Twin Agate Dragons
Mongoose
I'm curious as to how the system differentiates from others and what the implied setting is and how it differs from other fantasy campaigns.
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What's the appeal of Earthdawn?
- Thread starter Twin Agate Dragons
- Start date
Twin Dragons said:I'm curious as to how the system differentiates from others and what the implied setting is and how it differs from other fantasy campaigns.
It is the deep background for Shadowrun (originally both were released by FASA, Shadowrun first) ... and the background hype for Earthdawn made the link between peaks and troughs of magic explicit, though how you could make the connection beyond that statement was ... never clear.
The systems are wildly different, too, of course.
The game system is neat enough and logical, works well, but, personally, I always felt the Horrors were far too powerful and far too destabilising in the game to make the background worthwhile ... I intend (eventually) to run a game with a modified, Horrorless, background ... or, at least, with the Horrors playing a much more peripheral and less powerful role in the background.
Phil
Twin Agate Dragons
Mongoose
Maybe I wasn't clear enough in my original post, but I would like a detailed description of the implied setting.
Here's the opening blurb from the first edition rules, I don't think much has changed.
After centuries of hiding beneath the earth, humanity has ventured out into the sunlight to reclaim the world. Trolls, dwarfs, elves, orks, and humans live side by side with exotic races: the lizard-like t'skrang, the small, winged windlings, and the earthen obisidimen. Creatures both magical and mundane dwell once more in the forests and jungles. Arcane energies offer power to those willing to learn the ways of magic.
Once, long ago, the land grew lush and green. Thriving forests sheltered plants and animals, and people grew and prospered off the land's bounty. Then the Horrors came, and drowned the world in darkness.
The world's flow of magic rose, and at its height dread creatures from the darkest depths of astral space crossed into our world, leaving suffering and destruction in their wake. The world's inhabitants named these fell creatures the Horrors. They laid our world waste in a terrible time now known as the Scourge. The lush forests died. Bustling towns vanished. Beautiful grasslands and majestic mountains became blasted, barren terrain, home to the Horrors' twisted mockery of life.
The Horrors lusted to destroy all life, but they did not succeed. Before their coming, the magicians of the Theran Empire warned the world, and the people of the Earth took shelter under it. They built fantastic underground cities called kaers and citadels; their children and their children's children grew up within these earthen enclaves, never seeing the light of the sun. For four hundred years the Horrors roamed the land, devouring all they touched while the people hid in terror, until the slow ebb of the world's magic forced these loathsome creatures to retreat to the astral pit that spawned them. The Horrors departed before the magicians and wise men had believed they would; the wary people emerged slowly from their kaers, facing the world half in hope that the Scourge had truly ended and half in fear that the Horrors lingered. Though most of the Horrors left this world, many remain, inflicting cruel anguish and suffering on other living creatures. As humanity struggles to remake the shattered world, they must combat the remaining Horrors who seek to prolong the destruction and despair of the Scourge.
Now heroes travel the land, rediscovering its lost legends and exploring its changed face. For the world has changed, almost beyond recognition. Many people died during the Scourge; the Horrors breached some kaers and citadels and destroyed their inhabitants. Other kaers remain sealed, from unknowable disaster or simple fear; their contents await discovery by bold explorers. Should they find any folk still living within, these brave adventurers may lead such fear-darkened souls out to live again in the light.
The dwarven kingdom of Throal lies at the center of the province of Barsaive, the largest inhabited province in the known world. The dwarfs seek to unite Barsaive's farflung cities and people under one crown and one banner, the better to repel the advances of the Theran Empire that ruled Barsaive before the Scourge. The Therans returned to the province shortly after the Scourge ended, seeking to bend it again to their yoke, but the people of Barsaive rejected the Therans' iron rule and rallied behind the dwarfs of Throal. Beaten for the moment, the Therans gather strength and wait to strike again. As Barsaive's heroes search for lost treasures and battle fantastic creatures, they must also fight the Therans, who plot to rob Barsaive of its newfound freedom and make its people pawns of their vast Empire.
In the Age of Legend, heroes band together to fight the Horrors and reclaim the wounded world for those born in it. As they explore the altered land, searching for legendary cities and treasures, they become the legends that will light the coming days. As with those who went before them, tales of their deeds will live forever in men's hearts. From many paths, the heroes come to join in common cause. Those who seek honor and glory come from many Disciplines, and battle evil to redeem the world with a multitude of gifts. A band of heroes may include an Illusionist, a spellcaster who combines deception and reality to confuse those around him; a Swordmaster, one trained in the art of fighting with bladed weapons; or a Beastmaster, able to train and command the beasts of the earth and sky. The world holds countless heroes, but all share one trait: a willingness to fight to reclaim the world from that which threatens it. Through noble deeds and sacrifice, the heroes of the world will forge its future.
