Carcosa

i am definitely on-board with dragons, so far as they're given their due and are an appropriately majestic, alien, and terrifying creature. so, like everything else, consider me open-minded.

as for doubts along the lines of, "i don't want guns because it puts the untrained on equal footing with a veteran soldier" or fears that guns might represent "the end of an era"... have you considered that, perhaps, those are the exact intentions Obsidian has re: firearms and this setting? perhaps their entire goal is to provide the setting of a world in conflict, or a world "moving on"? an actual, well-crafted and interesting fantasy world doesn't remain stagnant for millions of years. if you want it to feel like a living, breathing world filled with people who are living genuine lives, not just as functions waiting for the character to come around and react to, then we likewise have to assume that those people are doing things. could that include, i don't know, discovering their version of gunpowder and inventing the gun? sure, just as it might include devising an easier way to bring in the harvest, or preserve water for long sea-voyages, or how to use sheep intestines as condoms. a major issue i'm seeing is people either considering this game an analog for, you know, real life and history or that Obsidian is playing it straight, offering by the books fantasy (which, yes, they did say they were making a fantasy game). you realize, i hope, that they are crafting an entirely new setting based on nothing but their own imaginations, right? they're not operating within the bounds of a license or anything. the fact is... it doesn't have to be anywhere near to any of that. which means they are certainly not bound to play by the rules of what we know from our actual Earth or any of the fantasy we've come across thus far. the truth is, we don't know nearly enough about the game to say anything one way or another and to be honest i sort of wish they hadn't said anything at all until they were ready for a huge infodump and saved us all the trouble of speculation. and believe me, i understand that maybe some of you feel you were sold a bill of goods and expect a classic, traditional high-fantasy RPG and anything that deviates from the mold is to be vilified. but i don't think there's a problem with waiting to see what Obsidian's got lined up.

it's not like firearm and ammunition factories spring up overnight. we don't have dwarf slave caravans kidnapping elven children so their dainty little fingers can fit inside the barrels of mass-produced guns to clean out the rifling or anything. i hesitate to put words in the developers mouths and everything, but it seems fair clear to me that the 1) guns are super uncommon and either a luxury or some barbaric implement viewed with suspicion at best and revulsion at worst and 2) it's not like the SS John Moses Browning is rolling up Geiran's Grasp and off-loading tens of thousands of machine-guns to be handed out across the nation. there's no way that a rare, most likely strange and possibly mysterious weapon will be produced in such quantities as to reduce the necessity of all other long-ranged weaponry. it's outrageous. regardless, people will like what they like and nothing i can say will change it. i just hope Obsidian sticks to their guns on this one.

yes, please. quite simply, i have faith in these guys and their ability to craft an interesting, wildly fresh and invigorating setting and world. if that includes guns, i assume they know what they're doing and really look forward to seeing what they come up with. in fact, all things considered, i'm glad to see them steering a little ways from the dogmatic, traditional view of what constitutes "high fantasy". i just hope to see them go full tilt and get crazy. i want to see elves that are truly alien, otherworldly, ethereal and strange, not just pointy-eared pretties. i want to see dwarves that aren't necessarily bearded and greedy and grubby and hungry for gold and jewels. in the immortal words of Leon Black, "Topsy turvy that ****! Turn that **** around!" anyway, my two coppers, for what they're worth.