The latest Dungeons & Dragons adventure anthology, Keys From The Golden Vault, is a series of heist missions with players working for a mysterious organization. While the players don’t necessarily have to work alongside the titular Golden Vault, the secretive group is an interesting addition to DnD lore. But just who are they, and can they really be trusted?

In early access now, DnD’s next book is set to release on February 21, 2023, and Keys From The Golden Vault will feature 13 adventurous heists for players to tackle. The concept is similar to prior Dungeons & Dragons anthologies, Journey's Through the Radiant Citadel and Candlekeep Mysteries, with a set of disconnected adventures built around a core theme. Just as with the previous anthologies, the adventures in Keys From The Golden Vault can be played as either one-shots or a full campaign.

Related: D&D's Keys From The Golden Vault Is A Heist-Themed Adventure Anthology

D&D’s Golden Vault Faction Is All About Pulling Off Heists

Two thieves descend from the ceiling via rope as a quasit hides under a table.

The Golden Vault of the book’s title refers to an organization rather than a physical place or vault. It is through these shadowy characters that the players can receive their missions via magical means as well as agents known as handlers. But players looking to play good or neutral aligned DnD characters need not fear, as the Golden Vault is a benevolent organization to seek to do good in the realms.

D&D’s New Heroes From The Golden Vault

On the left is a intricate blue music box. On the right is artwork of a handler agent offering a scroll.

The Golden Vault's motto is "do good, no matter the cost," and that truly sets the tone for the newest DnD faction. While the missions players will be sent are firmly illegal in many cases, the goal of the Golden Vault is an honorable one. Game design architect Chris Perkins describes the Golden Vault as benevolent and exists to acquire rare artifacts to lock them away from those who could use them to do harm.

In order to work with the Golden Vault, the DnD adventuring party must have backgrounds that prove themselves to be not only successful but also principled. The Golden Vault is an organization that seeks to right moral wrongs, and so they only work with the best in the business who have also proven that they will stand up for what is right. In this way, DnD's Golden Vault seems similar to the well-known Dungeons & Dragons faction of the Harpers, whose aim was to maintain peace and protect the oppressed.

If players wish to work with the Golden Vault during their adventurers, then an agent will be assigned to the group as their handler. It is through these handlers that missions are issued and information relayed. Keys From The Golden Vault implements a wonderful system for this in the form of magical music boxes. These boxes look like simple collectibles to the untrained eye but are rare magic DnD items, and when a key from the Golden Vault is used, a message from a handler will play for the players.

If the DnD players get stuck for whatever reason on a mission, the handler is a great tool for DMs to use to give hints. The organization also wishes to maintain its secrets so any operatives caught by the authorities, such as players, will receive some assistance. Strings may be pulled to get players out of jail or even to prevent arrest in the first place.

The Golden Vault is an interesting new faction for DnD and lends itself well to heist or thieves guild style campaigns. They are a group that specializes in hiring the right people for the job and working outside the law to do good, and some of DnD's best lawful good NPCs would work well as agents or handlers. Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition offers a number of factions available for players to join, and it will be interesting to see how DMs use the Golden Vault in campaigns outside of this anthology.

More: D&D: Which Radiant Citadel Adventure Is Best To Start With

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