Jeremy Crawford Also Leaving D&D Team Later This Month

jeremy crawford.jpg


Jeremy Crawford is leaving Wizards of the Coast later this month. Screen Rant (via me!) had the exclusive announcement. Crawford was the Game Director for Dungeons & Dragons and was one of the guiding forces for D&D over the past decade. In the past year, Crawford has focused on the core rulebooks and leading the team of rules designers. He has also been a face of Dungeons & Dragons for much of 5th Edition, appearing in many promotional videos and DMing Acquisitions Incorporated Actual Play series.

He joins Chris Perkins in leaving the D&D team in recent weeks. Perkins, who was the Creative Director for D&D, announced his retirement last week. Both Perkins and Crawford appear to have left Wizards on their terms, with Lanzillo very effusive with her praise of both men and their contribution in our interview.

On a personal note, I've enjoyed interviewing Jeremy over the years. He was always gracious with his time and answers and is one of the most eloquent people I've ever heard talk about D&D. I'll miss both him and Chris Perkins and look forward to their next steps, wherever that might be.
 

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Christian Hoffer

Christian Hoffer

"The rules are free online.", "I still have my old books", "Go download the old books" and "Well the wiki has all the main rules" are very common sayings on streams, podcasts, videos and social media.

The TTRPG industry has a lot of "freeloaders", misers, and cheapskates who demand a lot of content for very low prices or nothing at all holding the promise that they might buy future products.

And that kinda only works when WOTC is doing the major marketing via MTG and licensed IP money.

The Entire fantasy TTRPG industry is held up by Magic Cards.

I seriously fear if the TTRPG industry hits a major turndown and economic recession due to natural swings and recent economic shifts, it's gonna get bad. There is only 1 company with the money to weather real extreme hardship. Most publishers will have to seriously cut back, turn to greedier jerks than Hasbro, get purchased, or go under.
I think you are right about freeloaders. And I would be interested to know what demographic is buying materials vs. responding to surveys saying they are players. Secondly, agree the company finds a way to make money on a brand or they stop producing product.
 

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I am grateful to Crawford, Mearls and Perkins for making a version of a game that has and continues to give a lot of joy!

I am less worried about personal reasons or otherwise for departures and am more interested in how it will change the future. Sadly, it looks like 5.5 is locked in for a good while.

I don’t appreciate most of the changes from 5.0. I also don’t dig what feels to me like a tonal shift. I have been rolling 5e in the dirt to get some grit…a little bit anyway. But it’s getting harder.

Anyway, wishing these creators the best even if they started moving away from what I like best. We still play with half races and racial adjustments and frankly some older lore.

I really appreciate the 5e chassis. I did not appreciate “telling your story” as a sentiment and find how 5.5 handles backgrounds does not help with that stated goal. It’s getting a little loosey goosey for my tastes. Just an opinion among many.

But I can’t play 5e for a long time to come with hostility toward those that helped shape it anymore than I would be hostile about Gygax and the years of fun 1e gave me way past its heyday. The summer of 98 was evil barbarians and pizza delivery and I wish I could go back for a weekend!

Anyway good luck to the 5e architects. If it’s the last version I buy into (passing on 5.5) I choose to be thankful and keep having fun!

I have fought so hard to get some free time this week. Working dad, kid in sports, homeowner…it’s not easy to find time! But today I am crafting some foam mountains and I promised to DM “the goblin wars” so I better get to work!
 
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is that a fact? D&D cannot afford its own ads? I very much doubt that
I mean that MTG makes so much money that WOTC can throw around money and experiment on the D&D willy nilly.

They have two failed VTTs. TWO. D&D book didn't pay for that alone.

While still funding 90%+ of the adds in the fantasy TTRPG industry. If not the whole industry.
 

is it, how? I am not seeing MtG as helping TTRPGs or being an entry into it. People say that about D&D and there I can at least see the connection, but Magic?

If anything Magic accelerated the downfall of TSR
Yeah, CCGs have never had anything to do with my interest in RPGs, even if I played several for years. If anything they take time, creative effort, and energy away from RPGs.
 

I think you are right about freeloaders. And I would be interested to know what demographic is buying materials vs. responding to surveys saying they are players. Secondly, agree the company finds a way to make money on a brand or they stop producing product.
Finding a way to make money does not equal, "be like WotC". There are worlds between those that many companies live in right now.
 


We're not talking about how you feel about it. We are talking about how it was marketed.
It depends on your hobby group. I was introduced to BG3 through WOTC efforts. I saw the adverts for Video Game side BG3 and the D&D was not stressed. It was there as a notation. If you weren't in tune to ttrpg it's likely you'd miss all reference to D&D.
 


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