Dungeons & Dragons SRD 5.2 Is Officially Live

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The new System Reference Document (SRD) for Dungeons & Dragons' revised 5th Edition is officially live. The new SRD was officially released and is available for download on D&D Beyond. A FAQ detailing changes from the previous SRD was also released.

The SRD provides a version of D&D's rules that can be used and referenced in third-party material and form a framework for publishing material compatible for D&D's latest edition. The newest version of the SRD contains a mix of species, backgrounds, subclasses, and feats from the 2024 Player's Handbook, along with statblocks from the 2025 Monster Manual.

One other interesting note is that the new SRD purges references to creatures and characters classified as D&D IP. The previous SRD released under a Creative Commons license contained reference to Strahd and Orcus, both of which were removed in the new SRD. Additionally, the SRD renames the Deck of Many Things as "Mysterious Deck" and the Orb of Dragonkind as "Dragon Orb" to allow for both to be used in third-party material while not infringing upon D&D IP.
 

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Christian Hoffer

Christian Hoffer


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Similarly, Tiamat and Bahamut as deity names are not original to D&D, but their visual likenesses and characterizations are.
Not even. For instance, Bahamut is a cosmic whale in mythology, but his role as a dragon god is also public domain, due to Final Fantasy and anime. Same with Tiamat.
 


Not even. For instance, Bahamut is a cosmic whale in mythology, but his role as a dragon god is also public domain, due to Final Fantasy and anime. Same with Tiamat.
I wouldn't call that Public Domain. The fact Square was able to get away with some very obvious IP theft back in the day doesn't mean that would fly today. Besides, if WotC IP lawyers were suing because you used a dragon named Bahamut in your 3pp project, I don't think claiming you meant the Bahamut from Final Fantasy is going to save you. (And it might get you a call from Squenix lawyers).
 


Not even. For instance, Bahamut is a cosmic whale in mythology, but his role as a dragon god is also public domain, due to Final Fantasy and anime. Same with Tiamat.
I don't know about specific animes, but SquareSoft took a lot directly from D&D when making the Final Fantasy franchise. The Beholder in FF1 is my favourite example. It was another time and maybe Square Enix and WotC have some kind of deal about it currently, but I would not call it public domain.
 



I notice that 'Feywild' as a proper noun is in this new SRD. So I guess that's not something WOTC seeks to protect as product identity.
There's a vast gulf between the word "feywild" and all the associated lore attached to that word. The word is in the CC-BY SRD. The lore is not. People confusing the word for the lore are going to create a lot of problems for themselves and others.
 

That’s my understanding. Thus, because of the inclusion of Strahd and Orcus in SRD 5.1 but not any lore about them, my newest product features them in the following forms:

Orcus, Evil God of Orcs and Orcas

Strahd, a.k.a. St. Rad, the Surfing Saviour

(Note: I’m just being a smartass, don’t look for this product.)
Damn it, you had me in the first half. Now I'm just disappointed. ;)
 

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