Eberron:Introduction

From Spinach Inquisition
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Eberron is an alternate campaign setting for Dungeons and Dragons that has existed since 2002. Since it is using the DnD rules, there is a lot of ready-made content that our glorious DM can adapt for our horrific purposes. The Wayfinders Guide to Eberron (WGtE) is the official DnD 5E update. The mechanics remain in playtest status, but the books from previous editions of DnD have a lot of additional lore.

Introduction to Eberron

Eberron is a world where magic is a science. With enough theory and the right materials, anyone can produce an effect with magic. Following this through to its logical conclusion: why does anyone need to invent a gun if a wooden stick and a few words can pop off a Fireball?

Magic is an integral part of everything in Eberron: the economy is built around the trading of magical services. Instead of telephones, the Speakers Guild sends messages. If you need to travel, your options are a magebred horse, the Lightning Rail, or an airship powered by bound elementals.

The Dragonmarked Houses play a huge role in this: family lines who carry magical Dragonmarks have formed cartels and monopolized parts of the magical economy. At the same time, these people are wrapped up in the Draconic Prophecies and games played between the Dragons and several "big bads" than span millennia. Giving a coin to a random beggar in the street could make you an unwitting pawn in a six-thousand-year-long chess game.

Eberron campaigns begin two years after the Last War. One hundred years of a bitter civil war ended in terror as the nation of Cyre was inexplicably consumed by a magical explosion on the Day of Mourning. No explanation has been found, and it remains a toxic wasteland. If any nation unlocks the mystery of the Mourning, the war would begin anew.

Everything in the DnD 5E source books has a place in Eberron. Goblins, orcs, and other traditionally "evil" races have civilizations. Morality is shades of grey instead of black-and-white; one hundred years of atrocities have made sure of that. A lot of your favorite races are wildly different from your bog-standard Tolkien fantasy setting. Review the Wayfinder's Guide to Eberron before committing to anything!

Character Creation

Compared to Starfinder, creating & leveling up a character is much easier.

If you are using DnD Beyond, get the link from the Eberron discord channel to join the campaign, then create a character. On the settings screen, you should:

  • Sources
    • Enable 'Homebrew Content' (for self-made magic items -- it will be quite clear when you're doing this)
    • Enable 'Playtest Content' (anything in playtest should be marked 'Unearthed Arcana' or 'UA' & is subject to DM approval)
    • Disable 'Magic: The Gathering Content'
  • Stat Allocation should be 'Point Buy'

Otherwise, instructions can be found in the DnD 5E Player's Handbook.

Please post your backstory on the characters page.

Sourcebooks & Tools

These are the books you can draw from. At minimum, you should read the Wayfinders Guide to Eberron (WGtE). If you do not have experience with DnD 5E, read the player's handbook as well. The other sources are not critical, but may have some cool options for you!

Sourcebooks

Tools

  • DnD Beyond has the best 5E character sheet
    • See the Discord #eberron channel for the URL to join & get the DLCs shared for your character
    • You still have to copy stuff to Roll20 though
  • Nothing else (Roll20, ForgedAnvil) has the WGtE content because it is still in playtest :-(

Things to Have Opinions About

Here are some ideas on things your character probably knows about and may an opinion on.

  • The Last War
    • Who should have won?
    • What's the deal with the Mourneland?
    • Will it start back up?
    • Who got screwed by the Treaty of Thronehold?
    • What did I lose because of the war?
  • The Warforged
    • They're people now...but are they really people? (Or, for the religiously-inclined: do they have souls?)
    • Should they be around decent folk?
    • If Warforged: what is my purpose now?
  • The Dragonmarked Houses
    • Do I approve of them? Specific houses?
    • Oh god there isn't actually a way to enforce the Korth Edicts anymore
  • Religion
    • Do I have one?
    • What does it mean to me?
  • Droaam
    • Is this a real nation?
    • Should it be allowed to exist?

How Do Dragonmarks Work?

If you want to be dragonmarked, you have to take that as your subrace.

In general, Dragonmarked individuals are born as part of their House. Not every child will manifest a mark; the Test of Siberys is given at a young age to encourage a Dragonmark to manifest. Dragonmarked heirs get to add a d' prefix to their names, and they are Kind of a Big Deal. The mark is like a tattoo. People who see it will know that you are an important and powerful person.

As your background, you may choose to be an agent of your Dragonmarked House, an independent actor, somebody that has been excoriated and thrown out of their House, or somebody that the House found with the mark and adopted. You can opt to go with a different background entirely, but understand that having a Dragonmark is a big deal -- the House will have expectations for you, even if you try to avoid them.

You will start the game with a lesser dragonmark. This will give you access to some cantrips and improve a relevant ability. For example, somebody with the Mark of the Making is always going to have an advantage over a crafter without it.

The lesser mark's direct magical benefits are not too great, but the mark also gives you access to Dragonmarked Focus Items -- powerful tools that are usable exclusively by members of your House. These arcane focus items are how the Dragonmarked Houses have maintained their monopoly positions. Airships can only be piloted by House Lyrandar heirs. That is not a question of skill or training; the airship controls **will not** respond to you without the correct mark.

At level 8, you can forgo your ability score improvement and instead take a Greater Dragonmark feat. This will power up your dragonmark, making you that much better at your job.

When two Dragonmarked Heirs from different houses get it on, there is potential for their descendant(s) to manifest an Aberrant Dragonmark. This is a blending of different magicks and behaves weirdly. You can choose to take the Aberrant Mark feat instead of an ability score improvement; the WGtE has rules for picking its powers.

Your social status will be dramatically affected by manifesting an aberrant mark. There is a new "Dragonmarked House" for aberrant individuals, but it is not rich and respected like the established houses.

Further Reading

Retrieved from "https://wiki.spinach-inquisition.org/index.php?title=Eberron:Introduction&oldid=448"