My personal research and tastes for possible next campaigns points towards Eberron. Below I list out what I consider crucial for any Dungeons and Dragons: Fifth Edition 📖 campaign.
Eberron Campaign Setting
Winner of the Wizards of the Coast 📖 campaign setting search competition, the Eberron Campaign Setting provided a complete campaign world for Dungeons and Dragons: Third Edition 📖.
The Eberron Campaign Setting introduced the Artificer, an arcane class adept at infusing magic into objects. You can find the 5th Edition playtest version of the Artificer at Wizards of the Coast’s Unearthed Arcana.
Eberron also introduced four new races: The Warforged 📖, a sentient and free-willed construct; the Kalashtar 📖, twin-souled psionically adept human-like people; the Shifter 📖, a primal race rooted in lycanthropic-like powers; and the Changeling 📖, a face changing humanoid.
Every two or so years I pull out my original copy and flip through for inspiration. No other campaign setting that I’ve encountered feels as alive and ready to burst into action.
The Last War ended two years from the default start of an Eberron campaign. A treaty of necessity holds, but a cold war covers much of the continent. On the perimeter, refugees, the liberated, and a nation of monsters strive to find their place in the continent. All as ancient evils turn in the belly of the earth. And dreams conspire against the world.
Wayfinder’s Guide to Eberron
Bringing Eberron into 5th edition, the Wayfinder's Guide to Eberron provides playtest-grade material for creating characters in Eberron.
Keith Baker 📖, creator of Eberron, lead the design of 176 page supplement. You’ll find information for creating characters of the iconic races of Eberron: Warforged, Kalashtars, Shifters, and Changelings. You’ll find rules for playing Dragonmarked characters and their role amongst the mercantile-oriented Dragonmarked houses 📖.
The Wayfinder's Guide to Eberron provides modifications to 5E backgrounds to better fit into a campaign set in Sharn, the City of Towers.
With the Wayfinder's Guide to Eberron and the Eberron Campaign Setting, you have all you need to play.
Morgrave Miscellany
Billed as “A Curriculum for Apsiring Adventurers”, Morgrave Miscellany provides a deeper player-oriented dive into Eberron. Keith Baker and Ruty Rutenburg team up to bring fantastic additions to Eberron.
The first two chapters, framed as lectures from Morgrave University (an Eberron campaign university) provide details on how classes and races fit into Eberron. Each class gets at least one new archetype, and a few homages to 3E prestige classes.
- Barbarian - Path of the Extreme Explorer
- Bard - The College of the Key
- Cleric - The Sovereign Domain
- Druid - The Circle of the Arbiter
- Fighter - The Bone Knight and Vigilante
- Monk - Way of the Argent Fist
- Paladin - Oath of Sacrament
- Ranger - Field Marshal
- Rogue - Divine Herald
- Sorcerer - Progenitor Spark
- Warlock - Pact of the Host
- Wizard - School of Antiquities
I found the Pact of the Host fascinating. This Warlock pact invites an aspect of your patron to inhabit you in a symbiotic relationship; And you may lose control.
The Korranberg Chronicle: Threat Dispatch
Eberron Campaign Setting introduced new creatures. The Korranberg Chronicle: Threat Dispatch provides 5th Edition conversions for those creatures.
Manifest Zone
From the tagline: “Manifest Zone: A podcast dedicated to exploring the depth and breadth of Eberron.”
Kristian Serrano, Keith Baker, Wayne Chang, and Scott Welker have talked about Eberron on their podcast since March 17, 2017; posting about an hour long episode each month. Personally, I love listening to Keith Baker geek out on talking about his creation. Keith’s passion for Eberron shines as he (and his co-hosts) delve into Eberron.
Keith Baker’s Website
On his personal website, Keith Baker blogs about Eberron and other topics of interest. You can support his independent game design efforts by chipping in at his Patreon.
I found interesting his post on starting a new campaign in Q’barra, a backwater region in Eberron. In particular mandating that someone be the Law in the town and suggesting that someone be the Faith and someone else the Money.