This summer Wizard’s of the Coast will release its next 4e campaign, Darksun. For those gamers that weren’t active in the hobby during second edition, Darksun was a wildly popular setting released by TSR in October of 1991.
Darksun takes placed on the horrifying desert planet of Athas and is vastly different from anything else in the D&D family. While a great deal of D&D lore is a retelling of Tolkienian archetypes and western mythology, Darksun is an intentional departure from the well-worn paths of sword and sorcery fantasy gaming.
When you play in Darksun you have to leave your expectations behind, for example, halfings aren’t cute hobbit rip-offs, on Athas, halfings are crazed cannibals that kill and devour anything that wanders onto their path. Along with the altered core races Darksun offers new options like the mantis-like Thri-Kreens, half-giants, and the dwarf-Human hybrid called Muls.
Along with the new races, players will be surprised a change in the religious aspect of the setting. There are no gods in Darksun, all the deities have forsaken Athas, and in their place the planet is ruled by despotic sorcerer kings, tyrannical beings of immeasurable power.
There are more aspects to Darksun than are possible to explore in a single post, but if you’d like more info on Darksun, or simply can’t wait until the release date (Aug 17th) to play; Wizard’s is currently using Darksun in their D&D Encounters campaign on Wednesday nights at your local game store.
If you’re looking for a savage, alien setting, Darksun is for you.
image found at Wizards.com/dnd
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