So is that it? (re: the setting announcements)

DEFCON 1 said:

You can get the UA Races of Eberron right now on the website for free.

http://dnd.wizards.com/articles/unearthed-arcana/races-eberron

You might need to wait a bit to see if they decide to release Dragonmarks as a UA, but I would imagine those will probably appear soon too for free. And a new and updated UA Artificer will also probably be arriving shortly as well I'd imagine.

Click to expand...

Could be for things like Dragon marks they primarily want the input of fans willing to pay for playtesting.

I thought that there might be three settings, not 2...

Magus Darkwind said:

It could be because it's considered Unearthed Arcana and will, therefore, be updated for free as the playtest wears on. Once complete, I can see WotC offering a POD softcover or even a full-blown HC.

Click to expand...

That is exactly what Mike Mearls said on twitter

Melkor said:

I have zero interest in Ravica, and not a fan of paying for the Eberron playtest material.

At least for the Pathfinder 2E playtest, the PDF is free, and you get a book if you pay for something.

Yeah, I know that is a set of rules and this is setting material, but still.

Click to expand...

It will be automatically updated as it moves from playtest to final (you will get a notice and can download the update for free), and when it is final a POD option will be offered. At least according to Mike Mearls on twitter today.

Parmandur said:

Could be for things like Dragon marks they primarily want the input of fans willing to pay for playtesting.

Click to expand...

Eh... if I had to guess, it's because they wanted the cash to go to Keith Baker for putting in the work to write the thing (as I believe he, with an assist from Ruty Rutenberg, wrote the guide.) Wanting only playtesters willing to pay money to get the material does not seem to be their M.O., since they've thrown everything else for UA out to the general public for free for testing.

You're not paying for playtest material.

Based on what's been said, the PDF will be updated as the mechanics are finalized, and once you've bought a PDF on DMs Guild, you have access to updated versions for free. So essentially you're pre-paying for the final book, and between now and when the book is ready, you have access to the various playtest drafts.

It is also integrated into DnD Beyobd, so can be easily used with OC generation etc. As a PC Gamer I don't have a problem buying into an alpha, getting updates, and having a say in the final thing. I won't buy the PDF because there is no way for you to get the price back if/when the PoD comes out - drivethru don't offer that option like I am getting with the new Runequest Glorantha. But the DnD Beyond is better for me, and I get money off as a package buyer - and more off using the NEVERWINTER coupon code.

Okay, this is the problem with relying on spoken interviews for "news".

Maybe there's another setting coming in August that's like Eberron. Perhaps Dark Sun, as they seem to be doubling down on getting the psion out.
Or not. Maybe Stewart mispoke and meant two settings this year with one this summer being for the fans. Or maybe he meant hardcore "WotC" fans and was including people who like both D&D and MtG in the mix.

We don't know.

The actual interview said:

"Next month we're going to talk about a couple of different settings that people can start playing as early as this year," Stewart said.​

Okay, we have the two settings now. And we'll be playing them this year. Checkmark.

Also stated:

Dungeons & Dragons plans to start talking about the new product as early as next month. "We have two surprises that I think hardcore D&D fans are really going to love coming this summer," Stewart said. "And then I think we got one surprise that's going to release later this year that we've not told anyone about. We're going to announce it in July."​

Okay, so two surprises for summer and one for later this year.

So one surprise is Eberron, one is Ravanica. Which covers the two settings mentioned above. The third surprise... dunno. It could be Eberron's PDF and being added to the Guild is two separate surprises. Or the Eberron book and redone artificer. Or the announcement of the collector's edition/ giftset could also be one of the surprises as well.
Heck, they could even have been referring to the board games or colouring books.

Honestly, I'm assuming this is it for a while.
They don't want to overload the Guild with content and likely want people to focus on what's out and what's coming before adding too much new content and options. I wouldn't be surprised to see more products like this on the Guild though in a year or even six months.
There could be another surprise coming, but it's likely not a setting.

Summer does not end til Sept 22, so that gives them two more months of summer to put out another surprise, maybe at the same time next month.

DEFCON 1 said:

Eh... if I had to guess, it's because they wanted the cash to go to Keith Baker for putting in the work to write the thing (as I believe he, with an assist from Ruty Rutenberg, wrote the guide.) Wanting only playtesters willing to pay money to get the material does not seem to be their M.O., since they've thrown everything else for UA out to the general public for free for testing.

Click to expand...

What I mean is, Shifters are more generic and can be used in the FR or Greyhawk without blinking an eye. Dragonmarks are moreesoteric and setting specific: they might not need input from the D&D public.