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 (Indian folklore, dark rainforests), Valachan (hunting PCs for sport), Lamordia (mad science)
• NPCs include Esmerelda de’Avenir, Weathermay-Foxgrove twins, traveling detective Alanik Ray.
• Large section on setting safe boundaries.
• Dark Gifts are character traits with a cost.
• College of Spirits (bard storytellers who manipulate spirits of folklore) and Undead Patron (warlock) subclasses.
• Dhampir, Reborn, and Hexblood lineages.
• Cultural consultants used.
• Fresh take on Vistani.
• 40 pages of monsters. Also nautical monsters in Sea of Sorrows.
• 20 page adventure called The House of Lament - haunted house, spirits, seances.

​

D&D 5E - Full Wraparound Cover Art For Ravenloft

We've seen the cover already, but here's a look at the full wraparound art by Anna Podedworna. https://www.enworld.org/threads/updated-with-cover-the-d-d-book-is-van-richtens-guide-to-ravenloft.678411/ https://www.enworld.org/threads/heres-the-ravenloft-alternate-cover.678414/...

www.enworld.org

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 - [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...

www.enworld.org

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

I think I'll create an actual sea of mist in the Shadowfell with all domains being actual islands in the sea, then have the Vistani be sea-faring travelers, maybe with a touch of the good ol' undead pirates and eldritch horror under the waves tropes to unify the whole.

I'll steal the idea someone proposed earlier about Rapture from Bioshock being one of those dreaded domain lost in the sea.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

Probably because very few people want an all hobgoblin area where humans were chased out of town.

I think very few people "wanted" most of the domains in the original Ravenloft (beyond a core few derived from classic horror). In particular, I don't think players or DMs were going "Oh, you know what I want, a setting that's EXACTLY like a Hammer horror movie, even down to the only inhabitants of a bunch of the places being humans who are super-racist!". Pretty much 100% sure that wasn't "a thing". Pretty sure NOTHING about the original Ravenloft was really driven by the what players or DMs wanted, and pretty 100% of it was driven by Bruce Naismith and Andria Hayday being bigass Hammer/Unviersal nerds who wanted to replicate Hammer/Universal stuff even when it made no sense, and didn't work well for D&D at all.

That happens in some of the all-elf towns in Darkon.

But I guess the actual answer is, the original writers couldn't come up with ideas of what would really scare a nonhuman and thought that monster races would detract from the undead and golems and the like.

Nah someone upthread pointed out that it actually looks like after the first few domains they kind of reaching, and a lot of them are just, iffy attempts to replicate Hammer movie scenario/vibes, which causes them to end up with town after town of what basically amount to scared puritans, even though that's not really a D&D thing.

 

[Parmandur]

So, I came across this, which I haven’t seen talked about much/

Dungeons & Dragons | The World's Greatest Roleplaying Game

The official home and digital toolset for Dungeons & Dragons. Dive into D&D books, create a character, and more!

dnd.dragonmag.com

Of particular note is this line:

This incarnation of Ravenloft reimagines a great deal of what came before. Past explorations of the setting directly linked many of the domains of Ravenloft into a pseudo-continent called the ‘Core’. We’ve taken the Core, the heart of the Ravenloft setting, and shattered it. In this new interpretation, every domain is a lonely island drifting through the mists.

So, it sounds like The Demiplane of Dread as a cohesive thing is no more, and all these Domains of Dread are truly isolated pocket dimensions. Which personally, I like the idea of. Oddly enough, that kinda makes me more ok with the apparent “theme park” nature of many domains.

Makes it easier to mine for horror episodes in a more standard campaign, too.

 

[dave2008]

Well I think the new dragon+ article on the book will push @QuentinGeorge away from this book, but I like what I am reading (in particular I like the bolded part):

"This incarnation of Ravenloft reimagines a great deal of what came before. Past explorations of the setting directly linked many of the domains of Ravenloft into a pseudo-continent called the ‘Core’. We’ve taken the Core, the heart of the Ravenloft setting, and shattered it. In this new interpretation, every domain is a lonely island drifting through the mists."

 

[Ruin Explorer]

So, I came across this, which I haven’t seen talked about much/

Dungeons & Dragons | The World's Greatest Roleplaying Game

The official home and digital toolset for Dungeons & Dragons. Dive into D&D books, create a character, and more!

dnd.dragonmag.com

Of particular note is this line:

This incarnation of Ravenloft reimagines a great deal of what came before. Past explorations of the setting directly linked many of the domains of Ravenloft into a pseudo-continent called the ‘Core’. We’ve taken the Core, the heart of the Ravenloft setting, and shattered it. In this new interpretation, every domain is a lonely island drifting through the mists.

