Spelljammer: Adventures in Space

Spelljammer: Adventures in Space

A decade ago I attended the very first press event where Wizards of the Coast revealed its plans for what is now known as the 5th Edition of Dungeons & Dragons—an ambitious attempt to pull together 40 years’ worth of rules sets and fandoms into one single system. My first question after the briefing concluded was simple: Are you going to bring back Spelljammer? And in the years since, almost every time I’ve interviewed a D&D designer or WotC executive, I’ve asked them the question: When are you going to bring back Spelljammer?

This year Wizards brought back Spelljammer. And it’s so good!

Spelljammer is a truly unique D&D campaign setting, originally designed by Jeff Grubb and released for the 2nd Edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons rules in 1989. It’s a fantastic world where D&D heroes can control vessels that fly through outer space and encounter all kinds of weirdness, ranging from astral elves to pirate flumphs to giant space hamsters. It’s silly and fun and exciting, and the new WotC rules hit all the right notes for both old fans and new visitors to the realm. The “Adventures in Space” box set collects a bunch of cool stuff:

The Astral Adventurer’s Guide, a 64-page hardcover book that describes the campaign setting and includes rules for space-based combat, new spells and magic items, and descriptions of spelljamming ships.

Boo’s Astral Menagerie, a rulebook meant for for Dungeon Masters that introduces 60 creatures found in the setting.

Light of Xaryxis, an adventure for Dungeon Masters for characters of levels 5–8.

A double-sided poster map of the Rock of Bral, an asteroid-city that can serve as both an adventure location and a campaign hub.

A four-panel Dungeon Master’s screen designed for use with the books in the set.