D&D 5E Elements in a new official setting

[Tonguez]

1) No armor to speak of.
2) Daring combat maneuvers.
3) Positioning meaning much more.
4) Different fighting styles that represent entire schools of thought rather than a simple +2 to damage rolls.
5) Low-tier Firearms that are fun and engaging.
6) More ship-combat options.
7) LOTS of Social Mechanics so your character can be super witty and offer remarks as cutting as their sword, and so your reputation has a tangible weight on the narrative.
8) Lots of Physical Maneuverability and Environmental interactions. Chandeliers for swinging -and- dropping on your enemy's head.
9) Did I mention ship-combat? Not just -on- a ship with 3d movement up into the rigging or over the railing of the forecastle, but also ship-to-ship.
10) Environmental Combat Effects. The heroes are fighting single opponents in deadly battles while surrounded by a chaotic barfight which they sometimes interact with.
11) Mechanics for daring escapes that just straight up end the possibility of a chase sequence, like cutting a bell-tower rope you're holding onto in order to get yanked up safely to the tower-peak while the bell destroys the stairwell.

Just so much more...

Yes very much this, when I voted Swashbuckling I was actually thinking of Conan and John Carter of Mars. Theres the Pirate spin but generally anything in the early modern/post-renaisance 16th to 19th century - and Sci-fi renditions of that era - fits Swashbukling approach too

 

[Ruin Explorer]

What are your essential features for a swashbuckling setting? How does it differ from PH options?

I think the most important one is really that heavy armour being best needs to take a long walk off a short pier. You'll also need some narrative stuff to avoid things turning into a farce - i.e. fate points or whatever to allow PCs to lightly assert fiction, or at least do stuff like give rolls minimum values and the like. And some sort of system to encourage, rather than discourage, stunts and so on in combat. Right now, the fewer risks you take, the better. That's like, the opposite of swashbuckling.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

1) No armor to speak of.
2) Daring combat maneuvers.
3) Positioning meaning much more.
4) Different fighting styles that represent entire schools of thought rather than a simple +2 to damage rolls.
5) Low-tier Firearms that are fun and engaging.
6) More ship-combat options.
7) LOTS of Social Mechanics so your character can be super witty and offer remarks as cutting as their sword, and so your reputation has a tangible weight on the narrative.
8) Lots of Physical Maneuverability and Environmental interactions. Chandeliers for swinging -and- dropping on your enemy's head.
9) Did I mention ship-combat? Not just -on- a ship with 3d movement up into the rigging or over the railing of the forecastle, but also ship-to-ship.
10) Environmental Combat Effects. The heroes are fighting single opponents in deadly battles while surrounded by a chaotic barfight which they sometimes interact with.
11) Mechanics for daring escapes that just straight up end the possibility of a chase sequence, like cutting a bell-tower rope you're holding onto in order to get yanked up safely to the tower-peak while the bell destroys the stairwell.

Just so much more...

Yeah this. @Steampunkette puts it much better than I.

 

[Minigiant]

Also what key points make grim fantasy differ from dark fantasy? Asking for a friend.

Grim fantasy is a "the people are terrible"
Gangs, corrupt government. evil organizations. Backstabbing.

Dark fantasy is a "the world is terrible"
Monster. Monsters posing as people. Cosmic or Psychological horror.

Ravnica vs Ravenloft

 

[imagineGod]

Grim fantasy is a "the people are terrible"
Gangs, corrupt government. evil organizations. Backstabbing.

Dark fantasy is a "the world is terrible"
Monster. Monsters posing as people. Cosmic or Psychological horror.

Ravnica vs Ravenloft

Thank you. That is a great simple comparison.

I guess Warhammer 40,000 grim dark is the best of both from a GM per perspective for storylines.

 

[Mind of tempest]

what are our present winners?

 

[PsyzhranV2]

what are our present winners?

As of this post, Sword and Sorcery is in first place with 14 points, Low Magic is second at 11, and then Future/Space and Swashbuckling are tied at 9 votes each.

 

[ph0rk]

Low magic sword and sorcery would be great, but it would also be a ton of work. Still, hopefully, it's that.

 

[imagineGod]

Low magic sword and sorcery would be great, but it would also be a ton of work. Still, hopefully, it's that.

Mike Mearles did something like that with Iron Heroes for 3e, there was a low magic expansion to the core fighting men boom.

 

[GuyBoy]

Sword and Sorcery would appeal to me but with a caveat that doubles as an opportunity: to be able to develop a setting which applies the positive tropes of the genre, but dispenses with the negative aspects.
The positive would be the combat action, the brooding sense of peril, ancient evils awakening and heroic journeys through a hostile world environment.
The negative, perhaps obviously, are the racism and misogyny that pervaded the genre in the 1930s through the 1980s. These need to be ass-kicked into touch and replaced with positive role models of ethnicity, sexuality, gender, ability and more. To pull this trick off whilst maintaining The Sword & Sorcery atmosphere would be a worthwhile exercise, and would be throwing out a lot of nasty bath water, whilst keeping a beautiful baby.

On a personal level, I’d like a cultural/technological level around the CE 500-800 level but I’m not too fussed on this bit.