BetterWeirdthanDead posted:

What's different about it?
The world of Athas is a post apocalyptic setting. Most of the world's vegetation and water have been destroyed by excessive use of arcane magic. The land is now stripped, barren, and harsh. Kingdoms have dissolved into feuding city-states. Each city-state is protection by god-like sorcerer-king.

Most arcane casters are called defilers. Any casting by a defiler turns nearby plants to ash, boils water, and sterilizes the soil.

Metal and water on Athas are incredibly scarce. Sorcerer-kings devote great resources and manpower to protecting their wells and oases.

There are no deities in Athas. The gods abandoned the world during the decline of its green age. Most people worship of pay lip service to their rulers. A few clerics draw power from the raw elemental planes. Druids are the most stalwart defenders of nature.

The races of Athas are different as a result of the harsh environment. Traditionally, all player races have higher bonuses to their starting attributes and start at 3rd level to reflect their harsh upbringing. All people must be ready to fight in order to protect their villages from marauding elves, giants or worse desert horrors. All racial also have inherent psionic abilities and start with a wild talent.

There is a caste system made up of the templars who serve the sorcerer-kings, the nobility, freemen, merchants and slaves. Characters can be of any class, and even the highest ranking templar can be sold into slavery for their mistakes.

It is rare for one to place ideals such as honor, justice and selflessness above their day to day survival, but heroes can be found. Deeds can be as small as helping slaves escape to a free village and defending an oasis from cannibalistic haflings to searching ruins for relics of the green age or assassinating an influential noble.

PeterWeller posted:

That dude is Agis of Asticles. He don't give a gently caress because he can kill poo poo with his mind.

Verklemptomaniac posted:

ManMythLegend posted:

So this weekend I decided to complete the city-state flag project I started a while ago. Here they are for any interested parties:

Balic:


Draaj:


Gulg:


Nibenay:


Raam:


Tyr (Pre death of Kalak):


Urik:


Also happened across some French guy's site where he had posted his flags for all the major merchant houses. I figured some of you might be interested so here they are:

Inka:


Mke:


Shom:


Stel:


Tsalaxa:


Vordon:


Wavir:


And here's a minor house flag I made for a short lived game:
Tomblador:

Monday Averted posted:

I created a few banners for each city for when I create each city's summary for my game's forum. Posting them here in case anyone wants em:

BetterWeirdthanDead posted:

In for this crazy ride.

'Sup 5d4 attributive rolling, starting campaigns at level 3 with a wild psionic talent, dudes?

Question: I once played a Dark Sun module that contained a trio of dwarves called the "Hurly Burly Brothers." Did my DM make that up when we were 12?

Chernobyl Peace Prize posted:

This is the closest I could find:

http://www.patman.org/ADD/resources/dungeons.asp
Issue #52 Volume IX, Number 4 (March/April 1995)
HURLY-BURLY BROTHERS, THE
AD&D adventure, 4-6 characters of levels 3-5
Written by: Kevin Wilson
Artwork by: David Kooharian
Any wilderness, temperate
6 pages

Description: A giant roc snatches one of the heroes and drops him into a specially-prepared trap prepared by two ogre brothers named Hurly and Burly.

Zombies' Downfall posted:

Did anybody else ever feel like Dark Sun might feel better without psionics? I realize that they're very integrated with the core setting, but at the same time I've never felt like removing them would change very much about the setting itself. I always found the thematic reason for their excessive use sort of flimsy, though I'm probably biased because I always mentally associated psionics with "high magic" over-the-top fantasy games and Dark Sun is more Warhammer-style grimdark stuff.

shotgunbadger posted:

For real though, this is my favorite setting, I'm a sucker for good old 'the world wants to gently caress you like a prison bitch and all you can do is claw and bite your way to the top' settings, and this does it so drat well. This is a setting where my parties have killed others for a canteen of water and didn't even warrant a 'what the gently caress is wrong with you?' for it.

