Dungeons and Dragons Art and Arcana: A Visual History (B&N Exclusive Edition)

by Michael Witwer, Kyle Newman, Jon Peterson, Sam Witwer, Joe Manganiello (Foreword by)

Overview

The Barnes & Noble Exclusive Edition features a unique cover, plus six full size gate-folds including additional game maps, draft sketches, panels from past adventures, non-player character illustrations, and additional levels of iconic dungeons.

An illustrated guide to the history and evolution of the beloved role-playing game told through the paintings, sketches, illustrations, and visual ephemera behind its creation, evolution, and continued popularity.

Dungeons and Dragons is the most iconic and pervasive gaming franchise in the world. It is a seminal RPG (role-playing game) and the inspiration for video games like World of Warcraft and Zelda, fantasy art, and countless other facets of "geek culture." This officially licensed illustrated history provides an unprecedented look at the visual evolution of the game, showing its continued influence on the worlds of pop culture and fantasy. It features more than 700 pieces of artwork--from each edition of the game's core books, supplements, and modules; decades of Dragon  and Dungeon magazines; classic advertisements and merchandise; and never-before-seen sketches, large-format canvases, rare photographs, one-of-a-kind drafts, and more from the now-famous designers and artists associated with the game. The superstar author team gained unparalleled access to the archives of Wizards of the Coast and the personal collections of top collectors, as well as the designers and illustrators who created the distinctive characters, concepts, and visuals that have defined fantasy art and gameplay for generations. This is the most comprehensive collection of D&D imagery ever assembled, making this the ultimate collectible for the game's millions of fans around the world.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780399582783
Publisher:	Potter/TenSpeed/Harmony
Publication date:	10/23/2018
Edition description:	B&N Exclusive Edition
Pages:	464
Product dimensions:	9.20(w) x 11.80(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

MICHAEL WITWER is the author of the critically acclaimed Empire of Imagination: Gary Gygax and the Birth of Dungeons & Dragons, a GeekDad Best Book of 2015. Michael is widely considered an expert on D&D history and has spoken on the topic at Google as part of its Google Talks series, on NPR's All Things Considered, as well as at major book and gaming conventions such as the Boston Book Festival, Gen Con, and Origins.

KYLE NEWMAN is a writer/director whose directorial work includes Fanboys written by Ernie Cline, starring Kristen Bell and Seth Rogen; Barely Lethal, starring Samuel L. Jackson, Hailee Steinfeld, and Jessica Alba; and music video for artists including Lana Del Rey and Taylor Swift. Newman also produced the critically acclaimed documentary Raiders: The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made. His clients include Microsoft, Interscope Records, Starz, Coca Cola, Entertainment Weekly, and Lucasfilm.

JON PETERSON is a widely recognized authority on the history of games. His book Playing at the World was called "the first serious history of the development of Dungeons & Dragons" by The Village Voice. He has contributed to academic anthologies on games including Zones of Control and the forthcoming Role-playing Game Studies: Transmedia Foundations. Jon also writes for gaming and geek culture websites including BoingBoing, the Escapist, and GamaSutra, as well as his popular RPG history blog, playingattheworld.blogspot.com.

SAM WITWER is an actor best known for his lead role in the SyFy series Being Human, for which he was nominated for a Gemini Award. He also voiced protagonist Galen Marek/Starkiller in the successful multimedia project Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, as well as the Son and Darth Maul in Cartoon Network's Star Wars: The Clone Wars, for which he was nominated for an Emmy. He continues his work in the Star Wars universe voicing the roles of Emperor Palpatine and Darth Maul in Star Wars Rebels, as well as assorted voices for the video games and film franchise. His other on-camera work includes featured roles in Once Upon a Time, Smallville, Battlestar Galactica, and Dexter.