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).

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PMárk

Explorer
Is that from a fan perspective or an actual play perspective? I've never understood the allure myself so I am trying to understand.

In a living setting, who decides what is living? If group A does one thing and group B does another, who determines which group actually provide the life of the setting? That is what I don't understand, it is only living from one perspective isn't it?

It's from both. I like reading setting guides, metaplot books and novels, because they make the setting more alive, more immersive to me (and particularly the novels, make me more interested in the setting and more emotionally invested). I like to play in those settings both as a player and as a GM, because they feel, more fleshed-out and they give a sense of a bigger world around the characters beyond the actual game at the table, with their independent stories and going-ons, which I could also use in my home game, if I want. How much you adhere to that "canon" is your choice, but its there.

In short, living settings are living, because they have an ongoing story, thus they feel more "real". They could also provide other avenues of entertainment outside the game, which is good too.
 

PMárk

Explorer
And they are who matters in many ways. I'm less concerned about bringing stuff back for grognards and more about bringing in or back stuff which might really excite newer players. I feel like generic fantasy tends to get old faster and if that's all that's officially supported that's maybe not great.

I don't think those things are mutually exclusive. Nothing says that old stuff can't appeal to new players, with the right presentation.
 


dave2008

Legend
In short, living settings are living, because they have an ongoing story, thus they feel more "real". They could also provide other avenues of entertainment outside the game, which is good too.
But isn't that thrown out if your campaign diverges from the official "living" setting? I mean if FR was living and in my campaign Tiamat won at the end of RoT, wouldn't be odd that none of the living documents mention that? Isn't it effectively no longer "living" for my group then?

Please understand I don't us official settings, so I am having a hard time understanding the appeal. Other than just immersing yourself in the fiction with no real relevance to your game
 

But isn't that thrown out if your campaign diverges from the official "living" setting? I mean if FR was living and in my campaign Tiamat won at the end of RoT, wouldn't be odd that none of the living documents mention that? Isn't it effectively no longer "living" for my group then?

Please understand I don't us official settings, so I am having a hard time understanding the appeal. Other than just immersing yourself in the fiction with no real relevance to your game

Yup. White Wold found this out extensively with the whole metaplot to the WoD pre-nWoD. It's a double-edged sword. Yes, it makes some people buy books, creates FOMO and can create hype, but it also creates frustration, a feeling of being ripped off, and disengages people with divergent settings, which is a very large group. Also if you go in an unpopular direction you can potentially cause yourself huge problems.
 

gyor

Legend
Nope. I ran a POL campaign, and there is a helluva lot more to it than the gods and the general vibe of the wilderness and roads being dangerous. There is plenty of history. Every race, class, theme, PP, writeup has history and current cultural notes. Hell, some feats establish setting lore.

Exandria doesn’t have the same “Dawn war”, the gods aren’t exactly the same, the planes aren’t exactly the same, and the history of the world is completely, completely, different, as is the current state of the world. There are whole continents that are mostly safe to travel in as long as you stay on the road. The Teiflings currently rule a kingdom, as did the Dragonborn until just recently or 20 years ago, depending on the timeline. There is a major city everyone knows about full of temples where all civilization comes from. Many races have wildly different origins.

It simply isn’t the same.

We don't know what the 5e D&D version of Exandia or Nerath looks like yet, but given they altered Eberron even to fit it into the 5e Multiverse, I expect they will do the same with Exandia and Nerath and other settings.
 

DEFCON 1

Legend
Supporter
I feel like generic fantasy tends to get old faster and if that's all that's officially supported that's maybe not great.
Most of the people who are the targets for this book have probably only begun playing D&D since 5E and the Critical Role stream began, a little over 5 years ago. I seriously doubt any of them have thought the "traditional fantasy" of the Forgotten Realms has "gotten old" already to the point where they aren't going to pick up EGtW. Those of us who have been in the game for the last 40 years may think it's played out (especially if we've played in the same exact specific setting for 30 of it) but other players will not look at Wildemount and say "Oh, well, that's just a Forgotten Realms replacement. Forget it!" They will see both Wildemount and the Realms as different settings (which they are) and not get bored with one just because they've played in the other these past couple years.
 


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