Dungeons & Dragons is going to have a big year in 2024, as Wizards of the Coast revealed at PAX Unplugged what the TTRPG product lineup will be. Commemorating 50 years of D&D, this includes a huge tome featuring the Original D&D rules set and the first One D&D Core rulebook.
2023 saw ups and downs for WotC and the Dungeons & Dragons brand. For every success like collaborating with Larian Studios for Baldur’s Gate 3, there are big failures such as the predatory Open Gaming License (OGL) controversy. Having said that, the highs for WotC (and parent company Hasbro) related to D&D did outnumber the lows.
Based on what was revealed at the recent PAX Unplugged, it looks like Wizards of the Coast is setting up 2024 to be the best year for Dungeons & Dragons and the fans of the world’s most popular TTRPG.
Next year we celebrate 50 years of Dungeons and Dragons! Keep an eye out for special announcements, games, and more as we roll into the new year.
Where did you start your D&D adventure? pic.twitter.com/7lI43ResUk
— Dungeons & Dragons (@Wizards_DnD) December 1, 2023
The first big reveal is The Making of Dungeons & Dragons: 1970 – 1976. This is a tome that showcases the Original Dungeons & Dragons rulebooks from 1974 and how they were developed. Given the date range included in the title, this will have 500+ pages of the very first version of D&D up to the later printings that came inside an all-white box.
Aside from recreating the Original D&D rulebooks, The Making of Dungeons & Dragons: 1970 – 1976 will include commentary that discusses how the rules evolved under its creators, E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. An example of this is the first D&D character class options. This only included the Fighting-Man (which would later be called the Fighter), Magic-User, and the Cleric.
The second big reveal is the new Dungeons & Dragons Player’s Handbook. As previously reported, Wizards of the Coast is developing a new edition of the D&D TTRPG. But unlike previous editions, this is intended to be the definitive version of the rules, with WotC referring to it as “One D&D”. And while the design is built on and compatible with D&D Fifth Edition, this One D&D will be the game’s official standard rules.
Traditionally, Dungeons & Dragons is comprised of three core rulebooks: the Player’s Handbook, the Dungeon Master’s Guide, and the Monster Manual. Plus, the Player’s Handbook is generally the first of these core books to be released, as it contains the base rules for character creation, classes and races, spells, equipment, and actions.
While there are no specifics revealed for the 2024 D&D Player’s Handbook, fans can see a glimpse of what’s in store by participating in the Unearthed Arcana playtests through D&D Beyond.
Aside from these two big releases, WotC also has a couple of major supplements to One D&D. Vecna: Eve of Ruin appears to be the first new adventure that will adopt the One D&D rules. Appropriately, it features Vecna as the antagonist, one of the oldest villains in Dungeons & Dragons lore. Vecna has even appeared in video games such as Dungeons & Dragons Online, as the mighty lich’s machinations involve multiversal conquest.
Meanwhile, Quests from the Infinite Staircase is likely a rework of older adventures. Similar to Tales from the Yawning Portal, this will revise modules and from the earlier editions of D&D to follow the One D&D rules.
The panel of Dungeons & Dragons at PAX Unplugged 2023 only touched on each product briefly. But overall, the future of Dungeons & Dragons looks promising. There is a definite theme of looking back at the past while forging forward to the future of the iconic tabletop roleplaying game.
What else could Wizards of the Coast be planning to celebrate 50 years of Dungeons & Dragons? Could an announcement of a sequel to the live-action Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves movie be coming soon? Or perhaps there will be an update to the status of the D&D virtual tabletop (VTT) built with the Unreal Engine 5? What classic D&D content would you like to have an update with the new rules?
