Dungeons and Dragons Getting Rid of Unpopular Species

gamerant.com:

Wizards of the Coast has been testing new content for One D&D, the next edition of Dungeons and Dragons, and the results are in about one particular species in consideration. The Ardlings, a potential new playable race that the Dungeons and Dragons game designers considered adding, were not received well enough during playtesting to make it into the new version.

The Ardlings, who are celestial creatures with animal heads, were one of the many proposed additions to One D&D. One D&D was first announced in August 2022, and has been in development since. Even with the D&D Open Game License controversy that caused delays, as well as threatening the game's future and the company's relationship with fans, the designers themselves have been committed to making D&D better and more accessible for others. Players have continued to give feedback for the development of One D&D, which is scheduled to be released in 2024 for D&D 5e's 10-year anniversary.

Dungeons and Dragons Executive Producer Explains One D&D Playtest Delays

The main issue with Ardlings is that they currently lack context within the D&D world. They don't have a specific part to play in any campaigns or parts of the world, and to some players it felt like they came out of nowhere. However, many players love the concept of the Ardlings, with some people already making fan art, and game design architect Jeremy Crawford says it's possible that the species will be added in a later update to the game.

Besides the Ardlings, Wizards of the Coast has been playtesting many other potential changes to the game, including changes to the Cleric class, the Dragonborn race, and the Goliath race, which have all received high approval ratings. They are also planning on releasing virtual