D&D (2024) New One D&D Playtest Document: 77 Pages, 7 Classes, & More!

There's a brand new playtest document for the new (version/edition/update) of Dungeons of Dragons available for download! This one is an enormous 77 pages and includes classes, spells, feats, and weapons.

Unearthed Arcana Playtest

Unearthed Arcana Playtest Materials Get Unearthed Arcana playtest content, try it out in your game, and provide feedback! Check back regularly for ...

www.dndbeyond.com

In this new Unearthed Arcana document for the 2024 Core Rulebooks, we explore material designed for the next version of the Player’s Handbook. This playtest document presents updated rules on seven classes: Bard, Cleric, Druid, Monk, Paladin, Ranger, and Rogue. This document also presents multiple subclasses for each of those classes, new Spells, revisions to existing Spells and Spell Lists, and several revised Feats. You will also find an updated rules glossary that supercedes the glossary of any previous playtest document.

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[doctorbadwolf]

Ahh. We’re back to the pedantic portion of the program. Well that’s me out.

Considering we’ve Venn talking about significant change vs incremental change for several pages now, I’ve zero interest in semantic wankery. You have a good day now.

It isn’t pedantry or semantics, but hey if you want to flounce and rage-quit, go for it bud.

 

[Parmandur]

I have been trying to explain this for the last 5 posts, not sure another one helps...

Things are not rated in a vacuum. If something gets rated, it gets rated in comparison to the existing version, esp. since an approval of below 70% means we are stuck with the current version. This alone already ensures that it is a comparison (also, the fixed 70% threshold does, if these were independent ratings, then 70% would not work as a threshold as an absolute 70% would still be lower than an absolute 75% or 77% or whatever of the current version).

That is an assumption you are making, bit I would not rate it as particularly likely, based on observation of the process over the past devade.

There very much is, see above. It makes no sense as an absolute... WotC does not treat it as one either. The 70% threshold is a hurdle it has to clear for them to say this change is sufficiently better to be worth their time implementing it. It is not a rating that exceeds the current version's percentage, but it is better by a large enough degree for WotC to use it.

The quantity is an absolute, with controls via the qualitative feedback. The questions are not framed in reference to anything outside of the proposal, and the goal is to reach the minimum threshold of popularity of what is already popular.

that is not contradicting my point, it just means WotC looks for more than just the percentage and also weighs written responses (which only makes sense...)

Yes, that's the control. But enthusiastic responses won't help if they aren't as popular as what is already in the game.

 

[Raunalyn]

It isn’t pedantry or semantics, but hey if you want to flounce and rage-quit, go for it bud.

It always makes me smile when others recognize the hypocrisy of this particular individual, who is well known for using pedantry and semantics in his arguments.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

It always makes me smile when others recognize the hypocrisy of this particular individual, who is well known for using pedantry and semantics in his arguments.

Let’s not make it personal, here, but I do get frustrated when I’m accused of that while in an argument where I feel I’m the only one not being pedantic…

 

[Raunalyn]

Let’s not make it personal, here, but I do get frustrated when I’m accused of that while in an argument where I feel I’m the only one not being pedantic…

Fair. For the record, I did not see you being pedantic.

Let's just say that the derision toward this individual is well earned, so there's a bit of schadenfreude on my part.

 

[Pedantic]

I feel my name being taken in vain.

 

[CapnZapp]

Did they touch armor?

D&D 5E offers 12 types of armor... but in reality at least half of those are entirely wasted and thoroughly inferior.

Nobody uses padded or leather armor when studded leather is right there. Hide and scale mail are only ever used by NPCs. Ring mail is a joke.

And that's the non-starters. There really are only 1 choice for light armor users, 2 choices for medium armor users, and 2 choices for heavy armor users (and that's actually no choice at all since it's simply a matter of cost). Note how this means that yes, there are five or six choices or so in total (especially when you add in "no armor" as an armor choice) there is never more than two mainstream choices for any given character.

