Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos is a sourcebook for Dungeons & Dragons that turns the magical Strixhaven University from Magic: The Gathering into the location for an epic campaign. It's easy to slot Strixhaven into one of the existing D&D campaign settings, or even a homebrew one, but players might not want to leave their school days behind.
Strixhaven is a school for the magically inclined of the world. Once a student has completed their first year of study, they choose which of the five colleges they wish to join, in order to refine their skills. The choices include Lorehold, Quandrix, Silverquil, Winterbloom, and Prismari. Lorehold is the place for scholars and adventurers, Quandrix is for magical maths and physics students, Silverquill is those who wield words as weapons, Witherbloom is for those who study the powers of life and death, and Prismari is for the artistically inclined and those who wish to master the elements.
Screen Rant can exclusively reveal some of the artwork and page excerpts from Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos. The assets involve the faculty and students at Prismari, the College of Elemental Arts. Dungeons & Dragons Senior Designer Amanda Hamon and Game Designer James Wyatt also spoke to Screen Rant about Prismari and its role within the game.
D&D: The Faculty Of Prismari College
The exclusive assets sent to Screen Rant mentioned several members of the faculty in Prismari College, including Uvilda Mistcoiler (the Dean of Perfection) and Zaffai (the Thunder Conductor). Will the faculty be a major part of Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos? If the players want to focus on their fellow students, then is it easy to push the faculty into the background?
James Wyatt: The focus of the adventures lies solidly with the player characters as students and their interactions with their fellow students. The Relationship mechanics and the rules around Extracurricular activities and Jobs ensure that players keep their attention on how they’re relating to other students. Faculty members occupy a place in the background of the adventures—occasionally a prominent place, because of the story of the adventures, but never as central as other students.
D&D: The Prismari Student Background
The exclusive assets showed the new Prismari Student background that players can choose for their character. Do each of the five colleges have their own associated background? Can players still use other backgrounds with the campaign? Do characters need to buy a school uniform (as Prismari Students receive one for free) if they want to attend?
James Wyatt: Each college does have a background, and I’d strongly encourage players to choose the appropriate background for their characters’ college. You certainly can use other backgrounds to represent what we’d call a non-traditional student - ”Yes, I had a life as a sailor or an acolyte, but now I’m attending Strixhaven and pursuing a second career!” You can take the Strixhaven Initiate feat for your school without having the background, and you can of course buy your school uniform using your character’s starting money.
Zanther Bowen - Member Of The Prismari Mage Tower Cheer Squad
Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos has relationship/romance mechanics that involve the NPCs in the campaign. How do these work alongside the other systems in the school? Are characters like Zanther part of this system? How much information does the book provide about their personality and role in the school?
Amanda Hamon: Characters like Zanther are absolutely part of this system! In fact, there are 18 NPCs who are part of the Relationships system, and they all have unique personalities, backgrounds, motivations, and interests that are described in detail in the book. If you’re a friend of the character, you’ll get a little story-focused boost, and if you’re their rival, they go out of their way to undermine or annoy you. For example, if you’re friends with Greta Gorunn, an affable, fun-loving, bodybuilding dwarf, members of the Iron-Lifters Society might show up to help you with any tough physical tasks you encounter. If you’ve annoyed her, one night when you return to your dorm you’re likely to find a bunch of heavy furniture blocking your way to your room.
Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos will be released on December 7, 2021.