D&D General Dark Sun as a Hopepunk Setting

[Charlaquin]

Agreed, but I don't see them resembling the 5e version of the Dragonborn. They probably would bear a slight resemblance to the 4e Dragonborn in terms of looks.

Just make a new draconic lineage option. Or a couple, for the different generations of dray.

 

[Corinnguard]

Just make a new draconic lineage option. Or a couple, for the different generations of dray.

True.

Dray

Dray, also known as “dragonborn” among some, are a race of draconic humanoids created by the Dread King Dregoth through extensive arcane experiments. In the mind of the Dread King, his people serve as the next logical step in human evolution, all made in his draconic image – a sign of what is to...

darksun.fandom.com

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

In your own kitchen you cook in the way you want, and you shouldn't worry about "but grandma cooked in other style". Dark Sun can be hopepunk if you want because it is your tabletop.

But there are other factors, like the metaplot from the novels, or the possible banning of certain crunch elements.

If there is slavery in the story, the DM should offer reasonable chances of rescue and a right reward for the risk. It shouldn't become a bait to "punish" the players who tried to be heroes who fight against the tirany.

In the past I suggested the Athas of 2nd Ed was only one of the alternate timelines, it is a demiplane within any infernal plane, and even retconected intentionally by Vecna to hide some secrets

Other option is somebody summoned the wrong being and now the Athasian tablelands are a living nightmare style "Duskmourn", but no exclusively indoor. Or maybe this "Athasian Duskmourn" is a mirror plane next to the original plane.

 

[Bedrockgames]

Given some of the things that came to light regarding a certain citizen of North Carolina in the three-ish months preceding the second week of November (no special reason why it would be that week, nope not at all)...

No, I think we need to have some media that takes a strong stance against enslavement of other humanoids, and makes it clear exactly how awful it was as an institution, an experience for its victims, and as an economic model.

We probably want to avoid getting into real world political issues in the thread. I don't have a problem with games or media messaging, even doing so in a strong way, but I think you have to be very careful about how you do it. Being this didactic in entertainment often fails to persuade and can drag down the material (especially if the author is directly addressing the reader or the writer is directly speaking to the audience). It negatively impacts the content being made and it can create aa very condescending tone that that makes readers roll their eyes (even if they agree with the morality you are espousing). When Dark Sun came out, no one read it and thought "slavery sounds great". And if someone already thought that, I doubt TSR saying "Slavery is bad" was going to change their worldview

 

[Levistus's_Leviathan]

“Archon” might work well as a term for the not-Sorcerer Kings. In various Gnostic groups it was the term for demonic rulers of the mortal world.

I know there’s already a couple different types of creatures in D&D called Archons, but frankly I always found them boring and using the term to mean the rulers of the world is way more accurate to its origin.

 

[GrimCo]

I wonder if that French cartoon is around somewhere. I never saw it.

I think it aired on Cartoon Network in the 90s and it aired on Nickelodeon. Best intro version i could find is in spanish, but there is also this video about it, and you can find english yt theme song.

- intro plus theme song

- yt video about cartoon

It has this hopepunk vibe mixed with DS vibe. I think you can probably find full episodes on yt.

 

[Baron Opal II]

If you don't think slavery is morally wrong, you've screwed up. You don't need to interrupt everything you do every five seconds to remind people that you know which things are good and which things are bad. It's actually pretty much okay to depict a thing without specifically going out of your way to identify whether you think it is right or wrong, and let the reader think about it.

For the most part, I agree with you. However, it can't be said enough that slavery and trafficing is a moral evil.

There are people today, in the US, who are slaves. It's kept very quiet, but, well, let's just say working in the ED along a major trafficing route changed my perceptions on some things. In a game where we don't think too hard about using violence to solve problems, this is one thing I can stand behind making plain.

 

[Zardnaar]

For the most part, I agree with you. However, it can't be said enough that slavery and trafficing is a moral evil.

There are people today, in the US, who are slaves. It's kept very quiet, but, well, let's just say working in the ED along a major trafficing route changed my perceptions on some things. In a game where we don't think too hard about using violence to solve problems, this is one thing I can stand behind making plain.

It's around everywhere. Pushed underground in the nice places. Morevor less out in the open in countries with weak enforcement or they didn't try that hard since the 1960s or 70s when it was formally made illegal

 

[Vaalingrade]

There are people today, in the US, who are slaves. It's kept very quiet, but, well, let's just say working in the ED along a major trafficing route changed my perceptions on some things.

Also, prisoners.

We wrote a whole amendment specifically to skirt around treating them like humans.

Which make no mistake, is what slavery is: the unhumans a person, making them into property to use how the 'owner' wills. It's not just being made to work without pay. It's not a kicky new way to write a tragic backstory. It is a fundamental atrocity.

 

[Chaltab]

At any rate if Steampunkette or anyone else does decide to work on an A5E Dark Sun-esque setting hit me up because i'd like to help & i could use the work.