with nothing. So, when they make an official announcement, with a title, release date, and price…then I’ll get on the hype train. But not before. I’ll still be leery as I’d rather they not touch it than butcher it or splice it into Planescape. And there’s every chance it could be the cameo classic setting.

It’s a mean joke. The fans who love Spelljammer really love Spelljammer and really want the setting released. If it were a joke about Mystara or Greyhawk or Dark Sun I’d still think it was mean. You’re toying with your fans. Most of them lifelong fans if they’re keyed up about Spelljammer or other classic settings. That’s a crappy thing to do.

I hope they are making a proper Spelljammer book, and not some generic multiverse book with a Spelljammer cameo…but I’m not holding my breath. And I hope they don’t butcher it. But, until there’s a press release, it’s just another crappy April Fools day joke.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

It's kind if a Dad-joke Holiday: acquired taste.

Dad jokes tend not to be mean.

 

[michaeljpastor]

I think it's the ultimate april fools joke, because it's self-effacing on one hand, and a double negative is a positive, so all the false leads and fake Starjammer Confirmed statements are actually true. It's so cheesy it's cool. I love double irony. Don't like it? Ignore it. Move on. Buh-bye.

 

[humble minion]

You know, if Spelljammer had never existed back in AD&D, and WotC released it as a clean-slate brand new thing now, the screaming would be deafening about how WotC was yet again releasing a dumbed down, silly, childish, unserious setting full of in-jokes and cheese, that dripped with contempt for the roots and history of the game. And a lot of the screaming would probably come from the people who are most loudly demanding 5e spelljammer currently.

People are strange.

 

[ersatzphil]

To add to that...Radiant Citadel has 16 Gazeteers for micro-settings, apparently.

If they did do something those lines, the Sharn equivalent would be the rock of Bral, a Sword & Sorcery city-state in an Adteroid Starbase. I could see them developing 17 Cruatal Spheres, similar to the Domains in Ravenloft...

There aren't 17 "major" crystal spheres, but I'm sure if they want to keep the pattern up, it wouldn't be hard to write up the better-known spheres and then add more on (probably classic, but lesser known, ones, but they might very well add on one or more entirely new ones) to reach that number. I would assume that the individual focus would be on the Rock of Bral, and Realmspace as a whole (although less focused on), since it's canonically located there...

Looking at the Spelljammer wiki (I really don't know much about Spelljammer), they list 24 different crystal spheres. I'm sure they can prune that down to 17...

awkwardly glances at Athasspace and Mystaraspace

 

[Parmandur]

Dad jokes tend not to be mean.

Well, pranks don't have to be, either. So, for instance, today I borrowed my wife's phone to call my dad, who always answers with the name pf the person calling. So he said hi to my wife, I said April Fools, we laughed and got on with our normal conversation. That's about my level of April Foolery, but it's fun.

Similarly, we are getting a Spelljammer book this year, and WotC knows that we know, and knows that we know that they know that we know: so this Tweet is not cruel, it's layers of funny.