Mythic Odysseys of Theros

Dungeons & Dragons, 5th Edition

by Wizards of the Coast

Clash with the gods of Theros in this campaign sourcebook for the world's great roleplaying game.

Play DUNGEONS & DRAGONS in the MAGIC: THE GATHERING world of Theros--a realm shaped by the wrath of gods and the deeds of heroes, where champions vie for immortal favor and a place among legends.
- Rise above the common throng with SUPERNATURAL GIFTS, abilities that give you remarkable powers that set you on the path to legend.
- Explore Theros as a SATYR or LEONIN--mythic cat-like heroes from Magic: The Gathering. Mythic Odysseys of Theros introduces these races to fifth edition D&D for the first time.
- Master new powers with Magic: The Gathering-inspired SUBCLASSES like the Bard's College of Eloquence and the Paladin's Oath of Heroism.
- Encounter MYTHIC MONSTERS, creatures whose power and renown are such that their names are truly living myths.
- Wield the weapons of the gods--five signature artifacts used by Theros's deities.
- Created in 1974, D&D transformed gaming culture by blending traditional fantasy with miniatures and wargaming. Fifth edition D&D draws from every prior edition to create a universally compelling play experience.

Genres: Dungeons and Dragons, Role Playing Games, Fantasy, Gaming, Fiction, Games, Reference

256 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2020

About the author

Wizards of the Coast LLC (often referred to as WotC /ˈwɒtˌsiː/ or simply Wizards) is an American publisher of games, primarily based on fantasy and science fiction themes, and formerly an operator of retail stores for games. Originally a basement-run role-playing game publisher, the company popularized the collectible card game genre with Magic: The Gathering in the mid-1990s, acquired the popular Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game by purchasing the failing company TSR, and experienced tremendous success by publishing the licensed Pokémon Trading Card Game. The company's corporate headquarters are located in Renton, Washington in the United States.[1]

Wizards of the Coast publishes role-playing games, board games, and collectible card games. They have received numerous awards, including several Origins Awards. The company has been a subsidiary of Hasbro since 1999. All Wizards of the Coast stores were closed in 2004.

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is everything I could want from a 5th Edition campaign setting.

This book does an excellent job describing the world of Theros and how it could fit into a Dungeons and Dragons campaign. From Gods to societies to historical relationships to suggested plot hooks this book offers a lot of resources to a group looking to explore this Classical Greek inspired world.

But even if you have no intention of running or participating in an adventure which takes place in Theros (such as myself) this book still has tons of material to augment existing campaigns. It has some really nifty new races, a few new subclasses, new character creation mechanics, a neat piety mechanic that allows players to receive boons by acting in their god's interest, new magical items (since everyone loves magical items), a new slew of monsters, and a really interesting new monster mechanic to make boss encounters more engaging.

The art is gorgeous, the book layout impeccable, and the balance of its different parts on point. I don't think a campaign setting book for DnD could be as well constructed as this one. Even though I have no intention of ever running or being a part of a Theros campaign, the ideas and concepts this book offers are rich and full of potential for any setting an adventure could take place in.

[Kaitlyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Theros is a very niche product, even moreso than Ravnica. Ravnica is very egalitarian and eclectic - you can easily incorporate any race, class, monster, etc. in Ravnica and it will feel right at home. Theros has a very specific flavor - its Greek as all hell. That's going to make it harder to incorporate species that don't show up in either Greek mythos or Theros block - Loxodons, Elves, Orcs, etc. Theros does add a nice buffer between D&D mythology and real-world mythology. Including myths like Heracles and Apollo would suck me right out of the game but Thassa and Heliod are just different enough that I can roll with it.

The Gods are neat and described well. I think getting a group that collectively all worship one deity might be difficult, and mixed groups allow for more conflicts and plot hooks. The being said, I can't see this being effective with really large groups, as you will reach a point where one player can't progress in their piety/quest without another player being obligated to interfere or take a hit themselves. Then again, you really shouldn't be playing D&D with a massive group if you value your time and sanity.

