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Modern Day World, Advice

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
jbnonn
Jul 22, 2010 3:17:56 Hello I am creating NEW WORLD based on modern day (2010) theme, but still keeping the races and monsters of normal D&D Worlds.   I would like anyones advice or ideals that could help. Please don't comment that Shadowrun, or the Modern Day system is what I'm looking at because its not, I don't want future thing here, and I want all possibles races and things to be aviable to my players, just with a updated feel.

So far I working on the basic outline of the world, and how everthing has happen. Also I am working on one of the major citys in the game which will be a big part of the world.

Outline:
(After the great war the humans had, the world was popuation has shifted so that the humans are no long the major race. Elfs and Dwarfs are now equal if not have more people the humans. The Main city will be a partnership between the elves and dwarfs. They have join together so that there races can survive as a whole. But the humans still ahev some strong areas out there just not like in current D&D Worlds. The city will be controled by a select few, 3 elves, 3 dwarfs, and 1 other person from the minor races in the city.)
Any advice or comments will be appreciate.
#2
tarindorskildale
Jul 22, 2010 22:25:10 So DnD with guns?
#3
jbnonn
Jul 23, 2010 2:47:56 Yes, plus some other current weapson. Would like to make sure i think of the weapons and the technoloy, that elves and dwarfs would have a part of. For example would elves and dwarf or any other race use cars. Not sure because the impact that it has on the enviroment. But I would think they would come up with away to travel, other then by foot or horse.
#4
bone_naga
Jul 23, 2010 8:29:14 Check out Amethyst (a 4e GSL product) from Dias Ex Machina. It sounds like it might be exactly what you're looking for. It includes modern classes and weapons designed to work side-by-side with fantasy classes and races. The default setting excludes a lot of races and classes and bans magical races from using technology, but I believe these are all flavor points for the setting and can be tossed aside without creating balance issues.
#5
SerenaDawn
Jul 23, 2010 14:11:40 Yes, Amethyst will work for this type of game, especially when dealing with armor and weapons. There is a chapter at the end which deals with converting the rules to customize it for your own game.
#6
spadge
Jul 23, 2010 14:14:14 Evolving a fantasy setting into the present day is always going to be a difficult task. I think you might be coming at this from slightly the wrong direction. You have an setting base in which the humans have decimated themselves (as we are so often wont to do) and a reascention of elves and dwarves. But how did this happen exactly? What's more, all the other races have survived the passing of the centuries? This is the setting and you're trying to build from there. Personally I think you're going to need to go back a lot further.

What was this great war? What were the factions and what were they fighting for? How were the other races involved, were they involved at all? What triggered the war, how long did it last. Why did the elves and dwarves come out so strong?

These are massive questions, but if you answer them, if you write that war, you will end up with a thoroughly rich setting that could well write the story for you.

Example: About 70 years ago mankind had a massive war that tore a continent in twain and had almost the entire planet embroiled in the conflict. It took the combined efforts of several powerful nations to suppress the aggressor empire. Eventually the agressor empire made a couple of poor tactical descisions and they crumbled leaving their empires to be split amongst the victors.

This is, in skeleton form, the story of WWII and the time of the Nazis, and this is comparable to the description of the war you have to far. Now, it's going to be quite difficult to extract any story from that description of WWII, but when you add in the details: the Nazi conquest of Europe and their catalogue of war crimes, the americans and the atom bomb, the communist dogma of Russia, the normandy landing and the eventual split of land and resources under former Nazi control (i.e. The Berlin wall).
When you add all of that stuff you find this near shattered world of uneasy alliances and compromises, newly competing super powers and technology races, pretty much all of which lead to the cold war, a time of uncertainty and espionage and all kinds of madness.

Write the war, dude. The technology and politics and stories involved will give you all you need. For instance, one thought I had was about the Dwarves. Perhaps they became so strong after (or even during) the human's war because they were the ones mining and selling resources/ making the weapons? Have the dwarves become a nation of gunsmiths?

