Wes Schneider Is the Product Lead for Ravenloft: The Horrors Within

Wes Schneider was confirmed to be the product lead for Ravenloft: The Horrors Within in a recent panel at Gary Con. Over the weekend, Wizards of the Coast hosted a panel discussion about the past and future of Dungeons & Dragons featuring much of the current game leadership and Luke Gygax. While discussing the upcoming Ravenloft: The Horrors Within rulebook, D&D game design director Justice Ramin Arman stated that Wes Schneider was the product lead for the book. Schneider notably was the product lead for the last Ravenloft book Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft.

Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft notably updated the lore of Ravenloft, with different Domains of Dread shifting to focus on different genres of horror. While it's unclear whether that change is being reversed or fleshed out further, the new Ravenloft book will notably include statblocks for the various Darklords, something that Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft curiously lacked.

Ravenloft: The Horrors Within will be released on June 16th.

 

[M.L. Martin]

I hope Lord Soth returns. His tragic story belongs in Ravenloft.

I wouldn't expect it--WotC is also making nice with Weis & Hickman, and they virulently oppose him ever having been in the Land of Mists. The sample pages for the forthcoming D&D encyclopedia contained the Lord Soth entry, and it's comprehensive and pulls from everything from the 1996 novel about his living days up to Dragons of a Vanished Moon--but it doesn't make any reference to him being in Ravenloft.

 

[Mecheon]

I just don't like that WotC and modern D&D players view horror as an excuse to get "dope builds" and "mega powers" with a slight gothic veneer.

I don't think anyone views it this way? This sounds more like a 3.5 era complaint, where Ravenloft gave us the Archivist and all of that cheese.

 

[Remathilis]

I don't think anyone views it this way? This sounds more like a 3.5 era complaint, where Ravenloft gave us the Archivist and all of that cheese.

Heroes of Horror, which had nothing to do with Ravenloft (the Setting).

 

[Remathilis]

I just don't like that WotC and modern D&D players view horror as an excuse to get "dope builds" and "mega powers" with a slight gothic veneer.

It's a far cry from 2nd edition, where the Ravenloft-inspired classes (avenger, anchorite, arcanist, and G*psy) were weaker than the bog standard fighter/cleric/mage/thief and you were better off not playing them as they were mostly a trap option.

 

[Retreater]

I feel like you're making some assumptions that will make you and Umptions look like an ass.

No. I'm referring to the original Van Richtens Guide and the player options it contained under the editorial work of Wes Schneider.
New lineages to play as a half vampire or golem. New subclasses. Dark Gifts that used to be considered curses in previous editions, now just superpowers.

 

[Retreater]

It's a far cry from 2nd edition, where the Ravenloft-inspired classes (avenger, anchorite, arcanist, and G*psy) were weaker than the bog standard fighter/cleric/mage/thief and you were better off not playing them as they were mostly a trap option.

It was supposed to be a trap. Being in the Ravenloft campaign setting was a curse and punishment. It was there to be scary and making you feel the limitations of your character. Not for being able to play a vampire and be badass.
You'd literally lose your character to the Dark Powers and become a monster if you became a vampire back then.
But I guess 5e is for players who grew up with Twilight.

 

[Remathilis]

No. I'm referring to the original Van Richtens Guide and the player options it contained under the editorial work of Wes Schneider.
New lineages to play as a half vampire or golem. New subclasses. Dark Gifts that used to be considered curses in previous editions, now just superpowers.

It's a carrot and stick scenario. Old Ravenloft enforced Gothic horror only via stick. You were beaten down with fear, horror, powers checks, crippled abilities, etc. Ravenloft later embraced both carrot and stick (3e Arthaus provided lots of "become a monster" PC options mixed with classic Ravenloft sticks) and 5e has opted for pure carrot. The net result I've seen is PC embracing the dark and flawed aspects of PCs (a dhampir dealing with his cravings, a reborn trying to find her place after her life originally ended) far better than forcing said decisions on the player with hamfisted DM fiat rules.

I've played Ravenloft in every edition it's been in print for and never found player buy in quite like the 5e version. People loved playing tragic heroes when they get to choose the tragedy.

 

[Artamo]

People engage in D&D in different ways. I grew up reading the old novels including Knight of the Black Rose, which is a darn good story, so I strongly disagree with this.

I think Player Characters can have interesting stories and great adventures, but so can NPCs. D&D is more than rolling dice.

When Black Roses Bloom is one of my favorite Ravenloft modules because it has such a creative way to make Soth’s history part of the current story that the PCs can impact. Soth is such a great character that I can’t make my mind up which setting I like him better in.

 

[Remathilis]

It was supposed to be a trap. Being in the Ravenloft campaign setting was a curse and punishment. It was there to be scary and making you feel the limitations of your character. Not for being able to play a vampire and be badass.
You'd literally lose your character to the Dark Powers and become a monster if you became a vampire back then.
But I guess 5e is for players who grew up with Twilight.

This is why Ravenloft gained the reputation for places campaigns go to die.

I said everything I needed to say above. A setting that is only there to torture your players (Dark Sun, Ravenloft) is a useless setting..

 

[doctorbadwolf]

It was supposed to be a trap. Being in the Ravenloft campaign setting was a curse and punishment. It was there to be scary and making you feel the limitations of your character. Not for being able to play a vampire and be badass.
You'd literally lose your character to the Dark Powers and become a monster if you became a vampire back then.
But I guess 5e is for players who grew up with Twilight.

Nah it is just for players who want the story to do that work while the game engine itself remains enjoyable to engage with.

You arent a more serious gamer for prefering the older way, you just have a different preference. there isnt anything more than that.