Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Euangelion 12-06-05, 12:51 PM	It seems to me that since there's a number of things in Eberron that intentionally have been left up to DMs to decide, listing some of those things for DMs just getting into the setting might be helpful. Feel free to add other things to this list. 1. Everything! One of these guiding principles of the Eberron Campaign Setting is that if it's in the core rulebooks, then it has a place in Eberron. But nothing in the sourcebooks, Eberron or otherwise, is written in stone. While psionics have been built into the setting from the very beginning, including a new PC race (the Kalashtar), if you don't want psionics in your game, no problem! Just make the changes you want, but try to keep in mind how entrenched certain concepts are in the setting; you might have to make a lot of changes you might not have expected at first. So you want to add grey elves, gunpowder, and the Red Wizards of Thay (from Forgotten Realms) to your campaign, although they're not included in the official material? Again, no problem! It's your game. With that said, there are some things that are left intentionally vague... (Thanks to DoveArrow for suggestions about this point! :bow: ) 1-19-6 Edit: With the Players Guide to Eberron including information on where to include so much material from outside Eberron sourcebooks, this point bears highlighting: players, it's completely up to the DM if there's grey elves, illumians, warlocks, and anything else in a sidebar in the PGtE in your campaign! And just because anything in core D&D has a place in Eberron, that doesn't mean everything that's in D&D is in Eberron!! 2. The Cause of the Day of Mourning This is the big mystery of the setting, and as such there is not an official answer, nor will there ever be. Thus, whatever you want it to be, it can be. Lords of Dust plot? Creation Forge accident? Earthquake that released vile magical vapors from Khyber? Or perhaps all three, hmmm. 3. The Powers of the Lost Mark of Death Again, this is another big mystery that has been left vague (a certain novel series notwithstanding, and remember that Eberron novels are not authoritative!) They probably had something to do with death (well, duh!), but since there's so many different options, be creative if your campaign ever comes to needing to know. 4. The Other Voice in the Silver Flame Besides Tira Miron's Again, while there's certainly rumors that the fiend bound in Flamekeep is able to communicate with certain others, this is not written in stone. The corruption in the church could be from basic humanoid frailties, and you may be right, the Whispering Flame cultists may be just crazy and not guided by the other voice. 5. The Whereabouts of Kaius III There's a prisoner deep within Dreadhold in the Lhazaar Principalities who may know, or perhaps not. Does Kaius intend to rule forever? Or does he realized there needs to be an heir produced somehow with his queen... 6. The Existence of Deities More specifically, do the Sovereign Host and the Dark Six exist? (It is true that certain objects of veneration such as the Silver Flame and the Undying Court exist, but those entities are not deities in the classical understanding, though they are undeniably powerful forces in Eberron.) Perhaps they were other progenitor dragons who ascended to godhood, or perhaps they are simply ideas that have served as sources of power and guidance but that don't actually exist. If they do exist, they are so distant (fancy word for this is "transcendent") that they interact only through the actions of their followers. Thus the faith that their followers (especially the PC's!) have in them is certainly real, however, and that's the most important aspect of the deities. (Thanks to zambuku for suggestions about this point! :bow: ) 7. The Identity of the BBEG in Lair of the Keeper Some say it's actually the Keeper (but see point #6!). Others say it's a dracolich of immense power. Whatever it is, souls do get caught in the massive chamber of Khybershards deep in the Lair, so if and when your players decide to travel there, deciding on what's actually lurking in its depths is your responsibility (be creative!) 8. The Secret Ingredient to Dragon's Blood and Its True Purpose As detailed in Sharn: City of Towers, the Daughters of Sora Kell have cooked up a variety of concoctions that enhance the spells of sorcerers and the powers of dragonmarks, but at the cost of addiction. Why and how these hags have created it remains up to you. (For the record, I think the secret ingredient is Krusty-brand children's cough syrup! ;) ) I've decided to add to the OP the contributions of others whether from the thread or cross-posted from elsewhere, so that discussion further down the thread won't make it hard to find all of the points. I'll clean up the grammar/spelling if needed, and format the titles of each point in the same style as my original points. Any comments I add will be in italics. From Korhal_IV: 9. The True Identity of the Lord of Blades The books offer multiple explanations. A set of generic statistics is offered, but you can easily discard those in favor of any statistics you want - or none at all, if the LoBster is so badass your players shouldn't ever have a chance. 