The Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide Releases Nov 3; So Who Has the Best Deal?

I think that it's fairly safe to say that the Sword Coast has been the dominant region for adventure in the Forgotten Realms since the new edition of Dungeons & Dragons launched. We've been racing up and down the Sword Coast since hippies were getting murdered in Baldur's Gate to bring back 'dead' gods and now we're still there thwarting a group of raging Demon Lords in the latest adventure, Rage of Demons. So considering that we've all been spending a considerable amount of time hiking our way from one end of the Sword Coast to the other in an effort to kick some serious bad guy ass I've got to ask: how much do you actually know about the Sword Coast?

Before this edition of D&D I didn't spend very much time exploring the Forgotten Realms. I had read a few articles in Dragon magazine over the years but nothing really struck me as all that exciting. Then I played Murder in Baldur's Gate and I've kind of been enjoying the hell out of the Realms since; but I couldn't say that my knowledge of the setting is any deeper than the information presented in the modules I've been running. Which is why I'm actually pretty excited about the upcoming release, the Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide.

My excitement, though, doesn't get in the way of my worrying about the state of my wallet because I'll be damned if I pay full price for anything when there's a deal to be had. So before I place my pre-order for the Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide I decided to go out and find who was offering the best deal. Here's the results; hopefully it'll help some of you out too (Oh, and you can click on the Current Price link of each to go directly to their pre-order page).

 

Amazon

List Price: $39.95

Current Price: $26.05

Savings: $13.90 (35%)

Barnes & Noble

List Price: $39.95

Current Price: $26.31

Savings: $13.64 (34%)

Books-A-Million

List Price: $39.95

Current Price: $39.95

Savings: NO SAVINGS

Walmart

List Price: $39.95

Current Price: NOT CURRENTLY LISTED

Savings: N/A

!ndigo

List Price: $50.95

Current Price: $45.34

Savings: $5.61  (11%)

The Price of Out of the Abyss across 5 Online Retailers

After receiving the letter from Zohaletha it occurred to me that it might be a good idea to look into what the book is running across the Big 5 online book distributors: Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Books-A-Million, Walmart, and Chapters (primarily a Canadian retailer). The last time I checked the prices in June (see Rage of Demons Pre-Order Price Drops! for more) Amazon was offering the best price at $34.33. My guess is that Amazon will continue to offer the lowest price.

Amazon

OR Click Here to Go Directly to Their Site

Original Price: $49.95

Current Price: $31.00

Savings of: $18.95

Barnes & Noble

Click Here to Go Directly to Their Site

Original Price: $49.95

Current Price: $31.30

Savings of: $18.65

Books-A-Million

Click Here to Go Directly to Their Site

Original Price: $49.95

Current Price: $49.95

Savings of: NO SAVINGS

Chapters

Click Here to Go Directly to Their Site

Original Price: $63.95

Current Price: $40.09

Savings of: $23.86

Walmart

Click Here to Go Directly to Their Site

Original Price: $49.95

Current Price: $31.00

Savings of:$18.95

Color me surprised. I had no expectation that Walmart, which didn't even have the book available last time I checked, to provide a price for the book equal to that being offered by Amazon. I also had no idea that Books-A-Million wouldn't provide any savings at all!  

Rage of Demons Pre-Order Price Drops!

Since it's initial pre-order release was announced the price for the Out of the Abyss, Rage of Demons has continued to drop. In an effort to keep from paying too much I thought I would do an update on how the prices have reduced with a little over three months left to go until it officially releases.

Amazon

Original Price: $49.95

Current Price: $34.33 (SAVE $15.62 OR 31%)

Barnes & Noble

Original Price: $49.95

Current Price: $34.67 (SAVE $15.28 OR 30%)

Books-a-Million

Original Price: $49.95

Current Price: $49.95 (NO SAVINGS)

Walmart

Not Available

Chapters

Out of the Abyss
Current Price with plum membership: $35.74
ONLINE PRICE: $37.62
Checked this one out, shipping to my US address was $16.42

THIS PRICE HAS NOT CHANGED SINCE MAY 15, 2015
Total:$54.04 

As you can see from the above prices only Barnes & Noble and Amazon have further reduced their prices since the initial pre-order date nearly a month ago. Walmart, reportedly the fourth largest book retailer in the United States,* still does not have it available for pre-order.