Leonin are a slightly more interesting Tabaxi, tritons are a nice twist on merfolk. The Satyrs, though, seem really powerful as player character races go. They aren't Yuan-ti pureblood bonkers, but they should be enough to give a boner to min-maxers.

Theros suffers by having most of its Greek-inspired monsters already in the MM. I'd love to see more hydra variants and sample chimeras in MOT. We get a lot of archons which is...weird. Anvilwroughts and catdog snake are both fun, though.

I think playing with party death - going to underworld while alive, going there while dead, escaping, having an Returned player or NPC along, etc. - allow for some really cool twists on the traditional story structure and anxiety beats of D&D.

[Benjamin]

How? More D&D reading/skimming.

What? Theros is a Magic: the Gathering setting based on Greek myth. So the gods are very active -- and petty; there are a few city states, a lot of islands; some big, mythic monsters; you can play a Minotaur.

Yeah, so? So... I don't particularly want to play in a Greek Myths-with-serial-numbers-filed-off setting. (Though to be fair, I don't know that I want to play in a Greek Myths setting either.) But I kinda get what they're going for when I read the big chapter on how to use each god as a potential patron or villain for a campaign. (The random tables and lists of ideas continue to be a combination of very obvious/uninteresting and really exciting/fun.)

I will say that, compared to Spelljammer, the text here is small and the pages are packed -- which I guess makes sense if you think about this as the world bible for the Magic set turned into a campaign setting: "here's all the lore!" There is some stuff to play with here, i.e., a city of minotaurs torn between their violent god and the obvious advantages of being in a city. And yet... I wonder if I would thrill more to this if it were more like Dragonlance: a little bit of a setting and then a campaign to show what this setting excels at.

[James Bowman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mythic Odysseys of Theros is the second D&D sourcebook to adapt a campaign setting from the Magic: The Gathering multiverse, featuring a world inspired by classical Greek mythology, and especially its appearances in contemporary media like Clash of the Titans.

The introduction, "Welcome to Theros", breaks down the background and themes of the setting, where the gods compete with one another over the worship of mortals, which is essential to their existence; the importance of fate and destiny; and the centrality of legendary acts of heroism. The book is peppered with short, inspirational myths throughout, to drive this home even further.

The remainder of Theros is broken into six chapters, as follows...

Chapter 1 - Character Creation: Characters in Theros are encouraged to be built as if they are destined to be mythic heroes. Characters start with a selection of Supernatural Gifts, which vary wildly in design: some are akin to feats, others are more like racial traits, and still others are akin to mini-classes. One of the most interesting is Lifelong Companion, which gives you special synergy with another person or group (sibling, best friend, lover, battle brothers, etc.). There doesn't appear to be much balance between the Gifts, but it is an interesting idea.

The rest of the chapter has more traditional D&D character options. Theros does not have the full core selection of D&D races, instead featuring humans alongside centaurs, leonin (lion-people), minotaurs, satyrs, and tritons. Their take on centaurs and minotaurs does not quite line up with the Monster Manual versions, primarily in their smaller size. While the tritons here are largely the same as their Volo's Guide to Monsters counterparts, the leonin are not reskinned versions of the tabaxi, but actually interestingly different in both abilities and culture. Satyrs seem particularly powerful, as they have magic resistance by default!

After the races, we get two new subclasses, the Bard's College of Eloquence and the Paladin's Oath of Glory, both of which were reprinted in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything. As there, Eloquence left me a bit cold in terms of theme (if also mechanically effective) but Glory looks fun. The chapter finishes with a section on backgrounds, that emphasizes again that players should have some kind of relationship with the gods, even if explicitly rejecting them. They also include a single new background, Athlete.

