D&D (2024) How D&D Beyond Will Handle Access To 2014 Rules

D&D Beyond has announced how the transition to the new 2024 edition will work on the platform, and how legacy access to the 2014 version of D&D will be implemented.

• You will still be able to access the 2014 Basic Rules and core rulebooks.
• You will still be able to make characters using the 2014 Player's Handbook.
• Existing home-brew content will not be impacted.
• These 2014 rules will be accessible and will be marked with a 'legacy' badge: classes, subclasses, species, backgrounds, feats, monsters.
• Tooltips will reflect the 2024 rules.
• Monster stat blocks will be updated to 2024.
• There will be terminology changes (Heroic Inspiration, Species, etc.)

D&D (2024) - Wizards of the Coast Backtracks on D&D Beyond and 2014 Content

Wizards of the Coast posted an overnight update stating that they are not going forward with previously released plans to require those wishing to use some 2014 content on D&D Beyond to use the Homebrew function to manually enter it. Instead, all the content including spells and magic items will...

www.enworld.org

 

[John Lloyd1]

To me, this reeks of cutting scope as the deadline hit. They have an approach for races and monsters, but haven't extended it to spells, etc.

 

[Dire Bare]

So Roll20 will offer exactly the functionality that is apparently just too technically difficult for DNDBeyond to implement.


When creating a character, you can just choose whether you want to use 2014 or 2024 rules. Either will be fully supported.

Please. WotC hasn't claimed it's too difficult technically, that's us speculating from the sidelines.

WotC has an interest in moving towards the new ruleset. Those in charge don't feel supporting both rulesets as separate things is worthwhile. Some of us fans are on board with that, others are not. Shrug.

Roll20 does not have an interest in moving fans to the new ruleset. Their interest is too support what folks are playing, or to try and get ahead of that.

 

[pukunui]

On that note, they are likely ecstatic that DDB isn't supporting 2014 anymore. As wthose of us who don't like 2024's direction are more likely to give them a chance, if we haven't already.

I would if it didn't mean having to buy everything for a third time!

That said, I have gone ahead and canceled my DDB subscription, and I have contacted customer service asking for a refund / cancelation of my 2024 rules bundle preorder.

Unfortunately, because I don't want any of my players to miss my Mad Mage campaign finale, we keep having to postpone it, and I don't think we'll be able to play before the DDB changes are made. I guess I'll have to download their 19th level characters as PDFs so they can use those for the finish. It's a shame, because DDB is a handy tool, and Maps is shaping up to be really nice. I had recently switched over to using it instead of Photoshop.

My other campaigns are not so close to finishing, and having some but not all rules references in DDB switch mid-campaign is too great an annoyance for me.

But because I can't afford to buy into some other digital platform at this stage, I guess if I want to keep DMing D&D games, I'll have to tell my players it's back to pen-and-paper only!

 

[DinoInDisguise]

But because I can't afford to buy into some other digital platform at this stage, I guess if I want to keep playing D&D, I'll have to tell my players it's back to pen-and-paper only!

The benefit of using pen and paper is that no one has power over how you play. So be proud to use pen and paper, and play the game the way you want to play it.

 

[MonsterEnvy]

I would if it didn't mean having to buy everything for a third time!

That said, I have gone ahead and canceled my DDB subscription, and I have contacted customer service asking for a refund / cancelation of my 2024 rules bundle preorder.

Unfortunately, because I don't want any of my players to miss my Mad Mage campaign finale, we keep having to postpone it, and I don't think we'll be able to play before the DDB changes are made. I guess I'll have to download their 19th level characters as PDFs so they can use those for the finish. It's a shame, because DDB is a handy tool, and Maps is shaping up to be really nice. I had recently switched over to using it instead of Photoshop.

My other campaigns are not so close to finishing, and having some but not all rules references in DDB switch mid-campaign is too great an annoyance for me.

But because I can't afford to buy into some other digital platform at this stage, I guess if I want to keep DMing D&D games, I'll have to tell my players it's back to pen-and-paper only!

Why not just keep using Beyond? The only thing that will change is some item and spell tooltips.

 

[pukunui]

Why not just keep using Beyond? The only thing that will change is some item and spell tooltips.

No, it's not just the items and spell tooltips. It's also all of these things:

• Core gameplay definitions
• Armor Class
• Saving Throws
• Skills and Abilities
• Alignment
• Senses (Blindsight, Darkvision, Tremorsense, Truesight)
• Area of effect definitions

I don't want to have to sort through what's 2014 and what's 2024. I can see it leading to arguments, for one thing. Too much of a headache.

I wanted to wait until all three 2024 core rulebooks were out before making the switch. Now I don't know if I even want to switch at all. The fact that WotC has taken that choice away from me on D&D Beyond makes me not want to use that platform anymore.

 

[Dire Bare]

Why not just keep using Beyond? The only thing that will change is some item and spell tooltips.

It seems the simple and easiest choice. I just don't understand the upset of some fans over the revised rules changes and how DDB is supporting them.

 

[Daztur]

Why not just keep using Beyond? The only thing that will change is some item and spell tooltips.

 

[MonsterEnvy]

No, it's not just the items and spell tooltips. It's also all of these things:

• Core gameplay definitions
• Armor Class
• Saving Throws
• Skills and Abilities
• Alignment
• Senses (Blindsight, Darkvision, Tremorsense, Truesight)
• Area of effect definitions

I don't want to have to sort through what's 2014 and what's 2024. I can see it leading to arguments, for one thing. Too much of a headache.

I wanted to wait until all three 2024 core rulebooks were out before making the switch. Now I don't know if I even want to switch at all. The fact that WotC has taken that choice away from me on D&D Beyond makes me not want to use that platform anymore.

We will have to see what it looks like in a Few weeks. I think the change will be less extreme than you are expecting.

 

[pukunui]

It seems the simple and easiest choice. I just don't understand the upset of some fans over the revised rules changes and how DDB is supporting them.

I'm upset about the way in which they are going about it. I've had gaming groups break up over GMs wanting to change the rules mid-campaign, and here WotC is forcing every single one of its D&D Beyond users to do just that if they want to keep using the tool's main functionality. What's worse, because the three core rulebooks aren't all coming out at once, the changes will be happening in chunks over the next six months.

We will have to see what it looks like in a Few weeks. I think the change will be less extreme than you are expecting.

Oh, I think a lot of the changes will be subtle ... and so a lot of people who haven't been paying attention won't notice, which will likely lead to confusion, arguments, and/or tedious rule-referencing at the table. Things like:

DM: "You gain a level of exhaustion, that means you have disadvantage on ability checks."
Player: "What? No, my character sheet says I just get a -1 penalty."
DM: "That's the new rule. I'm not using that rule. Go to the 2014 PHB in the compendium and look up the old exhaustion rule."

Or it might be something like:

Player: "My wolf companion attacks the troll. He hits and knocks the troll prone!"
DM: "Uh, no, the troll gets to make a save to stay standing ... which he passes."
Player: "What?! My wolf statblock just says on a hit the target is knocked prone! No save!"



Yeah, no thanks. I'll just go back to using pen-and-paper so we can all be using the same rules.