WotC Dragonlance: Everything You Need For Shadow of the Dragon Queen

WotC has shared a video explaining the Dragonlance setting, and what to expect when it is released in December.

World at War: Introduces war as a genre of play to fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons.

Dragonlance: Introduces the Dragonlance setting with a focus on the War of the Lance and an overview of what players and DMs need to run adventures during this world spanning conflict.

Heroes of War: Provides character creation rules highlighting core elements of the Dragonlance setting, including the kender race and new backgrounds for the Knight of Solamnia and Mage of High Sorcery magic-users. Also introduces the Lunar Sorcery sorcerer subclass with new spells that bind your character to Krynn's three mystical moons and imbues you with lunar magic.

Villains: Pits heroes against the infamous death knight Lord Soth and his army of draconians.

Notes --

• 224 page hardcover adventure
• D&D's setting for war
• Set in eastern Solamnia
• War is represented by context -- it's not goblins attacking the village, but evil forces; refugees, rumours
• You can play anything from D&D - clerics included, although many classic D&D elements have been forgotten
• Introductory scenarios bring you up to speed on the world so no prior research needed

 

[Micah Sweet]

How am I assuming the DM is in the wrong? In the case where the player wanted to play a particular race and the DM wanted to ban it, @mamba gave one option: the player leaves.

There is another option: the DM leaves. Seems like it is in the interest of both the DM and the player to compromise (or at least ensure most of the players agree with their style).

You said the player forms their own game with the other players where they're not restricted from playing whatever they want. Since you included the other players who didn't initially object, the implication is that the DM is wrong for wanting restrictions, and players should be free to play anything. If that's not what you meant I apologize.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Well, first find out why the player wants to play an orc or a half-orc. If it is mechanics, why not have the player play a minotaur with orc mechanics?

If there is another reason, does it really change anything to replace the minotaurs of Taladas with orcs? They both fill the niche of large, brawly races.

I prefer established parts of an established setting stay the same. If they want to play a minotaur with orc stats, I guess that's ok, but I personally don't see what orc stats have to offer. As I've said, without the ASIs and the cultural signifiers, orcs don't have much going for them to me. Asthetics don't cut it.

 

[Remathilis]

I'll be perfectly honest; I'm willing to accept race restrictions as long as there are alternatives. No orcs but minotaurs? Fine. No tabaxi but shifters? Acceptable. No tritons but sea elves? I can work with that. I'm a lot more defensive when a DM takes away options without offering an alternative. If your game bans orcs, dragon born, tieflings and gnomes and you don't allow any additional races (homebrew or supplements) then my alarm bells go off for what kind of game I'm getting into.

I put a hard limit though on classes. If you are banning PHB classes, I'm gonna walk. Normally, that's the sign of a controlling DM who has very specific tastes and if you don't play the way they want, you're going to have a miserable time. And believe me, if your rationale is "low magic" or "the gods are dead", I'm already sure you and I have incompatible tastes.

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

A race is a race. If you can play an orc even though they are not part of the fiction of that setting, why not a dalek?

This stupid strawman is why I've been specifying "banning an orc, which is a standard fantasy creature, in Dragonlance, a generic fantasy setting, without any reason besides 'tradition' is stupid". Not the idiotic "banning any race from any fictional world/setting ever is anti-player" position you seem to think I have.

Orcs are generic fantasy creatures. Dragonlance is a generic fantasy setting very similar to Middle Earth, which has Orcs. This isn't asking for anything egregiously different in theme/flavor, like wanting to play a Dalek in Theros, Iron Man in Dark Sun, or putting lutefisk in chocolate chip cookies.

 

[DragonBelow]

Krynn has many races beyond some classic D&D races like elves, dwarves, 1/2 elves and gnomes, but also kender, draconians, goblins, half-goblins, hobgoblins, bugbears, minotaurs, kyrie (winged human-like), irda (noble ogres), phaetons (winged elf-related), centaurs, thanoi (warlus folk), ursoi (bear-folk), and many others.

