Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Judas_777 10-27-05, 06:01 AM	Greetings all, I'm a DM who is new to Eberron, having only just picked up the Campaign Setting on monday. I've been leafing through the book and I have some questions I hope you can answer. 1) How feasible is it to introduce the various new character classes from the Complete books and the Miniature's Handbook? The Marshal seems pretty easy, as does the Warmage, but the others are giving me some problems. Any suggestions for each of the new classes? 2) Does gunpowder exist in Eberron? It seems like a world torn with war for the last 50 years could easily have stumbled across the secrets of its creation, but there is no mention of it anywhere in the campaign setting that I can find. 3) Is it just me or are the Warforged (and the Shifters to a lesser extent) weak races? They both seem very cool, but are they lacking in power? I was thinking of allowing each of them to take a Warforged or Shifter feat for free at first level, but I'm not sure... Do they play better than they look? 4) How powerful are the Dragonmarked Houses? I understand that they have huge economic power, but does that translate to political power? Also, how would the houses react to a PC with a dragonmark who wasn't a member of the house? ie. an independant adventurer with no ties to the house other than race. 5) I have also picked up the Expanded Psionics Handbook, and I have to say that I find it one of the best books I've picked up in a long time. But I have some questions about it. Do psionic powers require focuses? I'd assume not, but for example, does Psionic Identify require a 100gc Pearl like the spell, or just time and power points? Also how prevalent are psionics within Eberron? I know the Kalashar have a large number of psionic members, but what about the other races? Would a commoner understand what he was seeing when a psion manifested a power? Or would he assume it was magic? 6) How much of an impact do Action Points have, both in comabat and out? Do they make a huge difference, or (as I see it without actually having used them yet) do they just give the players a safety net to compensate for bad dice rolls? 7) How useful is Races of Eberron? I understans that it is not an Eberron book, but rather a universal campaign book. Would it provide a greater understanding of the Kalashar race (the race I have the hardest time understanding its goals, motivations and outlook) to a group of players without Eberron experience? Or does it just recap information presented in the campaign setting? 8) Should I wait until I can get a copy of Magic of Eberron befor starting a campaign, or should I take a leap and start asap? I have a copy on order, but it is about 3 weeks away... So how useful is it to first level characters? Does it provide an insight into the world that i'm better off waiting to read befor starting, or is it just crunch for mid-level magic users? I know this has turned into quite a long list of questions, and I appreciate any help the forumites can give me. Cheers, Judas.
The Forgotten Traveler 10-27-05, 06:42 AM	2) Does gunpowder exist in Eberron? It seems like a world torn with war for the last 50 years could easily have stumbled across the secrets of its creation, but there is no mention of it anywhere in the campaign setting that I can find. To answer your question, gunpowder does not exist in Eberron. However, you could Houserule that gunpowder does exist in Eberron. 4) How powerful are the Dragonmarked Houses? I understand that they have huge economic power, but does that translate to political power? Also, how would the houses react to a PC with a dragonmark who wasn't a member of the house? ie. an independant adventurer with no ties to the house other than race. I'm afraid that PC wouldn't work unless you made one little tweak. You see, the dragonmarks go down through a family. So, the PC would have to be part of one of the houses. And the house would not be happy. Dragonmarks are rare. So, if a dragonmarked member became an adventurer and left the house, the house would be displeased. Hope that helps! :)
