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Article Summary
- Kobold Press has released Court & Shadow, its first-ever campaign frame for the Daggerheart RPG.
- The 35-page PDF reworks Kobold Press’s Courts of the Shadow Fey adventure, originally published for D&D 4E and 5E.
- The third-party campaign frame includes a ready-to-run setting centered on fey intrigue in the otherworldly Shadow Court.
- The campaign frame also includes 14 adversaries, 2 environments, a range of NPCs and new fey “Status” mechanics.
- Court & Shadow debuted as a con-exclusive physical release at Gen Con 2026 and is now available as a PDF for $9.99 USD.
Kobold Press is stepping into new territory (literally) with Court & Shadow, its first-ever product for the Daggerheart RPG. The campaign frame – which is a third-party release produced under the game’s open license – trades dungeon crawling for fey intrigue, dangerous bargains and dark magic.
It also marks a major first for Kobold Press, which has traditionally released content for D&D 5E and 5.5E and its Tales of the Valiant system. At the same time, it’s another milestone for Daggerheart, as more major third-party publishers produce content for the system. The campaign frame was recently previewed at Gen Con, but it’s now available for purchase as a PDF from Kobold Press and DriveThruRPG.
Below, we step into the Shadow Realm and take a closer look at Kobold Press’ first stab at Daggerheart.
What is the Court & Shadow Daggerheart campaign frame?
Court & Shadow is a 35-page Daggerheart campaign frame written by novelist and Kobold Press freelancer Brandon Crilly. Much of the material is based on the iconic Courts of the Shadow Fey adventure which Kobold Press originally published back in 2010 for Pathfinder 1st Edition and D&D 4th Edition, and was later updated in 2019 for D&D 5E.
The campaign frame centers on an escalating conflict between the Mortal Realm’s Free City of Zobeck (from Kobold Press’ popular Midgard setting) and the wild, mercurial Shadow Realm. While Zobeck has long flourished under self-determination after overthrowing its old monarchy, the fey Shadow Court has suddenly claimed authority over the city, declaring an ancient land deal void now that the monarchy is gone. This territorial crisis is further complicated by a deep political imbalance within the Shadow Realm itself, where the Queen of Air and Darkness has usurped sole control for over a century, exiling her husband, the Moonlit King, and inciting treacherous new plots from their ambitious son, the Black Prince. Players are tasked with journeying to the Shadow Realm to negotiate with the fey and ensure the survival of Zobeck, while becoming embroiled in otherworldly intrigue. The frame also includes:
- A status system that tracks where player characters stand in the eyes of the Shadow Court.
- New Fey NPCs built for roleplaying opportunities rather than just combat encounters.
- 14 new adversaries covering a wide range of tiers.
- 2 new environments, with associated locations, landmarks and factions
Where can you get the Court & Shadow campaign frame?
Court & Shadow was first unveiled as part of Kobold Press’s Gen Con 2026 lineup, where it launched as an extremely limited, con-exclusive physical release sold only at the show. It’s since been converted into a PDF and made its way to the Kobold Press store
How much is the Court & Shadow campaign frame?
The PDF retails for $9.99 USD, which isn’t a bad price point considering how much content you get and the potential to run this as a fully fleshed-out Daggerheart campaign.
Final Thoughts
This marks Kobold Press’ first release for Daggerheart, but it’s not the only one. Eberron creator Keith Baker recently brought The Night Market mini campaign frame and Ghostfire is porting over Drakkenheim to Daggerheart. All these new projects exist thanks to Darrington Press releasing a free system reference document and community license for Daggerheart; the same open-door approach that helped grow D&D’s massive third-party ecosystem. Seeing veteran third-party publishers create new content for a system that’s barely a year old is a strong signal of where Daggerheart’s momentum is headed.
We’ll be keeping an eye out for whether Kobold Press sticks around in the Shadow Realm for future releases. In the meantime, you can pick up Court & Shadow now as a PDF from Kobold Press and DriveThruRPG.