Dragonborn/Tiefling- which campaign setting?

[AdmundfortGeographer]

In Dark Sun, Dragonborn = Dray.

Precisely!

I agree that tieflings are an easy addition. Depending on the details we get on tieflings, there might be any number ways to import tieflings.

Degenerated pyreen?
Ur Draxans?
A long lost distant enclave of Green Age peoples?
Make up your own reason.

 

[Patlin]

I agree that tieflings are an easy addition. Depending on the details we get on tieflings, there might be any number ways to import tieflings.

Eberron tieflings seem likely to be tainted by Khyber.

 

[Rechan]

Eberron tieflings seem likely to be tainted by Khyber.

Keith Baker has floated the notion that they're influenced by the Planes. A tiefling comes from a birth inside a manifest zone, and the plane influences the Tief's personality.

 

[Ahglock]

I don't think I've ever heard anyone complain about a new monster book, which tends to introduce hundreds of new creatures into a campaign world. I think there are two major reasons for this:

1) D&D worlds typically have plenty of room for a new scary monster around every corner.
2) The DM can always choose not to use them.

In my opinion, both of these things apply equally to PC races.

Well monster manuals are probably not even designed under the assumption all of them fit in your game. Dropping a dozen monsters out of a hundred is much easier especially since you would have to go out of your way to use them all, and there isn't any player involvement in what monsters you throw in.

2 of 8 core races is a bigger hit by far. A 1/4 of a small number of choices aren't going to be available in a large number of campaigns, and the players do see these races and will be saying can I play X. It is a much bigger pain in the butt dropping these than not using some monsters from the MM.

 

[Aeolius]

I'm making a campaign setting with no core PHB races, but by god it's D&D.

Amen! My current campaign is set beneath the surface of the Oljatt Sea on Oerth, the World of Greyhawk. PCs must have a natural swim speed and be able to swim underwater without the use of magic... no core races.

What dragons will the dragonborn be kin to, then? Dragon turtles finally getting their 15 minutes of fame? I suppose I could use my coral, pearl, and abalone dragons, then.

As for tieflings... meh. There are more people related to hags, in my games, than there are those whose ancestry includes evil outsiders.

 

[mhacdebhandia]

Bottomline: I think the GM decides what is in the campaign they are running and then the players pick from those options. If the players have good ideas that can add to the campaign, then GM can consider them, but ultimately the GM decides what is going on in the world, what the plot lines and goals are

Hahaha no. I'm down with the GM deciding what is in the world, but my days of happily following along the GM's storylines are over. My character will pursue his own goals, thanks, with the other PCs, and you'll find the game is better for it.

 

[Ahglock]

Hahaha no. I'm down with the GM deciding what is in the world, but my days of happily following along the GM's storylines are over. My character will pursue his own goals, thanks, with the other PCs, and you'll find the game is better for it.

To a degree I agree with you, and I wish my players were more self starters. At the same time if i prep an adventure where Bad Guy X has invaded Happy Town while you live in Happy Town, and the response is, you know my character is really thinking about improving his sailing skills I'm gonna concentrate on that, I ignore whats happening in Happy Town.

I say, ok you are a better sailor, come back next week and this time bring a snack like everyone else you cheapskate.

Take your own initiative, but it should be in the context of the story starters presented. Most reactions to story starters are fine, flat out ignoring all of them not so much. DMing is hard enough without dealing with that kind of crap.

 

[mhacdebhandia]

I say, ok you are a better sailor, come back next week and this time bring a snack like everyone else you cheapskate.

You jerk, I always bring my own snacks and drinks, and share them around!

Take your own initiative, but it should be in the context of the story starters presented.

Or you could try the kind of game where the players have all made it clear what they're interested in doing, and you facilitate their desires. Call me crazy.

 

[Rechan]

Or you could try the kind of game where the players have all made it clear what they're interested in doing, and you facilitate their desires. Call me crazy.

I'll call that crazy because in my experience, players either: 1) Don't have interests, or 2) Have interests that are so divergent you can't keep them in one place. You have Bob the Wizard wanting to trape off to the Ugly Jungle and Ed wanting to stay here to learn Wenching Fu from the elven Ron Jeremy. The individuals goals are counter to eachother.

 

[Ahglock]

You jerk, I always bring my own snacks and drinks, and share them around!

Or you could try the kind of game where the players have all made it clear what they're interested in doing, and you facilitate their desires. Call me crazy.

When players write backgrounds that have hooks I'm happy to tie them into stories or even make the story based around them.

In my experience one, I get really short backgrounds that are mostly written so I can't pull anything from them. My mom, dad, siblings, girlfriend, best friend, and dog are all dead because of like a war and stuff.

And as pointed out already, players desires are usually different so while I'm setting up My attack on Happy town to tie into someone background and give them the mass combat/war story they wanted Joe still wants to be a sailor so if he wants to be a putz he does sailor crap because the spotlight isn't always on him.

Like I said I mostly agree with you, its just depends on how far its taken. I always find my first couple adventures the hardest because I have yet to develop a fell for what the players want out of there characters so the stories are overly generic. Once I know what the players want I can start to tailor adventures to that, and I can only hope that when the player its targeted to takes the bait, the rest of the party jumps on the hook as well.