Critical Role The New D&D Book Is 'The Explorer's Guide to [Critical Role's] Wildemount!' By Matt Mercer

It looks like Amazon has leaked the title and description of the new D&D book a day early (unless it's all a fake-out by WotC) -- and it's a new D&D setting book called The Explorer's Guide to Wildemount; it's the Critical Role campaign setting, penned by Matt Mercer!

image from Critical Role wiki​

There's no cover image yet, so we're stuck with the "Coming Soon" image.

This book appeared without a title on Amazon last week, and a 'reveal' date of January 9th, which was then later delayed until January 13th. Amazon appears to have jumped the gun a day early.

Here's some information about Wildemount, which is a continent in the same world as Critical Role's other setting, Tal'Dorei. It is described by the official wiki has having "real-world Eastern European influence.... The Dwendalian Empire takes inspiration from 15th century Russia as well as Germanic nations in Central Europe (e.g., Prussia). Xhorhas has a more 13th-century Romanian flair. Outside of Wynandir, on the edges of the Dwendalian Empire, the cultures and peoples of those regions display a distinctly 14th-century Spanish flavor."

HOW DO YOU WANT TO DO THIS?

A war brews on a continent that has withstood more than its fair share of conflict. The Dwendalian Empire and the Kryn Dynasty are carving up the lands around them, and only the greatest heroes would dare stand between them. Somewhere in the far corners of this war-torn landscape are secrets that could end this conflict and usher in a new age of peace—or burn the world to a cinder.

Create a band of heroes and embark on a journey across the continent of Wildemount, the setting for Campaign 2 of the hit Dungeons & Dragons series Critical Role. Within this book, you’ll find new character options, a heroic chronicle to help you craft your character’s backstory, four different starting adventures, and everything a Dungeon Master needs to breathe life into a Wildemount-based D&D campaign…

• Delve through the first Dungeons & Dragons book to let players experience the game as played within the world of Critical Role, the world’s most popular livestreaming D&D show.
• Uncover a trove of options usable in any D&D game, featuring subclasses, spells, magic items, monsters, and more, rooted in the adventures of Exandria—such as Vestiges of Divergence and the possibility manipulating magic of Dunamancy.
• Start a Dungeons & Dragons campaign in any of Wildemount’s regions using a variety of introductory adventures, dozens of regional plot seeds, and the heroic chronicle system—a way to create character backstories rooted in Wildemount.

Explore every corner of Wildemount and discover mysteries revealed for the first time by Critical Role Dungeon Master, Matthew Mercer.

Critical Role's other setting, Tal'Dorei, was published a couple of years ago by Green Ronin. This brings the list of settings in official D&D books to five: Forgotten Realms, Ravnica, Ravenloft, Eberron, and Wildemount.

UPDATE! Barnes & Noble has the cover (but not the title or description).

 

[Fenris-77]

It is a majority thing, not an equality thing. The will listen to the majority. You desires are evidently not the majority.

Yup, if WotC thought a new Greyhawk book was going to rocket to #1 on Amazon they'd make it. They might even be doing so, but they released this one first. Essentially the argument here is "how dare WotC release an enormously popular D&D book that a ton of people are buying and excited about". Once you take out the spurious appeal to history it just doesn't make a lot of sense.

 

[dave2008]

Long time players have been asking for 5e versions of multiple older campaign settings.

I'm a longtime player (if 30yrs is a long time) and I have not asked for a rehash of the old setting books. I, like over 50% of the D&D players, play in my own homebrew setting. Less than half of players play in a published setting. Should they ignore those people and continue to publish old settings they don't care about?

 

[Parmandur]

Yup, if WotC thought a new Greyhawk book was going to rocket to #1 on Amazon they'd make it. They might even be doing so, but they released this one first. Essentially the argument here is "how dare WotC release an enormously popular D&D book that a ton of people are buying and excited about". Once you take out the spurious appeal to history it just doesn't make a lot of sense.

Indeed, getting Mercer on-side asan official rep is for the long-term benefit of those other Settings. Mercer, day one of the announcement, was already publicly advocating for Planescape and Dark Sun, for Lathander's sake.

 

[3catcircus]

They are listening to their customers, that's why they are producing what customers want.

Are they, or are they listening to critical role viewers who may not actually purchase any other products besides the TalDorei and Wildemount ones?

Studies show that 65% of a company's business comes from existing customers and that a 5% increase in customer retention increases profits between 25% and 95%.

Do they expect to grow profits in the long term with this, or are they further fragmenting their customers?

 

[FlyingChihuahua]

Are they, or are they listening to critical role viewers who may not actually purchase any other products besides the TalDorei and Wildemount ones?

Studies show that 65% of a company's business comes from existing customers and that a 5% increase in customer retention increases profits between 25% and 95%.

Do they expect to grow profits in the long term with this, or are they further fragmenting their customers?

Look, just because people other than you are asking for something, doesn't mean that they aren't also in the core audience.

 

[dave2008]

Are they, or are they listening to critical role viewers who may not actually purchase any other products besides the TalDorei and Wildemount ones?

Studies show that 65% of a company's business comes from existing customers and that a 5% increase in customer retention increases profits between 25% and 95%.

Do they expect to grow profits in the long term with this, or are they further fragmenting their customers?

over 50% of D&D customers don't play in an official setting, much less any one setting (I think FR was the most at 15%)

 

[3catcircus]

I'm a longtime player (if 30yrs is a long time) and I have not asked for a rehash of the old setting books. I, like over 50% of the D&D players, play in my own homebrew setting. Less than half of players play in a published setting. Should they ignore those people and continue to publish old settings they don't care about?

So you're saying you'll be purchasing Wildemount? How about Ravnica? People who won't buy any campaign settings are a different customer base - are you satisfied with the non-setting products they've published?

 

[Reynard]

Are they, or are they listening to critical role viewers who may not actually purchase any other products besides the TalDorei and Wildemount ones?

Studies show that 65% of a company's business comes from existing customers and that a 5% increase in customer retention increases profits between 25% and 95%.

Do they expect to grow profits in the long term with this, or are they further fragmenting their customers?

I am going to guess that Dark Sun would probably be the least profitable old setting they could pump out, far less than Planescape but probably only marginally less profitable than Greyhawk. Just based on what we have seen produced in the last couple of editions and what people seem to clamor for.

In any case, people are forgetting something pretty important: millennials are adults with disposable income now and they significantly outnumber Gen-X. It makes no sense for WotC to continue to rely on nostalgia for an evergreen edition. It definitely helped establish 5E but now it is likely diminishing returns. And I say good. Let D&D breathe game of the millennials and Zoomers. If I want to play old settings I literally have 30 years worth of stuff in boxes.

 

[Fenris-77]

Let's not move the goalposts shall we? They published a book that a ton of people are buying. If a ton of people are buying it that must mean there's a significant demand. And unless you think it's being purchased by random grandma's in Pasadena that demand is from fans of D&D. Case closed.

 

[SkidAce]

Yup, I always teach like that...describe the situation, ask "What would you do if this happened?" and explain and narrate.

Everybody usually understands the concept after just a few minutes.

Learning every single rule or mechanical possibility, takes a little longer its true, but it starts organically and is no barrier to play.