Levistus's_Leviathan
5e Freelancer
Ever since Wizards of the Coast released the Travelers of the Multiverse Unearthed Arcana last October there has been a lot of speculation and theorization about how the setting would be translated to D&D 5e. There have been quite a few changes to both the D&D ruleset and its cosmology since the setting's last full appearance in AD&D 2e, many of which could affect the difficulty of translating the setting to 5e's ruleset and cosmology. From the additions of certain newer Planes of Existence (the Feywild and Shadowfell) to the revised history of D&D's cosmology (through the First World Creation Myth from Fizban's Treasury of Dragons) to the changes to how Spelljamming Helms work (contained in Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage) to the additions of multiple settings without Crystal Spheres (Theros, Ravnica, Strixhaven, and Eberron), there is certainly a lot of work that needs to be done to semi-accurately translate the setting to D&D 5e.
Although we will not know for sure what will stay the same and what will change about the setting, we can speculate. And, given that we have had quite a few Easter Eggs and cameos to Spelljammer throughout the history of official D&D 5e products and have seen how Wizards of the Coast has translated other old settings to D&D 5e, we can make some pretty good guesses and predictions about the major changes that will be made to the overall setting in whatever future sourcebook the Travelers of the Multiverse UA gets officially published into.
Additionally, this post will be largely cover the most major and likely changes to Spelljammer that could be made if/when it gets officially published in D&D 5e. The setting is just too big to cover literally everything that could possibly change.
Now, let's get to the speculation.
Those are my predictions and thoughts on how Spelljammer could change in an official D&D 5e setting book. What are your thoughts? Any disagreements on any of the changes that I think will be made? Do you have any other suggestions for what could change? What creatures from older Spelljammer Monster Compendiums do you think will come back and which ones do you think will be abandoned? Do you think that Wildspace in the Feywild or Shadowfell will be covered at all? What are your thoughts on those concepts proposed in this post?
Feel free to discuss all things related to this topic and the questions below.
Although we will not know for sure what will stay the same and what will change about the setting, we can speculate. And, given that we have had quite a few Easter Eggs and cameos to Spelljammer throughout the history of official D&D 5e products and have seen how Wizards of the Coast has translated other old settings to D&D 5e, we can make some pretty good guesses and predictions about the major changes that will be made to the overall setting in whatever future sourcebook the Travelers of the Multiverse UA gets officially published into.
Additionally, this post will be largely cover the most major and likely changes to Spelljammer that could be made if/when it gets officially published in D&D 5e. The setting is just too big to cover literally everything that could possibly change.
Now, let's get to the speculation.
What Will Definitely Change?
There are very few things that we can 100% say will change when it gets officially translated to D&D 5e, but here are some of the things that I think will definitely change about it in a future release of the setting:- Aperusa will either go the way of the Dodo, or they will get a similar treatment to what was received by the Vistani in Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft. As they're not at all a major part of the setting, I think they'll just not be included at all in an official 5e Spelljammer book, being retconned out of existence (much like the Caliban from Ravenloft), but there is a chance that they stick around. They could get a more explicit connection to the Vistani from Ravenloft, being stated to just be Vistani that made their way to Wildspace, which could be used as a way to further connect the D&D Multiverse.
- Races presented in the book will no longer have attached cultural proficiencies or stereotypes, such as the Giff with their connection to gunpowder and firearms. There might be small sections mentioning connections like these, but otherwise, culture will be entirely removed from playable races presented in the setting, opening them up for a larger variety of themes. The book will probably mention how the dominant Giff culture in much of Wildspace is very fond of firearms, but also mention how a Giff raised in other environments might prefer studying magic or repairing Spelljamming ships.
- Most non-iconic monsters from Spelljammer's previous monster compendiums will not be present in the setting. Now, this one is a bit broader than the others, but I still think it's sure to happen if/when D&D 5e gets an official Spelljammer book. Spelljammer has had dozens of different original creatures created specifically to inhabit the setting in the bestiaries that were published for it, and many of them are either redundant with more classic D&D monsters or are just entirely unnecessary to the core ideas and themes of the setting. For example, some creatures that will almost definitely make it into a Spelljammer Bestiary are; Giant Space Hamsters, Dohwar and their Space Swine mounts, Arcane, Neogi, and Oortlings. However, stuff like Kindori (space whales), K'r'r'r (yes, that really is their name), Space Mimics, and Syllix will probably not make it into the book.
- The way that Spelljamming Helms function will definitely change, based on what we've seen of them from Dungeon of the Mad Mage. They'll probably no longer prevent you from casting spells (a bit ironic with the name that means "jamming/stopping spells"), will create oxygen for the ship instead of making the DM keep track of it, and will be simplified into just a few different types to avoid extra paperwork when using them. This and much of the rest of the setting that previously required a lot of notes to keep track of will be simplified to make for an easier time for those playing in the setting.
- The setting will use Vehicle mechanics similar to those presented in Ghosts of Saltmarsh and Baldur's Gate: Descent into Avernus for Spelljammers and other vehicles that are major parts of the setting. If they use Action Stations (vehicle weapons) like the Infernal War-Machines from Descent into Avernus, that could be a surefire way to make space combat much more exciting than it used to be in Spelljammer. Vehicles are a major part of Spelljammer, and since we have functioning Vehicle rules in 5e already, it just makes sense to use them in this product.
