It’s been somewhat over a 12 months since Wizards of the Coast launched the most recent iteration of Dungeons & Dragons in September 2024. Colloquially often known as “D&D 2024,” this can be a revised and expanded model of the fifth version guidelines, offered as backward-compatible and primarily based on the playtest cycle referred to as “One D&D.”
“D&D 2024” is a bizarre identify. No different version names the 12 months the product first got here out. Ten years from now, calling it “D&D 2024” will really feel even weirder, however at each step, Wizards has careworn the truth that that is not a brand new version of the sport, only a revision and enchancment on what we already had. Therefore, why they averted the “5.5” label too: D&D 3.5 was fairly totally different from its predecessor.
“What’s in a reputation?” lamented Juliet as she cried about her love for candy Romeo, and my reply is: quite a bit. The reality is that D&D 2024 is a a lot greater revision of 5e than Wizards desires us to consider, and that distinction between presentation and actuality has birthed an absence of identification that has hindered the primary steps of this new child child.
That’s to not say that D&D 2024 hasn’t offered effectively. Wizards reported that the 2024 Participant’s Handbook was the fastest-selling D&D product ever, and so they needed to order an enormous print run. Nevertheless, there are additionally no public or audited gross sales numbers. Wizards by no means shared something official apart from PR statements, and people claims may as simply discuss with what they had been promoting to shops and retailers, to not how a lot they had been promoting to gamers. One 12 months later, new information appears to inform a much less endearing story.
However from the attitude of a Dungeon Grasp and participant who has been gaming with D&D 2024 for the previous 12 months, I’ve to marvel: Was this actually an enchancment over 5e, and a vital step ahead for the product?
What number of D&D 2024 merchandise had been launched in a single 12 months?
Counting each bodily and digital-only, Wizards of the Coast launched 12 merchandise (not counting the no-cost D&D 2024 Free Guidelines), from the Participant’s Handbook in September 2024 to Forge of the Artificer in December 2025. Of those, three have been digital-only expansions (Lowryn: First Mild, Astarion’s E book of Hungers, and Netheril’s Fall). Apart from the three core rulebooks, there have additionally been two new starter units, Heroes of the Borderlands and Stranger Issues: Welcome to the Hellfire Membership, and one journey anthology, Dragon Delves. There was one Forgotten Realms marketing campaign setting, cut up into two books: Heroes of Faerûn and Adventures in Faerûn. Lastly, Eberron additionally received some love with Forge of the Artificer, which introduces the Artificer class for the 2024 guidelines whereas increasing the lore and setting a bit.
From this primary 12 months of publications, a design shift is clear. 5e’s primary merchandise had been “journey modules” (extra correctly described as marketing campaign modules) comparable to Curse of Strahd or Rime of the Frostmaiden. These thick, juicy books had every thing a DM wanted to run a story marketing campaign, and these had been a giant a part of 5e’s success. They catered to DMs who didn’t need to prep an excessive amount of or create a complete marketing campaign on their very own, however in addition they supplied a sandbox that may very well be modified and expanded at will. So many had been nice adventures to run or play that explored beloved places within the sport’s worlds. In its first 12 months, 5e revealed 4 of those books (the two-part Tyranny of Dragons storyline, Princes of the Apocalypse, and Out of the Abyss). No journey modules have appeared for D&D 2024 to this point.
Nonetheless, the primary 12 months of D&D 2024 had somewhat bit for everybody. Two starter units to introduce new gamers to the sport, an journey anthology spotlighting probably the most well-known monster within the franchise, a marketing campaign setting for the preferred (possibly too fashionable) D&D world, and a few neat expansions with a smaller focus.
The 2 new starter units have been typically praised as a very good introduction to the sport, which is what a starter set must be. They lean quite a bit into board sport design to enchantment to that participant base, however they’re not on the identical degree as Misplaced Mine of Phandelver.
Dragon Delvesset the tone for this new version, offering adventures which can be simple to prep and fast to run. That’s a helpful factor to have round for any DM, however the adventures themselves don’t significantly shine for writing or design. Nonetheless, in case you like dragons, this can be a no-brainer, particularly for the superb artwork choice.
I’ve talked extensively in regards to the Forgotten Realms books right here and right here. I nonetheless suppose that these are good merchandise to purchase if you wish to run a marketing campaign in Faerûn, even with their shortcomings. Talking of marketing campaign settings, Forge of the Artificer is an efficient complement to 2019’s glorious Eberron: Rising from the Final Struggle.
