Classics to pull from

[Typhon]

So I was reading through some of my older edition materials, and comparing some of it to the latest edition material. Which got me to wondering. What materials do you keep close as references and to get inspiration for adventures and characters.

Personally, I love the Van Richten Guides and compendiums from Ravenloft in 2nd Ed. They flesh out material on vampires, lycanthropes, ghosts, liches, and other BBEG archtypes that make them feel more palpable and fresh.

I also enjoy material from Planescape. For Sigil to be such a relatively small area, generally speaking, it was a tremendously filled area as far as activities and possibilities. Some of the NPCs were absolutely fascinating as well.

So put down your favorite materials too. If it is from a different game or system that is fine. We all get inspiration from various places. I am sure everyone has done at least one character based on modern media.

[Ravinsild]

So I was reading through some of my older edition materials, and comparing some of it to the latest edition material. Which got me to wondering. What materials do you keep close as references and to get inspiration for adventures and characters.

Personally, I love the Van Richten Guides and compendiums from Ravenloft in 2nd Ed. They flesh out material on vampires, lycanthropes, ghosts, liches, and other BBEG archtypes that make them feel more palpable and fresh.

I also enjoy material from Planescape. For Sigil to be such a relatively small area, generally speaking, it was a tremendously filled area as far as activities and possibilities. Some of the NPCs were absolutely fascinating as well.

So put down your favorite materials too. If it is from a different game or system that is fine. We all get inspiration from various places. I am sure everyone has done at least one character based on modern media.

All of my Half-Orc characters are, for all intents and purposes, Warcraft Orcs and generally the good ones like Thrall/Durotan/Orgrim Doomhammer.

I kind of forget in D&D Orcs are supposed to be turbo evil mindless slaughter machines because I've been a Horde players since like 2000 in the RTS games. In Warcraft III the Horde was NOT evil, the Undead were the bad guys. That influenced my concept of monster people as potential good guys and now all my monster people (Gnolls, etc..) are good guys.

[Typhon]

I always saw orcs, in DND anyway, more as the kids who got kicked out of the club for being different than the cool kids. Then just forming the anti-cool kid club with the other outcasts; goblins, ogres, kobolds, bugbears and hobgoblins.

Personally never cared for elves, dwarves, gnomes, halflings and half-elves. Humans, as bland and eh as they are, are ok.

Did make a few orc, goblin, and half-orc characters though. They were fun.

[Falcon X]

Alright, I regularly pull from prior editions, so these are just my most commonly referenced ones:

Non-book sources:
mimir.net : Has all sorts of well thought out theories of the D&D universe and how things interact with each other.
powerscorerpg.blogspot.com : They have many articles that compile all the D&D lore out there on various topics such as devils or planes.


2e Planescape (pretty much everything here):
- On Hallowed Ground
- Inner Planes
- Planes of Chaos

2e Other:
- The Illithiad

3e:
- Book of Vile Darkness
- Book of Exalted Deeds
- Fiendish Codex 1 and 2
- Races of the Dragon
- Underdark (because I'm doing Out of the Abyss)
- Bastards and Bloodlines (3rd Party)
- Any of the terrain based ones, when we go there (Frostburn, Sandstorm, etc.)

Adventures I have updated for 5e to play:
- Vecna Lives
- Die Vecna Die
- Dancing Hut of Baba Yaga
- Bastion of Broken Souls
- Dawn of the Overmind