Evil Drow Statblocks to Return in Forgotten Realms Rulebooks Later This Year

Drow-specific NPC statblocks will be included in the upcoming Forgotten Realms Adventurer's Guide set for release later this year. Over the past several weeks, much hullabaloo has been made over the Monster Manual, specifically that the D&D design team replaced specific drow and orc statblocks with generic NPC statblocks that can be used for any kind of humanoids. In a video released today, D&D lead designer Jeremy Crawford confirmed that more specific statblocks tied to specific humanoid sects or characters would return in future rulebooks, with evil drow given as an example.

"Also for anyone who's eager to see more species-tailored humanoid statblocks, people are going to see more of that in our setting books," Crawford said. "You're going to see that in our Forgotten Realms products, for example. The malevolent drow of Menzoberranzan are an important part of that setting and so they get their own statblocks. This is really true of all the creatures in the Monster Manual. This is your massive starting toy box of monsters that are usable anywhere in the multiverse. The bestiaries in our setting products, that's where we can provide you versions of things tailored to the cultures and histories of our different worlds."

 

[Chaltab]

D&D is a toolbox. I can use it to make what I want, but if I buy the newest toolbox and its missing a saw it may limit what I can make with it. Telling me to go find my old ratty toolbox and borrow that saw is a solution, but maybe not the best value proposition for a company that spent 50 years making high quality toolboxes* with excellent saws that were core to their product.

*The fourth toolbox being an exception, of course. That one only let you make hummingbird feeders. (This analogy has gone out of control)

You don't know how much will power it is taking me not to rise to this edition warring bait in a thread unrelated to that.

 

[Zardnaar]

I kinda avoided the drama. Care factor is 0.

How evil drow are is campaign specific for me.

 

[DinoInDisguise]

You claim to be a Russian spy disguised as a dinosaur posting about tabletop role playing games.

This is not merely a claim. I rawr'd, in Russian, at my wife not 30 minutes ago.

 

[pukunui]

"Also for anyone who's eager to see more species-tailored humanoid statblocks, people are going to see more of that in our setting books," Crawford said. "You're going to see that in our Forgotten Realms products, for example. The malevolent drow of Menzoberranzan are an important part of that setting and so they get their own statblocks. This is really true of all the creatures in the Monster Manual. This is your massive starting toy box of monsters that are usable anywhere in the multiverse. The bestiaries in our setting products, that's where we can provide you versions of things tailored to the cultures and histories of our different worlds."

This is exactly what I expected they were going to do when I saw how they'd stripped out all but the most generic bits of multiversal lore in the new core rulebooks. This will allow them to provide species/culture-specific stat blocks for different settings that may differ from one another without contradicting what's in the core rules.

 

[aco175]

Now they are saying that FR is not the default setting. Interesting to see where this goes with other settings.

 

[Dire Bare]

I'm so tired of all these Multiverses...

Heh, that ship sailed across the Astral Sea decades ago for D&D.

 

[Osgood]

That makes a lot of sense actually. I alternate between Eberron and more traditional settings like the Realms, and the 2014 drow statblocks only worked in the latter. I think this is why the new core rule books have been lighter on built-in lore, they’ll put that in the setting books—elf, dwarf, of halfling culture looks pretty different depending on if you are playing in Greyhawk or Eberron or Dark Sun.

 

[Dire Bare]

I guess those of us who weren't going to buy a FR book are just out of luck - especially since we can't buy things al la carte anymore...

Somehow, I think your game will survive without the drow statblocks in the upcoming FR book.

D&D is a toolbox. I can use it to make what I want, but if I buy the newest toolbox and its missing a saw it may limit what I can make with it. Telling me to go find my old ratty toolbox and borrow that saw is a solution, but maybe not the best value proposition for a company that spent 50 years making high quality toolboxes* with excellent saws that were core to their product.

*The fourth toolbox being an exception, of course. That one only let you make hummingbird feeders. (This analogy has gone out of control)

The newest toolbox isn't missing any tools. You just don't like some of the tools in the box. Which is okay, if you prefer the older tools.

You don't need the supplemental Realms toolbox and the new tools in it to run an effective and fun game of D&D featuring drow. They are just more tools to provide more options.

 

[DarkCrisis]

Will they also have the super awesome and so much better Ice Drow who are more powerful and beautiful and special than the evil Underground Drow?

 

[pukunui]

Will they also have the super awesome and so much better Ice Drow who are more powerful and beautiful and special than the evil Underground Drow?

I dunno. I mean, they mentioned them in a press release and featured some of them in a Drizzt novel ages ago now, but neither group (the northern ice drow or the southern jungle drow) has appeared in any RPG product yet. I guess these upcoming FR books are the logical place in which to do that.