So, it sounds like The Demiplane of Dread as a cohesive thing is no more, and all these Domains of Dread are truly isolated pocket dimensions. Which personally, I like the idea of. Oddly enough, that kinda makes me more ok with the apparent “theme park” nature of many domains.

Oooh I like this bit:

Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft cracks open more than just the gothic horror crypt. Gothic horror is, of course, still a major element of Ravenloft, but cosmic horror, dark fantasy, ghost stories, occult detective stories, psychological horror, and more are now on the table. If you love any sort of horror, there’s a Domain of Dread for you.

Again, the sort of thing I was hoping for, as I felt the fixation on specifically Gothic Horror, narrowly defined in such a way it was basically Hammer/Universal, was a mistake even in 1990. I know Shannon Applecline crowed about it once, claiming Ravenloft was successful because it never "went dark" or the like, but I strongly suspect it might have been dramatically more successful if they'd opened the door to other genres of "proper" horror a bit earlier.

Honestly if I was picking I'd have some kind of Mothman domain. Such a dumb name for such a creepy concept.

 

[Charlaquin]

Not surprising unfortunately. I suspected that was going to be how they did it. However, there is an ace up their sleeve; the shadowfell binds these realms together and the shadowfell can appear as normal terrain, abit gloomy and distorted. It seems like (barring closed domain borders) you could walk into the Mists and enter the shadowfell and walk, ride, or whatever via the shadowfell to other domains. Of course, this is dangerous due to both threats and the potential to get lost. Luckily, there are people who could help you navigate: the Vistani.

Spoiler: Luba's Tarokka of Souls

For untold generations, the Vistani have wandered the Shadowfell, which includes terrifying demiplanes like the vampire-haunted realm of Barovia. These travelers have learned many secrets of these domains and encountered countless others wandering amid the Shadowfell's horrors. Most Vistani bands accept well-intentioned wayfarers from diverse walks and of disparate origins, embracing any who seek to find a home amid the endless roads and vistas hidden amid the mists.

So it might not be as simple as leaving Darkon and crossing the borders to Tempest anymore (which never made sense, but I digress) but it will be possible to travel between domains.

What you’re describing here sounds awesome to me!

But yeah, it sounds like the death of the "campaign setting" Ravenloft and a return to something closer to "weekend in Hell"

This, much less so.

 

[Charlaquin]

I think I'll create an actual sea of mist in the Shadowfell with all domains being actual islands in the sea, then have the Vistani be sea-faring travelers, maybe with a touch of the good ol' undead pirates and eldritch horror under the waves tropes to unify the whole.

I'll steal the idea someone proposed earlier about Rapture from Bioshock being one of those dreaded domain lost in the sea.

Ooh! That’s a cool idea too.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

But yeah, it sounds like the death of the "campaign setting" Ravenloft and a return to something closer to "weekend in Hell"

Wouldn't it be relatively easy to run it as a campaign setting through? I'd be unsurprised if they have specific advice on how to do that, too. It does mean you won't have all the nonsensical "incursions" and "invasions" from one realm to another, but honestly they made me roll my eyes every time I read about them.

 

[MGibster]

I think very few people "wanted" most of the domains in the original Ravenloft (beyond a core few derived from classic horror). In particular, I don't think players or DMs were going "Oh, you know what I want, a setting that's EXACTLY like a Hammer horror movie, even down to the only inhabitants of a bunch of the places being humans who are super-racist!".

I think the enduring popularity of 1983's I-6 module Ravenloft for AD&D demonstrates that a lot of players were very interested in a gothic or Hammer Horror inspired D&D setting. In fact, Kate Bush was singing about her group's desire for a Hammer Horror inspired AD&D setting as early as 1978 (citation needed).

Pretty much 100% sure that wasn't "a thing". Pretty sure NOTHING about the original Ravenloft was really driven by the what players or DMs wanted, and pretty 100% of it was driven by Bruce Naismith and Andria Hayday being bigass Hammer/Unviersal nerds who wanted to replicate Hammer/Universal stuff even when it made no sense, and didn't work well for D&D at all.

