Should I get GGtR?

[SunderedWorldDM]

I don't play MtG, and have very little intention to start doing so. Not many of my players play MtG, either. So the question stands-

1) Will I be able to run a game in Ravnica using only the content of GGtR, without looking at any wikis or other MtG resources?
2) Will I be able to get my players excited about a game in Ravnica, again not being a MtG player playing with non-MtG players?
3) If either of these don't work out, will I be able to use more than 50ish percent of the book's content in a homebrew fantasy game, or is it heavily Ravnica-specific?
4) Will I be able to convert published adventures into Ravnica?

Thanks!

[Eragon123]

1) Will I be able to run a game in Ravnica using only the content of GGtR, without looking at any wikis or other MtG resources?

As long as you still have a PHB you are good to go.
There is a level 1 adventure in the book which leaves strings available to weave a story from.



2) Will I be able to get my players excited about a game in Ravnica, again not being a MtG player playing with non-MtG players?

Maybe, there is well defined conflict between the guilds in the book which lends itself well to action intrigue. If your players are into that it’ll be great, if not... also it depends what you roll for pursuation.



3) If either of these don't work out, will I be able to use more than 50ish percent of the book's content in a homebrew fantasy game, or is it heavily Ravnica-specific?
There are plenty of monsters and NPC stat blocks and while it may not be possible to transplant all ten guilds you can use one or two and change the names just for the aforementioned well-defined conflict in other games.

Also there are two subclasses, some cool races (love me some simic hybrid!), and interesting (and somewhat controversial) backgrounds.



4) Will I be able to convert published adventures into Ravnica?
This one is harder. Like can you play Storm King’s Thunder in Ravnica? It’d take a lot of work and it wouldn’t lend itself well to the setting. But maybe you take the base plot of Strad and apply it to overtaking Orzhov or Dimir? Could be fun and a way to spice up previous run modules



Thanks!
You are welcome.

[qube]

(background, former magic player - just stopped before the first Ravnica block. I know the basics around it, but didn't collect the cards themselves)


1. I'll refer to Eragon123 on that

2. I wasn't exited. Even while in the past having turned another MtG timeline in a successful 10 year campaign.

3. What Eragon123 said.
While only having glanced over it, the overal quality in terms of game balance, seems ... poor. Aside from some items, the backgrounds are just plain unfair (giving spellcasters free access to extra spells is both unfair to non-spellcasters who don't get superduper backgrounds, and other backgrounds who don't nearly give the same benefits)

4. Probbably. Especially if you don't have hard core Ravinca fans, it doesn't matter if Boros has liches (just because it happen to pan out that way in the adventure you converted)

[Misterwhisper]

(background, former magic player - just stopped before the first Ravnica block. I know the basics around it, but didn't collect the cards themselves)


1. I'll refer to Eragon123 on that

2. I wasn't exited. Even while in the past having turned another MtG timeline in a successful 10 year campaign.

3. What Eragon123 said.
While only having glanced over it, the overal quality in terms of game balance, seems ... poor. Aside from some items, the backgrounds are just plain unfair (giving spellcasters free access to extra spells is both unfair to non-spellcasters who don't get superduper backgrounds, and other backgrounds who don't nearly give the same benefits)

4. Probbably. Especially if you don't have hard core Ravinca fans, it doesn't matter if Boros has liches (just because it happen to pan out that way in the adventure you converted)

To be more exact:

It is simply a background that for a starting caster:

1. gives you free spells known
2. these spells come from multiple other classes
3. some of them class specific ones
4. are added to your list free
5. are cast with YOUR casting stat, not the stat it came from,

it is like a much better version of magic innate as a background.
Storm Cleric, well take this background and you can cast shocking grasp, and you can cast it with wisdom not int or cha like it would be before you stole it from sorcerer or wizard.

It was obvious that they just did this as a gimmick to try to get the MUCH larger player base of M:tG to come spend money on DND by making them objectively and obviously more powerful than any option before it.

[Waterdeep Merch]

I bought it for two reasons:

1.) I like reading campaign setting books. I rarely actually use them, but I do get inspiration from other worlds like this. The guild-based body politic here and urbane flavor (rivalling even Sharn from Eberron and approaching Sigil from Planescape despite limited space to do so) are interesting and worth a glance if you were thinking of trying something similar, even if you never use Ravnica proper.

