D&D (2024) D&D 2024 Player's Handbook Reviews

On Thursday August 1st, the review embargo is lifted for those who were sent an early copy of the new Dungeons & Dragons Player's Handbook. In this post I intend to compile a handy list of those reviews as they arrive. If you know of a review, please let me know in the comments so that I can add it! I'll be updating this list as new reviews arrive, so do check back later to see what's been added!

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Review List

• The official EN World review -- "Make no mistake, this is a new edition."
• ComicBook.com -- "Dungeons & Dragons has improved upon its current ruleset, but the ruleset still feels very familiar to 5E veterans."
• Comic Book Resources -- "From magic upgrades to easier character building, D&D's 2024 Player's Handbook is the upgrade players and DMs didn't know they needed."
• Wargamer.com -- "The 2024 Player’s Handbook is bigger and more beginner-friendly than ever before. It still feels and plays like D&D fifth edition, but numerous quality-of-life tweaks have made the game more approachable and its player options more powerful. Its execution disappoints in a handful of places, and it’s too early to tell how the new rules will impact encounter balance, but this is an optimistic start to the new Dungeons and Dragons era."
• RPGBOT -- "A lot has changed in the 2024 DnD 5e rules. In this horrendously long article, we’ve dug into everything that has changed in excruciating detail. There’s a lot here."

Video Reviews
Note, a couple of these videos have been redacted or taken down following copyright claims by WotC.

• 2024 PHB Rules Changes D&D 5.24 (Treantmonk's Temple)
• Dungeons & Dragons Players Handbook 2024 Preview & Review | Key Takeaways and Comparisons with 2014 (Awesome Black)
• 10 Unexpected Changes in the D&D 5E 2024 Player's Handbook (This Effin' GM Games)
• Every Class and Subclass Change for 2024 (d4: Deep Dive)
• D&D Player's Handbook 2024 Winners & Losers! (The Character Sheet on ComicBook.com)
• 2024 Player's Handbook First Look Review (Dungeon Dudes)
• The 2024 Player's Handbook: Full Spoilers Review (DnD Shorts)
• Full Early Review! D&D 2024 Player's Handbook (JoeFudge)
• First Look at the 2024 Player's Handbook for Dungeons & Dragons (GameMasters)
• 2024 PHB Flip through (Jorphdan) [taken down]
• D&D New Player's Handbook, DM's Guide, Monster Manual, and Project Sigil Info (maturemindedgamers)
• 2024 Player's Handbook: Questions Answered! (Alphastream)
• D&D 2024 Player's Handbook Walkthrough (Sly Flourish) [redacted]

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Release timeline (i.e. when you can get it!)

• August 1st: Reviewers. Some reviewers have copies already, with their embargo lifting August 1st.
• August 1st-4th: Gen Con. There will be 3,000 copies for sale at Gen Con.
• September 3rd: US/Canada Hobby Stores. US/Canada hobby stores get it September 3rd.
• September 3rd: DDB 'Master' Pre-orders. Also on this date, D&D Beyond 'Master Subscribers' get the digital version.
• September 10th: DDB 'Hero' Pre-orders. On this date, D&D Beyond 'Hero Subscribers' get the digital version.
• September 17th: General Release. For the rest of us, the street date is September 17th.

 

[Zuranthium]

Well, we know it got altered though, per Crawford's comments. So it seems unlikely to be one he is referencing, since he said they didn't change them.

So it seems like Simulacrum, Wall of Force, Forcecage

Simulacrum yeah is very OP on paper but also something that can be balanced by a GM. It takes 12 hours to cast, something can happen during that time to disrupt the Wizard if the GM wants. It can also just be dispelled.

Wall of Force can make the caster invincible to all physical damage and projectiles, definitely cheesy if there aren't enemy casters.

