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There are already a number of reviews on this product out there, so I decided i'd like to write a review from a slightly different perspective. This review is meant for folk who are not familiar with Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 or who are generally uninterested in the game system, but who are interested in this setting. A familiarity with Dungeons and Dragons is helpful, but I try to spend less time on actual game mechanics.
In short, this product presents a fantastic high magic world with the focus on the player characters as the big moves and shakers. Every page is laced with adventure hooks and every location built with the adventurer in mind. This is an incredibly well done product.
The Physical Thing
A 288 page full color hardbound book with above average paper stock, lots of beautiful Good artwork, a full world map at the beginning and end of the book, and full color maps detailing many of the regions of the world. A lavish, well detailed index rounds out this product. At $39.95 you're getting your money's worth here, as not an inch of space was wasted. Each chapter begins with a full page spread showing a scene, complete with dialogue like a comic book.
The Ideas
Wizards of the Coast, the makers of the Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 game, had a setting search. They received many thousands of entries, and from them all chose one – Eberron – to be their new campaign setting. This setting is radically different from most fantasy settings, and let me tell you why.
The game has a pulp and, at times, noir feel to it. A detective waiting at the lightning rail (train) station for an old flame to arrive in town, an adventurer/professor working for Morgrave University stealing a gem out of a jungle covered ruin, and a dashing airship pirate out for plunder and booty. This is the sort of setting Eberron is.
At its most basic level Eberron embraces the idea that the Player Characters are the heroes of the setting. This shows up in every bit of game design, principally in how everything in the book is a ready hook to draw characters into adventure. Mechanically, for those that use the 3.5 rules system, this means that just about all of the NPCs are low level (1 – 4) with the biggest movers and shakers approaching the mid to high levels (10-12). No all powerful wizards or god-like fighters are found here.
Eberron was designed around the idea that magic is abundant in the world and folk will use magic like we use science. Magic lanterns dot the street, bound elementals allow for airship, train, and assembly line technology. While it's not a magi-tech setting like Final Fantasy you can achieve the same feel through magic alone.
Under the Cover
Introduction 4 pages.
The introduction discusses inspirational source material, what makes Eberron special, and gives general suggestions for where to begin in the book. Of the list of Ten Things You Need to Know here are the first five:
1. If it exists in D&D, then it has a place in Eberron. Eberron is a very inclusive setting, allowing a wide variety of interesting groups and magic to flourish in the world. This is definetly a fantasy setting that strives to include the whole kitchen sink while retaining its own unique feel.
2. Tone and attitude. Eberron strives for fast action and grand adventure while casting aside D&D's most notorious attribute – alignment. An evil cleric of a good god, a sinister silver dragon, and other things that would violate D&D's normal take on alignment are present here. This means that in this fantasy setting sentient beings are... sentient beings. There are still all the normal reasons to fight the good fight, but now the world of political intrigue has gotten a lot more interesting.
3. A world of magic. In Eberron there is magic everywhere. In great cities such as Sharn magic can be clearly seen lighting the streets and operating the transports. Magic is approached as a science and has been applied appropriately, leading to a large middle class of magical scientists.
4. A world of adventure. When the setting was written it was as if the author decided to include a cool hook in everything he presented. From the ruin filled jungles of Xen'drix to the dragon ruled continent of Argonnessen there are hundreds of adventure ideas and locations presented in the setting material.
5. The Last War has ended – sort of. Five years ago a great war for succession to the king's throne ended in Khorvaire, the main continent. New nations emerged, large scale destruction reigned, and all of the fun and interesting adventure material you can imagine was created. Now that the war is over dozens of factions scheme and plot to seize power, and intrigue is everywhere.
Chapter 1 Character Races 18 pages.
Dungeons and Dragons generally assumes that the races of Human, Elf, Dwarf, Gnome, Halfling, Half-Orc, and Half-Elf are prevalent in the world. Eberron backs this up, while putting a fresh spin on each of the existing races. It also introduces four new races who are interesting and important to the setting.
Humans are made unique primarily due to the diverse regions of origin found in Eberron. The nations and geography of the setting provide unique feels that can create a variety of varied and interesting cultures. Elves are largely ancestor worshiping necromancers who preserve their greatest heros as a form of undead to council them and protect them through the ages. Dwarves are driven strongly by greed and clan loyalty, operating a continent spanning banking system.
The Gnomes are obsessed with acquiring knowledge. Not only are they the force behind the most influential newspaper in the world, but they also have a unique crime-free society thanks to the sinister secret police scattered through their populace. The Halflings are plains dwelling barbarians who have incorporated tamed dinosaurs into their ways.
The three new races presented in the book are the Changelings, Kalashtar, Shifters, and Warforged. Changelings are the result of many generations of interbreding between Dopplegangers (shape shifters) and Humans. They have the ability to radically alter their appearance, but must remain humanoid. The existence of Changelings in the setting really helps to drive intrigue adventures.
