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RR4: Islands of Terror (2e)

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Welcome to the realm of dread. It is a land of dark terror, treachery, and intrigue. The breathtaking splendor of the days pales against the horrors of the nights, when dead things rise and your darkest fears come true. And this is only the beginning.

And now Ravenloft becomes much, much darker. These new islands are destined to terrify even the braves hero, and they are? dying to claim you. Visit nine lands where time is measured in pounding heartbeats, where foul lords perpetuate their evil crimes amid the putrid odor of decay. From l'Cath and Saragross to Timor and Pharazia, read accounts of the islands and dare to view their images on a full-color poster map.

Beware the Mists of Ravenloft. Fear them, but respect them, too, for they are the only barrier between you and the wickedness that slumbers in you deepest nightmares.

Product History

RR4: "Islands of Terror" (1992), by Scott Bennie and Colin McComb, is the fourth Ravenloft Resource. It was published in April 1992.

Continuing the Ravenloft Resources. Almost a year after the Ravenloft Resources "RR" series began with RR1: "Darklords" (1991), it was continuing to be quite varied. There had been one book of Ravenloft NPCs, one book of mini-adventures, and one monster-splatbook; now "Islands of Terror" once more changed up the formula. It was most like "Darklords", but instead of just detailing the rulers of Ravenloft's domains, it also detailed nine of those domains — to be specific, nine of the Islands of Terror.

Expanding Ravenloft. Ravenloft: Realm of Terror (1990) had already overviewed eight Islands of Terror. This new Resource book could have done a great job of expanding and detailing those domains … but somewhat surprisingly it did not. Instead, "Islands of Terror" revisits just one domain from the Ravenloft core set, "Staunton Bluffs". Its other eight Islands are all new.

As originally presented, the Islands of Terror gave Ravenloft the opportunity to move away from the western/Medieval horrors of the core. The original domains in Realm of Terror thus included an Egyptian domain, a Caribbean realm, an Indian domain, and a more modern city. "Islands of Terror" continued this trend by introducing new domains that were from other cultures or other time periods … or that were just plain weird.

These included:

  • I'Cath, an Asian-influenced Kara-Tur domain of groves and shrines.
  • Nidala, a Medieval domain led by a fallen paladin turned fanatic.
  • Nosos, a putrid, polluted industrial junkyard.
  • Pharazia, an Arabic-influenced desert with cities, springs, and nomads.
  • Saragoss, a seaweed-filled watery domain ruled by a pirate from the Sea of Stars.
  • Scaena, a theatre controlled by its author-lord.
  • Staunton Bluffs, a gothic, ghostly domain.
  • Timor, a great Victorian city with horrors beneath it.
  • The Wildlands, an African-influenced domain full of talking animals.

Unfortunately, the islands of "Islands of Terror" don't have a very good track record of surviving into new editions. The single repeated domain of Staunton Bluffs has never again appeared. More notably, not a single of these islands turned up in the revised version of the setting, Ravenloft Campaign Setting (1994).

However since then, a few of the new islands have returned. I'Cath, Nosos, Pharazia, Scaena, and Timor all reappear in Domains of Dread (1997), the second edition Ravenloft campaign setting. White Wolf then used several of these new islands as parts of larger "clusters" in their 3e Ravenloft Campaign Setting (2001): Pharazia became part of the Amber Wastes; Nidala appeared in the Shadowlands; both Saragoss and the Wildlands were moved to the Verduous Lands; and Timor emigrated to Zherisia. The Arabic Pharazia and the Victorian Timor seem to have been the most popular, but any of these islands could pop up from the mists at any time!

About the Creators. Colin McComb wrote most of "Islands of Terror". He'd later return to Ravenloft to author "Howls in the Night" (1994) and to contribute to the groundbreaking Masque of the Red Death and Other Tales (1994). Scott Bennie contributed the I'Cath and Wildlands domains.

About the Product Historian

The history of this product was researched and written by Shannon Appelcline, the editor-in-chief of RPGnet and the author of Designers & Dragons - a history of the roleplaying industry told one company at a time. Please feel free to mail corrections, comments, and additions to shannon.appelcline@gmail.com.

We (Wizards) recognize that some of the legacy content available on this website does not reflect the values of the Dungeons & Dragons franchise today. Some older content may reflect ethnic, racial, and gender prejudice that were commonplace in American society at that time. These depictions were wrong then and are wrong today. This content is presented as it was originally created, because to do otherwise would be the same as claiming these prejudices never existed. Dungeons & Dragons teaches that diversity is a strength, and we strive to make our D&D products as welcoming and inclusive as possible. This part of our work will never end.

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Luca D March 07, 2024 10:25 am UTC
PURCHASER
The poster map is missing.
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Peter D January 22, 2024 2:35 am UTC
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POD please.
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