- Edit: @James Gasik mentioned that Spelljammer originally had clerics and other divine spellcasters not be able to gain their magic in other crystal spheres that their god(s) weren't present in. Due to a fundamental change in how Divine spellcasting works from earlier editions, a 5e version of Spelljammer would definitely change this.
What Will Probably Change?
This is more based on opinion and speculation than the above section. There are much more things that are "probably" going to happen than what is all but confirmed to change in whatever Spelljammer product we will get for D&D 5e. Here are some options:- The Rock of Bral will get an entire section of the book to outline the natural starting point of many Spelljammer campaigns, much like how Sharn does in Eberron: Rising from the Last War. There will probably also be a tie-in adventure that takes place/starts on the Rock of Bral in order to easily introduce players to the overall feel of the setting. There will probably also be a poster map in the back of the book for the Rock of Bral, like how a lot of 5e books have now (maybe with Realmspace on the other side).
- Gith and Illithids will have a larger role in this version of Spelljammer than they did in the original version of the setting. Originally, the few Gith that were present in Spelljammer were just called "pirates of Gith", and didn't have a major role in the setting, while Mind Flayers (the sworn enemies of both Githyanki and Githzerai) very much did. We've already seen from the various cameos of Spelljammer that we've had since D&D 5e was first released that there seems to be an even larger focus on the Illithids than there was before, through the focus on Mind Flayers in Baldur's Gate 3, to the crashed Nautiloid ship and Gnome Ceremorphs in Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden, to the Squid Ship with a Mind Flayer pilot trapped in Undermountain. When Spelljammer gets officially published, I fully expect Illithids and their conflicts with the Gith to become a larger focal point of the setting, with advice on how to incorporate both sides into an adventure/encounter.
- I think Aberrations, in general, will be a bigger focus of the setting's bestiary, as they are the "alien" creature type and it makes sense for them to have a major role in the Outer Space campaign setting. The setting already had a major focus on Neogi, Beholders, and Illithids, so expanding that theme a bit more to include stuff like Star Spawn, Flumphs, Morkoth, and possibly Slaad would definitely make sense for the world.
- Wizards of the Coast will work to incorporate all of the classes and a few newer subclasses into the setting. Stuff like the Circle of Stars Druid, Twilight Clerics, the Artificer class, possibly the new Lunar Sorcerer, and so on. They'll try to give a place in this setting for every class and role that a character can be.
- The Feywildspace and Shadowfellspace, maybe? It probably won't get much information, but I'm guessing that WotC will at least touch on what Wildspace looks like in both the Feywild and Shadowfell. Maybe in the Shadowfell, all stars are replaced with Black Holes, and that's why it's always dark in the Shadowfell? (I don't know how you would emulate the eternal twilight and "ever-setting sun" in the Feywild, though.) Anyway, I think that connecting Wildspace to D&D's Feywild and Shadowfell would be a smart move because it would both make traveling in Spelljammer more interesting and be a unique twist on the typical "Space Fantasy" genre that no other setting has. They could call Wildspace in the Shadowfell something cool like "The Void" and have it be filled with remnants of destroyed Spelljamming expeditions that slipped through Shadow Crossings and ruined space colonies filled with the undead, restless spirits of those misfortuned travelers. The "Feywildspace" could be dominated by Eladrin from the Elven Imperial Navy, maybe with a connection to Evermeet, with space-conflicts between the Seelie and Unseelie Fey, maybe? And giant Domains of Delight for star-based Archfey, moon-spirits, and stuff like that?
What Else Could Change?
This is the easiest section to come up with options for, so I'm going to rein myself in here. These are things that I think are fairly likely, but not at all guaranteed and could possibly cause major problems for the setting if they happened:- A lot of people have suggested that the Phlogiston might get replaced with the Astral Plane/Sea, like how the cosmology worked in D&D 4e. The presence of the Astral Elves in the Travelers of the Multiverse UA might hint at this, as their lore shares some traits with 4e's Astral Sea, but we don't know for certain either way right now. I'm not against this change and think it could be interesting if executed correctly, but a lot of people are absolutely against this. A change of this magnitude could alienate older fans of the setting, but I think that it could work with the right execution. This could work well to make the conflict between the Gith and Illithids be more present in this setting, could help give more creatures a home in the Astral Plane, and help introduce more creatures to Spelljammer that fit thematically but historically haven't been a part of it (Slaad, Morkoth, and so on).
- Some individual planets from different Crystal Spheres could change or get more information, but I don't know if this type of book would have enough space for detailed descriptions of more than just one sample Crystal Sphere. Maybe if they end up doing more than one book for Spelljammer it could cover more, but that's fairly unlikely, as they've never done anything like that in 5e so far.
- Some background lore of the setting that used to be pretty important could be made less important or retconned entirely. Possible candidates for this could be the Arcane Giants, the Vodoni Empire, the number of Nautiloid ships, and the Spelljammer spelljamming ship from the setting. I'm not exactly sure why they would retcon these, but they're not 100% necessary to the concept of the setting, so they could change.
Those are my predictions and thoughts on how Spelljammer could change in an official D&D 5e setting book. What are your thoughts? Any disagreements on any of the changes that I think will be made? Do you have any other suggestions for what could change? What creatures from older Spelljammer Monster Compendiums do you think will come back and which ones do you think will be abandoned? Do you think that Wildspace in the Feywild or Shadowfell will be covered at all? What are your thoughts on those concepts proposed in this post?
Feel free to discuss all things related to this topic and the questions below.
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