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.

 

[Zardnaar]

If a kender and an Athasian halfling wear the same cloths, could you notice the difference with only to watch their faces?

I am also interested into lands around the region of Tyr but the Dead-Land is too hard to be explored. At least in the zombies apocalypses you still can find food and water. It may be interesting for the metaplot but wrong for the gameplay in your tabletop.

The setting can be expanded but it can't be like a MMORPG. If you play for example World of Warcraft you can be killing monsters until level up until the top, until there is a new expansion where you can keep leveling up but in a TTRPG some players would rather to start from zero in that new zone. Do you remember how in 5e any planes have been "nerferd" to allow adventures with lower-level characters? The players aren't too interested if the new zones are too dangerous to be played with low-level PCs. Let's imagine somebody who is playing "Champions Online" where you can see the enemies from certain street are too weak but near in other group of blocks they are too hard.

DS is not about killing hordes of monsters like if it was Blizzard's Diablo videogame saga but the PCs have to worry mainly about food, water and temperature, and the top of this arcane magic could be too dangerous to be used. It is not only about how to defeat the tyrants but also how to rebuild the civilitation and to restore the damaged ecosystem.

What if there are jungles in the moons because Athasians believe it? I mean those green zones haven't got a natural origin but the beliefs by the Athasians created it. Or they are the astral domains of the moon gods, who are worshipped by secret cults. These moon cults could have got some "rotten apples" but most of the followers wouldn't be bad people or they would lack hostile intentions.

Yes, I like the idea of adding secret moon cults what promise the "Celestial Garden" in the other life and this is relatively true because those souls go toward an astral domain.

After reading the PP novels I don't want to believe the people from the free city of Tyr are going to suffer a horrible end in the future because Athaspace will suffer a cataclysm. I would rather to believe the population will can evacuate.

* DS is not only a world what has suffered an apocalipse but it has got a feeling of shame and guilty because it was not a natural disaster or bad luck but it was fault of the defilers. It is something that could have been avoided. This causes a feeling of rage and frustration

* What if the Athasian sun god was the responsible of the "maltheism" by the Athasian people? This was betrayed by the other suns (now moons) and he asked help to the elemental spirits. These punished the traitors but this caused something like the creation of the demiplane of dread by Strahd von Zarovich and the Dark Powers.

What if the paraelemental planes of sun and rain are like the "Heaven" of the Athasian souls? And magma and silt would work like the infernal planes to punish the sinners. And these planes would have their own genies courts with their own conflicts.

Other idea is some Athasian souls in the afterlife don't become undead spirits like ghosts or wraiths but elemental, some times this is willing and even an honor, for example a rain spirit could help her tribe. But these elementals can be "catched" and used as magic batteries by spellcasters.

Kender tend to go extinct. Catapult ammo and battering rams always useful.

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

Teorically the kenders should extinct because they are too daredevil and imprudent to survive serial killers and other supernatural predators from horror movies but some females kenders who needed money started to work as gravure idols (only legal SFW pictures) and then... they became too popular among certain groups within otaku community. (yes, they may be very sick, I want to say nothing about the Welchselkind because it makes me nauseous)

What if there are dragon-gods within the sun and the moons? Maybe the cults of the moons Gal and Guthay are allowed in Draj by Tectuktitlay because officialy these are the parents of the sorcerer-king. Secretly among the leaders of these cults there are infiltrated moon dragonborns.

Other theory is in the First War when nature-masters fought against the nature-benders some populations were evacuated, at least some nature-benders who didn't want to be "hunted" by the nature-masters.

My new crazy idea is to add a new transitive realm, the "invisible domains", practically the Athasian version of the plane of the mirrors. Mirrors with the size of a door aren't easy to be found in Athas but in palace or richest one's homes but the mirages are possible in the desert. These could be zones of the Feywild that were conquered or tainted by some outsider power causing a planar shatering. The invisible domains weren't affected so much by the defiler magic. Some "mirage lands" within the invisible domains could show moments from the past or the future of Athas, but also possible alternate timelines. This could be good or bad. For example an Athas in the blue age where the nature-benders won the First War but the Athaspace was invaded by the illithids, and this caused the creation of the "zerns". In other timeline the gnomes and faeries could survive the cleasing war, or a technologically advanced solarpunk Athas thanks the arrival of the reptilian alien T'sa .

Zern from MM IV

Maybe those invisible domains were created intentionally to be the ultimate hideout.

And within the "Land-within-the-Wind" (Athasian Feywild) there are "domains of delight" but these are very bittersweet, like keeping your favorite toys from your childhood gifted by your dead grandparents. So much nostalgia that it hurts. Here the native could be very xenophobic and we shouldn't blame them too much.

* Other idea is the end the Athaspace happened... several times... and time after time because it is an infernal plane in a time loop. Here the irony is the population could be evacuated but they don't want to do because they don't trust who offer help. They suspect it may be a trick to be catched as slaves. But here lots of slaves dare to take the risk because if it is a trap the new owners maybe aren't worse than the previous.

 

[QuentinGeorge]

Teorically the kenders should extinct because they are too daredevil and imprudent to survive serial killers and other supernatural predators from horror movies but some females kenders who needed money started to work as gravure idols (only legal SFW pictures) and then... they became too popular among certain groups within otaku community. (yes, they may be very sick, I want to say nothing about the Welchselkind because it makes me nauseous)

What if there are dragon-gods within the sun and the moons? Maybe the cults of the moons Gal and Guthay are allowed in Draj by Tectuktitlay because officialy these are the parents of the sorcerer-king. Secretly among the leaders of these cults there are infiltrated moon dragonborns.