I'll be updating the pre-order price changes again in June. 

*While the link is to an older article first published in 2012 I have not been able to find anything that makes an alternative claim in the intervening years.

Out of the Abyss, Rage of Demons Pre-Orders Now Live On Amazon and Barnes & Noble!

The pre-order pages for Out of the Abyss, Rage of Demons have just gone live on Barnes & Noble and Amazon. The Barnes & Noble page was originally launched on the same day as the new supplement was announced but at the time the link lead to a N/A page with no real information. It was taken down later that same day. 

This morning Barnes & Noble relaunched the page with the option to actually pre-order the book becoming available. Within a short time of the Barnes & Noble page going live Amazon followed suit. At the time of this writing both sites have the book listed at it's suggested retail price of $49.95; however, this number will quickly begin to plummet once orders start coming in as both chains begin reducing the price.

I will be updating these prices as they change over the coming days and weeks. You can go directly to the pre-order pages by clicking on the title's name below or on the iframe for the Amazon link.

Barnes & Noble

Out of the Abyss

Current Price: $49.95

Amazon

Out of the Abyss (D&D Accessory)

Current Price: $49.95

Walmart

Currently Unavailable

Books-A-Million

Currently Unavailable 

Chapters
Out of the Abyss
Current Price with plum membership: $35.74
ONLINE PRICE: $37.62
Checked this one out, shipping to my US address was $16.42
Total:$54.04

It should be noted that while Wizards of the Coast has official released the cover design for the book that neither Barnes & Noble, nor Amazon have the image currently available on their pre-order pages.  The above image is what Wizards' has released.

The Blurb: Dare to descend into the Underdark in this adventure for the world’s greatest roleplaying game

The Underdark is a subterranean wonderland, a vast and twisted labyrinth where fear reigns. It is the home of horrific monsters that have never seen the light of day. It is here that the dark elf Gromph Baenre, Archmage of Menzoberranzan, casts a foul spell meant to ignite a magical energy that suffuses the Underdark and tears open portals to the demonic Abyss. What steps through surprises even him, and from that moment on, the insanity that pervades the Underdark escalates and threatens to shake the Forgotten Realms to its foundations. Stop the madness before it consumes you!

A Dungeons & Dragons® adventure for characters of levels 1–15

No page count has currently been released.

It is currently ranked #12,686 in books and #9 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Gaming > Dungeons & Dragons

Princes of the Apocalypse Release Date and Pre-Order Prices Revealed!

Princes of the Apocalypse cover (low res)

Wizards of the Coast has finally released the street date for Princes of the Apocalypse! On April 7, 2015 you'll be able to launch yourselves into battle with the Elder Elemental Eye once again - only this time the battle will be set in the Forgotten Realms instead of the World of Greyhawk. The single volume adventure is designed to take players from level 1 - 15. Alongside new spells the book will also feature the genasi as a playable race.

The book has been developed in association with Sasquatch Game Studio. For those of you unfamiliar with the relatively new studio it's actually comprised of former D&D designers Richard Baker, Stephen Schubert, and David Noonan. Between the three designers they have contributed to more than 200 novels, adventures, and rpg books for TSR, Wizards of the Coast, and Paizo.

The full image of the Princes of the Apocalypse cover

Princes of the Apocalypse has a suggested retail price of $49.95 ($58.00 in Canada) if you wait to buy it at retail stores. However you can pre-order it on Amazon for $34.33, on Books-a-Million you can pre-order it for $49.95, and it is not currently available at Barnes & Noble. As the pre-order prices change over the coming weeks I'll correct the current prices so that you can lock in the lowest rates.

You'll be able to get an early look at what the adventure has in store for you through Wizards of the Coast's D&D Encounters in-store program.