Okay, here's my take on it - keeping in mind that I consider all Dark Sun material beyond the original boxed set to be an abomination that never happened:
THE RACES
Dragonborn are the same, but their origin is different. A sorceror-king created them as elite soldiers in a bid to challenge the Dragon for supremacy. The attempt failed, and the sorceror-king and his city were annihilated by the Dragon; however, some dragonborn escaped the slaughter. They still have the whole warrior honor shtick going on, but their history lends it a decidedly darker tone... one man's honorable crusader is another man's violent fanatic. Several of the surviving sorceror-kings have recruited forces of dragonborn for their personal guards.
Eladrin are another breed of elf, who split off from the rest of their race as the world grew more barren; instead of becoming athletic runners, they chose to pursue the arcane side of their heritage. They live in the shadows of the great cities and the larger towns, often disguising themselves as ordinary elves to avoid suspicion. There is a network of eladrin wizards, both preservers and defilers, that spans Athas.
Tieflings are still descended from the aristocracy of an ancient empire, who made bargains with dark powers. However, that empire's fall was not due to war with a rival. Instead, the ancient tieflings raised a terrible beast - some say it was intended as a weapon to destroy their enemies, others believe a reckless wizard woke it up with his experiments, and a few claim that it was actually the tiefling Emperor transformed by magic. Regardless, the tieflings were the ones who unleashed the Dragon on the world, and their empire was the first to fall to its hunger.
Elves, dwarves, halflings, humans, and half-elves are as described in the original boxed set, using the mechanics in the 4E PHB.
THE CLASSES
Clerics worship the spirits of the land. They are somewhat like 2E Athasian druids, but they are devoted to specific terrain types instead of specific locations; so, for instance, you could have a cleric of the dunes, a cleric of the forest, a cleric of the badlands, and so on, with appropriate Channel Divinity feats.
Fighters are unchanged.
Paladins worship elemental powers. Instead of being religious warriors in the Western sense, they have more of a "mystic martial artist" theme. They get a smattering of new powers emphasizing elemental forces, and their Divine Challenge inflicts elemental damage (fire, lightning, cold, or acid) instead of radiant.
Rangers are unchanged.
Rogues are unchanged.
Warlocks add another pact - the templar pact, wherein they draw power from the sorceror-kings. This replaces the infernal pact, which is no longer available since there are no devils.
Warlords are unchanged.
Wizards are unchanged at the Heroic tier; their magic at that level is not strong enough to have a significant effect on their surroundings. They get a new paragon path, the Defiler path, offering increased power at the cost of damaging their allies with plant destruction as a side effect; and a new epic destiny, the Dragon destiny.
COSMOLOGY
The Shadowfell looks like Athas's future (if things go on as they are) - a cold, lifeless waste where the sun is only a dim ember in a black sky, and ghosts haunt the ruins where the sorceror-kings once ruled. It is very close to the Material Plane, and bleed-through between them is common.
The Feywild looks like Athas's past - a green and verdant realm full of water, light, and life. It exists only in scattered pockets and is difficult to reach.
The Elemental Tempest and the Abyss are essentially the same, except that water is much rarer than usual.
The Astral Sea contains no divine realms. The Sea belongs to psionic beings and astral travellers; the most powerful psionic beings have their own domains.
OTHER NOTES
Basic equipment is made of bone, wood, and obsidian. Bronze, iron, and steel are masterwork equipment, replacing the existing masterwork stuff.
THE RACES
Dragonborn are the same, but their origin is different. A sorceror-king created them as elite soldiers in a bid to challenge the Dragon for supremacy. The attempt failed, and the sorceror-king and his city were annihilated by the Dragon; however, some dragonborn escaped the slaughter. They still have the whole warrior honor shtick going on, but their history lends it a decidedly darker tone... one man's honorable crusader is another man's violent fanatic. Several of the surviving sorceror-kings have recruited forces of dragonborn for their personal guards.
Eladrin are another breed of elf, who split off from the rest of their race as the world grew more barren; instead of becoming athletic runners, they chose to pursue the arcane side of their heritage. They live in the shadows of the great cities and the larger towns, often disguising themselves as ordinary elves to avoid suspicion. There is a network of eladrin wizards, both preservers and defilers, that spans Athas.
Tieflings are still descended from the aristocracy of an ancient empire, who made bargains with dark powers. However, that empire's fall was not due to war with a rival. Instead, the ancient tieflings raised a terrible beast - some say it was intended as a weapon to destroy their enemies, others believe a reckless wizard woke it up with his experiments, and a few claim that it was actually the tiefling Emperor transformed by magic. Regardless, the tieflings were the ones who unleashed the Dragon on the world, and their empire was the first to fall to its hunger.
Elves, dwarves, halflings, humans, and half-elves are as described in the original boxed set, using the mechanics in the 4E PHB.
THE CLASSES
Clerics worship the spirits of the land. They are somewhat like 2E Athasian druids, but they are devoted to specific terrain types instead of specific locations; so, for instance, you could have a cleric of the dunes, a cleric of the forest, a cleric of the badlands, and so on, with appropriate Channel Divinity feats.
Fighters are unchanged.
Paladins worship elemental powers. Instead of being religious warriors in the Western sense, they have more of a "mystic martial artist" theme. They get a smattering of new powers emphasizing elemental forces, and their Divine Challenge inflicts elemental damage (fire, lightning, cold, or acid) instead of radiant.
Rangers are unchanged.
Rogues are unchanged.
Warlocks add another pact - the templar pact, wherein they draw power from the sorceror-kings. This replaces the infernal pact, which is no longer available since there are no devils.
Warlords are unchanged.
Wizards are unchanged at the Heroic tier; their magic at that level is not strong enough to have a significant effect on their surroundings. They get a new paragon path, the Defiler path, offering increased power at the cost of damaging their allies with plant destruction as a side effect; and a new epic destiny, the Dragon destiny.
COSMOLOGY
The Shadowfell looks like Athas's future (if things go on as they are) - a cold, lifeless waste where the sun is only a dim ember in a black sky, and ghosts haunt the ruins where the sorceror-kings once ruled. It is very close to the Material Plane, and bleed-through between them is common.
The Feywild looks like Athas's past - a green and verdant realm full of water, light, and life. It exists only in scattered pockets and is difficult to reach.
The Elemental Tempest and the Abyss are essentially the same, except that water is much rarer than usual.
The Astral Sea contains no divine realms. The Sea belongs to psionic beings and astral travellers; the most powerful psionic beings have their own domains.
OTHER NOTES
Basic equipment is made of bone, wood, and obsidian. Bronze, iron, and steel are masterwork equipment, replacing the existing masterwork stuff.
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