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Sell me on Dark Sun

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24 May 2016 23:51 #228099 by Amontillado
I've got all the old material in PDF form from RPG DriveThru, but I don't know much about it. I haven't actually heard anyone state what gameplay is about. Sort of D&D in a Mad Max setting? What are we talking about here?

D&D, which I'm now running 5th ed for my kids, is something I'm returning to because my kids are getting interested in D&D and I haven't played since before the world was new. But I've never been too terribly interested in the D&D universe (whatever that means), but Dark Sun always looked like it might be something special. Thematically, what's it like? I've not read Clark Ashton Smith, but I'm guessing it has some of that "Dying Earth" feel aka Jack Vance or Smith?

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25 May 2016 00:34 #228103 by Sevej
Replied by Sevej on topic Sell me on Dark Sun
I'm not familiar at all with the RPG, but there was a computer RPG of it. It was pretty good. IIRC it was like a post-apocalypse in a fantasy setting. I had a mantis-man in my party...

(I was a kid, so I don't remember much).

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25 May 2016 07:58 #228118 by hotseatgames
Replied by hotseatgames on topic Sell me on Dark Sun
Both Dark Sun PC RPGs were cool. And the art by Brom is bad ass.

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25 May 2016 09:00 #228126 by Columbob
Replied by Columbob on topic Sell me on Dark Sun
I've never really read the 4th ed. stuff, so what follows is the classic DS.

Magic in Dark Sun is fuelled by the life force of plants, or animals for higher-end spells. A few thousand years ago, the mad sorceror Rajaat, who "invented" magic, waged massive cleansing wars against the unpure races. His armies were led by powerful mages who devastated the land to wage their wars of extermination, until they realized that the pure race wasn't in fact humans, but halflings, so they rebelled, trapped Rajaat, and stopped the wars.

As a result of these wars, most of the planet (or at least what's shown in the campaign setting) is blasted desert, rubble, wastelands, stony barrens. The sea is now a sea of suffocating silt, where shallows are plied either by giants or giant wheeled contraptions, oasis are precious and treasured, rivers are almost nonexistant and lakes unheard of.

Most of the population now lives in city-states ruled over by tyrannical sorceror-kings (the surviving generals from the cleansing wars). The population is mostly illiterate. Magic is forbidden, except for the sorceror-kings' own defilers (wizards who drain the life-force around them). Psionics however are well-established and most creatures and people have some type of ability. Each city has its gladiatorial arena where bloody games are held regularly. The sorceror-kings can bestow clerical spells upon their templars, who uphold the law.

Some of the traditional races from other settings are completely absent, having been exterminated (orcs, ogres, pixies, trolls, gnomes, lizardmen). The surviving elves, dwarves and halflings are twisted versions of what we're used to: hairless dwarves who don't live underground, barbarian cannibalistic halflings that live far from the cities of men, and treacherous tribes of elves who live through raiding and/or trading and run (they never ride beasts) through the deserts. There are new races, the half-dwarf (Mul, get it, pronounced just like the offspring of horses and donkeys, and just as sterile) bred for labour, half-giants which were bred magically for the sorceror-kings's armies (but apparently they can breed), and the insectile thri-kreen which come from a far-off empire. Also pterrans and aarakocras were added in the revised setting. Mutants abound, and players are encouraged to make PCs with some type of weirdness, whether different skin type (scales?) or colour or something else.

The fauna is very alien compared to other settings. No horses or cows, more insectile or avian draft animals. Large armored caravans are pulled by huge, slow armoured lizards called mekillots.

Druids try to protect what's left of the land and are the sorceror-kings' bitterest enemies. In the past there was a huge war between the two factions and druids were almost exterminated. They survive, but keep a low profile.

Gods don't exist in this setting (the world is cut-off from the other planes). Clerics instead worship the elements and para-elements.

Preservers (those wizards who only take what life-force is necessary for their spells without completely draining and killing the surrounding vegetation) live a life of secrecy. Each city has its own distinct underground group of preservers and allies called the Veiled Alliance which try to thwart the sorceror-kings. A city's VA is divided into cells so that each member only knows a few contacts and can't betray the entire organization if caught.

It's a very harsh setting where surviving from day to day is its own challenge. Do-gooders don't really exist.

The thing that bothers me the most: city populations are shown in some material, including the percentage who are part of the standing army. The numbers just don't make any sense if you consider that the city-states are constantly warring against each other, raiding, capturing slaves whose life expectancy is very short.
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25 May 2016 18:56 #228193 by Amontillado
Replied by Amontillado on topic Sell me on Dark Sun
That's an amazing writeup, Columbob. Thanks! Do you know if any of the modules out there superior, official ones or otherwise?

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25 May 2016 22:55 #228205 by SuperflyPete
Replied by SuperflyPete on topic Sell me on Dark Sun
It is seriously one of the best and worst settings in all of D&D. Post-apocalyptic, Bedouiny, nomadic desert wasteland. Like Game Of Thrones-Meets-Dune. Kind of.

But the setting seems to me like it was a bit bare-bones in that the backstory is the most compelling part of it. The bestiary, the spells, etc...all kind of bolted-on feeling. I read a lot of the background and a couple of modules, all well done, but blandish.

Barrier Peaks AD&D for the win.

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25 May 2016 22:57 #228206 by SuperflyPete
Replied by SuperflyPete on topic Sell me on Dark Sun
Ah, as an aside...if you are looking for RPGing in a desolate post-apoc world, and that's really your itch that needs scratching, let me know. I have a few copies of Wreckage www.wreck-age.net/ and you're welcome to one of them if you'd like it. Getting a few copies is a perk of re-writing the entire front half of the book and getting almost no credit for it due to an unfortunate circumstance.

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26 May 2016 08:41 #228214 by Columbob
Replied by Columbob on topic Sell me on Dark Sun
The official modules are usually ok...if the dm and pcs don't mind major railroading and getting the entire party regularly captured. They also try to have the heroes become paragons of good or something, which isn't really what Dark Sun is about.

The best one is probably Merchant House of Amketch as it avoids the aforementioned problems.

Black Spine and Dragon's Crown are both massive campaigns for high level adventurers, there is a ton of stuff in there, maps, etc. Although Black Spine fools around with gates to other worlds, which destroys the entire premise of the campaign setting, i.e. scarcity of resources.
Black Flame is probably the worse of the lot.
Some in Dungeon mag were all right.
I heard the official adventure for 4th was complete junk and ported from another setting. The ones they made for conventions were apparently good, but I never tracked them down.
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