Unearthed Arcana New Unearthed Arcana: Rune Knight, Swarmkeeper, The Revived

Another new Unearthed Arcana! "In today’s Unearthed Arcana, three classes each receive a playtest option. The fighter gets a Martial Archetype option: the Rune Knight. The ranger gains a Ranger Archetype option: the Swarmkeeper. And the rogue acquires a Roguish Archetype option: the Revived."

 

[gyor]

For the Warlock, the Undying Nature feature reads as:

"
Beginning at 10th level, you can hold your breath indefinitely, and you don't require food, water, or sleep, although you still require rest to reduce exhaustion and still benefit from finishing short and long rests."

"In addition, you age at a slower rate. For every 10 years that pass, your body ages only 1 year, and you are immune to being magically aged."

Sure, not "undead" undead, but it has the same "u dead" features this Rogue does.

The Rogue feature feels more like reincarnation then undeath.

 

[gyor]

Magic The Gathering has been going long enough to cover every fantasy trope ever, and therefore proves nothing. You could come up with Magic cards for flying elephants vs flying saucers if you looked long enough.

Prove it.

 

[Remathilis]

Magic The Gathering has been going long enough to cover every fantasy trope ever, and therefore proves nothing. You could come up with Magic cards for flying elephants vs flying saucers if you looked long enough.

That's the problem with using MtG; there are 24,000 unique named cards to pull from. You can find a card for nearly every fantasy trope under the sun. They have settings that range from classic fantasy to gothic to Egyptian to Greek to Fairie to Urban to Japanese, and so on. With enough time, I could find an MTG card for every subclass in Xanathar's Guide.

More importantly, the subclasses don't really represent key features of MtG. Sure, the heroic paladin kinda fits Theros, but it could easily fit any setting with a Greek myth feel.

Honestly, I've tried to link the common theme here and I think it might be MYTHIC. Not as in epic 21st level, but as in some sort of Larger-than-life heroism. I don't necessarily think its tied to a specific setting, but it could be WotC's attempt to emulate Paizo's Mythic Handbook; a book that tries to feel like mightier heroes with unique magical powers.

I might be wrong (wouldn't be the first time) but I think this isn't just a planar/MtG book. This has the hallmarks of something more Mythical or Epic...

 

[Paul Farquhar]

 

[Parmandur]

That's the problem with using MtG; there are 24,000 unique named cards to pull from. You can find a card for nearly every fantasy trope under the sun. They have settings that range from classic fantasy to gothic to Egyptian to Greek to Fairie to Urban to Japanese, and so on. With enough time, I could find an MTG card for every subclass in Xanathar's Guide.

More importantly, the subclasses don't really represent key features of MtG. Sure, the heroic paladin kinda fits Theros, but it could easily fit any setting with a Greek myth feel.

Honestly, I've tried to link the common theme here and I think it might be MYTHIC. Not as in epic 21st level, but as in some sort of Larger-than-life heroism. I don't necessarily think its tied to a specific setting, but it could be WotC's attempt to emulate Paizo's Mythic Handbook; a book that tries to feel like mightier heroes with unique magical powers.

I might be wrong (wouldn't be the first time) but I think this isn't just a planar/MtG book. This has the hallmarks of something more Mythical or Epic...

Could be. Time will tell. A Magic book focused on Planeswalkers, however, would be both concepts at once, as "Mythic" and "Epic" are the M:tH MO. Most character types in M:tG are covered by the PHB, frankly, but not all. These new options fit in with Magic very, very well, but not any older D&D setting.

I'll be very interested to see what they have cooking, and I have no strong feeling that this must be M:tG related: but it is an active possibility, and so far fits the facts better than a XGtE follow-up.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

That's the problem with using MtG; there are 24,000 unique named cards to pull from. You can find a card for nearly every fantasy trope under the sun. They have settings that range from classic fantasy to gothic to Egyptian to Greek to Fairie to Urban to Japanese, and so on. With enough time, I could find an MTG card for every subclass in Xanathar's Guide.

More importantly, the subclasses don't really represent key features of MtG. Sure, the heroic paladin kinda fits Theros, but it could easily fit any setting with a Greek myth feel.

Honestly, I've tried to link the common theme here and I think it might be MYTHIC. Not as in epic 21st level, but as in some sort of Larger-than-life heroism. I don't necessarily think its tied to a specific setting, but it could be WotC's attempt to emulate Paizo's Mythic Handbook; a book that tries to feel like mightier heroes with unique magical powers.