The digital expansions have been principally disappointing. Astarion’s E book of Hungers is a publicity stunt that you could skip with out worry of lacking something. Netheril’s Fall showcases the uninteresting journey design template that appears to be the brand new normal for this version (extra on that later).
Nonetheless, the core rulebooks are what make or break an version, and within the case of D&D 2024, they’re a combined bag.
The core guidelines
The Participant’s Handbook is the important useful resource for D&D 2024. All the principles to play and run the sport are right here, however the ebook’s primary focus is on character courses. Amongst all of the mechanical adjustments from 2014, adjustments to backgrounds really feel like one of many largest missteps. In D&D 2024, backgrounds now present the stat modifications that when got here from races (now referred to as species), and the essential origin feats. Beforehand, we had tables to find out traits: character traits, beliefs, bonds, and flaws. These helped flesh out a personality’s character to make role-playing that a lot simpler and had been very useful for gamers who didn’t have a transparent backstory in thoughts.
After all, you’ll be able to nonetheless use the previous traits tables, however why take one thing good out of the ebook? It’s an indication of the damaging penalties of a design method that focuses an excessive amount of on streamlining and simplification. Whereas it might appear that the adjustments to races and backgrounds made character design extra versatile, I believe the alternative occurred. Now, if you wish to optimize a construct, you’re compelled to decide on a background not for role-playing causes, however as a result of it provides the proper feat and stat boosts.
Even the revamped 2024 Monster Handbook strips away quite a lot of the lore and pointers for utilizing and creating monsters current within the 2014 version, rendering it a very easy bestiary with little greater than stat blocks.
The core ebook the place this “design by subtraction” method reveals its worst outcomes is definitely the 2024 Dungeon Grasp’s Information. The 2014 model suffered from unhealthy format and disorganization that made info exhausting to seek out, however when you discovered the right way to navigate it, the ebook grew to become a necessary useful resource for all DMs. The 2024 model, as a substitute, is clearly tailor-made for brand new DMs. There’s a ton of recommendation on the right way to run classes, create campaigns, and the like, however it lacks depth. The amount is there, however every thing is minimalistic.
What’s D&D 2024’s objective?
D&D 2024 appears to have two primary objectives. First, introduce new gamers to the sport, and second, make D&D quicker and “simpler” to play. Two starter units that draw inspiration from tabletop video games and mainstream media — Stranger Issues, precise play reveals, and even Baldur’s Gate 3 — attempt to cowl the primary objective. Making the sport simpler to play, alternatively, has knowledgeable the vast majority of the design selections behind the brand new guidelines. The definition of “simpler,” nonetheless, is the place D&D 2024 begins to rub many veteran gamers, myself included, the flawed method.
Whereas D&D just isn’t a aggressive sport, the gamers and the DM are sometimes put in adversarial positions. The steadiness between what the participant characters can do and the way the DM can problem them (learn: monsters, traps, and related) is necessary. 5e struggled with this, making it difficult (however removed from not possible) for the DM to steadiness the sport at medium and excessive ranges. D&D 2024 makes it a lot tougher. The impression I’ve after one 12 months is that every thing is designed to make issues as simple as potential for the gamers. Throughout class design, feats, and encounter steerage, the 2024 guidelines constantly take away friction that when gave DMs instruments to create stress.
Each class can now do extra issues, and extra effectively. For instance, each character can get the Magic Provoke feat, giving them entry to a few cantrips and one first-level spell. This will likely not seem like a lot, however it permits for highly effective combos for melee courses (I’m taking a look at you, Booming Blade) and further versatility for spellcasters (a Wizard can now forged Remedy Wounds). Total, limitations on what position a category ought to play has been blurred. This isn’t essentially a problem in a sport that’s, let’s face it, a superhero energy fantasy, however it turns into a problem for DMs who need to preserve gamers on their toes and provides them a significant problem. It additionally does nothing, I believe, to repair the principle points discovered throughout the 5e guidelines.
Take the principles for Weapon Mastery, for instance. This D&D 2024 addition was designed to make melee courses extra fascinating, giving them extra choices in fight past easy assaults. Nevertheless, they’re at the moment unbalanced, so some could be abused with little effort. Extra importantly, this rule does nothing to repair the problem of a melee character having to attend for his or her flip to roll an assault, miss, and do nothing till the subsequent flip. The “Nick” property is an exception, because it frees up a bonus motion for dual-wield builds, however it’s additionally one of many best to abuse (take into consideration all of the issues a Rogue can do).
