D&D 5E (2024) D&D 2024 Is Now OFFICIALLY Called "5.5e"

Marc17 · 2026-03-04T20:21:08+0000

Stormonu said:
I've taken to referring to it as 5e14 and 5e24, as I'm somewhat expecting we'll see a 5e29/30 (and at that time 5e14 content will be fully retired from Beyond).

I'm still using 5e14, BTW, with no plans to change - but I'm still watching for 5e24 books that catch my eye (like the recent Eberron book and the upcoming Ravenloft book).

I wouldn't worry. I'm sure 5e24 along with my own 5.24 are fully compatible with 5.5.

mamba · 2026-03-04T20:29:21+0000

Frozen_Heart said:
I really can't imagine 6e coming within the next 5 years. From the roadmap it looks like they're putting a lot of effort into supporting 5.5e (including redoing the whole character creator on DnD Beyond).

redoing the character creator and the rest of DDB could very well help them with 6e as well, so I would not use that as an argument against a 6e, not that I am expecting one within 5 years

mamba · 2026-03-04T20:30:53+0000

Parmandur said:
The real X factor here is how successful Beyond has become...and the back catalog continuing to move. That mitigate against any sort of revolutionary change, pretty strongly, particularly if the business model is primarily about on boarding fresh players anyways.

yeah, there won't be a 6e until sales fall drastically, just like any other time we got a new edition (not counting 5.5)

jayoungr · 2026-03-04T21:11:15+0000

Morrus said:
Settling a debate that has lasted for over two years, the current edition of Dungeons & Dragons, which has been known by various names up until now, has finally received an official designation: D&D 5.5e.

Oh, thank goodness. Now we can stop being all over the place in what we call it. Though, ironically, it seemed like the fans had settled on calling it 5E (2024).

Desdichado · 2026-03-04T21:19:13+0000

Mistwell said:
There is one known source for this, and it's TheRPGPundit. He is not known to have an internal source in WOTC anymore. All of his prior contacts no longer work there and have not for years, and he's never claimed to have a new contact. He said he thinks the source is reliable, but that's based on his credibility which is poor. He previously put his credibility on the line for claims like saying WOTC would not sell hardcopy books in 2025 and would only sell digital products, and was proven wrong on that pretty objectively.

So yes, we all need to make up our own minds, but let's be clear on who and what we're talking about and what their credibility level is like when making up our minds. Pretending this is some nebulous "people" as opposed to that specific guy who is the source here, is a tad disingenuous.

No, he's not. Tenkar asserted it from a different source weeks before pundit did.

Ruin Explorer · 2026-03-04T21:41:57+0000

Parmandur said:
That mitigate against any sort of revolutionary change, pretty strongly, particularly if the business model is primarily about on boarding fresh players anyways.

I don't think it does, actually. I think that's some very "inside the box" thinking, honestly.

In fact, it can potentially make such a change a lot easier, because it means you've got a "captive audience" who you can expose to the changed approach, give "free" copies of new core books as long as they're subscribed (as they did with 2024), etc. etc.

Sure, you have to update tools etc., but they're probably pretty easy to adapt to a new system. Indeed, they're reworking the tools right now, aren't they? If were them, I'd be future-proofing them such that they could easily be adapted to a new system (probably one with significant conceptual overlap), or expanded to other RPGs in future, whether WotC RPGs, or non-WotC RPGs if the long-term vision is for Beyond to swallow the whole of the "successful RPG" market like Fenris swallowing the sun.

Beyond can offer continuity. A particularly smart move would be to follow WoW's lead (and something I'd been suggesting for several years before it happened, note!), which is to make it so that the same subscription gave access to the new (Retail) WoW and Classic WoW, so you kinda couldn't avoid having access to the new D&D, couldn't say "Uh I didn't buy that".

So yeah unless WotC are really cheaping out with Beyond, and unless their re-do of the tools etc. is completely lacking in future proofing (which frankly would be outright silly), I don't think that does make it less likely.

