D&D General Campaign setting mashups

[JEB]

One of my favorite things in comics back in the 1990s was Amalgam Comics, a short-lived mashup of the DC and Marvel Universes. (Marvel and DC have more recently done their own internal homages to the idea, Warp World and Earth 32, respectively.)

So I was thinking, what would it be like to fuse together some of D&D's settings?

Birthright + Ravenloft = Ravenright
After a final, cataclysmic war between the Light and Dark Powers, their divine essences were scattered across the world, endowing mortals with fragments of their might. These Light and Dark Scions establish domains, each reflecting their natures, and compete for dominance...

Forgotten Realms + Greyhawk = Grey Realms
More fantastical than Greyhawk, less fantastical than the Realms. Famous NPCs include the wizard Mordenminster. Bad guys include the Red Brotherhood. On the other side of the planet is the region known as Zakhara-Tur.

Council of Wyrms + Ghostwalk = Ghostwyrm
A realm dominated by ghostly dragons.

Nentir Vale + Mystara (Known World) = The Known Vale
Dragonlance + Dark Sun = Dragon Sun
Planescape + Spelljammer = Planejammer (of course)

 

[ersatzphil]

if we’re allowed 3pp settings:

Midnight + Hollow World: the Dark Lord’s subjugation of the world is nearly complete - the last remaining bastion of our Heroes is hidden away deep below the surface.

Vaguely Matrix-y, now that I think of it.

 

[EzekielRaiden]

Dragonlance + Dark Sun = Dragon Sun

Oh man, that would be trippy as heck. Dragonlance is very much classic superheroes type stuff, and introduced the whole "cinematic death" stuff to D&D AIUI. Dark Sun introduced the MUCH "harder and edgier" approach, with a very glass-is-mostly-empty theme and a "Dark Souls 30 years before Dark Souls" approach to character death. That's just about as diametrically opposed as you can get.

Given the differences, maybe we can define things in contrasting ways.

Dragonlance + Dark Sun = Dragon Sun: bringing in the great power and the potential corruption of magic, but making dragons comparatively commonplace and the world very much AT RISK rather than ALREADY destroyed. This is a world where heroism matters and is mostly achievable, but the darkness is STRONG and the light is struggling. Less "points of light" and more "chiaroscuro": the stark contrast of light and dark and a high-stakes battle to see which one will win, with death and victory both close at hand, and the gods themselves powerless to intervene.

Dark Sun + Dragonlance = Darklance: Not entirely sure on this. Perhaps bringing in the cinematic perspective and character emphasis of DL, but going for a Westeros-like grim-and-gritty realpolitik? I could see incorporating some elements from Norse myth (gods not as petty/cruel as in Greco-Roman myth, but still very flawed and human), plus closer focus on smaller problems and "low" fantasy. Solving the problems of a particular neighborhood of a mid-size city, rather than whole cities/nations, dealing with the banality of evil and the struggle to find meaning and purpose in an uncaring cosmos.

 

[Jacob Lewis]

Moonshae Isles + Dragon Age Origins has been burning in my mind for some time. There are enough parallels that I think would make it work.

• The beast is essentially the "dragon", while the Goddess is Andrade.
• Magic is feared and regulated, forcing some practitioners to work outside civilized areas and become Apostates.
• An order of Templars keep the wizards in check.
• The Grey Wardens remain vigilant against the darkspawn and the next blight.

And, of course, there is enough space between the two to expand the cultures, politics, lore, and story plots from both.

 

[JEB]

The one I'm having trouble coming up with a mashup for is Eberron. Exandria seems like the best bet, but it feels weird (since it's really a licensed setting). But I guess it's what, that or Jakandor?

I guess technically we can also have some MTG mashups now, like Ravnica + Theros = Therica, the planar city ruled by the God Guilds...

And perhaps the Known Vale includes the Savage World (Hollow World + Savage Coast)...

 

[JEB]

Dragonlance + Dark Sun = Dragon Sun: bringing in the great power and the potential corruption of magic, but making dragons comparatively commonplace and the world very much AT RISK rather than ALREADY destroyed. This is a world where heroism matters and is mostly achievable, but the darkness is STRONG and the light is struggling. Less "points of light" and more "chiaroscuro": the stark contrast of light and dark and a high-stakes battle to see which one will win, with death and victory both close at hand, and the gods themselves powerless to intervene.

Dark Sun + Dragonlance = Darklance: Not entirely sure on this. Perhaps bringing in the cinematic perspective and character emphasis of DL, but going for a Westeros-like grim-and-gritty realpolitik? I could see incorporating some elements from Norse myth (gods not as petty/cruel as in Greco-Roman myth, but still very flawed and human), plus closer focus on smaller problems and "low" fantasy. Solving the problems of a particular neighborhood of a mid-size city, rather than whole cities/nations, dealing with the banality of evil and the struggle to find meaning and purpose in an uncaring cosmos.

I could also see Dragon Sun as still a post-apocalyptic setting (the Cataclysm happened - maybe more so than in Dragonlance proper - and things never quite recovered, as the Dragonkings took over the remaining population centers, while the gods stayed absent)...

Darklance is probably more like a really gritty Dragonlance, yeah. Maybe things went wrong there because the gods showed up...

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

When I saw Brom's cover of "Wild Elves" sourcebook I tried to imagine a mash-up version of Dragonlance + Krynn. And Raitslin with tribal tatoos on the face. Of course it is a strange mixture, but also interesting. Seriously, DMGuild should allow or open something like this to see the reaction of the fandom with their own ideas.

Spelljammer + Planescape shouldn't be too difficult.

Why not Ravenloft+Innistrad? Or Ravenloft with some 3PPs franchises.

Other idea is Spelljammer + favorite sci-fi franchises: Flash Gordon, Star Trek, Star Wars, Stargate, Starcraft..

Kaladesh + Transformers.

Hollow World(Mystara) + Beast Wars(maximals vs predacons).

Hollow World with a "clone world" based in Cinmmerian age (Conan the barbarian).

A "patchworld" with D&D version of characters from Marvel and DC.

Mystara and characters from Capcom's franchises.

Chronomancers + Doctor Who.

 

[James Gasik]

Red Steel + Ravenloft = Raven Steel. There exists a region in the world, the Raven Coast, where a precious ore known as Corbinium is found. Weapons and armor made of Corbinium are exceptionally powerful, and, over time, being exposed to the ore can unlock strange powers and an immunity to the passage of time.

However, too late, most who visit this region discover the Curse- exposure to Corbinium makes you unable to leave the Raven Coast. So those who have been trapped here must struggle to find a cure for the Curse, and contend with the machinations of the Raven Lords, powerful barons who have carved out Domains for themselves within the Raven Coast, and, despite being trapped themselves, wield powers akin to demigods.

The most famous of these of course, being the Doña Isabel de Zarovich y Morales, who rules Barovia-Torreón, a poor nation with a proud warrior tradition, whose people are some of the most steadfast mercenaries in the Raven Coast, and are ruled by the iron fist of Doña Isabel, who some say is more than just unaging, but who maintains her youth by bathing in the blood of young maidens!