Dungeons & Dragons finds a home in Lucca, Italy!

The art and game design of Dungeons & Dragons

Dungeons & Dragons, however, is not only gaming and collecting, but also art. Two artists whose traits have profoundly influenced the game will be present at the festival to explore the artistic evolution of the role-playing game over the years: Tyler Jacobson and Erol Otus. Probably the most representative artist of 5e, Jacobson is the author of the covers of the new basic manuals (Player’s Handbook, Dungeon Master’s Guide and Monster Manual) and many others. Otus’ art, on the other hand, has made the first editions of both D&D and Advanced Dungeons & Dragons iconic, and he recently produced cover images for the Old School Essentials manuals. Tyler Jacobson and Erol Otus will be present at the Artist Alley in the Carducci pavilion. The Lucca public will also be able to meet Erol Otus at the Mondiversi stand in the Carducci pavilion, where he will sign copies.

There will certainly be no shortage of Italian artists who have lent their art to D&D. During the meeting “The art of D&D speaks Italian”, moderated by Christian “Zoltar” Bellomo, which will be held on the Grog Live Show stage of the Carducci pavilion and live on Twitch on October 31st at 2:30 pm, we will see the intervention of artists of the calibre of Katerina Ladon, Francesca Baerald, Michele Giorgi, Marco Bernardini, Domenico Cava and Andrea Piparo.

Guest of Honor at Lucca Games 2007, Troy Denning, one of the most prolific and famous D&D writers, will return to Lucca to meet fans and D&D lovers. Known as the author who gave life and substance to the “Dark Sun” setting for AD&D, illustrated by Gerald Brom, and as one of the three founding fathers of the Performance Area of Lucca Comics & Games, Denning will meet the fans in Lucca and hold a seminar/workshop in which he will reveal all the secrets of the art of World Building.

For the first time at Lucca Comics & Games, the festival audience will be able to meet Alex Kammer, the director of the famous American gaming event GameHoleCon, Game Designer and Dungeon Master. Kammer will be present at the festival to share his passion for Dungeons & Dragons with the entire role-playing game community and to reveal the tricks on how to build a D&D adventure.

After a 10 year wait, Jeremy Crawford, lead rules designer of Dungeons & Dragons and lead designer of the new 2024 Player’s Handbook, returns to Lucca Comics & Games, where he will illustrate the present and future of D&D to the Lucca public.

In addition to making himself available for some D&D sessions with the public at the Chiesa dei Servi, as previously announced, Jeremy Crawford will also be the host of some panels. These will focus on the game design of the new 2024 edition of Dungeons & Dragons, on his personal history as a game designer and will hold a masterclass on role-playing game design.

Luke Gygax, son of Gary Gygax, will also be the host of debates and meetings on the Grog Live Show stage (Carducci pavilion) and will take the opportunity to discuss the legacy of his father and the moments spent together in the name of Dungeons & Dragons.

But Dungeons & Dragons is a game and to be fully appreciated it must be played, whether in first person or following as a spectator the exciting adventures of other passionate players.

It is no coincidence that Wizards of the Coast has awarded Lucca Comics & Games has been awarded the title of Premium Organiser of the famous Adventurers League of Dungeons & Dragons. A title so far assigned to only four other organising entities around the world. It will be possible to play the original adventure, created for the occasion by Lucca Comics & Games together with its historic partners The Agency and Kraken APS, on Saturday 2 November during the Adventurers League Epic from 1:00 pm to 8:00 pm in the Pinturicchio room. The adventure will subsequently be made available on the Dungeon Masters Guild website.

Also in the Pinturicchio room, on Sunday 3 November from 1:00 pm to 8:00 pm it will be possible to participate in a very special D&D session in multi-edition and multi-table format.

There will be many opportunities to try D&D firsthand. The Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson Dungeon it will be open throughout the festival to play Dungeons & Dragons. Content creators such as InnTale, Dr. Morgan, D20 Nation, and Wikirole will be present.

Stefan Pokorny, entrepreneur and creator of Dwarven Forge (the most famous modular terrain system for miniatures) will also be attending the festival. He will be present with his sales stand, and available for games with fans at the Miniature Island in the Carducci Pavilion.

