Mulliga's Holiday Gift Guide, Part 1: Dungeons & Dragons Art & Arcana: A Visual History

The Hanukkah and Christmas seasons are upon us, so I thought it'd be fun to feature some great gift ideas for the geek, gamer, or gun guru in your life. Today's suggestion is a massive coffee table book about THE role-playing game, the archetype, the Big Kahuna ... D&D.

I started playing Dungeons & Dragons back in '94 with the Basic Set, but even back then, the game had a rich and mysterious history. The glossy hardcover TSR books on the shelves of my local Borders were merely the latest in a decades-old tradition that famously started in Gary Gygax's basement in 1974. I gleaned information here and there, but there was never any comprehensive chronology showing where D&D began and how it evolved (I imagine the situation is even more puzzling for a new player today, starting on the 5th edition of a game that's likely older than their parents).

Well, no more. Thanks to several years of effort by the authors and a host of current and former artists, D&D now has a sumptuous visual history in "Art & Arcana." This incredible 400+ page tome is broad and deep, covering not only the artwork used in D&D's many game books and supplements over the years, but also stuff around the game (there's a picture of TSR's original office, an obligatory poster of "Mazes and Monsters", and even a game screen from Tower of Doom). It's a wonderful gift for any D&D fan.