Ricohard_Draconis 10-27-05, 07:36 AM	1) How feasible is it to introduce the various new character classes from the Complete books and the Miniature's Handbook? The Marshal seems pretty easy, as does the Warmage, but the others are giving me some problems. Any suggestions for each of the new classes? not to bad. a lot of people tie the asian influence classes into the ancient d'kanni (sp?) empire (the hobgoblins and goblins) or Reidra and the inspired. coveworld (http://www.coveworld.net/eberron/conversions.html), the people their have conversions there for all of them as possible ideas. 2) Does gunpowder exist in Eberron? It seems like a world torn with war for the last 50 years could easily have stumbled across the secrets of its creation, but there is no mention of it anywhere in the campaign setting that I can find. well given the wide range of magic, yes it might exist but its not really used if it does exist, whats the point when a magewright with a wand of fireball is not only more reliable than early muskets but does a hell of a lot more damage especially to the undead of karrnath. 3) Is it just me or are the Warforged (and the Shifters to a lesser extent) weak races? They both seem very cool, but are they lacking in power? I was thinking of allowing each of them to take a Warforged or Shifter feat for free at first level, but I'm not sure... Do they play better than they look? The warforged are very powerful especially with the body feats, there are quite a few people who think they should have been LA +1. The shifters are pretty decent with the right selection of shifter feats, especially if they have access to Races of eberron and are going druid. 4) How powerful are the Dragonmarked Houses? I understand that they have huge economic power, but does that translate to political power? Also, how would the houses react to a PC with a dragonmark who wasn't a member of the house? ie. an independant adventurer with no ties to the house other than race. Politically they're powerful for their services and their money, think the Medici's in Renaisance italy. As for the independent adventurer works if he has a blood connection, though it could be a hidden blood connection, such as the son of an excoriat (exiled) heir or some lost branch of the house. 5) I have also picked up the Expanded Psionics Handbook, and I have to say that I find it one of the best books I've picked up in a long time. But I have some questions about it. Do psionic powers require focuses? I'd assume not, but for example, does Psionic Identify require a 100gc Pearl like the spell, or just time and power points? Also how prevalent are psionics within Eberron? I know the Kalashar have a large number of psionic members, but what about the other races? Would a commoner understand what he was seeing when a psion manifested a power? Or would he assume it was magic? For the first question, i don't believe that they do, and for the second, if your using normal transparancy then he's got the same chance of identifying a psionic power as he has a spell (its magic is enough for most people, really who cares how he's setting the air aflame as long as he's doing it at the enemy. 6) How much of an impact do Action Points have, both in comabat and out? Do they make a huge difference, or (as I see it without actually having used them yet) do they just give the players a safety net to compensate for bad dice rolls? They're not just a safety net, i've seen players do the heroic things they wouldn't normally attempt, (jump the rift in full plate, sneak up on the villain, etc) because of the bonus, plus they're darn useful for the artificer to increase the speed of his infusions during changeing combat encounters. 7) How useful is Races of Eberron? I understans that it is not an Eberron book, but rather a universal campaign book. Would it provide a greater understanding of the Kalashar race (the race I have the hardest time understanding its goals, motivations and outlook) to a group of players without Eberron experience? Or does it just recap information presented in the campaign setting? The Klashtar racial stuff, along with most of the racial stuff, is pretty good as long as you remember that RoE plays up the stereotypes, also remember that ECS should take precidence and its pretty useful, especially the Klashtar stuff actually, their write up is alright from what i've seen. Just be careful about the rulings and the mechanical stuff, some of it is over powered. 8) Should I wait until I can get a copy of Magic of Eberron befor starting a campaign, or should I take a leap and start asap? I have a copy on order, but it is about 3 weeks away... So how useful is it to first level characters? Does it provide an insight into the world that i'm better off waiting to read befor starting, or is it just crunch for mid-level magic users? MoE is alright but its not that neccessary, most of the Fluff is specific that is unlikely to appear with out requireing and the only low level stuff is a few infusions. welcome to the world of Eberron, i hope this helps.
