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Message: <blockquote data-quote="DEFCON 1" data-source="post: 9762325" data-attributes="member: 7006">At the end of the day I don't really think it's necessary to try and make ones' game "play to the theme"... but rather if one uses the things within the setting to their fullest extent, the setting's themes will come out whether you knew what they were or not.Eberron's cities have Changelings all over the place.  One can never be sure if the person you are talking to is in fact the person they say they are.  You think you are talking to one person, but you're really talking to someone else that's been paid to pretend to be that person and you've now given them information you hadn't intended.  Mysteries always abound.  In addition, there's an entire economic powerhouse (two really) whose entire premise is around spycraft and assassination.  Anyone and everyone can hire agents from Thuranni/Phiarlan to attack or kill people they want gone.  That important person you've been dealing with can suddenly get snuffed out in front of you out on the street and now the guardsmen show up to take you in or take you out under suspicion of the murder.These are not the kinds of stories you will typically find in the more "generic fantasy" settings one can play... but for which Eberron has been built up to now only allow for but also expect.  And if you use these facets of the setting, you will find yourself playing with "noir tropes" even without planning on it.Likewise, a "generic fantasy" setting might have ocean-bound ships, so you might find yourself occasionally playing with "piracy" tropes in your game.  But in Eberron there are also essentially trains and airships in addition to oceanliners... and if you have the same action-set pieces on those vehicles as you would on a watercraft (running through or on top of the cars, hanging off the sides dangling by ropes) you are playing into the prototypical Indiana Jones-like "pulp" tropes whether you expected to or not.  Likewise if you go exploring in the huge jungle continent of Xen'drik you will find yourself emulating the opening scene of Raiders of the Lost Ark.  And you don't have to know it to  do it.  It will just happen.Basically if one plays with the things that have import within the Eberron setting (as talked about within the setting books)... you are going to play to its themes consciously or no.  And if you don't particular like the things that have import within Eberron (which you will find by just reading the book)... then you shouldn't bother to play it.</blockquote>

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