Driftforge Games unveils Vault of Monsters, a folklore-rich 5e bestiary

Driftforge Games is taking a very different swing at 5e monster design: Vault of Monsters is built around British regional folklore, not another shelf of dragons-and-demons reskins. The studio, based in Bidford-on-Avon in Warwickshire, is lining up the book for 7 May 2026 on BackerKit as part of Pocketopia 2026, with pledges starting at around £30.

BackerKit describes the release as a little-over-100-page paperback with 25 homebrew monsters and 25 plug-in encounters that can drop straight into a campaign. Driftforge’s own pitch calls it a “chunky paperback packed with original creatures and drop-in encounters,” aimed at busy GMs. Geek Native’s early coverage framed the same project as a 200-page bestiary, so the launch materials and the studio’s first public description do not line up on final length.

What does stay consistent is the table use case. Geek Native said the book goes beyond raw stat blocks with Monster Lore, encounter hooks and lair details, plus new playable species such as the Tide Thief and additional subclasses. That matters more than a simple page count. A black dog tied to a village omen, or a graveyard creature with a local warning attached to it, changes how a DM stages an encounter: the fight starts with the story, not the initiative roll.

That folklore angle is the hook. James Gregory, who also appears publicly with Roll Britannia, said the project grew out of Driftforge’s love of strange British folklore. The studio is pairing that with 100 per cent human-made artwork and visual development from Nick Ashton of Chicken Monster, which should help Vault of Monsters avoid the generic look that flattens a lot of third-party bestiaries. If the art lands, the book should feel handmade rather than assembled.

The legends driving the book are the right kind of specific. Black Shuck is one of the best-known ghost-dog traditions in English folklore, especially in East Anglia, while the Vampire Rabbit of Newcastle upon Tyne is the kind of local grotesque that sticks in the memory because it feels half-warning, half-joke. That is exactly the lane Vault of Monsters seems to want: creatures rooted in place, with enough regional texture to turn a routine monster hunt into a campaign voice. For DMs who want folklore horror and a stronger sense of setting, that is the useful part of the pitch.