JohnnyONeal 10-27-05, 08:11 AM	Good questions. Here are some answers! And be sure to check out the newbie FAQ (http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=254109) if you haven't already. 1. Converting prestige classes to Eberron is pretty easy. Here are some ideas for Complete Arcane (http://www.coveworld.net/eberron/conversions-ca.html), Complete Warrior (http://www.coveworld.net/eberron/conversions-cw.html), and Complete Divine (http://www.coveworld.net/eberron/conversions-cd.html). 2. The designers wanted Eberron to be a world about heroes with wands and swords, and intentionally shied away from including gunpowder and steam technology. The setting is less about "magitech" and more about magic explored to its fullest. As for what "makes sense," here's a quote from Keith Baker on the subject: "The basic idea is that magic has always been a part of society, and it is what the scholars and philosophers have focused their energy on. They know that fireball exists, and have therefore worked on ways to produce fireballs more efficiently. They know how to enchant weapons, so they have produced enchanted siege weaponry. Perhaps some culture will eventually produce gunpowder weapons. But at the moment, magic is a versatile enough tool that people have not felt the need to look beyond it." 3. If anything, most people accuse warforged of being overpowered, especially at lower levels. Don't overlook the advantages of their immunities and their built-in light fortification. In my experience they're a very well-balanced race and don't need any help. Shifters are more of a mid-level race in terms of power, but the feats and spells in Races of Eberron give them a boost. Changelings are probably the "weakest" of the new races from a munchkin perspective, but they're a ton of fun to play. Overall, I'd advise against giving any of the races an artificial advantage. These Wizards of the Coast folks seem to know what they're doing when it comes to game balance. 4. The dragonmarked houses' political power should be quite strong, especially now that Galifar is no longer united. Their power is theoretically limited by the fact that they don't have standing armies, though Lyrandar has its fleets, Deneith has its mercenaries, and Cannith has amazing constructs and siege engines. Thus far, though, the houses seem more concerned with amassing economic power than ruling nations. The Forgotten Traveler is actually mistaken about question #4. Dragonmarked individuals without a direct house affiliation are called foundlings. Some people are just born with dragonmarks, either through unknown family connections or the same spontaneous magical circumstances that caused the appearance of the marks in the ancestors of current house members. They're an accepted part of the system, and the houses will actively try to recruit them. If they're not interested in joining, the houses won't necessarily hassle them (but never say never). 5. It's my understanding that psionic powers never have material components or foci. As for the general level of awareness about psionics, it's pretty low. The average person is unaware of it and would assume it was a type of sorcery. Most psionic characters operating in Khorvaire are likely to suppress their displays, and people who see psionics in action will probably assume it's a type of sorcery. If a character has a few ranks in Knowledge (arcana), it's safe to assume that they're vaguely aware of the existence of "the mysterious mind-magic of the East." Or you could rule that a PC has familiarity with psionics due to some aspect of his background. To help preserve the mystery of psionics in your Eberron campaign, consider checking out the Eberron Journal's article on psionics in Eberron (http://www.coveworld.net/eberron/psionics-in-eb.html). 6. I'm a big fan of action points. In the games I've participated in, players actually use them to pull off cool stunts or augment important rolls, which makes things a bit more like a movie and a bit less like real life. Of course, most folks tend to use them conservatively and save a couple for life-saving situations. That helps preserve another aspect of Eberron's flavor: the rarity of raise dead and similar magic. 7. The concept of Races of Eberron as a general D&D supplement was mostly an attempt to show non-Eberron fans that it's worth buying for homebrew stuff. But it actually spends no more than a few pages covering information that's in the Eberron Campaign Setting book. I consider it a must-have for any Eberron campaign. Coincidentally enough, the chapter on the kalashtar (written by Keith Baker) is my favorite part of the book! It should definitely help you understand their secret war with the Quori. 8. You can definitely wait a few weeks for Magic of Eberron. It's got some content that's relevant to first-level characters (including a new race), but its feats, spells and magic items fit into campaigns at all levels of play. While very cool, its content is more about the rare and exotic than the core Eberron experience. Next to the Eberron Campaign Setting book itself, the best "sourcebook" for Eberron is available for free online: Keith Baker's Dragonshards (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/archeb/ds) articles. Read them all. After that, I'd prioritize Races of Eberron, Magic of Eberron, the Explorer's Handbook, the Five Nations, and Sharn: City of Towers (which moves higher on the list if you're running a Sharn-based campaign). For more ideas about the setting, you might want to pick up novels like The City of Towers (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0786935847/bossythecow-20?creative=327641&camp=14573&link_code=as1), The Binding Stone (http://www.amazon.com/exec/ASIN/078693784X/bossythecow-20?creative=327641&camp=14573&link_code=as1), and The Orb of Xoriat (http://www.amazon.com/exec/ASIN/0786938196/bossythecow-20?creative=327641&camp=14573&link_code=as1). Enjoy the setting!
