D&D 5E D&D's Classic Settings Are Not 'One Shots'

In an interview with ComicBook.com, WotC's Jeremy Crawford talked about the visits to Ravenloft, Eberron, Spelljammer, Dragonlance, and (the upcoming) Planescape we've seen over the last couple of years, and their intentions for the future.

He indicated that they plan to revisit some of these settings again in the future, noting that the setting books are among their most popular books.

We love [the campaign setting books], because they help highlight just how wonderfully rich D&D is. They highlight that D&D can be gothic horror. D&D can be fantasy in space. D&D can be trippy adventures in the afterlife, in terms of Planescape. D&D can be classic high fantasy, in the form of the Forgotten Realms. It can be sort of a steampunk-like fantasy, like in Eberron. We feel it's vital to visit these settings, to tell stories in them. And we look forward to returning to them. So we do not view these as one-shots.

- Jeremy Crawford​

The whole 'multiverse' concept that D&D is currently exploring plays into this, giving them opportunities to resist worlds.

When asked about the release schedule of these books, Crawford noted that the company plans its release schedule so that players get chance to play the material, not just read it, and they don't want to swamp people with too much content to use.

Our approach to how we design for the game and how we plan out the books for it is a play-first approach. At certain times in D&D's history, it's really been a read-first approach. Because we've had points in our history where we were producing so many books each year, there was no way anyone could play all of it. In some years it would be hard to play even a small percentage of the number of things that come out. Because we have a play-first approach, we want to make sure we're coming out with things at a pace where if you really wanted to, and even that would require a lot of weekends and evenings dedicated to D&D play, you could play a lot of it.

- Jeremy Crawford​

You can read more in the interview at ComicBook.com.

 

[dave2008]

I think they have been saying that for at least 4 years now.

No it was more recent than that. I believe when they made to official announcement of the books we got next year the plans for '24 & '25. Of course they have said things change, but it was specifically something they mentioned along with the 2024 core books, and the multiverse hoping adventure, and the revisit of an old setting.

 

[LordEntrails]

So it is a meaningless word salad. Great. Good job.

Eberron still isn't steampunk.

No, it's not meaningless. It just doesn't meet your personal criteria for exactness.

Think of it this way. When you write a book, the first thing the publisher, librarian or person doing the marketing wants to know is; Fiction or Non-fiction? If you say fiction, they are then going to want to place it into a genre, like; Children's, Folklore, Action & Adventure, Fantasy, etc (see List of writing genres - Wikipedia). Have you noticed Aetherpunk is not a recognizable genre? (Heck, even RPGs is not)

It's not that Aetherpunk wrong, it's that its too specific for the audience that is being spoken too. He is not speaking to you when he says "steampunk-like" He's talking to someone who is only vaguely familiar with D&D and RPGs. Someone who probably thinks PF2E is the same things as D&D. When I talk to a 10-year-old, I tell them I'm "an engineer", I don't tell them that I'm an "analyst & lead for data migrations for product lifecycle management applications". Most everyone understands the first thing, very few people understand the second.

You have to speak to your audience using words they comprehend, that's exactly what "steampunk-like" is doing.

 

[darjr]

Yep. Adventure. Not setting.

Good point. It’s listed as a setting. At least it was in DnDBeyond and I think in marketing.

 

[Maxperson]

Good point. It’s listed as a setting. At least it was in DnDBeyond and I think in marketing.

I know, but what we got was an adventure, monsters for that adventure, and a "setting" book that consisted quite literally of 95%+ non-setting material(rules for ship flight, ships, etc.) rather than setting material. It truly was just an adventure that was mislabeled. Your post was very accurate.

 

[SkidAce]

You have to speak to your audience using words they comprehend, that's exactly what "steampunk-like" is doing.

Agreed, I didn't know what Aetherpunk was, but I understood the intent of Steampunk like.

 

[Reynard]

Agreed, I didn't know what Aetherpunk was, but I understood the intent of Steampunk like.

But if you picked up Eberron because someone told you it was steampunk, you would probably be disappointed (initially, until you realized how awesome it was).

 

[Vaalingrade]

Agreed, I didn't know what Aetherpunk was, but I understood the intent of Steampunk like.

Communicating effectively is insignificant to communicating in the proscribed manner and no one knowing what you're talking about.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Thank goodness they aren't going to make modern neo-5e "d&d" abomination versions of Dark Sun and Greyhawk, my personal favorite two D&D settings. Now if they were going to make sincere and respectful updated real D&D 5e (1st few years after launch) versions that would be great, I'd be all in.

Yeah. I'm deeply disappointed that WotC didn't update most of their settings until they changed their design philosophy in the last few years.

 

[Demetrios1453]

I know, but what we got was an adventure, monsters for that adventure, and a "setting" book that consisted quite literally of 95%+ non-setting material(rules for ship flight, ships, etc.) rather than setting material. It truly was just an adventure that was mislabeled. Your post was very accurate.

That's the first time I've seen that particular take on that. In fact, by far the biggest complaint I've seen here and elsewhere is that the set didn't have enough ship rules, especially in regards to combat. That's over complaints over not having more info on planetary systems and so on. For many, the ships are the core part of Spelljammer - the setting is named after a ship after all!

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

If WotC wants to sell lore, players can read freely fandom wikis. If they publish crunch, they have to compete with the 3PPs what release new classes and those things.

FR is the safest bet because the creator is alive and working with them.

Greyhawk and Mystara aren't enough special and different for the new generation of players (but Mystara spinoff Hollow World and Red Steel). They are like a vintage toy, a threasure for an adult collector, but boring and simple for a children born this decade. How to explain it with other example? Who would want to watch the remake of an almost-unknown old soap-opera or sitcom from decades ago?

Should we say "arcanepunk"?

Aetherpunk

Aetherpunk or Arcanepunk is probably one of the most diverse punk genres. High fantasy magic creates technology more befitting of a sci-fi world, from magical sky-ships to magical powered weapons. Architecture has guiled gold, enchanted lighting, stained glass art, and ancient pagan imagery...

aesthetics.fandom.com

Was Dark-Sun Hyrboreanpunk or tribalpunk?

D&D plays with a double-edged blade regarding the popular isekai (manganime subgenre) because this can work as indirect advertising, but all those IPs are rivals of WotC's franchises.

* What if a D&D world suffered a Phyrexian invasion? But deities with the gift of the omen to know the future warned and the cosmic force created a way to stop them. The Phyrexians arrived to a "mirror plane" without sentient beings, or at least without innocent souls. This "firewall" was the battlefield of the counter-strike.

* How should be a spiritual succesor of Dark Sun but updated to 5e standars? This new Athas can't be too isolated from the rest of D&D multiverse, allowing enough freedom to include all possible new elements.

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About Spelljammer now I imagine a new fey creature, based in the klabauterman, a fey linked to a ship (or spelljammer). Then the ship, used by the PCs, could "level up" and become tougher, bigger and faster, and even magic auto-fixable. Or control constructs for maintenance and cleaning.