D&D 5E Darksun Players Guide (5E)

[Zardnaar]

[h=2]Dark Sun Players Guide (5E)[/h]

Over the last few years I have been tweaking a conversion for Darksun. With the mystic being available as a 20 level playtest class and finding a 3pp Thri Kreen on the DMGuild I have dug out my old notes and updated them. For the most part I have attempted to use the PHB as much as possible. I have also been looking through the DMG for various optional rules and about restrictions of class and races. The conversion has been based on the original and best Darksun IMHO which was the 1991 Original boxed set and a few products from 1992 and 1993. In the 2E material there is a bit of power creep, contradictions, and silly things that turn up due to the original designers of the setting being sent else where and freelancers more or less being able to do what they liked hence surfing druids turning up.

I plan on printing out introduction to Athas from the original Wanderers Journal and mix it with these conversion notes along with print outs of various other things I find and get it all spiral bound into a handout for the players to use. Note this is going right back to the original grittiest version of Darksun ever released, I am ignoring the events of the Prism Pentad, the later 2E books, the revised boxed set and the 4E Dimsun conversion. Once I have more trime I will likely tweak the races a biot firther and use some elemental domains as the PHB ones are just place holders. The fluff for the races will be from the original boxed set. I may add in the Aaracokra and Genasi as options.

Darksun Players Guide

Starting Characters
PCs on Darksun are tougher than characters from other worlds. All Athasian PCs start at level 3 and gain a bonus ability score increase or a feat. Half Giants do not gain an additional ability score improvement or feat.
Races

The following races are allowed on Darksun. Other races and sub races are unavailable for PCs as they either do not exist on Athas or are unknown to the world at large.

Elf The Wood Elf from the PHB is allowed on Athas.

Dwarf. The Hill Dwarf is the Athasian Dwarf.

Halfling. The Stout Halfling represents the Halfling.

Half Giant
Ability Score Increase Half Giants gain +4 strength, +2 constitution and -2 intelligence, -2 wisdom and -2 charisma.

Age Half Giants live to around 200 years of age.

Alignment Half Giants may change their alignment when they complete a long rest. They tend to have the same alignment as the strongest or most charismatic individual they associate with.

Size Half Giants are usually between 10-12 feet tall. They are large sized.

Durable Your hit point maximum increases by 2, and it increases by 2 every time you gain a level. Additional when you spend a hit dice to regain hit points Half Giants may roll an additional dice.

Oversized Weapons. Half Giants may treat weapons with the two handed property as if they had the one handed weapon property.

Humans.
Athasian humans get +2 to two ability scores of their choice and +1 on two other ability scores of their choice. They also gain proficiency with a skill of their choice.

Mul
The mul is a half human/haf Dwarf hybrid. They use the statistics of a half orc but replace the intimidation skill with the athletics skill.

Thri Kreen Thri Kreen are located in the Race Compendium volume 2.

Classes
The following Classes and archetypes are allowed.

Barbarian
The Berzerker archetype is allowed on Athas.

Bard The PHB Bards do not exist on Athas. They are Rogues: Assassins.

Cleric.
Athasian clerics draw their power from the elements. Pick an element you gain your domain from that choice.
Air. Tempest
Earth. Nature
Fire. Light
Water. Healing

If you have access to the EN5ider 65 Priests of Elemental Power you may use the Flame, Stone, Water domains instead of Nature, Light and Healing. Air still grants the tempest domain.

Druid
Druids may be land Druids and select Desert, Grasslands or Swamp as options. Forest Druids are rare and tend to be halflings or from Gulg or Nibenay. They draw their power from Spirits of the Land.

Fighter the Champion fighter is allowed on Darksun along with the Eldritch Knight. Eldritch Knights must follow the defiling rules and tend to suffer the same fate as Wizards if caught by the Sorcerer Kings.

Gladiator
The Gladiator is a battlemaster fighter.

Ranger
The Hunter Ranger is allowed on Darksun.

Mystic

Templar
Templars are servants of the Sorcerer Kings. They must be of non good alignment. They are treated as Clerics with the War Domain.

Rogue
The Thief and Arcane trickster are allowed in a Darksun game.

Wizard
Wizards are allowed on Darksun although they are hunted by Templars and shunned by the general populace who blame them for the state of Athas. They follow the defiling rules.​

 

[Zardnaar]

Athasian Equipment
Athasian armor tends to be lighter than the equivalent on other worlds. Rather than metal plates substitutes of wood, bone, chitin, or stone have been used. Athasian medium and heavy armor is made out of lighter metals than armor found on other worlds.

Quick and dirty rules (I have a table at home) Athasian medium and heavy armor is renamed PHB armor. The dex bonus allowed is increased by 1, the AC bonus is reduced by 1. For example Athasian Chainmail is nor called Scale, has AC 15 and allows a +1 dex modifier. Athasian Plate (mekilot) is AC 17 with +1 dex modifier. THis represents the alternate materials they have used to make the armor out of. Metal armor if found is the same as the PHB.

Weapons

Inferior Materials

Athasian weapons are usually made out of inferior materials such as stone, bone or wood. A wooden club still functions the same but a sword is often made out of obsidian for example. Wood and bone weapons have a -2 penalty to hit and damage while stone has a -1 penalty to hit and damage. Wood and bone substitute weapons cost half the listed PHB price.

Feats
The following feats do not exist on Athas and may not be selected.

Healer

Inspirational Leader

Athasian Rules
Athas uses the gritty realism rules variant in the DMG. A short rest takes 8 hours while a long rest takes 7 days.

Extreme Heat
Athasians are treated as adapted to hot climates (DMG pg 110). However once the temperature gets over 130 degrees the extreme heat rules apply to Athasians.

Foraging ( DMG pg 111)

The default DC for Athas is limited and very little (if any) food and water sources. Abundant food is very rare and mostly limited to the fields of the city states, a Druids grove or the private gardens of a Sorcerer King. Certain places in Athas are DC 25 for survival checks such as the Sea of Silt, various salt flats, defiled land etc.

Water Needs ( DMG pg 111)
Athas counts as hot so water needs are doubled.

Defiling

Wizards and other arcane spell casters such as Arcane Tricksters and Eldritch Knights draw their power from the plant life of Athas. Any arcane spellcaster can chose to defile but Preservers run the risk of becoming a defiler should they do it too much. The DM has the full rules on defiling but should a PC choose to defile it boosts a spells power. Damage dealing spells are treated as if they are cast using a higher level spell slot. Spells that do not deal damage and have a saving throw increase the spell DC’s by 1.

Defiling leaves behind a tell-tale circle of ash and the average Athasian can recognise the ash circle with a DC 10 intelligence (arcana) check as they have likely hears myths and tales about destructive and evil magic. The Clerics, Defilers, Druids, Preservers, have advantage on the roll while Templars and servants of the Sorcerer Kings automatically make such a check.

Defilers are generally hunted down and put to death by the populace of Athas. Anyone seen defiling is generally treated as a Defiler.

Note these defiling rules are deliberately incomplete. The average Athasian wizard may not know the full consequences of defiling. I will have some sort of points system and if a spell caster defiles enough they become a actual defiler. Ash circles get bigger and they will have disadvantage on charisma checks. Getting caught in a defiling radius is painful and have disadvantage on skill checks the following round. Getting caught in The Dragons defling radius will result in hit point loss and/or levels of exhaustion.