I think a second iterative change might actually be trickier, because now you have to go back and check compatibility for an extremely large number of products, potentially including 3PP ones. Whereas if you don't offer compatibility, but you do say "Hey all your 5E/5.5E stuff is still there if you want it", you give the impression people are losing nothing (a largely correct one), only gaining a new option.

tetrasodium · 2026-03-04T21:46:34+0000

Ruin Explorer said:
Like the Player's Option, Combat & Tactics, etc.? But for 5E? I'd be surprised if they went that way. I think that's got a much more niche appeal, even though the people it does appeal to, the appeal is pretty intense.

However, historically that sort of experimentation has been the precusor to a new edition repeatedly, so I wouldn't be shocked to see it.

And/or the 3.x Ravenloft with like a whole chapter on specific changes to spells classes etc or how darksun setting books tends to have some setting specific mechanics for chargen and such.

Wrt c&t specifically though id be more surprised if all the bits & bobs were in a single book. Printing them across multiple books with a relevant optional sidebar rule here and there would preserve deniability and muzzle concerns from the zero changes whatsoever=minimum for compatible folks as theme/setting supporting options that happen to add up.well

Zardnaar · 2026-03-04T21:52:42+0000

Ruin Explorer said:
I don't think it's as simple as that, unfortunately. I think preferences re: interating vs. reinventing are quite complex and a lot will depend on what people started, what edition they enjoyed most, why they enjoyed it and so on. Blanket/sweeping declarations like "iterating is always better/worse or always more/less popular" are, to my mind, irrational and not based in history.

Looking at the long, long history of D&D, there are, to my mind, times when they should have iterated, and times when they should have revolutionized. Like, by your logic, 3E should merely have been an iteration of 2E. But had it been that, I think it'd have been completely dead in the water - I don't think it would have been anywhere near as successful as it was. Whereas 4E probably should have been an effective iteration of 3E, bigger than the 0.5-type changes by far, but keeping the basic structure and concepts (moreso than 4E actually did), and at least a vague illusion of semi-compatibility. I think the next one is going to need to be revolutionary or seriously evolutionary (to the degree 5E was to 4E, or 3E to 2E, or PF1 to PF2), rather than merely 5.75E or the like, if it's actually going to move copies, not be part of "managed decline".

I think this especially because the vast majority of people playing 5E haven't been through an actual edition-change, and frankly, I think far more of them will be invigorated by it or even brought back from other RPGs/not playing than off-put by it.

But I would not suggest this year or next was the time for it to happen. Though maybe an initial announcement late next year, I wouldn't be surprised. And historically, I've been pretty good that guessing WotC will do a thing, but I've tended to overestimate, not underestimate how long it takes them to get there!

What I think they do need to learn is that they can't be too driven by whim in terms of what they keep and what they change. I think they need to think pretty damn carefully about that in a way I'm not really sure any edition change prior to 5E did, and that I don't think even 5E adequately considered because it rushed to market (just as 4E did, and to some extent 3E). I think that's the key thing - if they take a slower, more sensible approach to development they should do well.

5.5 doesnt have to outsell 5.0. It just has to sell more tgan 5.0 would have in 2025.

Generally the revised stuff is better than tge original imho but not as exciting if you were an early adopter.

mamba · 2026-03-04T22:32:12+0000

Zardnaar said:
5.5 doesnt have to outsell 5.0. It just has to sell more tgan 5.0 would have in 2025.

which is not that easy to actually know… also it needs to sell ‘enough’, not just more than some old edition would today but enough for WotC to decide to keep going with this edition over deciding to cut their losses and try with a new edition or shelve the whole thing (the latter seems unlikely right now, but it wasn’t after 3e, 3.5 and 4e basically fizzled out within a year or two each)

OB1 · 2026-03-05T01:28:53+0000

Parmandur said:
The real X factor here is how successful Beyond has become...and the back catalog continuing to move. That mitigate against any sort of revolutionary change, pretty strongly, particularly if the business model is primarily about on boarding fresh players anyways.

Exactly. 5e has been about selling PHBs to new players for the last 12 years. 2024/5.5/5.24 didn’t change that. And it’s the major reason they stayed backward compatible. It’s a huge advantage to haves big catelog of pre made adventures to appeal to different tastes ready to go when you decide to play your first game of D&D.