Bluebrush 10-27-05, 08:49 AM	Some people are just born with dragonmarks, either through unknown family connections or the same spontaneous magical circumstances that caused the appearance of the marks in the ancestors of current house members.The latter part is incorrect. In modern times, true dragonmarks only appear on those blood-related to the house and of the correct race. A mark might appear in someone with no apparent link to the family due to mistaken beliefs about one's ancestry. Even if it's several generations ago, if you've got the right ancestors and the right race you can get the mark. Aberrant marks are a different matter. Aberrant marks can appear on any dragonmarkable race (Read: The PHB races) completely at random. However you can more reliably create a subtype of Aberrant mark called a Mixed Mark (A mixed mark is functionally identical to a randomly occouring aberrant mark) by crossing the blood of two dragonmarked families (say, Denieth and Cannith) which signifigantly increases the likelyhood of getting an aberrant mark.
cmanos 10-27-05, 09:01 AM	Greetings all, Welcome to the addiction! 1) How feasible is it to introduce the various new character classes from the Complete books and the Miniature's Handbook? I can pretty much see most of the classes from the complete series in Eberron. I personally do not allow the oriental classes, but that is just me. 2) Does gunpowder exist in Eberron? Not sure if gunpowder exists, ther ehas been absolutely no mention of it in any books. I assume no, as there is a prevalence of wands whcih can be more devestating than gund in some cases. 3) Is it just me or are the Warforged (and the Shifters to a lesser extent) weak races? I haven't actually played either race. There is a lot of debate on if warforged are actually too powerful. Shifters I think are just very very very cool. 4) How powerful are the Dragonmarked Houses? I understand that they have huge economic power, but does that translate to political power? Also, how would the houses react to a PC with a dragonmark who wasn't a member of the house? ie. an independant adventurer with no ties to the house other than race. They would probably be doing everything in their power to get the character 'back in the fold'. Dragonmarks are rare and they are really the strong point of the Houses. Any character that has a mark, is of a lineage that places them in the house already. That said, I'm sure there are those who have forsaken their house and gone off to adventure. 5) I have also picked up the Expanded Psionics Handbook, and I have to say that I find it one of the best books I've picked up in a long time. But I have some questions about it. Excellent book. Also how prevalent are psionics within Eberron? I know the Kalashar have a large number of psionic members, but what about the other races? Would a commoner understand what he was seeing when a psion manifested a power? Or would he assume it was magic? Psionics are as prevalent in Eberron as in any other setting. Kalashtar and Inspired all have at least a very basic psionic ability. Other races have psionics as well, I just don't see it as extremely world-encompassing. I don't know if a Khorvaran commoner could tell the difference between a magical spell, a psionic effect or an incarnum effect. They would probably see it all as some mystical form of power. 6) How much of an impact do Action Points have, both in comabat and out? Do they make a huge difference, or (as I see it without actually having used them yet) do they just give the players a safety net to compensate for bad dice rolls? The one Eberron game I ran, no one used them. I'll let someone else comment on these. Personally I don't see them as unbalancing. 7) How useful is Races of Eberron? I understans that it is not an Eberron book, but rather a universal campaign book. Would it provide a greater understanding of the Kalashar race (the race I have the hardest time understanding its goals, motivations and outlook) to a group of players without Eberron experience? Or does it just recap information presented in the campaign setting? If there is one book you buy for Eberron, buy this one. The kalashtar chapter is one of the best things I've seen in a long time. It provides extremely in depth details about the different races, as well as racial feats and PrC's 8) Should I wait until I can get a copy of Magic of Eberron befor starting a campaign, or should I take a leap and start asap? Mine should arrive tomorrow. You don't need it to run a game. All you really need is ECS and Core books. Welcome aboard and don't be a stranger!
