Eberron has made D&D great again [Archive] - Wizards Community

Eberron has made D&D great again [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Kravell
09-22-04, 07:27 AM Eberron has made D&D great for my group and me again. I'd love to hear how Eberron has made D&D even a better time for other groups.

Here's what my team of players has been up to to give you an idea of why Eberron has made D&D great for me again:

Last adventure, the team of adventurers were enjoying a sporting event, Living Chess, in the city of Newthrone when the terrorists called the Emerald Claw took over a noble's booth. The security at the stadium couldn't rescue the hostages (way out of their league) so the characters got drafted. After much grumbling and arguing about the relative value or no value of nobles' lives (roleplaying! :D ), they executed a beautiful take down and rescue, saving all the nobles.

The fight still involved spells, turning undead, Cleave, and general, wholesome D&D violence. But what the characters were doing and why really mattered to the story and to the world they lived in. The players did a great job.
chesstiger
09-22-04, 12:29 PM That sounds like a winner to me. A hostage situation...hmm. You just gave me some ideas. :D
Saurenda
09-22-04, 12:32 PM Unfortunately Eberron has made Dnd a little more complicated on my end.

Getting people to bite in rl is espically hard down here in the south. While it has made things better for me and a world of difference on how I look at Dnd, the gaming club I'm apart of seems against it, espically the DMs who run a sort of homebrewed planescape, and FR.

I wish I were up north again in NY, with all my friends playing Eberron for the first time. so far I've Dmed every session of Eberron I've been to expect one time. I hope it isn't the last :weep:
malkav138
09-22-04, 12:41 PM Its not hard to find players in the south. Our group has had to turn down players because we have too many(our group has 11 including DM). You should check your local hobby shop or board game store they usually have wanted boards with lots of lonely souls looking for a game.
Zalaz Mavi
09-23-04, 10:42 AM I'd love to hear how Eberron has made D&D even a better time for other groups.

For me, Eberron is the first non-traditional fantasy setting for D&D that has worked. Dark Sun was too brutal and pessimistic to sustain a long term campaign. Planescape was too weird. And I found it very difficult to create a believable Middle Eastern or Oriental setting using only Sinbad and Kung-Fu movies as reference. Eberron by contrast is much more accessible than those. Plus, the exotic and novel elements really open up the possibilities for exploration and excitement. If nothing else, Eberron has made D&D fresh again...
Roxlimn
09-23-04, 10:56 AM I like Eberron because it plays on very powerful and mainstream stereotypes that almost everyone can relate to. It makes introducing D&D literally a snap!

For example, practically no one knows about Jack Vance and Scribing Scrolls and the like. Magic Missile is a little esoteric to begin with and some people simply can't get what the difference between a Cleric and a Druid is. So when I say it's a world with magic, what do I say? Well, with Eberron, I get to say they have magical railways, flying ships, and massive armies. They have dark foggy cities with very metopolitan atmospheres and themes. I think "Maltese Falcon" and describe that. It's great. With "The Mummy", Final Fantasy games and flying ships and swashbuckling action in general reaching a very wide audience, I'm rarely at a loss for how to describe the experience.
Athos
09-23-04, 11:18 AM Eberron has saved my group. We where doing nothing but storyless dungeon crawls, and it was eating at our group. The DM, a great guy, just had nothing to work with, we where all crapy players, doing no to little PR, playing by the number. Now that Eberron showed up I've taken over DMing and we are about to start on a campain with a crazy story, and everyone has these awsome historys for there charichters.

Yeah Eberron is awsome and hey you can find similaritys from Eberron to other worlds, sharn... is courisant (those who know star wars know that this is a planet, of mile high towers, comprised completely of city with a dark underbelly, and is the capital of the galaxy. those who don't just read what I wrote.)
Calibim
09-23-04, 12:17 PM For me and my group it has been great.As a DM I always liked a little more background to why my characters were delving around some forgotten ruins in some gods forsaken hellish place filled with crawling doomy things dripping with lots of doom stuff. The adventure I have them on now is a case in point. The reason they are in said ruins is to recover a schema that they need to flush the antagonist who wanted the schema. But come to find out it was a ruse and the woman who hired them is actually a changling and was just using them to get the schema.

Lots a twist.

Also the group is finding their knowledge skills and gather information skills are becoming even more useful.
Kravell
09-23-04, 01:03 PM I agree with the latest posts. I was stuck in a rut as a DM and Eberron has pulled me out. My players created really interesting characters and are roleplaying better than I have ever seen before.

The twists in plot Calibim mentioned are something I want to weave into future adventures.
straylance
09-23-04, 01:08 PM Nope, sorry. I gotta curse Eberron forever.

I swore I would never run a game again, and yet here I am....mapping....
greatfrito
09-23-04, 11:17 PM Yeah, I really like Eberron, but not just because it gave me an excuse to "let" someone else DM (actually, he really took an interest in DMing with Eberron... something about a setting he didn't have to write himself... that was so much better than FR, which we all don't like - except for the powergamer). Playing in Eberron, and reading the adventures/stories/everything in the ECS (no YOU had too much time - man I wish I could have that back right now), had given me the "oomph" to actually care about writing my own game again. Sure, I'd just as well DM -and- play in Eberron... but my players are looking forward to my game (I think mostly because they've reached mid-low levels), and I'm looking to not dissapoint (hehe... yeah... maybe kill... not dissapoint).
Bubba333
09-24-04, 04:13 AM How did Eberron make D&D better for me?

