Dungeons & Dragons Teases New Campaign Settings

Dungeons & Dragons seems to be preparing to explore brand new campaign settings. Last week, EN World had the opportunity to visit Wizards of the Coast headquarters and get new details about D&D's 2025 slate. While much of the focus was on the newly announced Eberron: Forge of the Artificer book or the upcoming pair of Forgotten Realms book, the D&D design team is also looking at expanding their official multiverse to include brand new worlds.

When asked about the decision to return to Eberron in 2025, the D&D design team noted that keeping the Fifth Edition ruleset allowed them to grow the game instead of rehash it. "One of the opportunities that we have by revising the game, as opposed blowing it up and starting over, is we can actually move forward," said Jeremy Crawford, game director . "And I can't wait until we can tell you about 2026 and 2027."

"With Jeremy Crawford taking on the game director role and then Chris Perkins taking on the creative director role is that we were able to really reestablish a world building environment," added Jess Lanzillo, VP of D&D Franchise at Wizards of the Coast. "What does that mean? We can really establish our worlds and settings like the Forgotten Realms and also look to creating new ones again. That's something that we are working on and we don't have anything to really discuss today other than to tell you like we are re-establishing everything that we have and we are going to make some new stuff too."

While Wizards of the Coast has integrated Magic: The Gathering worlds and Critical Role's Exandria as campaign settings for 5th Edition, D&D's last truly new campaign setting was Nentir Vale, a 'points of light' setting that established small bastions of civilization in an otherwise dark world. In 2023, D&D introduced the Radiant Citadel, a new city within the Ethereal Plane that was connected to numerous new civilizations and worlds briefly touched on in anthology books.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

I’ve seen tables flipped over games of Monopoly (and Risk)

Yeah, my cat really hates capitalism (and global war).

She tried to eat the orcs in LotR Risk.

 

[Remathilis]

Point being: I don't think "magic heritage" is as problematic as you are making it out to be. it is still everywhere.

I actually agree to a point. Percy Jackson deals a lot with the idea of the children of Gods and their powers and responsibilities that arise from that. But if Percy Jackson said "My dad is Poseidon, therefore I am now the king of the Caribbean Islands" I don't think it would have resonated the same way. Which is my point: the fact your bloodline IS the reason you get to rule a domain at level one is what is icky. It's literally the divine right of Kings made manifest and at no point in human history has that worked out well for anyone BUT the king. (And sometime not even them).

I'm sorry, but Divine Nepotism: The RPG is not a good look when so many democratic nations are having crisis is wildly inappropriate timing.

 

[TiQuinn]

It is the kind of complaint that reveals an unfamiliarity.

Unfamiliarity with what? Are you saying that Birthright did not have rules for running large scale war as part of ruling a kingdom?

 

[TiQuinn]

I'm sorry, but Divine Nepotism: The RPG is not a good look when so many democratic nations are having crisis is wildl

I think so many fantasy and sci-fi properties have at least a foot in this area that it’s only when someone gets down to an analytical, i.e. not playing the game, POV and decides to compare and contrast with current events does one maybe get squeamish about it. From a “Will the general buying public notice or care?” perspective, I have a hard time buying that.

 

[Reynard]

Unfamiliarity with what? Are you saying that Birthright did not have rules for running large scale war as part of ruling a kingdom?

It had mass battle rules but they were not miniatures rules. They were closer to the War Machine from the BECMI Companion Set rules. TSR did have a miniatures war game -- Battle System -- but it was not integral to Birthright IIRC.

 

[TiQuinn]

It had mass battle rules but they were not miniatures rules. they were closer to the War Machine from the BECMI Companion Set rules. TSR did have a miniatures ware game -- Battle System -- but it was not integral to Birthright IIRC.

Still, it’s been a natural progression whenever that aspect of D&D comes up - strongholds lead to domain play which inevitably leads to some sort of wargaming, be it Chainmail back in the early days, to Battlesystem to a card based approach such as Matt Colville’s Strongholds and Followers (Colville was also a big fan of Birthright and talked about how that was a source of inspiration.)

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

The world of Cerilia/Birthright was designed its political frontiers could be altered by the actions of the players and not caged by the metaplot.

Maybe the gameplay would be different allowing some little rewards after a week or a month, for example the crafting of some magic item, or to build faster a new tower.

If WotC wants to launch economic strategy board games in Sigil, here Birthright has to be the chosen setting.

Other idea would be ordinary people could turn on some "spark" when they are managing some zone, maybe a simple shop or even a humble farm with different species. Then the antagonists would be the "synarchy", an elitist secret lodge who doesn't allow to become too rich or powerful anybody out of their control.

* I have read something about a spiritual succesor of Dark Sun, the same style mostly but not in the region of Tyr.

 

[Reynard]

Still, it’s been a natural progression whenever that aspect of D&D comes up - strongholds lead to domain play which inevitably leads to some sort of wargaming, be it Chainmail back in the early days, to Battlesystem to a card based approach such as Matt Colville’s Strongholds and Followers (Colville was also a big fan of Birthright and talked about how that was a source of inspiration.)

Wasn't your complaint that it was stopping being a RPG and becoming a "miniatures wargame"?

They aren't mutually exclusive.

 

[TiQuinn]

Wasn't your complaint that it was stopping being a RPG and becoming a "miniatures wargame"?

They aren't mutually exclusive.

Would you like me to modify my post to remove “miniatures” because to clarify, it’s the progression from RPG to a completely different type of play style, be it domain management or simulated wargaming, that I find unappealing.

 

[TheSword]

I actually agree to a point. Percy Jackson deals a lot with the idea of the children of Gods and their powers and responsibilities that arise from that. But if Percy Jackson said "My dad is Poseidon, therefore I am now the king of the Caribbean Islands" I don't think it would have resonated the same way. Which is my point: the fact your bloodline IS the reason you get to rule a domain at level one is what is icky. It's literally the divine right of Kings made manifest and at no point in human history has that worked out well for anyone BUT the king. (And sometime not even them).

I'm sorry, but Divine Nepotism: The RPG is not a good look when so many democratic nations are having crisis is wildly inappropriate timing.

I might be wrong but I think you’re misunderstanding how the setting and layering a few assumptions onto it.

There are multiple examples (including the starter realms) of a regent inheriting the bloodline and the title because they were the best person for the job. It’s not physical it’s magical.

I really think you need to see the bloodlines as less Hapsburg dynasty and more Highlander.