So Wizards of the Coast finally released The Wayfarer’s Guide to Eberron on the DMs Guild in summer of 2018, just four or so years after bringing out the core rulebooks for Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition….

Meanwhile one man couldn’t wait, and has been developing his own manual of Eberron monsters for 5e, as well as some slick NPCs.

We invited the author of the 5-star rated, best selling Korranberg Chronicle: Threat Dispatch to tell us more about his work, and a bit more about Eberron in general, for those who are in the dark about this official D&D setting.

Dear Anthony

Tell us all about your book: Korranberg Chronicle: Threat Dispatch…

Threat Dispatch is an 87-page bestiary of monsters and NPCs for Eberron games. It includes creatures specific to the lore of the Eberron campaign setting, as well as conversions of other monsters from past editions of D&D that I thought were particularly suitable for Eberron campaigns. Most of the monsters in the book are meant to be fought by the players, but some include rules for players to use, like summoning dinosaur mounts with the find steed spell, or creating tiny constructs to act as your servants or guardians.

As my first product, I’ve made Threat Dispatch available for Pay What You Want on the DM’s Guild. It is currently an Electrum Bestseller as well!

Why did you write it?

Ever since Eberron was released for the 3rd edition of Dungeons & Dragons, it has been the only setting I DM games for, through all of 3rd, 4th, and into 5th edition. The wait for official Eberron content in 5e was a long one, so over the years of playing 5e I would create my own stats for classic Eberron monsters, and I saved them so I could reuse them if I ever needed them again.

Eventually I had pages and pages of these stat blocks for Eberron games. When I suspected that WotC was hinting at an official release for Eberron in 5e, I began to work on my disorganized array of material and put it all together in what became Korranberg Chronicle: Threat Dispatch. I had faith that they would be opening Eberron up on the DM’s Guild soon, and I even took time off from my day job to make sure I had Threat Dispatch ready for release as soon as I could!

In the end, I put it up for sale within 24 hours of the opening of the Eberron setting on the Guild.

What is Eberron by the way? And why should we play it?

Eberron is hands-down my favorite Dungeons and Dragon’s campaign setting. Eberron is what you get if you mash Indiana Jones, Sin City, and Lord of the Rings together. It is a great mix of high adventure, intrigue, and Lovecraftian horror.

It’s a world where magic has been harnessed like a science, to create modern conveniences like airships, where massive multinational hereditary guilds have a hand in nearly every aspect of society, where a terrible war just wiped one of the centers of culture and art off the map. It is a world in peril, and the Last War has chewed up and spat out any heroes that were left. Now it’s up to you!

A bit more on Eberron from it’s creator…

How about a little taster then of your book…

Sure! In addition to mechanical statistics for monsters and NPCs, I introduce each type of monster with a bit of lore. Here’s one of those summonable dinosaurs I mentioned earlier:

UTAHRAPTOR (GREAT CARVER)
Great carvers are reptilian bipedal creatures about the size of a bugbear or goliath, with a wicked, scythe-like claw on one toe of each foot. They are extremely dangerous predators, capable of taking down prey much larger than themselves. It is a larger relative of the carver and clawfoot. Halflings of the Talenta Plains typically use trained great carvers as war mounts.
Small Mount. Small creatures can use a great carver as a mount. It has a carrying capacity of 270 pounds. Barding for medium-sized mounts costs only twice as much as regular armor, instead of four times as much.
When casting the find greater steed spell (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything, pg. 156), a great carver may be summoned in addition to the options listed in the spell.

UTAHRAPTOR (GREAT CARVER)

Medium beast, unaligned
Armor Class 13 (natural armor)
Hit Points 32 (5d8 + 10)
Speed 40 ft.
STR 19 (+4) DEX 15 (+2) CON 14 (+2)
INT 4 (–3) WIS 13 (+1) CHA 6 (–2)
Skills Athletics +6, Perception +3, Stealth +3
Senses passive Perception 13
Languages —
Challenge 2 (450 XP)
Pounce. If the carver moves at least 20 feet straight toward a creature and then hits it with a claw attack on the same turn, that target must succeed on a DC 14 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone. If the target is prone, the carver can make one bite attack against it as a bonus action.

ACTIONS
Multiattack. The carver makes three attacks: one with its bite and two with its claw.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d8 + 4) piercing damage.
Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 9 (1d10 + 4) piercing damage.

Who the hell are you by the way?

Hi! I’m Anthony! I’m a 30-something geek, currently living in Florida, but born and raised in New York City. I’ve always been a nerd, but my adventures in dice-chucking and funny accents only began in college, when I was introduced to the 3rd edition of Dungeons and Dragons. When I played it for the first time, I thought to myself “where has this been all my life?” and I never looked back.

Incidentally, in my very first session, I corrected the DM on a rule. I’ve learned to channel my rules lawyering for good since then.

And what else have you written?

I’ve written three other titles in the Korranberg Chronicle line:

Xen’drik Advisory, another smaller bestiary focusing on a specific region of the Eberron world.
Adventurer’s Almanac, a 160-page book that focuses on character options for Eberron (races, classes, feats, spells, etc.)
Nightmare on the Mournland Express, a quick one-shot horror-themed adventure that shows some of the darker side of the setting!

For more from me and other projects I’ve worked on, check me out on the DM’s Guild.

And just for fun… Your D&D alter ego?

Although I LOVE Eberron, my first and favorite D&D character was a Paladin in the service of Bahamut, the Platinum Dragon, which would absolutely be my choice!

Thanks Anthony, it was great getting to know you. Where can we stay in touch on the multi-webs?

Thank you! You can find me on twitter @novaseaker

This was the latest in a series of posts designed to highlight some of the amazing material being published on the DMs Guild. Whether you need advice on how to run heists and capers for 5e, or a score of readymade city encounters check out the links.