The Dungeons & Dragons team has released Curse of Strahd: Revamped, an updated collector’s edition of the 2016 adventure module.
D&D Lead Narrative Designer Chris Perkins took an early look at the set, which you can view in the image and video gallery below.
“We don’t make a lot of box sets,” said Perkins. “And we don’t always have the luxury of time or money to really test ourselves … You would think that we are just taking something that exists, we are putting it in a fancy package and ‘Whoop!’ it’s done but actually so much thought and a lot of people were involved in the conception and the packaging and the design, the cards, the DM display and everything. It was actually a very slow process, but fun. “
The set sells for $ 99.99USD, comes in a coffin-shaped box with Ravenloft-inspired engravings, and contains …
- 224-page softcover print of the most current edition of Curse of Strahd, complete with all errata published since 2016.
- 20-page Creatures of Horror brochure, serving as an easily accessible compendium for Strahd-specific monsters.
- A double-sided poster map with the Kingdom of Barovia on one side and a detailed plan of Ravenloft Castle on the other.
- A new stamped version of the Gale Force Nine Tarokka deck to draw the Ravenloft Fortunes of.
- 8 page Tarokka Deck brochure for reference when using the deck
- Physical brochures for DM to provide to their players.
- 12 illustrated “from” Barovia postcards for DMs to use when inviting players to their game.
- The Dungeon Master screen with useful information for adventuring in this gothic horror setting with postcard illustrations from CoupleOfKooks.
“It was always my wish that at some point we could put together a version of the adventure that actually had the cards, and it is because of that idea that this boxed set came up,” says Perkins. “We wanted to make sure that if Beadle and Grimm [a company that specializes in high-end D&D box sets like this one or this one]For example, if we were making their own version, eventually we wouldn’t be duplicating what they would do. They tend to go, with their Platinum Editions, in the hundreds of dollars. So this is like filling the gap between what they would normally do and what we would normally sell. “
Strahd’s Curse Renewed
In Amazon
The updates to the adventure itself primarily consist of amendments previously released in the book, such as tweaks to an additional character option or bug fixes, but the most notable updates are to some items that were deemed insensitive or offensive after the original publication. , particularly in regards to a disabled character and representation of a group of nomadic NPCs known as Vistani. A recent post on the D&D website explains that, “unfortunately, their representation echoes some stereotypes associated with Roma in the real world,” and that the team wanted to avoid representing them in a way that depended on “reductive tropes.”
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As such, several sections of explicitly problematic text have been removed and / or altered *. “Curse of Strahd [Revamped] specifically address the weaknesses around the Vistani and around this disabled character, and there were also other small problems to solve, “Perkins said.” We wanted to clean that up a bit and remove some things that fans didn’t particularly like in terms of representation and how they were represented – it’s that kind of very granular but important change. More like surgical changes in adventure than some kind of big radical change. “
Perkins says this is something the entire D&D team is focused on, particularly in light of recent discussions focused on diversity in the tabletop role-playing community. “I think every product we make is trying to go one step further, as much as possible,” he says. “We started this product late or mid-last year, so much of what Curse of Strahd Revamped addresses are issues that we saw long before the recent social media discussions and the like. Recent things will translate on changes to other products in the future after this. “
Such projects, like the upcoming Rime of the Frostmaiden adventure and yet another title yet to be revealed, see constant iterations. Chris and the team were making tweaks and edits to the entries on how the book handles previously “evil” races such as Orcs and Drow until the book was recently submitted for printing. “Every product is an opportunity for us to become (A) more sensitive and more aware,” said Perkins. “And (B) to involve more voices in our products and our product manufacturing in our product planning. And that means working with a broader range of freelancers, that means attracting people on staff who have different perspectives, different backgrounds and voices, and bigger, more fundamental steps than, you know, a change to a word here or a page there. “
For more D&D at IGN, why not take a look at our guide to moving your game online during social distancing time, or if you’re just getting into the hobby, take a look at our picks for the best sets of Dungeons & Dragons start or how to play D&D for free. Of course, if you’re thinking of trying out tabletop RPGs, but you’re not sure if D&D is the one for you, check out our guide to finding the right TRPG for you and your group.
JR is a senior editor at IGN who really misses playing D&D in person and constantly regrets it on Twitter.
* It is worth noting that the illustrations in Vistani’s book still evoke Roma culture, and some players may still associate certain abilities (such as their ability to cast curses or hypnotize players using an “Evil Eye”) with outdated cultural stereotypes .
