D&D (2024) D&D Monster Manual (2025)

[dave2008]

and gelatinous cube:

 

[Sulicius]

-snip-

I was too slow!
Gargoyle
It deals 40% more damage, gained about 14% hp, gained flyby, but lost its resistance to nonmagic b/p/s.

looks good! Higher def/lower dpr than FoF baseline

Gelatinous cube looks a bit weaker to me. Less HP and less damage to engulfed targets. However, it now also deals half damage if PC’s succeed on their save. Dealing half damage is actually a huge increase, but I think it settles down to the same damage.

 

[abirdcall]

While I am not thrilled with some of the art direction starting years ago with Tasha’s, I have to be honest. Some of the 2024 stuff is cool. Maybe minority opinion on death night but I think that is badass.

Zombies and vampire are cool…

Not feeling the sphinx or fire giant.

Largely good looking to me. I have to say I am not feeling a monolithic approval or disapproval really…same as with 2014 which I really enjoy. Hits and misses…some home runs and some pop fly outs but lots of talent and money went into this.

I don’t do the mind reading thing. Some might be unrepentant fanboys and some permanently angry bitter-nards…but I think the discussion is sometimes more about game changes than anything whether we know it or not.

For example, I cannot say the orc family in the PHB is “bad art.” But it surely does not match my game as regards orcs not frankly a game I would look for…

That is what a lot of this is about. They did not go cheap and hire hacks. This is good art largely. The question at times might is good art for what kind of game?

I am biased too in that I have invested a lot of time and money into 5e miniatures and am somewhat wedded to some consistency.

I have some old dungeon command orcs (close-ish to 5e and I love them) but have a light blue orc wearing a Lone Ranger mask with a svelte form (later 5e mini). Cannot say the sculpt sucks but would have never knowingly selected that one.

If we even use it as a half orc someday I will surprised.

I still might buy a he new dmg…will look at the new mm and make an overall decision when I see more but if will depend on the overall.

For me art is important in combination with the rules and the lore. I don’t think it is superfluous for me and does influence my game more than maybe it does some others. That is why this discussion is germane to me Ana why if I am turned off by art direction it is a bit bigger of an issue.

I am still able to sit back and appreciate still and such though. I like a lot of this; not all of it. Keeping the game changes and art separate are hard for me at times however.

That orc, if I remember correctly, was a particularly bad uncommon unfortunately. I was disappointed to get it too. The duergar is much worse but the deep gnome is really good. So I think in that case it is the mini itself. Sometimes PC minis are bad and more likely if they aren't rares.

We have gotten some really good orcs lately too, mostly from critical role line I think.

I think they're mostly waiting for the new art in the MM before we will get new sculpts of orcs and such.

 

[M_Natas]

That's a bit of a stretch. What other tools or support have they removed for homebrewing. Considering the MASSIVE amount of homebrew available every single day on things like Reddit, I'm going to need just a bit more evidence than this to support claims that WotC doesn't like homebrewing.

From my perspective, I imagine that what most likely happened is they discovered that very few people actually use the monster creation rules in the 2014 DMG and removed it because, frankly, outside of a very small handful of people, no one will actually notice that they are gone.

But, yeah, what other support for homebrewing have they removed?

It showed the most in the spelljammer box set for me. Like no support to make your own spelljammer games. Just enough to play Light of Xyraxis, but like, everything to create your own Spelljammer Setting was ripped out. Like with the 5e spelljammer box set, it is clear it is not made to create your own spelljammer adventures (just in comparison to the 2e box set).
The same with a lot of settings.
Strixhaven is a sad product if you want to make your own Magical School adventures.

In the 2024 DMG so much good stuff was removed that was in the 2014 DMG, it is crazy.

The only (setting) books that really supported to make your own adventures were Ebberon and Van Richtens Guide to Ravenloft.
So the last good book for homebrewing DMs was from 2021.
The setting books after that were big let downs. Like Spelljammer and Strixhaven. Like, to make Strixhaven an adventure book and not a setting books thay gives you support on how to run 5e magical school adventures is basically a crime ...

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Look, I am very sorry, but we live in an imperfect world. There will be cool things in the world that are in places that are not good for some particular people.

I, myself, have an issue with roller coasters. That's my own issue. Now, there are things at amusement parks that aren't roller coasters. And fun times with friends to be had at amusement parks that aren't riding on roller coasters.

So, I have a choice - I can go with my friends to the amusement park, and I can enjoy what I can, and respectfully not take part in things that aren't my bag, or I can go to the amusement park, and be a complete pill about how horrible roller coasters are at every opportunity.

If I do the latter, I am the problem, not the roller coaster. If, when I go to the amusement park, I find I cannot resist the urge to be a nuisance about the roller coasters, then I really ought to avoid the amusement park. Yes, my friends will have fun without me. Such is life. Making my personal issue into a problem for them is not justified by FOMO.

Same principle applies - if someone has a personal issue, they have choices about when they raise those issues. If they cannot show some wisdom and restraint, they make their issues a problem for those around them, which is decidedly uncool.

So - wisdom and restraint. Folks have to learn to pick their moments.

The thing that I’ve never liked about D&D is the fantasy genre. Fantasy is okay in small does, but I really prefer Space Opera. Every edition of D&D I’m hopeful, but nope, still fantasy.

 

[Micah Sweet]

The thing that I’ve never liked about D&D is the fantasy genre. Fantasy is okay in small does, but I really prefer Space Opera. Every edition of D&D I’m hopeful, but nope, still fantasy.

The Without Number series of games is great for embracing multiple genres with compatible rules. I strongly recommend them. And if a 5e base is more your bag, Level Up officially supports both fantasy, and various flavors of science fiction with the recent Voidrunner's Codex.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

The Without Number series of games is great for embracing multiple genres with compatible rules. I strongly recommend them. And if a 5e base is more your bag, Level Up officially supports both fantasy, and various flavors of science fiction with the recent Voidrunner's Codex.

Got it. Didn’t like it.

I like Star Wars D6, but everyone I know plays D&D and WH40K, and out of those options, D&D is the less bad.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Got it. Didn’t like it.

Which one? And why not, if I may ask?

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Which one? And why not, if I may ask?

Stars without Number. Didn’t like the style and I felt there was an undercurrent of sexism (might be wrong, but that was my impression).

 

[Micah Sweet]

Stars without Number. Didn’t like the style and I felt there was an undercurrent of sexism (might be wrong, but that was my impression).

Fair enough. YMMV. To me it is an absolutely awesome product, especially for worldbuilding DMs.