Super Waffle posted:

So why do Dark Sun dragons look so weird?

Super Waffle posted:

So why do Dark Sun dragons look so weird?

Defiler Metamorphosis Spell posted:

Low (21st, 22nd, and 23rd levels): When approaching these levels, the defiler is merely beginning his metamorphosis toward dragon form. The preparation time at these levels must be at least one year, during which time the caster must have access to ancient documents, tablets, and scrolls that have never been studied by another defiler. Such materials must be discovered by the defiler or his minions and must be studied for at least eight hours every day for the entire year. Acquisition of such documents will usually be a quest in and of itself; once used, these documents cannot be used for this spell again. The material components must include vast riches (at least 10,000 gp worth of jewels, gems, coins, or artistic treasures), a vast structure where the transformation might take place, and no fewer than 1,000 Hit Dice worth of living creatures for the life-leeching process. The riches vanish and the living creatures are slain one heartbeat after the defiler begins casting. The structure, which must cost more than 50,000 gp to build, is not destroyed and may be used again to cast this spell when attaining all three of the low levels. The spell is cast from the deep interior of the structure, where the caster will actually transform — no other beings may be present at the instant of casting. The casting time is a full 24 hours; any interruption results in spell failure.

Pfox posted:

Thri-kreen broke me of my elf addiction. I'm so glad this is the next setting to be released.

Mecha-Tech posted:

The way I was introduced to this game was by a friend of mine. I usually play Clerics. We were going through spells for the game and once he explained the whole 'no gods' thing, he said something that put it into perspective.

"y'know create food and water?"

"Yeah?" I said.

"Cross them off your list. You don't have that. That spell doesn't exist in Dark Sun."

Oh poo poo.

ritorix posted:

Not that any real games actually reached that level. Its hard to get a 20th level (2e rules) wizard when you died at 5th level because your half-giant buddy got thirsty and went berserk.

Bieeardo posted:

If there's one thing that did suck about Dark Sun, it's the tie-in novels. Primarily the fact that the merry band of Mary Sues chronicled within became the canonical movers and shakers of the setting. Annoying, but not so bad if you were just getting started with the second or third editions of the boxed set, but goddamn galling if your crew were the ones to turn Abalach-Re inside-out in one of the published adventures.

Actually, if there's two things that did suck about Dark Sun, it's the tie-in novels and the published adventures. They had these silly flip books, one of which was filled with encounters and narrative and poo poo, and the other which was a bunch of pictures like they did for the original Tomb of Horrors.

quote:

Did anybody else ever feel like Dark Sun might feel better without psionics? I realize that they're very integrated with the core setting, but at the same time I've never felt like removing them would change very much about the setting itself. I always found the thematic reason for their excessive use sort of flimsy, though I'm probably biased because I always mentally associated psionics with "high magic" over-the-top fantasy games and Dark Sun is more Warhammer-style grimdark stuff.

Apocron posted:

So when is this due to be released? Any clue? I was thinking about running my PCs through a normal campaign world then having an apocalypse and having them continue in the Dark Sun setting once it is released.

Wikipedia posted:

Water has long since ceased to flow on the surface and can only be found in the last sea, some oases, tiny lakes and streams, as well as west of the Ringing Mountains in the Forest Ridge. Not only are the mountains nearly impassable (the name Ringing Mountains refers to the lightheaded feeling one feels from lack of oxygen when traversing them) but the Forest Ridge is the home of halflings, which in the Dark Sun world are small creatures that live in tribes in the forest and do not hesitate to capture and eat intruders to their realm. This makes the prospect of going west across the mountains a near impossibility.

In the place of an ocean, the world of Athas, due to defiling magic, has a sea composed entirely of silt. The silt is incredibly dangerous as it is not capable of supporting the weight of humanoid creatures, and the particles themselves are extremely fine and get into the lungs quite easily. A strong wind from the Silt Sea can cause people from nearby villages to have to remain indoors all day, though with a certain amount of water some people often make use of a mask-like object called a silter which is placed over the mouth and nose and kept wet in order to help the user breathe.