2.) While player options are limited to some admittedly very cool new races and questionably overpowered backgrounds (which you should probably just not use unless you're playing in Ravnica anyway) and a handful of neat magic items, there's a treasure trove of monsters/NPC stat blocks for you to utilize. They've got a great flavor to them, and it's easily my favorite part of the book. My players will face Ravnican monsters for years to come, even though I have no plans to actually run Ravnica.

[Millstone85]

Well, it is a city planet, like Coruscant in Star Wars, if such a planet started as a very D&D-like fantasy world.

Ten guilds vie for power on it, each with a simple theme:

Azorius Senate -- a bureaucracy, led by a sphinx.
Boros Legion -- a crusade, led by a solar.
House Dimir -- a spy network, led by a shapechanger.
Golgari Swarm -- sewer druids, led by a dark-elven lich.
Gruul Clans -- barbarians awaiting the Raze-Boar.
Izzet League -- explosion-loving artificers, led by a dragon.
Orzhov Syndicate -- a church/bank/mafia, led by ghosts.
Cult of Rakdos -- a mad bloody circus, led by a demon.
Selesnya Conclave -- terrace druids, led by three dryads.
Simic Combine -- mutation-loving "biomancers", led by a merfolk.

GGtR is mostly advice on how to run PCs and NPCs in this context.

[HappyDaze]

To be more exact:

It is simply a background that for a starting caster:

1. gives you free spells known
2. these spells come from multiple other classes
3. some of them class specific ones
4. are added to your list free
5. are cast with YOUR casting stat, not the stat it came from,

it is like a much better version of magic innate as a background.
Storm Cleric, well take this background and you can cast shocking grasp, and you can cast it with wisdom not int or cha like it would be before you stole it from sorcerer or wizard.

It was obvious that they just did this as a gimmick to try to get the MUCH larger player base of M:tG to come spend money on DND by making them objectively and obviously more powerful than any option before it.
Your #1 is incorrect. The spells are added to your spell list (as per your #4), but they still take up selections in Spells Known (for Bards, Rangers, Sorcerers, and Warlocks) or require being learned and entered into a spellbook (for the Int-based casters). Only Clerics, Druids, and Paladins truly get "free spells" since they always have automatic access to their entire list when preparing spells.

[NecroDancer]

I bought the books for 2 main reasons.

1. The subclasses, there are only 2 of them but I love both of them. One if a necromancy focused druid and the other is an enchantment focused cleric.

2. The monsters. There are lots of cool unique monsters. From undead, giants, angels, demons, beasts, elementals, and more. There are also a bunch of neat NPC statblocks as well. Honestly the amount of neat monsters surprised me.


I highly recommend buying it.

[Beechgnome]

You could spice up Dragon Heist with elements from GGtR: use the Rakdos performer stat blocks for Sea Maidens Faire acrobats, replace the Emerald Enclave with the Selesnya, add Golgari swarm to the Xanathar's sewer guards, add Dimir spies to the Zhentarim, etc.

As a DM what I like about the book is it gives 10 potential foes/allies useable in any campaign, complete with bases, affiliated monsters and unique abilities.

I really want to run an adventure at a Simic/Izzet mad Science laboratory, or have a Rakdos carnival come to a small town or use the Azorius as a template for the Guvners in a Mechanus adventure.

Having said that, I don't feel my players want to there, and the world itself just doesn't quite do it for me - I like big wide open undiscovered worlds. But there is enough to cannabilize I still it was worth the purchase.

[qube]

Storm Cleric, well take this background and you can cast shocking grasp, and you can cast it with wisdom not int or cha like it would be before you stole it from sorcerer or wizard.or give any caster access to cleric's most powerful cantrip: guidance, at the "cost" of a background.


It was obvious that they just did this as a gimmick to try to get the MUCH larger player base of M:tG to come spend money on DND by making them objectively and obviously more powerful than any option before it.yeah, that probbably waso ne of the turn-offs for me; I'd rather buy a book that aims to it's base with high quality stuff opposite to OP stuff.

[Madfellow]

I don't play MtG, and have very little intention to start doing so. Not many of my players play MtG, either. So the question stands-

1) Will I be able to run a game in Ravnica using only the content of GGtR, without looking at any wikis or other MtG resources?
2) Will I be able to get my players excited about a game in Ravnica, again not being a MtG player playing with non-MtG players?
3) If either of these don't work out, will I be able to use more than 50ish percent of the book's content in a homebrew fantasy game, or is it heavily Ravnica-specific?
4) Will I be able to convert published adventures into Ravnica?

