[Eberron] Timeline Advancement?

[Klaus]

Just as a note, I actually see the overzealous Pure Flame faction of the church as having more of a following in Aundair than in Thrane; a notable example of this is Archbishop Dariznu, who while he governs Thaliost on behalf of Thrane is a native Aundairian.

Essentially, after the Church of the Silver Flame saved Aundair in the purge, those whose families suffered the most at the hands of the lycanthropes clove to the faith as a weapon and tool of vengeance. It was they who then persecuted the shifters in the decades that followed, seeking to salve their wounds with blood. The closer you are to Flamekeep, the easier it is for the Keeper to encourage people to hold to the traditional values of the faith; in Aundair you have fanatics whose zealotry continues to grow, to where they even question the purity of Flamekeep itself.

So I'm just saying, you certainly have a militant theocracy next door... but the most dangerous fanatics might be those in your own nation.

Which actually lets you play bait-and-switch with the Audairian's preconceived notions about the Silver Flame. You could have Flame fanatics as heinous villains in Aundair, and when the PCs go to confront the leaders of the Church (or at least some of them -- read, Jaela), they find out the Church is not the hive of fanatics the PCs expected.

 

[Hellcow]

Which actually lets you play bait-and-switch with the Audairian's preconceived notions about the Silver Flame. You could have Flame fanatics as heinous villains in Aundair, and when the PCs go to confront the leaders of the Church (or at least some of them -- read, Jaela), they find out the Church is not the hive of fanatics the PCs expected.

Absolutely. Dariznu is a perfect tool for this. My vision of the thing (your mileage may vary, of course) is that the Cardinals put him in charge of Thaliost because hey, he's an Aundairian archbishop - surely the Aundairians will have an easier time accepting him over a Thrane governor. Except for the part where he's now doing things like burning people alive, which Jaela would NEVER tolerate. But the typical Aundairian-on-the-street doesn't know that; he just knows that Dariznu was appointed by the Flame and is doing these horrible things.

But we're drifting off-topic. Back to the more relevant question, if a new book stayed in 998 YK, could it maintain interest if it shifted the focus away from Sharn and Breland... and if so, where would you like to see?

 

[Kaodi]

We had Five Nations, but we never had Everything Else (on Khorvaire). That would probably be the best angle to take, with the exception that the Demon Wastes ought to stay mysterious for now.

As for a specific place though... If Breland has been done, Aundair is vanilla D&D, Thrane is too religious, Cyre is a wasteland, and Stormreach has a video game... I might suggest Karrlakton as a place to focus on. The seat of House Deneith, perhaps a little lighter on the undead elements than Korth or Atur, and nicely position along the somewhat neglected Eastern arc on the continent, from Karrnath, up through the Lhazaar Principalities, and down to Valenar.

 

[Novem5er]

I'll be honest, I'm not sure if any of the other Five Nations stand strong enough on their own to serve as a center piece to an Eberron campaign book. I would love to see some other areas details (I've mentioned Droaam and Karrnath already), but I think Breland and Sharn are a great focus.

If anything, maybe zoom out a bit and focus on Khorvaire more equally. There are just so many interesting places to explore, but like a jigsaw puzzle, no one piece dominates the picture on its own.

To me, Eberron has always screamed Casablanca with swords and mages, and you need full bodied international intrigue and tension for that to work.

I'll reiterate my idea that a new Eberron book should sell "systems" as much as the setting. Give players a crunchy system for designing, piloting, and fighting airships and you are going to sell some books. I'm not sure how an "intrigue" system would work; maybe this would be less rules crunchy and more of a DM support system like flow charts and plot advice.

A "system" that I would love to see in any game is archeology. Eberron has such a deep history behind it, with long-dead fantastical civilization that an archeology system would work amazingly. In an archeology system, I see a catalog of cultural details that a DM could use to describe ancient ruins and dungeons.

Instead of rolling "ancient lore" as a skill check, the DM could have a consistent description of pictographs and architecture for an Age of Demons site. Keeping the descriptions consistent creates a sense of historical continuity between sites and helps make the world more believable.

Extend this to treasure and the story can extend along with it. Coins from an old Goblin ruin might have significance , which can be done with a roll now, but it would be neat for actual players to have knowledge to solve puzzles and put two-and-two together.

Wouldn't it be neat if players disarmed a trap in a Goblin Age dungeon because they've learned the habits of Goblin Age trap designers, rather than just rolling verses a static DC?

