D&D 5E Lost Mine & Eberron

[DQuartermane]

Greetings,
So as I prepare for 5e, I have been going over in my head which setting and I determined I want to go back to Eberron. So using the 4e Eberron Campaign Guide as my sourcebook, I was wondering if anyone had any tips and such for making feel a part of Khorvaire and not just tacked on.

So far my rough notes are putting Phandalin and the mine about 100 years before The Last War is when it was reaching his prime. Then it was lost, found, and sought out, killed for and finally all records lost in a raid of the mine. But the town still hanging on, but records of the mine have got out some how.

I am still reading through it so will update as I go. First area of advice would be where the actual location would be on the map.

 

[Beleriphon]

Greetings,
So as I prepare for 5e, I have been going over in my head which setting and I determined I want to go back to Eberron. So using the 4e Eberron Campaign Guide as my sourcebook, I was wondering if anyone had any tips and such for making feel a part of Khorvaire and not just tacked on.

So far my rough notes are putting Phandalin and the mine about 100 years before The Last War is when it was reaching his prime. Then it was lost, found, and sought out, killed for and finally all records lost in a raid of the mine. But the town still hanging on, but records of the mine have got out some how.

I am still reading through it so will update as I go. First area of advice would be where the actual location would be on the map.

I'm partial to Karrnath, if only because its easy enough to explain the mountains any my understanding is that the locatoin in the Realms is northerly reaches. Another option would be the moutains that border Breland and Droam.

 

[doctorhook]

I'd say it would make more sense to say that Phandalin was at its prime sometime during the Last War, given that the site was used for resource production and magic item creation--these would increase production during wartime. The obliteration of the townsite and the collapse and loss of the mine entrance could easily be the result of an invading army rather than a horde of orcs, though the mine entrance may have been deliberately scuttled before the invaders could discover the mine.

Location-wise, I'd say the sky is the limit, although if you want to build on the Phandelver Pact, it would make sense to set the adventure somewhere near either dwarves or gnomes. Personally, I think The Howling Peaks between Breland and Zilargo are perfect for this; you're about the same distance to Wroat as you would've been to Neverwinter.

Story-wise, I'd say Phandelver is a (Khyber) dragonshard mine, and that the items created there tended to be for elemental binding, though no change is really necessary to the treasure found.

NPC-wise, Nezznar probably shouldn't be a drow anymore, though if you wanted to keep him as an elf, that could be workable; his motivations can be up to you. Hamun Kost can't be a Red Wizard anymore, but since he's a necromancer-wizard with zombie bodyguards, it's not at all a stretch to imagine him as a rogue agent from Karrnath--maybe even working for the Order of the Emerald Claw. (If you go with Breland, this fits with him being from someplace far away.) As for Gundren, he might make more sense as a half-orc member of House Tharashk or maybe a Zil gnome, but you could probably get away with keeping him as a dwarf too.

Good luck!

 

[DQuartermane]

Thanks so much for the info everyone. Great stuff from all!

I had thought of the mine flourishing during the war, was worried about it being to cliche. But I am really liking the scuttling of the mine during the war. I was thinking that of keeping the mine as the forge, making much better equipment. But I admit the dragonshards completely slipped my mind. Very nice!

 

[MarkB]

I haven't read the starter-set adventure so I don't know how well this would fit, but you could consider making the mine, or part of the mine, a former House Cannith creation forge, used for the manufacture of warforged and/or other unusual constructs.

 

[DQuartermane]

I haven't read the starter-set adventure so I don't know how well this would fit, but you could consider making the mine, or part of the mine, a former House Cannith creation forge, used for the manufacture of warforged and/or other unusual constructs.

Hmmm something to ponder.