The Kalashtar descend from a race of beings that fled into the material world from the realm of dreams to escape a great nightmare called the Dreaming Dark. Once in the real world they merged with willing humans. Today the Kalashtar are a mixed race of spirit beings still fighting against this great evil.
Shifters are descended from lycanthropes and retains some of their power, able to briefly take on more powerful animal characteristics. They are a very mixed race, and supply fuzzy humanoids to the setting.
The Warforged are made beings and resemble magical robots or golems. They were mass manufactured towards the later part of the Last War and used by just about everyone against everyone else. They don't sleep, eat, or grow tired. They are, however, sentient and after the end of the Last War they were granted civil rights by the major nations. Now this new race of created people is trying to find a place in society.
Information on what people are like from different regions in terms of game mechanics (what sorts of skills they typically have, etc.) rounds out the chapter.
Chapter 2 Character Classes 16 pages.
The chapter begins with a new class, The Artificer. In Eberron this specialist takes on the role of creating powerful and interesting devices, as well as manipulating arcane energy to “infuse” existing objects with temporary magical power. They are interesting, versatile, and powerful. They also have a very strong Eberron flavor.
Ways existing Dungeons and Dragons classes might change in the Eberron setting are discussed, including very small game mechanics changes such as expanding Bonus Feat lists. Two things make this part of the book interesting. First, Psionics is fully embraced in this setting. Second, each class has a brief example character with a bit of fiction that follows. These example characters almost entirely lack any game mechanics, and serve to showcase how that class role fits into the Eberron setting.
Chapter 3 Heroic Characteristics 28 pages.
This chapter focuses on setting-flavored game mechanics, primarily feats. Action Points, extra dice you get to roll in addition to a d20, are introduced to help characters succeed at dramatically appropriate times. Some of the feats are vanilla and appropriate for any setting, but two types of feats stand out as adding flavor to Eberron.
First are the Dragonmarked feats. In Eberron there are twelve big Dragonmarked Houses, similar to guilds in approach. They control various aspects of the world, such as banking or airship and lightning rail travel. Some people in Eberron have mysterious Dragonmarks, basically tattoos linked to a prophecy, appear on their body which correspond to one of the Houses. These tattoos give small but useful abilities, such as being able to use limited healing magic. These powers have allowed the Dragonmarked Houses to acquire a stranglehold on various aspects of trade. These feats allow a character to sport a Dragonmark.
Second are feats related to Druids and Rangers in the setting. To put it very simply, these two classes are given tremendous flavor in the setting. Some of this flavor can manifest itself mechanically in the form of certain feats. For instance, the Gatekeepers are a group of druids who guard the gate between this world and the realm of madness. Druids who wish to can buy special abilities to help them in their fight against aberrations.
Chapter 4 Prestige Classes 46 pages.
The Prestige Classes, special advanced classes with entry requirements, presented here are largely setting specific. Their entry requirements tend to be very low, allowing players to take classes like the Master Inquisitive or Dragonmark Heir without waiting long. These flavorful additions help to paint a fuller picture of the types of adventurers found in the world. Explorers, detectives, and nobles seem to be well represented in Eberron.
Chapter 5 Magic 30 pages.
This chapter discusses magic in the setting generally. How magic and the Houses relate is discussed briefly, a few new magic materials are introduced (such as Dragonshards – strange crystals found in various places around the world), and plenty of information on Eberron's unique cosmology is presented.
In most Dungeons and Dragons settings the cosmology is represented by The Great Wheel. Eberron moves away from this and presents its own unique and interesting cosmology. Each of the planes, kinda like other dimensions, of Eberron orbits the world like a moon. Sometimes they even get close enough to touch Eberron. When this happens aspects of that plane manifest on Eberron and make it easier to travel between the material world and one of these magical dimensions.
An example of one of these planes is Fernia, the Sea of Fire. This realm of flame not only is the home of beings of fire but also devils, demons, and other creatures associated with flame. There is no heaven or hell in Eberron, instead there is a gray 'waiting area' from which souls depart to... well, no one knows. Perhaps nowhere. Because of this many of the normal Dungeons and Dragons creatures, such as demons, are instead found in conceptually similar planes. Aberrations, strangely deformed creatures made from magic sculpting flesh and bone, are found in great numbers in Xoriat, the Realm of Madness. I think you get the idea, there are thirteen planes in all, each with a unique aspect which provides countless adventure hooks.
The chapter also includes the mechanical details necessary to a new setting. The Artificer class's spells, called Infusions, are listed as well as a few new spells for existing classes and new cleric domains (what clerics are focused on).
Chapter 6 Adventuring Equipment 10 pages.