10. The Alignment of the Lord of Blades Is he evil or just misguided? He wants a paradise for his race, that's all. Perhaps he's merely been demonized by the many people in high places who hate warforged. From Just another user: 11) The Ultimate Fate of Souls Sure there is Dolurrh but what there is next? Nothing? Another plane of eternal punishment/delight? Reincarnation? Who knows? 12) The Means By Which Valenar Warhorses Are Bred 13) Xen'drik (and probably Argonessen) Geograpy. Euangelion: I'll add that Xen'drik is the DM's playground in general. While there is a sourcebook on Xen'drik in the works and other sources have contained some information on Xen'drik (Monster Manual III, Sharn: City of Towers, Explorers Handbook, and the Player's Guide to Eberron in particular), it appears that the Xen'drik sourcebook will be a guide for filling in Xen'drik more than an official "this is what's here" kind of thing. The one exception to this is the city of Stormreach, but beyond that, anything goes. From jonthegm: 14) Random cities in the countryside. 15) How I mine for fish. Gah? 16) Where the Warforged Came From While it is clear that the schemas for the warforged came from Xen'drik, their ultimate source is up to the DM. 17) The Exact Plans of the Lords of Dust, the Chamber, the Dreaming Dark, (and as WolfHati reminds us) the Daughters of Sora Kell, etc. From Majorafire77: 18) The Source of Warforged Souls (If Any) Unless I am mistaken, Races of Eberron addresses this point. The Kalashtar are very interested in this, as they do not believe that House Cannith has the power to create souls, but it is rather clear that Warforged in fact do have souls because of their interaction with spells that bring people back to life and stuff like that. The major thing for DMs to decide is how House Cannith is getting these souls (sounds like the Lords of Dust to me), or if Warforged have something else entirely. Cross-posted from Davethebrave371: 19) The Source of the Patriotic Nature of Karrnathi Undead The story is that, being created from the bodies of Karrnath's greatest warriors, they are driven by the overall patriotism of the Karrnathi people: that they are vessels of the spirit of Karrnath itself. It's a nice story. It may even be true. Or they may be agents of the Blood of Vol waiting to be activated, if that's what would be fun in your game! From Arz: 20) The Details of the War of the Mark And I could add any other historical era not covered in detail by a sourcebook. From gaerfindel: 21)The Source of Warforged Body Enhancements Are they added voluntarily by the 'forged? Do they grow by an act of will, or do they suddenly appear one day, like acne? Is there some alchemical method to growing armour spikes (and other body enhancements)? From yrogerg 22. Optional Races and Classes For example, do Elans (from the Expanded Psionics Handbook) exist at all? Are they used as Quori prisons? Are they created by the Mourning? Are the the minions of the Aboleths? Who knows? What about Warlocks? Are they there? Where do they come from? 23. The Turning of the Age of Dol Quor Some say that the Turning of the Age will turn the Dreaming Dark into the Dreaming Light, and the reign of the Inspired will end. However, the Quori of this age know just as little about the Quori of previous ages as the rest of the world. We have no idea whether the Giant-age Quori were a force of good or evil in the world. So, is this actually true? Or is, as so many other times in Eberron, the road to Khyber paved with good intentions? 24. The Identity of the Overthrown Who or what was the deity in the goblinoid pantheon whose identity has been erased? (see Players Guide to Eberron p.139)
DoveArrow 12-06-05, 02:53 PM	1. Everything! One of these guiding principles of the Eberron Campaign Setting is that if it's in the core rulebooks, then it has a place in Eberron. But nothing in the sourcebooks, Eberron or otherwise, is written in stone. You don't want psionics, warforged, or Vol? No problem! You want grey elves, gunpowder, and the Red Wizards of Thay? No problem! It's your game. With that said, there are some things that are left intentionally vague... I think this is a great post, but that first point needs some clarification. Psionics are specifically built to be part of the Eberron Campaign Setting. In fact, there are races (such as the kalashtar, and the inspired) who are included in the setting with psionics in mind. However, if you don't want psionics to play a prominent role in your campaign, or if you don't want to use them at all, you can easily restrict the use of psionics to those strange people who live on that mysterious continent called Riedra that lies somewhere across the sea. Meanwhile, while you can add grey elves and gunpowder to your campaign, it's not considered canon. In fact, Keith has stated many times that the peoples of Eberron do not use gunpowder, and that he does not see their being alternate versions of the core races (well, with the exception of the drow, of course). Granted, you can include them (and in fact, I think some of these things might fit quite well in Eberron), but like I said, they are not considered canon. Finally, isn't Red Wizard a generic prestige class now? I know it's listed in the DMG, but I haven't looked too closely at it to be sure.