Chapter 2 - Gods of Theros: This chapter provides guidelines for handling gods in the setting - even addressing what could happen if the players want to fight them - followed by detailed profiles on each of the setting's gods. Each profile includes suggested champions and events that connect characters with the gods; they also addresses the concept of Piety, where players can raise or lower their esteem in a particular god's eyes, with examples of how and the benefits from doing so.

Most of the members of the pantheon are recognizably based on the Greek gods, but with various traits reshuffled, and interesting new twists here and there. For example, we get both a slaughter-happy Ares analogue and a more honorable Mars analogue, while the Demeter analogue is hinted to have a darker past. A few others fit the Greek-esque theme, but seem to be further removed from the familiar Greek pantheon, to include a mad-scientist-esque god-Medusa and a Loki-esque trickster figure. The pantheon is probably better designed than their mythological originals, though this pantheon also had the benefit of a writing staff...

Chapter 3 - Realms of Gods and Mortals: Provides an overview of the world of Theros and its nearest convenient parallel dimensions. There are three major cities - roughly analogous to Sparta, Athens, and Wonder Woman's Themyscira - and various other regions where races like leonin, minotaurs, satyrs, and the undead Returned primarily live. The world is bordered on the west by a sea - which includes numerous Odyssey-style islands and eventually pours off the edge of the world - and on the east by mountains, which divide the mortal world from the gods' realm of Nyx. There's also the Underworld, which is mostly like the Greek original but includes a bit of the Norse Valhalla as well. One thing they note is that distances and locations in Theros are approximate and variable, which allows DMs to basically make journeys as long as they want... convenient, but it kind of messes with my sense of verisimilitude. The world certainly has enough options for adventure, especially with the islands, but it also feels weirdly small and sparse compared to other fantasy game worlds.

Chapter 4 - Creating Theros Adventures: This chapter provides guidelines and ideas for running adventures in the setting. They once again emphasize the central role the gods are expected to play, with a number of good general adventure hooks - such as omens and divine "ordeals" -and then god-specific adventure hooks. The hooks for each god include ways to run any as an ally or foe (some feeling more strained than others - and in at least one case they steer you away from the more obvious option of running a villainous campaign), as well as related adventure sites (which vary in how useful they are out of the box, some require extra work).

They also dedicate specific sections to adventures at sea, and adventures in the Underworld (which does seem like the most interesting fantastical place to visit in the setting). The chapter concludes with a sample starting adventure featuring a Returned, which is overall just OK, but does have some interesting ideas at the end.

Chapter 5 - Treasures: A disappointingly short chapter with new magic items from Theros. We only get a handful of general items, plus a listing of godly artifact-weapons (but only for some of the gods). However, they do provide good advice about making magic items seem like part of a PC's destiny, and giving them a history.

Chapter 6 - Friends and Foes: The final chapter provides new monsters for Theros, including guidelines for adapting core D&D monsters to the setting. There aren't a lot of really innovative new monsters here, mostly the ones you'd expect from Greek myth and some local variations thereof. The monster lore is also pretty thin for most of these, which doesn't help. Still, there are some highlights, such as:
- the anvilwrought raptor, basically Clash of the Titans' Bubo
- the Theros chimera, which has customizable animal and monster components
- various types of nymphs, including the Underworld-dwelling lampad, and the volcanic and destructive oread
- the phylaskia, a solidly designed undead guardian with elements from other D&D undead
- the woe strider, which broke from from its destiny a little too hard, and can warp reality through anti-magic and psychic attacks (not very Greek, but neat)

The best part of this chapter, however, are the new rules for "mythic monsters", where monsters brought to the brink of defeat can unlock additional abilities for a second stage of combat. Very video-gamey, but also very simple and effective. They provide three examples of mythic monsters - Arasta (a giant spider-lady), Hythomia the Cruel (a super-medusa and my favorite), and Thomokratis (the obligatory kraken). It's a shame, however, that we don't get more guidelines for creating our own mythic monsters.

