D&D 5E Revising Classic Settings

pming

Legend
Hiya!

I will reiterate my stance on this...for the...third? Fourth? Time...

They can do anything they want as long as the leave Greyhawk and Mystara alone. Don't even touch it. Don't even mention it. Don't even HINT at "revising and updating" either of my two fave settings.

(Reason: I don't think they'd do either justice and they'd make changes I'm almost guaranteed to dislike...probably intensely. Selfish? Yup. Am I sorry? Nope. :) ).

^_^

Paul L. Ming
 

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Hiya!

I will reiterate my stance on this...for the...third? Fourth? Time...

They can do anything they want as long as the leave Greyhawk and Mystara alone. Don't even touch it. Don't even mention it. Don't even HINT at "revising and updating" either of my two fave settings.

(Reason: I don't think they'd do either justice and they'd make changes I'm almost guaranteed to dislike...probably intensely. Selfish? Yup. Am I sorry? Nope. :) ).

^_^

Paul L. Ming
This. A number of settings have nostalgia as their major selling point, and are very much "of their time". To revise them would destroy what is special about them.

I think that WotC might be better looking at new settings that better reflect the 2020s, and just leave the old settings available in their original form for those who want them. The only truly "modern" 5e setting is Wildemont, and WotC didn't even create that.
 

Although I would deadly love to see @teitan right about Greyhawk, I feel that @pming is right about what WotC might or would donwith the setting. I am very much afraid that they would just modernize the setting without considerations for what the fans of the setting might want.

But if they try, I truly hope that they take people which are very familiar with the setting.
 

dave2008

Legend
Greyhawk I reckon isn't going to have much traction to it because, ultimately, just doesn't have the pull today it used to. Humancentric's falling out of fashion and other works do what most people sell it on better. Greyhawk hasn't moved with the times and if we get something on it, I either don't expect much, or Greyhawk fans to complain about whatever we get.
Is it though? I was talking with my son yesterday (he is 20) and he was saying that he has been thinking about playing D&D again, but he wants to do it in Game of Thrones style. I think Greyhawk could be brought back to fill that niche. Possibly, I don't really know too much about the setting.
 

I have said the factions war can continue out Sigil, in the forgotten Gate-Towns.


Dark Sun will come back sooner or later, but you can bet. Would you rather soon or better? Even Hollow World and Jackandor could be useful for a videogame about start from zero and you have to survive, hunt, gathering food and build a refuge where to farm, and later a DLC about a planar rift opening a cosmic gate towards the land of Gamma World, with their mutants and firearms.


After FR the next D&D setting as "guest artist" in M:tG may be Ravenloft, Planescape, Greyhawk and Dragonlance. A Innistrade-Ravenloft crossver is possible but the fandom would require a good plot to explain it. Elements from al-Qadim could appear as "guests" in a new Kaladesh.

Spelljammer as complete setting may have to await a lot of time more, because WotC has to choose have to do with the crystal spheres, but skyships, races, monsters and factions could come back in a future sourcebook about the "Astral Sea", maybe a new M:tG setting mixing Spelljammer, Planescape and Red Steel.

Some adventures of Planescape could be published before the true setting.

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The Glen

Legend
The problem is, I don't think the designers see much of a difference between Greyhawk and FR, though the knowledgeable fanbase does.
Then hire some of the fan base to write the book. They did exactly that with Candlekeep, though granted with mixed results. But there's plenty of the fan base who are also professional writers or game designers.
 

Gorg

Explorer
Ravenloft is the first of 3 classic settings Wizards is planning to release. All the previews of VAN RICHTEN'S GUIDE TO RAVENLOFT suggest that it's not updating the campaign world to 5th ed. That they're instead redesigning the world again. Not quite starting from scratch but taking only the foundational ideas and dumping everything else.
The writers are making changes for representation and diversity and to remove stereotypes but also removing pet peeves and fixing redundant kingdoms. The human-horror of Vlad Dracov is becoming a zombie apocalypse land. The sexual predator mesmerist of Dementlieu is becoming a land of fey courtly intrigue with ghoul retainers. And the continent is being broken apart, with every nation now being an island.
It stands to reason if they're completely overhauling Ravenloft they'd do the same to the other two settings to make them more appealing to us modern audiences.

How would you like them to revise the other two settings?