But the gaming activities related to Dungeons & Dragons do not end here. Francesco Lancia, accompanied by new and unpublished guests, will be the star of a new event with Dungeons & Deejay Lucca Comics & Games Special Edition, which last year was an incredible success, filling the Teatro del Giglio with enthusiasts and onlookers.

Francesco Lancia is already hosting a new edition of the Twitch format RPG Night Live (created in 2019 by Lucca Comics & Games). In which a new adventure set in Lucca is played with exceptional guests such as Barbascura X, Camihawke, CKibe, Claudio Di Biagio, Sabaku, and Zoltar. The final will be played live from the Auditorium San Francesco in Lucca, on October 31st, at 7:30 pm.

Finally, Dungeons & Dragons will also be the focal point of the new Lucca Games Café, with three tables curated by The Agency and Kraken APS to play all editions of D&D, from the white box to 5e.

“In the Dragon’s Den”, the RAI special on D&D

Rai Cultura and Rai4 are also celebrating the 50th anniversary, a milestone in the fantasy imagination, with a special episode of the magazine Wonderland: “In the Dragon’s Den – 50 Years of Dungeons & Dragons”.

Written by Andrea Fornasiero and directed by Giuseppe Bucchi, the special, in the form of a 50 minute documentary, is structured on a double register and a double story. At the centre of the narration is the history of Dungeons & Dragons: from its genesis, in 1974, by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, to the latest versions and the success of the videogame derived from the game, Baldur’s Gate III. The theme will be developed by several interviewees: the writer Vanni Santoni, with an approach both as an enthusiast and as a theoretician of role-playing games; the historical game designers Frank Mentzer and Zeb Cook; the translator Spartaco Albertarelli, as a witness to the diffusion of D&D in Italy in the 80s; the writer Simone Laudiero, among the authors of Brancalonia, an Italian variant of the game; the fantasy cartographer Francesca Baerald and the screenwriter of Baldur’s Gate III, Lawrence Schick. Also, from the Wonderland archives, an interview with the game designer of the fifth edition of the game, Jeremy Crawford, was conducted at Lucca Comics & Games in 2014.

This Wonderland special also wants to demonstrate the essence of the game itself. The various sections are thus framed by scenes from a Dungeons & Dragons game played in a Rai studio. The actor Emiliano Coltorti took on the role of master and at his table sat the writers Giada Pavesi and Christian Hill, the storyboard artist Gabriele Derosas and the designer and colourist Valentina “Banjiolin” Napolitano.

In the Dragon’s Den will be previewed during the 2024 edition of Lucca Comics & Games, Friday 1 November at 7:00 pm at the Cinema Centrale. The special will then be broadcast on Rai4 on Monday 4 November and immediately available on RaiPlay.

LEGO and D&D

Even the LEGO Group couldn’t help but celebrate the 50th anniversary of Dungeons & Dragons!

For the occasion, fans of D&D and the most famous bricks in the world will be able to meet Lucas Bolt aka BoltBuilds, the designer of LEGO® Ideas Dungeons & Dragons: Tale of the Red Dragon.

This will take place on Saturday, November 2nd from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm in Piazza San Romano, at the first LEGO® Certified Store pop-up in partnership with Percassi. The store will have a size of 90 square meters and will offer enthusiasts a complete assortment of bricks, including new releases, LEGO sets dedicated to the gaming world and LEGO Certified Store exclusives.

Lucca C&G and D&D, a partnership forged over the years

Anyone who has followed the Lucca festival over the years is already aware that the partnership between Lucca Comics & Games and Dungeons & Dragons has been going on for a very long time. There have been numerous guests closely linked to the most famous role-playing game in the world who have followed one another over the past years. These include Zeb Cook, Wayne Reynolds, Tracy Hickman, Tony DiTerlizzi, Todd Lockwood, Stefan Pokorny, Robert Kuntz, RA Salvatore, Peter Adkison, Monte Cook, Margaret Weis, Larry Elmore, Jonathan Goldstein, John Francis Daley, Jeremy Latcham, Joe Manganiello, Jeremy Crawford, Jeff Grubb, Gerald Brom, Frank Mentzer and Bruce Heard.

A real audience of guests who left a piece of their heart in Lucca, to which will be added the guests to come, waiting to celebrate the next 50 years.

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Tickets on sale here : https://www.ticketone.it/LuccaCG24