What do you think the new setting will be, from Ampersand?

[morgul97]

The reason is that dark, apocalyptic settings tend to do well in times of uncertainty and turmoil. The youth in such times tend to eat up mainstream nihilism with a spoon.

Keep in mind also that Cormac McCarthy's The Road is coming out in movie form later this summer. It's a fabulous, gritty, dark post-apocalyptic setting. The book is spectacular in its starkness. The movie is going to be a huge hit and probably nominated for a ton of Oscars and stuch. This year as the year of the Ballywood movie. 2009 will be the year of the apocalypse. Watchmen is also part of this. I'd look for other movies along the same line to come out. There is also something of a revival of the pulp novel going on. Wizards will totally want to capitalize on these elements and Darksun is a perfect fit. It's post-apocalyptic mixed with Edgar Rice Burroughs and it's likely to be a huge hit.

 

[Mercule]

I think they'll just straight-up reboot Dark Sun rather than continue the previous timeline. Not sure where I'm getting that hunch. My sense is that Dark Sun was more about the feel than the specific people / places /events. Better to just reimagine, and build it to better fit the new rules. Get the dragonborn in there from Day 1, that sort of thing.

I feel like DarkSun would be a great opportunity to really play with the power sources of 4e. Psionics would go in as is and Elemental would likely replace Divine. Rather than arcane, you could do Preserver and Defiler power sources.. and of course include a mechanic for switching back and forth. Maybe Preserver/Defiler is the same power source and the defining portion of the source's classes (like all divine have the channel divinity) involves switching back and forth.

I like all of the above and would happily buy such a source book, even if I didn't think I'd run an actual Athas game. Between the coolness of the setting and the number of ideas I got of of the original, that's not really the point, for me -- especially not when the settings are only getting limited support.

Probably not a bad idea, but it seems they are committed to making everything that is core also fit in their settings.

I haven't actually seen this confirmed by anyone from WotC, but it is a concern for me. I really think trying to ensure the entirety of core is always included is an incredibly boneheaded idea for turning out settings. Actually, I think it'd be better for them to not publish any settings beyond FR (including Eberron) if they insist on that. We've already got an "all core" setting.

The main thing I want from additional settings is to show me neat ways to alter, tweak, or otherwise violate core.

 

[Vic_Sage]

What Dragonblade said. Also, I don't see Ravenloft working well within 4th edition's confines (with it's focus on combat, tactics & minis). Ravenloft requires a bit more....cerebral? storytelling?....approach to roleplaying, and 4th edition is a bit more in the rollplaying camp.

(With all due respect.)

 

[Wraith Form]

^ Right. That'd be even more hurtful to me if his eye was actually pointing in the right direction. 'Cause then he'd actually look, y'know, mad at me.

I'm entitled to my own bloody opinion, even if you don't agree with it.

Lay off already.

 

[Knightfall]

I just had a crazy thought...

What if the new campaign setting isn't one of the old TSR settings but is the world of Magic: The Gathering?

 

[Silverblade The Ench]

I just had a crazy thought...

What if the new campaign setting isn't one of the old TSR settings but is the world of Magic: The Gathering?

Personally, I'd then require a vomit bowl the size of a bath tub, personally!
ick,what a horrible thought, you evil, evil person you!!

Now a really GOOD crazy thought would be:
"Plush Sun, can you face the rolling ball of the mighty Hamster gods?"
Woolly Rupert, sorceror-king of Nibble-Tyr!

Works for me!

Wonder if Nodwick and Co are still stuck in that sand castle in Athas, hm? hehe.

 

[El Mahdi]

I just had a crazy thought...

What if the new campaign setting isn't one of the old TSR settings but is the world of Magic: The Gathering?

Personally, I'd then require a vomit bowl the size of a bath tub, personally!
ick,what a horrible thought, you evil, evil person you!!

Now a really GOOD crazy thought would be:
"Plush Sun, can you face the rolling ball of the mighty Hamster gods?"
Woolly Rupert, sorceror-king of Nibble-Tyr!

Works for me!

Wonder if Nodwick and Co are still stuck in that sand castle in Athas, hm? hehe.

You are both Very Bad Men! For Shame, Sirs! For Shame!



However, on the plus side this might get us some stats for Duct Tape as a healing implement. And I could use Drizzt' now in the Magic: The Gathering campaign.

 

[Krensky]

Obviously it's a licensed version of the Songs of Sorcelation, based on the PHB3 preview.

 

[Aeolius]

If they do that and stay true to "history" and "feel" of Greyhawk then I might reconsider 4e. As the very least, I'd buy the campaign book.

Seconded, save for the part about reconsidering 4e. I'd pick up a 4e World of Greyhawk Glossography/Gazetteer just for the fluff.

 

[doctorhook]

I missed whatever conversation you two had been having, but I find this picture both very effective and hilarious. He looks crazy.