My question is: Does WotC appear interested in revisiting the wide and wonderful variety of armor from previous (A)D&D editions and actually provide us with more than two actual viable choices for a given character?

I would love it if D&D One/5.5/6E would offer at least three solid build choices as regards armor for each of the three categories!

Give us a mechanical reason why a character would stay with chain mail despite having more than enough coin to purchase full plate! Meaningfully separate less bulky forms of light armor from studded leather. Not make breastplate the obviously best choice in the medium category. Make hide and scale mail interesting, not stupid, choices!

PS. If you really must provide armor choices for NPC usage only, at least add that on top of the choices that make up mainstream PC builds. That is, I can live with hide and ring mail. But first there should be a solid ten choices for mainstream player character builds.

 

[tetrasodium]

Did they touch armor?

D&D 5E offers 12 types of armor... but in reality at least half of those are entirely wasted and thoroughly inferior.

Nobody uses padded or leather armor when studded leather is right there. Hide and scale mail are only ever used by NPCs. Ring mail is a joke.

And that's the non-starters. There really are only 1 choice for light armor users, 2 choices for medium armor users, and 2 choices for heavy armor users (and that's actually no choice at all since it's simply a matter of cost). Note how this means that yes, there are five or six choices or so in total (especially when you add in "no armor" as an armor choice) there is never more than two mainstream choices for any given character.

My question is: Does WotC appear interested in revisiting the wide and wonderful variety of armor from previous (A)D&D editions and actually provide us with more than two actual viable choices for a given character?

I would love it if D&D One/5.5/6E would offer at least three solid build choices as regards armor for each of the three categories!

Give us a mechanical reason why a character would stay with chain mail despite having more than enough coin to purchase full plate! Meaningfully separate less bulky forms of light armor from studded leather. Not make breastplate the obviously best choice in the medium category. Make hide and scale mail interesting, not stupid, choices!

PS. If you really must provide armor choices for NPC usage only, at least add that on top of the choices that make up mainstream PC builds. That is, I can live with hide and ring mail. But first there should be a solid ten choices for mainstream player character builds.

I agree entirely, but think the punt they gave us on weapons without nuance answers the question. Id love to see proper tables of weapons and armors with actual nuance and depth but think wotc is too committed to enthusiastically bowing before the 31% veto for them to even consider it before someone else does it.

 

[CapnZapp]

too committed to enthusiastically bowing before the 31% veto

quoted for hall of fame posterity!

 

[Micah Sweet]

Did they touch armor?

D&D 5E offers 12 types of armor... but in reality at least half of those are entirely wasted and thoroughly inferior.

Nobody uses padded or leather armor when studded leather is right there. Hide and scale mail are only ever used by NPCs. Ring mail is a joke.

And that's the non-starters. There really are only 1 choice for light armor users, 2 choices for medium armor users, and 2 choices for heavy armor users (and that's actually no choice at all since it's simply a matter of cost). Note how this means that yes, there are five or six choices or so in total (especially when you add in "no armor" as an armor choice) there is never more than two mainstream choices for any given character.

My question is: Does WotC appear interested in revisiting the wide and wonderful variety of armor from previous (A)D&D editions and actually provide us with more than two actual viable choices for a given character?

I would love it if D&D One/5.5/6E would offer at least three solid build choices as regards armor for each of the three categories!

Give us a mechanical reason why a character would stay with chain mail despite having more than enough coin to purchase full plate! Meaningfully separate less bulky forms of light armor from studded leather. Not make breastplate the obviously best choice in the medium category. Make hide and scale mail interesting, not stupid, choices!

PS. If you really must provide armor choices for NPC usage only, at least add that on top of the choices that make up mainstream PC builds. That is, I can live with hide and ring mail. But first there should be a solid ten choices for mainstream player character builds.

Availability? In a lot of verisimilitudinous settings, not everything on the equipment list even exists, let alone is available at any given market.

That being said, more and different gear for options is a good. I made my own universal equipment list, and there definitely more options for armor in there.

Like many, many other things, WotC isn't going to fix this.