WotC Dragonlance: Everything You Need For Shadow of the Dragon Queen

WotC has shared a video explaining the Dragonlance setting, and what to expect when it is released in December.

World at War: Introduces war as a genre of play to fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons.

Dragonlance: Introduces the Dragonlance setting with a focus on the War of the Lance and an overview of what players and DMs need to run adventures during this world spanning conflict.

Heroes of War: Provides character creation rules highlighting core elements of the Dragonlance setting, including the kender race and new backgrounds for the Knight of Solamnia and Mage of High Sorcery magic-users. Also introduces the Lunar Sorcery sorcerer subclass with new spells that bind your character to Krynn's three mystical moons and imbues you with lunar magic.

Villains: Pits heroes against the infamous death knight Lord Soth and his army of draconians.

Notes --

• 224 page hardcover adventure
• D&D's setting for war
• Set in eastern Solamnia
• War is represented by context -- it's not goblins attacking the village, but evil forces; refugees, rumours
• You can play anything from D&D - clerics included, although many classic D&D elements have been forgotten
• Introductory scenarios bring you up to speed on the world so no prior research needed

 

[Faolyn]

Open world play predates the railroad. Dragonlance invented railroad campaigns. That was the great innovation.

And I can't speak for what everyone likes, but I know my current players like that sort of thing. To a degree, they want me to tell them a story. A story they can be involved with, interact with and influence to be sure. But still a story.

I've tried open world play with them and they didn't know what to do with themselves. They just sat around looking at each other waiting for something to happen.

There is a huge area between a completely open world and railroad. Giving someone a plot hook is not a railroad.

Impressions are subjective, and mine is probably coloured by having come in right at the start with DL1. It's certainly a world of good vs evil, and one of my issues with the setting is how it defines "good" clashes with mine. But it's not a "world of dragons" (any more than the Realms are Forgotten). At the start, dragons are completely absent from the world (it turns out they were in hiding), and bringing back the good dragons to counter the evil dragons is an objective of the early modules. But even then dragons are not numerous (they are few enough that most are named). Their role in the war is more that of the battleship than the horse. Dragonlance very much believes in player character exceptionalism. There are the heroes (and villains) who, at very high level, might get to ride a dragon and use a dragonlance. Then the was everyone else, who walked.

My other distinct impression, as a British person, was just how American it all felt. To the same degree that the Shire feels ever so English.

Right, but an impression is not the same thing as "this game is about the American frontier." That's just Weiss and Hickman's writing style, which was likely very different from other fantasy novels you'd read at the time.

 

[Faolyn]

And talks like Yosemite Sam.

Then that should be "hare trigger."

 

[Vaalingrade]

Then that should be "hare trigger."

"Ooo, I hates that haregon!"~fires guns in frustration, spooking his horse~

 

[GMforPowergamers]

It would be interesting to see a Venn diagram of those casting all gods of the Cataclysm as evil with those wishing to not include a sidebar in the latest DL book.

I can speak for myself... I dislike the wording of the Cataclysm, AND don't see a reason to limit orcs. I however am pro side bar (just as a suggestion) and would prefer they make the Cataclysm make more sense then call them all evil.

EDIT: And if one cannot keep to something as easy as the native races of Krynn what hope do they have of focusing on its more challenging aspects such as loyalty, honour, family, betrayal and 'staches.

 

[mamba]

I would prefer they make the Cataclysm make more sense then call them all evil.

we also have a deity (probably more than one) that is considered good and killed off a lot more people than the Cataclysm ever did

 

[Vaalingrade]

Baachus said he was sorry. Jeez.

 

[pemerton]

Giving someone a plot hook is not a railroad.

It depends on how and by whom the "hook" is authored, and on what the participant to whom it is given is expected to do with it.

 

[Hussar]

Fandom as a litmus test checks egos, and makes all the long nights worth it. You have to respect the work before you’re allowed to add to its legacy.”

Hrm. One of the most popular shows on Netflix. Tons of fans. Very well received by most.

Yup it’s totally important to “respect the work”.

 

[RuinousPowers]

we also have a deity (probably more than one) that is considered good and killed off a lot more people than the Cataclysm ever did

Thats a lot of false equivalency there.

 

[Faolyn]

If you want an orc PC you can say he is from a crashed scro spelljammer. Or the orcs are from a dark domain because they are the torment of lord Toede, now a dark lord, suferring bullying by them.

Somehow I don't think a lot of Dragonlance purists are going to be cool with bringing in Spelljammer. And A darklord is, by definition, in Ravenloft, and therefore wouldn't be on Krynn.