Dungeons & Dragons telegraphs 5th edition changes in major release
A glut of Dungeons & Dragons playtest materials launched on Thursday, representing the biggest batch of proposed changes so far to the game’s popular 5th edition ruleset. The Unearthed Arcana document runs 77 pages, and includes substantive changes to seven core classes from the Player’s Handbook (2014) — bard, cleric, druid, monk, paladin, ranger, and rogue. Feedback on the playtest opens with a survey on July 11.
D&D publisher Wizards of the Coast is in the middle of a realignment of the iconic role-playing game’s core rules. Initially dubbed “One D&D,” the Seattle-based Hasbro subsidiary is now referring to these updates as the revised 2024 Core Rulebooks. Three such revised rulebooks will roll out throughout next year, and will be referred to by their original names with the year of their revision appended to the title — thus Player’s Handbook (2024), Dungeon Master’s Guide (2024), and Monster Manual (2024). While these books will be wholly compatible with the 2014 versions that came before — as well as every 5th edition book yet published for the TTRPG — they also represent a new starting point for future content.
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In May, game design architect Chris Perkins elaborated on why, nearly a decade into a wildly successful new edition of the game, these new books were so necessary.
“For so many people, those books are their introductory experience to the game,” said game design architect Chris Perkins in a group interview with press in May. “Those books are denser than some of our later books, the monsters aren’t as easy or as fun to play as some of our more recent books, and finding things is not as easy. [...] So making sure that our gateway to the game is as strong, as beautiful, [and] as accessible as
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