I might be wrong (wouldn't be the first time) but I think this isn't just a planar/MtG book. This has the hallmarks of something more Mythical or Epic...

I don't think these have anything remotely to do with any setting book. A setting book may include a couple of subclasses, but it's not about subclasses. A setting book could perfectly well have zero subclasses. SCAG is very much an outlier here with 10 (including the easily identified as FR battlerager). I think there may well be a setting book released in late 2020, but these subclasses aren't for it, so to try to look for clues about it in them is pursuing red herrings and wild gease.

What they are for is entirely in the air, although it will probably be earlier than November 2020, which is the earliest another setting book could be expected. It could be something completely new. However, if we get another bunch of subclasses next month it would pretty much confirm a second Xanathar's book.

 

[Parmandur]

I don't think these have anything remotely to do with any setting book. A setting book may include a couple of subclasses, but it's not about subclasses. A setting book could perfectly well have zero subclasses. SCAG is very much an outlier here with 10 (including the easily identified as FR battlerager). I think there may well be a setting book released in late 2020, but these subclasses aren't for it, so to try to look for clues about it in them is pursuing red herrings and wild gease.

What they are for is entirely in the air, although it will probably be earlier than November 2020, which is the earliest another setting book could be expected. It could be something completely new. However, if we get another bunch of subclasses next month it would pretty much confirm a second Xanathar's book.

No particular reason to suspect these are for anything other than a Setting book, by the same token. And WotC mixes things up, so I wouldn't be confident on saying they can't release a Q2 Setting book, since they did in 2029 anyways (AI being a Setting within a Setting).

 

[Paul Farquhar]

And WotC mixes things up, so I wouldn't be confident on saying they can't release a Q2 Setting book.

They might - if it's Q2 2021. They aren't going to release yet another setting book so soon after Eberron, which, I seen to need to remind you, isn't actually out yet.

 

[Remathilis]

Could be. Time will tell. A Magic book focused on Planeswalkers, however, would be both concepts at once, as "Mythic" and "Epic" are the M:tH MO. Most character types in M:tG are covered by the PHB, frankly, but not all. These new options fit in with Magic very, very well, but not any older D&D setting.

I'll be very interested to see what they have cooking, and I have no strong feeling that this must be M:tG related: but it is an active possibility, and so far fits the facts better than a XGtE follow-up.

True, but its a different type of epic. I'm not completely ruling it out, but it just doesn't feel like its emulating a lot of known MtG tropes. MtG doesn't have a strong tradition of rune knights, swarmkeepers, or truenamers; not enough to warrant them over more obvious choices like Cathars, Dragon Shamans, or Pyromancers.

But each subclass does draw off a nontraditional power source. A monk drawing off the Astral rather than inner ki, a sorcerer drawing off aberrations rather than dragons, etc. I don't know if its one setting per se, but it feels like they want to stretch the definitions of what each class is about in some way.

I don't think these have anything remotely to do with any setting book. A setting book may include a couple of subclasses, but it's not about subclasses. A setting book could perfectly well have zero subclasses. SCAG is very much an outlier here with 10 (including the easily identified as FR battlerager). I think there may well be a setting book released in late 2020, but these subclasses aren't for it, so to try to look for clues about it in them is pursuing red herrings and wild gease.

What they are for is entirely in the air, although it will probably be earlier than November 2020, which is the earliest another setting book could be expected. It could be something completely new. However, if we get another bunch of subclasses next month it would pretty much confirm a second Xanathar's book.

I'm doubting its a real setting book. It doesn't fit any single MtG setting or D&D world, beyond nebulous "the planes" or "the multiverse." I also doubt they would want to release a whole new setting before getting around to updating classic D&D settings like Dark Sun. That leads me to believe this has to be a supplement rather than a setting, and I don't think the "Xanathar's 2" model (aka a collection of rules and crunch dropped willy-nilly without a grander context) but I could see something with some sort of theme loosely tying these all together.

It will be interesting to see what the group cooks up.

 

[Parmandur]

They might - if it's Q2 2021. They aren't going to release yet another setting book so soon after Eberron, which, I seen to need to remind you, isn't actually out yet.

Two Quarters is a long, long time. We'll see what happens.