D&D’s Deck of Many Things is the physical embodiment of an old-school dungeon crawl

polygon.com:

The Deck of Many Things, the next new supplement for 5th edition Dungeons & Dragons, is a first-of-its-kind product for Wizards of the Coast. According to lead designer Jason Tondro (a veteran of Paizo’s Pathfinder), the “innovation project” seeks to build a new body of lore around one of the game’s oldest magical items. Used one way, the eponymous deck is the embodiment of old-school dungeon crawling at its finest. But, just like its namesake, this short stack of cards holds many secrets.

The original Deck of Many Things was introduced in 1975with Greyhawk, only the fourth book and the first supplement published for the first edition of D&D. The creation of the mythical object is therefore attributed to its authors — Rob Kuntz and the game’s co-creator, Gary Gygax himself. As originally conceived, this magical item had just 22 cards, each with its own chaotic in-game effect that was only to be revealed to players when they plucked it from the stack. For its 2023 rebirth, publisher Wizards of the Coastconcocted 44 more cards in all, bringing the grand total up to 66. Now newcomers like the Door and the Lance join previously established cards like the Sun and the Moon.

The cards feature new and vibrant art along with a unique gold foil treatment, and they’ll come packaged inside a presentation-style box. Likewise, the set comes with an interpretive booklet, a hardcover volume called the Card Reference Guide. During a private press briefing, Tandro revealed some of what can be found inside.

The Deck of Many Things can be used to build a dungeon or an adventure on the fly, mimicking the kind of random tables that D&D has used from the very beginning. When drawing a card, savvy Dungeon Masters will be able to find a person,