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.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

"Conjuring" 8 creatures slowed the game down too much, so yea. They all got replaced, mostly with zones of some kind.

"Summon" spells will give you 1 creature to move around. Including summon elemental.

This dude gives 411 on Spells including Conjure X Spells, Summon X Spells, Find Steed, and others like buffed Witchbolt and Phasmtasmal Force.

 

[fluffybunbunkittens]

Oh yeah, Bladelocks do get their 3rd attack, it's just behind lv12 invocation now.

 

[Oofta]

The reason I don't like a static stealth target is because it should be easier to sneak past a sleeping guard than an alert ancient red dragon. I can grant advantage/disadvantage on the check of course but that to me is not enough. Like I said above, it's one of those rules I'll ignore in my home game unless there's optional rules in the DMG.

 

[Henadic Theologian]

Biggest surprise here, there are no named deities mentioned in the new PHB at all.

Hopefully D&D Beyond will still allow you to use the old ones.

I heard they just completely stripped the PHB if flavour leaving it super bland except for gorgeous art.

 

[Aldarc]

This is more evidence, in my mind, for my growing suspicion that they are actually going to make Setting Guides this time around.

How much you want to bet that the Nentir Vale gets ignored again?

 

[Reynard]

Sure, though breath weapon recharge was never going to be an option as it would seriously mess with the CR

I don't feel like it would. the dragon only gets bloodied once.

 

[Parmandur]

Hopefully D&D Beyond will still allow you to use the old ones.

I heard they just completely stripped the PHB if flavour leaving it super bland except for gorgeous art.

Certainly seems to have kept Setting fluff to a minimum, leaving that to DMs. Not sure Beyond needs to do. Much, since a Cleric's deity is just flavor, not mechanics.

 

[Frozen_Heart]

How much you want to bet that the Nentir Vale gets ignored again?

Sad that Nentir Vale has been left by the wayside. 5e doesn't seem to have any of these more barren and survival based settings anymore.

 

[MarkB]

I don't feel like it would. the dragon only gets bloodied once.

Unless it has an ally to heal it, or drinks a healing potion as a bonus action.

 

[MonsterEnvy]

I don't feel like it would. the dragon only gets bloodied once.

Which if Breath for sure recharged on that means it will get off the breath a second time in calculations.

I would not mind bloodied having an effect on many monsters but it’s not required.

Oh yeah a thing to remember about the Green Dragon was a large disclaimer right beside it at the actual panel that the text was not final.