After centuries of hiding beneath the earth, humanity has ventured out into the sunlight to reclaim the world. Trolls, dwarfs, elves, orks, and humans live side by side with exotic races: the lizard-like t'skrang, the small, winged windlings, and the earthen obisidimen. Creatures both magical and mundane dwell once more in the forests and jungles. Arcane energies offer power to those willing to learn the ways of magic.
Once, long ago, the land grew lush and green. Thriving forests sheltered plants and animals, and people grew and prospered off the land's bounty. Then the Horrors came, and drowned the world in darkness.
The world's flow of magic rose, and at its height dread creatures from the darkest depths of astral space crossed into our world, leaving suffering and destruction in their wake. The world's inhabitants named these fell creatures the Horrors. They laid our world waste in a terrible time now known as the Scourge. The lush forests died. Bustling towns vanished. Beautiful grasslands and majestic mountains became blasted, barren terrain, home to the Horrors' twisted mockery of life.
The Horrors lusted to destroy all life, but they did not succeed. Before their coming, the magicians of the Theran Empire warned the world, and the people of the Earth took shelter under it. They built fantastic underground cities called kaers and citadels; their children and their children's children grew up within these earthen enclaves, never seeing the light of the sun. For four hundred years the Horrors roamed the land, devouring all they touched while the people hid in terror, until the slow ebb of the world's magic forced these loathsome creatures to retreat to the astral pit that spawned them. The Horrors departed before the magicians and wise men had believed they would; the wary people emerged slowly from their kaers, facing the world half in hope that the Scourge had truly ended and half in fear that the Horrors lingered. Though most of the Horrors left this world, many remain, inflicting cruel anguish and suffering on other living creatures. As humanity struggles to remake the shattered world, they must combat the remaining Horrors who seek to prolong the destruction and despair of the Scourge.
Now heroes travel the land, rediscovering its lost legends and exploring its changed face. For the world has changed, almost beyond recognition. Many people died during the Scourge; the Horrors breached some kaers and citadels and destroyed their inhabitants. Other kaers remain sealed, from unknowable disaster or simple fear; their contents await discovery by bold explorers. Should they find any folk still living within, these brave adventurers may lead such fear-darkened souls out to live again in the light.
The dwarven kingdom of Throal lies at the center of the province of Barsaive, the largest inhabited province in the known world. The dwarfs seek to unite Barsaive's farflung cities and people under one crown and one banner, the better to repel the advances of the Theran Empire that ruled Barsaive before the Scourge. The Therans returned to the province shortly after the Scourge ended, seeking to bend it again to their yoke, but the people of Barsaive rejected the Therans' iron rule and rallied behind the dwarfs of Throal. Beaten for the moment, the Therans gather strength and wait to strike again. As Barsaive's heroes search for lost treasures and battle fantastic creatures, they must also fight the Therans, who plot to rob Barsaive of its newfound freedom and make its people pawns of their vast Empire.
In the Age of Legend, heroes band together to fight the Horrors and reclaim the wounded world for those born in it. As they explore the altered land, searching for legendary cities and treasures, they become the legends that will light the coming days. As with those who went before them, tales of their deeds will live forever in men's hearts. From many paths, the heroes come to join in common cause. Those who seek honor and glory come from many Disciplines, and battle evil to redeem the world with a multitude of gifts. A band of heroes may include an Illusionist, a spellcaster who combines deception and reality to confuse those around him; a Swordmaster, one trained in the art of fighting with bladed weapons; or a Beastmaster, able to train and command the beasts of the earth and sky. The world holds countless heroes, but all share one trait: a willingness to fight to reclaim the world from that which threatens it. Through noble deeds and sacrifice, the heroes of the world will forge its future.
Twin Dragons said:Maybe I wasn't clear enough in my original post, but I would like a detailed description of the implied setting.
One important distinction is that there is no "implied" setting (at least not as we have come to know the term since D&D4e).
On the contrary, the setting is very explicit. The rules are tied heavily into the setting, and you'd have a hard time separating the two.
Earthdawn in my opinion has one of the best fantasy setting in RPG.
In a gist, think of HP Lovecraft with High Fantasy. But both mesh really well. And the high fantasy is different from any other(air ships, fantasy type cyberware(Blood Items), personalized magic items etc.)
In fact, I can say right now, that D&D 4th ed. has some elements of the Earthdawn system.
In a gist, think of HP Lovecraft with High Fantasy. But both mesh really well. And the high fantasy is different from any other(air ships, fantasy type cyberware(Blood Items), personalized magic items etc.)
In fact, I can say right now, that D&D 4th ed. has some elements of the Earthdawn system.