Typically races tend to keep to themselves though, and it's uncommon to see members of other races. This is the main reason why a party of uncommon races is extremely rare. A group might want to trivialize this, and that is certainly their choice. I prefer a setting closer to the vision of their creators, so choosing an uncommon race has an effect on how the rest of the world interacts with that character.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Krynn has many races beyond some classic D&D races like elves, dwarves, 1/2 elves and gnomes, but also kender, draconians, goblins, half-goblins, hobgoblins, bugbears, minotaurs, kyrie (winged human-like), irda (noble ogres), phaetons (winged elf-related), centaurs, thanoi (warlus folk), ursoi (bear-folk), and many others.

Typically races tend to keep to themselves though, and it's uncommon to see members of other races. This is the main reason why a party of uncommon races is extremely rare. A group might want to trivialize this, and that is certainly their choice. I prefer a setting closer to the vision of their creators, so choosing an uncommon race has an effect on how the rest of the world interacts with that character.

Yeah, I couldn't see playing Dragonlance any other way.

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

Krynn has many races beyond some classic D&D races like elves, dwarves, 1/2 elves and gnomes, but also kender, draconians, goblins, half-goblins, hobgoblins, bugbears, minotaurs, kyrie (winged human-like), irda (noble ogres), phaetons (winged elf-related), centaurs, thanoi (warlus folk), ursoi (bear-folk), and many others.

So does the Forgotten Realms. Doesn't make it any less generic/standard fantasy, either.

Typically races tend to keep to themselves though, and it's uncommon to see members of other races. This is the main reason why a party of uncommon races is extremely rare. A group might want to trivialize this, and that is certainly their choice. I prefer a setting closer to the vision of their creators, so choosing an uncommon race has an effect on how the rest of the world interacts with that character.

Any good DM will have the race of the PCs affect social interaction in the campaign. Certain races will exacerbate the effect, especially "monstrous" races, and this effect isn't unique to the Dragonlance.

 

[Stormonu]

You said the player forms their own game with the other players where they're not restricted from playing whatever they want. Since you included the other players who didn't initially object, the implication is that the DM is wrong for wanting restrictions, and players should be free to play anything. If that's not what you meant I apologize.

I think it was a tongue-in-cheek comment.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

This stupid strawman is why I've been specifying "banning an orc, which is a standard fantasy creature, in Dragonlance, a generic fantasy setting,

A "Generic Fantasy Setting" is your label for Dragonlance, not the official line.

And there are lots of generic fantasy settings that don't have orcs anyway. Try reading a bit more widely.

without any reason besides 'tradition' is stupid".

Tradition is stupid if that's the only justification for doing something.

Not the idiotic "banning any race from any fictional world/setting ever is anti-player" position you seem to think I have.

I don't think that is your position. But I don't think "Dragonlance is a generic fantasy setting and all generic fantasy settings need orcs" holds up any better!

Orcs are generic fantasy creatures.

No, they are a creation of Tolkien for Middle Earth.

Dragonlance is a generic fantasy setting very similar to Middle Earth,

So why aren't the elves immortal? why is the culture so American when Middle Earth is so British?

Most family cars are similar to each other. That doesn't mean they all have to be the same colour.

which has Orcs. This isn't asking for anything egregiously different in theme/flavor, like wanting to play a Dalek in Theros, Iron Man in Dark Sun, or putting lutefisk in chocolate chip cookies.

No, they are not particularly different to things that are already in the setting (it does have goblins, and humans are very similar to orcs too). They are just REDUNDANT. No one needs an orc. The only reason for choosing an orc over, say, a human bandit, is flavour. They functionally do the same job.

 

[QuentinGeorge]

Dragonlance was intended to not be generic. It was specifically built to contrast to the existing D&D mileu, with no halflings, orcs and worthless gold. It was basically the Eberron of the mid 80s TSR. It may seem generic now, but that’s only because of shifting assumptions about fantasy.