Hey there! The title is a bit explanatory, but I've been messing around with the idea of a Medieval WW2 Polish dragonborn for a campaign I'm in.
The character itself already exists, so here's what I have so far:
Jakubas Jabłonski
Male Dragonborn - Battle Master Fighter, Level 3
Noble background
Part of what I wanted help with is to make the character authentic. Is there anything I should do that would make the character specifically Polish, or anything I should avoid in the background, etc.?
I will be honest, this sounds like a bit of a disaster waiting to happen. I say that not to necessarily disparage your and your group’s ideas, but to lay out some of the problems so you can think about them during design.
For starters, connections to the real world can be rife for table-level problems - and WWII Poland would hit on Nazis, Soviets, the Holocaust, appeasement, and other issues that still might be difficult for some players to handle. Moreover, dealing wirh them in a respectful way while also playing an enjoyable game can be a fine line to walk - and a line that could risk offending someone.
Second, things like this risk devolving into stereotypes of real world cultures. By making this thread, you essentially admit you have no understanding of authentic polish culture - and the fact that you’re going to an Internet forum instead of reading historical documents or secondary sources is a bit of a red flag to me.
Third, any time you are trying to do something in a story already told, you run the risk of feeling a bit stuck, trying to play inside another story, rather than telling your own. That does not mean it is impossible to do something like this, but it does require a little more finesse to ensure players do not feel they have plot armor.
Keeping those things in mind, your best bet is going to be finding a real world Pole to use as a baseline inspiration. Then do your research. Read up on them; learn about this history. If you can read primary documents in their own hand, do so. Play an individual, not a stereotype of what you think a Pole might be.
WW2 with no guns, or any technological advancements.
What is the difference between WWII with nothing technological and Casmir the Great battles in the 1300s? Without guns and technological advancements, aren't you back to the Roman times or early middle ages?
All your points are very valid. For records sake, we are NOT doing a WW2 campaign; I just thought the idea of an ultra-Christian noble Pole getting sent to a magical fantasy world was funny.
All your points are very valid. For records sake, we are NOT doing a WW2 campaign; I just thought the idea of an ultra-Christian noble Pole getting sent to a magical fantasy world was funny.
Point is, I'll do my research now. Thank you.
If my previous post was about a disaster waiting to happen, this is a disaster already happening.
D&D is a game of fantasy escapism - and lots of people want to get lost in their fantasy world. You are trying to make a character that would drag in WW2, real world religions, and real world cultures into that fantasy space, ruining other players’ escapism and cursing some questionable implications for the DM’s world building. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, that is less going to be funny and more going to end in everyone at the table annoyed (or worse) with you.
If you want my candid advice? Drop this idea. It is not a good one in actual gameplay.
Hey there! The title is a bit explanatory, but I've been messing around with the idea of a Medieval WW2 Polish dragonborn for a campaign I'm in.
The character itself already exists, so here's what I have so far:
Jakubas Jabłonski
Male Dragonborn - Battle Master Fighter, Level 3
Noble background
Part of what I wanted help with is to make the character authentic. Is there anything I should do that would make the character specifically Polish, or anything I should avoid in the background, etc.?
Can you explain what you mean by "medieval WW2"?
pronouns: he/she/they
WW2 with no guns, or any technological advancements.
I will be honest, this sounds like a bit of a disaster waiting to happen. I say that not to necessarily disparage your and your group’s ideas, but to lay out some of the problems so you can think about them during design.
For starters, connections to the real world can be rife for table-level problems - and WWII Poland would hit on Nazis, Soviets, the Holocaust, appeasement, and other issues that still might be difficult for some players to handle. Moreover, dealing wirh them in a respectful way while also playing an enjoyable game can be a fine line to walk - and a line that could risk offending someone.
Second, things like this risk devolving into stereotypes of real world cultures. By making this thread, you essentially admit you have no understanding of authentic polish culture - and the fact that you’re going to an Internet forum instead of reading historical documents or secondary sources is a bit of a red flag to me.
Third, any time you are trying to do something in a story already told, you run the risk of feeling a bit stuck, trying to play inside another story, rather than telling your own. That does not mean it is impossible to do something like this, but it does require a little more finesse to ensure players do not feel they have plot armor.
Keeping those things in mind, your best bet is going to be finding a real world Pole to use as a baseline inspiration. Then do your research. Read up on them; learn about this history. If you can read primary documents in their own hand, do so. Play an individual, not a stereotype of what you think a Pole might be.
What is the difference between WWII with nothing technological and Casmir the Great battles in the 1300s? Without guns and technological advancements, aren't you back to the Roman times or early middle ages?
All your points are very valid. For records sake, we are NOT doing a WW2 campaign; I just thought the idea of an ultra-Christian noble Pole getting sent to a magical fantasy world was funny.
Point is, I'll do my research now. Thank you.
If my previous post was about a disaster waiting to happen, this is a disaster already happening.
D&D is a game of fantasy escapism - and lots of people want to get lost in their fantasy world. You are trying to make a character that would drag in WW2, real world religions, and real world cultures into that fantasy space, ruining other players’ escapism and cursing some questionable implications for the DM’s world building. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, that is less going to be funny and more going to end in everyone at the table annoyed (or worse) with you.
If you want my candid advice? Drop this idea. It is not a good one in actual gameplay.