Acceptable, okay, but which one's actually exist there? - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Acceptable, okay, but which one's actually exist there?

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
psikonetic782_dup
Aug 11, 2004 22:14:42 I was lookings through Terrors of Athas and digging around for my favorite Athas creatures all revised out and the like and I happened upon the List of Acceptable Creatures, which in turn detailed all kinds of creatures from all kinds of books that I could use in a Dark Sun campaign.
What I didn't notice was which creatures are considered to exist there via canon sources or deemed to exist there via the new official word of the Athas team. Does such a list exist?
It seems more and more campaign settings seem to forget the vital step of letting me know which parts of OGL material actually exist as canon in their worlds. Sure, if I buy a 3rd party campaign setting it can include every creature from the MM and every magic item in the DMG, but does it all fit the flavor of the world? Is it actually canon? Nobody let's you know!
You can go about yours arguement of it being "my world to create and change" now that I'm the DM of it, but my style of DMing involves using actually canon as much as possible, so it irks me when developers leave these things out.

Wow, so that was long winded and slightly ranting wasn't it?
So, the direct question: While the list of Acceptable Monsters is fine and all, could I instead get a list of which creatures from those sources actually exist as per canon or offical rulings by Athas.org on Athas. After all, just because a Multiheaded Blue could exist on Athas (as per the Psionics Handbook and Savage Species "Acceptable" list) but I don't really think I've heard reference to them, nor think they fit the canon flavor of the world.

~Me
#2
zombiegleemax
Aug 12, 2004 2:06:11 Actually you couldn't have a multi-headed blue, because the last of the goblins were destroyed by Daskinor in the year of Ral's Defiance of the 155th Kings Age. Of course in your campaign some could have lived, but I think that might be a pretty extensive deviation for a "canon" campaign.
#3
zombiegleemax
Aug 12, 2004 3:44:08
While the list of Acceptable Monsters is fine and all, could I instead get a list of which creatures from those sources actually exist as per canon or offical rulings by Athas.org on Athas

I would imagine that to be as close to canon as your going to get. Unless you want a list of all outside DS monsters that have officially made an appearance in a particular adventure or something.
#4
Kamelion
Aug 12, 2004 4:15:08 The lists of "acceptable monsters" are suggestions for the DM who wishes to add more diversity to the set of Dark Sun monsters offered in Terrors of Athas and Terrors of the Deadlands. They are not "canon" as it is not the intention to dictate that any of these other beasties exists in each and every DS campaign and so there is no list of this type. Instead, these creatures were deemed to have a feel appropriate to Dark Sun and so are listed as suggestions for those DMs who want to use them. I understand that you would like to have a definitive list but, beyond the core DS creatures in ToA and TotDL, we would rather keep a DM's options open.

That said, I would suggest that you could accept the list of creatures from the MM1 and MM2 as canonical. Most of the MM1 creatures appeared on a 2e list of creatures appropriate for Athas and the majority of the listed MM2 creatures were actually DS creatures to begin with. I would have no argument with any of those creatures being accepted as canon.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 psikonetic782_dup Aug 11, 2004 22:14:42	I was lookings through Terrors of Athas and digging around for my favorite Athas creatures all revised out and the like and I happened upon the List of Acceptable Creatures, which in turn detailed all kinds of creatures from all kinds of books that I could use in a Dark Sun campaign. What I didn't notice was which creatures are considered to exist there via canon sources or deemed to exist there via the new official word of the Athas team. Does such a list exist? It seems more and more campaign settings seem to forget the vital step of letting me know which parts of OGL material actually exist as canon in their worlds. Sure, if I buy a 3rd party campaign setting it can include every creature from the MM and every magic item in the DMG, but does it all fit the flavor of the world? Is it actually canon? Nobody let's you know! You can go about yours arguement of it being "my world to create and change" now that I'm the DM of it, but my style of DMing involves using actually canon as much as possible, so it irks me when developers leave these things out. Wow, so that was long winded and slightly ranting wasn't it? So, the direct question: While the list of Acceptable Monsters is fine and all, could I instead get a list of which creatures from those sources actually exist as per canon or offical rulings by Athas.org on Athas. After all, just because a Multiheaded Blue could exist on Athas (as per the Psionics Handbook and Savage Species "Acceptable" list) but I don't really think I've heard reference to them, nor think they fit the canon flavor of the world. ~Me
#2 zombiegleemax Aug 12, 2004 2:06:11	Actually you couldn't have a multi-headed blue, because the last of the goblins were destroyed by Daskinor in the year of Ral's Defiance of the 155th Kings Age. Of course in your campaign some could have lived, but I think that might be a pretty extensive deviation for a "canon" campaign.
#3 zombiegleemax Aug 12, 2004 3:44:08	While the list of Acceptable Monsters is fine and all, could I instead get a list of which creatures from those sources actually exist as per canon or offical rulings by Athas.org on Athas I would imagine that to be as close to canon as your going to get. Unless you want a list of all outside DS monsters that have officially made an appearance in a particular adventure or something.
#4 Kamelion Aug 12, 2004 4:15:08	The lists of "acceptable monsters" are suggestions for the DM who wishes to add more diversity to the set of Dark Sun monsters offered in Terrors of Athas and Terrors of the Deadlands. They are not "canon" as it is not the intention to dictate that any of these other beasties exists in each and every DS campaign and so there is no list of this type. Instead, these creatures were deemed to have a feel appropriate to Dark Sun and so are listed as suggestions for those DMs who want to use them. I understand that you would like to have a definitive list but, beyond the core DS creatures in ToA and TotDL, we would rather keep a DM's options open. That said, I would suggest that you could accept the list of creatures from the MM1 and MM2 as canonical. Most of the MM1 creatures appeared on a 2e list of creatures appropriate for Athas and the majority of the listed MM2 creatures were actually DS creatures to begin with. I would have no argument with any of those creatures being accepted as canon.