Michelle Tseng
First Post
I'm quite enamored with Ostalin's existence in the WotBS adventure path. It's not too often you see a setting that includes a region that allows Xianxia to co-exist with the Fantasy genre, and I find it a fascinating combination.
For those unfamiliar with Xianxia, it's basically the Chinese equivalent of the Fantasy genre in the west; just with a foundation set in Wuxia instead of chivalry and an exploration of the schools of buddhist and taoist philosophies (concerning reincarnation and karma) instead of pagan religions and multiple deities. The two genres share a lot of similarities for players to use with their focus on epic and cosmic struggles, focus on heroic archetypes, and a plethora of supernatural abilities, supernatural creatures, and gods/demigods. The similarities got me thinking about how I can build out and develop Ostalin in my WotBS setting, and since the WotBS campaign is being rewritten for 5e, I thought I'd share my thoughts with the community and collect opinions. Some thoughts to get started are as follows:
Druids as a Secret Society based in Ostalin
A common theme in Xianxia is the idea that the world of martial arts and the supernatural is separated in some way from the world of the common folk, and that there exist separate but equal factions within the world of martial arts. Western audiences can understand this difference as being akin to the relationship between the Wizarding world and the Muggle world in the Harry Potter series; and the relationships between factions like the vampire societies in Vampire the Masquerade. The Druidic language provides a perfect barrier between druids (the Wizarding world) and the rest of the world (the Muggle world), and give players and DMs a lot more opportunities to handle the druidic language class feature when not around other druids. Even when handling druids, there is plenty of ideas and conflicts if the DM treats druidic circles as distinct factions. That means the druidic sign a PC encounters from another druid could be from a friendly druid npc or an antagonistic one who is operating secretly and the PC has to decide whether or not to reveal the secret war to his allies.
Stories of shapeshifting monsters who assume the shape of humans are rife in Asian fantasy literature and connect nicely (even if reversed) with the druid's wildshape abilities. It wouldn't be unusual for monks in Ostalin to be able to transform into animals if we assume a Xianxia inspiration for their more mystical members. The druid's spellcasting and focus on nature also makes them natural allies or antagonists to the four elemental titans, keeping them in check and maintaining the balance. This ducts nicely with the secretive nature of their society and helps bring Ostalin's traditional isolationism into the main storyline.
Anyway, this is just the start of an idea I have when trying to incorporate druids into the campaign beyond their traditional role as protectors of nature. Any thoughts are welcome, as are your own ideas about how you incorporated any of the other classes into the setting.
For those unfamiliar with Xianxia, it's basically the Chinese equivalent of the Fantasy genre in the west; just with a foundation set in Wuxia instead of chivalry and an exploration of the schools of buddhist and taoist philosophies (concerning reincarnation and karma) instead of pagan religions and multiple deities. The two genres share a lot of similarities for players to use with their focus on epic and cosmic struggles, focus on heroic archetypes, and a plethora of supernatural abilities, supernatural creatures, and gods/demigods. The similarities got me thinking about how I can build out and develop Ostalin in my WotBS setting, and since the WotBS campaign is being rewritten for 5e, I thought I'd share my thoughts with the community and collect opinions. Some thoughts to get started are as follows:
Druids as a Secret Society based in Ostalin
A common theme in Xianxia is the idea that the world of martial arts and the supernatural is separated in some way from the world of the common folk, and that there exist separate but equal factions within the world of martial arts. Western audiences can understand this difference as being akin to the relationship between the Wizarding world and the Muggle world in the Harry Potter series; and the relationships between factions like the vampire societies in Vampire the Masquerade. The Druidic language provides a perfect barrier between druids (the Wizarding world) and the rest of the world (the Muggle world), and give players and DMs a lot more opportunities to handle the druidic language class feature when not around other druids. Even when handling druids, there is plenty of ideas and conflicts if the DM treats druidic circles as distinct factions. That means the druidic sign a PC encounters from another druid could be from a friendly druid npc or an antagonistic one who is operating secretly and the PC has to decide whether or not to reveal the secret war to his allies.
Stories of shapeshifting monsters who assume the shape of humans are rife in Asian fantasy literature and connect nicely (even if reversed) with the druid's wildshape abilities. It wouldn't be unusual for monks in Ostalin to be able to transform into animals if we assume a Xianxia inspiration for their more mystical members. The druid's spellcasting and focus on nature also makes them natural allies or antagonists to the four elemental titans, keeping them in check and maintaining the balance. This ducts nicely with the secretive nature of their society and helps bring Ostalin's traditional isolationism into the main storyline.
Anyway, this is just the start of an idea I have when trying to incorporate druids into the campaign beyond their traditional role as protectors of nature. Any thoughts are welcome, as are your own ideas about how you incorporated any of the other classes into the setting.