Other theory is in the First War when nature-masters fought against the nature-benders some populations were evacuated, at least some nature-benders who didn't want to be "hunted" by the nature-masters.

My new crazy idea is to add a new transitive realm, the "invisible domains", practically the Athasian version of the plane of the mirrors. Mirrors with the size of a door aren't easy to be found in Athas but in palace or richest one's homes but the mirages are possible in the desert. These could be zones of the Feywild that were conquered or tainted by some outsider power causing a planar shatering. The invisible domains weren't affected so much by the defiler magic. Some "mirage lands" within the invisible domains could show moments from the past or the future of Athas, but also possible alternate timelines. This could be good or bad. For example an Athas in the blue age where the nature-benders won the First War but the Athaspace was invaded by the illithids, and this caused the creation of the "zerns". In other timeline the gnomes and faeries could survive the cleasing war, or a technologically advanced solarpunk Athas thanks the arrival of the reptilian alien T'sa .

View attachment 422218
Zern from MM IV

Maybe those invisible domains were created intentionally to be the ultimate hideout.

And within the "Land-within-the-Wind" (Athasian Feywild) there are "domains of delight" but these are very bittersweet, like keeping your favorite toys from your childhood gifted by your dead grandparents. So much nostalgia that it hurts. Here the native could be very xenophobic and we shouldn't blame them too much.

* Other idea is the end the Athaspace happened... several times... and time after time because it is an infernal plane in a time loop. Here the irony is the population could be evacuated but they don't want to do because they don't trust who offer help. They suspect it may be a trick to be catched as slaves. But here lots of slaves dare to take the risk because if it is a trap the new owners maybe aren't worse than the previous.

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

I don't understand your answer, what do you mean?

I am suggesting new ideas you could add to your own DS game.

Now I have got a new idea for DS. In the begining it seems an utopian alternate timeline, Athas with a happy end but there is a wicked trick. It may be for example a planar invasion by aliens, an undead-mutant outbreak, hordes of kaijus appearing... and the Paradise becomes a hell. The truth is it is an infernal plane in time loop. If they are lucky they can live happily without serious troubles during some centuries, maybe even for a millenium but sooner or later the disaster happens and the horror arrives. The visitors can evacuate but the native are prisons have to be punished and if they try to travel to another no-infernal plane will be teletransported automatically here. Some times the forced return arrives later, and this may be more painful then the fugitive feels the nightmare had ended. When a petitioner "dies" in this plane she may rerise like a fiend, undead, mutant or another kind of monsters, or reincarnated in the next cycle. Here the divine magic works normally even if you pray false gods. Then take care with possible false prophets who promise the salvation. The only way to "escape" is the survivors to rebuild the civilitatio and to restore the ecosystem at least enough for a decent life at a bearable level. Here these survivors can hire "mercenaries" from other planes to hunt possible threats. This infernal plane could be perfect to hide secret societies of chronomancers.

I like the idea of a "mirage zones" where the characters can live their own Hyrborian-punk version of a creepypasta story.

My opinion is the gods didn't destroy the Athaspace to punish the atheism by the Athasians, not in the way we could guess. Really the gods from other worlds can't intervenet where they haven't worshippers there and interference in other wildspaces is forbidden. Only the rejected Athasian gods could have worked that miracle. Spelljammers could be sent to evacuate but only who dared to trust the visitors could get on board. That is the sad part, they rejected their last or unique opportunity of salvation because they were too exceptical. And it is worse when really some saviors were a infamous trick. At least the descendents of the heroes of PPs could enjoy one opportunity to survive, and the heroes from the novels could become quasi-gods or legendary heroes, and later to ascend toward a higher rank of divinity.

* A good setting can't be like a pretty dollhouse where you only can watch. It has to be more "modular" or "flexible", allowing players to introduce their own changes. It is like you are playing the videogame "the Sims" and you buy several expansions. With a neighbour you can play things from certain expansion but not with other. We need a neighbour where we can use all the elements from all expansions. Can you understand what I mean? If I buy several LEGO boxes I haven't to build the same creations than in the cover of the boxes but I should can mix the pieces for new creations.

DS has to allow the setting could be "souped up" by the players.

* Other idea is the Athasian divine powers lost in the conflict against the primal powers but they weren't killed in the way we imagine. They were cursed with the madness, becoming a threat even for their most loyal followers. They are in a special astral domain working like a cosmic madhouse. A partial cure was found. The deities could create avatar or incarnations, with their recovered sanity and memories before the curse but their power is lower. Then they have to choose between be weaker but sane or summoning more power risking their sanity. Some times the divine toxin what causes their madness be expurgarted but then this "creates" mutant monsters with bizarre or surreal shapes known as "acanthas". If you are lucky the acanthas are like the mutant rats you have to kill in your low-level first quests. Some times somebody is tainted by an acantha becomen a "supervillain" like the enemies from magical-girls mangas. These astral domains would be like partial-time Heavens with a Damocles sword. The people can live more time thanks rejuvenation magic by the divine spellcasters but they have to share their memories because this help deities to heal their memories.

I guess the easies solution would be WotC suggesting possible ideas for a spin-off and this could be modified according players' preferences.