My thoughts:

DragonLance:
There's zero way they wouldn't going to go back to the War of the Lance.
My first thought was they'd revise the Heroes of the Lance. Fewer humans and more women, gender flipping characters like Tassleholf or Flint. But I imagine they would just not mention those characters and all and let PC's be those heroes. Have the included adventure be a different way of starting the war campaign, with suggestions of where to go next that aren't always "follow the novels."
Focusing on the war offers a good focus for the book. It can online a few paths the war could take and provide ideas for having PC's get involved and adventures you can run during a war. Maybe some suggestions or rules for mass combat. As every book adds a new PC optional rule, this book could feature victory points, like in HEROES OF BATTLE for 3rd Ed.

They'd also have to include all the PH races like the half-orcs and tieflings. And Dragonlance people like Minotaurs and Irda. They'd also have to include sorcerers, warlocks, and bards into the world.
The dragonarmies should be mixed species and not just draconians, who could just be dragonborn. Goliaths are pretty popular as well. Wizards could include them in place of the human barbarian tribes to remove the giant Native American stereotypes. They could also rework kender to make them less disruptive at the table. Make them closer to regular halflings.
I've heard complaints about the size of the world. That could be fixed as well.
The use of steel pieces as the currency is weird. You can smelt down your sword for a profit. Dump that idea.
Elements introduced later can also be added. Like the Knights of Neraka and Legion of Steel.

Grayhawk:
There's a buttload of real world analogues in Grayhawk. And most of the kingdoms aren't diverse with elves and dwarves limited to their own kingdoms. The whole setting would need to be heavily reworked. Starting with making the Baklunish and Suel Empires more inclusive and less tied to a human ethnicity.
Might be best to focus entirely on the city of Grayhawk. Briefly describe the surroundings and neighboring lands and the key threats.
Grayhawk was always the setting people made their own. Going back to that would capture the spirit of the original. Provide brief one or two-paragraph descriptions of each kingdom designed to inspire. The book could even offer suggestions for customization, like different ways to use each nation. There could even be blanks on the map where DM's can add their own kingdoms or PC's could claim ownership. Claiming a keep and becoming a local lord is a very 1st Ed idea, which could be a key part of 5th Ed Grayhawk.
This is exactly the direction I don't want them to go. Thus, I won't be buying any of these books, if it turns out that way. Keep the culture war crap out of my D&D, thank you.
 

I've been a Greyhawk fan since I got the cherished World of Greyhawk boxed set in the 80's. And I've played in and ran a Greyhawk campaign in every edition except for Basic. Greyhawk is by far my favorite. Each setting has something to offer and Greyhawk is the ultimate sandbox. Unlike so many other settings that are built on a single creator's vision, Greyhawk is an amalgamation of DM campaigns. It's not created from a series of books but from countless adventures. So there is no metaplot, no single villain or event. When Greyhawkers tell their story it's modules and adventures: White Plume Mountain, ToEE, Against the Giants, et al. The 1983 boxed set was rules light and seeded with adventure hooks. All of the lore was incomplete and required you to fill in the blanks. Sometimes less is more. I'll be the first to say if WoTC can't maintain the Swords & Sorcery sandbox style of Greyhawk, I won't spend a dime.

Greyhawk's style must be maintained as well. Nothing epitomizes the homey, down-to-earth feel than the hand drawn Darlene maps and inked page illustrations inside the folio. It felt like a manuscript from the Middle Ages. Other settings have their styles too. Planescape emulates Rackham. Darksun has a Frazetta style to it. Painting over a classic ends up being kitsch.
 

Mind of tempest

(he/him)advocate for 5e psionics
I've been a Greyhawk fan since I got the cherished World of Greyhawk boxed set in the 80's. And I've played in and ran a Greyhawk campaign in every edition except for Basic. Greyhawk is by far my favorite. Each setting has something to offer and Greyhawk is the ultimate sandbox. Unlike so many other settings that are built on a single creator's vision, Greyhawk is an amalgamation of DM campaigns. It's not created from a series of books but from countless adventures. So there is no metaplot, no single villain or event. When Greyhawkers tell their story it's modules and adventures: White Plume Mountain, ToEE, Against the Giants, et al. The 1983 boxed set was rules light and seeded with adventure hooks. All of the lore was incomplete and required you to fill in the blanks. Sometimes less is more. I'll be the first to say if WoTC can't maintain the Swords & Sorcery sandbox style of Greyhawk, I won't spend a dime.

Greyhawk's style must be maintained as well. Nothing epitomizes the homey, down-to-earth feel than the hand drawn Darlene maps and inked page illustrations inside the folio. It felt like a manuscript from the Middle Ages. Other settings have their styles too. Planescape emulates Rackham. Darksun has a Frazetta style to it. Painting over a classic ends up being kitsch.
it does how have to be able to sell itself without being the default or nostalgia backing it up, you got ideas beyond the universal "do it well"?
 

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