Living Eberron - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Living Eberron

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
Plaguescarred1
Sep 23, 2011 1:58:47 I really like the concept of Living Campaign and would love to see one in the Eberron Setting one day.

Gauging interest....

Would you love to see a 4E Living Eberron ?
#2
Ogiwan
Sep 23, 2011 7:43:41 I don't know. The Living Forgotten Realms games I've played in have all been mediocre. Very much hack-and-slash, no real RP, and so on. LFR scratches the itch when I don't have an actual campaign to go to. I don't see how Living Eberron would be any different.
#3
Vestras
Sep 23, 2011 7:59:52 I am certain a fair number of players would be interested, though I personally have not yet tried a Living Campaign, the idea of an Eberron one certainly catches my interests.
#4
mellored
Sep 23, 2011 9:03:25 Probably about the same interest as LFR.

I don't think changing the setting will change a whole lot.
#5
Mand12
Sep 23, 2011 9:04:46 Start it up on the VT, Plague. Using LFR rules generally should be fine, with of course the setting-specific tweaks.
#6
Hocus-Smokus
Sep 23, 2011 10:26:47
Probably about the same interest as LFR.

I don't think changing the setting will change a whole lot.

This.
Change the names of people/places around, and that's about it.
The minute you stick a setting into the "Living" category, you almost surely doom it to mediocrity.
I'd really prefer that to not happen to Eberron.
#7
Ogiwan
Sep 23, 2011 14:37:46 Agreed, H-C.
#8
falcongk81
Sep 23, 2011 14:51:17 3.x had Xendrik Expeditions, which was a living campaign set on the Xendrik continent of Eberron. So it has been done before and could be done again in the future.

And no, the mere existance of Xendrik Expeditions didn't make Ebberon mediocre.
#9
macleanbrad
Sep 23, 2011 14:57:21 I'd play it. I enjoy LFR and play that. I really like the Eberron setting but like some criticisms above, a lot of of the story to LFR is very shallow, has to be for the framework, so when you'd start an adventure it would be in the description but the encounters would be very one size fits all and probably not very flavourful.
#10
Plaguescarred1
Sep 23, 2011 15:58:19 LFR has certainly more RP than any WoTC adventure published to this date, but then again, the RP level goes between the DM and players, some like more, some like less RP. Interaction with NPC, Investigation, Skill Challenges, LFR Adventures are all but hack & Slash for the most part...

How is a Living Campaign detrimental to a Campaign Setting ? It look the contrary to me, fueling up interest...

I think it would be interesting to see a Living Eberron and i am willing to hear more people for sure

PS I like the conversion idea Mand12 :P


#11
macleanbrad
Sep 23, 2011 16:07:13
LFR has certainly more RP than any WoTC adventure published to this date, but then again, the RP level goes between the DM and players, some like more, some like less RP. Interaction with NPC, Investigation, Skill Challenges, LFR Adventures are all but hack & Slash for the most part...

How is a Living Campaign detrimental to a Campaign Setting ? It look the contrary to me, fueling up interest...

I think it would be interesting to see a Living Eberron and i am willing to hear more people for sure

PS I like the conversion idea Mand12 :P



It's not detrimental. "Living" can't harm any settings. It's hyperbolic to say so.

I do think Living Forgotten Realms should be retired and a new setting chosen, I lean towards Eberron or Dark Sun. Love those setting.
#12
GelatinousOctahedron
Sep 23, 2011 16:20:08 I would be interested in an LEB on the VT.
#13
Istaran
Sep 23, 2011 17:02:26 I think it's more that the compaign itself will be doomed to mediocrity due to the concessions needed for the 'Living' aspect, rather than that it drags the setting itself down.

Xen'drik Expeditions was not a 'Living' campaign, though it shared some aspects of such, being a global campaign. What, exactly, makes a campaign 'living' is subject to some debate, as some claim LFR has strayed too far from it, though, as the term doesn't really have a strict definition. (What made XE different included a short module lifespan (every six months, all published adventures retired) accompanied with level bumps (when modules retired, the starting PC level in the game went up by 3, and all existing characters were pushed up to that minimum level if needed), all PCs were members of organizations that could give them orders (4 in total, and the majority of adventures were only playable by members of one particular faction, though a number of specific missions allowed cross-faction cooperation) and the published modules were much more tightly linked story wise.
Overall it played like 4 parallel fast-moving campaigns, with an intertwined overarching plot, rather than the living campaigns which are intended to recreate the life of unaligned mercenaries in a world full of happenings that have nothing to do with you.

Anyways, I have a great time with LFR, and had a great time with XE before it, but there are some definitely downsides to a global campaign, and it helps if the players/DMs roll with it as necessary, and improve upon it at the table where they can.
#14
Plaguescarred1
Sep 23, 2011 17:14:10 Oh i don't want LFR to go. But if it end sometime and they look for another Setting to make a Living Campaign into, or if they decide to get another one, i'd love to see Living Eberron.

Living Eberron on the VT would be awesome.