I didn't play D&D until Eberron came out!

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Kravell 09-22-04, 07:27 AM	Eberron has made D&D great for my group and me again. I'd love to hear how Eberron has made D&D even a better time for other groups. Here's what my team of players has been up to to give you an idea of why Eberron has made D&D great for me again: Last adventure, the team of adventurers were enjoying a sporting event, Living Chess, in the city of Newthrone when the terrorists called the Emerald Claw took over a noble's booth. The security at the stadium couldn't rescue the hostages (way out of their league) so the characters got drafted. After much grumbling and arguing about the relative value or no value of nobles' lives (roleplaying! :D ), they executed a beautiful take down and rescue, saving all the nobles. The fight still involved spells, turning undead, Cleave, and general, wholesome D&D violence. But what the characters were doing and why really mattered to the story and to the world they lived in. The players did a great job.
chesstiger 09-22-04, 12:29 PM	That sounds like a winner to me. A hostage situation...hmm. You just gave me some ideas. :D
Saurenda 09-22-04, 12:32 PM	Unfortunately Eberron has made Dnd a little more complicated on my end. Getting people to bite in rl is espically hard down here in the south. While it has made things better for me and a world of difference on how I look at Dnd, the gaming club I'm apart of seems against it, espically the DMs who run a sort of homebrewed planescape, and FR. I wish I were up north again in NY, with all my friends playing Eberron for the first time. so far I've Dmed every session of Eberron I've been to expect one time. I hope it isn't the last :weep:
malkav138 09-22-04, 12:41 PM	Its not hard to find players in the south. Our group has had to turn down players because we have too many(our group has 11 including DM). You should check your local hobby shop or board game store they usually have wanted boards with lots of lonely souls looking for a game.
Zalaz Mavi 09-23-04, 10:42 AM	I'd love to hear how Eberron has made D&D even a better time for other groups. For me, Eberron is the first non-traditional fantasy setting for D&D that has worked. Dark Sun was too brutal and pessimistic to sustain a long term campaign. Planescape was too weird. And I found it very difficult to create a believable Middle Eastern or Oriental setting using only Sinbad and Kung-Fu movies as reference. Eberron by contrast is much more accessible than those. Plus, the exotic and novel elements really open up the possibilities for exploration and excitement. If nothing else, Eberron has made D&D fresh again...
Roxlimn 09-23-04, 10:56 AM	I like Eberron because it plays on very powerful and mainstream stereotypes that almost everyone can relate to. It makes introducing D&D literally a snap! For example, practically no one knows about Jack Vance and Scribing Scrolls and the like. Magic Missile is a little esoteric to begin with and some people simply can't get what the difference between a Cleric and a Druid is. So when I say it's a world with magic, what do I say? Well, with Eberron, I get to say they have magical railways, flying ships, and massive armies. They have dark foggy cities with very metopolitan atmospheres and themes. I think "Maltese Falcon" and describe that. It's great. With "The Mummy", Final Fantasy games and flying ships and swashbuckling action in general reaching a very wide audience, I'm rarely at a loss for how to describe the experience.
Athos 09-23-04, 11:18 AM	Eberron has saved my group. We where doing nothing but storyless dungeon crawls, and it was eating at our group. The DM, a great guy, just had nothing to work with, we where all crapy players, doing no to little PR, playing by the number. Now that Eberron showed up I've taken over DMing and we are about to start on a campain with a crazy story, and everyone has these awsome historys for there charichters. Yeah Eberron is awsome and hey you can find similaritys from Eberron to other worlds, sharn... is courisant (those who know star wars know that this is a planet, of mile high towers, comprised completely of city with a dark underbelly, and is the capital of the galaxy. those who don't just read what I wrote.)
Calibim 09-23-04, 12:17 PM	For me and my group it has been great.As a DM I always liked a little more background to why my characters were delving around some forgotten ruins in some gods forsaken hellish place filled with crawling doomy things dripping with lots of doom stuff. The adventure I have them on now is a case in point. The reason they are in said ruins is to recover a schema that they need to flush the antagonist who wanted the schema. But come to find out it was a ruse and the woman who hired them is actually a changling and was just using them to get the schema. Lots a twist. Also the group is finding their knowledge skills and gather information skills are becoming even more useful.
Kravell 09-23-04, 01:03 PM	I agree with the latest posts. I was stuck in a rut as a DM and Eberron has pulled me out. My players created really interesting characters and are roleplaying better than I have ever seen before. The twists in plot Calibim mentioned are something I want to weave into future adventures.
straylance 09-23-04, 01:08 PM	Nope, sorry. I gotta curse Eberron forever. I swore I would never run a game again, and yet here I am....mapping....
greatfrito 09-23-04, 11:17 PM	Yeah, I really like Eberron, but not just because it gave me an excuse to "let" someone else DM (actually, he really took an interest in DMing with Eberron... something about a setting he didn't have to write himself... that was so much better than FR, which we all don't like - except for the powergamer). Playing in Eberron, and reading the adventures/stories/everything in the ECS (no YOU had too much time - man I wish I could have that back right now), had given me the "oomph" to actually care about writing my own game again. Sure, I'd just as well DM -and- play in Eberron... but my players are looking forward to my game (I think mostly because they've reached mid-low levels), and I'm looking to not dissapoint (hehe... yeah... maybe kill... not dissapoint).
Bubba333 09-24-04, 04:13 AM	How did Eberron make D&D better for me? I didn't play D&D until Eberron came out!