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Royal Mail will release a set of fourteen Special Stamps this month celebrating 50 years since the creation of roleplaying game, Dungeons & Dragons (D&D). The stamps feature monsters and characters from the game, illustrated by British artist Wayne Reynolds, who has dedicated the set to his late father, Terry.
The collection has been created is under licence by Hasbro and its Wizards of the Coast division, and the Royal Mail are offering special presentation packs and more as part of the new relases
Often cited as the first modern role-playing game, an estimated 64 million fans play it worldwide.
All fourteen stamps in the set have been illustrated by Wayne Reynolds, with eleven images especially commissioned for this release. Wayne has produced illustrations for various D&D games, handbooks and guides for more than twenty years.
The main set of eight stamps features a selection of iconic monsters from the game: Red Dragon, Owlbear, Vecna, Gelatinous Cube, Mind Flayer, Mimic, Displacer Beast and Beholder. When an ultraviolet light is shone over the stamps in the main set, a special surprise will be revealed.
A further six stamps, presented in a miniature sheet, depict dynamic images of a party of adventuring heroes that might be played in the game, including a Tiefling Rogue, Human Bard, Halfling Cleric, Elf Fighter, Dwarf Paladin and Dragonborn Wizard.
The Displacer beast art first featured on the 2010 Dungeon Master’s Deluxe Screen, while the Red Dragon was used as the cover of the 4th edition Dungeon Master’s Guide. The Beholder comes from an unspecified D&D product cover. All the other artworks were created specifically to fit the format of the stamps.
“For fifty years, Dungeons & Dragons has enabled millions of fans across the world to enjoy using their imaginations and immersing themselves in a magical world,” commented David Gold, director of External Affairs and Policy at Royal Mail. “We are delighted that this creative and exciting role-playing game is celebrated using Britain’s Wayne Reynolds’ unique illustrations.”
“Building on Hasbro’s existing work with Royal Mail, we’re honoured to release this beautiful collection of stamps, officially approved by HM King Charles III, in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the World’s Greatest Roleplaying Game” added Dan Rawson, Global Play lead, Dungeons & Dragons at Wizards of the Coast.
“With stunning art from long-time Dungeons & Dragons artist, Wayne Reynolds, showcasing our adventuring heroes and fearsome creatures, we’re sure these items will be treasured by D&D fans and stamp collectors alike.”
“Being asked to design the Dungeons & Dragons stamps for Royal Mail was a massive honour for me,” says Wayne Reynolds. “As a British artist, it was a wonderful opportunity to be able to contribute artwork that I’d created as a long-running D&D fantasy artist to something I consider to be an iconic institution.”
Wayne revealed on Facebook that he was dedicating the set to his late father, Terry.
“This is kind of a big deal for me,” he explained in a Facebook post. “Not only does my art get featured on a stamp. But one of the reasons for taking the commission was because Dad was a big stamp collector. He never got to see the painted versions but I was able to show him some of the sketches before he passed away.”
The stamps, and a range of collectible products, which go on sale from 25th July, are available to pre-order from now at www.royalmail.com/dnd and by telephone on 03457 641 641. A Presentation Pack including all 14 stamps is priced at £24.40.
• Wayne Reynolds is online at waynereynolds.com | Facebook | Instagram
• Wayne is a guest at GenCon in Indianapolis (1st – 4th August 2024), in the Paizo booth #203 in the trade hall: gencon.com
The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.
He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.
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