Korhal_IV 12-06-05, 03:16 PM	9. Who Is the Lord of Blades? The books offer multiple explanations. A set of generic statistics is offered, but you can easily discard those in favor of any statistics you want - or none at all, if the LoBster is so badass your players shouldn't ever have a chance. 10. Is the Lord of Blades Evil? Or just misguided? He wants a paradise for his race, that's all. Perhaps he's merely been demonized by the many people in high places who hate warforged.
Euangelion 12-06-05, 06:21 PM	I think this is a great post, but that first point needs some clarification... Okay, I see your point. I'll tighten it up with props to you.
Just another user 12-06-05, 06:31 PM	11) What happen after death? Sure there is Dolurrh but what there is next? Nothing? another plane of eternal punishment/delight? Reincarnation? Who knows? 12) how are breed valenar warhorses: a minor things but it caused a lot of discussion on the boards. :) 13) Xen'drik (and probably argonessen) geograpy.
Edymnion 12-06-05, 06:35 PM	Duh, we all know that the true cause of the Mourning was some munchkin player made a dual scimitar weilding chaotic good drow ranger and all the gods were so disgusted, they nuked his Drizzt butt, and everybody mentioned in his background (which apparently means that he was also a superstar in Cyre). After that, the gods all stormed out of the setting in disgust and left their answering machines on auto-spell-grant. DUH! :P
jonthegm 12-06-05, 06:36 PM	14) Random cities in the countryside. 15) How I mine for fish. 16) Where did the warforged come from? 17) What exactly are the plans of the Lords of Dust, the Chamber, the Dreaming Dark, etc.?
Just another user 12-06-05, 06:45 PM	Duh, we all know that the true cause of the Mourning was some munchkin player made a dual scimitar weilding chaotic good drow ranger and all the gods were so disgusted, they nuked his Drizzt butt, and everybody mentioned in his background (which apparently means that he was also a superstar in Cyre). After that, the gods all stormed out of the setting in disgust and left their answering machines on auto-spell-grant. DUH! :P Shhhhh! that is supposed to be a secret.
zambuka 12-06-05, 06:54 PM	6. Do the Gods Exist? More specifically, do the Sovereign Host and the Dark Six exist? (It is true that certain objects of veneration such as the Silver Flame and the Undying Court exist, but those entities are not deities in the classical understanding, though they are undeniably powerful forces in Eberron.) Perhaps they were other progenitor dragons who ascended to godhood, or perhaps they are simply ideas that have served as sources of power and guidance but that don't actually exist. The faith that their followers have in them is certainly real, however. I think it would be more accurate to ask "Do the gods directly interact with the world?" than do they exist. Currently, because of their aloof distance as presented in the ECS and related books, whether or not they actually exist becomes completely irrelevant. If they exist and don't interact is no different than if they just don't exist in final game play. The question is, to paraphrase Terry Pratchet, do the gods wander about throwing stones through the windows of athiests?
