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.

 

[Mannahnin]

What do you think WotC's best way forward with them is? Personally, I think it's probably to name them. If WotC's main problem with them is the term "half-elf" which sounds a little too much like the offensive "half-breed" (I'm assuming that is their logic) and that the popularity and history of the 'race' really is all about specifically folk with ancestry that is a mix of human and elf (another flaw, I guess, to the name 'half-elf' is that the human part is inherently implied, making it human-centric).

So the two options, I think, are to come up with a system to mix-n-match species traits and let everyone go whole hog with mixed parentage, or to lean in to "part human, part elf" being something special.

I think there's no perfect answer due to the influence of real world racial politics. The reflection of concepts like the one-drop rule, or blood quantum. D&D's hybrid races/species unfortunately may be inextricable from discredited and distasteful racial theories of the 19th and 20th centuries, which in turn influenced pulp writers like Howard, who inspired Gygax.

I think it's kind of ironic that the pseudoscientific approach D&D takes, despite borrowing all the core races primarily from Tolkien, is actually inconsistent with Tolkien. Whereas in LotR elves and humans can (in rare, mythic circumstances) have kids, but they choose whether to be mortal or immortal. Whether to live as elf or human.

OTOH there are folks of real-world mixed heritage/ethnic background who find resonance and meaning in these characters of mixed heritage, including Tanis' traumatic background shaped by bigotry. We can definitely play with these themes in-game using cultures, but using "races" in such stories/plots/character backgrounds may always reflect real world racial politics. :/

I think AN answer might be to take a similar approach to how Aasimar and Tieflings work. And give them a name, like you suggested.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Well, I mean, they didn't have to take (what is it now, four? five?) shots at the Dragonborn, either - and I don't think too many people were clamoring for a new version of the hobgoblin, or whatever, when they made Monsters of the Multiverse.

But iterating on the species write-ups is something they seem to enjoy doing. I think we'll see a new half-elf (if perhaps by another name) sooner rather than later. I don't think them "having" to do (or not) it is particularly important.

And I don't think that the decision to not include them in the PHB had anything whatsoever to do with WotC thinking it was "worth putting in" or not.

Worth it can mean many things. I agree it was a political as opposed to a creative decision. It wasn't worth it to them politically.

 

[Micah Sweet]

I think there's no perfect answer due to the influence of real world racial politics. The reflection of concepts like the one-drop rule, or blood quantum. D&D's hybrid races/species unfortunately may be inextricable from discredited and distasteful racial theories of the 19th and 20th centuries, which in turn influenced pulp writers like Howard, who inspired Gygax.

I think it's kind of ironic that the pseudoscientific approach D&D takes, despite borrowing all the core races primarily from Tolkien, is actually inconsistent with Tolkien. Whereas in LotR elves and humans can (in rare, mythic circumstances) have kids, but they choose whether to be mortal or immortal. Whether to live as elf or human.

OTOH there are folks of real-world mixed heritage/ethnic background who find resonance and meaning in these characters of mixed heritage, including Tanis' traumatic background shaped by bigotry. We can definitely play with these themes in-game using cultures, but using "races" in such stories/plots/character backgrounds may always reflect real world racial politics. :/

I think AN answer might be to take a similar approach to how Aasimar and Tieflings work. And give them a name, like you suggested.

They got to choose in a couple specific instances in Tolkien. The rest of the time Iluvatar (God) chose Human.

 

[Mannahnin]

They got to choose in a couple specific instances in Tolkien.

Technically in specified instances (which is why I linked to the Reddit discussion which gets into the weeds), but those are the instances which get talked about and involve characters we see "on-screen".

The rest of the time Iluvatar (God) chose Human.

Which instances were those?

 

[Micah Sweet]

Technically in specified instances (which is why I linked to the Reddit discussion which gets into the weeds), but those are the instances which get talked about and involve characters we see "on-screen".


Which instances were those?

I misspoke. I meant that the choice was made by their ancestors. Like with Elrond's sons, they don't get a choice, because Elrond chose Elf.

