D&D’s new guide Ravenoft is the best Dungeons & Dragons book in a generation

Dungeons & Dragons is undergoing an incredible resurgence in popularity, in part due to our desperate need for human interaction that has not fueled in part. Giant Machine, which is Wizards of the Coast, has been churning out the game’s 5th edition for years, publishing campaigns with popular scripts that groups can pick up and play from beginning to end. This next book, however, is quite different.

Van Richten’s Guide to Ravensoft Comes on 18 May, and it has the ability to supercharge the hobby of playing this role like never before. About 40 different settings inside this 256-page volume are for horror-themed campaigns. It seems that many new prestige Netflix series are getting at once. In fact, it’s hard to be dense Van Richten’s Guide actually it is

Somehow Project Lead Wesley Schneider also managed to cram into a multitude of new options for character creation, an assortment of clever allies, 32 vicious new monsters, and all the gentle guidance of your group to safely spin-your-own. There is a need to run a Tingling campaign. On the table. Van Richten’s Guide The richest D&D book of this generation goes hand in hand, and I can’t wait to see what fans do with it.

First, a little background: Classic Ravenoft The adventure was first published in 1983. That slim, 32-page adventure star summoned a charismatic vampire named Strad von Zarovich. The module proved to be extremely popular, a whole series of horror-themed adventures loosely combined by a semi-sensory haze and a fictional cosmology. Van Richten’s Guide Re-creates some of those settings, and also adds new ones along the way.

Each main domain of dread is mentioned Van Richten’s Guide to Ravensoft Creating a character from that scope includes a sidebar. It is a bid to give non-player characters a kind of agency in these worlds that has not been tolerated in previous settings.
Photo: Charlie Hall / Reporter Door

Each “Domain of Dread” is presented not as a purely et atorm expedition, but as the seed of a dark and glorious adventure. The straddling land of Barwia is here, of course, with its famous vampires trapped in the halls of its deadly palace. But the world of cosmic horror surrounded by flames of maleist mind is also Bluesetpur, which will make your heroes aware of their memories. Borka is a feudal land, dripping with poison and intrigue, its population trapped and disturbed not by one and two but by the villain. There is Carnival, a domain that wanders itself to the mistry, populated by wild artists and a powerful, living sword; The Broken Land of Darken, whose central palace is littered with explosions, has its asymmetrical rooms completely trying to regroup in mid-air; There is also a haunted train, its own distinct setting, sinking through them all.

My personal favorite is the land of Falconia, where the villain Vladiska Drakov fights an endless battle against an endless horde of zombies. Once a brilliant military commander, Drakekov’s ruthless efficiency and tireless perfectionism transformed him into a tyrannical one. Instead of repelling the lives of civilians and soldiers, every day he rebuilds the barricades that prevent death. The same walls are trapped inside it.

Each of the settings included in this book may be the beginning of a year-long campaign. They need all the players to start, and Van Richten’s Guide There are lots of new tools to help players find their way.

A boastful shot of the book's cover, featuring Stride in the background.

Photo: Charlie Hall / Reporter Door

The optional cover, available only at your friendly local game store, has a subtle metallic finish with edges.

Take the book’s new pedigree, which includes the vampiric Dhampeer, the mysterious hexblade, and the semi-undone reincarnation. At first glance the lineage performs the same function as the race, as players can build a character. But they can also be applied to existing characters when they are created, similar to how a punch card covers certain sections of the page. Some elements of your character will be shown through that punch card, while others will be obscured with new abilities. He leaves the leaves appearing on the page to serve as a backdrop – distant memories that your character can only dimly remember.

The same goes for the dark gift Van Richten’s Guide. Players can initially choose a Dark Gift, a mysterious flaw that also grants them powerful abilities. Alternatively, the patient DM may lie in wait, picking up the perfect moment to offer a special dark gift in the form of a devilish bargain. “A character is on the verge of death while time stops,” one section reads. “A mysterious voice offers to save the character’s life, but only if they accept its Dark Gift.” Would you choose to save your character’s life, only to be damned forever by a shadow you don’t control?

A lot of talk about consent comes with these types of in-game results. Van Richten’s Guide An entire chapter on the concept is included, and brings X-Card-like concepts to modern D&D as a whole, even including creator John Stavropoulos among its authors. in its own way, Van Richten’s Guide There is a mantra: Horror role-play is about scaring the characters, not the players, and every precaution that must be taken to ensure that remains the case throughout.

There’s a lot to talk about in this book, but it doesn’t even come up if I don’t mention that it’s necessary to create my own terrifying villains – from scratch – with all the equipment groups their own domains of fear If so, I will remember it. People who enjoy rolling out new characters will never actually play, rolling their own domains and enjoy scratching that same itch. The book also includes a new adventure called House of Lament, which will take characters from the first to the third level. This is a great way to warm up to a new gaming group – and new DMs – to tell epic storytelling.

Be warned, however, that an element of a traditional D&D book is absent at this time. Of all the marquee villains listed in the book, none have a state block. Not even a straddle, whose stats already exist Curse of straussCopied in Van Richten’s Guide. This is understood at the beginning of the book, the author of which states that the villain of a domain does not always have a big bad itch for a fight. After running multiple battles against Strad and other ilk’s other monsters in multiple game systems, I agree with the wizard’s adventure design decision. There is more D&D than combat, and this omission will help players play more elaborate roles and build worlds, relieving the stress of maximizing their own stats and magical powers to win the day.

A Tum guy in a wheelchair pulls out a pistol, his sword swinging friend defends him with animated puppets.

Sherlock Holmes and Drs. Detective Alanic Ray and Arthur Sedgwick have been re-imagined for the new D&D pantyhon as a fictional tale for Watson for a long time.
Photo: Charlie Hall / Reporter Door

In the end, it’s the little touches that really make it Van Richten’s Guide special. I admire how the hand written in the prologue creates a non-compiled story that frames its non-player characters – Az d’Avenier, Weatherme-Foxgrove twins, Alnik Ray, and Arthur Sedwick – Courageous as a loving, family people are kept separate from time and place. I like how the pages of the book are printed to look like careless bleached parchment. Even the titles have a soul board, a themed Ouija Board that will allow players to play their scenes. The creators have paid attention to detail and dedication to the craft during this run of the 5th edition of D&D.

I just can’t say enough Van Richten’s Guide to Ravensoft. Coming on the heels of the essentials Candle Secrets, This is further proof that the Wizard of the Coast is firing on all cylinders.

You can find the book online at retailers such as Amazon or at your friendly local game store, where the special optional covers shown above are available in limited quantities.

Van Richten’s Guide to Ravensoft The review was accompanied by the final retail version provided by Wizards of the Coast. Reporter Door has an affiliate participation. These do not affect editorial content, although report dorms may earn commissions for products purchased through affiliate links. You can find Additional information about the ethics policy of Reporter Door here.


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