I think it could get similar character creation Rules, Dieties worsphipped must be Eberron, no Background from other places, no Spellscarr and no Dark Sun or Neverwinter Themes etc...

Eberron is such a wonderful place to adventure. I was not aware of Xen'drik Expeditions and i wonder how popular (or unpopular) it became.

#15
Istaran
Sep 23, 2011 17:29:19 If you want a Living Eberron, make it yourself. :P Ashes of Athas exists now because people wanted to make Living Dark Sun enough to actually volunteer their time and put it together. Obviously it takes more than one person, but why don't you start seeing what you can put together. Maybe it won't be huge.. or maybe it will snowball as initial success convinces more people to give it a try, and later more people to volunteer. Just as AoA was (is?) convention only, you can make Living Eberron (or whatever you ultimately call it) VT only if you want. That might help drive certain decisions, such as publishing module info in a VT loadable format. (I haven't tried VT myself yet, but I assume there's some way to load in map and monster info, etc.)

I had a lot of fun in XE but we had to get a core group of basically 5 DMs who rotated and played in each other's games, plus a couple additional players. One nice thing was for 4 of us DMs we basically just picked on faction to DM in and not have a PC in, so you didn't miss the mods you ran since you didn't have a PC for them anyways.

Overall, XE didn't have a lot of popularity, in part because it was competing head to head with the highly popular Living Greyhawk. It also suffered from a somewhat backward idea going around that you might as well not play because the level bumps would keep you up anyways. In reality it was sort of the opposite.. you needed to play very consistantly so you could get/stay ahead of the level bumps.. otherwise you would always be at the lowest possible level (or near it). Even if you didn't quite get ahead of the bumps you would usually end up with more wealth as well as powerful story awards if you played several games between bumps rather than none. Whereas in LG, for example, if you dusted off a character that hadn't played in a year you might still be the highest PC at the table, facing an adventure levelled for a party lower than your own level.

