Review by C.J. Bunce
The next game expansion from Dungeons & Dragons and Wizards of the Coast arrives this week, and it may be the darkest exploration in D&D yet — Ravenloft: The Horrors Within, available for pre-order now with standard cover here or alternate/gameshop cover here, returns to the dark storytelling of Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft and as the cover indicates, Strahd. Of course darkness is all in the eyes of the Dungeon Master, and this new release is a fully fleshed-out (yikes–pun intended) toolkit for a Gothic campaign. The alternate cover provides a look at the style that is infused into the expansion book itself, but also via a tarokka card deck (available separately here) you’ll want to use with the book.
How dark is this DM toolkit? It allows for plenty of room to adapt to your players, and be fine tuned to any genre of horror, from folk horror and ghost stories to cosmic horror and dark fantasy to slasher or body horror.
Let’s take a look at the scope of this new release.
This is a big 288-page volume packed with content. The Horrors Within incorporates 16 “Domains of Dread”–each tied to its own genre, including one new domain, the Cosmic Horror Domain of Innsmouth. Even before the first chapter begins, DMs will find a mini-travelogue of sorts to navigate all that is offered here. You’ll find 17 Darklords each with an accompanying stat block.
The first chapter details character options with seven subclasses (Reanimator, College of Spirits, Grave Domain, Hollow Warden, Phantom, Shadow Sorcery, Undead Patron), four backgrounds (Haunted One, Investigator, Mist Wanderer, Spirit Medium), four species (Dhampir, Hexblood, Lupin, Reborn), and two feats (Origin Feats, Dark Gifts).
The next chapter details 150 pages of domains, and this is where you’ll find elaborate maps and Darklords. The abbreviated format allows the book to include more variety, which DMs can use as a starting point to explore characters, monsters, settings, and tools in previous campaign books.
Chapters 3 and 4 provide ideas for DMs to build their campaigns. This is followed by some of the creepiest D&D monstrosities yet. You’ll find 50 pages of everything from a Mist Wanderer to Wereravens, Swarms of Insects, Carrion Stalkers, and of course Vampires and Zombies.
The standard cover (immediately above) features artwork by Anna Podedworna.
Pam Wishbow’s cover to the gameshop edition (shown above at top of the article) and the corresponding tarokka cards artwork tied to this release sets it apart from past campaigns and editions, pulling together a Gothic vibe.
In addition to the expansion book, you’ll want to check out the Ravenloft: Horrors Within Tarokka Deck (available here), plus the Ravenloft: Horrors Within Dungeon Master’s Screen (available here), and the Ravenloft: Horrors Within Map Pack (available here).
In addition to the ten giant battle maps, the Map Set includes more than two dozen cardboard punch-out player tokens featuring monsters, terrain, and traps.
The most interesting feature of the book is the exploration of the Mists. You can’t help being taken back to the creepy ghosts within John Carpenter’s The Fog.
For any DM looking to explore the darkness beyond Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft, check out Ravenloft: The Horrors Within, available for pre-order now with standard cover here or alternate/gameshop cover here. The book and the tie-ins all ship this week.
