Huh, I had spotted the recurring characters (they're also in the House Agent images and no doubt elsewhere), and I saw the connection between the skyskiff image and the museum image, but I didn't realize just how much of a story there is. That actually makes me feel better about the art - I was concerned that the art in the OP was an indication that they were making it so any old artificer could create a new warforged, but that does not appear to be the case. I've also since read more of the book and see that they haven't changed the lore - it specifically mentions that Merrix is rumored to have the last creation forge hidden away in Sharn and that he wants to build a new one in Stormreach.
(EDIT: I've also seen no rules about PCs creating warforged. The construct forge bastion facility lets you create a warforged titan, but it comes with the caveat that doing so is illegal and risks plunging the nations of Khorvaire into open warfare again.)
I guess the prologue images are just a bit of creative licence.
Overall, I'm feeling a lot better about this book, and I am looking forward to getting a hard copy soon. My Eberron campaign is currently at 8th level, and I am planning to take it all the way to 20th with Vecna Vol: Eve of Ruin, so I'm sure to get some good use out of this new book. My artificer player has also been champing at the bit to upgrade his PC. All the others are now using the 2024 versions of their classes, but he's been stuck using the 2014 version. I'd say the new one is a fairly solid upgrade for him.