As for LFR, I'm hoping they at least keep going long enough to publish the capstone level 30 epic adventure planned for a few years from now. I'm kind of frustrated that I haven't had a chance to play any real epic 4e yet, and this is my best shot at it.
#16
robertread3
Oct 06, 2011 13:43:32 id play it, the only issue is that most people play LFR and you can use any LFR character together, but an issue would be you cant use them together, I dont think i would care that much but some people might find it inconveniant
#17
wulfgars
Oct 14, 2011 8:15:55 Well, i´ll be glad to help in anything that is necessary to put EBERRON in the spotlight it deserves , so if you want someone to help put together something similar to LFR , but for EBERRON , either in VT , or not , i´m here.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Plaguescarred1 Sep 23, 2011 1:58:47	I really like the concept of Living Campaign and would love to see one in the Eberron Setting one day. Gauging interest.... Would you love to see a 4E Living Eberron ?
#2 Ogiwan Sep 23, 2011 7:43:41	I don't know. The Living Forgotten Realms games I've played in have all been mediocre. Very much hack-and-slash, no real RP, and so on. LFR scratches the itch when I don't have an actual campaign to go to. I don't see how Living Eberron would be any different.
#3 Vestras Sep 23, 2011 7:59:52	I am certain a fair number of players would be interested, though I personally have not yet tried a Living Campaign, the idea of an Eberron one certainly catches my interests.
#4 mellored Sep 23, 2011 9:03:25	Probably about the same interest as LFR. I don't think changing the setting will change a whole lot.
#5 Mand12 Sep 23, 2011 9:04:46	Start it up on the VT, Plague. Using LFR rules generally should be fine, with of course the setting-specific tweaks.
#6 Hocus-Smokus Sep 23, 2011 10:26:47	Probably about the same interest as LFR. I don't think changing the setting will change a whole lot. This. Change the names of people/places around, and that's about it. The minute you stick a setting into the "Living" category, you almost surely doom it to mediocrity. I'd really prefer that to not happen to Eberron.
#7 Ogiwan Sep 23, 2011 14:37:46	Agreed, H-C.
#8 falcongk81 Sep 23, 2011 14:51:17	3.x had Xendrik Expeditions, which was a living campaign set on the Xendrik continent of Eberron. So it has been done before and could be done again in the future. And no, the mere existance of Xendrik Expeditions didn't make Ebberon mediocre.
#9 macleanbrad Sep 23, 2011 14:57:21	I'd play it. I enjoy LFR and play that. I really like the Eberron setting but like some criticisms above, a lot of of the story to LFR is very shallow, has to be for the framework, so when you'd start an adventure it would be in the description but the encounters would be very one size fits all and probably not very flavourful.
#10 Plaguescarred1 Sep 23, 2011 15:58:19	LFR has certainly more RP than any WoTC adventure published to this date, but then again, the RP level goes between the DM and players, some like more, some like less RP. Interaction with NPC, Investigation, Skill Challenges, LFR Adventures are all but hack & Slash for the most part... How is a Living Campaign detrimental to a Campaign Setting ? It look the contrary to me, fueling up interest... I think it would be interesting to see a Living Eberron and i am willing to hear more people for sure PS I like the conversion idea Mand12 :P
#11 macleanbrad Sep 23, 2011 16:07:13	LFR has certainly more RP than any WoTC adventure published to this date, but then again, the RP level goes between the DM and players, some like more, some like less RP. Interaction with NPC, Investigation, Skill Challenges, LFR Adventures are all but hack & Slash for the most part... How is a Living Campaign detrimental to a Campaign Setting ? It look the contrary to me, fueling up interest... I think it would be interesting to see a Living Eberron and i am willing to hear more people for sure PS I like the conversion idea Mand12 :P It's not detrimental. "Living" can't harm any settings. It's hyperbolic to say so. I do think Living Forgotten Realms should be retired and a new setting chosen, I lean towards Eberron or Dark Sun. Love those setting.
#12 GelatinousOctahedron Sep 23, 2011 16:20:08	I would be interested in an LEB on the VT.
#13 Istaran Sep 23, 2011 17:02:26	I think it's more that the compaign itself will be doomed to mediocrity due to the concessions needed for the 'Living' aspect, rather than that it drags the setting itself down. Xen'drik Expeditions was not a 'Living' campaign, though it shared some aspects of such, being a global campaign. What, exactly, makes a campaign 'living' is subject to some debate, as some claim LFR has strayed too far from it, though, as the term doesn't really have a strict definition. (What made XE different included a short module lifespan (every six months, all published adventures retired) accompanied with level bumps (when modules retired, the starting PC level in the game went up by 3, and all existing characters were pushed up to that minimum level if needed), all PCs were members of organizations that could give them orders (4 in total, and the majority of adventures were only playable by members of one particular faction, though a number of specific missions allowed cross-faction cooperation) and the published modules were much more tightly linked story wise. Overall it played like 4 parallel fast-moving campaigns, with an intertwined overarching plot, rather than the living campaigns which are intended to recreate the life of unaligned mercenaries in a world full of happenings that have nothing to do with you. Anyways, I have a great time with LFR, and had a great time with XE before it, but there are some definitely downsides to a global campaign, and it helps if the players/DMs roll with it as necessary, and improve upon it at the table where they can.
#14 Plaguescarred1 Sep 23, 2011 17:14:10	Oh i don't want LFR to go. But if it end sometime and they look for another Setting to make a Living Campaign into, or if they decide to get another one, i'd love to see Living Eberron. Living Eberron on the VT would be awesome. I think it could get similar character creation Rules, Dieties worsphipped must be Eberron, no Background from other places, no Spellscarr and no Dark Sun or Neverwinter Themes etc... Eberron is such a wonderful place to adventure. I was not aware of Xen'drik Expeditions and i wonder how popular (or unpopular) it became.
#15 Istaran Sep 23, 2011 17:29:19	If you want a Living Eberron, make it yourself. :P Ashes of Athas exists now because people wanted to make Living Dark Sun enough to actually volunteer their time and put it together. Obviously it takes more than one person, but why don't you start seeing what you can put together. Maybe it won't be huge.. or maybe it will snowball as initial success convinces more people to give it a try, and later more people to volunteer. Just as AoA was (is?) convention only, you can make Living Eberron (or whatever you ultimately call it) VT only if you want. That might help drive certain decisions, such as publishing module info in a VT loadable format. (I haven't tried VT myself yet, but I assume there's some way to load in map and monster info, etc.) I had a lot of fun in XE but we had to get a core group of basically 5 DMs who rotated and played in each other's games, plus a couple additional players. One nice thing was for 4 of us DMs we basically just picked on faction to DM in and not have a PC in, so you didn't miss the mods you ran since you didn't have a PC for them anyways. Overall, XE didn't have a lot of popularity, in part because it was competing head to head with the highly popular Living Greyhawk. It also suffered from a somewhat backward idea going around that you might as well not play because the level bumps would keep you up anyways. In reality it was sort of the opposite.. you needed to play very consistantly so you could get/stay ahead of the level bumps.. otherwise you would always be at the lowest possible level (or near it). Even if you didn't quite get ahead of the bumps you would usually end up with more wealth as well as powerful story awards if you played several games between bumps rather than none. Whereas in LG, for example, if you dusted off a character that hadn't played in a year you might still be the highest PC at the table, facing an adventure levelled for a party lower than your own level. As for LFR, I'm hoping they at least keep going long enough to publish the capstone level 30 epic adventure planned for a few years from now. I'm kind of frustrated that I haven't had a chance to play any real epic 4e yet, and this is my best shot at it.
#16 robertread3 Oct 06, 2011 13:43:32	id play it, the only issue is that most people play LFR and you can use any LFR character together, but an issue would be you cant use them together, I dont think i would care that much but some people might find it inconveniant
#17 wulfgars Oct 14, 2011 8:15:55	Well, i´ll be glad to help in anything that is necessary to put EBERRON in the spotlight it deserves , so if you want someone to help put together something similar to LFR , but for EBERRON , either in VT , or not , i´m here.