Dungeons & Dragons x Dead By Daylight Crossover Isn't Set In Forgotten Realms

The Dungeons & Dragons x Dead by Daylight setting is a throwback to D&D's earliest adventures.

By Hannah Adkins

With the Dungeons & Dragons IP as a whole seeking to showcase more of the worlds and realms the beloved 50-year-old franchise has to offer outside of the ever-popular Faerûn, which of course many people are enjoying an adventure (or many...) through Baldur's Gate 3, Head of Digital Product Development at Wizards of the Coast Dan Ayoub's confirmation in April that they planned to develop video games in other locales came as no surprise. Amidst a controversial job posting hitting the Wizards of the Coast website yesterday and sending many Dungeons & Dragons fans into a preemptive panic, the franchise's newest collaboration was officially released as well. 

While we likely won't know exactly what video game Ayoub was referencing for quite a while as his comments indicated the project is in the early stages of development, Dungeons & Dragons fans looking for more video game content from the franchise can thankfully find additional opportunities to do so in the collaboration mentioned previously. As of June 3rd, Dead by Daylight players can now get their hands on the Dungeons & Dragons collaboration, which features a new Killer and Survivors in the Undying King Vecna, Aestri Yazar and Baermar Uraz.

In addition to the characters is the collaboration map, the Forgotten Ruins, which is based in a world with early Dungeons & Dragons roots – Greyhawk. Greyhawk is one of the first adventure settings developed for Dungeons & Dragons, created by franchise co-founder Gary Gygax, and despite its legacy status Greyhawk has not been as heavily featured in the last 25 years in favor of the Forgotten Realms. Given that this year is Dungeons & Dragons' fiftieth anniversary, Wizards of the Coast is clearly seeking to take as many chances as they can to feature this classic setting again. Given that Greyhawk is also the original home of Vecna, it's a natural setting to feature in Dead by Daylight.

Related:

As for the map itself, I didn't get to spend nearly as much time as I wanted to in the Forgotten Ruins (my weekend plans are squared away though), but what I've seen of the setting so far certainly does create that feeling of nostalgia you'd hope to feel in featuring a setting from the early days of Dungeons & Dragons. The map features twists and turns that lend to a growing feeling of uncertainty, a feeling familiar in the setting from the Greyhawk campaigns.

Overall, Greyhawk is having a comeback of sorts this year as it has also been confirmed as an inclusion in the 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide, and will also be featured in a book coming later this year, Dungeons & Dragons Worlds & Realms: Adventures from Greyhawk to Faerûn and Beyond. 

Trending Now: