Dhampir and Other Species To Be Included in Astarion's Book of Hungers

The dhampir will be among several playable species included in the digital exclusive Astarion's Book of Hungers, which is currently only available as part of a $159.99 "Ultimate Bundle." Announced today during a panel on the upcoming Forgotten Realms content at Gen Con, the dhampir will make its return in the upcoming "digital DLC" for the Forgotten Realms books. An Ultimate Bundle was also put up for pre-order on D&D Beyond, which includes 8 species. Assumably, the dhampir and seven other species will appear in Astarion's Book of Hungers and perhaps split with one other unnamed DLC that's also included in the bundle. A third DLC, Netheril's Fall, is an adventure of unspecified length.

The fact that the dhampir and other species content will be included as "digital DLC" is interesting for several reasons. D&D previously made three species - the grung, locathah, and tortle - available exclusively as digital content. However, all three were released to benefit charity, with the tortle eventually making its way into Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse. So, while this wouldn't be the first time that D&D made player-facing content exclusive digitally, the intent (charity versus "Digital DLC") is certainly different. Additionally, it's unclear whether these digital DLCs will be available to purchase separately or if they'll only be available via the Ultimate Bundle, which includes physical and digital copies of the Forgotten Realms books, plus the three DLC packets.

 

[Dire Bare]

That’s a hell of a hair to split. But in context, I was presented with the ultimatum of “digital only or nothing,” I said that was a false dichotomy and that there are financially viable alternatives, and my interlocutors refused to accept that, repeatedly insisting that if this content wasn’t released digitally only, it wouldn’t be released at all. If your position is in agreement with those being the only two options, then we are beyond the realm of reasonable disagreement and in the realm of not existing in the same reality.

I do think it's "digital or nothing" . . . in the sense of, WotC would not do these releases at all otherwise. It only makes financial sense for them to do them digital-only. They certainly COULD release this material in a print format . . . and if they felt it would make enough profit (or goodwill that leads to profit), they probably would do so.

But we're clearly not seeing the issue from the same perspective, or even the same plane of existence. So, I'm bowing out of the conversation.

 

[Dire Bare]

Selling licenses to access digital content, that can be revoked at any time with or without a reason, as if they were consumer goods, is predatory because it is misleading. Ownership of purchased goods should be transferred to the consumer, if things are being sold as license to access, they should be treated as services rather than goods.

DLC is a more specific format of digital content distribution than that though, and I should amend my statement - it’s not inherently predatory, it just has an extensive history of being sold in a predatory manner, particularly in the medium where the term originated, video games.

DLC can be used in an anti-consumer manner, but isn't inherently so, I can agree to that.

There are a lot of issues with digital content across media, for sure. It's just not all horrible and bad, IMO.

 

[Parmandur]

Even if there is a Ravenloft "something" - possible, but far from certain, it's more likely to be an adventure than a book of species. I wouldn't expect dhampr in anything but the vampire product. It's not like they are massively popular.

Though I think the most obvious thing WotC is cooking is an Everything book, something like Forge of the Artificer but for Ravenloft is also highly plausible.

 

[Kurotowa]

Though I think the most obvious thing WotC is cooking is an Everything book, something like Forge of the Artificer but for Ravenloft is also highly plausible.

Why not both? /meme

Seriously, they're updating most of Xanathar's, which would mostly fill a new book. Especially when you pad it with the overflow Wizard subclasses and the handful of new ones. If we're talking about a Ravenloft book with about the same amount of player options as the last one, that wouldn't take up too much of what's passed through UA.

 

[Parmandur]

Why not both? /meme

Seriously, they're updating most of Xanathar's, which would mostly fill a new book. Especially when you pad it with the overflow Wizard subclasses and the handful of new ones. If we're talking about a Ravenloft book with about the same amount of player options as the last one, that wouldn't take up too much of what's passed through UA.

I agree, I think both is a solid possibility: for Tasha's, theybalsontested options for Ebwrron Rising from the Last War and Mythic Odysseys of Theros, with all the Class options in those books also making it to Tasha's.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

Need that Icewind Dale follow up after the party gets zapped back to the past TMNT: Turtles in Time style.

I misread that as TMNT get zapped back into the past in Icewind Dale. That place is no place for cold blooded folks.

 

[Parmandur]

I misread that as TMNT get zapped back into the past in Icewind Dale. That place is no place for cold blooded folks.

A party of Tortle Monks...

Though honestly, I'd almost be more interested in running the Netheril stuff without tike travel, just as a high magic Settijg with a loomokg apocalypse storyline.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

A party of Tortle Monks...

Though honestly, I'd almost be more interested in running the Netheril stuff without tike travel, just as a high magic Settijg with a loomokg apocalypse
Storyline.

I suspect that will be an option.

 

[Parmandur]

I suspect that will be an option.

Oh, I don't think they will need to do much to make it an option: I can juat grab it, scratch the serial numbers off and call it "Sky-Atlantis" and WotC couldn't stop me.

 

[Marandahir]

I wonder if that rat king concept art they showed last year will be for a monster in Astarion's Book of Hungers, or if they just scrapped it? I can kinda see a rat monster fitting in Baldur's Gate, but it doesn't seem very vampiric.

I thought the Rat King lived beneath Waterdeep?