More details have been revealed about Quests from the Infinite Stairs, the upcoming Dungeons and Dragons anthology that Wizards of the Coast is calling “the first adventure book for the 2024 rules.” At a recent press event, Justice game managing designer Ramin Arman shared more details about the anthology’s six adventures.
Released on July 16, Quests from the Infinite Staircase revives six old-school adventures, each of which can be played independently in three or four sessions. If you want to tie them together, the DnD book provides a setting and quest-giver that will connect the adventures. They are Nafas, the cute but potentially campaign-ending noble genie, and the titular Infinite Stairs themselves.
This place has a long history. “Infinite stairs are first mentioned in 2nd edition during Planescape,” says Arman. “It was mentioned again recently in the 2014 Dungeon Master’s Guide.” “It’s this extradimensional staircase that winds into infinite space,” he adds. “There are all these doors that lead to every plane, every world, and places that are hard to get to otherwise.”
“What makes it special is that you only have to be at the right door to find the endless stairs,” says Arman. “As a DM, it’s a really easy way to introduce planar travel to your group.” This means traveling between major DnD settings like Ravenloft, the Feywild, and the Forgotten Realms has never been easier.
Time can wobble a bit in inter-planar spaces, and The Endless Stairs is a book that weaves together the old and the new. In addition to bringing decades of adventures to fifth edition, Arman sees the anthology as a celebration of fifty years of D&D, as well as a flagship book for the new era of One DnD.
“I always try to approach projects with respect, especially in these cases where we’re taking something that’s been around and bringing it forward to be explored by new and returning players,” he says. While Arman says it was important to “keep the spirit” of the old adventures, “we had an eye on the future to make sure there wasn’t any friction.”
According to Arman, this book is “the bridge between old and new” Dungeons and Dragons. “Instead of being the last rulebook for 2014, I like to think of it as the first adventure book for the 2024 rules.”
Arma says that each of the anthology’s adventures was also chosen to showcase what D&D has accomplished in its half-century of existence. Some are wildly popular adventures of yesteryear, while others are more obscure but still very influential. Others may be the first time a classic DnD monster appeared.
The first adventure in the anthology is The Lost City, which is designed for adventurers from level one to four. We’ve already played some of The Lost City, and it feels that way LOT much like an introduction to D&D. According to Armani, “the original adventure was trying to teach new DMs how to be DMs.” While there have been many rebalancings, this core goal remains.
The Lost City involves finding and exploring the ancient city of Cynidicea, most of which is now underground in a half-buried Ziggurat. In your adventures, “characters will meet these strange factions, which are remnants of a bygone civilization, each trying to restore [Cynidicea’s] former glory”.
These united factions promise quirky RPGs, unique buffs, and animal-themed masks. Deeper in the Ziggurat, a secret, more sinister faction can be found worshiping a giant, supposedly invincible monster called Zargon. Arman yes NO still recommend fighting Zargo, but “low level characters can interact with him and come back to fight him later”.
Next up is When a Star Falls, “the first adventure in this book to come from the UK TSR team”. As the name implies, you will follow a fallen star as some evil sages want to use its power of prophecy for evil deeds. The adventure runs from levels four to six.
Arman doesn’t share many details about the adventure’s plot, but his monster stat blocks give some hints. Players may encounter the Memory Web, a living web that hides the memories of the creatures it kills. They will also spot some Derro, Underdark humanoids who are currently busy raising the dead for mysterious reasons. And “yes, there are dragons” in this adventure, says Arman.
Beyond the Crystal Cave was also originally written by the UK TSR team and takes clear inspiration from Shakespeare. You will search for “two promiscuous youths who ran away from their parents because they disapproved of their relationship”.
The adventure of levels six through seven takes place in a wonderful magical garden that feels so much like the Feywild that Wizards of the Coast updated the adventure to take place there. You will chat with leprechauns and talking unicorns and you don’t have to fight them. “Even in the ’80s, it was ahead of its time in that you could finish the garden section without resorting to fighting,” says Arman. “Chris Perkins mentioned that this adventure was the inspiration for The Wild Beyond the Witchlight.”
This realm of pleasure is ruled by an Archfey known as the Gardener. The original adventure featured a more traditional Green Man figure, but Arman says “we wanted to play a Guardian of Nature-type Archfey.”
This is followed by an adventure called Pharaoh, which was first created by Dragonlance’s Tracy and Laura Hickman. The characters are “praised by the ghost of a long-dead pharaoh” who wishes to be freed from a curse. This of course involves exploring an Egyptian-style pyramid, which Arman says has become “a little more deadly”. Less traditionally, you’ll also visit a cloud boat.
In addition to the challenge, Wizards of the Coast made efforts to make this adventure more immersive. “We actually contacted someone who specialized in Ancient Egypt,” explains Arman. Additionally, “we’ve removed some of the more culturally insensitive things or repositioned them to help preserve the spirit of adventure and make it shine at its best.”
Adventure four is Lost Caverns of Tscosjcanth, the first half of which was released earlier this year as a tour adventure. “The two parts you’ll see that weren’t in that one are the desert exploration section before the actual dungeon,” says Arman, “and the second half of this dungeon — now you get the bigger caves.” This adventure runs from levels nine to 11.
The witch Tasha (or Igwilv, as she’s called here) is a bigger presence in the updated version of the adventure. You’ll also meet Drelnza, Tasha’s vampiric daughter.
Arman says Expedition to the Barrier Peaks “is probably my favorite adventure” in the anthology. This level 11-13 adventure has a reputation as “the adventure that gave your party laser guns”. It takes place in a crashed spaceship and you will meet all kinds of strange robots. “The characters will get to find all kinds of fun futuristic technology in this adventure,” says Arman.
Many changes were made to this space age classic. The maps are apparently smaller and given a loose narrative structure. “We’ve also moved some of the encounters to place more memorable encounters in places players are likely to visit.”
This includes dating in a nightclub, which we think every spaceship should have. “As great as the original adventure is, it’s also kind of silly at times, and we want to keep that silliness in the new update,” says Arman.
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