D&D 5E D&D's Classic Settings Are Not 'One Shots'

In an interview with ComicBook.com, WotC's Jeremy Crawford talked about the visits to Ravenloft, Eberron, Spelljammer, Dragonlance, and (the upcoming) Planescape we've seen over the last couple of years, and their intentions for the future.

He indicated that they plan to revisit some of these settings again in the future, noting that the setting books are among their most popular books.

We love [the campaign setting books], because they help highlight just how wonderfully rich D&D is. They highlight that D&D can be gothic horror. D&D can be fantasy in space. D&D can be trippy adventures in the afterlife, in terms of Planescape. D&D can be classic high fantasy, in the form of the Forgotten Realms. It can be sort of a steampunk-like fantasy, like in Eberron. We feel it's vital to visit these settings, to tell stories in them. And we look forward to returning to them. So we do not view these as one-shots.

- Jeremy Crawford​

The whole 'multiverse' concept that D&D is currently exploring plays into this, giving them opportunities to resist worlds.

When asked about the release schedule of these books, Crawford noted that the company plans its release schedule so that players get chance to play the material, not just read it, and they don't want to swamp people with too much content to use.

Our approach to how we design for the game and how we plan out the books for it is a play-first approach. At certain times in D&D's history, it's really been a read-first approach. Because we've had points in our history where we were producing so many books each year, there was no way anyone could play all of it. In some years it would be hard to play even a small percentage of the number of things that come out. Because we have a play-first approach, we want to make sure we're coming out with things at a pace where if you really wanted to, and even that would require a lot of weekends and evenings dedicated to D&D play, you could play a lot of it.

- Jeremy Crawford​

You can read more in the interview at ComicBook.com.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

What I’ve taken away from all these posts is that what you all like stinks and what I like is awesome.

But what if we like you? Ha ha, outsmarted at last!

 

[overgeeked]

Also, I'm not sure what the downside would have been if they had chosen this moment to release Bigby's Glory of the Aberrations instead of a giant-focused book. If BG3 was a flop, the book would have likely still been well received.

A generic D&D book with no direct tie-in would be seen as not a direct tie-in and therefore a wasted opportunity.

 

[Divine2021]

But what if we like you? Ha ha, outsmarted at last!

Dang man, you got me. You got me. I….I’ve got nothing.

 

[darjr]

Or at least open them to the DM’s Guild.

This has been and continues to be my pat answer.

And yet I had to tell Dragonlance fans who know about and have written for DMsGuild about the books for Dragonlance that exist there. Just as they were lamenting the lack of 5e official DL stuff.

It was frustrating and frankly an eye opener. DMsGuild on the bigger scale might mean nothing.

 

[Stormonu]

They can attempt to put lipstick on the pig, but it was very clear that they've been doing one-and-done campaign setting for 5E so far.

Perhaps they should do a few surveys not only to find out which ones are worth reprinting, but WHY they were liked and if the direction they're thinking of taking them (Van Richten's, I'm looking at you) in is what the fans really want. I'm not just talking Unearthed Arcana player options, but for the likes of Ravenloft, listing every Darklord/Domain and getting a 1 to 10 rating on it, as well as the overall themes and such.

And right now, the only reason Spelljammer is selling so well is because it's over 50% off. Which tracks, because that's what you get of a setting...

 

[Ruin Explorer]

I think it's entirely possible they'll do zero 50th anniversary tie-ins next year, other than releasing the 2024 core books, as insane as that is from a marketing standpoint.

It seems insane but at this point I can't rule that out. Or that their only 50th anniversary tie-ins will be alt-alt covers for the core books that kind of look like lame updated versions of the 1E books or something.

 

[LordEntrails]

"It is like Steampunk, but there is no steam. Or clockwork. Or bowler hats. Or Victorian England analogues. There's noir and pulp adventure, though, which, you know, aren't steampunk either. So, yeah, 'steampunk-like!."

Exactly. As others have pointed out, "steampunk" is not the narrow well defined term that you think it is. Maybe your definition is right, but it's not the most common definition. There are many of us on the edge of the steampunk community, or what calls itself that, who lump all of these things (aehterpunk, steampunk, magicpunk, blah blah blah) into the category of Steampunk.

When categorizing D&D settings, their are only so many big catchalls that the vast majority of non-RPG folk are going to recognize, and aetherpunk is not one of them, but steampunk-like is.

 

[Parmandur]

I don't know how to respond to that in a way that continues the discussion in a useful manner. When we just assert things without context, we shut down discussion.

Thr 5E books with adult themes presented are there to read. Saying they aren't there doesn't really need to be refuted other than to indicate their existence.

 

[The Glen]

Mystara: I already mentioned this one upthread, but I'll repeat it here so that everything is all in one place. The Vaults of Pandius has been keeping the Mystara campaign setting alive for almost 30 years. They have links to the original materials for the purists, and links to updated materials for those who wish to play Mystara in the 5th Edition rules set. I can't be certain, but I think it might be the oldest classic D&D communities on the Internet.

Use this for the link for the handbook. The one you have is a very early version that was incomplete.

Mystara Player’s Guide | RPGMP3

www.rpgmp3.com

 

[The Glen]

I don't disagree, but why do we need DM's Guild?

Mystara 5E is already out there, doing The Good Work from their own website and their own thriving fan community (Vaults of Pandius). And they're not alone, either: Star Wars 5E is out there too, a labor of love from the fans of both the 5E rules set and the Star Wars universe, all for free. If you want 5E Dark Sun, allow me to introduce you to the Obsidian Portal where fans of that campaign setting produce quality Dark Sun content for your 5E game (for free.)

We need the DM's Guild because it offers an income source and printing options that can you can access in one place. The Mystara Player's Guide had approximately 40k downloads of the POD version and triple that of just the PDF version. Plus, the Italian translation. I wasn't allowed to sell a single copy, so if half the POD people ran off to Lulu to print the book, that made them a small fortune at $50 a book. The art alone cost me $4k, and while I recouped everything on donations, it was nowhere near the commission I would have made if it was sold through the Guild. Then I take that money, hire more artists, write more books, and the cycle repeats. Guild will print the book for you, it gets advertised and sell enough copies D&D gives you extra bonuses. But you can't do the guild unless you're Eberron, Realms, Ravenloft, Spelljammer or Dragonlance.