Dragonstar d20 vs Spelljammer d20

[miraclemax]

I have always joked that Dragonstar was the "cure" for Shadowrun.
But I like Dragonstar because the rules just tack on to regular D&D and links all the worlds in D&D to a common universe. All your campaign worlds are out there somewhere in the outlands of the Serpent's Eye galaxy.

 

[Will]

You seem to be new. Might want to check post dates before commenting on a thread.

 

[zen_hydra]

I have been recently considering adapting Dragonstar into my existing Eberron campaign. I like a lot of the flavor, and I think that it can easily be used as an expansion to most other fantasy settings (similarly to the original Spelljammer). I have also been considering bringing in some elements from Spelljammer, especially the Neogi and Illithid empires with their very recognizable ship designs. For scifi-flavored weapons I plan on using Arsenal from Perpetrated Press. Arsenal has a nice selection of magotech small arms, munitions, and body armors which really mesh well with Dragonstars design aesthetic.

 

[Derren]

Its really a pity that Dragonstar wasn't more successful.
Imo there are too few "magic meets sci-fi" games. And unlike Shadowrun, Dragonstar was more "traditional" science fiction, except that instead of technobabbel you had magic.
Also, the idea that the "aliens" are the same fantasy races ones species has known for centuries is intriguing.

 

[Will]

I have a bittersweet place in my heart for Dragonstar. It was some of the earliest work I was involved in, but what I was involved in (about 1/3 of Imperial Supply) was SO unappreciated by fans.

Everyone keeps going on and on about how it's not Arsenal.


Bah.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Well...its NOT Arsenal.

Actually, I liked Arsenal...AND Dragonstar...AND the D20 version of Spelljammer as far as it went...and even a little bit of DragonMech, all for different reasons.

Now, if only Kevin Sembieda would let someone do a licensed version of RIFTS for D20 (as in a 3.X or D20 Modern or even M&M version).

 

[Derren]

*sigh*
Now I really want to play a Dragonstar game.
Maybe I will find a internet game...

 

[rgard]

Well...its NOT Arsenal.

<SNIP>

Now, if only Kevin Sembieda would let someone do a licensed version of RIFTS for D20 (as in a 3.X or D20 Modern or even M&M version).

Well, we can always dream

Along this line of thought, I would have loved a D20 Palladium Fantasy. I don't know if Mr. Sembieda would have ever seen any real money out of it, but I would have purchased everything D20 Palladium.

Back to the original thought...there's a yahoo group that was working on converting RIFTS to D20. Are you a member? I can send you the link if you aren't.

Thanks,
Rich

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Well, I'm not in any such group, actually.

I can't say I'd have much to bring to the table, really. I like both games- again, for different reasons- but I'm not sure what I could contribute.

However, I CAN give you this link to an old ENWorld thread about doing Wolfen in D&D. I've used it myself to help design a homebrew race for a post-ELE (Extinction Level Event) D&D campaign- the Ffenris.

 

[Wik]

My favourite thing about Dragonstar was how it wound up dealing with magic. In Dragonstar, mages that used combat spells were not very effective - since grenades or assault rifles wound up having better effects. Instead, wizards became utility casters as opposed to blasters.

Also, PCs got higher-damaging weapons, which made combat lethal and fast - it really does play more like Shadowrun than D&D, only with easier rules.

I loved how the game handled religion, too - gods being universal "aspects" as opposed to specific beings just seems like a great way to handle the fact that a god could be thor on one world and Ares on another, without there being elebenty billion deities in the universe.

Soul Mechs seemed kind of weird, though. I'd drop them were I to ever run it again (not likely, unfortunately).