Overall, Mythic Odysseys of Theros is very well-designed for what it's trying to be: a remix of Greek mythology for modern tastes, with an emphasis on players as legendary heroes and pawns in godly conflicts, akin to Clash of the Titans. The only downside is that Theros is just different enough from the actual Greek myths to be less useful for more authentically mythological games, and it's a bit too specialized a world to easily run other sorts of campaigns in (without a lot of extra work).

As for the pure rules content, there's a small amount of stuff here that can be ported into other campaigns... though some bits, like Supernatural Gifts or Piety, would be tougher to modify.

In summary, if the setting's themes sound perfect for your kind of campaign, this book is well worth getting. It's also still useful, if less so, for Greek-inspired campaigns more generally. But if you're only interested in rules material, and not the setting, this book may not be worth it to you. (B+)

[Drew · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the idea of Theros: an Ancient Greek-inspired setting where the collective unconscious of its people create gods and magic. The people’s belief and worship literally created the gods. In Theros, there are lots of new character options, creatures, and gods to play with, but this is almost exclusively a sourcebook, and that bummed me out a bit.

If you’re looking for an adventure you can run for months, you’ll need to use the materials here to make something up (or visit the DM’s guild). The introductory adventure will last a few sessions and then it’ll be up to you.

Some new things here that are fun:
- Supernatural gifts from the gods. These bonuses can be great for RP, and stack on top of everything else characters get
- 5 New Races: centaur, leonin, minotaur, satyr, and triton. These are all great in their own ways
- 2 New subclasses for bard and paladin, as well as a couple new background options
- A large section on the gods of Theros, complete with tables describing what you might gain for winning a god’s favor. Speaking of which...
- A new piety mechanic: your piety score with your god increases as you do things that align with your god’s ideals. As your piety increases, you gain access to better perks. Again, this is on top of everything else your character gets

Theros is a very high-powered setting, given all of the things you can stack on top of a character’s regular progression. There are certainly lots of challenging new monsters in the book, but I wonder how these additions will effect balance.

Also, the gods, the supernatural gifts, and the piety mechanic seem to be trying to inject some of that built-in Warlock RP goodness into all other classes. This is great, and I’m all for it. Honestly, I wish the Warlock class worked a little more based on piety to give it more RP weight. But that’s the kind of DM I am—give me story stuff to facilitate depth of characters and connection to the world.

All in all, Mythic Odysseys of Theros is a sourcebook that doesn’t offer any mythic odysseys, just a short introductory adventure. There’s a ton packed into the book, so in a way that’s fine, but as a DM, it’s hard to get excited about running a Theros campaign if I know I’ll need to create (essentially) all of the story. This was my same issue with Eberron: Rising from the Last War, another extensive sourcebook that was light on adventure but heavy on worldbuilding and character options.

Mostly, I buy these to keep up with the options being added to the game, but I get much more excited for the full-fledged campaigns. Still, I really wish there was a long adventure included, because the setting sounds amazing and I’d love to take advantage of all the worldbuilding that’s been done.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a roleplaying book +1 star
It's a 5e Dungeons and Dragons book (my current attuned system) +1 star
It's got a cool piety system that I'm stealing for my homebrew +1 star
Beautiful book illustrations and some fun background to mine for future ideas + 1/2 star
Iconoclasts +1/2 star

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a little dissapointed with this campaign setting. There are a few goods ideas and the gods are well designed but It is lacking content.

For the same prize, I would recommand Odyssey of the Dragonlords if you like Greek themes in D&D.

A much better product with more content and an epic campaign!

[Geordie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Dungeons and Dragons sourcebook for the world of Theros (one of the worlds in the Magic the Gathering card game). It takes considerable inspiration from epic Greek myths with larger than life heroes and frequent divine meddling.

