Wizards of the Coast Re-Registers Dark Sun With USPTO

Wizards of the Coast recently filed an application to register Dark Sun in the US, a sign that D&D could be bringing back the campaign setting in the near future. The trademark claim was filed on October 13th, 2025 and is poised to replace a previous trademark that was cancelled by the USPTO in 2024. The trademark, like most involving D&D properties, covers both "downloadable electronic games," "games and playthings," and "entertainment services." Similar active trademarks exist for other D&D campaign settings such as Spelljammer and Forgotten Realms, although neither of those have lapsed in recent years.

We'll note that, as the previous Dark Sun trademark lapsed a year ago, this could be a case of simple paperwork, or it could be the latest sign that a Dark Sun product is eminent. Earlier this year, Wizards released an Unearthed Arcana for the Psion class and several subclasses that all but spelled out a return to the setting, complete with mentions of sorcerer-kings, gladiatorial fights, and preservers and defilers.

 

[Stormonu]

I legit wonder if the skyrocketing popularity of the fallout franchise is why Dark Sun is getting a looky-loo. I know a lot of people who're excited about the new season of the Fallout show who've never played the games, and I wouldn't be surprised if they might do a marketing push for Dark Sun around that time.

With the lead time on design, I'd say look at what was popular/going on about 12-18 months back from when any D&D product comes out - that was probably when the project was green-lit.

I don't keep up with Fallout (only ever played a bit of Fallout 3), but it seems like that would more likely give us a new Gamma World product than dig up Dark Sun, personally.

Note: I'm waiting to see if Helldivers 2 has some impact; I could go for a revival of something for Star Frontiers or grabbing back Alternity (or convincing Baker/Noonan to get Renegade Studios to do something with it)

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

Surely Hasbro is the first one who wants a new videogame like BG3 but this needs a right team, time and money. I have said a DS videogame would be a survival style "Conan Exiles with psionic powers".


* Maybe no-halflings could survive the cleasing war because they could travel to other worlds or wildspaces, and even this was promoted by Rajaat himself when his champions weren't ready yet. "to the fleeing enemy, a bridge of silver" (it is better if you allow your enemy to escape instead a final confrontantion). The planar gates weren't closed and sealed yet because there weren't yet defilers destroying the nature.

* There is a good reason for a "spin-off" and it is because the Athasian Tablelands or region of Tyr is too "small and poor" for mass battles. Have you played any survival+city builder videogame like "Caesar IV" or "Roman Triumph?". Even with magic and psionic powers the managing of a capital city is a serious challengue, and the creation of armies always has been very expensive. It is not only the weapons and armours but they have to eat everyday. The city-states can't be fighting against each other like it was Total War: Warhammer.

* I say again I think it will be more a sourcebook more focused into generic post-apocaliptic than the region of Tyr, and it will be only a chapter as gazeteer of the Athasian Tablelands, something like that article from Dungeon Magazine.

* WotC could suggest some ideas about Athas and it hadn't to be canon, only speculations.

* I don't want the doomed future where only a city-state survive. It is like if all the efforts and sacrifices to save the life and the innocents against the tiranny of the sorcerer-kings were useless. Here my version is the evacuation was possible but Athasians needed a "faith jump" and then those who accepted the risk to travel to other place could save, and those who were too skepticals were "punished" to remain in the undying Athas.

Or maybe the Athasians could escape toward the "land-within-the-wind" where they wouldn't affected by the destruction of Athas.

 

[tetrasodium]

Why? I'm going to guess it's because WotC can't be bothered to research the setting to the level of detail that us fans would want.

While I agree there is likely a level of truth in that I think that the reason might be found at a more foundational level.

Wotc built 5e with design choices that would allow "modular" replacements of base class features but never elaborated on what they meant by modular. It has the result of never considering it as an option to change spellcasting itself to fit a setting at the base class level

 

[Parmandur]

For a small area, though, it has a lot packed into it. I have the older stuff and there's a lot there. Also, I'd love to see the Tablelands expanded in size or at least some space dedicated to ideas for the DM to use if the players leave and go into the Hinterlands.

While itnis true, it is still both a physically compact and thematically focused Setting, as opposed to the govsmackomg smorgasbord of the Forgotten Realms.

 

[pukunui]

Why? I'm going to guess it's because WotC can't be bothered to research the setting to the level of detail that us fans would want.

They did a lot of research for many of the adventures. Tyranny of Dragons draws on lots of little lore drops from previous editions.

As for the preserver druid and defiler sorcerer, while I still don’t like either of them mechanically, I’m less worried that they will be the only options for preserving or defiling now that I’ve seen that the spellfire sorcerer isn’t the only way to get spellfire in the Realms.

 

[Hermes_Alexandria]

Wotc built 5e with design choices that would allow "modular" replacements of base class features but never elaborated on what they meant by modular. It has the result of never considering it as an option to change spellcasting itself to fit a setting at the base class level

I asked Mike Mearls directly about 5e's modularity. He said that it didn't pan out as originally concieved as they moved towards greater simplicity. The game he's currently working on should have that modularity more explicit.

 

[tetrasodium]

I asked Mike Mearls directly about 5e's modularity. He said that it didn't pan out as originally concieved as they moved towards greater simplicity. The game he's currently working on should have that modularity more explicit.

Yea he got asked & wrote more about it the other day. Shedding some of the simplicity to plug in alternatives that fit setting specific lore/themes would do much better than subclasses in darksun (especially for spellcasting).

Supporting it halfway with subclasses alone would give GMs a choice of two poor results. Either pick door#1 where the gm bans all but a tiny pool of setting appropriate subclasses and players feel frustrated about being so limited or door #2 where other subclasses q are allowed but the game is run with darksun appropriate subclasses as a total absence from the group unless they represent such an extreme minority that they may as well be absent.

 

[Maxperson]

While itnis true, it is still both a physically compact and thematically focused Setting, as opposed to the govsmackomg smorgasbord of the Forgotten Realms.

There's a LOT of middle ground between the focus of Dark Sun and the kitchen sink that is the Realms.

And what I'm saying doesn't widen the focus at all. It just gives the DM some idea of what nasty Dark Sun dangers might be lurking outside the Tablelands.

I'm not suggesting that right over the mountains live Tortles, Tabaxi, Merfolk in a large freshwater lake, Loxodon, and Weird Al.

 

[Hermes_Alexandria]

Tortles of the Silt Sea, that drag you down into the dust to your doom, would be very on-vibe though

They rember the Blue Age and hate all landwalkers for their recklessness.

 

[Maxperson]

Tortles of the Silt Sea, that drag you down into the dust to your doom, would be very on-vibe though

They rember the Blue Age and hate all landwalkers for their recklessness.

There are already silt kraken. Why not tortles of dooooooom!