Thanks!

1) Yes. The Guide to Ravnica is a setting book, and it includes everything you need to know about the races, factions, geography, and history of the city. The history part is where there's the most blank space, but as DM you're free to fill it in however you wish.

2) Don't try to sell it as a Magic tie-in, because if they don't play magic then they won't care about that aspect of it. Ravnica is high urban fantasy, with plenty of opportunities for both dungeon delving and political intrigue. If that sounds interesting to you or anyone else in your group, then you'll have fun. :smallsmile:

3) The book includes rules for goblins, minotaurs, centaurs, elephant-folk, and a couple other weirder races. It also includes the Order Domain for clerics and the Circle of Spores for druids. Besides that, it has stat blocks for NPCs and creatures of all types that could be enemies or allies in any other setting.

4) I could see Out of the Abyss taking place in the Undercity, with a mad Golgari elf accidentally awakening the dreaded Nephilim and unleashing them on the world once again. I haven't read Dragon Heist, but I do know that it runs in a similar vein of urban fantasy to what Ravnica offers.

Hope this helps.

[HappyDaze]

Oddly enough, I've heard from some Magic players that the D&D Ravnica setting doesn't quite line up with what they expect from the cards. For example, in the cards, the Wojek (of Boros) were the law enforcement branch while the D&D Ravnica has that role filled by Azorius. They had other examples, but they don't come to mind right now. Essentially, it's like watching a movie and liking it but having others come and say "it's not like it was in the book" or something. So, for that reason, I think I like it more because I've never gotten into the cards.

[Madfellow]

Oddly enough, I've heard from some Magic players that the D&D Ravnica setting doesn't quite line up with what they expect from the cards. For example, in the cards, the Wojek (of Boros) were the law enforcement branch while the D&D Ravnica has that role filled by Azorius. They had other examples, but they don't come to mind right now. Essentially, it's like watching a movie and liking it but having others come and say "it's not like it was in the book" or something. So, for that reason, I think I like it more because I've never gotten into the cards.

Well, the Azorius and the Boros have always kind of shared the responsibilities of law enforcement and civil defense. The Azorius is the official governing body, the by-the-book cops, while the Boros are a kind of highly disciplined mercenary army, the cowboy cops. The Boros shoot first and ask questions later, and the Azorius usually end up having to clean up their mess afterward.

[HappyDaze]

Boros are a kind of highly disciplined mercenary army, the cowboy cops.
I don't see a highly disciplined mercenary army fitting the description of cowboy cops, but I do agree that Boros tend to be more heart than brains and Azorius goes the other way.

[Madfellow]

I don't see a highly disciplined mercenary army fitting the description of cowboy cops, but I do agree that Boros tend to be more heart than brains and Azorius goes the other way.

That's fair. What I mean is that the Boros are soldiers, trained for combat. If the Boros come knocking at your door, they're not going to read you your Miranda rights.

[Zanthy1]

I'm gonna echo everyone else and say that it is worth buying (especially if you can get a good deal on it, amazon had a crazy sale in December and I got my hard copy for 13 bucks).

Cool races and sub classes that can be used anywhere, monster/NPC stat blocks that can be used anywhere (literally only need to to change a name if desired). There are magic items as well that can be renamed to fit anywhere.

the backgrounds are awesome, but I'll admit that they may not fit everywhere, but totally could if desired.

Everything else in the setting seems to be focused on the Ravnican world, but it can easily be poached.

Final Answer: Get it, but wait for a deal

[Sception]

1) Will I be able to run a game in Ravnica using only the content of GGtR, without looking at any wikis or other MtG resources?

Yes. I mean, it would be worth your time to scan some lore wikis to get a more nuanced take, but there's a lot less ravnica lore outside of ggtr than there is, say, eberron lore outside of the wayfarer's guide or realms lore outside of scag. The main thing ggtr is lacking is depth in some of the guilds. Its a little lacking in terms of the constructive services they offer. Orzhov's religious functions are downplayed, as is the Golgari's food production role, that sort of thing. As a result, it can be hard to picture heroic characters coming from some of the guilds.

But while a bit more outside reafing is useful, you can run ravnica out of the book as written.


