Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants

Greyhawk Source

Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants
Cover of GotG, art by Cynthia Shepherd
Type:	Accessory
Code/Abbreviation:	GotG
Edition:	Fifth edition
Author(s):	James Wyatt, Makenzie De Armas, Dan Dillon, Ben Petrisor, Jason Tondro
Editor(s):	Janica Carter, Judy Bauer, Eytan Bernstein, Adrian Ng
Cover Artist(s):	Cyntha Shepherd, Olena Richards
Interior Artist(s):	Cartography: Dyson Logos
Publisher:	Wizards of the Coast
First Published:	August 15, 2023
Pages:	192
ISBN:	ISBN 0786968982 and ISBN 978-0-7869-6898-5
Class:	Officially published content

Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants is an sourcebook for fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons

Description

Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants is given with narration by Bigby, in-character. It was released on August 15, 2023. It covers the history, cultures, and races of the giants, with giant-themed options for player-characters and monsters and sites for Dungeon Masters.

"Explore the wondrous realms of giants with this supplement for the world’s greatest roleplaying game.

Bigby the Great recounts his journeys into the history, myth, and society of giants in this guide to their realms in the worlds of Dungeons & Dragons. Here Bigby and the demigod Diancastra, child of the giants’ All-Father, Annam, unveil the secrets of Annam’s mighty descendants.

Players will find a wealth of giant-themed character options: a subclass for barbarians, two backgrounds related to giants and their runic magic, and feat options that evoke the strength and primal magic of the giants. Dungeon Masters will gain inspiration for bringing giants to life, from maps of giant-built sites and big new monsters to tremendous treasures and intriguing trinkets in a giant’s bag!

Let Bigby and Diancastra teach you everything about the iconic giants of D&D!

• Delves into unrevealed giant lore, including an overview of the hierarchical structure of the ordning and giants’ religion, and ideas about giants’ organizations and societies across the multiverse.
• Adds giant-themed player character options where adventurers can evoke the glory of giants with 1 new barbarian subclass, explore the vast world of giants with 2 new backgrounds, and unlock 8 new feats to unleash runic magic and wield elemental power.
• Displays a wondrous collection of 30+ magic items, including 3 illustrious artifacts.
• Offers a plethora of tools for Dungeon Masters including lair maps, adventure hooks, encounter tables, treasures, and giant roleplaying inspiration.
• Presents a giant bestiary! More than a third of the book is devoted to monster descriptions, lore, and stat blocks.
• Discover a vibrant ecosystem filled with new giant kinds, 70+ new monsters, and other enormous creatures."
  — Product description

Reception

In a review of Glory of the Giants on Wargamer.com, published the day of the book's release (from a preview copy), reviewer Mollie Russell said, "Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants is almost exclusively a book for DMs. Chapters two to six focus on crafting convincing Giant characters and settings. ...This is an excellent resource for any Dungeon Master who wants to begin writing their own DnD one-shots and DnD campaigns but doesn’t know where to start.." She went on further to say, "Wizards of the Coast has worked hard to ensure no Giant encounter feels stereotypical or same-y. It’s clear these creatures are more than just lumbering behemoths, with no fate other than the end of an adventurer’s blade. ... Quality will always trump quantity, and Glory of the Giants offers exciting new options for players and DMs alike. But with such limited player options and such a narrow focus on high-level adventures, it’s tough to recommend Glory of the Giants to the majority of D&D players. It’s a great book, but not one every DnD player needs to own.

Writing for CBR. Isaac Williams praised the inclusion of Bigby as part of D&D's history, noting that not only the variations of Bigby's "hand" spells considered some of the best in the game (in fifth edition), but it was important and notable that Wizards had included him and updated his story. "Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants is the character's first step into the spotlight in the most recent edition. The entire book includes comments and anecdotes from his perspective. It puts him on an even level with popular characters from other D&D settings, such as the Forgotten Realms' Xanathar and Dragonlance's Fizban, who have each been given as one book's in-universe author. Perhaps most significantly, it puts him on even ground his his former rival, master, and friend Mordenkainen, himself the author of several 5e books. It also updates his story for the first time in decades with his most recent death and reincarnation. Bigby is a name that many D&D players are familiar with, and while he is not as central to the game's history as other famous wizards and heroes, he will always have a place in the annals of D&D history."

The sourcebook was rated "4/5" on ArcaneEye by writer Mike Bernier, who said "With some interesting player options, modular adventure components, fun magic items, and a giant bestiary, Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants is a solid purchase."

External links

Disclaimer:Any lore presented through the following links does not necessarily adhere to established officially published content, and the views expressed do not necessarily represent the views of the editors of this wiki.

Contents

Player options account for approximately 17 pages of this book and include:

• 2 new giant-related backgrounds (giant foundling and rune carver).
• 1 new giant-related class (Path of the Giant barbarian).
• 8 new giant-related feats.
• 27 new magic items featuring a mechanic from the Rune Knight fighter subclass called “Invoking.”

DM-specific giant lore and information accounts for the remaining 185 or so pages and includes:

• Tips, world-building and encounter tables, and lore for when you use giants in your game.
• 18 giant adventure locations that include 1 page of information and a map.
• 71 new giant-related monsters with CRs varying from 1/2 to 27.

Characters

• Bigby
• Diancastra

Creatures

spotted lion, dinosaurs (aerosaur, altisaur, ceratops, regisaur), bag jelly, barrowghast, cairnwight, cinder hulk, giants (cloud, hill, storm, stone, frost, fire, death), dust hulk, ettin, fensir, firbolg, fomorian, storm crab, titanothere, troll, grinning cat, giant goose, giant ram, giant ox, giant tick, giant lynx, firegaunt, flesh colossus, runic colossus

Deities

Included are the deities of the "Ordning":
Annam, Diancastra, Grolantor, Hiatea, Iallanis, Karontor, Memnor, Skoraeus, Stronmaus, Surtr, and Thrym.

Also included are "interloper gods" like Vaprak, and Demon Lords like Baphomet, Demogorgon, Kostchtchie, Yeenoghu, and various elemental cults of the Elder Elemental Eye (which is also known as "an aspect of the imprisoned god Tharizdun.")

References

Bibliography

• Wyatt, James, et al. Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants. Renton, WA; WotC. 2023. ISBN 0786968982

Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index

The Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index (EGI) is based on previous work of Jason Zavoda through '08, continued by numerous other fans. The EGI article has a list of sources, product names, abbreviations, and a link to the full, downloadable index.

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