Just some ideas.

 

[stonegod]

Of course, another sale could be from the "monsters" POV, as all the goblinoids, orcs, and such are playable (or should be). Folks love monster PCs. Combine with the pulp & artifice modules, and I think you've got a seller.

 

[Hellcow]

Of course, another sale could be from the "monsters" POV, as all the goblinoids, orcs, and such are playable (or should be). Folks love monster PCs. Combine with the pulp & artifice modules, and I think you've got a seller.

I've run all-Dhakaani games and all-Droaam games, so I'd be all for this.

 

[Gianni_the_Mystic]

Hi, Keith! It's been a long time. (You first knew me as Jhonen Olain, though I prefer my "official" Eberron name of Jani Onyll).

I'll admit that my interest in D&D waned during 4e, and that Eberron never felt as at home in that edition. Maybe it's just my perspective, but Eberron always felt like the ultimate expression of 3rd edition D&D, a setting in which every 3.5 mechanical quirk had an in-world explanation.

That said, I like what I've seen of 5e and I'd love to see Eberron make a triumphant return in the edition. To answer the question, I don't think much is gained from a move forward. If you change enough to warrant all-new setting books, you run the risk of it no longer feeling like the same setting. And of course you run the risk of telling people that the events of their own campaigns were "wrong."

A move backward is much less controversial, and one viable option is to create a single Eberron book called "Eberron: the Last War." The Last War is the second-most-common time period of Eberron games I've seen, and all the crunch for that time period is still relevant to 998 YK games. The notion of a wartime setting is also one that could hook a lot of people, even those unfamiliar with the setting. For anyone who wants to play after the war, the setting fluff is still widely available (and things like maps of pre-Mourning Cyre could be good inspiration for post-Mourning dungeons).

But I think the absolutely ideal way to to do Eberron in a new edition would be to stick with 998 YK and use a very successful format that WotC did not fully leverage in 4e: an adventure path. Eberron has so many flavorful locations that I think the best way to experience the world is to hop from highlight to highlight, rather than immersing yourself in one specific region. A single adventure path could give players exposure to the unique and iconic elements of Eberron: the towers of Sharn, the once-mighty goblins of Dhakaan, the Undying elves of Aerenal, the dragons of Aronnessen, the pragmatic use of undead in Karrnath, the fanatacism of Thrane, the giant ruins of Xen'drik -- all delivered as encounters rather than descriptions.

It might take two books. I love the idea that has seemed most popular in this thread: a book on Eberron player options that includes "modules" for artifice, airships, dragonmarks, and living constructs. Release it alongside one mega-adventure hardcover, and I think you have the dream scenario.

Whatever you do, just make sure you've got Steve Prescott leading the art team. I believe he's as crucial to the feel of the setting as Elmore was to Dragonlance and DiTerlizzi was to Planescape.

 

[Hellcow]

Whatever you do, just make sure you've got Steve Prescott leading the art team. I believe he's as crucial to the feel of the setting as Elmore was to Dragonlance and DiTerlizzi was to Planescape.

I agree. For me, it's not a proper Eberron book without Steve's concept art and a Wayne Reynolds cover.

It might take two books. I love the idea that has seemed most popular in this thread: a book on Eberron player options that includes "modules" for artifice, airships, dragonmarks, and living constructs. Release it alongside one mega-adventure hardcover, and I think you have the dream scenario..

I'm inclined to agree.

 

[Klaus]

I agree. For me, it's not a proper Eberron book without Steve's concept art and a Wayne Reynolds cover.


I'm inclined to agree.

As long as we actually get to *see* Wayne's art on the cover, instead of it being cut up by the cover layout.

And as long as I get to contribute!

 

[Novem5er]

I've always been fascinated by "monster cities" and I think a detailed write-up of the Great Crag could be really fun. I've seen monster-PC games that were essentially "bizarro" versions of normal D&D, where the monster-PCs attack humans or defend dungeons from "normal" adventurers. I don't think this is the best approach, though. I'd love to see a focus on how different monster factions interact with one another in a somewhat neutral setting.

The Great Crag would be great for this.

To make it a little more relevant to Khorvaire as a whole, we could see the Great Crag emerging as a neutral ground for various political factions; sort of like the Casablanca vibe I've mentioned earlier.

I'm not convinced that this region should be the flagship of a new Eberron campaign guide... but it would be a little different. If nothing else, a couple pages of detail would give us some great fluff that hasn't been done before.