D&D (2024) Worldbuilding Differences between 5e and 5.5?

[Yaarel]

Material ‹› Fey Crossing ‹› Border Fey ‹› Deep Fey ‹› Celestial (Positive Astral) ‹› Astral

Material ‹› Shadow Crossing ‹› Border Shadow ‹› Deep Shadow ‹› Fiend (Negative Astral) ‹› Astral

@Vikingkingq

Note the connection between Celestial dominion of CG Avandor (Positive Astral) and the Elves of the Feywild (Positive Ether). One can imagine Fey Routes to LG Mount Celestia as well, and elsewhere among the Celeistal realms.

Likewise note the River of Styx that flows thru Acheron and Hades, associating with the Underworld of the Shadowfell, and perhaps flows into and thru the Deep Shadow. The river itself is a route of Thin Places.


In the Astral Plane of mental ideals, symbols, and archetypes, the positive energy becomes ethical principles of Good and the negative void Evil. However, this is untrue in other planes of existence. In the ethereal, positive energy becomes Fey magical lifeforce and vividness, while negative void becomes Shadow deathliness and bleakness. These outcomes are any alignment. In the Material Plane, positive energy becomes energy and mass, while negative void becomes empty vacuum of space. Matter and space are unaligned. Albeit the Crossings resonate the life and death influences of Fey and Shadow, respectively.

 

[Vikingkingq]

Those who have a deep sense of the Celtic worldview. Which makes more sense? Do the "Unseelie Fairy Courts" correspond to the D&D Shadow Crossings or the D&D Fey Crossings?

I can see it either way. In some Scottish lore, the Unseelie sometimes commingle with undead humans as well as fiends, whence D&D Shadowfell. But the Unseelie might also be the more dangerous aspects of wild nature, whence D&D Feywild.

If the Unseelie are moreso Shadow, then the Border Shadow, Border Ether, and Border Fey, would likewise have Thin Places between them.

I prefer the Unseelie as part of the Feywild - after all, the Queen of Air and Darkness/Queen Mab and the Prince of Frost are very evocative characters, and have a different, more nature-based vibe compared to the Raven Queen's death motif.

However, I do like the idea of "sideways" travel whereby you can go to the Shadowfell via the Winter Court of the Unseelie, or to the Outer Planes/Celestial via the Summer Court of the Seelie, but not vice-versa.

 

[Yaarel]

However, I do like the idea of "sideways" travel whereby you can go to the Shadowfell via the Winter Court of the Unseelie, or to the Outer Planes/Celestial via the Summer Court of the Seelie, but not vice-versa.

That seems a good way to organize the tropes.

 

[Minigiant]

One more than thing.

Core Goliaths with Giant Rune powers mean 6 part giants are core on the Player side.

Goliaths aren't ambiguously giant related. They aren't related to Gigantes, Anakim, or Laestrygonians, or Oni.

Runes r core.

 

[bedir than]

5) Monks are all default Martial and firmly Warriors
Losing Ki and many overtly supernatural features firmly makes Monks an alternate Path of the Warrior along with Fighter.

Except that they have more points, more free mystical actions and more opportunity to use the magic adjacent abilities. While they are martial, they're clearly supernatural

 

[Minigiant]

Except that they have more points, more free mystical actions and more opportunity to use the magic adjacent abilities. While they are martial, they're clearly supernatural

Monks are supernatural but not overtly magical. They are not really magic adjacent and more just high fantastical.

Losing K and some of the blatantly magical class features has removed them from any magic system at core. And like the Fighter and the Rogue, Magic can be re-entered into it via subclasses.

This is different from the Barbarian who has become core supernatural because they use Primal Knowledge as their attempt to address the barbarians out of combat abilities.

 

[Yaarel]

Monks are supernatural but not overtly magical. They are not really magic adjacent and more just high fantastical.

Losing K and some of the blatantly magical class features has removed them from any magic system at core. And like the Fighter and the Rogue, Magic can be re-entered into it via subclasses.

This is different from the Barbarian who has become core supernatural because they use Primal Knowledge as their attempt to address the barbarians out of combat abilities.

I would say the Monk is "innately" magical wielding ones own "soul". This is in a bodily way, via ones own "aura".

 

[Minigiant]

I would say the Monk is "innately" magical wielding ones own "soul". This is in a bodily way, via ones own "aura".

I would Monks are not innately magic because their abilities are being more rooted into their own nature.

It's not "magical supernatural" because it's something that you technically naturally could do without external forces, it's a matter of Training and Discipline and not absorbing and utilizing the life force of Ki.

This is different from a sorcerer who has innate supernatural powers but needs the Weave, Aether, or whatever.magical interface outside themselves to use those powers.

 

[Yaarel]

I would Monks are not innately magic because their abilities are being more rooted into their own nature.

It's not "magical supernatural" because it's something that you technically naturally could do without external forces, it's a matter of Training and Discipline and not absorbing and utilizing the life force of Ki.

This is different from a sorcerer who has innate supernatural powers but needs the Weave, Aether, or whatever.magical interface outside themselves to use those powers.

I am saying, the soul itself is natural thus nonmagical. But the soul can manifest innately magical effects. (Compare the conscious observer effect in quantum physics.)

Both the Monk and the Psion derive their magical effects from ones own soul. The mind (consciousness and expression) is an aspect of the soul that the Psion often uses to manifest magical effects. The bodily aura (ki) is an aspect of the soul that the Monk often uses to manifest magical effects.

 

[bedir than]

Monks are supernatural but not overtly magical. They are not really magic adjacent and more just high fantastical.

Losing K and some of the blatantly magical class features has removed them from any magic system at core. And like the Fighter and the Rogue, Magic can be re-entered into it via subclasses.

This is different from the Barbarian who has become core supernatural because they use Primal Knowledge as their attempt to address the barbarians out of combat abilities.

I'm still confused at how they are "losing ki" as they have more points and do more things than they did before the name change