Bringing Ecological Conservation into Dark Fantasy Worldbuilding

[Anicolarys]

It sounds like a cool idea - the game's climactic encounters might involve the acquisition of fame, fantastical treasure, and ecological collapse. You'd have to get the PCs to have some buy-in for one environment, though. Traditionally, PCs are happy to move on to the next challenge and greener pastures (literally).

I haven't seen a lot of it in discursive RPGs, but Actraiser and Warcraft 3 come to mind as examples of computer RPGs that involve saving the land, killing the rot.

Becoming a guardian instead of a raider is a big pivot for the standard RPG, mainly because it sounds like playing reactively instead of proactively. I'm sure there are ways around that. Just make it seem fantastic and fun . . . and don't recruit any players of Monster Hunter. (Although this video makes them sound more harmonious than I might expect.)

Insightful point about the 'Guardian vs Raider' pivot. The DFCB project is precisely about that friction. To solve the 'buy-in' problem, we treat the ecosystem not as a static map, but as a living NPC that 'levels up' with the players. If you protect Sargass-Ouro, it might grant you passage or reveal secrets only accessible through its growth. As for the Monster Hunter crowd... well, we try to convince them that a living legend is worth more than a set of armor. Actraiser is a great touchstone for this feeling of restoration!