DoveArrow 12-06-05, 06:57 PM	Okay, I see your point. I'll tighten it up with props to you. Aw shucks. :blush:
Majorafire77 12-06-05, 11:09 PM	Don't want to see this become an "1001 things" thread, but whatever, I'll hop on the bandwagon. 18) How do Warforged have souls? Unless I am mistaken, Races of Eberron addresses this point. The Kalashtar are very interested in this, as they do not believe that House Cannith has the power to create souls, but it is rather clear that Warforged in fact do have souls because of their interaction with spells that bring people back to life and stuff like that. The major thing for DMs to decide is how House Cannith is getting these souls (sounds like the Lords of Dust to me), or if Warforged have something else entirely.
Euangelion 12-11-05, 08:51 PM	19. (Cross-posted) What exactly is it that fuels that patriotic nature (or do they intuitively know upon being raised that they need to keep up the facade of service to Karrnath, really being owned by the BoV/EC, or some third option)? Good question... and one that is, ultimately, up to you as a DM. The story is that, being created from the bodies of Karrnath's greatest warriors, they are driven by the overall patriotism of the Karrnathi people: that they are vessels of the spirit of Karrnath itself. It's a nice story. It may even be true. Or they may be agents of the Blood of Vol waiting to be activated, if that's what would be fun in your game! In any case, a Karrnathi undead does come into existence with skills and tactically knowledge intact, and as such, it also knows how to behave. I think of Karrnathi skeletons as fragments of the same being: while they aren't actually a hive mind, they have the same personality, and if you spend a lot of time around one, the next one you talk to will be eerily identical. They are intelligent, yes - but they don't advance, and they all have the same skills. It is important to remember that Karrnathi Undead can only be created from elite Karrnathi soldiers, not just from anyone. This is the limiting factor in Karrnath's ability to field troops of them - and if you believe that their motivation is pure, it's because they are created from such fervant patriots. They don't maintain memories or skill, but some overall essence may remain.
WolfHati 12-12-05, 02:42 AM	20. The nefarious ends of the Daughters of Sora Kell. Are they just after mere political power and influence, or are there grander ambitions underlying their schemes? 15) How I mine for fish. Use teh ratflail omgnoob
Arz 12-12-05, 02:30 PM	21) What started the War of the Mark? & What were the Dragonmarked Houses like before the War of the Mark?
realdm 12-13-05, 04:20 AM	21) What started the War of the Mark? i am not sure now, but i think the war of the mark happened to cleanse abberant dragonmarks from the planet
Euangelion 12-13-05, 10:49 AM	The War of the Mark is covered in some detail in the front of Sharn:City of Towers (I don't have the book in front of me.) It was an attempt to cleanse from Khorvaire those carrying aberrant (non-standard dragonmarks that spontaneously appear) and mixed (an aberrant mark that appears on a person who decends from at least two of the 12 standard dragonmarked houses) dragonmarks. Organized under Lord Tarkaanan (bad spelling, I pretty sure), the aberrants resisted to the end, taking Sharn down with them. Details of the aberrant marks, such as their powers (they were supposed to be very powerful) is left up to the DM to decide, so far.
Arz 12-13-05, 01:19 PM	I'm not disagreeing that there isn't any information. I'm just saying they left out quite a bit. Why didn't the proto-houses at the time regard them as another developing house? Why are aberant marks considered so evil? Interesting that House Medani didn't form until the end of the war of the mark. I'm not saying the war of the mark is a mystery so much as all the other factors that lead to open war. Much like the last war, a simple statement that the rulers disagreed on eldest succession is not the end for me. There are always more reasons when you look at history. Also this time period has always been of especial interest to me since I first picked up the Eberon book. My pet project while running an Eberon campaign is writing out a very complicated War of the Mark campaign. Its fun!
