Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
Most of the official drive options forDungeons & Dragonscleave to classic pilot of Western fantasy ; the worlds ofGreyhawk , Dragonlance , and theForgotten Realmsare full of forests , mountains , and ploughland , where human , elves , dwarves , and other humanoid races go on magical adventures . The followingD&Dcampaign options , in contrast , dig into strange soil , immersing tabletop gamers in uncanny worlds with science - fiction elements , coarse desert surround , and existential philosophical system .
classical tale likeThe Lord Of The RingsandConan The Barbarianestablished the look and feel of Western fancy . However , it was the success ofDungeons & Dragons , the first fantasy play biz , that popularized the prototypic Western fantasy human beings seen in media likeThe Elder ScrollsandDragon Quest- a medieval background with imp who live in forests , dwarves who mine stack , wizards who canvass in tugboat , and dark lords who must be defeated by expansive adventurers .
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Three out of four of theD&Dcampaign preferences listed below were devised byD&Dwriters in the late 1980s , during the geological era ofAdvanced Dungeons & DragonsSecond Edition . Some of these context were updated for later variant ofD&D , while others were just incorporated into the broader mount of theDungeons & Dragonsmultiverse , becoming left locations stake parties could jaw by traveling through the Astral Planes . What make these campaign configurations limited is how they expanded the possible compass of storiesD&Dcould evidence , making the world ’s first phantasy roleplaying game more than just a " standard fantasy " simulator .
Strange D&D Settings: Planescape
The core locus of thePlanescapecampaign settingis Sigil , the City of Doors , a gothic , dimension - sprawling metropolis at the center of theD&Dmultiverse - a place where notion and conviction can reshape world . Various political factions in the city engage in philosophic knife - fights over the on-key nature of existence , while the primary authority of Sigil , the terrifyingly mystical Lady of Pain , forbids gods and goddess from stepping into Sigil ( and savagely murders anyone who attempt to revere her ) . ThePlanescapecampaign setting lesion up introducing character races such as Tieflings , Githzerai , and Aasimar , while also mould the groundwork of theacclaimedPlanescape : Tormentcomputer RPG .
Strange D&D Settings: Eberron
Most tabletop fantasy preferences tend to be stuck in a sort of technological stasis , where centuries can eliminate without substantial advancement or , for that thing , even the innovation of any new spells . Not so forEberron , aD&Dfantasy setting create by Keith Baker , famous for popularizing the " Dungeon Punk " subgenre of phantasy , where magic is used to make an industrial society . In mostEberronRPG campaigns , participant character start out as veterans of a global conflict know as the Last War , now using their skills at fighting , stealth , spell - craft , and diplomacy to engage in mercenary oeuvre and go on adventures . TheEberronsetting inclose theArtificer class toD&D- a prestidigitator who infuses cock and potions with magic - and the Warforged , a race of military machines searching for a new intention after the state of war they were build for all over .
Strange D&D Settings: Dark Sun
inspire by planetary romance saga and post - revelatory recital , the mankind of Athas , centerpiece of theDark SunD&Dcampaign setting , is not a fun home to live . The pantheons of god who ascertain over Athas are dead , for starters . Also , " Defiler " wizard , who drained energy from nature to fire their magic , have trim down Athas to a scorcheddesert landscape straight out ofDune , dominated by haughty urban center - DoS and barbarous , immortal wizard - Rex who control the remaining water supply reserves . The wilderness of Athas is fulfil with char knit of George Sand , predator insect packs , carnivorous plants , and Halfling cannibals . A key feature of theDark Sunsetting , besides stories about spend a penny abrasive choices to survive , is its emphasis on Psionic power as a substitute for Arcane magic .
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Strange D&D Settings: Spelljammer
The titular " Spelljammers " ofD&D’sSpelljammersettingare basically sorcerous spaceships , fly through a cosmos with planets surrounded by crystallization sphere ( a concept directly inspired by the " Celestial Sphere " theories popularized by Plato and Aristotle ) . Through Spelljammers , risk parties can essentially trip between differentD&Dcampaign background , fending off sorcerous space plagiarizer and hostile cosmic lifeforms all the whole . wizard Of The Coast has not yet updated theSpelljammersetting for 5e , but ideas from it have seeped into other officialDungeons & Dragonsworks over the age : For representative , the psyche - flayer controlled Nautiloid ship see in theopening cinematic ofBaldur ’s Gate 3is a Spelljammer in all but name .
Next : Other D&D Literary Inspirations That Are n’t Lord Of The Rings Or Conan
