D&D 5E (2024) D&D Universes Beyond - what should they do?

[Corinnguard]

Dune is just basically Spelljammer and Dark Sun mashed up with REALLY BIG purple worm stats (he says not actually believing anything he just typed...)

And with the Guild Navigators being powerful, space-traversing Aberrations. Their guild liners being psijamming vessels.

 

[Corinnguard]

Lately I've been musing about a D&D/Shadowrun crossover. More UF than cyberpunk.

 

[Coroc]

My opinion on such matters was defined by MERP. MERP is set in Middle Earth and still let you play a magic-using character or elf. They aren't as flashy as your D&D wizard, but they ARE magic-users. So my perception is if MERP could figure out how to allow magic using characters in a setting with canonically five angel-wizards and a handful of ancient elves having any magical ability whatsoever, any setting can bend enough to allow wizard PCs.

I think the test for how far WotC is willing to bend D&D's magic with be Star Wars. That more than anything announced so far will test what they are willing to do as far as "low magic" is concerned.

Agree, star wars would be a tough nut to crack, you could not do it the standard way eventually. Refluffing everything magic as the force doesn't cut it in this case.

 

[Coroc]

And with the Guild Navigators being powerful, space-traversing Aberrations. Their guild liners being psijamming vessels.

You mean aboleths

 

[Coroc]

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Ok hear me out, theres is something with a mouse, and tree lawful good young ducks with a chaotic stupid uncle and a neutral evil granduncle who is like superrich and also a cat named Carlo, and ?dogs? in enumerated red shirts both being bbegs... i think it is owned by disney.

 

[Coroc]

But here some serious suggestion by me: Alan Burt Akers wote a scifi fantasy cyclus back in the 70s. It was about a 18th century Britisch sailor who got pulled by mysterious forces into the world Kregen located within the Antares system, which is pretty high fantasy, sword and sorcery. His task there was always to save somone or some plot, which was part of a kind of masterplan for this world by two factions, who made them their special agent. Sometimes he was ported back to earth but he started to hate that because he liked it better on Kregen, and even founded a family there. I read it when i was young, and it was awesome. They had flying ships which worked with some kind of materials causing an antigrav field when brought near each other, at least one race which was four armed, and proved to be a difficult challenge for the protagonist, because they had four attacks wielding a weapon in each hand, a bit like Count Doku or a Kreen. It is so long ago that i cannot remember much detail. But i was already convinced back then that you could use this as a D&D setting.

 

[Remathilis]

Agree, star wars would be a tough nut to crack, you could not do it the standard way eventually. Refluffing everything magic as the force doesn't cut it in this case.

Honestly, it's the one "D&D" setting I can't wrap my head around. I can think of lots of ways to do a d20-based Star Wars game, but not one that uses the PHB. Mostly new classes, all new species, whole new magic/Force system, etc. I just can't square it with how they have handled both older settings and other IP (MTG, WoW); D&D rules first, setting second. Short of a new Star Wars PHB, I don't know how this works.

 

[Coroc]

Honestly, it's the one "D&D" setting I can't wrap my head around. I can think of lots of ways to do a d20-based Star Wars game, but not one that uses the PHB. Mostly new classes, all new species, whole new magic/Force system, etc. I just can't square it with how they have handled both older settings and other IP (MTG, WoW); D&D rules first, setting second. Short of a new Star Wars PHB, I don't know how this works.

Well d20 star wars has been around a long time as you said, it is just not something that you or in that case i would consider even remotely D&D. It is just mechanics for stats and basic combat.

D&D has so many elements that even famous fantasy stories do not feature or support, or if you compare it to other fantasy TTRPGs, which aren't direct derivates of D&D, e.g. DSA or Symbaroum, these are very different.

I could think about converting a few selected D&D settings or scenarios to other systems, like some 2e Ravenloft adventures would work perfectly with modified CoC rules, but not it does not go the other way round. There is no way to convert CoCs "Beyond the Mountains of Madness" to D&D in any meaningful way though

 

[Parmandur]

Honestly, it's the one "D&D" setting I can't wrap my head around. I can think of lots of ways to do a d20-based Star Wars game, but not one that uses the PHB. Mostly new classes, all new species, whole new magic/Force system, etc. I just can't square it with how they have handled both older settings and other IP (MTG, WoW); D&D rules first, setting second. Short of a new Star Wars PHB, I don't know how this works.

Refluff a lot of spells as tech doodads. Lots of reakins...Ranger is called a "Bounty Hunter" and "Hunters Mark" becomes a targeting computer in the helmet, etc.

 

[Maxperson]

My opinion on such matters was defined by MERP. MERP is set in Middle Earth and still let you play a magic-using character or elf. They aren't as flashy as your D&D wizard, but they ARE magic-users. So my perception is if MERP could figure out how to allow magic using characters in a setting with canonically five angel-wizards and a handful of ancient elves having any magical ability whatsoever, any setting can bend enough to allow wizard PCs.

Middle Earth canonically had magic users of every mortal race, including orcs. They just weren't wizards(Istari). MERP didn't have to go far to "find" a way for it to happen.