Review by C.J. Bunce
Back in 2019 Wizards of the Coast began publishing a series of adventurer books to get young readers involved with storytelling, fantasy worlds, and roleplaying games. The Dungeons & Dragons Young Adventurer’s Guide books have everything you need to start creating your own characters and stories, perfect for kids who aren’t advanced enough in their reading yet or readers not familiar with what D&D fantasy games have to offer. Next month Clarkson Potter and Wizards of the Coast are partnering to release two new books that serve to bridge the the adventurer books for young players and the full-scale D&D 5E/5.5E roleplaying game.
It all begins with the Dungeons & Dragons Players Workbook of Epic Adventures, available for pre-order now here at Amazon, and continues with the Dungeons & Dragons Dungeon Master’s Workbook of Worldbuilding, available for pre-order here. Each illustrated guide is a workbook and journal that pares down the dense content of the D&D 5E core rulebooks into something more practical and manageable.
Both officially licensed compendiums, they are all about storytelling and, more specifically, story making. Filled with the kind of activities you may have encountered in school, clubs, or college, they key in on brainstorming both your ideal characters and adventures and what makes up all the things you like. So along with building characters, campaigns, and stories, they also will boost your confidence and help you make decisions. What do you like? What don’t you like? The questions and activities posed in each book reveal the inner you all through your imagination and the construct of fantasy and the epic worlds of D&D.
Never played Dungeons & Dragons before? Like the Starter Kits (discussed here), the Dungeons & Dragons Players Workbook of Epic Adventures is a new way to introduce players to the game and provide new insights for experienced players through writing and brainstorming exercises. With the book you choose a class, subclass, and origin for your character, craft your character’s unique backstory and personality, get to know your party, plan responses to story scenarios, and envision your character’s advancement.
Take a look at sample pages from the Dungeons & Dragons Players Workbook of Epic Adventures:
Anything that boosts your creative spark is a good thing, and what’s more fun than worldbuilding? You can see how even those not interested in RPGs might have fun completing the steps of these books and thinking through all the exercises, prompts, visual guides, and other activities.
And whether you’re a fledgling Dungeon Master or an expert worldbuilder, the Dungeon Master’s Workbook of Worldbuilding helps you envision your own best Dungeons & Dragons adventure through completing a series of fun writing and brainstorming exercises. It promises to create an exciting campaign setting for your players, practice improvisation and roleplaying as a DM, craft tantalizing rewards and intriguing magic items, weave compelling story hooks with over twenty-five scenarios, and even learn the basics of mapmaking.
Take a look at sample pages from the Dungeon Master’s Workbook of Worldbuilding:
About half the dimensions of the traditional D&D books and nearly as thick, these editions will fit right along with the 5th Edition books. Andrew Wheeler, author of both guides, asks players to think through the simple questions Who? What? When? Where? How? and Why? These books will appeal to readers and gamers who want to learn more about role play, storytelling, and fantasy worlds, and serve as a springboard to move on to conquer the full adventures of the 5th Edition volumes.
For anyone wanting to learn more about “the world’s greatest roleplaying game,” you won’t want to miss the Dungeons & Dragons Players Workbook of Epic Adventures, available for pre-order now here at Amazon, and the Dungeons & Dragons Dungeon Master’s Workbook of Worldbuilding, available for pre-order here, both coming your way May 5, 2026.