As I mentioned in this text in regards to the Forgotten Realms books, this “make it simpler” method just isn’t restricted to creating participant characters extra highly effective. DMs are inspired to do extra hand-holding for the gamers, each on a gameplay degree (with issues like exploration and fight) and on a story one (see the Epic Destinies part in Adventures in Faerûn). This isn’t merely a conceptual challenge, it has a giant affect on the kind of merchandise that D&D 2024 has been releasing and their content material.
All of the enlargement books launched, together with Adventures in Faerûn, comprise the brand new “one-page adventures” template launched within the Dungeon Grasp’s Information. Every features a “state of affairs” blurb summarizing the context, a “hook” to get the characters concerned, and a sequence of encounters. They’re linear, provide no choices for branching paths or significant participant company, and often include a sequence of fights. I’ve a tough time calling these “adventures,” however I wouldn’t have a problem if these had been simply meant as an alternative choice to present fast and easy-to-run choices for sport classes. Nevertheless, the disappearance of 5e’s massive journey modules tells me that this would be the normal happening. Not simply as a DM, however as a D&D buyer, I’ll take one Curse of Strahd over 1,000 mini-adventures, any day.
Is D&D 2024 truly backward-compatible?
D&D 2024 additionally struggles with backward compatibility. You don’t have to throw all of your 5e books out of the window, if that’s what you’re fearful about. I’m at the moment DMing an Out of the Abyss marketing campaign utilizing the three core rulebooks from 2024, and it’s doable. However it isn’t clean. Character courses modified probably the most with the 2024 guidelines, and that’s an enormous a part of the sport. Some gamers might need to use subclasses that haven’t been ported to the 2024 guidelines, inflicting bizarre (and certain overpowered) interactions.
Character courses have all been boosted in a method or one other, which means {that a} DM has to re-evaluate all threats, challenges, and encounters. There are additionally adjustments to the principles that may make it exhausting to make use of monsters and NPCs from 5e. When you’re utilizing a 5e journey and a monster doesn’t seem within the 2024 Monster Handbook, it’s finest to attempt to replace that stat block to the brand new guidelines first.
Spells additionally received a significant overhaul. About 30 spells had been redesigned, together with often-used classics comparable to Counterspell, and lots of others had been reworked. A few of these adjustments had been fairly good, comparable to clarifying the “just one spell with a spell slot per flip rule,” which nerfs the much-dreaded Silvery Barbs, for instance. The gist is that magic modified fairly a bit.
Total, the declare that the 2024 and 2014 guidelines are totally suitable is an exaggeration. You may combine and match on a case-by-case foundation, however the 2024 guidelines largely assume that you just’re not utilizing the “legacy” guidelines, making this extra just like a brand new version than an replace, regardless of claims of the opposite made on the time of launch.
What D&D 2024 desires to be — and what it’s forsaking
D&D 2024 suffers from an absence of a transparent identification. It’s a streamlining effort to additional simplify an version of the sport that was already criticized for its “free guidelines” method. I truly didn’t thoughts the simplicity of 5e, as a result of it allowed gamers and designers to concentrate on all of the cool issues that exist exterior the principles. After the strictness of the rules-heavy 3.5e and 4e, 5e gave us a giant canvas to color with our creativity. If an replace was actually wanted, it ought to have targeted on offering extra assets for gamers and DMs to run video games extra easily, and on fixing some gameplay points that emerged over the ten years 5e has been round. Whereas D&D 2024 did repair a few of these issues, it additionally modified sufficient of the principles to make this really feel like a unique sport, creating new steadiness points within the course of.
In its effort to make the sport simpler and extra accessible, D&D 2024 locations a transparent emphasis on decreasing friction for gamers. For newcomers, that accessibility could also be precisely what the sport wants. New DMs will certainly discover the one-page and low-prep adventures helpful, in addition to the step-by-step steerage within the Dungeon Grasp’s Information. For veteran gamers and Dungeon Masters, nonetheless, the query is much less about ease of entry and extra about what has been misplaced alongside the best way. One 12 months in, D&D 2024 hasn’t totally answered whether or not simplifying the sport additionally makes it higher — solely that it has chosen a unique path.