 

[Mannahnin]

I misspoke. I meant that the choice was made by their ancestors. Like with Elrond's sons, they don't get a choice, because Elrond chose Elf.

Could you cite your source? Everything I'm finding indicates that they got to choose as well (as did Arwen), and were permitted to delay their choice, and lingered in Middle Earth after their father had left for Valinor.

 

[Corinnguard]

Well, I mean, they didn't have to take (what is it now, four? five?) shots at the Dragonborn, either

Four shots at the Dragonborn (5e PHB, UA: Draconic Options, Fizban's Treasury of Dragons, 5.5e PHB).

Maybe six if you include the Dragonborn from 4e or from 3e's Races of the Dragon.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Four shots at the Dragonborn (5e PHB, UA: Draconic Options, Fizban's Treasury of Dragons, 5.5e PHB).

Maybe six if you include the Dragonborn from 4e or from 3e's Races of the Dragon.

Dragomborn are very good for brand awareness. I'm convinced that's why they keep going back to it.

 

[Corinnguard]

Dragomborn are very good for brand awareness. I'm convinced that's why they keep going back to it.

And every time they do go back to them, the Dragonborn get a little better, both in terms of appearance and species' traits.

3.5e essentially presented the Dragonborn as Half-Platinum Dragons who got to choose from one of three Level Up-like gifts (Path of the Heart, Path of the Mind and Path of the Wings).

4e had them being their own race, but they looked nothing like an anthropomorphic version of a Chromatic or Metallic Dragon. Instead, they lacked tails and sported scaly dreadlocks because WoTC was worried the players would confuse them with the Half-Dragons (who did look anthropomorphic versions of Chromatic and Metallic Dragons).

It wasn't until 5e when they bore a stronger resemblance to Chromatic, Metallic and Gem Dragons. Officially they lacked tails still. Unofficially everyone was pinning the tail back onto the Dragonborn.

And now in 5.5, they officially got tails, a breath weapon with a changeable AoE and ghostly wings. Speaking of their wings, which are magical in nature, can they be affected by spells such as Dispel Magic?

 

[gban007]

I think you're misremembering, or maybe just generalizing from Tanis' traumatic background specifically because the elves in Dragonlance were portrayed as particularly racist, and/or because the original fluff was that his conception was a product of SA. Later elaborated on with his mother dying after the birth from the trauma of it all, and her relatives resenting infant Tanis. (Later still, that was ret-conned in another novel). I'm stretching my memory of the novels now, but I think people in Ansalon may also be generally portrayed as kind of xenophobic, and that Tanis, while not a Ranger, inherits some of Strider/Aragorn's reputation as being thought of as a little suspicious by the rubes, being a bit of a traveler and wanderer.


Right. My recollection is that Tanis had natural leadership qualities and humility in part because of having to bridge two cultures and due to the prejudices of and mistreatment by his elven relatives.

I'm part way through my reread of the original dragonlance trilogy, part way through dragons of winter night.
Part of our first encounter with Tanis is him explaining he grew a beard as was in places where showing elfish blood would cause issues.
Riverwind to begin with was also suspicious of Tanis due to his Elvish blood.
I don't recall any parts of Tanis being treated suspiciously because of being a wanderer, except when the party came to Tarsis and everyone was treated with suspicion. Otherwise as you say everyone was xenophobic, with no race seeming to trust the others, but for Tanis that meant there was no race he would be welcomed by, whereas Flint would be welcomed by his own at least, Tanis was treated as outcast by both elves and humans.
Someone else who faced similar really was Sturm, as the Solamnic knights were also unwelcome so everyone treated him with suspicion as well.
On other hand Caramon seemed to have no issues fitting in anywhere despite being a traveller/ wanderer.

On Tanis' leadership, half the time it seemed to be portrayed as a result of his wisdom with sufficient charisma, as it seemed to be reiterated a few times that only Tanis and Raistlin were wise enough to make good decisions (until Elistan and Laurana came along) but Raistlin wasn't likeable enough / trusted by the party to follow directly.