When D&D fans worldwide have been rollin' dice and taking names in the same fantasy world for nearly 40 years, that world tends to start accumulating novels faster than a min-maxed Barb picks up combat XP. So it is with Ed Greenwood's Forgotten Realms. Not only has it been Dungeons & Dragons' de facto primary game setting for decades, tons of authors (especially Greenwood himself) have penned full length books in that time - and this new Humble Bundle is your chance to get 40 of them for just $18.
That works out to about 45 cents per book, you guys. If Forgotten Realms lore value is what you're after, this bundle wipes the floor with the official 2024 edition D&D 5e books. Heck, 18 bucks would only buy you 230 pages of Wizards' 384 page Player's Handbook - the amount of D&D per dollar here is off the charts!
OK, that comparison was mostly just for fun - those core rulebooks are needed to play the game, while these are ebook fantasy novels, some of them published well over 20 years ago. But if you're enchanted by the overall fantasy aesthetic and iconic characters of D&D's most famous setting, this bundle is chock full of books that'll take you deeper into it.
We've got five of Ed Greenwood's Elminster novels, following the titular long bearded Wizard Elminster Aumar. He's not just a compelling bit part in Baldur's Gate 3, you know; he's been there and done stuff. 2001's Elminster in Hell particularly appeals to me, partly because the Forgotten Realms' nine hells are as fantastic as they are absurd, but mostly because I want to see how a wizened Gandalf type makes it through. Probably better than my Descent into Avernus character, anyway. It'll also help me decide how I'd have answered on Elminster in our D&D Wizards: Smash or Pass video…
It's not just the Forgotten Realms creator's own novels in there, though. Ed Greenwood's monster milk worldbuilding may be compelling, but other top authors are available! The bundle packs a variety of titles by, among others, prolific Forgotten Realms writer and keen fencer Richard Lee Byers; former WotC editor and SCRIBE award winner Erin M. Evans, and gamebook specialist and former Vancouver Courier journalist Lisa Smedman.
Of course, as this is a Humble Bundle, a share of all the cash spent on it will go to a good cause. This time it's First Book, a Washington D.C. charity founded in 1992, whose mission is "to ensure every child has access to a quality education regardless of background or zip code".
If you're like team Wargamer, your physical bookshelves are already heaving with tabletop rulebooks, sourcebooks, and novel tie-ins. But there's really no excuse not to jump in on 40 D&D ebooks for the price of a pizza - especially when you're chipping in to buy books for underprivileged kids at the same time.
If you do go for it, and want to share your book report on one of these classic novels (or just fancy yammering with fellow nerds about all things tabletop) come join the free Wargamer Discord community! Plus, for a weekly rundown of our biggest and best articles, including deals like this'un, sign up for Wargamer's weekly email newsletter. We even put jokes in there, it's great.