'Dungeons & Dragons' Mashes Beholders With 'The Running Man' in New Adventure Preview

Dungeons & Dragons' next adventure is going to be a wild ride, as evidenced by the book's newest preview.

Next month, Dungeons & Dragons is releasing Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage, a new adventure that send players into the Undermountain mega-dungeon. Each level of the Undermountain contains dangerous threats ranging from mind flayer space pirates to the Mad Mage himself, Halaster Blackcloak.

Earlier today, D&D brand director Nathan Stewart released a single page preview from Dungeon of the Mad Mage as part of his ongoing campaign for the Extra Life charity. This preview shows off the fifteenth level of the dungeon, which is nicknamed "the Obstacle Course." The Obstacle Course seems like a rather straightforward name for a mystical dungeon, but this one has a particularly hard boss - a death tyrant named Netherskull.

Death tyrants are beholders that literally dream themselves into undeath, turning them into a deadly floating skull with ethereal glowing magical sparks for eyestalks. Halaster Blackcloak defeated the death tyrant Netherskull in single combat, but allowed it to live and guard this level of his Undermountain dungeon with one condition - Halaster created a disembodied mean-spirited announcer that provides play-by-play commentary as adventurers travel from room to room, dodging traps and fighting an evil floating skull.

I'm inspired by the #dnd community. Your generous donations are rolling in for our 2018 @ExtraLife4Kids campaign. So keep it up and in the meantime here is another preview spoiler (don't tell @Gregtito he's at Twitchcon so no one is stopping me). //t.co/TTZ4bBClSu pic.twitter.com/dwfQodW1Rc

— Nathan Bussone Stewart (@NathanBStewart) October 25, 2018

The combination of deadly traps, evil monsters, and an actual play-by-play commentator reminds me a little of The Running Man, the classic 1980s movie starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as a felon forced to participate in a deadly reality TV show. Of course, that movie had themes about a dystopian society dulled by violence on television and a media who actively colludes with the government, while Dungeon of the Mad Mage features a mad mage who actively toys with anyone who enters his lair seeking fortune or adventure.

From the previews we've seen, Dungeon of the Mad Mage looks to be one of D&D's most ambitious adventures in years. The new adventure comes out on November 13th.