In our continuing series on world-building its now time to take a look at what it takes to create worlds for Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition.
Getting Started
It is good to stop and ask yourself questions about your world before you start building. There are lots to think and knowing what the boundaries are and the core focus is from the beginning will help you build a more realistic world. One of the most important questions you should ask is about scope. Scope covers not just the size and level of detail, but also how it used.
Who is going to use your world? Is it just for you? Do you run a D&D group that will adventure in this world? Are you creating a world that you intend to sell content for such as campaigns? While you may think this is not that important, it can be as your answers will dictate the license you use.
There are two license options available for D&D content. They are the OGL and DMs Guild. Licensing is out of scope for this rundown on worldbuilding, but in short, if you intend to sell or use any published content sold by Wizards of the Coast or the DMs Guild webshop then you will have to use the DMs Guild License. If everything you are doing is homebrew and contains no Wizards of the Coast or D&D Intelectual Property then you can use the OGL. For more information on licensing take a look at the getting started page of Dungeon Masters Guild.
System Reference Document
Your next port of call should be the SRD or Systems Reference Document. The SRD is a lengthy document that contains the core rules to the game, and the bare essentials needed to run a game. Even if you currently play or DM D&D, the SRD is an important tool. It describes the core rules and includes basic information on races, spells, and abilities, armor and equipment, classes, and more.
Anything in this document can be used as part of your world regardless of the license and more importantly can be adapted to fit the environment you create. You don’t have to use any of it if you don’t want to, but if you are creating fifth edition content having balanced and tested examples will help as you create believable worlds.
Speaking of examples… When working with Fifth Edition worldbuilding, there are rules that must be adhered to. There are lots of examples included for the different races, creatures, monsters, equipment, armor, and weaponry and these can serve as templates for creating your own. You don’t have to be too rigid with some aspects such as descriptions, but you will find that items such as armor and equipment have stats that must be included. In these cases, when creating comparable items, you should ensure that the stats of the new item are in line with other items of the same level and type.
The SRD can be a bit daunting at times. There are some unofficial sites such as 5esrd.com that can help with navigating the pages. They breakdown the individual elements into searchable elements that are easy to digest. You can also use worldbuilding software such as WorldAnvil to manage your worldbuilding, you can choose Fifth Edition rules as part of the set-up for the world. This will then provide you with templates s that capture the stats and abilities as you create your entries. For old school creators, you can find or create paper-based templates that standardize the elements in a similar fashion.
Narrative choices
The SRD is an important tool, but like many others, you should not let it restrict your creative process. It is there to help you define world entities. The lore for an item, however, should be ‘universal’. Mundane objects should be defined in such a way that they can easily be re-used. You could set a range of stats that could be selected with a dice roll rather than have everything the same, but when you work with special items, give yourself more freedom. Rules are meant to be broken!
You can always break the rules by having an item with over-powering abilities that catches the adventurers’ eye. It harbors a secret that remains hidden unless the item is examined by a person with adequate skill. The item could be single-use, or a family heirloom that can only be used by a hero of sufficient worth. Other penalties could include a weapon that drains health from the user but does enhanced damage, or even a ring of invisibility that corrupts the wearer. Whatever the reason, make sure to include a narrative for why things are so.
Beyond The Forgotten Realms
As all D&D players will know, The Forgotten Realms is the official and primary focus for campaigns and adventures released by Wizards of the Coast, however, it isn’t the only one. Ravenloft, Eberron and Ravinca all feature prominently in the D&D multiverse, and we are seeing a return to Icewind Dale in the near future! As a DM you have the ability to create new content in one or more settings using content from one or more of these franchises, and also from your own creations of course.
New Worlds
As you can imagine, creating new worlds is a time-consuming process. The SRD provides the basics of what is needed for Fifth Edition games, especially within a fantasy setting. Games outside of this setting will require a lot more work but the SRD still provides a flexible framework that you can build upon. The core rules will still work, but things like magic can be re-interpreted for a future age (think Jedi).
Whatever you build for Fifth Edition should first and foremost be fun for you as a creator, and for your players. By sticking to a familiar ruleset you can get into your games quicker, but don’t let it affect your narrative choices. If you find it does then it may be time to look at some of the other open alternatives or why not go one step further and roll your own!
NEXT: Verbeeg Return In D&D: Dark Alliance Video Game
Sources: D&D SRD
