Title: Dungeons & Dragons – Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
Authors: Wes Schneider, Amanda Hamon, Molly Ostertag, and K. Tempest Bradford
Year: 2021
Genre: Horror supplement for D&D
Pages: 256 pages
MSRP: $49.95 hardcover
I share my review, as well as a bit of a page through, of Dungeons & Dragons Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft from Wizards of the Coast. The 256 page hardcover arrives in stores May 18th carrying an MSRP of $49.95. Is this a must own supplement for those looking for horror fueled 5E &D? Of should you drive a stake through the book, cover it in garlic, and bury it where it will never be seen again? You’ll find out!
26:43 Final thoughts and review score
TGG REVIEW
6.5
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0
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Summary
I believe this is going to be a very divisive book; some gamers will love it and some will dislike it intensely. I fall in the middle between the two. While there is interesting and useful material in Van Richten's Guide to Ravensloft, the fluff and lore far outweighs the gamable material. This is almost entirely a DM facing book and one really aimed only at those looking to incorporate horror into their games at that. The overwrought handwringing about running a horror themed game at your table is laughably ridiculous only to be followed by the inclusion of material which some people might find offensive. Sorry to say the Darklords of each domain have no stat blocks whatsoever and each domain gets just enough page space devoted to it to whet your interest, while providing practically nothing for you to actually use in your game. A real disappointment all around. This feels like the beginning of a new direction for D&D; one which may not turn out to be a welcome thing...
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Founder/Editor-in-chief of The Gaming Gang website and host of The Gaming Gang Dispatch and other TGG media, Jeff tackles any and all sorts of games but has a special fondness for strategy, conflict sims, and roleplaying games. Plus, he's certainly never at a loss for an opinion...
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