As time permits, I like to answer interesting questions posed by my Patreon supporters. Here’s one from this month…

With a complete lack of Player interaction, what major events would play out in your Eberron in the five years following 998 YK?

I have an Eberron one-shot that I’ve run 59 times. It never gets boring for me, because it’s filled with interesting decision points and choices for the players. I’ve never gotten bored with running it, because every time I run I see something I’ve never seen before—every group of players comes up with something no one else has tried. It’s like I get to watch my favorite movie over and over, but it surprises me every time.

Eberron overall is the same thing for me. 998 YK is a nexus of possible dramatic events—far more than you could incorporate into a single campaign. This is intentional, because an Eberron story can be so many different things—gritty noir in Callestan, globetrotting expeditions with the Clifftop adventurers, horror, intrigue, and more. Every campaign I run engages with different elements and thus takes a different path. A key part of this is that I never use all the major villains in one campaign. I’ve said before that with the Dreaming Dark, the Lords of Dust, and the Daelkyr, I’ll pick one to play a major role and use the others sparingly. Most of these major threats are working on plans that spans centuries, and it’s easy enough to say that none of the overlords are close to release right now or that it’s going to take another decade for the Dreaming Dark to set a scheme in motion.

So, for example… In the next five years, will there be war between Droaam and Breland? Well, even if you remove player characters from the equation, is the Dreaming Dark involved (in which case they might be interested in promoting unity and manipulate people to drive peace) or does the overlord Tol Kharash seek to inspire war? Are the Heirs of Dhakaan going to emerge in force or are they going to hold off for another decade? I can’t just give you a list of “This is what would happen in the next five years” because the answer will change with every campaign I set up; it will depend on which of the major powers are manipulating the world in the background, whether the tone is grim horror or over the top pulp action, and so much more. With that said, what I can do is to call out what those major events would be. The OUTCOME will depend on the forces involved… but these are a few of the factors that I’d want to address in any campaign that covers that period.

Droaam seeks recognition. As Droaam continues to rise, will it eventually be accepted as a Thronehold nation, in which case Droaamites will be more widely seen across Khorvaire? Or will fear and intolerance drive Breland into war with Droaam, with or without the support of other Thronehold Nations? This is something that comes up in my novel The Queen of Stone, which is set during 999 YK.

King Boranel dies. What happens next? Does the Brelish monarchy come to an end, and if so, does this have any broader impact on the other Wynarn monarchs? Or do the loyalists coalesce around a surprisingly effective heir—and if so, is that heir secretly a figurehead for the Dreaming Dark, a servant of the Lords of Dust, or beholden to the Twelve and to House interests?

Someone fights Valenar. The Valenar want someone to attack them, and will continue to poke at hornet’s nests. Darguun or Karrnath are the most likely to respond, but anything’s possible. Here again—the Tairnadal want a war so they can emulate the deeds of their ancestors. But does some other force have an interest in this conflict? Could the Valenar be collectively possessed by Rak Tulkhesh? Is their a Cult of the Dragon Below spreading through the Tairnadal—could that elf warrior have a tongueworm hidden beneath his Zaelta veil?

Haruuc dies. As seen in Don Bassingthwaite’s Legacy of Dhakaan novels. What happens next? Does someone manage to fill the void, and if so, are they puppets of the Dreaming Dark or the Lords of Dust? Do the Heirs of Dhakaan emerge openly? Or does Darguun fall into chaos?

Arcane science advances. The last 30 years have brought us warforged, airships, and colossi. What’s coming next? I’d chose 2-3 major breakthroughs that could have a significant impact on the story. Do we improve teleportation circles? Come up with a Sending-based improvement to communication, or something like radio? A weapon? Or, as seen in my Siberspace campaign… spelljammers?

The Lord of Blades escalates. The Lord of Blades wants to make a dramatic statement, and I’m sure he will do SOMETHING major in the next five years… anything from urging a violent warforged uprising in Sharn to unleashing Cannith superweapons recovered from the Mournland. While his intentions may be pure—he’s dedicated to the cause of his people—is he an unknowing puppet of one of the ancient powers?

What’s up with the Dragonmarked Houses? Beyond any advances in arcane science, a number of houses are already pushing the limits of the Korth Edicts. Do any seek to more actively exert political influence or to expand their power within the world? Does Cannith get a single baron or does it break into multiple houses like Thuranni and Phiarlan? Do any rivalries—notably Deneith and Tharashk—grow deeper?

Kaius III is challenged. Many of the warlords of Karrnath are unhappy with Kaius’s pursuit of peace… and those potential usurpers could be manipulated by anyone from Rak Tulkhesh to Lady Illmarrow. A coup or civil war could start within Karrnath, or it could be triggered by an outside, like the exile Drego Thul. And whatever path you choose, Kaius has secrets… what happens if they are exposed?

An ancient power is released. Consider the story of Tira Miron. She ultimately prevents the overlord Bel Shalor from fully escaping their bonds. But the saga begins with Bel Shalor being partially released—starting a year of blood and fire, as the overlord’s power and its fiends spread across Thrane. There’s literally dozens of overlords, along with the daelkyr. I could definitely imagine a campaign in which the adventurers don’t have the opportunity to prevent an overlord from being released; the partial release is what sets the campaign in motion, and the adventurers must battle against the chaos it brings to the world and try to return it to its prison.

Aurala wants a war. Does she get it? On a small scale, this could revolve around Thaliost or the Eldeen Reaches. On a large scale, Aurala wants to reignite the Last War and claim the throne of reunited Galifar. But to do this, she’d need reason to believe she could win—an unbeatable alliance (with Riedra? With an overlord?) or an arcane superweapon that no nation can stand against. This also ties to…

An answer to the Mourning? The major factor preventing the Next War is fear of the Mourning. As long as people don’t know what caused the Mourning, they are afraid to go back to war. If it’s a weapon, someone could have that weapon; if it was an environmental effect caused by the overuse of war magic, restarting the war could cause the Mournland to expand. The mystery of the Mourning is the deterrent. If that mystery is solved, the key questions will be who solves it; whether that answer allows them to replicate or control the Mourning; or whether the answer proves that war magic IS dangerous, making it difficult to pursue war.

These are major points I’d be thinking about, but there’s so many more! Do the Heirs of Dhakaan unite under a single leader and emerge in force? Does Oargev establish a new Cyre? Is there a change in relations with Riedra, or perhaps a dramatic shift in the stalemate between Riedra and Adar? Looking back to the original question, I can’t tell you which of these things WILL happen or how they will play out, because it’s all going to depend on the story I feel like telling as I set up the campaign… do I want a war story? Do I want it to explore corporate overreach or advancements in arcane science? Just like my convention one-shot… If I run 59 Eberron campaigns, I expect to see 59 different paths for the future.

That’s all for now. If you’ve enjoyed the article, please consider checking out my Patreon! In addition to asking the questions that drive articles like this, my Patreon support directly determines how much time I can spend creating Eberron content in the future. I’m also doing a monthly live Q&A, and Threshold patrons have the chance to play in my ongoing Eberron campaign. And for the month of July, patrons can get a special discount on Exploring Eberron! Check it out, and thanks to all of you who are already patrons!