Hope that helps some.
Taz
#7
jbnonn
Jul 24, 2010 2:38:38 From what I have found out about Amethyst, that is not what I am looking for, but thanks for the input, some of the material might give me some ideals.

Regarding the great war comment, yes I am working out the details of the war and how it started, and yes I agree on what your saying about it will expalin a lot of how the world came to be and etc. I should have some of it done tomorrow will try and post it. So more can undertand what I am doing and what I'm looking for.

And keep the advice coming people, all is welcome.
#8
SerenaDawn
Jul 24, 2010 10:25:25 Well, I don't think we were suggesting you adopt the setting but Amethyst has the weapon, explosive, and vehicles rules you might need, along with the 4 technology-based classes.
#9
pnxer
Jul 25, 2010 13:12:15 some quick things you'll need:

a new skill:
Electronica: arcana for computers

a list of modern weapons, the amethyst material may yet be worth looking at, alternately if you want to make it a 4E mesh you could simply create weapons such as "pistol" that fire like magic missile, "flamethrower" that works like a warlock power etc. This would give you a lot of power to measure what kinds of powers/weapons you're putting in the hands of the PCs/monsters .

as for the fantasy races, why don't you use the LHC to create a dimensional rift that splices a fantasy reality with our own. Like putting too much air into a balloon. This could have some cataclysmic effects similar to a nuclear exchange etc. Alternately, the other races could have been sleeping an enchanted sleep and woken when their spell sensed that the humans had had their great war and ended their own age.
#10
jbnonn
Jul 25, 2010 18:39:52 I'm trying to find some material on Amerhyst now, will see if there is anything in there that could help me. Also I do not want a rift in time or time travel of any kind.   I know it is a way a lot of people have merged modern day with typical D&D time. But I want a completely different approach to it. With regards to the suggestion about the pistol like a magic mislle and flamethrower like a warlock power. I am looking all possible thing, put I like the way your thinking, could be a good way to figure out damage and stuff. Will keep it in mind.
#11
bone_naga
Jul 26, 2010 2:02:59
I'm trying to find some material on Amerhyst now, will see if there is anything in there that could help me. Also I do not want a rift in time or time travel of any kind.   I know it is a way a lot of people have merged modern day with typical D&D time. But I want a completely different approach to it. With regards to the suggestion about the pistol like a magic mislle and flamethrower like a warlock power. I am looking all possible thing, put I like the way your thinking, could be a good way to figure out damage and stuff. Will keep it in mind.

I have the Amethyst book and Serenadawn is the dev so if you have any questions about it feel free to ask. Some things in the book that might be of interest to you: 4 tech-based classes, firearms, explosives, and other weapons/equipment, vehicles, new skills (Engineering, Demolition, etc), and some new fantasy stuff that isn't really essential for your campaign, but you might decide you like some of it and import it into your game. You can completely toss out the setting and use your own premise for the mixing of science and magic and the rules will still work fine.
#12
Jharii
Jul 26, 2010 7:17:02
Also I do not want a rift in time or time travel of any kind.   I know it is a way a lot of people have merged modern day with typical D&D time. But I want a completely different approach to it.

A Hollow World type world could work, with the technologically advanced living above ground while the more "primitive" lives below ground.

You could also have a unique planet that is split in half by some type of naturally occuring energy barrier; picture Saturn's rings, but splitting the planet. Holes are starting to be discovered in the barrier...