Forcecage is the most problematic to me. Take any target out of the game for 1 hour unless they can teleport.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Yeah, to me it means something like “professional celebrity.” While it tends to be associated with “new media” (YouTube, TikTok, Twitch, Instagram, etc.) I think there are more traditional media folks who would also fall into this category - Kim Kardashian being an example that immediately comes to my mind. People who are famous for being famous, and create entertainment content mostly centered around ostensibly providing a window into their lives. Though, when you get down to it, what they’re really presenting is a curated brand image.

The line between “content creator” and “influencer” does tend to be blurrier in new media, mostly because new media creators are very often their own producers, which makes self-promotion an essential element of the job. And creating a believable pretense of authenticity is an important aspect of self-promotion within the new media space.

Yeah, that's what I hear when someone says, "influencer": someone who spends a lot of effort making a narrative version of their life something other people want to pay to see.

 

[ECMO3]

He certainly influences the character builds that are brought to the table.

I purposely make it a point to build powerful characters with things contrary to TM's advice. The reason is I think it is so boring seeing the same optimized builds every time.

Sometimes this is difficult and requires some out of the box tactics and thinking but I am usually successful at building successful characters, even in games with max optimizers.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

Tough talk for someone who can't do 5d12 damage at level 1.

I am laughing way more at this than I feel like I should. That was an era.

 

[Mistwell]

So it seems like Simulacrum, Wall of Force, Forcecage

Simulacrum yeah is very OP on paper but also something that can be balanced by a GM. It takes 12 hours to cast, something can happen during that time to disrupt the Wizard if the GM wants. It can also just be dispelled.

Wall of Force can make the caster invincible to all physical damage and projectiles, definitely cheesy if there aren't enemy casters.

Forcecage is the most problematic to me. Take any target out of the game for 1 hour unless they can teleport.

I am only concerned with Simulacrum. The necessary change was minor and obvious - the Simulacrum cannot can spells. That's it. That's the only necessary change to fix it, and they didn't. Which is disappointing.

The other two I am fine with. They are higher level spells, many spells can take out an enemy, many spells let enemies teleport, some spells are still effective even with a wall of force like hypnotic pattern which just requires sight, I am not worried about those two.

 

[Bacon Bits]

Tough talk for someone who can't do 5d12 damage at level 1.

Hey I can do 5d12 damage at level 1.

It just takes me 6 or 7 rounds.

 

[Corinnguard]

Are we really upset about getting spoilers on a game manual now?

Not really. Spoilers allow us to kick the tires and look underneath the hood before we buy the product.

 

[Jolly Ruby]

Hey I can do 5d12 damage at level 1.

It just takes me 6 or 7 rounds.

If you have a cleric from the war domain you can do it in about three rounds!

Edit: oh, nevermind, now I understood the context

 

[Vin St. John]

Yeah, that's what I hear when someone says, "influencer": someone who spends a lot of effort making a narrative version of their life something other people want to pay to see.

THis is the point I was trying to make. That's not what the word means. Someone is an "influencer" from the perspective of a professional marketer. They are not an "influencer" from the perspective of their audience (save for the fact that we're all savvy now and recognize how many forms of online content today are monetized by leveraging the creator's position as an "influencer").

To us, they are Youtubers. Content creators. Critics. Designers. Writers. Cosplayers. Bloggers. Streamers. Entertainers. (Whatever). It's only to WotC Product Marketing that they are "influencers" - that's the value they provide to WotC. I don't go to them to be "influenced". I go to them to be entertained or informed.

 

[Micah Sweet]

THis is the point I was trying to make. That's not what the word means. Someone is an "influencer" from the perspective of a professional marketer. They are not an "influencer" from the perspective of their audience (save for the fact that we're all savvy now and recognize how many forms of online content today are monetized by leveraging the creator's position as an "influencer").

To us, they are Youtubers. Content creators. Critics. Designers. Writers. Cosplayers. Bloggers. Streamers. Entertainers. (Whatever). It's only to WotC Product Marketing that they are "influencers" - that's the value they provide to WotC. I don't go to them to be "influenced". I go to them to be entertained or informed.

Unfortunately, the brain really wants to label things, and one label is a lot easier to keep in mind and communicate to others than (checks post) nine.