Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Pallis 12-05-04, 01:03 PM	Hello folks I thought it'd be interesting to get a poll together of people who'd be interested in running a campaign during the events of the Last War. In order to successfully run such a campaign we'd need a sourcebook that details this conflict in depth, offering us key encounters, a fully explained history of the century long war, personalities, tactics employed by the various nations, etc. I'd personally love for Wizards to release such a book. I'd buy it in an instant. If you would too, then add your name here... :whatsthis
Zalaz Mavi 12-05-04, 01:27 PM	I'm going to take the unpopular stance and offer a thumbs down on this. When it comes to gaming, I'm a hugh advocate of "less is better." Game worlds should be detailed in the most minimal way possible. Too much detail takes away from individual creativity and imagination. The best aspect of Eberron is how adamant it is about keeping large sections of the world blank to allow individual games to not only customize the world, but also make it their own. While I know a campaign set during the Last War would be fun and engaging, I would rather design it myself. The longer we can keep Eberron as our world — not WotC's and we just live in it — the better, I say.
Pallis 12-05-04, 02:23 PM	I take your point Zalaz and I agree that 'blank is good' in certain instances; it's certainly good to be able to write your own chapter and verse on Eberron to suit your own gaming requirements, but especially where the Last War is concerned, and the lack of details we have regarding this, I feel especially strongly that more information would better serve the setting. I ask you to consider the Sharn sourcebook, which others on these boards have termed an absolute requirement. I'm of the opinion that the more information I can have to free my imagination for telling a story that translates into great a roleplaying game for all involved, the better. Of course, that's also why we need the detailed maps... However, all said and done, we each of us have our opinions and needs for the game we're playing, so thanks for sharing your thoughts on the topic, Zalaz. I'd hoped for maybe one or two yes votes before we got to the dissenting voices *chuckle*... :allalone:
EscherEnigma 12-05-04, 02:48 PM	Hm... A last war sourcebook would be interesting, but I would get it depending on how it reads, I suppose. If it reads like a history textbook on the civil war, then heck no. If I want a list of battles and corresponding dates with facts and figures of how many casualities there were, and how many died of assorted plagues and diseases then I'll stop by Barnes and Nobles and go to a quite different section then where I find most of WotC's books. Hm... how would I want it to read though? I guess I'd mostly want descriptions of key events, letting it be known that there were QUITE a few battles that simply didn't make it to the book, maybe a highlight on key battles. Mostly though I think I'd want something for the intrigue of the last war, the alliances made and broken, the circumstances that led the Warden's of the Wood to take over the defense of the Eldeen Reaches from Aundair, things like that. Sure, letting us know who exactly bought the most warforged might be fun, but it really seems like it'd be hard to make a "Last War" book without making it read like a history book. The political enviornment leading up to the start of the war and throughout the war might be interesting, but it'd probably be difficult to make up that much history without it sounding contrived after a point, or atleast, to make up enough stuff to fill up an entire sourcebook. So... I guess you got my vote for the book, but It'd really depend on how it looks once its finished on whether or not I'd buy it.
Zalaz Mavi 12-05-04, 02:48 PM	The Sharn book is a model sourcebook. It sets the tone for the city and offers just enough information to get a sense of each section. And certainly, Sharn is such a key location that it required a sourcebook. With the Last War though, the role it plays in Eberron is focused more on it's repercussions than the war itself. The uneasy, unbearable peace that came of the Treaty is the driving force for much that goes on. Flavor such as major battles, alliances at any given moment, armaments, tactics and such fall more under the nature of footnotes than pertinent information. And arguably, the ECS and Sharn books have very well established where the animosities lie. To the extent that it wouldn't be difficult to extrapolate those backward in time to recreate conditions as they stood during wartime. Lastly, those searching for crunch, there is a battlefield sourcebook for D&D which comes out next year, which will offer suggestions on employing large scale conflicts in a campaign. The information is out there and it isn't hard to find...
Foxboy2000 12-05-04, 06:24 PM	I'm of the opinion that Eberron's sourcebooks should be "present tense." What exists now, and what can I infer of the past from it? This allows for much more interesting stories in the ruins, etc...
taski 12-05-04, 06:47 PM	I'm hoping that the Five Nations (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=products/eberron/178680000) sourcebook will have enough history about the Last War that an entire sourcebook for the War won't be needed. I do want to have a good grasp of the intrigue and significant battles in the War, I just don't want buy a whole nother book.
Sabre_Spell_Blader 12-05-04, 09:34 PM	I'd buy it immediately. Peace, Sabre
Splendide 12-05-04, 09:56 PM	Not very interested, myself. Sounds like a metaplot thing.
Arcane Guyver 12-05-04, 10:05 PM	I'm hoping that the Five Nations (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=products/eberron/178680000) sourcebook will have enough history about the Last War that an entire sourcebook for the War won't be needed. I do want to have a good grasp of the intrigue and significant battles in the War, I just don't want buy a whole nother book. Ditto. Though, something about magical warfare sounds really interesting to me. Keep thinking back to that one chapter in Complete Warrior about how it could be handled... I keep trying to come up with a list of things I'd rather see about present-day Eberron, and...it's a really freaking long list. Droaam, Darguun, Sarlona...maybe a listing that shows which monsters are naturally (or just unnaturally but often) encountered in the various places of the world. I'd love to see some clearing up on the monstrous races and their current function on Eberron. Hate to say it, but the drow could use a little more detail too (not too much though :twitch: )
Gurv 12-05-04, 10:05 PM	I'd be interested in seeing a little more history of the Last War. Perhaps if someone would compile the scattered information on the War, add some dates to it, and so on. But I have no interest in playing a game set during the Last War, and I don't want WOtC spending valuable time and money on it. Sounds like a Dragonshard, not a suppliment.