#13
AdmiralRanger
Jul 28, 2010 14:39:54
My favorite setting is one I made based on the real world (I have even made my own roleplaying game to represent it better,) and the thing that I found was that you do not need the fantasy races to come back to force, it works well if the only people who know about it are a few elite organisations (that the pcs are part of.) In my setting the organisations are govermental but in another setting you can imagine the goverment fighting the loonys who rampage about society killing those they claim to be "werewolfs," or whatever. In the setting the goverment is desprate to prevent knowledge of the fantasy races leaking out. On another point the dwarths are just living under the ground until they come to investigate the explosions on the surface. The elfes live in magicly hidden cities but as a result of the war the magic is failing. Other excuses can be made for any race.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 jbnonn Jul 22, 2010 3:17:56	Hello I am creating NEW WORLD based on modern day (2010) theme, but still keeping the races and monsters of normal D&D Worlds. I would like anyones advice or ideals that could help. Please don't comment that Shadowrun, or the Modern Day system is what I'm looking at because its not, I don't want future thing here, and I want all possibles races and things to be aviable to my players, just with a updated feel. So far I working on the basic outline of the world, and how everthing has happen. Also I am working on one of the major citys in the game which will be a big part of the world. Outline: (After the great war the humans had, the world was popuation has shifted so that the humans are no long the major race. Elfs and Dwarfs are now equal if not have more people the humans. The Main city will be a partnership between the elves and dwarfs. They have join together so that there races can survive as a whole. But the humans still ahev some strong areas out there just not like in current D&D Worlds. The city will be controled by a select few, 3 elves, 3 dwarfs, and 1 other person from the minor races in the city.) Any advice or comments will be appreciate.
#2 tarindorskildale Jul 22, 2010 22:25:10	So DnD with guns?
#3 jbnonn Jul 23, 2010 2:47:56	Yes, plus some other current weapson. Would like to make sure i think of the weapons and the technoloy, that elves and dwarfs would have a part of. For example would elves and dwarf or any other race use cars. Not sure because the impact that it has on the enviroment. But I would think they would come up with away to travel, other then by foot or horse.
#4 bone_naga Jul 23, 2010 8:29:14	Check out Amethyst (a 4e GSL product) from Dias Ex Machina. It sounds like it might be exactly what you're looking for. It includes modern classes and weapons designed to work side-by-side with fantasy classes and races. The default setting excludes a lot of races and classes and bans magical races from using technology, but I believe these are all flavor points for the setting and can be tossed aside without creating balance issues.
#5 SerenaDawn Jul 23, 2010 14:11:40	Yes, Amethyst will work for this type of game, especially when dealing with armor and weapons. There is a chapter at the end which deals with converting the rules to customize it for your own game.
#6 spadge Jul 23, 2010 14:14:14	Evolving a fantasy setting into the present day is always going to be a difficult task. I think you might be coming at this from slightly the wrong direction. You have an setting base in which the humans have decimated themselves (as we are so often wont to do) and a reascention of elves and dwarves. But how did this happen exactly? What's more, all the other races have survived the passing of the centuries? This is the setting and you're trying to build from there. Personally I think you're going to need to go back a lot further. What was this great war? What were the factions and what were they fighting for? How were the other races involved, were they involved at all? What triggered the war, how long did it last. Why did the elves and dwarves come out so strong? These are massive questions, but if you answer them, if you write that war, you will end up with a thoroughly rich setting that could well write the story for you. Example: About 70 years ago mankind had a massive war that tore a continent in twain and had almost the entire planet embroiled in the conflict. It took the combined efforts of several powerful nations to suppress the aggressor empire. Eventually the agressor empire made a couple of poor tactical descisions and they crumbled leaving their empires to be split amongst the victors. This is, in skeleton form, the story of WWII and the time of the Nazis, and this is comparable to the description of the war you have to far. Now, it's going to be quite difficult to extract any story from that description of WWII, but when you add in the details: the Nazi conquest of Europe and their catalogue of war crimes, the americans and the atom bomb, the communist dogma of Russia, the normandy landing and the eventual split of land and resources under former Nazi control (i.e. The Berlin wall). When you add all of that stuff you find this near shattered world of uneasy alliances and compromises, newly competing super powers and technology races, pretty much all of which lead to the cold war, a time of uncertainty and espionage and all kinds of madness. Write the war, dude. The technology and politics and stories involved will give you all you need. For instance, one thought I had was about the Dwarves. Perhaps they became so strong after (or even during) the human's war because they were the ones mining and selling resources/ making the weapons? Have the dwarves become a nation of gunsmiths? Hope that helps some. Taz
