GenCon is the perfect time to get new games, buy old ones you missed, and, in some cases, peek behind the curtain at the hot new things of the future. Sometimes it’s a full game debuting at the con, but many times you just get a little bit, the faintest hint at what’s in store with your favourite games. And that was no different at the Beadle & Grimm’s Pandemonium Warehouse booth, where they were getting people hyped for their next Platinum Edition boxed set for Dungeons & Dragons: Descent Into Avernus.
We covered their brainstorming process as part of our ongoing series on the box’s development, and know a thing or two about what’s in store as adventurers descend into the Hell below Baldur’s Gate, but this was our first time getting a chance to see the crazy creations B&G were coming up with in-person.
Some of it was fairly mundane, simply adapting the pre-existing demons and devils from the Monster Manual to the encounter cards that have appeared in their other releases. Others, however, were brand new. The first one was the badge of the Hell Riders, a “life” size badge made of solid metal that they had on display alongside similar metal “feelies” from Ghosts of Saltmarsh and Waterdeep Dragon Heist.
Unlike the other two releases, there wasn’t as much need for artifacts and items in Descent Into Avernus, meaning they had to get creative with the experience. One thing to look forward to are the Soul Coins that are used as currency in Avernus. Unlike the ones shown at D&DLive and available in the base sets, the one that Beadle & Grimm’s is including will be exactly to scale…which means a solid black disc about 4″ in diameter. There are no half-measures at the Pandemonium Warehouse.
WizKids is producing another mini for Beadle & Grimm’s, this time the cobbled together Infernal War Machine that have led the new campaign to be dubbed “D&D meets Mad Max: Fury Road.” While the base machine will be available to everyone, the ones included in the Platinum Edition will be special. Beadle & Grimm designed and added a “death wheel” to the front of their war rig, giving the whole thing a much needed boost in the “spinning spiky death” category.
They’re also upping their box with something that people have been asking for for a while: more battle maps. The Descent Into Avernus Platinum Edition will contain more than ever, with locations ranging from underground dungeons to the barren hellscapes of Avernus.
You can watch my unboxing of B&G’s last release, Ghosts of Saltmarsh, to get an idea of how much care and love goes into these sets. And keep an eye here for more coverage of the production process as we rapidly speed towards release this fall.
(Update 9:15 PST- Hellriders were mistakenly called the Infernal Legion, the Soul Coins were described as bronze and much larger than reality, and the information on maps was added)