The silt actually becomes hard-packed a few metres below the surface, but this is of no help to a human as the level within the first two metres is extremely loose and fine. However, giants often make use of the packed silt roads further below and can be seen wading chest-deep through the silt. Humans have sometimes built crafts that can navigate these silt roads much like giants do, though the going is much slower and both humans and giants still have to deal with the creatures that live in the sea.

There are also shipfloaters, which are psionicists who, through use of a large obsidian orb to focus their power, can telekinetically levitate and sail the ship as if it were sailing through water.

tendrilsfor20 posted:

Also, someone dig up that post about resetting 4e Dark Sun in the Green Age, right when the genocides are starting off.

Ritorix posted:

Back when I played Dark Sun (in the 2e days) I always thought a Green Age campaign would be fun, but never got around to it.

After seeing what happened to FR, I am kind of worried about what 4e could do to Dark Sun. The 'everything is core' concept wont work at all, and I doubt they are willing to flesh out Athas in the way it deserves while staying true to the setting we love.

There is however one way to do it, to fill a shadowy period of Athas's history and use the 'everything is core' concept while leaving classic Dark Sun as-is. Set it in the Green Age. The world is dying around you, entire civilizations fall as the world turns to dust. No gods exist to save you, no afterlife to reward you, but its not the end just yet. Its a setting of dark fantasy and desperate heroes, the last of their kind struggling against the near-unstoppable servants of Rajaat. This is the time of the Cleansing Wars, end of an Age.


The more I thought about this the more I liked it, until I had to write up a concept. So apologies if this has been done before, but to get it off my mind...



DS4E: The Cleansing Wars

Setting: Green Age, Athas, 100 years into the Cleansing Wars. The Tablelands. The Green Age is near its end, marked by warring city-states, holy crusades against monstrous races and strong racial distrust. These are the early stages of the Cleansing Wars. Soon vast armies will clash as Rajaat's insane dream is made reality. The land and its people are dieing. Forests are plentiful but retreating, desertification has begun, silt has started to clog the oceans, rivers are drying up. The Tablelands may soon fall, and when they do, all of Athas will perish.

Feel: This is not the original Dark Sun. That world has not yet been created, but it will if the Cleansing Wars run their course. The Green Age has a typical D&D fantasy feel, but in the middle of a world war. The war has gone on a hundred years and taken many forms, but has another thousand to go. No races are yet extinct, and the war's effects are not irreversible. In another century that may not be true.

Cosmology: In the ancient past, before even the Blue Age, primordials won control of the world and cut off access to the astral planes of the gods. Victorious, they have long-since returned to the Elemental planes. Athas is abandoned. While no true gods intercede on behalf of Athasians, religion is still common. The Divine Power source functions even with false gods based on the faith of believers, fueled by the innate psionics common on Athas. The faithful believe; their power of belief gives life to 'divine' powers. Some also draw power through the Elemental Chaos, Abyss and weirder sources. The Feywild still exists, not yet drained of its rampant life and discarded. So too does the Shadowfell, not yet targeted by a souls-defiling disaster and converted into the Grey.

Cities: All original major DS cities exist, some with a culture similar to their mirror in the original DS setting. Along with those are cities that are in ruins in the classic DS setting (Bodach, etc). Some are under SK control, directly or indirectly, while others are free. Green Age cities are impressive sights, with massive castles, thick stone walls and deadly defenses protecting large and diverse populations.

History and background:
Rajaat, inventor of magic and father of all arcane power, long ago began teaching preserving magic to Athasians throughout the world. Schools of magic flourished as different races explored the new power source, one that came from life itself. Yet Rajaat picked the best students for himself - to see if they have the fortitude and mentality for defiling. Powerful preservers were then wiped out in the Preserver Jihad, a private magical war conducted between mighty figures far from the sight of normal men. With opposition destroyed and his sorcerer-kings in place, the Cleansing Wars quietly began, with intrigue and assassinations.

