D&D 5E Elements in a new official setting

[Yaarel]

People often associate "Strength" with, "How much can one lift?" But in reallife, this is literally a skill called "weightlifting", relating to weight training and bodybuilding.

I would like to see Weightlifting (the pounds per score point to lift, carry, push and pull) split off from the Strength ability and into its own skill.

Obviously Strength is a key ability for this skill. But maybe Constitution could be too? Constitution loosely correlates with creature size and hit points, and in the sense of size relates to carrying additional weight.

Then Strength is more clearly about any kind of athletic aptitude.

So
• Athletics (Strength, maybe either-or Dex)
• Weightlifting (Strength, maybe either-or Con)

 

[Yaarel]

In the original post survey, some setting elements assemble well together

For example.

• martial, low-magic, sword-and-sorcery, dark fantasy, swashbuckling

• future modern, urban high-magic, psionic, wuxia, swashbuckling



Notice, swashbuckling seems appropriate for any setting that lacks heavy armor. It is probably worth developing tools to do swashbuckling in D&D generally, in addition to one or more settings dedicated to it.

 

[Minigiant]

Most of the terminology in the poll needs explanation or definition.

The ones up to Super High Magic is in the DMG.

But if I wasn't busy right after I made this topic, I'd describe them all.

 

[Minigiant]

People often associate "Strength" with, "How much can one lift?" But in reallife, this is literally a skill called "weightlifting", relating to weight training and bodybuilding.

I would like to see Weightlifting (the pounds per score point to lift, carry, push and pull) split off from the Strength ability and into its own skill. Obviously Strength is a key ability for this skill. But maybe Constitution could be too? Constitution loosely correlates with creature size and hit points, and in the sense of size relates to carrying additional weight.

Then Strength is more clearly about any kind of athletic aptitude.

So
• Athletics (Strength, maybe either-or Dex)
• Weightlifting (Strength, maybe either-or Con)

If I was in charge of the next edition, Id add a Weightlifting skill.

 

[Yora]

Fair point. The one area of Sword & Sorcery that might require a deeper clean than more general fantasy is perhaps the legacy of the 1930s influencers (Howard and Lovecraft in particular) who were pretty racist and misogynist. Maybe it says more about the era than the genre?

Lovecraft was severely mentally disabled and Howard was quite progressive who gave his friends naughty word about their backward views. Also Lovecraft never wrote any Sword & Sorcery.

Though that being said, Sword & Sorcery at its core is emotional, physical, and sensual, with it's roots very much in 19th century romanticism. Action is fun, strength is hot, and sex is a good thing. That in itself makes many people uncomfortable, regardless of the form it takes and is presented.
And being more emotional than cerebral, there's generally little effort being made to justify it on grounds of reason. If people just don't feel it, no amount of well presented arguments is going to make them like it.

 

[Mind of tempest]

Lovecraft was severely mentally disabled and Howard was quite progressive who gave his friends naughty word about their backward views. Also Lovecraft never wrote any Sword & Sorcery.

Though that being said, Sword & Sorcery at its core is emotional, physical, and sensual, with it's roots very much in 19th century romanticism. Action is fun, strength is hot, and sex is a good thing. That in itself makes many people uncomfortable, regardless of the form it takes and is presented.
And being more emotional than cerebral, there's generally little effort being made to justify it on grounds of reason. If people just don't feel it, no amount of well presented arguments is going to make them like it.

okay, so you can get the core to work without things that are horrible and bad for business correct? can we merge it with any of the other popular compatible options for a unique setting?

 

[Yora]

Bad for business is the thing.

As a small run niche product, absolutely. As a mass market product for a company concerned about mass public appeal, I don't see it happening. And the confused bull in a China Shop that is WotC when it comes to these things would be hopelessly lost.

 

[Mind of tempest]

Bad for business is the thing.

As a small run niche product, absolutely. As a mass market product for a company concerned about mass public appeal, I don't see it happening. And the confused bull in a China Shop that is WotC when it comes to these things would be hopelessly lost.

no, I mean can you make a sword and sorcery setting without the stuff that will get the company in hot water?

 

[Yora]

That entirely depends on what the company and its targeted customer group consider hot water.

With WotC and their D&D target group, I actually doubt it. It doesn't fit the image they want to project.

 

[Steampunkette]

Lovecraft was severely mentally disabled and Howard was quite progressive who gave his friends naughty word about their backward views. Also Lovecraft never wrote any Sword & Sorcery.

Though that being said, Sword & Sorcery at its core is emotional, physical, and sensual, with it's roots very much in 19th century romanticism. Action is fun, strength is hot, and sex is a good thing. That in itself makes many people uncomfortable, regardless of the form it takes and is presented.
And being more emotional than cerebral, there's generally little effort being made to justify it on grounds of reason. If people just don't feel it, no amount of well presented arguments is going to make them like it.

Lovecraft never wrote swords and sorcery, but he sure as hell inspired a lot of it. His friendships with the other members of the Weird Tales authorship it had massive and far-reaching impacts on the sword and sorcery genre. It's also very questionable to say that he was severely mentally disabled. He certainly had "nervous breakdowns" on occasion but that's about as far as we understand it.

As to Howard being progressive, backhanded compliments about women across history with a handful of positive examples in direct opposition to a ridiculously overwrought screed, even for the era, do not replace how female characters were largely treated in his books. Which is to say as set dressing, victims, or wicked seductresses. Oh he certainly had the occasional female protagonist, or a female character who was villainous, but you don't present a few decent female characters against a sea of bad ones and claim to be amazing at writing powerful women.

As to his overall progressiveness... I'll just quote myself from another thread.

An excerpt from one of Howard's personal letters on the topic of a Hawaiian who had been accused of sexual assault:
"I know what would have happened to them in Texas. I don’t know whether an (Racist term for a person of Southeast Asian Descent) smells any different than a (Racist term for African American) when he’s roasting, but I’m willing to bet the aroma of scorching hide would have the same chastening effect on his surviving tribesman.”

An excerpt from a discussion with Novalyne Price: "I guess you know if a (Racist term for African American) is found on the streets after dark in Coleman, Santa Anna, and several other towns around here, they run him out of town. Chances are they might tar and feather him.” When Novalyne reacted negatively, Howard returned, “Let me tell you something, girl, that you don’t seem to know. Those people come from a different line. They have different blood - ” SHE WAS HIS GIRLFRIEND. Born in Texas in the early 1900s she responded to his racism negatively. A Contemporary Old Timey Southerner who dated him called him out on his racism and he berated her for it.

An excerpt from the Black Canaan short story: “[Saul Stark is] a great big black devil that talks better English than I like to hear a (Racist term for African American) talk.”