#7 jbnonn Jul 24, 2010 2:38:38	From what I have found out about Amethyst, that is not what I am looking for, but thanks for the input, some of the material might give me some ideals. Regarding the great war comment, yes I am working out the details of the war and how it started, and yes I agree on what your saying about it will expalin a lot of how the world came to be and etc. I should have some of it done tomorrow will try and post it. So more can undertand what I am doing and what I'm looking for. And keep the advice coming people, all is welcome.
#8 SerenaDawn Jul 24, 2010 10:25:25	Well, I don't think we were suggesting you adopt the setting but Amethyst has the weapon, explosive, and vehicles rules you might need, along with the 4 technology-based classes.
#9 pnxer Jul 25, 2010 13:12:15	some quick things you'll need: a new skill: Electronica: arcana for computers a list of modern weapons, the amethyst material may yet be worth looking at, alternately if you want to make it a 4E mesh you could simply create weapons such as "pistol" that fire like magic missile, "flamethrower" that works like a warlock power etc. This would give you a lot of power to measure what kinds of powers/weapons you're putting in the hands of the PCs/monsters . as for the fantasy races, why don't you use the LHC to create a dimensional rift that splices a fantasy reality with our own. Like putting too much air into a balloon. This could have some cataclysmic effects similar to a nuclear exchange etc. Alternately, the other races could have been sleeping an enchanted sleep and woken when their spell sensed that the humans had had their great war and ended their own age.
#10 jbnonn Jul 25, 2010 18:39:52	I'm trying to find some material on Amerhyst now, will see if there is anything in there that could help me. Also I do not want a rift in time or time travel of any kind. I know it is a way a lot of people have merged modern day with typical D&D time. But I want a completely different approach to it. With regards to the suggestion about the pistol like a magic mislle and flamethrower like a warlock power. I am looking all possible thing, put I like the way your thinking, could be a good way to figure out damage and stuff. Will keep it in mind.
#11 bone_naga Jul 26, 2010 2:02:59	I'm trying to find some material on Amerhyst now, will see if there is anything in there that could help me. Also I do not want a rift in time or time travel of any kind. I know it is a way a lot of people have merged modern day with typical D&D time. But I want a completely different approach to it. With regards to the suggestion about the pistol like a magic mislle and flamethrower like a warlock power. I am looking all possible thing, put I like the way your thinking, could be a good way to figure out damage and stuff. Will keep it in mind. I have the Amethyst book and Serenadawn is the dev so if you have any questions about it feel free to ask. Some things in the book that might be of interest to you: 4 tech-based classes, firearms, explosives, and other weapons/equipment, vehicles, new skills (Engineering, Demolition, etc), and some new fantasy stuff that isn't really essential for your campaign, but you might decide you like some of it and import it into your game. You can completely toss out the setting and use your own premise for the mixing of science and magic and the rules will still work fine.
#12 Jharii Jul 26, 2010 7:17:02	Also I do not want a rift in time or time travel of any kind. I know it is a way a lot of people have merged modern day with typical D&D time. But I want a completely different approach to it. A Hollow World type world could work, with the technologically advanced living above ground while the more "primitive" lives below ground. You could also have a unique planet that is split in half by some type of naturally occuring energy barrier; picture Saturn's rings, but splitting the planet. Holes are starting to be discovered in the barrier...
#13 AdmiralRanger Jul 28, 2010 14:39:54	My favorite setting is one I made based on the real world (I have even made my own roleplaying game to represent it better,) and the thing that I found was that you do not need the fantasy races to come back to force, it works well if the only people who know about it are a few elite organisations (that the pcs are part of.) In my setting the organisations are govermental but in another setting you can imagine the goverment fighting the loonys who rampage about society killing those they claim to be "werewolfs," or whatever. In the setting the goverment is desprate to prevent knowledge of the fantasy races leaking out. On another point the dwarths are just living under the ground until they come to investigate the explosions on the surface. The elfes live in magicly hidden cities but as a result of the war the magic is failing. Other excuses can be made for any race.