Special magical metals and materials, regional weapons and gear (such as boomerangs), unique clothing fabric and other bits of equipment. Two things make this chapter really nice. First, attention is given to important documents in the setting. Letters of Credit and Marque, Identification Papers, and Travel Papers are an important part of the setting and add a fun element sadly missing from many fantasy games. They also actually give people a reason to want to forge documents, as they can be very powerful.
The second nifty bit here is a breakdown of the services provided by the Dragonmarked Houses. They explain who operates the hospitals, the airships, the lightning rail and how all of these services generally affect Eberron. Good stuff to know.
Chapter 7 Life in the World 98 pages.
This is a meaty chapter and most folk wont want to digest it all at once. It begins with calendar, time system, and general discussion of what life is like in the world. Sidebars are occasionally used to call attention to some neat aspect of the setting, such as a major newspaper.
Alphabetically organized, this chapter reveals a lot about the world. Each entry, which typically encompasses a nation or other geopolitical region, includes adventure hooks, important sites, religion, history, major political leaders, government, settlements, the works. This is a very concise, well detailed, interesting presentation of the world. No space goes to waste here, and every one of these places would be fun to adventure in. Just like the rest of the book, it seems like every paragraph was written with the question “How can we make this fun?” in mind.
Chapter 8 Organizations 22 pages.
All twelve Dragonmarked Houses are presented in greater detail along with many other interesting organizations from around the world. These include religious organizations, such as the Church of the Silver Flame, villainous organizations, such as the Order of the Emerald Claw (independent terrorist organization), and a variety of others. They all have firm ties to the world, and have been mentioned repeatedly earlier in the book.
Eberron shows how a good RPG designer ties everything together and this can be clearly seen in the organizations. Each of them has its own entry, complete with example NPC, and it fits neatly into the world.
Chapter 9 An Eberron Campaign 10 pages.
Different ways to organize a campaign, styles of play specific to Eberron, suggestions on pacing the game, etc. This is the standard “How to GM this setting” chapter. What you need to know from me is that it plays up the ideas that Player Characters are the Heros, Excitement, Danger, and Cliffhanger action is around every corner, and Nothing Is As It Seems.
That the product so explicitly states what the game is meant to be like is nice because it means that everyone comes to the RPG table with similar ideas about what is going to happen.
I've ran two Eberron campaigns, played in one, and am currently preparing a third. I've followed the suggestions here and they've resulted in a ton of fun. High octane action packed adventure in a world built for that very thing... well, it's hard to beat.
Chapter 10 Magic Items 16 pages.
There's not a lot to say about this chapter. The magical items introduced are interesting enough, and setting specific. There are extra bits that can be attached to the Warforged, nifty new ways to create magic items, and the standard bells and whistles you would imagine.
Chapter 11 Monsters 32 pages.
This chapter provides a number of Eberron specific baddies for any campaign, as well as details on a few other beings found in the world. Probably the most interesting of the new monsters is the idea of Living Spells, arcane magic gone awry that has gained some independence. No doubt a Living Animate Dead spell could wreak havoc on the countryside. Just like everything else in the book, these entries provide many interesting adventure hooks and easily stimulate the imagination.
Chapter 12 The Forgotten Forge 16 pages.
I've never run the Forgotten Forge adventure, but for an adventure found in the back of a setting book it is well detailed. Maps, flavor text, pre-created NPCs and encounters, exactly what you'd expect. It reads a little railroady for my tastes, but that may just be because it is a published adventure.
My Take
I love Eberron. I had been dissatisfied with Dungeons and Dragons for a while when it came along. Originally I picked it up out of RPG collecting obsession, then I ran it. Then I ran it again, I played it. Now i'm preparing a third campaign and I can easily say that it is one of my favorite fantasy settings.
What makes it so great? On the one hand it appeals to my love for technomagic with its scientific approach to using magic. Its a well detailed fantasy world filled with fun things to do and see, which makes it easy to GM. Most importantly of all, Eberron firmly embraces the idea that the Player Characters are the kick ass heros and that high flying cinematic action should rule the day.
What are its biggest problems? As far as the core setting material goes, I don't see that it has any. It masterfully accomplishes what it sets out to do. Mechanically, D&D doesn't lend itself very well to the style of play Eberron encourages without a GM who is willing to be liberal with the rules. In my experience Action Points just don't give enough of a boost to help characters accomplish daredevil stunts. Many players just use them on saving throws, which is a little bland. For my games I took to handing them out very liberally, which helped to a degree.
If you want a fun, flavorful fantasy setting you can do a lot worse than Eberron. While the game full embraces Dungeons and Dragons it can certainly be used as a fantasy setting for other game systems. For those that enjoy d20 and D&D you're in for a treat. This world was built to include as many wondrous bits of fantasy as possible and its easy to include whatever you like.
Give Eberron a try. If you're a D&D fine there's plenty here to love, and even if you're not you might find a fantasy setting with so many hooks and interesting stories that you can't help but start looking through the bookshelf for the system you want to use to run it.
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