D&D 5E [Updated with cover!] The D&D Book Is.... Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft!

Yesterday's hints that a new D&D book would be announced today have born fruit -- we now have a product description and a title! It's a Ravenloft setting book, with tools and new rules for horror-themed games, and new horror-themed character options. I'll update this post with a product image as soon as one is revealed -- the official announcement allegedly comes today!

D&D 5E - Here's the Ravenloft Alternate Cover!

As usual, there is an alternate hobby-store exclusive cover for the upcoming Ravenloft book. Here's a look at it! And here's the full wraparound art. https://www.enworld.org/threads/updated-with-cover-the-d-d-book-is-van-richtens-guide-to-ravenloft.678411/...

www.enworld.org

D&D 5E - Everything We Know About The Ravenloft Book

Here is a list of everything we know so far about the upcoming Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft. Art by Paul Scott Canavan May 18th, 256 pages 30 domains (with 30 villainous darklords) Barovia (Strahd), Dementlieu (twisted fairly tales), Lamordia (flesh golem), Falkovnia (zombies), Kalakeri...

www.enworld.org

Here’s some info on Dr. Rudolph Van Richten! He's a vampire hunter (he appeared in Curse of Strahd, and he's been around in the Ravenloft setting for decades) and is basically Van Helsing to Strahd's Dracula. His name appears on a whole pile of 2nd Edition D&D sourcebooks, all titled "Van Richten's Guide to.... Vampires/Ghosts/Werebeasts, etc."

The Ravenloft setting, of course, features a bunch of 'domains' other than Barovia itself, each ruled by its own Dark Lord. Strahd rules Barovia, but even other signature D&D villains like Lord Soth and Vecna have been placed in Ravenloft ruling dread domains of their own, along with an assortment of other domain rulers.

The Mist Beckons

The image below is not of the upcoming book, but of one of the many D&D 2nd Edition Van Richten's Guides.

 

[darjr]

What was pasteurized in the Curse of Strahd book? Pray tell.

 

[MNblockhead]

My first reaction was disinterest. I love I6 and Curse of Strahd, but have no interest in the domains of dread. But the artwork with some more modern-looking themes, other horror styles than gothic (e.g. zombie apocalypse), have piqued my interest. I don't think I'll car for any Domains of Dread canon, but rules to run different styles of D&D, including gun fighting, zombie hordes, etc. could be worth getting the book for.

 

[Nightbeat84]

So Wizards pasteurizes and bland-ifies yet another great AD&D setting. I'll give it a miss.

What do you mean ?

 

[Ruin Explorer]

So Wizards pasteurizes and bland-ifies yet another great AD&D setting. I'll give it a miss.

Based on what we've read so far it sounds like they're pouring a ton of chili sauce on it, actually, the opposite of bland-ifying.

 

[willrali]

What was pasteurized in the Curse of Strahd book? Pray tell.

What do you mean ?

I dunno. I ran Curse of Strahd and it just felt listless and unhorrifying, even though it was strictly better than the earlier Castle Ravenloft module. Maybe if they really go in on the degeneration/dark powers rules for doing evil acts and using negative energy, disempower paladins and positive energy effects, add beefed-up mechanics for the mists, it might be interesting.

But if it's just the blancmange stuff they already have with some frilly wrought iron, then I'll just sadly walk on.

Actually, I need to stop being so negative with this stuff -- it's a new game for a new generation, and they're clearly dong something right!

 

[darjr]

@willrali I may not agree and the tad bit of anger isn’t appreciated but I think you have a good point.

 

[Parmandur]

Volo's did state that there would likely be undead and dragon "monster" books in the future. The question is if the undead one got merged into this Ravenloft book and the dragon one with a likely upcoming Dragonlance one, or if we'll still be seeing separate monster books later...

Could see it going either way, really: could be they started putting together a Volo's style book of Undead & Such, but found it was only about half the material for a full monster book...and kind of perfect for a Ravenloft Setting.

 

[Dausuul]

Zombie apocalypse? Hmm. I missed that on my initial skim of the contents. Now I'm interested.

I think D&D is far better suited to "zombie apocalypse" horror than to Gothic horror. D&D is built around hacking your problems away with a big ol' meat cleaver, and that tends to wreck the Gothic atmosphere. But in zombie apocalypse, it wrecks the atmosphere if you don't hack up zombies on the reg.

That isn't to say there aren't any challenges involved. Having run a zombie apocalypse campaign, there are definitely some issues, such as "5E zombies are a major pain to run in large numbers." But that's just a mechanical glitch, solvable with a custom statblock or three. A tougher problem is the prevalence of magic that can solve supply problems, since "running out of supplies" is a major sub-theme in apocalyptic settings, but it still isn't (heh) the end of the world.

 

[Alzrius]

I'm just hoping that they don't make any of the darklords into sympathetic figures. Some of them are tragic villains, to be sure, but they're still villains through and through, who ultimately damned themselves because of their own choices. None of them should have potential redemptive arcs, for instance. You don't get to be a darklord unless you're past that point. (I think the closest thing Ravenloft ever had to someone who was tormented without having done anything to deserve it was Isolde, leader of the Carnival (affiliate link), but that was because she was

Spoiler

a celestial.)

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Volo's did state that there would likely be undead and dragon "monster" books in the future. The question is if the undead one got merged into this Ravenloft book and the dragon one with a likely upcoming Dragonlance one, or if we'll still be seeing separate monster books later...

Once we get the table of contents and see what monsters are included, I think we'll have a pretty good idea if a Libris Mortis 5E, or whatever, is coming.