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

 

[overgeeked]

So all the "Old Guard" is allergic to change? It is better for the game that those Grogs that are allergic to change are left behind. Stagnation can only bring harm to the game.

I consider myself a grognard. Been playing 37 years now. I like change. I enjoy it. Means the game's not dead. I might prefer the original versions of some of the domains, and prefer the newer versions of some other domains, but I don't want the settings to be etched in stone for all time. Especially not when the world learns to treat sensitive topics with more care as time goes on. Jettison the racists. Jettison the sexists. The game and community will be better off without them.

 

[JEB]

So all the "Old Guard" is allergic to change?

Clearly not, since a lot of folks who left because of 4E came back for 5E, even though 5E was also different from 3E and older editions. On top of that, 5E succeeded at bringing plenty of new folks in.

It may not be easy, but it is possible to cater to both old and new audiences. You might lose some at the fringes - the old guard who want basically nothing changed, and the new guard who want basically everything changed - but you can make a big enough tent to cover most folks.

 

[Eubani]

Clearly not, since a lot of folks who left because of 4E came back for 5E, even though 5E was also different from 3E and older editions. On top of that, 5E succeeded at bringing plenty of new folks in.

It may not be easy, but it is possible to cater to both old and new audiences. You might lose some at the fringes - the old guard who want basically nothing changed, and the new guard who want basically everything changed - but you can make a big enough tent to cover most folks.

I was reacting to @Disgruntled Hobbit statement that the "Old Guard" are being left behind. Lets ignore the various points throughout where older Ravenloft fans are happy to continue the journey for some blatant personal opinion as fact. News Flash things change over decades despite old people yelling at clouds and playing the part of a victim.

 

[Parmandur]

The original I'Cath was much less "badly butchered Chinese myth" and much more "Let's base a domain solidly but clunkily on the film A CHINESE GHOST STORY, which combined wuxia and EVIL DEAD."

That...sounds like the same thing.

 

[Parmandur]

Clearly not, since a lot of folks who left because of 4E came back for 5E, even though 5E was also different from 3E and older editions. On top of that, 5E succeeded at bringing plenty of new folks in.

It may not be easy, but it is possible to cater to both old and new audiences. You might lose some at the fringes - the old guard who want basically nothing changed, and the new guard who want basically everything changed - but you can make a big enough tent to cover most folks.

That latter paragraph seems to describe the tactic WotC has taken with this book, and 5E by and large. This is what big tent compromise Ravenloft looks like (and remember Gen Z is the main population of the tent at any size).

 

[Eubani]

That...sounds like the same thing.

You are only allowed to butcher European society/culture and myths, if that sounds like I am saying there is a bit of Hypocrisy there that would be correct. I have no issue with being culturally respectful but I do have an issue with double standards.

 

[Remathilis]

Increasingly, I don't think the presence of the controversial domains was ironic at all. I think you were on to something with the idea that those were specifically included, in their radically different form, as a statement.

The problem with such statements is that they imply that fans who liked the old take, or even those who simply didn't see a problem with the old take, were in the wrong. Whether or not you're justified in that implication, it generally isn't going to be received well, and does not endear said fans to the new product. (As you may have noticed.)


I suspect you're correct here. But it's unfortunate that Wizards chose a path with 5E Ravenloft that was more likely to create divisions in the community, when their treatment of the Realms and Eberron in 5E demonstrated the benefits of a less strident approach. Welcome to the new era of D&D, I suppose.

Ironic in the Alanis Morissette definition of the word: WotC knew which domains were generating the discussion, and opted to "fix" rather than ignore them.

And I don't want to imply that liking the old domain is wrong, I was trying to point out that these changes didn't all come out of the blue with no input from the community; WotC heard the voices that were pointing out flaws and used that as part of the design plans.

Did WotC overdo it? I think a case can be made for that. I think for example that few people felt the problem with Darkon is that it was too stable, or that the problems with Lamordia could only be fixed by gender swapping Mordenheim. Some of the new maps could have kept the basic outline of the old domains, even if things were added or changed. I'm not going so say every change is a good one. But I think overall the good looks to outweigh the bad.

We'll all know for sure in a few weeks, depending on your method of purchase.

 

[Disgruntled Hobbit]

So all the "Old Guard" is allergic to change? It is better for the game that those Grogs that are allergic to change are left behind. Stagnation can only bring harm to the game.

Changing everything and not giving a flip about the existing fans worked out well for 4th Ed

It's one thing to change for social reasons. The Vistani and stuff. Sure. Don't need to insult people. That rude
But to just change the lore because the current writers think all their ideas are better than two dozen writers' contributions over a decade of books? That just pure ego

And this is a hobby. People do it for fun. They learned all this lore and now they have to toss all that trivia away and start again. It's disrespecting their time
Change is work. If people have to change too much, they'll just stop playing

Catering only to the grogs is bad
But only catering to the newbs ain't much better

 

[Rikka66]

So as someone who has never played or read any Ravenloft material prior to Curse of Strahd, I'm interested in a comparison of the level of differences between CoS and older material to the changes Van Richten's guide is making to the setting. I wonder if there's a precedent here.

 

[Parmandur]

You are only allowed to butcher European society/culture and myths, if that sounds like I am saying there is a bit of Hypocrisy there that would be correct. I have no issue with being culturally respectful but I do have an issue with double standards.

Trust me, as a trainer Medievalist the way European culture gets butchered in D&D is pretty bad. Just because it would be nice to fix that doesn't mean they shouldn't fox other problems.