This is another time when I really wish it were possible to give half-stars in Goodreads, because I feel this book belongs exactly between 0 and 5 stars. The execution in this book is mostly excellent, but the conception was, well, baffling. I don't know anyone who was hoping for Magic the Gathering settings, and especially not settings that are copying Greek myths. The book is really clever in many places, I don't know if it's the original source material or the writers of this book, but the descriptions of the different deities are brilliant, with many ideas on how to involve them in the game. Which, to my style of play, doesn't sound like it will ultimately be a lot of fun... The deities are MAJOR deities, no players will ever be able to beat them. If one of the sourcebook's gods is the main antagonist, the campaign is NOT going to end with the heroes kicking their butt. The best the players will be able to do is to stymie their plans and dodge the divine repercussions, or to come to a compromise of some sort. I think a lot of players (and DMs too) will be frustrated by that. The fact that their are so many factions and philosophies to track is going to make this a tricky setting for DMs to wrap their brains around, and the possible opposition of different players' patron deities will make it illogical and/or frustrating to have some players working together.

I really can't see myself DMing or playing in this setting, which is kind of a shame, because a lot of the writing and new material are really good. If this is your thing, it will be your thing. It's just, I wasn't clamoring for it, and I don't know who in the D&D-sphere was.

[Redsteve · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm very impressed at how the authors managed to almost seamlessly blend legendary Greece with Dungeons and Dragons. The world of Theros is not our classical-era Greece, nor even the world of the Iliad and the Odyssey, the Labors of Hercules, Theseus, et al. But the game setting is true to the FEEL of mythological Greece. The Gods (and the afterlife) play a much greater role is this world than in most D&D settings, and, as such, are quite well developed. Like the Olympians, the Gods of Theros fall into two categories: ones who are kind of selfish and turn into assholes when they lose their tempers and those who are assholes all the time - in keeping with my personal opinion is that, of all the “real” world's mythological figures, the Olympians are hands down the biggest jerks. Player Characters in this setting are not just the "heroes" of most D&D games, but rather "Heroes" and champions of one or more gods. This book does a fine job of incorporating the characters' relationships with the gods, and discusses god-by-god, how these deities can be run as patrons and as villains. In fact, it includes how player characters can become disillusioned with their patron deities, and become their enemies. Unlike other 5e settings, Theros has no elves, dwarves or orcs – satyrs, tritons, and minotaurs are the order of the day. My only complaint is that I wish that the authors had spent a bit more time on the non-magical parts of the world, giving it a bit more of a classical period feel. 4 stars.

[Ay Oh Be · Rating 4 out of 5]

Back in high school Greek Mythology captured my attention, so Mythic of Odysseys of Theros really caught my eye.

Honestly I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. The reskinned myths and monsters were familiar enough to draw me in but different enough to keep me interested. I love the side bar additions of the myths of Theros. A really well organized Dm could weave a beautiful world using the information in this book. The creation of the piety score is interesting since the gods are typically so active in all the D&D worlds that I enjoyed this extra bit of detail and abilities that could be added.

The new races introduced in the book are also great. I really want to make a Satyr. Its going in my back pocket of to-be played characters. And the detailed maps of the different temples/places of worship are fun. I have already suggested their use for several possible campaigns.

My only reservation is that I feel you would need a skilled Dm to be organized enough to keep track of everything. The new mechanics and potential machinations would require more work than may be typically laid out for a campaign.

[Ian Mathers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another thing I like about 5E is how these books they've put out as essentially campaign settings do have an actually distinct vibe, both mechanical and flavour wise. Love the piety system here, all the interactions with gods, etc. and even the way they resist the urge to put every standard D&D race in here. (I have relatively few thoughts about it being based on M:tG; haven't played that in years and years, but what's here seems good on its own merits). However... so far, ones like this one, Ravnica, Eberron, they get one book and then nothing. Those books are good, and again present distinct new ways to play the game more than campaign settings used to, but why no follow up? Why is every official adventure in the friggin' Forgotten Realms? But of course, that's not a problem with this book, so I should probably stop there.

