As we approach the end of 1981 we get the November issue of Dragon with a cool Erol Otus cover. The issue marks the return of an important part of the magazine and TSR in general, by bringing back Gygax’s From the Sorcerer’s Scroll column, which had been absent for over a year at this point. Gygax writes about the world of Greyhawk and again return to the issue of “race” in Greyhawk, a lot of talk about “pure” and “mixed” races which feels not only uncomfortable but unnecessary, also because he had already written this in #52 as an addendum to Lakofka’s Tiny Hut. At least he promises to being new content in the next issues. But it’s not all about returns, there is also someone new showing up here and that is Larry Elmore that contributes a new comic strip at the end of the magazine, but more importantly will be one of the most important (together with Clyde Caldwell) artists that will set the visual identity of AD&D for the rest of the 80s and beyond. 

However, the magazine starts off with a couple of reviews of the Fiend Folio by Ed Greenwood (who gives it a pretty negative review) and Alan Zumwalt (who gives it a middling one) as well as a reply by editor Don Turnbull. Turnbull explains, and he is right, that many of the problems pointed out are a result of a really difficult publishing history which made the book exist in a limbo for about 2 years before publication, making it outdated by the time it came out. 

We also get new stats for Dinos in AD&D, stats for Robin Hood and his Merry Men, a little adventure module and an article on how your characters can run away from danger in dungeons. We also get the usual bestiary and comic strips with the addition of Da Letter by Larry Elmore.