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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gyor

Legend

Some Intel on what Wildemount. I imagine somethings might change and their might be details added to the Setting by WotC for various reasons. Still this gives one an idea of what one is getting into.
 

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Juomari Veren

Adventurer
Yet, D&D's original settings still didn't get a real update, while MtG settings and even this...

Not interested, skip.

See, the idea of cross-promoting other relveant WOTC franchises like MtG at least makes sense, though. I mean do I want to see a transformers setting for 5e?

...Well, only a tiny bit. But not enough to beg for it. That said it definitely wouldn't be my first or even last choice for a D&D setting. MtG makes sense because it hits a lot of the same beats and even supports the idea of multiversal travel, though on a much smaller scale than D&D is used to when you think of planeswalking. It's like being the guy to discover that sandwiches taste better when you put condiments and vegetables on them - Both are food, they all serve different purposes, but they work together and there's no reason for them not to.
 

jayoungr

Legend
Supporter
RIP to the worlds of Greyhawk, Mystara, Dragonlance, Dark Sun, Spelljammer, and Birthright. It's been years, if WotC were ever going to do anything significant with these settings, it would have been done by now.
I disagree. 5E simply doesn't operate on the same timeline as previous editions. It took them two years to do anything outside of the Forgotten Realms, that being Ravenloft. And they only just got around to Eberron, which was probably the most requested of the previous settings.

Besides, they have at least acknowledged that those other settings exist, and they even have an adventure series for Greyhawk (Ghosts of Saltmarsh).
 

Mistwell

Crusty Old Meatwad (he/him)
I suspect a lot of the naysaying is because it's Critical Role, and some people are turned off by some of the baggage that comes with that. If this were a new setting, or just a book with the options mentioned but no setting detail, I suspect a lot of naysayers here would be on board.

Now imagine if the player options in this book, the subclasses and feats and such, become the focus of optimization talks over the coming months, and the new character concept role playing frontier as well.

I suspect a lot of the naysayers will be on board later, if they start seeing those optimization and role playing discussions. We shall see. But FOMO my kick in, if you start seeing new discussions like those which surrounded Xanathar's.
 

I miss the metaplot of DS and Ravenloft. Have you noticed in the last years almost all D&D novels are FR, and any set in Dragonlance?

Wildemont is a perfect place for gothic horror adventures.

I bet we will see some necessary retcon.

The blood hunter class will not be in this book or it would be mentioned.

Will we se a "Mighty Nein" (CR 2nd season) cartoon show, and this produced by Hasbro Studios?

* Hollow World is perfect for a D&D children cartoon with dinosaurs (pets), children love dinosaurs! (and monsters as Fortnite husks, killed without gore) I guess the media allows a open door for the return of old lines (videogames or streaming series, for example).

* If DS will be the next, will DM Guild allow titles about only art, without crunch/rules at all?

* I wish success for WotC but after of hype about the return of old franchises any things aren't now my cup of tea.
 

jayoungr

Legend
Supporter
Honest question:

Why do you want a 5E version of a setting you already own from an older edition?
Well, I can understand the demand for Dark Sun because people want a 5E psion. (And personally, I suspect there will be DS eventually, since they've been testing various psionic options.)
 

caudor

Adventurer
I'm confused. Critical Role? Wildemont? I've never heard of them. But that's just me. I'll hold off and see what this is all about and go from there. I'm hoping it turns out to be something exciting.
 

5atbu

Explorer
RIP to the worlds of Greyhawk, Mystara, Dragonlance, Dark Sun, Spelljammer, and Birthright. It's been years, if WotC were ever going to do anything significant with these settings, it would have been done by now. Guess fans of those settings are forever on their own using stuff published back in the day...
Which can be run with 5e quite easily.
But I wouldn't give up yet, I think this really is the evergreen edition, so it'll be round again.
 

RIP to the worlds of Greyhawk, Mystara, Dragonlance, Dark Sun, Spelljammer, and Birthright. It's been years, if WotC were ever going to do anything significant with these settings, it would have been done by now. Guess fans of those settings are forever on their own using stuff published back in the day...

How so? For years, it's been "Please release setting books!" Now they are, both old and new. With the change in policy, it's only a matter of time before they check back in with older settings like they did with Eberron...
 

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