A grimoire is a textbook of magic, typically including instructions on how to create magical objects like talismans and amulets, how to perform magical spells, charms, and divination, and how to summon or invoke supernatural entities such as angels, spirits, deities, and demons. In many cases, the books themselves are believed to be imbued with magical powers. The only contents found in a grimoire would be information on spells, rituals, the preparation of magical tools, and lists of ingredients and their magical correspondences. In this manner, while all books on magic could be thought of as grimoires, not all magical books should be thought of as grimoires.
Mystara is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role playing game. It was the default setting for the "Basic" version of the game throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Most adventures published for the "Basic" edition of D&D take place in "The Known World", a central continent that includes a varied patchwork of both human and non-human realms. The human realms are based on various real-world historical cultures. In addition, unlike other D&D settings, Mystara had ascended immortal beings instead of gods.
The Grand Grimoire, also known as Le Dragon Rouge or The Red Dragon, is a black magic goetic grimoire. Different editions date the book to 1521, 1522 or 1421. Owen Davies suggests 1702 is when the first edition may have been created and a Bibliothèque bleue version of the text may have been published in 1750. The 19th-century French occultist Éliphas Lévi considered the contemporary edition of Le Dragon Rouge to be a counterfeit of a true, older Grand Grimoire.
Belial is a term occurring in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament which later became personified as the devil in Christian texts of the New Testament. Alternate spellings include Baalial, Balial, Belhor, Beliall, Beliar, Berial, Bylyl and Beliya'al. In the Secret Book of John, an early Gnostic text, the ruler of the underworld is referred to as Belias.
Barbatos is the 8th spirit named among the list of 72 demons in The Lesser Key of Solomon. According to grimoire tradition, he holds the rank of Duke, and may appear when the sun is in the sign of Sagittarius. When summoned, he appears "with four noble kings and their companions in great troops". Barbatos grants the ability to understand the spoken language of animals, such as the singing of birds and the barking of dogs. He reveals hidden treasures that have been concealed by the enchantment of magicians, gives knowledge of past and future events, and reconciles disputes between friends and those who hold power. Barbatos has 30 legions of spirits under his command, and once belonged to the angelic order of Virtues.
Arduin is a fictional universe and fantasy role-playing system created in the mid-1970s by David A. Hargrave. It was the first published "cross-genre" fantasy RPG, with everything from interstellar wars to horror and historical drama, although it was based primarily in the medieval fantasy genre.
Ravenloft is an adventure module for the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) fantasy role-playing game. The American game publishing company TSR, Inc. released it as a standalone adventure booklet in 1983 for use with the first edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons game. It was written by Tracy and Laura Hickman, and includes art by Clyde Caldwell with maps by David Sutherland III. The plot of Ravenloft focuses on the villain Strahd von Zarovich, a vampire who pines for his lost love. Various story elements, including Strahd's motivation and the locations of magical weapons, are randomly determined by drawing cards. The player characters attempt to defeat Strahd and, if successful, the adventure ends.
David Allen Hargrave, known as The Dream Weaver, was a prolific and sometimes controversial American game designer and writer of fantasy and science fiction role-playing games (RPGs). Hargrave's most notable written works were based upon his own mythical world of Arduin.
Magic systems in games are the rules, limitations, abilities, and characteristics that define magic in a game.
The Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth is an adventure module for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. It was written by Gary Gygax and published by TSR in 1982 for the first edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (AD&D) rules. The 64-page adventure bears the code "S4" and is set in the Greyhawk campaign setting. It is divided into two parts, a 32-page adventure, and a 32-page booklet of monsters and magic items. The plot involves the player characters investigating rumors of lost treasure. After traversing a wilderness and two levels of dungeons, the players face Drelnza, the vampiric daughter of long-deceased archmage Iggwilv.
Caliban was a standalone short story and gaming module written in 1979 by David A. Hargrave and published by Grimoire Games. It was based upon Hargrave's gaming system known as Arduin. It is the first of only four standalone "dungeon" books created by Hargrave as an extension of his Arduin Multiverse, which at the time of Caliban's publication was known as The Arduin Trilogy.
The Howling Tower was a standalone short story and gaming module written in 1979 by David A. Hargrave and published by Grimoire Games. It was based upon Hargrave's gaming system known as Arduin. It is the second of only four standalone "dungeon" books created by Hargrave as an extension of his Arduin Multiverse, which at the time of The Howling Tower's publication was known as The Arduin Trilogy.
The Citadel of Thunder was a standalone short story and gaming module written in 1979 by David A. Hargrave and published by Grimoire Games. It was based upon Hargrave's gaming system known as Arduin. It is the third of only four standalone "dungeon" books created by Hargrave as an extension of his Arduin Multiverse, which at the time of The Howling Tower's publication was known as The Arduin Trilogy.
The Grimorium Verum is an 18th-century grimoire attributed to one "Alibeck the Egyptian" of Memphis, who purportedly wrote in 1517. Like many grimoires, it claims a tradition originating with King Solomon.
Expedition to the Ruins of Greyhawk is an adventure book for the 3.5 edition of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. The adventure is set in the game's World of Greyhawk campaign setting, specifically in and around Castle Greyhawk and its dungeons. As such, it is an update to the 1990 adventure module WGR1 - Greyhawk Ruins. The adventure also provides updates on a number of important Greyhawk personages as well as encounters in the Free City of Greyhawk itself.
The demon Belial, or characters named for him, have appeared in many examples of modern culture. This is distinct from medieval culture and Milton where Belial was related to the character in Jewish sources.
The Expert Set is an expansion boxed set for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. It was first published in 1981 as an expansion to the Basic Set.
Dungeons & Dragons retro-clones are fantasy role-playing games that emulate earlier editions of Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) no longer supported by Wizards of the Coast. They are made possible by the release of later editions' rules in a System Reference Document under the terms of the Open Game License, which allow the use of much of the proprietary terminology of D&D that might otherwise collectively constitute copyright infringement. However, per the license, these games lack the brand names Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, and all the other trademarks associated with those brands.
The Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Game is the name of two companion accessories to the second and third editions of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Designed as simpler, stand-alone versions of Dungeons & Dragons, they feature a simplified ruleset, but with character progression that parallels the standard game. However, for 3rd-level characters and higher, the standard Player's Handbook is still required. The first version was published in 1999 for the second edition of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, while the second version was published in 2000 for the third edition of Dungeons & Dragons.
The Arduin Adventure is a 1981 role-playing game published by Grimoire Games. Although previous publications by Grimoire used the rules from the fantasy role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons, The Arduin Adventure attempted to create a new rules system.