The Cleansing War. The important detail is that no one knew it was coming or, initially, what was happening. Crusades were declared in the name of false gods, intent on ridding the land of goblins, trolls and orcs. Rumors of war turned into all-out battle between several nations. Defiling magic was taught in secret cabals to anyone who would misuse it, on any side, resulting in devastation of crops and ruining the futures of entire cultures. Crops failed as the land dried and countless people starved. Dust began to clog the rivers and seas, slowing commerce and making water a valuable resource.

Rajaat has infused each of his sorcerer-kings with great power, and tasked them with the removal of one race. Each is independent, their army sizes and tactics vary, if they have an army at all, and they rarely meet. Some have a far harder job than others. Some will set themselves as great leaders of men, others as religious figures, others at the head of mystic cults. Their goals are the same, and it will take another thousand years for the Cleansing Wars to truly end. That end has already been written: many races eliminated and others on the verge of extinction, the imprisonment of Rajaat and ruining of the entire world. The fate of Athas is written in stone and history marches to that inevitable conclusion if no heroes rise to stop it.

Races/classes: "everything is core", all PHB1/PHB2 races and classes. The Green Age was close enough to typical D&D fantasy before Rajaat began his crusade, and even creatures like devas have found their way to Athas (or been trapped there) during that time. Obviously psionics are a large part of the world, but they are not in 4th edition yet. In the meantime, we have divine powers as a substitute. The sorcerer-kings have not yet been empowered to have their own templars. There should be some other Dark Sun-style game mechanics, and I envision this as a less forgiving setting than vanilla D&D, though not to the stat- and power-boosted extremes of original Dark Sun.

Campaign ideas: (Heroic Tier)

-The party has fought long in the Goblin Crusades, following the charismatic wizard-warlord Daskinor. He has guided them to victory after brutal victory, and the foul goblins have retreated to their remote mountain strongholds. The crusade turns merciless, slaughtering even helpless children in the name of God and King. The crusade has become corrupt, and it becomes clear that Daskinor will not stop until the creatures have been completely eliminated.

-A dwarven stronghold sends a plea for assistance, desperately fighting a massive orc invasion. Not content to simply murder dwarves, the orcs defile the very land and augment their forces with evil magic. The players determine a mysterious figure is directing the orcs, driving them forth in suicidal battle.

Aranan posted:

So, Wikipedia has a short entry on the Sea of Silt and it sounds bad rear end. Please, goons, elaborate!

ManMythLegend posted:

I'm going to repost my 4E coversion of Borys from the homebrew thread because I want to see was other sweet 4E conversions people have done.

ManMythLegend posted:

I'm going to repost my 4E coversion of Borys from the homebrew thread because I want to see was other sweet 4E conversions people have done.

ritorix posted:

ritorix posted:

I will give a try at one of my old favorites: the tembo. In 2e, tembos were nocturnal pack critters with psionics and a level-draining bite. They had 4HD (hit dice), could dodge missiles, drain life, a bunch of defensive psionics, make 5 attacks per round (4 claws and a drain bite) and were basically a giant 'gently caress you' to players everywhere. Oh and their favorite food was children.

So. I tried to keep it simple.




And thats what passes as a "natural beast" on Athas.

tendrilsfor20 posted:

Why is one of its powers a "Daily"? The only time I've ever seen a daily on a monster was on a Lich that theoretically would be encountering a party more than one time before an extended rest, since it specifically says that it runs when first bloodied to spend a healing surge and return later.

ManMythLegend posted:

What do you want to know?

Attilla posted:

As I said last time Borys showed up pre-this thread, i'd make the damage from lacking healing surges equal to one-quarter of their maximum hit points, because otherwise this penalises people who gain extra bonuses there such as dragonborn, powerful dwarves, and some magic item use.