[Mathias Mahieu · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a required reading for any DM interested in running Ancient Greek inspired games.
Although it could have used some more adventures or campaign inspiration IMO,
the diverse themes, deep dive into the Pantheon of Gods and their connection to the many species populating Theros, clear explanations, incredible amount of options/new creatures/unique items/... and the fun and dense creature creation toolkits,... offer immense possibilities for anyone ready to build a unique adventure, off the beaten path.
Also, the Alt cover is amazing!

[Drew Reilly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is probably the best of the expansions to DnD 5e. Although it doesn't have the expansion in classes or races as some of the other books do, it has the expansion of mythos and a play style. The idea of the Nixborn, Returned, and the DreamWorld are amazing additions. The Pantheon is extensive and is going to be fun to play. I can't wait to try it out.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

This wasn't bad, it just took forever. I think because it always had to cover every one of the 15 gods in each section, after a few gods it got really repetitive. The second half, when you got to magical items and monsters it really picked up because each page was different now instead of same shit for a different god.

[Robbe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great supplement for 5e dnd. The way the gods are laid out in the books makes creating your own pantheon easier and helps with a bit of realism. The art for the book is also amazingly done. I would recommend this to anyone looking to better shape their own pantheon or wanting to bring a bit of that Greek myth flavor into their game.

[Fable · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect campaign guide! Provides just enough details to help a DM become inspired and help flesh out the world and the mythical tone it promises, while leaving plenty of room for players to pick and choose what they care about and for DMs to add their own spin on the setting. Very excited to use in my own games!

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really well thought out campaign setting. It has several new elements to it that make it different to other D&D settings, it isn‘t overwhelming and all the information you need is contained in one book.

[b · Rating 3 out of 5]

I mean, it’s a D&D book. Like some of the ways it looks at complicating legendary boss fights, and new racial options, but, yeah, not worth the asking price unfortunately. Ice Wind Dale is looking like it’ll be a better release hopefully, but only time will tell.

[Will Cooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic setting in the D&D universe, based on ancient Greek mythology with information about locations, monsters, and a new mini-system of gods and piety. I'm about to run a campaign based on this (with some homebrew of my own) and will re-read this again another time or two.

[Federico · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best expansions yet. The possibility to make a pact with the gods of Theros offers unique possibilities of character creation and new depths of gameplay. You don't need to be a greek mythology nerd nor a lore expert to appreciate this book.

[Diego · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very nice book, even for those who, like me, haven't played Magic in ages. The mix of Dungeons & Dragons and Ancient Greece's mythos is a surefire recipe for sucess. Loved it.

[Rick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, but unless I end playing in a campaign set in this world, I doubt I’ll pick it up.

[Andrew Bell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great additional rules and campaign space for adventures!

[Ciaran · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's great! I love this book!

[Jenna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Would love to run a campaign in this world. If only my players wouldn't take it upon themselves to try and kill every single god in the pantheon.

[Camilo Navarrete - D-Propósito Humano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Es la mejor adaptación de un escenario de Magic. Aunque carece de un mayor sabor griego, es útil al adoptar este tipo de entorno como escenario de aventura.

[Brad Theado · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't see myself ever using this.

[Richard Banks · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't have any knowledge of MTG worlds or fiction when I picked this book up. I was blown away by the world contained within. I couldn't recommend it more.

[Pádraic · Rating 3 out of 5]

An odd setting book. Lots of details on gods, all their various domains and myths, along with ways to run a campaign themed around each of them, or else as your villain. Those latter sections are very thorough, lots of tables involving possible hooks and NPCs and schemes and conflicts. The land of Theros itself isn't thrilling, but starts getting more interesting once we leave the human cities and get further out, into the stranger places.

It is still, of course, ancient Greek mythology with the names all changed around, and extra fantasy stuff added. If you're into that, great! I'm not, so I'm mostly taken with the mechanics that be applied elsewhere: the more storied artifacts, the supernatural gifts, and the mythic encounters. Otherwise, I didn't love it, but that's more on me than on the book specifically.