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3 years ago ::
May 13, 2010 - 4:37PM
#11
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Date Joined:
Aug 29, 2007
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One could take a page from Polyhedron issue 151 and make Spelljammer a stand-alone setting. Get rid of the Phlogiston entirely, focus on adventures in the void, planetary exploration and (eventuallY) exploration of the Astral Sea. If you want an old fashioned metaverse, you could reintroduce the spheres or simply use portals to other worlds, allowing you to explore Realmspace or Greyspace, or world settings of your own. I quite liked the Shadow of the Spider Moon setting, which reminded me of the old Astromundi Cluster, so I think something similar would work well. The setting would have planets of differant types to visit, mysterious asteroids and a trading hub like the Rock of Bral. Bring back the neogi and the scro, battle githyanki raiders, get a little Xill-work done, turn to a life of trade or piracy - - it's all good.  I'd use the dragonborn in place of the "advanced" lizard folk, and I liked the gnome junk ships from the Shadow of the Spider Moon (Tinker Gnomes belong on Krynn). I can take or leave the Dowar (ditch the Spaham) and the Elven Navy, but you leave me my Giff! My sweet, gun-toting, trigger-happy Giff - -
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3 years ago ::
Aug 25, 2010 - 9:12AM
#12
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Date Joined:
Dec 20, 2007
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I'd love to see Spelljammer as the 2012 setting. Of course, the earlier the better but I've been hearing hints that Ravenloft is 2011 (which...the earlier the better haha).
This would allow WotC to get four separate campaign settings down for a foundation and then use Spelljammer - something more unique than Planescape (IMO) and therefore a more worthy candidate - to connect these settings as well as future ones. I'm not saying Planescape should never be updated for 4E, just that WotC seems to be publishing settings pretty different from each other: typical high fantasy, dungeonpunk, near-planetary romance, and then gothic horror. Something that hints of sci-fi would be a good option
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3 years ago ::
Oct 22, 2010 - 1:42PM
#13
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Date Joined:
Sep 29, 2010
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I agree with the reduced emphasis on naval engagements and economic systems (at least not as part of the base system), that stuff made the game difficult to play.
Skill training should be the minimum for helm usage.
Also, I thought some of the crystal shell physics were interesting, but the phligston (sic) was a bit over-the-top.
You could have like a pilot class, or some campaign themed one.
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3 years ago ::
Nov 12, 2010 - 9:43AM
#14
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Date Joined:
Dec 24, 2009
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I'm still moving ahead with my own spelljammer reboot (obviously for my own purposes, not as a published setting), and one thing I'd like to see is the use of skill challenges for cinematic combat as they're done in The Plane Above, but also the ability to use tactical rules similar to character combat. I envision ship design to work like creature design, except that ships are always considered to be solo creatures for the purpose of calculating hit points, defenses, and XP. Realistic? Probably not, but definitely convenient. In my personal reboot, crystal spheres are the planar boundaries of finite-sized material planes, and the stars are actually portals to the Astral Sea or portals to nearby astral domains. If you're inside the sphere and you plane-shift to the Astral Sea, you'll arrive in a corresponding location in the Astra Sea. You won't see the night sky of the crystal sphere, just a whole bunch of portals arranged in a spherical pattern that will lead you back into the sphere. There's also a rumor of an infinitely sized material plane not unlike our own universe... Since I wanted to bring back the phlogiston in some form, here is a cross-post from the Spelljammer forums over at the Piazza. Imagine something like the Galactic Codex of Mass Effect/Mass Effect 2, but done up for Spelljammer... Spelljamming Speed Ships may travel through wildspace and the Astral Sea at a rapid pace caled spelljamming speed. With modern artifice, spelljamming helms enable ships to travel at a peak 10 million miles per hour. At that rate, ships will cover 100 million miles within a 10 hour travel day. Advanced spelljamming helms may travel faster, and a skilled wielder of magic can use rituals combined with their own personal energies to boost the ship's speed. Traveling at such a high velocity would be fatal if you collided with something as small as a pebble were it not for a magical side effect of spelljamming speed: you are phased while spelljamming. Small objects pass right through you so quickly, you won't have time to even perceive them. For larger objects such as the occasional spelljamming ship, asteroids, comets, planets, and other similarly large celestial bodies, the helm instantly matches the object's velocity, bringing the ship and everything on it to a halt. Other than a slight lurch as you enter and leave spelljamming speed, you'll hardly notice the acceleration. While traveling at spelljamming speed, the helm produces a multi-colored, comet-like vapor trail centered on the ship. Each helm produces a unique spectral signature, thus making it possible to identify individual ships. Known as phlogiston, the plume makes spelljamming possible, but at the same time, it also increases the flammability of all objects within the vapor. So while spelljamming speed is a quick and efficient way to travel, it's not without risk. *** Game Mechanics
- Anybody can pilot a helm, but if you have a power source like Arcane, Divine, or Primal, then you can channel magical energy into the helm to improve its speed.
- All objects in the phlogiston plume gain Vulnerable 10 fire, and all attack powers with the fire keyword that successfully hit are treated as critical hits.
- After exiting spelljamming speed, it takes 1d6 rounds for the vapor to dissipate.
- An Ace Pilot (a character theme) can Battlejam across the grid. Battlejamming is the art of moving very quickly around the grid at spelljamming speed, effectively teleporting the ship.
- An Ace Pilot has other tricks, such as spelljamming in place and causing a blast of phlogiston to ignite and engulf nearby objects.
