D&D 5E WotC's Nathan Stewart Teases New D&D Setting Book in 2019

No real details, other than denying that it will be Spelljammer, but in the latest Spoilers & Swag episode Stewart stated straight up that another hardcover setting book is coming in 2019:

"Nathan Stewart, the senior director of Dungeons & Dragons and Avalon Hill, made the announcement on his monthly "Spoilers & Swag" Twitchcast yesterday. 'Next year for our annual releases I can confirm there will be a setting book,' he said. 'A new setting book. A book that we have not created that is for a D&D setting.'"

I'd speculate, given the Settings mentioned in the recent marketing survey and what is listed in the DMsGuild, that the likely options are from the following, given we got Magic this year and Stewart has previously said they are not working on a new setting right now:

- Dark Sun
- Dragonlance
- Eberron
- Greyhawk
- Planescape
- Ravenloft

https://comicbook.com/gaming/2018/11/03/dungeons-and-dragons-new-campaign-setting-book-2019/

 

[gyor]

WotC has been using 5E to try and train people to stop thinking about or worrying about "canon". They don't want to concern themselves with it much anymore, because it is a pain in the ass to work around and it requires a massive amount of additional writing to have to come up with all the crap that goes on in all the corners of the worlds, most of which are ever barely looked at or touched upon.

They know there are certain players who will never stop being hung up on what is current "canon" in every single location in every single part of a particular setting... but they just have no desire to cater to them anymore. WotC will "update" what is "canon" for a particular place when they produce a product they want to make that includes that location... but as far as the rest of it? Not worth their time. Because if anyone decides "You know, I think I'll set my next campaign in Turmish!", WotC will just tell the person to use Turmish stuff from previous editions for their game because its just as "new" for that player as anything else WotC might've been bothered to write in some 5E campaign setting book, without needing to spend the time, money, and resources to do so for very little return.

I hope you wrong about that because it's lazy cope out and fans deserve better from WotC.

 

[RightFan]

Is it a more socially just version of Forgotten Realms?

Where Dwarves pay more in taxes for the gold and gems they mine to ensure fairness? Where cis-female man Orcs and Orc-kin can order a cake in Arabel's finest pastry shop and blues bar without getting h8ed upon? Where the denizens of Moonshae must check their privilege to get into Silverymoon, as per the University of Silverymoon's diversity and inclusion policy?

I hope so. Because THIS is EXACTLY what 5th Edition needs.

 

[Gradine]

I wouldn't actually be surprised for a Ravenloft setting book. There's a lot more to the Domains of Dread than Barovia, and CoS didn't even delve into the unique features of the setting that much.

When digging through UAs for clues, the one that intrigues me the most is Into the Wild. This certainly wasn't designed with Ravnica in mind, and almost certainly not for Eberron either (other than maybe that planar convergence stuff). If you're looking for settings where travel/exploration are important features, you think more along the lines of Dark Sun or Greyhawk, or maybe even Nentir Vale. Dark Sun seems the likeliest bet, for a number of reasons; the other two simply don't have too much to add the game.

It sounded like it was going to be an older D&D setting and not another MTG setting, but I may be misreading that.

I agree with others that Spelljammer is going to rear its head as a major story-line coming up.

 

[Gradine]

I hope you wrong about that because it's lazy cope out and fans deserve better from WotC.

I, for one, love the new approach to canon (that is, to not approach canon). It saves me (and my players) time having to do research and frees us up to create our own lore.

 

[Parmandur]

I wouldn't actually be surprised for a Ravenloft setting book. There's a lot more to the Domains of Dread than Barovia, and CoS didn't even delve into the unique features of the setting that much.

When digging through UAs for clues, the one that intrigues me the most is Into the Wild. This certainly wasn't designed with Ravnica in mind, and almost certainly not for Eberron either (other than maybe that planar convergence stuff). If you're looking for settings where travel/exploration are important features, you think more along the lines of Dark Sun or Greyhawk, or maybe even Nentir Vale. Dark Sun seems the likeliest bet, for a number of reasons; the other two simply don't have too much to add the game.

It sounded like it was going to be an older D&D setting and not another MTG setting, but I may be misreading that.

I agree with others that Spelljammer is going to rear its head as a major story-line coming up.

IIRC, that material emerged from Mearls home game set in the Nentir Vale (as is the example used in the text).

I could see this rules being used for any setting, or for a Xanathar's style book. Eberron has plenty of flavorful wilderness locales that this could work for, and the nature of those rules mean they could use them repeatedly for multiple settings with new tables if they prove popular.

 

[DQDesign]

[MENTION=7006]DEFCON 1[/MENTION] point is good, but it makes the blocking of 'dead' campaign settings on dmsguikd even more obscure to me.

 

[DQDesign]

[MENTION=7006]DEFCON 1[/MENTION] point is good, but it makes the blocking of 'dead' campaign settings on dmsguikd even more obscure to me.

 

[DQDesign]

[MENTION=7006]DEFCON 1[/MENTION] point is good, but it makes the blocking of 'dead' campaign settings on dmsguikd even more obscure to me.

 

[TheWriterFantastic™]

Jeremy Crawford is the Keynote/Storytime speaker for PAX Unplugged at the end of the month - hopefully we'll hear something then. Last year, Chris Cocks made a bunch of general announcements for Magic, other WotC games, and an Ixalan D&D adventure, so it's possible Crawford has announcements more specific to D&D this year.

 

[Parmandur]

[MENTION=7006]DEFCON 1[/MENTION] point is good, but it makes the blocking of 'dead' campaign settings on dmsguikd even more obscure to me.

No Settings are "blocked," if you go to "Search Settings" under the Settings tab, you can look through miscellaneous settings like Birthright or the Nentir Vale still.