Siran Dunmorgan 12-13-05, 01:51 PM	The reason aberrant-marked characters were not regarded as a proto-House is simple: they don't breed true, and their effects are inconsistent. This is a problem because the things that actually drive the viability of a House, such as the Sivis Message Stations, or Kundarak Vaults, require interaction with a known dragonmark, and usually a specific power of a specific mark. The aberrant dragonmarks are too unstable in their power for them to be effective in this regard, and thus to drive the economy of a great House. Further, most aberrant marks cannot be improved with practice, training, or conditioning. Bearers of such a mark might learn, with time, how best to use its power, but the power itself will never improve in the fashion of the Least/Lesser/Greater dragonmarks of the Houses. According to an ancient comment from Keith Baker, aberrant marks apparently came in two kinds: the relatively weak marks that cannot be improved with training or conditioning, i.e., those represented by the Aberrant Dragonmark feat, and Heirs of Khyber, members of a prestige class similar in power to the Heirs of Syberis known in the present time. Tarkanan was an example of this Prestige Class. Hellcow suggested at one point that Heir of Khyber might be one of the Prestige Classes published in a Dragonmarked Houses sourcebook, but whether that plan is anywhere near fruition, I could not say. —Siran Dunmorgan
gaerfindel 12-14-05, 12:22 PM	20. The means by which armour spikes appear on a warforged who is walking the Path of the Juggernaut. Are they added voluntarily by the 'forged? Do they grow by an act of will, or do they suddenly appear one day, like acne? Is there some alchemical method to growing armour spikes?
Euangelion 12-14-05, 05:00 PM	20. The means by which armour spikes appear on a warforged who is walking the Path of the Juggernaut. Are they added voluntarily by the 'forged? Do they grow by an act of will, or do they suddenly appear one day, like acne? Is there some alchemical method to growing armour spikes? This is a good one! However, this goes even beyond the armor spikes of the Warforged Juggernaut PrC to include any body enhancements - the Jaws of Death, Cold Iron Tracery, etc.
yrogerg 12-14-05, 09:37 PM	21. If, and where, "optional" races and classes fit into the setting. Do Elans exist at all? Are they used as Quori prisons? Are they created by the Mourning? Are the the minions of the Aboleths? Who knows? What about Warlocks? Are they there? Where do they come from? 22. Are the Kalashtar actually right? Some say that the Turning of the Age will turn the Dreaming Dark into the Dreaming Light, and the reign of the Inspired will end. However, the Quori of this age know just as little about the Quori of previous ages as the rest of the world. We have no idea whether the Giant-age Quori were a force of good or evil in the world. So, is this actually true? Or is, as so many other times in Eberron, the road to Khyber paved with good intentions?
Korhal_IV 12-15-05, 03:45 AM	22. Are the Kalashtar actually right? Some say that the Turning of the Age will turn the Dreaming Dark into the Dreaming Light, and the reign of the Inspired will end. However, the Quori of this age know just as little about the Quori of previous ages as the rest of the world. We have no idea whether the Giant-age Quori were a force of good or evil in the world. So, is this actually true? Or is, as so many other times in Eberron, the road to Khyber paved with good intentions? Well, let's be honest - how much WORSE can it get?! :P
Euangelion 12-21-05, 11:12 AM	shameless :bump:
Euangelion 01-19-06, 03:34 PM	:bump: with added reference to the PGtE sidebars in the Anything! section
Euangelion 01-30-06, 11:53 AM	24. The Identity of the Overthrown Who or what was the deity in the goblinoid pantheon whose identity has been erased?
Belabras 01-30-06, 12:09 PM	Tons of general history questions - What are the Rierdran monoliths, and what do they do? Where did the forces of the Silver Flame seal the Rashaka Rajas? Where are the gatekeeper seals, how many are there, and how many would have to be broken to allow Xoriat to approach again? What really caused the Dragons to wipe out the Giant empire? Did the giants win their war with the Quori, or did they lose? What was the war even about? What caused the rise of Dragonmarks?
Euangelion 01-30-06, 03:08 PM	Tons of general history questions - What are the Rierdran monoliths, and what do they do? Where did the forces of the Silver Flame seal the Rashaka Rajas? Where are the gatekeeper seals, how many are there, and how many would have to be broken to allow Xoriat to approach again? What really caused the Dragons to wipe out the Giant empire? Did the giants win their war with the Quori, or did they lose? What was the war even about? What caused the rise of Dragonmarks? Excellent, but I believe that the Dragons wiped out the giant empires on Xen'drik for attempting to use the same magic that knocked Dol Quor off its planar orbit on the rebelious elves. However, the nature of that magic has been left undescribed (due no doubt to the similarities to the cause of the Day of Mourning.)