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1 year ago ::
Dec 30, 2011 - 3:00AM
#1
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So, my group wants to start a new campaign and they want to all play Dragonborn. Here's the problem: I'm not crazy about their background at all, or even the concept really. The only thing I really like is that they are a race in decline. I'm creatively stuck on how to change them around enough to be my version of "cool", and on the concept of a racial campaign in general.
I could really use some creative ideas. Here are a few random ideas I've had but am not necessarily going to use:
Dragonborn are barbaric clans based on dragon type (gold, platinum, red, green, etc.)
They have a corrupt culture similar to ancient Romans, with gladiators, colleseums, vicious politics, etc.
They have been nearly hunted to extinction by (Elves? Orcs?), who use their scales to make armor.
Dragonborn are formed by planting the teeth of dragons like seeds.
Anyone have any cool ideas for a Dragonborn campaign that doesn't really follow the "official" concept?
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1 year ago ::
Dec 30, 2011 - 3:06AM
#2
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Date Joined:
May 13, 2009
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Hmm, it's pretty hard to make something that matches the concept of cool for someone you don't know, so I'll just throw some stuff out there:
- Dragonborn spawned as the cursed children of a Dragon who hung around with humans too much, and true Dragons absolutely revile them and/or the other way around
- If they're formed by planting teeth, they could very well have been a dragon slave-race for generations before winning their freedom. That would make pretty much everyone hate them, and make them hate Dragons
- Dragonborn are actually specially blessed Kobolds, even though they are unaware of this. The Kobolds manipulate them into doing their dirty work and are pushing them to war and extinction in secret
- The reason Dragonborn are in decline is because their dragon/man mixed blood is getting way too many parts man... half their kids or more aren't proud dragonborn but mangy little Kobolds instead. The race needs a new infusion of dragonblood in their veins if they want to continue to exist.
Also, why do your players all want to play Dragonborn? Because if it is because they dig the backstory, changing it too much might not really mesh with their ideas of the campaign.
Epic Dungeon Master Want to give your players a kingdom of their own? I made a 4e rule system to make it happen! Your Kingdom awaits!Update 5th Sep 2011: Added a sample kingdom, as well as sample of play.
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1 year ago ::
Dec 30, 2011 - 4:40AM
#3
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If you're not keen on their primary history, look for other interpretations instead. Dark Sun, for example, describes the Dragonborn as the children of a Sorcerer King in his mad bid for power. Called Dray, they are cast offs, sent into the wild after the fall of their makers empire. They now live out lives in the world, making ends meet as best they can for their clans, while often struggling to practice the ancient magics they learned without interruption. As you can see, this interpretation of the Dragonborn is far removed from the glory and honor that was found in Arkhosia's history for the core world, and instantly immerses the campaign in the world of Athas. Of course, if you are wanting to do something original for a homebrew setting, the sky is the limit as to what you come up with. Just make sure that whatever you decide to do with them, it is to your player's liking. Happy Gaming 
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1 year ago ::
Dec 30, 2011 - 7:03AM
#4
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Date Joined:
Aug 30, 2010
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Anyone have any cool ideas for a Dragonborn campaign that doesn't really follow the "official" concept?
Chris Perkins Iomandra Campaign features Dragonborn heavily, although they are the dominant race there, and from what i read very cool indeed.
His Dungeon Experience column (highly recommended) features several episodes from the campaign, ripe for ideas, and theres also the full campaign wiki , which is a treasure trove of ideas.
I think that, if you still want to keep the idea of the Dragonborn as a fallen race, you can still use the ideas within, just change the Dragonborn position with the Tieflings (a third rate race in the campaign), and adjust the history, possibly changing any dragonic references for demonic ones.
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1 year ago ::
Dec 31, 2011 - 12:23AM
#5
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Thanks guys, all good suggestions. I am just looking for random ideas to see if one really sparks something for me. In speaking to them some more, they are looking for a campaign that starts off in a dragonborn settting, but could move in another direction down the road. But they all want to play dragonborn.
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1 year ago ::
Dec 31, 2011 - 8:18AM
#6
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Date Joined:
Mar 29, 2006
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--What about a time-warp campaign, where they start in the high point of the Arkhosian Empire, and then get caught in a major magical event that drops them into the future, after the decline. Imagine the challenge of waking up and seeing your entire world destroyed. You could work the Roman decadence into that pretty easily, and maybe even have something they do (or fail to do) help spark the collapse.
--Dragonborn work closely with good dragons, seeking to control the chaos of the world. They are the ground troops rooting out monsters and undesirable humanoid elements in hard to reach places, maybe even getting to call in air strikes against suitably powerful forces.
--Dragonborn as a viking-like culture, raiding the coasts of the lands that used to be their empire. Could be cool if the race that knocked them down are an evil humanoid race (hobgoblins?)
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1 year ago ::
Dec 31, 2011 - 3:48PM
#7
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Date Joined:
Mar 16, 2011
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If your players are all really into dragonborn, they would have probably read up on them and got excited about what they saw.
I'm not sure it would be a good idea to then put them in a custom world where all the stuff they read about was wrong. I think they'd be pretty disappointed.
Maybe it would be best to speak to your players and try and work something out. If they like the canon material, it might be best just to go with it as written. There is loads of material about the ancient kingdom of Arkhosia and it's war with Bael Turath to fill a campaign. I'd recommended Player's Handbook Races: Dragonborn and Tieflings for loads of ideas.
Also dreamwolf has listed some nice ideas, which are consistent with the lore.
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1 year ago ::
Dec 31, 2011 - 3:52PM
#8
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Maybe it would be best to speak to your players and try and work something out.
Definitely this. Ask them for ideas about what they want to explore about their characters.
Another day, another three or four entries to my Ignore List.
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1 year ago ::
Jan 12, 2012 - 3:23PM
#9
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-Dragonborn are now revolting against the dragons that created them. the whole campainis going off the whole idea of reclaiming lands from their dragonic masters.
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1 year ago ::
Jan 12, 2012 - 3:33PM
#10
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Date Joined:
Jan 17, 2009
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In a campaign world where dragonborn and dragons are both near extinction and rare I've often thought it obvious that dragonborn could be threatened by dragon hunters, human gloryhogs that find dragonborn to be the nearest thing to a real dragon that they can hunt and slay for the glory of being a dragon slayer.
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