D&D (2024) 2024 MM - Winners and Losers

[MonsterEnvy]

Lich is a massive winner.

 

[pukunui]

I was thinking the layout editors who cannot group monsters where it makes sense, except when they can.

It was oddly inconsistent, Slaadi, Modrons, Empyreans were grouped together, Angels, Demons, Devils weren't, very inconsistent.

I don't like it either. However, I think the justification for it is that monsters with variants got grouped together. Dragons are kind of both - each type is listed separately, but there are age-related variants of each one.

 

[Quickleaf]

Xanxost agrees about the lemon salad.

 

[Parmandur]

I don't like it either. However, I think the justification for it is that monsters with variants got grouped together. Dragons are kind of both - each type is listed separately, but there are age-related variants of each one.

Monsters with variants and/or that would be together in groups.

In practice, it is far less absurd to me than Vrocks being in D.

 

[Parmandur]

And lastly.....spirit jar? spirit jar!!!!???? um....no, its a phylactery, and will always be a phylactery. Dnd is part teaching players new crazy words, and this is one of those that should never be removed!!!

The anti-Semitism issue here has already derailed threads, so let's just say...Hard Disagree, Blood Libel is not something WotC needs to play with at all.

 

[Alzrius]

spirit jar? spirit jar!!!!???? um....no, its a phylactery, and will always be a phylactery. Dnd is part teaching players new crazy words, and this is one of those that should never be removed!!!

 

[pukunui]

I reckon the mage is a real winner. Fewer spells maybe, but double the HP, effectively permanent mage armor, plus their Arcane Burst puts PC wizards to shame.

A 2014 mage could make one ranged Fire Bolt attack, dealing 2d10 fire damage, per turn. The 2024 mage gets to make three Arcane Burst attacks per turn - and they can be either melee or ranged, and they do 3d8+3 force damage!

That's such a major upgrade that I'm thinking I might have to stick with the 2014 mage or else my players will cry foul.

 

[the Jester]

While I agree with you in general, a phylactery is important part of practicing Jews. So using that term to describe the soul jar for an evil undead is probably not the hill to die IMO. Most, if not all, other RPGs have moved away from the word as well.

The answer is to bring back a variety of magic item phylacteries as well, so that it's not used exclusively for evil monsters.

IMHO.

 

[Parmandur]

The answer is to bring back a variety of magic item phylacteries as well, so that it's not used exclusively for evil monsters.

IMHO.

Or probably better...bring back the positive magical items, but leave the Lich changed.

 

[Alzrius]

While I agree with you in general, a phylactery is important part of practicing Jews. So using that term to describe the soul jar for an evil undead is probably not the hill to die IMO. Most, if not all, other RPGs have moved away from the word as well.

As a Jewish person, I've pointed out on these boards before that this isn't really the case, because "phylactery" isn't a term that we use. Rather, we call them "teffilin," and calling them "phylacteries" is a conflation that's near-totally made by gentiles.

In that regard, liches using phylacteries is actually an improvement, because it helps to attach the term to something else, letting the erroneous "phylacteries are teffilin" idea wither on the vine. Which is to say, it was absolutely a hill worth dying on. Unfortunately, that didn't happen, and so another opportunity to help out a marginalized community was missed.