[Eberron] Timeline Advancement?

[delericho]

I'm not interested in an Eberron that advances the timeline, whether by a few years or a few generations. I'm not interested in an Eberron dealing with the distant past. In both those cases, you trample on my campaigns in ways you can't predict and that I have no interest in dealing with.

But I also have no interest in an Eberron that just covers the same material again. I have all the 3e books, which gives me a good handle on the core areas of the setting (the ones that would get a revision before the rest get covered at all), so I don't need new books.

Yeah, you're screwed.

 

[Mercule]

I'm not sure what the right answer is. I'm likely to buy a 5e Eberron core book, just so the fluff is paired with the mechanics I'm using -- one stop shopping, so to speak. That said, while I found the 4e book useful, and appreciated some of the new information, the 3e book had more stuff that seemed important to me, which resulted in me referencing the 4e book for game prep, but bringing the 3e book to the table during 4e games. That's just... wrong.

I guess I lean toward keeping things at year 998. I do like the idea of modular futures, but I'm also concerned that there would be pressure on WotC to affirm one of those as the "real" future, which is the same net thing as advancing the timeline. I would love to see additional setting books that delved deeper into the setting, rather than being primarily crunch. I'm not sure how well those would sell, though.

 

[eamon]

I'd be interested in an advancing timeline.

I'm not too bothered about it conflicting with stuff I've come up with. I don't mind a bit of mild retconning, and neither do I mind changing a few key points in the version I use. For example, I thought the eladrin feyspires were a neat idea, but I never actually got around to using them. In any case, my campaign was about averting disaster (sustaining the status Quo) and any changes caused by it are unlikely to be in conflict with new published material.

In any case, the "truth" is flexible notion. It's just what everyone thinks, right? If published history conflicts campaign truth, that just means there's some uncertainty in the account .

I'd love to see a new version with some evolution. I voted for a few years, but a few decades would be fine too . Though the past would be interesting, there's perhaps a bit of a problem in that it'd look like the then future is fixed (to the current present).

 

[Mercutio01]

I voted for earlier period, but I'd be perfectly happy keeping it where it is. I didn't buy the 4E version because I didn't buy any 4E other than the core three books. I do own all the 3.5 books, and would be interested in support for DDN, but if it's just a retread of the books I already own, finances are tight enough that I probably wouldn't purchase DDN Eberron. If I have more disposable income by that point (hopefully), I might shell out the cash just to support the line, but I'd prefer it do something else, and for me I'd rather look backwards than forwards.

 

[grimslade]

Reorganize to reinvigorate

I hate gazetteers. They all read like half assed travelogues and 4th grade geography projects. Can we step back from the geographical organization and look at Eberron through a different filter. It would be a way to present material that has been released twice already and give it fresh legs.

The book could be arranged around the Dragonmark Houses and their perception of Khorvaire. Or Eberron could be described by its enemies. The Heirs of Dhakaan would have an interesting perspective of Breland and invading elves. The Chamber could show the world through the lens of prophecy. ANything different from this country, this region.

 

[Hellcow]

Dungeons & Dragons has always had settings with advancing timelines. Is it really too much to expect that there be one that remains static?

Just to be clear, Kaodi, just because I raised the issue doesn't mean I support the idea of change. It's simply the case that it's a subject that WILL come up if Eberron receives support in 5E; starting the conversation now helps to clarify what people what.

Personally, I feel that we have no shortage of unexplored depth for 998 YK. As the weekly Q&As at HDWT show, it's not like we're out of topics. The trick is that if we only had a single DDN book - as we only had a single 4E book - how do we make that provide new depth while also providing the vital core information to people who don't know the setting? Personally, I'm all for the idea of exploring paths the future could take but with the idea of your PCs being at the center of that change; and I've always wanted to write a sourcebook about running games at different points in the past. But both of these are essentially supplements, not part of a core book. Looking to the 4E core book, if you were to add either of these things in, what would you remove?

 

[doctorhook]

One of Eberron's strengths as a setting is the "unique crossroads of history" that the setting is at in 998YK; there are a million things that could happen after that point, and all of them will leave a portion of Eberron's fans unsatisfied. I say leave Eberron's future up to individual DMs!

That said, there's a lot of potential in Eberron's past for "prequel settings", not the least of which would be the beginning of the Last War--that time frame would maintain Eberron's "feel", but still allow for lots of customization. Eberron lore could say, "Here's what Khorvaire looked like after the start of the Last War, and here's what it looked like at the end; your game can fill in the 100 intervening years."

 

[Zaukrie]

Dang good questions.....

I voted move it ahead, but I really like the option of a sourcebook (or Dragon articles) about 3-5 different paths the future could take. Frankly, I have never had an issue with WotC or any other company advancing the storylines. If you like the changes, go with them, if not, don't.

Really, could you center a campaign in a totally different part of the world, and keep the same timeline, and write that as the sourcebook for 5e? I think you could. Then if people wanted fluff for the core already covered, they could find those books.

 

[Hellcow]

And again, to be perfectly clear: there's nothing official about this discussion. I'm not a WotC employee. As far as I know, no decision has been made about the fate of Eberron in DDN. I'm just interested in gathering opinions so that if a discussion begins, I have some data and ideas to share.

 

[Kaodi]

Just to be clear, Kaodi, just because I raised the issue doesn't mean I support the idea of change. It's simply the case that it's a subject that WILL come up if Eberron receives support in 5E; starting the conversation now helps to clarify what people what.

I understand. If it seemed like I was accusing you of supporting the idea, I apologize. Given that you are the most vociferous proponent of keeping things as they are, and how individual DMs want them, I would have thought it unlikely that you would undergo some sudden conversion to the advancement side.

Personally, I feel that we have no shortage of unexplored depth for 998 YK. As the weekly Q&As at HDWT show, it's not like we're out of topics. The trick is that if we only had a single DDN book - as we only had a single 4E book - how do we make that provide new depth while also providing the vital core information to people who don't know the setting? Personally, I'm all for the idea of exploring paths the future could take but with the idea of your PCs being at the center of that change; and I've always wanted to write a sourcebook about running games at different points in the past. But both of these are essentially supplements, not part of a core book. Looking to the 4E core book, if you were to add either of these things in, what would you remove?

I am afraid I do not have much I can offer on that front. I never really got into 4E. Even though it was my original intent to get the 4E Eberron books at least, it never happened, at least not yet. I am not sure I even ever looked in them at the store. In fact, I am kind of stuck back in the original v3.5 era, because I have no interest in getting DDI, so unless they release an Eberron anthology of those articles, I am just stuck without them.