Korhal IV 12-05-04, 10:08 PM	Yes and no, for reasons listed above. I think this might be good material for thirteen Dragonshards, though. Or rather, write thirteen, and then archive only twelve. :D
Pallis 12-06-04, 02:38 AM	:plotting: Like the idea Korhal...
DJDave 12-06-04, 08:34 AM	I think I'd have to say no purely for the reason that player actions during the Last War would have no impact on the outcome of the war or you will be getting silly. If you played throught the last war and your PCs were all level 18 by the end of it and still on Khorvaire then that would change the structure of the setting. Play fast and loose with the future by all means (I'm sure we all are doing/intend to) but messign with the past is dangerous
Pallis 12-06-04, 01:05 PM	Ah well, I tried... It's still something I'd like to see, but perhaps a series of dragonshards would best detail the LW, as mentioned above. I guess I was thinking along the lines of the Sovereign Press releases for the Dragonlance setting; War of The Lance and The Mortal Age, both of which allow PC groups to explore that setting in different time frames... :thinks:
CzarGarrett 12-06-04, 01:14 PM	Here we go: a Sourcebook that covers the 2 major planar invasion and the Last War. Give us some major leaders/heroes, major battle sites, and infamous heroics. I want to know some of the Hobgoblin leaders and Heroes who stood against the Daeklyr during the Xoriat invasion. Give me a few stories about battles between Giants, Dragons, and the Quori. Tell me about the Iron Legion of Thrane and its battles against Breland and Aundair. But leave a lot of room for me as the DM or Player to fill in the gaps. There might have been a siege laid on Fairhaven in 902 and then in 945, but just give me the 2 dates- allow me to decide that it was Karrnathi forces led by General Mujal. And that's my two cents.
Fedifensor 12-06-04, 01:19 PM	Would I buy a sourcebook set in the Last War? Absolutely. Do I think it would work better as a chapter in the Five Nations sourcebook? Probably. A full sourcebook would probably offer alternate endings of the war, including the possibility that the disaster in Cyre never happened and the war continues to this day. This would give Eberron much more of a 'World War' feel to it - a different flavor that isn't necessarily bad, but something WotC doesn't want to do this early in the deveopment of the campaign world. I'd really like to see a better description of the sides that fought, the alliances between rivals that developed over the course of the Last War, and how those wartime alliances continue to affect Eberron even after the Last War has ended. A description of major battles is vital for anyone who wants to start their campaign with a 'flashback' scenario, or have their group travel to old battlefields. Hopefully a chapter in Five Nations will be set aside for the war, to cover this information.
Shimura 12-09-04, 06:32 AM	Sadly I have to agree with a growing number that I wouldn't buy a whole sourcebook on it. I also think though that it would make a fantastic couple of Dragonshards. Some more info on tactics, weapons & especially any other House Cannith massive battle engines like the Argonth (sp?) that floats around Breland. I know its not particularly relevant to this thread but in the ECSB does it not say there are two of these floating cities? Where is the second one?
Splendide 12-09-04, 06:47 AM	Aren't there going to be Eberron novels based around events of the Last War?
rwarner3701 12-09-04, 09:09 AM	i agree novels would be the best way to go about detailing the last war, it would be more like a story of a specific hero or battle without the boring dates and locations that a sourcebook would need. besides, it will give us something to do making up stats for all the items, spell, and heros in the books.
Rinna 12-09-04, 10:50 AM	I'm a big history and mythology buff, even in fantasy, so I'd love to see something on the Last War, the planar invasions, the giant empire, and anything else...even if it's just as fan fiction. I don't care if it comes out as a sourcebook, as Dragonshards, as a chapter in another sourcebook, or as a novel. If it's Eberron, I'll be reading it. It doesn't need to be official. Of course, I've no problem making it up myself, I just like hearing others' take on it. Rinna
RoastSlinky 12-10-04, 05:02 AM	I'd buy it without thinking. War opens up a lot of possibilities.
ieattrollsforbreakfast 12-10-04, 06:58 PM	Although I support the idea of a LW sourcebook, I highly doubt we will get one. I'm sure the 2005 product Battlefield Adventures will deal with many of the aspects of warfare in a D&D game, leaving a potential LW sourcebook to deal with the timeline and history only if it is not to repeat material. So I think that we will more likely see the more Eberron specific aspects of war nestled in other sourcebooks (most likely Five Nations), which isnt neccessarily a bad thing.
Neofish 12-10-04, 07:47 PM	The Warfare chapter in Complete Warrior pretty much sums up magical warfare in D&D and Eberron awell... I thought the Last War was going to be a Dragonshard topic... I'm sure Five Nations has got Last War coverage in spades...
Heritage 12-11-04, 02:34 AM	I'm planning on running a game at GenCon Indy next year set during the war, following members of 'Saravin's Scoundrels', an elite Brelish scout company, as they go on a mission based on 'The Guns of Navarone'; if it does well, I'll probably do a series, one a year. I'm having lots of fun making up my own stuff about the Brelish Army, so I don't feel a pressing need for a LW book myself, but I do hope the Five Nations book offers some insight into the past relations and conflicts between the major players.
Brastan 12-11-04, 03:09 AM	I will wait until the two slated source books have been released and see what they offer. The Sharn book had some very nice gems that I would have never expected(its amazing at how much detail is pack into a paragraph let alone a chapter). A whole source book about past events is too much. I am of course curious as to what events occurred during that time period but I don't need whole chapters related to how each nation fought in it. Lets see what's in Five Nations before asking for to much more. My vote: :thumbsdow