Dungeons & Dragons Art & Arcana [Special Edition, Boxed Book & Ephemera Set]: A Visual History

Beautiful editing. Although, some of the illustrations are split between two pages and some details get lost in between the glued part. But despite that, it’s one of the most beautiful books I have ever purchased.
Also, the extra goodies, and the original module by Gary Gygax, made it even more worth the acquisition of this edition instead of the regular one.

I’ve been playing D&D since 1980. Started with the Holmes basic set. That being said, I am not a fan of Wizards of the Coast and will never again invest any money into anything Dungeons and Dragons as long as they hold the IP.

If you feel the same as I do. Make an exception for this special edition. It is a masterpiece of art from all the editions with lots of history about Gary, Dave and the other writers of the other editions. The advertisements are a blast from the past and bring back lots of memories. But the icing on the cake is the additionl swag in the special edition. The outer box, the poster art and the reprint of the Tomb of Horrors are amazing for a fan such as myself.

Like I said, skip everything else from WorC but get your hands on this special edition if you love D&D. Or give as a gift to someone who does.

Bugüne kadar aldığım, gördüğüm en iyi D&D koleksiyon seti. İçinden harika bir kitap çıkıyor ve yanında da Tomb of Horrors’un ilk kaba taslak modülünün bir kopyası var. Posterler de, D&D ile özdeşleşmiş çizimlerden oluşuyor. Tek eksiği bu setin havasını yansıtacak bir zar seti.

5 star for the book 2 stars for Amazon’s packing job.
Hasbro has figured out there is actual money to be made with the old rules sets by all the super successful KSs and The POD books so they are making stuff that appeals to people like me that just play the old sets and OSR. (I would say 80% of this book is history OD&D-2e) Also there is a bunch of us that study the history of the hobby this also appeals to those. The book is excellent on par with the 1e and 2e reprints. The non-special edition is also very nice with a Larry Elmore cover. In my opinion they are trying to tap into the old farts that have opted out of the newer editions. I would not be surprised to see a D&D classic series in the future if the POD keeps making money. But any player of any edition will enjoy this book it has a lot of great art.
Really books like this are good for the hobby they show the history and art of the beginning and bring the newer history and art into the fold. if you are a grognard that only plays OD&D or a kid just discovering 5e there is something in this book for you. It is one of the reasons I love R Scott Taylor’s work all the modules he makes are in both 1e and 5e we need more stuff like that, that brings the community together.
As for the packing and Amazon, this is a $125 book I wish you guys put some padding in the box so it did not scoot around inside the box you packed it in. A couple scuffs and a dimpled corner. Not enough to really go through the hassle of shipping back but enough to make me wish it was packed better, I guess that is what they are counting on.

This wonderful tome took me back in place and time; back to the basements of my youth, to card tables pressed together and covered in dice and maps and many of the strange and wondrous works represented in this great volume. It had been a while since I thought about the friends that sat at those tables with me so many years ago and I was surprised by how good it felt to remember those simple times before we all realized that we just weren’t going to get any girls if we kept this up.

This book was very well thought out. It covers the entire epic age of D&D from its origins right up to the present day. Virtually all the great modules are considered and the amazing hardback books, especially the early ones, get plenty of coverage. Greyhawk, Dragonlance, Forgotten Realms. You name it and it’s there. And not just the amazing artwork. There’s a good deal of written content covering D&D history, the stories behind the most iconic modules, and the stories behind the art.

I especially loved seeing so many of the original source artworks presented in full without being covered by all of the titles and blurbs and bar codes of the actual products. And nearly every image seemed to spark a memory.

About halfway through the book I reached the AD&D V2 updated materials and that’s where I lost touch with D&D back in the day. (Kids these days have it so easy…They can be nerds AND get girls) Still I enjoyed seeing the newer artwork that I’d never seen before, even though some of it seemed a bit stale and video-game derivative by comparison.

All told I can’t imagine anyone with a true love for this amazing game not being happy with this book. The extras in the special edition don’t add a ton and if you’re feeling thrifty the base book should get you 99% of the enjoyment. That said the special edition is well put together and I’m very happy with the purchase.