1st Edition Advanced Dungeons and Dragons Cover Art without Text

May 29, 2014

I have been playing Dungeons & Dragons again lately and the books have migrated from a closet to a prominent shelf in the living room where they belong. This has increased the amount of time I spend looking at the books, which is substantial. Looking at the Dungeons and Dragons Cover Art of my treasured 1st Edition books, I have often wondered what the original paintings that adorn them would look like without the text.

For the life of me, I cannot ever remember seeing this art in printed form outside these books. Certainly not in the poster format that I desire. If they had, I would have had these hanging all over my walls as a kid. I decided to see if anyone had attempted to recreate the work, and I am happy I did.

A quick search and I wound up at the Dragonfoot forums where poster Kevin Mayle, shared some reproductions he painted of them in the 1990s using acrylics. I think you will agree that the results are pretty impressive.

I would love for Wizards of the Coast to release these works in poster form. If they did, I think they should just use Kevin’s work. They are remarkable and true to the original. Needless to say, I want them all!

You can see more of Kevin Mayle’s art, including his Advanced Dungeons and Dragons Cover Art without Text at his online gallery.