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 soon as one is revealed -- the official announcement allegedly comes today!

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 - 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...

www.enworld.org

Here’s some info on Dr. Rudolph Van Richten! He's a vampire hunter (he appeared in Curse of Strahd, and he's been around in the Ravenloft setting for decades) and is basically Van Helsing to Strahd's Dracula. His name appears on a whole pile of 2nd Edition D&D sourcebooks, all titled "Van Richten's Guide to.... Vampires/Ghosts/Werebeasts, etc."

The Ravenloft setting, of course, features a bunch of 'domains' other than Barovia itself, each ruled by its own Dark Lord. Strahd rules Barovia, but even other signature D&D villains like Lord Soth and Vecna have been placed in Ravenloft ruling dread domains of their own, along with an assortment of other domain rulers.

The Mist Beckons

The image below is not of the upcoming book, but of one of the many D&D 2nd Edition Van Richten's Guides.

 

[Aldarc]

Considering how big a hit the adventure was, this is hardly a surprise.

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

I am happy with the return of the setting, but I wonder when the metaplot is going to continue. Is canon the one published for 3.5. by White Wolf?

If Renegade Games Studios is going to publish 5th Ed of World of Darkness and TTRPGs of other famous franchises (G.I.Joe, My Little Pony, Power Rangers, Transformers).... Could it be hired as an outsourcer company to publish Ravenloft 5th Ed?

I remember something metinoned by LPJ Design about my crazy suggestion of a crossover Ravenloft and Obsidian Apocalypse.

Could the return of Ravenloft be good for the publishers of the setting "Shadows over Vathak" or "Kaidan"?

 

[Abstruse]

If Renegade Games Studios is going to publish 5th Ed of World of Darkness and TTRPGs of other famous franchises (G.I.Joe, My Little Pony, Power Rangers, Transformers).... Could it be hired as an outsourcer company to publish Ravenloft 5th Ed?

Nothing stopping them from doing it right now. Ravenloft is available to use on DM's Guild, you just have to abide by their terms.

I doubt that WotC will hand out specific licenses though as they haven't done so for anything else. Outside of DM's Guild, nobody's publishing anything for Eberron or Forgotten Realms so no reason to think they'd do something different for Ravenloft.

 

[UngeheuerLich]

Not too surprising considering the latest playtests.
I am really looking for the bard subclass.

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

Every time I'm thinking I'm about done with D&D 5e, they pull the same trick....sigh...where's my wallet.

I still would have preferred something like more Vistani-focused as narrator instead of that generic Van Helsing with the serial number filed off, but this will be a nice addition to my collection for sure.

 

[happylarry]

Okay. looks interesting. Would have preferred Spelljammer / Mystara etc. etc. (Maybe next time...) but will probably get this.
Presumably Van Richten predates Van Helsing?

 

[Morrus]

Presumably Van Richten predates Van Helsing?

The opposite. Dracula was published in 1897. Van Richten was created for D&D about a hundred years later, in the 1980s.

 

[Quartz]

I have a good number of the original Van Richten's books. They're still useful.

 

[Nilbog]

This is a great release that I think will prove popular, and has been the top of people's wish lists for a while.

Not for me as I don't do horror games, but definitely a welcome addition.

 

[jasper]

Any word on this being Adventure League legal?

 

[Professor Murder]

Running a Ravenloft 5th ed campaign right now so yeah, I'm down.

 

[Nikosandros]

Any word on this being Adventure League legal?

Since there still hasn't been an official announcement from WotC, this might be a bit premature.

 

[Reynard]

I hope this signals that 5E is moving into a new development phase that allows WotC to be more experimental and creative and away from being deeply enmeshed in traditional gaming fantasy tropes. yes, I know Ravenloft is a legacy setting so it is not new and and still draws on nostalgia, but the needs of a successful gothic dark fantasy are much different than those of heroic fantasy so, presumably, there will be tools to play D&D differently.

Or, it will just be a Halloween Town coat of paint on top of the usual stuff and won't make any real difference. Who knows?

 

[Professor Murder]

What's interesting is that the presumption we have, rightly, is that this is a setting book. However, the naming convention is one of the toolbox books we have been getting for 5th.

 

[NotQuiteANoble]

We don't have a cover image yet, but 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 soon as one is revealed -- the official announcement allegedly comes today!

While we await a cover, here's some info on Dr. Rudolph Van Richten! He's a vampire hunter (he appeared in Curse of Strahd, and he's been around in the Ravenloft setting for decades) and is basically Van Helsing to Strahd's Dracula. His name appears on a whole pile of 2nd Edition D&D sourcebooks, all titled "Van Richten's Guide to.... Vampires/Ghosts/Werebeasts, etc."

The Ravenloft setting, of course, features a bunch of 'domains' other than Barovia itself, each ruled by its own Dark Lord. Strahd rules Barovia, but even other signature D&D villains like Lord Soth and Vecna have been placed in Ravenloft ruling dread domains of their own, along with an assortment of other domain rulers.

View attachment 133172
The Mist Beckons


View attachment 133170
View attachment 133171
The image below is not of the upcoming book, but of one of the many D&D 2nd Edition Van Richten's Guides.

View attachment 133173​

I'm personally more excited for the lineages. Was planning a Hexblood Druid, and it seems to be like Vampires, Hags and Undead Lineages refer to Dhampir, Hexblood and Revived. I'll definitely take it.

 

[Espadadelaaurora]

A classic setting:

[youtube]

 

[embee]

The opposite. Dracula was published in 1897. Van Richten was created for D&D about a hundred years later, in the 1980s.

Unless....

Dracula was written in the future and then Bram Stoker (or someone acting on his behalf) time-traveled back to the 19th Century and published Dracula then.

It's like how the Beatles' songs won't be written for another several hundred years but then Sir George Martin will travel via a rift in the spacetime continuum back to the 1960's to record them.

 

[ART!]

What's interesting is that the presumption we have, rightly, is that this is a setting book. However, the naming convention is one of the toolbox books we have been getting for 5th.

I'm personally more excited for the lineages. Was planning a Hexblood Druid, and it seems to be like Vampires, Hags and Undead Lineages refer to Dhampir, Hexblood and Revived. I'll definitely take it.

I'll have to wait until they release a table of contents with page numbers, so I can see how much of each subject is in the book, but I am surprisingly interested in this. I was gifted the PHB and DMG about 5 years ago, and have only bought some digital content from WOTC since then - mostly player options from various releases. But if this has a decent amount of new character options and a lot of "how to do different kinds of horror in 5E", I might have to buy the whole thing!

 

[Oofta]

Unless....

Dracula was written in the future and then Bram Stoker (or someone acting on his behalf) time-traveled back to the 19th Century and published Dracula then.

It's like how the Beatles' songs won't be written for another several hundred years but then Sir George Martin will travel via a rift in the spacetime continuum back to the 1960's to record them.

Nah, Jules Verne really did invent a time machine, traveled to the late 20th century, only had time to pick up a quick guidebook and shared it with his buddy Bram (who was looking for ideas) when he got back.