Travel through the radiant citadel is the next collection of adventures for Dungeons & Dragons. The project was conceived by designer Ajit George and co-led with F. Wesley Schneider of Wizards of the Coast. It will be the first book in D&D’s nearly 50-year history to be written entirely by people of color. As such, it will feature a very different approach to the classic first-level adventure.
If you’ve ever played through an introductory adventure from a Dungeons & Dragons starter set, you know how embarrassing that experience can be. Sure, there are always some green players at the table, but that’s not really what I’m talking about. To me, the stakes at level one always feel a bit higher than they should otherwise be. The excellent Dungeons & Dragons Essentials Kit
designers Surena Marie started with Wizards of the Coast as a member of The rivals of Water deep
Salted Legacy is the story of two rival families who make a living from a vibrant night market filled with many different in-fiction races such as goblins and dragonborn. Players will literally hold the fate of these two families in their hands. However, don’t expect this adventure to play out as it typically does in mainstream D&D, which traditionally utilizes a multiverse born of Eurocentric tropes and deep Tolkien and Tolkien-inspired lore.
“My mother is from Thailand, and that’s where this adventure is largely inspired,” Marie said during a presentation to the press. “Being first-generation, there’s this strange duality that you have to navigate to where you want to live the great American dream; You want to live the life your parents gave you from another country. But at the same time, there is a large portion of us, as first generation, that worries that we are losing our culture or not even being given full access to it due to the pressure to continue to Americanize.”
Marie says her adventure uses these two ideas as a lynchpin, while also pitting the story against the larger thematic idea of ”push and pull between industry and tradition.”
“I think it was important to also focus on more intimate adventures,” Marie said. “It’s not necessarily about saving the world. The stakes aren’t as high as some other amazing incredible adventures in the world [book]but I believe that everyone can empathize and understand what it’s like to take care of their family, or [identify with] the idea of a rival family, […] You are part of this vibrant community. […] For me it’s just more personal.”
The adventure is partially inspired by reality television, specifically the cooking show Chopped. According to Marie, it will also be the perfect jumping-off point for other actual game troupes to begin their journey into performative tabletop roleplaying.
“One of my biggest goals when writing it was to not only be accessible to new players,” Marie said, “but also to streamers and content creators. […] I wanted the story to reflect those themes and sense of messy wonder and ridiculous challenges.”
Travel through the radiant citadel will arrive in shops and on-line starting June 21 and priced at $49.99. It will also be available in digital formatsincluding on Roll20, fantasy terrainand via the D&D Beyond toolset.