Blizzard, owned by Microsoft, and Wizards of the Coast, owned by Hasbro, are collaborating on a project that will be officially announced in just a few days.
Wizards of the Coast has announced that it is pulling out all the stops for this year’s Gen Con. The opening keynote, led by Theo Solomon, who played Wyll in Baldur’s Gate 3, is expected to feature several announcements about the future of Dungeons & Dragons, or D&D. Information about one release has reportedly already leaked: a crossover with World of Warcraft. According to a Roll20 news item that has since been removed, Warcraft will receive at least one D&D 5th Edition setting book, similar to how some Magic: The Gathering worlds have previously been adapted.
This wouldn’t be the first collaboration between Blizzard and D&D. Around the time of Diablo II‘s release, Wizards of the Coast published several official books that adapted the world of Sanctuary to D&D rules. Later, a World of Warcraft role-playing game using D&D 3rd Edition was released, although it was published under the terms of the Open Gaming License by White Wolf, the publisher of Vampire: The Masquerade, which is also getting a D&D crossover.
While we understand why die-hard WoW fans might be excited about a D&D version in which they can play as tauren and other characters, Warcraft has always been so similar to D&D that an entire rulebook explaining slightly different versions of elves and other minor details seems unnecessary. Diablo‘s heavy metal atmosphere at least offered a somewhat different kind of fantasy experience, but Warcraft is about as conventional as fantasy gets.
Gen Con runs from July 30 to August 2, and we’re sure there will be more exciting announcements. Perhaps they’ll finally bring back Dark Sun or Birthright this year, or maybe they’ll release an Al-Qadim book? Since the event is just around the corner, we’ll find out more in a matter of days.
