D&D 5E The March D&D Book Will Be Announced Next Tuesday

As has become standard these days, the upcoming D&D book has appeared -- in an anonymous, secretive guise -- on various bookstores in advance of an announcement. In this case, Amazon, Penguin Random House, and Barnes & Noble, all of whom confirm that the book will be announced next Tuesday on January 12th, and released on March 16th.

The book will cost $49.99. B&N has its dimensions as being 6.5 x 9.5 inches, which is smaller than a standard D&D hardcover (but that information could just be a placeholder). B&N also indicates that the authors are Peter Lee and Rodney Thompson, but they also say that for Tasha's Cauldron and other WotC books, so that also looks like it's just their boilerplate for WotC. There's also an ISBN number: 978-0786967223.

This is almost an exact mirror of this time last year, almost down to the dates (last year it appeared on stores on Jan 6th, was announced as Explorer's Guide to Wildemount on Jan 9th, and released March 17th).

There's been plenty of speculation recently. Last year WotC said that three classic settings were getting active attention, and that the coming years would have a greater emphasis on settings, as well as more anthologies and Magic: The Gathering collaborations. And, of course, WotC has recently been involved in a Dragonlance lawsuit, which was voluntarily dismissed in December with Margaret Weis tweeting that there was exciting news in the weeks to come.

 

[Remathilis]

The changes actually harken back to 4e.

There was a 4e Dragon magazine #380 article about Playing Vistani that focused on the clan being inclusive of people who are adopted, who marry in, or who just fall in with the clan's lifestyle. It was more consistent with how I understand that Romani people view themselves as, yes, an ethnicity, but more than that a community.

The change to Ravenloft being in the Shadowfell started in the 4e Manual of the Planes IIRC. It's also mentioned right there in the 5e DMG on pages 51 to 52.

These changes have been kicking around for 5 years or so, if not longer.

I think WotC is going to eventually redo the Vistani to resemble the 4e version (with a little revision to make it fit Great Wheel vs World Axis). I wouldn't be surprised to see something akin to Vistani heritage "feats" or a background or two either. Want a classic Vistani? Vhuman with a Vistani feat. Want a 4e style "new" Vistani? pick a race and then the Vistani background, then take a feat when you reach ASI level. Got adopted in later? Take the feat at your next ASI.

Simple, elegant.

 

[el-remmen]

I'd love a book of lairs/side-quests with nice clean maps like they had in Ghosts of Saltmarsh and not the garbage maps they printed in Tales of the Yawning Portal (I regret buying that).

As an aside: I just ordered to back issues of Dungeon from the late 80s and early 90s to fill some gaps in my collection. To my mind Dungeon was the best D&D supplement across all editions and still what I use the most.

 

[Mercurius]

The smaller format and price point doesn't make sense. If it is something akin to the Paizo and Kobold pocket monster books, it would be cheaper. Similarly with the 4E rules cyclopedia or any other similar reference work (e.g. the 2E Volo's book). If it were a typical story arc/setting/splat, I would think they'd stick to full-size format.

So it might be something different. I guess we'll know in a few days.

EDIT: Of course I just noticed that the dimensions have disappeared from the Amazon listing, so I'm probably behind the times and it is just a normal book.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I'd love a book of lairs/side-quests with nice clean maps like they had in Ghosts of Saltmarsh and not the garbage maps they printed in Tales of the Yawning Portal (I regret buying that).

I think, at some point in the next few years, we're going to see Saltmarsh-style books with the Desert of Desolation and Slavers series as a base, both of which can easily be fleshed out with Dungeon material over the years. (And, I hope, the A0 intro adventure from the collector's edition of Slavers at the end of the 3E era.)

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Both dragons and undead have supported their own sourcebooks in two or more editions of D&D. It wouldn't be in the least bit surprising to get both of those for 5E.

 

[Parmandur]

retcons to Ravenloft and Vistani in Tasha's. Did you know Ravenloft is now in the Shadowfell?

That's in the DMs Guide from 2014.

 

[Parmandur]

So, the big given in any year is that the Q3 book will be the big storyline Adventure. Since we are getting a Q1 book, and we got four last year, I'd wager we have one book per Quarter coming down the pipe. So, I'd guess any Monster book or a new Setting would plausibly be the Q2 book, with the rumored smaller adventure compilation in Q1 here.

 

[Demetrios1453]

The difference is, the horror book need not be a "monster manual", and given that it's unlikely (but not impossible) that there will be two monster manuals so close together, it probably isn't. Which means it is ether a setting book or an adventure compilation. There was never any mention that the rumoured adventure compilation had horror as it's linking theme, so I would have to suggest a setting book as most likely.

"So close together"? MToF was released nearly 3 years ago, in May 2018. There hasn't been a monster-themed book since - plenty of setting books and a rules-expansion book in TCoE, but no monster-themed books. Heck, it was only a year and half between VGtM and MToF, so we are well overdue for that sort of book. Even if the Q1 release turns out to be something different, I'm pretty sure we'll see a monster-themed book sometime this year.

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

Fiend Folio could be the perfect name for a new moster manual about planar creatures (including planar dragons, and maybe even the outer dragons from Spelljammer).

I didn't remember the last module wasn't too far.

A new Draconomicon is possible, perfectly, but I wonder about this should be delayed until to establish a plan with the no-core dragons. WotC should notice dragons, true dragons, with age categories, help to sell more. Paizo's Monster Compediums always had got new true dragons, and not only those boring drakes. But true dragons are too powerful to be added into a "previous ecosystem". You know all dragons think "this town ain't big enough for both of us". My theory is Chris Perkin's homebred settin, Iomandra, a reboot of Councyl of Wyrms, will be designed to allow the future arrive of new dragon species. If Dragonlance returns, it will be hard to explain how to add the new dragons, for example the gem dragons, or the sand, mist, cloud or the faerie.

A Von Ritchen's Libris Mortis? Maybe, but I suspect the future plans about Gothic Horror will be linked with the new events of Magic: the Gathering about vampires and werewolves from Innistrad.

I feel doubts about the return of some legacy settings if I suspect the metaplot is frozen for a couple of years more.

Eldraine, the WotC world based in fairy tales has got a lot of ballots to be the lucky winner of the new D&D setting, but I guess it will arrived after an Magic Event linked with this setting. Kaldheim, the new M:tG world could be a D&D setting, but not in the beginning of this year when the lore is still unknown.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

That was like 15 years ago now.

Doesn’t feel that long ago, and it was only that long ago if you don’t count 4e era.

But also so what? It’s perfectly valid to miss things from 15 years ago.