D&D General Eberron: recommend an edition

[doctorbadwolf]

Normally I wouldn’t recommend 3.5 cause I’m not a big fan of the system, but it’s the game Eberron was made for, and because of that I think it’s still the best execution of the setting. Or at least, the one where the lore and the mechanics are most in sync with each other.

I disagree. IMO, the lore and mechanics match up in 4e a lot better, with the single exception of the Artificer class, but even the 3.5 Artificer sucked due to the system.

I’d just use the 5e system and Keith’s lore.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

I’m going to be using other mechanics anyway, so all they need to do is provide fodder for Fate aspects, QuestWorlds traits, or some such. Should have said that earlier. Thanks!

In that case, any editions main campaign setting books are good, but more important is these free resources:

Manifest zone - a podcast festuring the setting creator that explores the setting in more detail, and they talk about how to use different elements.

Dragonmarks - Blog posts by the creator that could be compiled and used as a setting guide, they’re so comprehensive.

Along with those, I’d consider Exploring Eberron on the DMsGuild.

 

[ninjayeti]

The 5e Rising from the Last War is by far the best introduction to the setting. It is very focused on delivering the practical information you need: what are the key differences between Eberron and traditional fantasy settings, what are the interesting features of each region and faction, what you should think about when making a character from a particular nation, etc. Exploring Eberron from the DMG is also very good, although that is the only other book I own for 5E.

3E has the most material (12 hardback setting books), so if you want a deep dive, that is where you should look. It is a lot of material, and much of the later stuff was not done by the original authors of the setting so the quality is a bit uneven.

Honestly, there is not a ton of differences between the lore in the editions, other than the 4E version squeezed dragonborn and tieflings explicitly into the setting. Unless you are really hung up on only having one edition, I would get Rising from the Last War to start, then pick up some of the 3E stuff to fill in specific gaps: so if you are running a Xen'drik campaign, get the 3E Stormreach and Xen'drik sourcebooks.

 

[Autumnal]

Thank you muchly, all. I really appreciate your explanations.

 

[marimbaguy715]

The 5e Rising from the Last War is by far the best introduction to the setting. It is very focused on delivering the practical information you need: what are the key differences between Eberron and traditional fantasy settings, what are the interesting features of each region and faction, what you should think about when making a character from a particular nation, etc. Exploring Eberron from the DMG is also very good, although that is the only other book I own for 5E.

3E has the most material (12 hardback setting books), so if you want a deep dive, that is where you should look. It is a lot of material, and much of the later stuff was not done by the original authors of the setting so the quality is a bit uneven.

Honestly, there is not a ton of differences between the lore in the editions, other than the 4E version squeezed dragonborn and tieflings explicitly into the setting. Unless you are really hung up on only having one edition, I would get Rising from the Last War to start, then pick up some of the 3E stuff to fill in specific gaps: so if you are running a Xen'drik campaign, get the 3E Stormreach and Xen'drik sourcebooks.

This is my recommendation as well. Rising is a perfect introduction, and Exploring Eberron and Chronicles of Eberron (Keith Baker's 5e DMsGuild publications) are near must-haves as well. The 3.5e books are best for getting detailed lore of specific topics/areas.

I do want to highlight a few other ways the lore has changed since 3.5, because I really like what they've done with two particular areas - The Blood of Vol and the Realm Below the Mror Holds.

The Blood of Vol had significantly more sinister overtones in 3.5e, and the line between them and the Emerald Claw was much thinner. Over the years, they've been developed into probably the most interesting religion in Eberron, with a focus on community and divinity within themselves.

The Realm Below is another fantastic additon that makes the Mror dwarves much more interesting. Exploring Eberron gives a lot of really cool detail on the different Dwarven clans, their relationship with each other, and their opinions on the Realm Below/symbionts. It makes the Mror Holds a much more interesting location for adventuring and makes it probably my favorite nation in Eberron.

 

[Voadam]

Another option is the 64 page statless art heavy coffeebook version they put out at the end of 3e specifically to inspire players with the flavor and concepts of the setting.

An Adventurer's Guide to Eberron.

If you want concise and evocative and not that system specific it is probably a good option.

 

[marimbaguy715]

Another option is the 64 page statless art heavy coffeebook version they put out at the end of 3e specifically to inspire players with the flavor and concepts of the setting.

An Adventurer's Guide to Eberron.

If you want concise and evocative and not that system specific it is probably a good option.

For that type of thing I would be much quicker to recommend the Eberronicon since it contains 5e updated lore and you can read the vast majority of it for free using the preview.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Thank you muchly, all. I really appreciate your explanations.

Oh!

Also, because it comes up for a lot of folks:

The population numbers in the books don’t remotely match the population density shown in the art. I think Keith has said basically add a zero to all population numbers? Something like that.

And one of the biggest things that tends to slip past folks reading the books is, it’s not high magic, it’s wide magic. There is minor magic all over, replacing technology. Keith even proposed the idea that heavy crossbows are old school crossbows that magically assist reloading and use magically reinforced arms for greater firepower. OTOH, big high level magic is rare. The highest level threats on the setting are not CR 30 god things, they’re like CR 17 liches or some such.

 

[MonsterEnvy]

I think the 5e mechanics worked well with the 5e book.

 

[Voadam]

And one of the biggest things that tends to slip past folks reading the books is, it’s not high magic, it’s wide magic. There is minor magic all over, replacing technology. Keith even proposed the idea that heavy crossbows are old school crossbows that magically assist reloading and use magically reinforced arms for greater firepower. OTOH, big high level magic is rare. The highest level threats on the setting are not CR 30 god things, they’re like CR 17 liches or some such.

While that is a tone explicitly gone for in the 3.5 core book and executed in some of the supplements with lots of low level important NPCs (The Lord of Blades is a CR 12) there are high CR stuff throughout the setting. Big ones include:

The Lords of Dust. Demon Lord level archfiend rakshasa.

The Dragons. Flipping through Dragons of Argonnesan I get a CR 36 lawful evil great wyrm silver dragon statted out, The Prophecy Incarnate.

The Quori. Secrets of Sarlona has a CR 20 Kallarq Quori statted out.