Dungeons & Dragons developer Wizards of the Coast has unveiled new details about its upcoming release for The Deck of Many Things.
Wizards of the Coast recently hosted a press briefing to reveal more details of the infamous magic item and its accompanying supplement, The Book of Many Things. The two pair together in D&D’s last major release for 2023. In the new bundle, players can use the deck for its original chaos-bringing mischief or to guide a campaign. Lead designer Jason Tondro explained how Wizards approached the project, adding new lore to the popular item.
D&D’s Upgraded Deck of Many Things
Initially conceived by Gary Gygax and Rob Kuntz in 1975, the original Deck of Many Things contained 22 cards with random effects. Players could draw one card to create a chaotic effect, including sending their soul to another plane. Now, Wizards adds 44 new cards to the deck for 66. A good example would be the new Dragon card. Players that draw it suddenly have a dragon egg hatchling appear before them, with the DM deciding on its color. The hatchling thinks the player is its parent.
Wizards designed the deck as a form of tarot, where players can have their fortunes read, and DM’s have an additional use for it, too — building out a dungeon or even an entire campaign. Each card represents a person, place, treasure, monster, or situation for a DM to use, with different effects on reversed cards. In total, the new Deck of Many Things offers a total of 660 options for players and DMs to discover.
“The first card represents where the party is before the adventure starts,” Tondro explained. “Kind of like what they’ve been doing or the starting situation. And we cross that with a card that’s the inciting event — someone staggers into the tavern with an arrow in their chest and a map in their hand, right? Something that kicks off the adventure.” DM’s then use a card to represent the journey, then the dungeon entrance, and more for challenges the players face. Finally, it concludes with a “guardian” card and a treasure for reward.
The Deck of Many Things bundle releases digitally on October 31, accessed on D&D Beyond. The physical addition arrives on November 14.
