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D&D 5E Official D&D Greek-Themed 'Mythic Odysseys of Theros' Setting Coming In May

My inbox just exploded! It looks like Penguin Random House accidentally leaked an upcoming book listing for D&D, before removing the entry. It's dated for May 19th, and it's called Mythic Odysseys of Theros. What's Theros? It's a Greek(ish) themed Magic: the Gathering world! This will make it the second, after Ravnica, to make it to an official D&D campaign setting. Here's what the MTG wiki...

My inbox just exploded! It looks like Penguin Random House accidentally leaked an upcoming book listing for D&D, before removing the entry. It's dated for May 19th, and it's called Mythic Odysseys of Theros.

Screen Shot 2020-02-28 at 4.41.15 PM.png


What's Theros? It's a Greek(ish) themed Magic: the Gathering world! This will make it the second, after Ravnica, to make it to an official D&D campaign setting. Here's what the MTG wiki says about it:
"Theros is a plane governed by the gods of Nyx, where heroes face monsters, the sea rages, people offer burnt offerings and adventures take place. It is defined by mankind's struggle against the primal forces of the world, and mankind's conflict with the many other sapient races that populate the world."

Meletis.jpg


In ancient times, the archons of Theros held a massive empire, tyrannizing the world in the belief that they were imposing a strict justice. The most notable of these Archon tyrants was Agnomakhos, who used the leonin as an army. Eventually, the Archon empire fell, being instead replaced by the poleis, and the remaining Archons now lash at these, slighting the "honor" they feel was stripped from them.

There's an enormous list of races, too -- though how many of those will translate from MtG to D&D, I don't know. Some of these are clearly 'monsters' in the D&D sense rather than 'races'. It includes cats, centaurs, gorgons, merfolk, minotaurs, satyrs, spirits, zombies, archons, basilisks, chimeras, cyclopses, demons, dragons, giants, hags, harpies, hounds, hydras, krakens, lamias, manticores, pegasi, phoenixes, spines, and sirens.

There's a whole bunch of Greek-themed or inspired D&D settings, including:
  • Arkadia by Arcana Games. "Arkadia is a combined setting and players handbook for 5e - inspired by the history and myths of Ancient Greece. The book contains 100 pages of densely packed all new Greek themed content for both Players and GMs."
  • Hellenistika from Handiwork Games. "From the Pillars of Herakles in the West to the Silken Cities of the East, from the isle of Hyperborea in the North to the Mountains of the Moon in the South, the world spreads before you, alive with gods and marvels."
  • Odyssey of the Dragonlords from Arcanum Worlds. "Odyssey of the Dragonlords is an epic fantasy campaign for the fifth edition of the world’s greatest roleplaying game. The Player’s Guide is a 28-page companion booklet that will provide you with everything you need to begin your career as a prospective hero in the forgotten land of Thylea."
  • Land of Myth by Seven Thebes. "A Fantasy Setting in Mythical Ancient Greece.A world of Heroes, right after the end of
    the Trojan War, steeped in myth and conflict."
Of course, this all assumes this isn't come kind of epic troll on WotC's part -- they have recently started putting placeholder names on products on Amazon and then changing them at the most minute, although with limited success. This could be a more elaborate attempt at that!
 

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lichhouse

Dreamer
Extremely excited to see Theros get this treatment. Based on successful kickstarters and indie projects, there's a market niche for Mythic Fantasy and this brings it "officially" into 5E. I'm no longer playing Magic myself (spending too much time on D&D) but I remember Theros fondly. The gods were meddlesome and ever-present, heroic boons from the gods were a thing, and there was practically a "kaiju" mechanic sub-theme called monstrosity - epic monsters sent as divine punishments to ravage the countryside - your "Clash of the Titans" flavor. I'm sure we'll see some cool legendary monsters - tons of krakens and sea monsters, gargantuan animals, legendary hydras, dragons. There was a massive unique hydra called Polukranos the World Eater. The three major city-states were basically Sparta, Athens, and forested one that had Amazonian themes. Overall, Theros was a fantastic flavor win for the Magic content team.

Are these types of settings typically open in DM's guild. meaning we'll see published home brew adventures and content? I didn't pay much attention to the Ravnica book to know if it's a standalone or whether it was "supported" by independent writers.
 



Minotaurs and Centaurs are already in Guildmaster's Guild to Ravnica as PC races, so I can see them as definitely getting reprinted for such a setting. I think Satyrs are a reasonable assumption as a new PC race.

It doesn't surprise me that this would be a D&D setting based on all of the Unearthed Arcana subclasses we've been getting in the past year. The Wildemount subclasses have been unexpected as I don't think any of those ever appeared in an Unearthed Arcana.
 

Whizbang Dustyboots

Gnometown Hero
OK, one more idea: The Mighty Sons of Hercules. Legends say that Hercules begat 50 sons upon the fifty daughters of Thespius. For game purposes, I would assume that this seemed like a good idea at the time, but then a prophecy pointed out that having 50 quarter-divine boys come of age in close proximity could cause trouble. They were fostered out far and wide, to kings and peasants alike. One or more of the PCs discovers their lineage, and mighty deeds ensue.
When can we sign up to play in this campaign?
 


Parmandur

Book-Friend
Minotaurs and Centaurs are already in Guildmaster's Guild to Ravnica as PC races, so I can see them as definitely getting reprinted for such a setting. I think Satyrs are a reasonable assumption as a new PC race.

It doesn't surprise me that this would be a D&D setting based on all of the Unearthed Arcana subclasses we've been getting in the past year. The Wildemount subclasses have been unexpected as I don't think any of those ever appeared in an Unearthed Arcana.

I'm guessing that since Critical Role is a licensed product, they gave the IPnowner control over whether a concept had to be in the book rather than decide through surveys.

So, previously, they used UA material from as late as December for May releases. Theoretically, anything from 2019 could well be for this book, but probably not the new material. I wonder what else they have cooking.
 



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