Eberron? No way - I'm old school.

[Desdichado]

No, it isn't. They present it within limits, but they also tell you how you can expand and expound upon them.

If I can take a setting, from any setting and even time period, how can that possibly be limited in scope or theme? That is like saying Dracula stories can be written only one way.

To a certain extent that's true, and otherwise they fail to be good Dracula stories. Ravenloft was all about a certain atmosphere, vibe and sub-genre. It seems a bit disingenious to say that sure, it was about that, but you can change it, and therefore the setting isn't limited. Well, that's true for every setting.

As to Eberron, it may be well done. It may even be fun. Since I am already playing in games and settings that I am still having a blast playing, why should I switch?

You shouldn't, unless you want to. Indeed.

 

[Express]

Side note: I have yet to see a successful Ravenloft Comedy-Themed Game.


OK, Maybe you can run Abbot and Costello meet Strahd von Zarovich and Adam, but I haven't seen a DM with the guts to do it.

That is something Id like to see. Hey Ab-bott!!

 

[SemperJase]

That is something Id like to see. Hey Ab-bott!!

I thought Eberron would have been much better had the pages been numbered consecutively and all pages included instead of 64 of them repeated. But maybe that's just my old-school ideas about numerical order.

My copy should be getting replaced by Thursday. (Stupid printing errors).

 

[Whisper72]

Just to elaborate on my comment about Dark Sun, Dragonlance and Ravenloft being limited:

I meant that they appeal to a limited audience because the scope and type of adventures is somewhat limited:

These worlds/settings are very specific, and the whole look/feel of the world will not appeal to everyone / a broad audience. Not saying that they are not way cool or that you could not play in them forever, only that they only appeal to ppl whose cup of tea it is. From a marketing / industry point of view, the target audience will thus be very limited in scope for these worlds (especially Ravenloft, as it takes a darn good DM to really get the mood going, and special players who like to play in such an atmosphere).

Thus the remark was meant in the light of whether a setting has the broad scope to replace a world like Greyhawk or Forgotten Realms, where it is much easier to place any sort of campaign.

At first glance, Eberron seems limited as well. The whole 'fantasy noir' theme is also a look/feel that will only appeal to a certain amount of players out there. When reading the whole ECS tho, you quickly note that this is by no means a must. There are plenty places in Eberron where simple hack'n'slash roleplaying (does such a thing exist?? ) fits in. It looks as though Eberron will be able to accommodate a broad spectrum of types of play, and is thus not limited to a small scope of players.

Hope that helps clear up my remarks and use of the word limited in reference to the various campaign settings

 

[Nightchilde-2]

Me a few months ago:

"Eh. I'm tired of running D&D."

When Eberron came out:

"I guess I can pick this up and see if there's anything I can rip off for my Exalted game."

I begin an Eberron campaign next Friday online.

It's just *that* good.

 

[Calico_Jack73]

A very strange transformation began to occur. Suddenly “old school” began to feel a bit primitive. Heck, the Forgotten Realms had always been my measuring stick of "too new" for me. Yet, now, even FR seems...well, old. Maybe even outdated. Perhaps bland?
I had every reason in the world not to like Eberron. But the guilty little secret is that I do. Very much so. It’s washed away my ‘old school’ skepticism with a freshness that stems from more than just novelty.

Gaming, suddenly, feels new again.

I felt the same way when I picked up the Midnight Campaign Setting book for the first time.

 

[Mystery Man]

I like this new setting but the words "fresh" and "new" do not come to mind when I read it. Every time I turn a page I think to myself been there, done that, bought the T-shirt. Age of Giants - Forgotten Realms had same. Age of Dragons - same. Big city Sharn - Waterdeep. Flying cities - Netheril (City of Shade). Flying ships - Halruaa. Jaded? Maybe.

So far whenever I'm shown the "fresh and new" I'm thinking to myself already done but repackaged and trying to be new and interesting. And while having this long memory may make me sound overly critical, (another beef I have is that I think the Dragonshards article on demographics should have been printed in the damn book) I have to say again that I actually like the setting (I too am one of those that didn't think I would) and I think this is a great setting to bring new kids into the game.

 

[diaglo]

I like this new setting but the words "fresh" and "new" do not come to mind when I read it. Every time I turn a page I think to myself been there, done that, bought the T-shirt. Age of Giants - Forgotten Realms had same. Age of Dragons - same. Big city Sharn - Waterdeep. Flying cities - Netheril (City of Shade). Flying ships - Halruaa. Jaded? Maybe.

So far whenever I'm shown the "fresh and new" I'm thinking to myself already done but repackaged and trying to be new and interesting. And while having this long memory may make me sound overly critical, (another beef I have is that I think the Dragonshards article on demographics should have been printed in the damn book) I have to say again that I actually like the setting (I too am one of those that didn't think I would) and I think this is a great setting to bring new kids into the game.

many of us say the same thing about the Forgettable Realms.

 

[Mystery Man]

many of us say the same thing about the Forgettable Realms.

Point taken, I have more familiarity with the Realms and am able to point out the parallels easier.

 

[Frostmarrow]

Side note: I have yet to see a successful Ravenloft Comedy-Themed Game.


OK, Maybe you can run Abbot and Costello meet Strahd von Zarovich and Adam, but I haven't seen a DM with the guts to do it.

Perhaps you remeber Blood Brothers 1 & 2 by Chaosium for Call of Cthulhu? It featured comedic horror stories. I fondly remember "An Alien Kicked Sand in My Face" for instance. It even featured Abbot and Costello, complete with cream pies and squirt bottles. It also included rules for 3D-role playing. It basically meant that you'd pick up objects from the table, say a coffey mug, and move it back and forth in front of someone's face whilst going "Weeeeee-O-weeeeee".