tuffn00gies 10-27-05, 09:23 AM	7) How useful is Races of Eberron? I understans that it is not an Eberron book, but rather a universal campaign book. Would it provide a greater understanding of the Kalashar race (the race I have the hardest time understanding its goals, motivations and outlook) to a group of players without Eberron experience? Or does it just recap information presented in the campaign setting? My biggest disappointment with RoE is that it's not an Eberron book. The chapter on Kalashtar is excellent and really fleshed out the race. The chapter on Changelings is a little weak, but still good. The ECS, Sharn, and RoE are my favorite "Eberron" books so far.
Judas_777 10-29-05, 03:59 AM	Thankyou everyone who replied. I really don't see the big thing about Warforged. The only good thing is the light fortification. And as a downside they are pretty much burning a feat at first level to take the body type they want. If any one else wants to chip in with some responses to any of my questions, please go ahead, as I'll be watching this thread intently. Cheers, Judas.
Ricohard_Draconis 10-29-05, 06:02 AM	other bonuses of the warforged -immune to charm/ dominate/ hold/ etc person -immune to poisons -can arcanely healed (repair spells) -work amazing well with the Artificer -sure adamantine body costs a feat but it is quite potent, full plate with DR at first level is quite good. -immunity to fatigue- potent barbarians. -bonus hitpoints. For a fighter type the mental downsides aren't that great (especially since through Juggernaut they can gain immunity to mind affecting spells). -a natural attack that can be improved quite easily. and more
KingNeo 10-29-05, 02:51 PM	other bonuses of the warforged -immune to charm/ dominate/ hold/ etc person -immune to poisons -can arcanely healed (repair spells) -work amazing well with the Artificer -sure adamantine body costs a feat but it is quite potent, full plate with DR at first level is quite good. -immunity to fatigue- potent barbarians. -bonus hitpoints. For a fighter type the mental downsides aren't that great (especially since through Juggernaut they can gain immunity to mind affecting spells). -a natural attack that can be improved quite easily. and more And one of my favorites for the Warforged, they can embed special weapons and other magical items designed just for them called Warforged Components. Add this with enchanting their own weapons and armor, and you have something to truly fear.
Lurkalot 10-29-05, 06:41 PM	Not much to add to the replies you've already had but a couple of things to note. 2) Does gunpowder exist in Eberron? It seems like a world torn with war for the last 50 years could easily have stumbled across the secrets of its creation, but there is no mention of it anywhere in the campaign setting that I can find. There is no gunpowder suggested anywhere in the Eberron books. One thing that should be grasped is that Eberron is not a medieval setting. It does not correspond to any point in human history including technologically because you have advanced mercantile cultures with long distance communications systems and identification systems that don't even use pullies as a rule. Check out the Sharn sourcebook. Levitation discs haul cargos from the river below up to the city at the head of the cliffs above. The humanoid civilisations in Eberron are thousands of years old and are older than our real world societies; but they have no great technological advancement. It's simply not the direction they're going in. 4) How powerful are the Dragonmarked Houses? I understand that they have huge economic power, but does that translate to political power? Also, how would the houses react to a PC with a dragonmark who wasn't a member of the house? ie. an independant adventurer with no ties to the house other than race. Your call, but as written, pretty powerful. Think Mafia with less of an interest in crime and more of an interest in legitimate business. Very powerful mercantile families with a strong reason to keep their ties as a family (dragon marks are hereditary). 6) How much of an impact do Action Points have, both in comabat and out? Do they make a huge difference, or (as I see it without actually having used them yet) do they just give the players a safety net to compensate for bad dice rolls? About time D&D had a system like this. Like Karma in Shadowrun, Will in Vampire or Fate Points in Warhammer Role-play. Will make your PCs much more heroic. Hope that helps, -K.