Quests from the Infinite Staircase—Release Dates and What to Expect
Published on March 18, 2024
Delve into the details behind D&D’s latest adventure anthology, set to release in 2024.
Bruce Brenneise - Wizards of the Coast -
Table of Contents
D&D’s Latest Adventure Anthology
As with previous years, we’re getting an adventure anthology as part of D&D’s release plans for 2024. This new anthology represents a bridge between the past and present, revitalizing six classic first edition adventures to celebrate D&D’s 50th anniversary.
These collections of standalone adventures have been a staple product in the D&D 5e lineup and have included solid entries such as Tales from the Yawning Portal, Ghosts of Saltmarsh, and, most recently, Keys from the Golden Vault.
Designed to be played independently or as part of a larger campaign, these anthologies offer a variety of themes, settings, and challenges for players of different levels and usually contain adventures that can be completed in one session.
So, let’s take a look at what 2024’s adventure anthology, Quests from the Infinite Staircase, has to offer!
Quests from the Infinite Staircase Details
Revealed at PAX Unplugged in December 2023, Quests from the Infinite Staircase is set to release on July 16, 2024, and will contain 6 remastered adventures that will accommodate players from levels 1 to 13.
If D&D Beyond follows the typical preorder protocol, fans who preorder can expect to access the book 2 weeks early. Also, thanks to the new Local Game Store Early Access Program, select retailers will be able to sell books in-store to pick up customers before the official release date. Based on the previously linked post on D&D Beyond, it looks like LGS Early Access for Quests from the Infinite Staircase will begin on July 9, 2024!
So far, we don’t have any information if the book will include new character options, magic items, or monsters. Typically, adventure anthologies don’t contain new character options, but new magic items and monsters are almost ubiquitous across previous releases.
What Adventures Will Be in Quests from the Infinite Staircase?
This won’t be the first time that Wizards of the Coast has updated older adventures for their popular fifth edition. With a repository of 50 years worth of adventures to pull from, they’ve been able to release books like Ghosts of Saltmarsh and Tales from the Yawning Portal, both of which contain beloved modules that have been remastered for their latest edition.
Not only will Quests from the Infinite Staircase draw from older adventures, but they will also devote more pages to each adventure, in contrast with newer adventure anthologies like Keys from the Golden Vault and Candlekeep Mysteries.
Seeing as Quests from the Infinite Staircase only contains 6 adventures—compared to the newer anthologies 13 and 17, respectively—it stands to reason that we’ll see adventures that average 30 pages and could go up 60 pages like in Dead in Thay from Tales from the Yawning Portal.
Descent into the Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth
While we don’t know as of yet all the adventures Wizards of the Coast will remaster for their last fifth edition adventure anthology, they mentioned in a D&D Beyond press release that Descent into the Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth will be included in the book.
Originally crafted by Gary Gygax—the co-founder of D&D—Descent into the Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth will take players into the former lair of Iggwilv, the Witch Queen, a legendary archmage whose influence lingers long after her departure. The adventure is set deep within the Yatil Mountains, where players must navigate a maze of dangers to uncover hidden treasures and secrets.
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of D&D and Gygax’s love for convention play, this version of the adventure comes with a twist: it includes a tournament-style version for 9th-level characters. In addition, Wizards of the Coast says there will be rewards for the top-scoring groups at Gary Con and PAX East.
Moreover, the adventure will be freely available for D&D Beyond users starting March 26. Wizards of the Coast is also ensuring that the adventure is accessible with little preparation, thanks to pregenerated characters and integration with Maps.
What is the Infinite Staircase?
While Quests from the Infinite Staircase seeks to revive old adventures, it also looks to be reviving the hub players will use to access the remastered adventures: the Infinite Staircase.
Previously featured in the Planescape-focused adventure for D&D’s second edition, Tales from the Infinite Staircase, this paradoxical demiplane was said to link different planes of existence. Known as one of the multiverse’s best-kept secrets for planar travel, the Infinite Staircase stretches across every conceivable plane, forming a three-dimensional maze that leads adventurers to countless new realms.
A Way to Link Adventures
The practice of providing a hub from which adventurers can strike out their quests has been common in D&D’s latest anthologies, as exemplified by the inclusion of bases of operations like Candlekeep and the Radiant Citadel.
The 2e module also boasted a unique proposition where players could choose which of the adventures they’d like to undertake in the order of their choosing. This was likely enabled by the fact that the module was for players from levels 3-7, which is unlikely to reoccur in the 5e remastered version, which runs from levels 1-13.
Lore from the Infinite Staircase
While the Infinite Staircase was explored the most deeply in Tales from the Infinite Staircase, it has a notable inclusion in the D&D 5e Dungeon Master’s Guide.
Nestled among other ways to travel the Outer Planes, the DMG describes the Infinite Staircase as a mysterious extradimensional staircase connecting different planes, accessible through nondescript doors found in secluded, often overlooked places.
Its appearance varies, from simple stairs to complex, gravity-defying structures in open space. While entrances exist on many planes, they are not well-known and are sometimes protected by powerful guardians like devas, yugoloths, and sphinxes.
Nafas the Genie
It’s still not clear how much lore from its 2e incarnation we’ll see in Quests from the Infinite Staircase, but we have received information about a new addition to D&D canon: Nafas, the benevolent genie.
We don’t know much about this new character—except that he hires heroic adventurers across the multiverse to help him fulfill wishes—or how he came to reside in the Infinite Staircase, but stay tuned for more details as they’re released!
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