Critical Role The New D&D Book Is 'The Explorer's Guide to [Critical Role's] Wildemount!' By Matt Mercer

It looks like Amazon has leaked the title and description of the new D&D book a day early (unless it's all a fake-out by WotC) -- and it's a new D&D setting book called The Explorer's Guide to Wildemount; it's the Critical Role campaign setting, penned by Matt Mercer!

It looks like Amazon has leaked the title and description of the new D&D book a day early (unless it's all a fake-out by WotC) -- and it's a new D&D setting book called The Explorer's Guide to Wildemount; it's the Critical Role campaign setting, penned by Matt Mercer!

Wildemount%2C_Version_20%2C1.png

image from Critical Role wiki

There's no cover image yet, so we're stuck with the "Coming Soon" image.

This book appeared without a title on Amazon last week, and a 'reveal' date of January 9th, which was then later delayed until January 13th. Amazon appears to have jumped the gun a day early.

Here's some information about Wildemount, which is a continent in the same world as Critical Role's other setting, Tal'Dorei. It is described by the official wiki has having "real-world Eastern European influence.... The Dwendalian Empire takes inspiration from 15th century Russia as well as Germanic nations in Central Europe (e.g., Prussia). Xhorhas has a more 13th-century Romanian flair. Outside of Wynandir, on the edges of the Dwendalian Empire, the cultures and peoples of those regions display a distinctly 14th-century Spanish flavor."

HOW DO YOU WANT TO DO THIS?

A war brews on a continent that has withstood more than its fair share of conflict. The Dwendalian Empire and the Kryn Dynasty are carving up the lands around them, and only the greatest heroes would dare stand between them. Somewhere in the far corners of this war-torn landscape are secrets that could end this conflict and usher in a new age of peace—or burn the world to a cinder.

Create a band of heroes and embark on a journey across the continent of Wildemount, the setting for Campaign 2 of the hit Dungeons & Dragons series Critical Role. Within this book, you’ll find new character options, a heroic chronicle to help you craft your character’s backstory, four different starting adventures, and everything a Dungeon Master needs to breathe life into a Wildemount-based D&D campaign…
  • Delve through the first Dungeons & Dragons book to let players experience the game as played within the world of Critical Role, the world’s most popular livestreaming D&D show.
  • Uncover a trove of options usable in any D&D game, featuring subclasses, spells, magic items, monsters, and more, rooted in the adventures of Exandria—such as Vestiges of Divergence and the possibility manipulating magic of Dunamancy.
  • Start a Dungeons & Dragons campaign in any of Wildemount’s regions using a variety of introductory adventures, dozens of regional plot seeds, and the heroic chronicle system—a way to create character backstories rooted in Wildemount.
Explore every corner of Wildemount and discover mysteries revealed for the first time by Critical Role Dungeon Master, Matthew Mercer.

Critical Role's other setting, Tal'Dorei, was published a couple of years ago by Green Ronin. This brings the list of settings in official D&D books to five: Forgotten Realms, Ravnica, Ravenloft, Eberron, and Wildemount.

UPDATE! Barnes & Noble has the cover (but not the title or description).

9780786966912_p0_v2_s600x595.jpg
 

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darjr

I crit!
Green Ronin has it listed with PDF, I know I got the hardcover, I think I got the PDF.... will have to double check.

Though now the cart button doesn’t work to buy the pdf.

 


Parmandur

Book-Friend
Green Ronin has it listed with PDF, I know I got the hardcover, I think I got the PDF.... will have to double check.

Though now the cart button doesn’t work to buy the pdf.


I'll wager the timing of when they did this book had to do with license contracts between Critical Role and Green Ronin running out.

Apparently, Matt Mercer told people earlier this month on Twitter that he had some good news brewing for fans of the Blood Hunter.
 

teitan

Legend
I hate to disappoint, there was one: it's called the Sword Coast Adventurers Guide and it came out years ago.

I know people hate it because it focused on the SC and gave lip service to the rest of Faerun, but that is the model WotC has opted for in all their settings. Don't believe me? Rising from the Last War only covers Khorvaire and pays lip service to Xen'drik, Sarlona, and the smaller island kingdoms. Ravnica focuses on one of ten districts in the city. This book seems to be covering one section of this world also. Hell, their coverage of Ravenloft was a single domain!

The era of the encyclopedic campaign guide like the FRCS or ESC seem over. I might be wrong (guessing WotC's next move is a fool's errand) but it looks like WotC's method of covering a setting is general info, some setting-specific crunch, and one section of the world detailed with any detail. The rest gets a mention and the assumption the DM will either hunt for older material (available on the DMs Guild!) Or make up their own based on the tease and perhaps a fan wiki.

to be fair the original Eberron book only covered Khorvaire, Sarlona and Xendrix wasn’t all that detailed until the Secrets of Sarlona & Xendrik books. It was still a larger part of the setting than the SCAG.
 


doctorbadwolf

Heretic of The Seventh Circle
I'm 56 too...if I remember correctly. After learning this thing includes Vecna and Tharizdun, I'm buying it. Of course, I'm easy to please.
Matt’s treatment of the cults of The Chained Oblivion has been very cool, so I’m looking forward to how he treats it in the book.

and Wildemount is a pretty interesting place. Ihope they base the next campaign in Markhet(so?), which is a continent that is more Arabian inspired than European, but as far as European influences settings go, the Dwendalian Empire is pretty interesting, and the Drow-ruled Kryn Dynasty that borders it is also very interesting.
 


doctorbadwolf

Heretic of The Seventh Circle
It's nice to see examples of people who did purchase the book for its crunch, which is something that I would do, but assumed that others would not do.
Other than Eberron, I’ve purchased every 5e book primarily for the crunch.

between the survey numbers onwhat settings are used the most, and the sales for Ravnica and Eberron, I figure most purchases of both books are probably groups that use homebrew worlds.
 

generic

On that metempsychosis tweak
Better comparison would be the Eberron book, in which case the answer is plenty.

but even Ravnica, which doesn’t have that much for players, has just enough for players AND for building city adventures in any world, and new angels and other monsters, and interesting ideas for giving faction benefits as part of a background, that it was far and away worth the price without any intention of any of my games ever stepping foot in Ravnica.
Wow, so I'm not the only one who would do this? I asked the question because, although I love buying books for the purpose of mechanics, even setting books (heck, even I bought the SCAG), I did not think that it was a common sentiment.
 

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