Steampunk, as others have pointed out, no. I think if OP had used a different term, or asked "is it still a medieval fantasy," I think they'd have gotten different answers.
D&D General D&D is now Steampunk (poll)
- Thread starter GMMichael
- Start date
Micah Sweet
Level Up & OSR Enthusiast
I'm sure you're technically correct, but my answer for genre is admittedly more vibes-based, and the vibes IMO are tinted somewhat steampunk.
Reynard
aka Ian Eller
D&D is pretty much its own genre and its own artistic style/vibe at this point. And that isn't a dig. It is cool that it has an identity.
So... here's the list.
1) Steampunk is Fantastical, but not Fantasy by default
There is Steamfantasy, but Steampunk doesn't typically have elves and dwarves and magic and the like in it by default. Consider the play Orianna, for example. A man makes a mechanical dancer from gears and springs and porcelain and the like, and falls in love with it. It's practically Pygmalion with clockwork, and it's one of the earliest works of Steampunk fiction. No magic. No Elves. Just implausibly complex technology mimicking human expression.
Of note: That play was written in the late 1800s/early 1900s. Which one might recognize as Victorian Times. Because Steampunk is not automatically retrofuturism. It certainly is, today, as we apply modern principles to steamtech, but. Y'know.
2) "Full Plate" armor came about because of guns
The first European Firearms were cast and used in 1320 and consisted primarily of bombards and hand-cannons held on the end of a pole for bracing to fire. Full Plate Armor started appearing 100 years later in 1420, around the same time black powder started getting towards being standardized enough to -aim- a cannon, hand or otherwise, and have a reasonable chance of hitting what you're aiming at because of lower variation in range based on the size of the charge.
3) Clarke's Law is cute but not applicable
The technology hasn't become so advanced as to be indistinguishable from magic in D&D settings, magic just happens to exist AS magic.
4) Victoriana
Steampunk in general is a lingering fantasy of an even better version of the Victorian Age, which was a fair sight better than some of the previous (and later) eras. Lemme know when armor largely falls to the wayside in the Forgotten Realms in favor of Petticoats and men wearing high heeled shoes. We'll at least be getting closer.
All these, and more, are why D&D isn't Steampunk. Even without the pointless cogs as decorations.
1) Steampunk is Fantastical, but not Fantasy by default
There is Steamfantasy, but Steampunk doesn't typically have elves and dwarves and magic and the like in it by default. Consider the play Orianna, for example. A man makes a mechanical dancer from gears and springs and porcelain and the like, and falls in love with it. It's practically Pygmalion with clockwork, and it's one of the earliest works of Steampunk fiction. No magic. No Elves. Just implausibly complex technology mimicking human expression.
Of note: That play was written in the late 1800s/early 1900s. Which one might recognize as Victorian Times. Because Steampunk is not automatically retrofuturism. It certainly is, today, as we apply modern principles to steamtech, but. Y'know.
2) "Full Plate" armor came about because of guns
The first European Firearms were cast and used in 1320 and consisted primarily of bombards and hand-cannons held on the end of a pole for bracing to fire. Full Plate Armor started appearing 100 years later in 1420, around the same time black powder started getting towards being standardized enough to -aim- a cannon, hand or otherwise, and have a reasonable chance of hitting what you're aiming at because of lower variation in range based on the size of the charge.
3) Clarke's Law is cute but not applicable
The technology hasn't become so advanced as to be indistinguishable from magic in D&D settings, magic just happens to exist AS magic.
4) Victoriana
Steampunk in general is a lingering fantasy of an even better version of the Victorian Age, which was a fair sight better than some of the previous (and later) eras. Lemme know when armor largely falls to the wayside in the Forgotten Realms in favor of Petticoats and men wearing high heeled shoes. We'll at least be getting closer.
All these, and more, are why D&D isn't Steampunk. Even without the pointless cogs as decorations.
“Of course the Chinese mix everything up. Look at what they have to work with. There's Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoist alchemy and sorcery. We take what we want and leave the rest. Just like your salad bar.” — Egg Shen, Big Trouble In Little China
... see, -now- I want a "Big Trouble in Little China" style campaign setting and game.
DM and 3 of the players design a deeply intricate world of magic, culture, and identity, and then 4 players sit down at the table. 4th guy thinks he's the hero but doesn't realize he's secretly the bumbling sidekick. So he delivers the big dramatic one-liners to a group of people who look at him like he's a freaking moron, then go back to what they were doing.
TheAlkaizer
Game Designer
It's not Steampunk. But it borrows elements from it like from every other genres in existence. It's melting pot of cultural references, pulpy and geeky IPs. There's a little bit of everything.
(Fires gun into ceiling...rocks drop on head)
Bae'zel
Hero
I know that game publishers really want consumers to BUY THEIR pre-written, highly produced, often crowd-funded setting books.
However, contrary to the assumed, capitalist assumption that people SHOULD just buy these expertly-premade settings with kickass artwork and established IP, D&D is actually supposed to be a toolkit to make your own settings, which can be steampunk, Arthurian Fantasy, post-apocalyptic gonzo etc...
Only the most pedantic, property-loyal fans will insist that you MUST include everything in the published books... or ELSE!
No thanks, my custom Ancient Greek Fantasy setting does NOT include black powder weapons, Dragonborn or airships, even though theyr'e in the published books.
However, contrary to the assumed, capitalist assumption that people SHOULD just buy these expertly-premade settings with kickass artwork and established IP, D&D is actually supposed to be a toolkit to make your own settings, which can be steampunk, Arthurian Fantasy, post-apocalyptic gonzo etc...
Only the most pedantic, property-loyal fans will insist that you MUST include everything in the published books... or ELSE!
No thanks, my custom Ancient Greek Fantasy setting does NOT include black powder weapons, Dragonborn or airships, even though theyr'e in the published books.
