Author's Note

Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition was regrettably passed over by many and mocked as the black sheep of the editions. But it still is chock-full of an amazing amount of content, and the battle designs are solid, with good writing and epic power proportions. I started with playing 5e, which focused a lot more on the role-play pillar, and I figured this is what 4e was lacking a bit in. 4e, as people explained to me many times, is essentially a video game trapped in paper format. It is hard to enjoy this kind of cybertext when the medium plays such a big part in it. So, why not take away from the combat a bit to tell a story some more instead?

The Concept and Theme

Shard Ne'Vaal was inspired definitely by the Dark Sun setting, with post-apocalyptic terrains and a bleak, if not bleaker, worldview. There might be some obvious projections from my own experiences if any English Lit-major is to try and pick it apart.
As an artist, the story is supposed to showcase the world and its ideas, with less focus on the people. I won't deny it is a chance to shamelessly plug in my own works. But it is also a homage to games like Final Fantasy VI, XIII and XV, which deal with the death and rebirth of worlds. "Since 4e plays like a video game, more than conventional DnD, then let's have it as a video game!"
Of course, it still has the classic elements of races, class, and the monsters we all know and love. I also really enjoyed the Oriental Adventures from 3e, which were sadly not adopted into 4e. As part of my world, I wanted as many cultures and nations I could jam in there that still felt unique, kind of like when you eat and you want a lot of taste and texture mixing in your mouth.