Template:Latest releases/archive/2016

23/01/2016
Confrontation at Candlekeep by Teos Abadia, Greg Bilsland, and Shawn Merwin is a playtest module for Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition. Originally released to RPGA Dungeon Masters at Gen Con Indy 2013, it is now available for download.

The adventure sees a cult of Asmodeus, led by one of his Chosen, assault Candlekeep after managing to deactivate some of the fortress' wards. They aim to obtain a spell scroll created in ages past by their master that has since been hidden in the vaults of Candlekeep by Mystra herself to prevent its abuse. (Read more...)

2/04/2016
Maestro by R.A. Salvatore is the latest novel penned by the prolific Realms author and follows on immediately from his previous book, Archmage. In it, Bruenor Battlehammer and Drizzt Do'Urden lead the army of reclaimed Gauntlgrym against Menzoberranzan while Catti-brie and Menzoberranzan's archmage Gromph Baenre head to Luskan in an attempt to keep the primordial Maegera contained. (Read more...)

Baldur's Gate: Siege of Dragonspear by Beamdog is the latest instalment of the Baldur's Gate game franchise. Using the enhanced version of the 2D Infinity Engine and an updated user interface, Seige of Dragonspear takes place in-between the original Baldur's Gate and Shadows of Amn. Gorion's Ward must face the Shining Lady, who has orchestrated an allegedly divine crusade along the Sword Coast. (Read more...)

7/05/2016
Shadows of the Vampire 1 is a comic written by Jim Zub and drawn by Nelson Daniel, released by IDW Publishing in May 2016.

Mysterious forces draw Delina, Shandie, and Krydle, together with Minsc and Boo, into the Demiplane of Dread, where they find themselves pitted against undead horrors, in a crossover with the Ravenloft campaign setting. (Read more...)

10/06/2016
Death Masks is the 28th Forgotten Realms novel written by the world's creator, Ed Greenwood. It was released on June 7th, 2016. Questions arise when several recent murder victims are revealed to have been Masked Lords of Waterdeep. (Read more...)

2/07/2016
An unnamed Dungeons & Dragons movie expected to be set in the Forgotten Realms is currently in the works. Made by Warner Bros., it is written by David Leslie Johnson (Wrath of the Titans), produced by Roy Lee (The Lego Movie), and expected to be directed by Rob Letterman (Goosebumps). Actor Ansel Elgort (The Divergent Series) is in early talks to star in the movie.

According to rumor, it will be called The Hand of Chaos and will be a fantasy action-adventure in the style of Indiana Jones or Guardians of the Galaxy, with a warrior with a flaming sword, a cunning gnome cutpurse, a warlock, and a half-dragon going on a quest for a mythical treasure. (Read more...)

18/07/2016
Assault on Maerimydra is an adventure module by Greg Marks, designed for 5th-edition Dungeons & Dragons and set in the Forgotten Realms. It was released in March 2016 as part of the Rage of Demons storyline for the Adventurers League. The adventurers have gathered in the Underdark with drow and other allied factions and must work together to assault the fire giant–city of Maerimydra. (Read more...)

15/11/2016
Storm King's Thunder is an adventure module released in September 2016, designed for 5th-edition Dungeons & Dragons and set in the Forgotten Realms. Taking place in the Savage Frontier and the North after 1485 DR, it sees adventurers of levels 1–10 struggle against an uprising of giants. "To Fight Giants, You Must Be Giant

Ages ago, giants and dragons waged war across the Savage Frontier. These battles are long forgotten by the human civilizations of today, but ancient relics remain. And now, the land shudders once more with the thunder of giant footsteps.

Hill giants raid farms for food and livestock, as stone giants lay waste to settlements in their path. Frost giants plunder coastal towns, as fire giants gather slaves. Cloud giant castles drift across the sky, casting ominous shadows on the cities of the North. But no threat compares to the wrath of the storm giants, who stand betrayed.

Puny adventurers must rise to the challenge, gather their strength, unlock the power of ancient runes, and take the fight to the giants' doorsteps. Only then can they discover a hidden evil fomenting a war between giants and small folk. Only then can they forge an alliance to end the war before it begins."

(Read more...)

11/10/2016
The Devil You Know by Erin M. Evans is the sixth and final novel in the Brimstone Angels series, released October 4th 2016. It sees Farideh's ancestor attempting to assassinate Asmodeus. "The long-awaited finale of SCRIBE award winning-author Erin M. Evans’s riveting Brimstone Angels series, featuring her signature character, Farideh, as she’s caught up in an epic battle of good versus evil, rife with deception and intrigue, where the question is as much who is evil, as how they can be defeated. The stakes have never been higher, and the fallout will shake the Hells, and through them, the Forgotten Realms.

Before Farideh took a devil's pact, before she was Chosen by the god-king of the Hells, before any of this started, there was Bryseis Kakistos, the original Brimstone Angel, first of Farideh’s line. Now, at the end, there is also Bryseis Kakistos—but this time, instead of helping the king of the Hells achieve godhood, she’s going to kill him. All she needs is a little help from Farideh—which she should, by all accounts, be happy to give. After all, who could object to killing the king of the Hells? Except, it turns out, Farideh. Because as always, things are far more complicated than they seem."

- Amazon product listing

(Read more...)

16/11/2016
Volo's Guide to Monsters by Mike Mearls, Jeremy Crawford, Ed Greenwood and others is a 5th-edition Dungeons & Dragons sourcebook that describes monster lore and lairs, playing monster character races, and gives the stat blocks of many monsters old and new. "The esteemed loremaster Volothamp Geddarm is back! He's written a fantastical dissertation, covering some of the most iconic monsters in the worlds of Dungeons & Dragons &reg;. But the Sage of Shadowdale himself, Elminster, doesn't believe Volo gets some of the details quite right. Don't miss out as Volo and Elminster team up to illuminate the uninitiated on creatures both common and obscure.

Sure to inspire any Dungeon Master, this book explores the stories and lairs of various monsters. Including giants, mind flayers, orcs, and goblinoids. Players can also find rules for playing a variety of new races, including the angelic aasimar and the feline tabaxi. Also included are game statistics for scores of monsters&mdash;some new to the game, and some that hail from the game's past&mdash;which are ready to appear in D&D adventures as mighty friends or fearsome foes."

(Read more...)

31/12/2016
Hero by R.A. Salvatore is the third book of the Homecoming series, following Maestro. It continues the adventures of popular character Drizzt Do'Urden.

"''The saga of dark elf Drizzt Do'Urden has become a fixture in the fantasy genre, with a string of New York Times best-selling novels going back to 1988. Hero is the follow-up to Maestro and Archmage, and final book in the Homecoming trilogy.

Something akin to "peace" has come to the Underdark. The demon hordes have receded, and now the matron mothers argue over the fate of Drizzt Do'Urden. Even so, it becomes clear to one matriarch after another that while the renegade drow may come and go Menzoberranzan, the City of Spiders will crawl forever on.

And so Drizzt is free to return to his home on the surface once again. Scores are settled as lives are cut short, yet other lives move on. For the lone drow there is only a single final quest: a search for peace, for family, for home--for the future.

Hero picks up where Maestro left off, in a sweeping climax to an epic tale.''"

(Read more...)