2) Will I be able to get my players excited about a game in Ravnica, again not being a MtG player playing with non-MtG players?

Probably. The guilds are a compelling bit of character definition. Most players will find one ot teo they gravitate towards. And the planet-wide city setting, where the underdark is catacombs and undercity and the wilds are 'i am legend'esque overgrown, reclaimed ruins is a compelling setting concept.


3) If either of these don't work out, will I be able to use more than 50ish percent of the book's content in a homebrew fantasy game, or is it heavily Ravnica-specific?

No. 90% of the book is fluff description of the guilds, which eont applu to settings without tjose guilds. What little mechanical content there is is mostly also either inextricably tied to those guilds and inappropriate for other settings (guild spells), too sub-par to attract interest outside of ravnica (spore druid in its final form). Order cleric and a couple player races are exceptions here, but imo there is not enough solid crunch in the book to make it eorth the purchase for non-ravnica campaigns.


4) Will I be able to convert published adventures into Ravnica?

Yes, but it will take more work than with other, more typical settings. At the very least you'll have to convert locals to urban or urban ruins, and will have to strongly consider guild interests, probably reframing adventure backstory and hooks in those terms.



Thanks!

No prob. Honestly, if you're on the fence, I'd recommend starting by reading mtg lore wikis on ravnica's world and guilds first, as that woll give you an idea of whether or not the setting sounds interesting to you without shelling out for a whole book first.

[ThePossible]

I feel really dumb, but I have no idea what MtG means. I came here because my DM is running a campaign in Ravinca, and I’ve heard of GGtR.

[Aett_Thorn]

I feel really dumb, but I have no idea what MtG means. I came here because my DM is running a campaign in Ravinca, and I’ve heard of GGtR.

Probably not a great use of bribing up an older thread, but MtG stands for Magic: the Gathering.

[dave2008]

I don't play MtG, and have very little intention to start doing so. Not many of my players play MtG, either. So the question stands-

1) Will I be able to run a game in Ravnica using only the content of GGtR, without looking at any wikis or other MtG resources?
2) Will I be able to get my players excited about a game in Ravnica, again not being a MtG player playing with non-MtG players?
3) If either of these don't work out, will I be able to use more than 50ish percent of the book's content in a homebrew fantasy game, or is it heavily Ravnica-specific?
4) Will I be able to convert published adventures into Ravnica?

Thanks!

I don't play MtG or really know much about it and I knew nothing about Ravnica. Regardless I bought GGtR instead of the Mad Mage / Dragon Heist adventures because there was so much more in GGtR for me to use in my own campagins, regardless of whether or not we play a campaign in Ravnica (which we will not - we have a homebrew campaing world we use).

So, yes I would recommend buying it regardless of any connection to Magic

[GreyBlack]

Laying my cards on the table: I don't think you should. I think that GGTR is not a pathway to elevating the edition. I've said before: "Every edition of D&D had at least one campaign setting that really showed what the setting was about. In First, we had Greyhawk, Second was Forgotten Realms, Third was Eberron, Fourth was Points of Light.... each one of those took the game seriously and created a world out of those suppositions. My worry is that Ravnica will be 5th edition's Eberron, and the full representation of what the setting is: a blatant cash grab without an identity of its own. That terrifies me, and I can't support Ravnica for that reason." If Ravnica is this edition's Eberron, this edition proves itself to be nothing more than a cynical cash grab.

HOWEVER. A number of the systems in Ravnica are excellent. I think that the backgrounds and guild ranks are done extremely well, and the RNG DM tools are really handy. Honestly, I wish those systems had been put in another campaign setting, and that Ravnica itself had been relegated to one of the online PDF'S that all of the Planeshift stuff had been.

If you value mechanics over fluff, you should get GGTR. If you value fluff over mechanics, don't touch it and speak with your cash.

[Prince Vine]

Now I love Ravnica as a setting, not much of a fan of the card game in general. I have a bias since most of the the background I know and love is not current for the published setting (part of it necessary as the original setting was not other plane friendly being cut off from the larger multiverse by a dimensional bubble, which did make for an interesting ghost situation).

I did take much of the book and use it as a baseline both for a seperate homebrew and a retro-Ravnica setting. The backgrounds in particular are good for a starting model on creating organizations and encouraging certain thematic themes within those groups, there are also some great monster stat blocks for a wild magic zone I have and some okay plotting help tables.