Check Out This Early Ravenloft: The Horrors Within Artwork

As part of today's reveal of Ravenloft: The Horrors Within, Wizards of the Coast also released several pieces of early preview artwork for the new book. You can check the artwork out in all its full glory below:

And here's the cover artwork (by Anna Podedworna) and alternate cover artwork (by Pam Wishbow):

Ravenloft: The Horrors Within was one of several products announced today. You can find a full rundown here.

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[Charlaquin]

Cthulhu seems to "big" to be in Ravenloft (as is commonly depicted).

On the other hand, watch the movie Dagon, that's a good depiction of a "local" cosmic horror.

Yeah, that’s the thing. Cthulhu is a being more on the order of the dark powers than a darklord. If you wanted a Lovecraft themed domain, it would fit better to make, like, Abdul Alhazred the darklord or something. Though, I would still make it a pastiche rather than changing the character himself.

 

[Artamo]

Yeah, that’s the thing. Cthulhu is a being more on the order of the dark powers than a darklord. If you wanted a Lovecraft themed domain, it would fit better to make, like, Abdul Alhazred the darklord or something. Though, I would still make it a pastiche rather than changing the character himself.

To me, this is not dissimilar from the shift from most of the common NPCs in Ravenloft being soulless creations of the Dark Powers meant to carry out a role in a play. Cthulhu can serve to be a force of nature that serves the Dark Powers by filling a particular role while not being the Darklord itself.

 

[Remathilis]

I mean, maybe they will have Frankenstein and Dracula in this book.

That would be, at least, not repeating material from Van Richten’s Guide.

I mean it's not needed. VRGR took great pains to remove the "copy my homework but put it in your own words" elements from a lot of domains. Putting actual Chthulu feels a bit out of place. Not that cosmic horror shouldn't have a place, but it should probably be D&D's take on a cosmic entity rather than a famous literally character. D&D could have used Tharizdun for example. Or any of the Elder Evils they used before.

Then again, if Ravenloft can survive Lord Soth and Venca being trapped, it can survive Chthulu...

 

[Charlaquin]

To me, this is not dissimilar from the shift from most of the common NPCs in Ravenloft being soulless creations of the Dark Powers meant to carry out a role in a play. Cthulhu can serve to be a force of nature that serves the Dark Powers by filling a particular role while not being the Darklord itself.

That would be the way to use him, if one was hellbent on doing so, I agree. I still think it would be better to make Culuthamus the Slumbering One so you have a new character to tailor how you wish according to the needs of the specific domain mini-setting rather than cutting the corners off Cthulhu to make him fit in Ravenloft’s round hole though.

 

[Voadam]

It also has Cthulhu as a dark lord (visible in one of the images). I assume there will also be a R'lyeh domain for him to sleep in.

Ahh, not in any of the images here but separately over at Wizards' preview. Yeah him being bound in Ravenloft seems tonally weird. He's a core warlock GoO patron. Him as a darklord seems as awkward as 2e Domains of Dread actual demigod Vecna was.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

So yeah, I get that Cthulhu feels like a bolt-on part in Ravenloft. I personally probably would never use him. But it doesn’t bother me that he exists there as part of the game either.

For 5.5 Cthulhu has to go in Ravenloft, because that is the brand for D&D horror. They are not going to release a book for non-Ravenloft horror. This book will work just fine for that, no one is required to use the Ravenloft setting. And they are not going to release another Deities & Demigods, a book stating up real world and fictional gods.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

He's a core warlock GoO patron.

Not an issue. Strahd is an Undead/Undying warlock patron.

 

[Remathilis]

To me, this is not dissimilar from the shift from most of the common NPCs in Ravenloft being soulless creations of the Dark Powers meant to carry out a role in a play. Cthulhu can serve to be a force of nature that serves the Dark Powers by filling a particular role while not being the Darklord itself.

I wager that despite Chthulu being given a stat block, he's not meant to be encountered. My guess is Innismouth is going to be the domain and it's going to feature a lot of cultists and aberrations, but the big guy is just going to be a looming presence sleeping in the background rather than an active player like most dark lords are. One of those "IF he wakes, the Dark Powers won't be able to hold him anymore" scenarios. So the PC goals is always to play "don't wake Chthulu" by spoiling the plans of cultists and mad wizards trying to mess stuff up.

 

[Charlaquin]

For 5.5 Cthulhu has to go in Ravenloft, because that is the brand for D&D horror. They are not going to release a book for non-Ravenloft horror. This book works just fine for that, no one is required to use the Ravenloft setting. And they are not going to release another Deities & Demigods, a book stating up real world and fictional gods.

I know Cthulhu by Torchlight is 3rd party, but it’s a far better way to bring the actual mythos into D&D than shoving it into Ravenloft. Cosmic horror in Ravenloft is great, but it shouldn’t be actual Cthulhu, Azathoth, and friends. It should be original characters inspired by and playing with the themes of the mythos.

 

[Remathilis]

I know Cthulhu by Torchlight is 3rd party, but it’s a far better way to bring the actual mythos into D&D than shoving it into Ravenloft. Cosmic horror in Ravenloft is great, but it shouldn’t be actual Cthulhu, Azathoth, and friends. It should be original characters inspired by and playing with the themes of the mythos.

Yeah, that's kinda where I am. It feels too meta. I want the D&D equivalent of a cosmic entity, not the D&D x Mythos version. This feels like the beginning of the D&D Universes Beyond...

It's worth noting it's not enough to break my giddiness at more Ravenloft, but I would have preferred a different take on cosmic horror.