D&D (2024) Dungeon Master's Guide Bastion System Lets You Build A Stronghold

The Dungeon Master's Guide's brand new Bastion System has been previewed in a new video from Wizards of the Coast.

Characters can acquire a bastion at 5th-level. Each week, the bastion takes a turn, with actions including crafting, recruiting, research, trade, and more.

A bastion also contains a number of special facilties, starting with two at 5th-level up to 6 at 17th-level. These facilities include things like armories, workshops, laboratories, stables, menageries, and more. In total there are nearly thirty such facilities to choose from.

 

[MarkB]

That's my point. If the bastion system works as advertised, the player control part of it is pretty much unprecedented.

Actually, if it works as advertised, the player control is practically non-existent. They choose what special facilities are built, and while they're in the bastion or in communication with it they choose what those facilities produce. But outside of that, the bastion runs purely upon random chance.

 

[Micah Sweet]

There is no "world". It's ALL a storytelling game that uses mechanics for action resolution! GNS is some navelgazing nonsense that has ruined far too many people's fun so now they can't ignore the man behind the curtain. Unless you're JMISBEST or whatever that dude's name is and you roll randomly for literally everything, you're the one pulling the strings so its never organic. You might say you do with the utmost v-tude, but it's not, because you can't let go of your biases, desires for drama/challenge, and need to throw a monkey wrench into things. You're the one picking personalities, motivations, plot setups. So it's NEVER going to be a real world.

And since you're already picking... just pick something else to mess with?

I was going to say the same to you. I don't appreciate your tone, or your contempt for other styles of play.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Actually, if it works as advertised, the player control is practically non-existent. They choose what special facilities are built, and while they're in the bastion or in communication with it they choose what those facilities produce. But outside of that, the bastion runs purely upon random chance.

Which makes it a nonsensical gamist system. Still a problem for me.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

For years my group has run "off limits" places and things with just friendly agreement... it stopped the "Everyone is an orphan" issue back in the 90s in 2e and really started in 3e... everyone has a home they can go to and family and friends, they can be as detailed as the player wants and the DM can only superficially threaten them UNLESS the PC goes out of there way to put them in danger or the player themselves say it's okay.

So it doesn't matter that there is a war with the orcs, good old grammama has a safe place to live and can bake you a pie when you come home.

 

[MarkB]

Which makes it a nonsensical gamist system. Still a problem for me.

I don't disagree. I had high hopes for it both as a way of making a home base for the party and as a neat little player sandbox. I think it still has some potential regarding the first of those goals, but only as a very basic foundation, with the base-management element ripped out entirely.

 

[jmartkdr2]

Either it's true, or the video is intentionally misleading to increase sales of the DMG to non-DMS. Neither option is great.

How dare a corporation present the product in a way to maximize sales! This will be the end of our hobby if people who sell games try to increase sales by not fully detailing every nuance of gameplay in every video about the product!

 

[Micah Sweet]

How dare a corporation present the product in a way to maximize sales! This will be the end of our hobby if people who sell games try to increase sales by not fully detailing every nuance of gameplay in every video about the product!

Honesty in advertising is still to be striven for. Either it hands-off to the DM or they lied. We shall see.

 

[Imaro]

I hate how immersion-breaking it is too. All the work to make living world and maintain the illusion of interacting with real characters shattered because there is a video game bastion, with video game mechanics and video game hirelings who don't have personality and operate entierly by video game logic.

Then don't use it... seriously if it's to abstract for you and you don't want your players to have control over their own base... opt not to use them. Every optional mechanic isn't for everyone

 

[grimmgoose]

Then don't use it... seriously if it's to abstract for you and you don't want your players to have control over their own base... opt not to use them. Every optional mechanic isn't for everyone

Ooooor use a better system.

The Savage Worlds Stronghold system does the same thing with about 35% of the effort (and that includes the heavy-lifting it would require to transition the content to 5e).

 

[Imaro]

Ooooor use a better system.

The Savage Worlds Stronghold system does the same thing with about 35% of the effort (and that includes the heavy-lifting it would require to transition the content to 5e).

Want to give a quick summary as well ad why it only takes 35% of the effort... though i haven't really seen any complaints around effort...