tetsujin28
First Post
Pretty much what the post says. Is it worth getting? Better to convert over to d20M?
Dragonstar: How was it?
Tetsubo
First Post
I really like the setting. I had planned on "dropping" the Dragon Empire on my FR campiagn but the game ended. I think it works just fine as D&D, no need to convert to D20. If you plan on picking up the setting I would also recommend Arsenal and Factory. Two great Science-Fantasy books for 3.0.
The Cardinal
First Post
love it. bought the complete set for almost nothing at the Spiel '04. will (a) use it as a faaaaaaar future for GURPS Technomancer, and (b) combine it with the Wilderlands setting 
Psion
Adventurer
It's decent. The rules (and players book) are pretty good. How do I put this. I don't think it is as good a setting as it is a setup. That is to say, there's lots of fertile roleplaying and campaigning ground their, like the role of paladins and drow, the abstract deities, the expansion of the dragon empire, and so forth. But I sort of feel like they dropped to ball on developing the backstory and politics to provide you with lots of good ideas for game backdrops. A clever DM can take the ball and run with it, though, fleshing out the house politics and direction of the game.
I recommend Simon Green's Deathstalker books for ideas for such a game.
I recommend Simon Green's Deathstalker books for ideas for such a game.
Psion said:
That matches our experiences pretty well.
A lot depends on how you plan to run it, though.
The DM in our game ran it as mostly science fiction with some fantasy added in. That meant everyone had spare energy cells for their guns, and ready access to recharging them. As a result, it was from 1st level on all about the guns. The weapons are a lot like wands with infinite charges (in that style of game), and are readily available to 1st level characters. Should the wizard try to use ray of frost for 1d3+1 cold, or a laser for 3d6 damage? Not a tough choice there.
When we shifted the focus to an off-limits planet where we had to hide our off-world status, though, the feel changed quite a bit. No easy re-charges there, and potentially months of poking around, meant we had to be careful about using the guns.
I played in all of the RPGA's Living Dragonstar modules.
It's a fun idea, and really is D&D in space. Essentially, take the D&D world and ideas, then bolt high-tech onto it. Pretty much anyone can use a blaster (as Silveras notes, my wizard used his blaster rifle a lot more often than his spells).
Combat can be *very* nasty; the high-tech weapons can do a lot of damage, and ACs don't seem to be commensurately higher to compensate. Trauma symbiotes (magical implants that give you 20 extra hit points) are really a good thing. The vehicle combat rules are kind of weird, IIRC, and if you're gonna be a pilot, you really need to max out your ranks to be at all effective (Pilot DCs get insanely difficult).
The rules were never updated to 3.5, but you probably know that.
It's a fun idea, and really is D&D in space. Essentially, take the D&D world and ideas, then bolt high-tech onto it. Pretty much anyone can use a blaster (as Silveras notes, my wizard used his blaster rifle a lot more often than his spells).
Combat can be *very* nasty; the high-tech weapons can do a lot of damage, and ACs don't seem to be commensurately higher to compensate. Trauma symbiotes (magical implants that give you 20 extra hit points) are really a good thing.
The vehicle combat rules are kind of weird, IIRC, and if you're gonna be a pilot, you really need to max out your ranks to be at all effective (Pilot DCs get insanely difficult).The rules were never updated to 3.5, but you probably know that.
Napftor
Explorer
Dragonstar (D&D in space) is a fun setting. The rules are pretty much d20 standard with some tech thrown on top. The setting is rich in concept while leaving out descriptive locales for planets and systems. The framework is strong and can support years of great roleplaying. You can likely pick up the Starfarer's HB for cheap and that's all you really need.
trancejeremy
Adventurer
Converting to d20 Modern would sort of miss the point - it's D&D in space/future. And as it was, high tech overshadowed low level magic (which I liked), but in d20 Modern, it would make magic almost pointless.
It was a great idea, and the first book was really good, but it sort of sputtered out, as I got the impression FFG kind of lost interest.
It was a great idea, and the first book was really good, but it sort of sputtered out, as I got the impression FFG kind of lost interest.
I liked it so much I bought 2 copies of the Starfarer's Handbook--at retail. It is a great concept and should never have beaten Star Wars to the market. I used it for a Rifts d20 conversion, which I liked; but the players really didn't. The disdain playing "D&D in Space" (notwithstanding they turned Star wars into exactly that). Subsequent DragonStar releases were less interesting to me, so I didn't buy them. I still have Raw Recruits in case I ever get to run it in some form or another. It is a great adventure with an almost Star Trek Junior Officers feel.