When a company puts something into production it's because they think their customers want it. That might not be what originally inspired the creator but at some point in the process a business decision is made that this is something people buy. i.e. It's something they want.

 

[Remathilis]

What you’re describing here sounds awesome to me!

This, much less so.

I think its still doable to run a campaign set all in Ravenloft, but I'm guessing some of the connective tissue will have to be re-added. I certainly am reinstating things like the Church of Ezra, the Carnival, and such to the setting. I just don't think you'll be able to map trade routes as easily.

 

[DM Megan]

Since WotC didn't consult any sensitivity reading vampires in the making of this book to ensure cultural accuracy with how vampires live and their sensitivities I'm going to have to pass on this book.

What is the point of these comments? Is it to belittle people who in the past have had negative stereotypes perpetuated about them in D&D material? Is it to denigrate any company that tries to be more inclusive? I just don't get it.

Also please don't reply with "iT's JuSt A jOkE".

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Wouldn't it be relatively easy to run it as a campaign setting through? I'd be unsurprised if they have specific advice on how to do that, too. It does mean you won't have all the nonsensical "incursions" and "invasions" from one realm to another, but honestly they made me roll my eyes every time I read about them.

Since the player-facing content in this book seems to be about running a campaign in Ravenloft, I think they're definitely going to be supporting that style of play.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

When a company puts something into production it's because they think their customers want it.

Buddy.

We're talking about TSR here.

They had absolutely no market research and basically no clue whatsoever what their customers wanted. Do we need to drag out Ryan Dancey and stuff to talk about this? You people cannot both tell me that TSR made mistake after mistake after mistake with publishing settings, and that they "knew their market". It's not both. Pick one - you (the board) already picked "TSR had no idea what they were doing". Therefore unless you're going to claim TSR did, in fact, know what they were doing, I'm going to have to go with "TSR had no idea what they were doing" and "a bunch of their decisions with Ravenloft reflect this".

 

[Parmandur]

The Dark Gifts sound interesting, Horror versions of the Mythic gifts in Theros (basically Feats).

 

[WarlockkingNelzul]

So about this evil gothic train darklord, why does it have to be a darklord... it could just be a dark power that runs the train, thus why it goes through out the whole of ravenloft and there are train stations in every domain, because none of the Dark lords want to fight one of the dark powers.

 

[DM Megan]

Even if it is most, is that really a problem? I mean "original-flavour" Ravenloft's domains are mostly ill-suited to lengthy campaigns in a single domain, with Strahd's one being the obvious exception. So long as a few of the domains could sustain people "hanging out" in them, I think that's enough.

I'm imagining Vistani run caravanserai. They're neutral territory so the darklords could theoretically even meet there (with most of their abilities "turned off"). Some characters might stay there for a year+, but eventually their ability to pay runs out and so they need to leave.

 

[humble minion]

If they re-invented the Vistani as an eldritch and mysterious Mist-spanning railway company, I would be 100% all over that idea.

 

[MGibster]

They had absolutely no market research and basically no clue whatsoever what their customers wanted. Do we need to drag out Ryan Dancey and stuff to talk about this? You people cannot both tell me that TSR made mistake after mistake after mistake with publishing settings, and that they "knew their market".

We're in agreement here. The more I've learned about TSR the more convinced I've become by how lucky they were to stay in business for so long. Still, even at TSR, whoever made the final decision thought that Ravenloft would be something their customers wanted. But then I'm sure whoever made the decision to produce Maztica thought the same thing.

 

[Parmandur]

We're in agreement here. The more I've learned about TSR the more convinced I've become by how lucky they were to stay in business for so long. Still, even at TSR, whoever made the final decision thought that Ravenloft would be something their customers wanted. But then I'm sure whoever made the decision to produce Maztica thought the same thing.

No, they really didn't: the TSR accounting people literally didn't let the creative side know sales figures, so they received no input about what worked or didn't work aside from talking to fans. Which is... dysfunctional.

 

[MGibster]

No, they really didn't: the TSR accounting people literally didn't let the creative side know sales figures, so they received no input about what worked or didn't work aside from talking to fans. Which is... dysfunctional.

While I find it entirely believable that the creative side had no sales figures, I find the idea that they had no idea how popular the I-6 module was to be implausible. They would have seen the mostly positive written reviews and likely received feedback from fans via letters or gaming events. I know we weren't as connected in the 80s as we are today, but people wrote letters and still met face-to-face at times.

And we should note. You can believe something will sell even if you don't have market data to prove it.