"Turns out having Eberron's equivalent to a Spectre flying close-air on your side is a good way to level the field when the bad guys send Warforged Titans after you." -M4kitsu
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2 years ago ::
Feb 06, 2011 - 11:41PM
#15
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Date Joined:
Aug 16, 2007
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- Move it to the astral sea
- drop air envelopes (just do air everywhere) (Still need to read The Plane Above to see how they do it.)
- Helms are quasi magic items that require a ritual to operate. Sort of like the creation forges in eberon. Think of it as several rituals bound into one and synced up. Each casting could get a cirtain amount of time based on how much you exceed the base the skill check. Larger ships requiring higher base checks. These rituals are bound into the ships themselves. So no taking a helm and selling it.
- Sort of drop crystal spheres. I plan to use more of a material plane bubble. When near it a ship can plane shift into the material plane. This removes the massive solar system issue and allows small demi-planes and such to be accessable for a more POL feel.
- Gravity, I'll probably do it however it is in The Plane Above.
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2 years ago ::
Jul 23, 2011 - 2:25PM
#16
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Date Joined:
Jun 23, 2011
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Last post is 6 months ago, and yet it's still at the first page of the board... so I'm kind of torn if it's considered necromancy posting now, but.. well, hoping to not get infracted.
Asking to remove all the crazy stuff from Spelljammer is like asking to remove all the grimdark elements from Dark Sun. Like...
"Hey, you know what we need to do to make Dark Sun accessible? Make it a better world! Add in some forests! And some oceans, because what do those people drink? Oh, and planar travel between Athas and other places is now open. And add some gods to it finally, will you?"
No. You don't do that. The postapocalyptic feel is what makes Dark Sun fun, just like all the crazy stuff makes Spelljammer fun. Giff, silly penguins in garish clothes, philosophers sitting on asteroids and draining your Intelligence when you get near, gliding monkeys, (miniature) giant space hamsters, space orcs, crazy surgeon praying mantises... that's what makes it fun. Since WotC never removed the essential stuff from Dark Sun, I don't believe they would from Spelljammer.
What elements we do need in a Spelljammer 4E adaptation IMO:
-Crystal spheres and phlogiston. That's what makes Spelljammer Spelljammer.
-Giff, Dowhar and all the other silly races and monsters, including Tinker Gnomes. "In space, the weirder, the better"
-All the magical physics stuff
You know what will we do without?
-All the restrictions on Spelljamming. Anyone should be able to do it, given proper magical training, without draining his resources. Well, maybe except Giff. You don't want to get into a spelljammer driven by a Giff.
-Complicated ship-to-ship combat, spelljamming shocks etc. Simplify it, so even the spelljamming player can do something else than sit and hope he doesn't die of ship damage.
What can we add?
-More crazy races! I want hamster-men, a result of a genetical experiment of some crazy Tinker Gnome who crossed his niece with her miniature giant space hamster. I want flaming meteorite demons who just rush headlong into everything. I want... you get the feel.
-Integration with other established worlds (maybe except Athas and Ravenloft, because of their uniqueness).
That's what I think about it, and I can only hope it will go this way, if Wizards look favorably on Spelljammer some day.
EDIT: I forgot to add, I think it needs to be released along with technology-based power source - to facilitate for all the crazy tech, firearms etc. usually associated with Spelljammer.
Check out my D&D-based play-by-post game, based on exploration and roleplaying. Agora
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2 years ago ::
Aug 14, 2011 - 6:01AM
#17
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Date Joined:
Aug 27, 2006
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Since WotC never removed the essential stuff from Dark Sun, I don't believe they would from Spelljammer.
But they have already created spelljammers that travel the astral sea. I doubt they would undo that. In some repect I think if they were to do Spelljammer, they would coming it with Planescape. As for keeping some elements like Dohwar and their flying pigs, I think they would focus more on the Planescape end and ignore the sillier creatures from Spelljammer.
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2 years ago ::
Aug 14, 2011 - 6:24AM
#18
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Date Joined:
Jun 23, 2011
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Since WotC never removed the essential stuff from Dark Sun, I don't believe they would from Spelljammer.
But they have already created spelljammers that travel the astral sea. I doubt they would undo that. In some repect I think if they were to do Spelljammer, they would coming it with Planescape. As for keeping some elements like Dohwar and their flying pigs, I think they would focus more on the Planescape end and ignore the sillier creatures from Spelljammer.
I was writing this before reading The Plane Above, but yeah, there's a lot of similar stuff. But it still lacks the stuff that made Spelljammer so unique - all the craziness. That's made Spelljammer attractive. Doing Spelljammer without it, is like making Athas greener and better. It just wouldn't be Spelljammer at all - it's what defines it and makes the setting still known.
Check out my D&D-based play-by-post game, based on exploration and roleplaying. Agora
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2 years ago ::
Oct 09, 2011 - 6:50AM
#19
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Date Joined:
Dec 16, 2003
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Since WotC never removed the essential stuff from Dark Sun, I don't believe they would from Spelljammer.
But they have already created spelljammers that travel the astral sea. I doubt they would undo that. In some repect I think if they were to do Spelljammer, they would coming it with Planescape. As for keeping some elements like Dohwar and their flying pigs, I think they would focus more on the Planescape end and ignore the sillier creatures from Spelljammer.
To be fair, the Pirates of Gith already took spelljamming ships onto the Astral Plane in 2e Spelljammer. What 2e lacked was a method for most people to follow them there (or to get to other planes). In the fan community this is usually referred to as "Planejamming".
I don't think that Planejamming is such a bad idea, but feel that it should be a minority thing (with most people either doing normal Spelljamming (on the Mateiral Plane - wildspace and the flow) or normal Planewalking (without needing to fly around in ships).
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