It's prbably the best fantasy setting I've played/used.
I've always preffered to describe it as a post apocalyptic fantasy. The world has been laid waste by astral entities called Horrors, and the population sirvived by sheletering in sealed and fortified shelters (kaers and citadels). The survivors have left these shelters and are trying to re-colonise the surface.
The setting is a very dark, high fantasy lots of magic in a brutal world - one must only look at what the elves did to themselves to survive the scourge (the magical apocalypse). It has the usual staples of any good fantasy game. Plenty of the standard fantasy races, and some different ones. The usual racial/kingdom wars/skirmishes, lost treasues to find, critters to slay, mighty deeds to acomplish and all that. And the ever present Horrors that lingered behind.
Perhaps the most interesting bit of the setting is the way magic works and interacts with the world. There is no such thing as a "+1 magical sword" that any idiot can loot off a dead villain, or from a lost treasure horde and just use in their next fight. Magical swords (and other objects) do exist, but to draw on their powers you need to understand the objects history - e.g. what it's called, who carried it, what great deeds the wielder did with it, who made it etc (think of the story of Exclaibur or Thor's Hammer). The characters can also spontaneously create 'magical' items by doing great deads with them (e.g. the beads that bought Manhatten).
The game uses Legend Points instead of XP, they pretty much do the same thing. However the sum of your Legend is how well you are known, what deeds you've accomplished, the songs the troubadours tell about you. The mark you make in the world.
tetsuo said:Earthdawn in my opinion has one of the best fantasy setting in RPG.
In a gist, think of HP Lovecraft with High Fantasy. But both mesh really well. And the high fantasy is different from any other(air ships, fantasy type cyberware(Blood Items), personalized magic items etc.)
I've always preffered to describe it as a post apocalyptic fantasy. The world has been laid waste by astral entities called Horrors, and the population sirvived by sheletering in sealed and fortified shelters (kaers and citadels). The survivors have left these shelters and are trying to re-colonise the surface.
The setting is a very dark, high fantasy lots of magic in a brutal world - one must only look at what the elves did to themselves to survive the scourge (the magical apocalypse). It has the usual staples of any good fantasy game. Plenty of the standard fantasy races, and some different ones. The usual racial/kingdom wars/skirmishes, lost treasues to find, critters to slay, mighty deeds to acomplish and all that. And the ever present Horrors that lingered behind.
Perhaps the most interesting bit of the setting is the way magic works and interacts with the world. There is no such thing as a "+1 magical sword" that any idiot can loot off a dead villain, or from a lost treasure horde and just use in their next fight. Magical swords (and other objects) do exist, but to draw on their powers you need to understand the objects history - e.g. what it's called, who carried it, what great deeds the wielder did with it, who made it etc (think of the story of Exclaibur or Thor's Hammer). The characters can also spontaneously create 'magical' items by doing great deads with them (e.g. the beads that bought Manhatten).
The game uses Legend Points instead of XP, they pretty much do the same thing. However the sum of your Legend is how well you are known, what deeds you've accomplished, the songs the troubadours tell about you. The mark you make in the world.
tetsuo said:In fact, I can say right now, that D&D 4th ed. has some elements of the Earthdawn system.
It should have a lot more elements, if/when the Age of Legend Earthdawn conversion to 4e ever comes out.
Randalthor66
Banded Mongoose
Anunnaki said:To clarify, Age of Legend 4e isn't a conversion. It's a setting port (Barsaive) for use with the D&D4e rules.
Now there's a Horror! 4e Earthdawn... *shudder*
Twin Agate Dragons
Mongoose
So I might be taking the Earthdawn plunge this year. This will be mostly to raid the setting of its fluff and locations. Which books can you recommend me for this?
Twin Agate Dragons said:So I might be taking the Earthdawn plunge this year. This will be mostly to raid the setting of its fluff and locations. Which books can you recommend me for this?
If you're not interested in the rules and indeed more into actual locations (from countries to cities), and not things like descriptions of unique horrors or items or races, I recommend, in that order:
- GM Guide (general description of Barsaive)
- Nations 1: Throal (the most important state)
- Nations 2: Serpent River (usually comes up as "this is the next best general book to get" when someone who just had the core rules asks)
More specific places:
- Kratas: City of thieves (ruined city run by gangs)
- Parlainth (devastated metropolis full of dungeons and bad guys. and treasure)
More non-location setting information:
- Namegivers of Barsaive (the races and their culture)
All of the above available here and for Third Edition, except Parlainth, which is available as a First Edition PDF.
If you can provide more information about what you're planning, I can maybe be more specific. For example if you wanted to use some monster descriptions to convert them, you might be interested in other books. If you want more detailed and independent places, or the ones focusing on a specific race, there are other books still.
