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

 

[Remathilis]

None at all. There isn't really such a thing as "designed for D&D." There are just settings and you use the D&D rules for them. I could take the Forgotten Realms and use GURPS with no change. I can grab the World of Warcraft and use GURPS or D&D and there would be no difference other than which rules we are using.

Settings are settings are settings are setting.

Star Wars is a D&D setting.
World of Warcraft is a D&D setting
Diablo is a D&D setting
Kalamar is a D&D setting
Middle Earth is a D&D setting
Rokugan is a D&D setting
Westros is a D&D setting
World of Darkness is a D&D setting
Doctor Who is a D&D setting

And to be perfectly frank, I'm tired of WotC's lack of support for Brujah, Jedi, samurai, Time lords, and so on.

A setting is a setting is a setting.

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

This is like talking about cooking and somebody says in her home she uses a different oil for a recipe. And why not? The taste is different, not better or worse, but only different.

If you want orcs in Krynn, then the solution could be easy, orcs in the cruch, for game mechanics, but half-ogre or hobgobling for fluff/lore.

My opinion is halflings who come to the Krynnspace are affected by the Greygem and then slowly become kenders, and the offspring of halflings living in Krynn are practically kenders.

Maybe there are some lineages are in Krynn because they are from Sithicus, and this was created after the Cataclysm, not after the war of the lance. Lord Soth hadn't to be the dark lord, or at least not always.

* What about the ursines as PC race? And the tayfolk? One player could controll two PCs

 

[Maxperson]

I was talking about 5e. In 5e, the only settings that outright exclude races are Ravnica and Theros. None of the others restrict them, and the M:tG worlds get to restrict them because they're from a different system.

That's not why, though. The decision not to restrict races in 5e settings has zero to do with system. Not one thing. The decision not to restrict races is philosophical.

Also, while I have not seen Ravnica, Theros does not restrict races at all. It simply says that if you are one of the races that is other than the common Theros races, you are from another world. So if I show up to a Theros game with a Tiefling PC, I can expect to be able to play it.

"A diverse assortment of peoples dwell among the lands of Theros. Aside from humans, the races in the Player's Handbook are unknown on Theros, unless they're visiting from other worlds."

Edit: Reading the 5e Eberron book, that setting does restrict races, or at the very least builds into the book the likelihood of restriction. In two locations it says that it's up to the DM who has final say as to whether or not an unusual race is allowed into the campaign.

Why must D&D settings arbitrarily ban options that could be fun? Removing options is fine if there's a good reason for it. Dragonlance used to have a pretty good reason (they didn't want to be too similar to Lord of the Rings), but that doesn't work anymore because Orcs have changed.

I've seen this claimed a number of times, but haven't seen any proof offered to back it up. Do you have a link to an interview or article from Weis or Hickman that says this, or is it being assumed? Limited options are also very, very rarely arbitrary. The generally have reasons for being banned, and reason is the polar opposite of arbitrary.

If you're going to ask the makers of a car why it works in a specific way and why a newer version can't do X thing, having an understanding of how the thing gets made is necessary.

Do we actually know that there is no reason for orcs not to be on Krynn? From where I sit, Weis and Hickman may have had a fantastic reason for them not to be on Krynn, but forgot to put it in, or maybe they had to cut down the word count and that got axed in favor of what we see in the 1e hardcover, or maybe they submitted it and TSR axed it to save space.

 

[Maxperson]

The setting can be distinctive without removing/banning Orcs and other base D&D races. Eberron is distinctive from the core of D&D without banning any of the PHB races.

The 3e Eberron did not have tieflings or dragonborn. Those were added to the 5e version because of new designer philosophy, not system.

 

[Pentallion]

what?!? no don't touch my book

notice how you just said TABLE... like it isn't 1 person making the choice, but remember we have 2 people (most likely friends) coming to the table and 1 wants something and 1 doesn't...

I knew you and others would

why is it "The player doesn't get to force the DM" all I am saying is "The DM doesn't get to force the player"

Yes, the DM DOES get to force the player and not the other way around. The player doesn't have to join the game.

 

[Pentallion]

no my argument has and forever will be... the why matters.

2 whys to be presise.

why are they not here?
and
why would it hurt the setting/story if there were?

In Dark Sun I can answer both. In Dragon Lance the best answer ANYONE has come up with is the creators said so, and/or tradition.

I, the DM, don't want to is a perfectly acceptable why.

 

[Remathilis]

The 3e Eberron did not have tieflings or dragonborn. Those were added to the 5e version because of new designer philosophy, not system.

Actually...

Tieflings are discussed in the 3e Players Guide to Eberron. Half dragons are too, but the dragon born of Bahamut came late in the 3e line. Both are given a place in Eberron (along with every supplemental race and class that read in 3.5 at the time). Both tieflings and half dragons were in the 3.5 Monster Manual prior to that, and if it exists in D&D... (You know the rest).

Additionally, tieflings, dragonborn and eladrin are in the 4e Eberron Players Guide.

So it has nothing to do with 5e. 3e Eberron had room for those races and 4e Eberron gave them prominent roles. 5e is carrying on the Tradition.

 

[Maxperson]

Yes, the DM DOES get to force the player and not the other way around. The player doesn't have to join the game.

How? How can the DM force me to play anything I don't want to? You are correct that I don't have to join the game, but a decision not to join a game isn't the same as the DM forcing me to do something.

 

[Pentallion]

No, that's the solution. The DM did not want orcs in their game and the solution is... get over that. The DM chose to take the role of the person who is there to entertain and foster the group's fun, and being the entertainer means pleasing the audience.

Like I said before, I hate gnomes with ever fiber of my being, but I'm not going to pitch a fit if someone wants to play one. I don't even make literally every person racist against them like was all too common when teiflings became a core species.

What kind of disrespectful,rude player would insist the DM bend the knee to their self-entitled spoilt demands instead of respecting that the DM does so much hard work and investment and deserves to enjoy themselves too?
Why should such a spoilt, insensitive crybaby be allowed to ruin anothers enjoyment when they could just go olay an orc somewhere else or respecfully and POLITELY agree to play something else?
Who wants or needs players like that at their table?

 

[Velderan]

Also, while I have not seen Ravnica, Theros does not restrict races at all. It simply says that if you are one of the races that is other than the common Theros races, you are from another world. So if I show up to a Theros game with a Tiefling PC, I can expect to be able to play it.

From Ravnica:

Aside from humans, elves, and a smattering of half-elves, the races from the Player’s Handbook are unknown on Ravnica, unless they’re visiting from other worlds