D&D (2024) 2024 Player’s Handbook is ‘Fastest Selling D&D Book Ever’

It’s only officially been out for a week, but according to Wizards of the Coast, the new Dungeons & Dragons Player’s Handbook has already surpassed Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything to become the fastest selling D&D book ever—in the entire 50-year history of the game. It has sold three times as many copies as the 2014 version of the books did at launch.

Not only that, the 2024 Player’s Handbook was the biggest print run in D&D’s history.

In a press release today, WotC claims more than 85 million D&D fans worldwide, and says that D&D Beyond, the game’s official online platform, has over 18 million users.

 

[Zardnaar]

I have to admit I was not expecting this, thought the adoption wasn't going to be near numbers equal to the 2014 launch, much less exceed it.

I can only watch and see where it goes from here. If the popularity remains and doesn't fall off, that will defy every previous experience I've had with "revised" editions. But I wouldn't mind it - having a healthy D&D is always a good thing.

My expectation is it will exceed 2014 early on but fall short of 2014 overall. By how much idk 30-50% is typical.

And I could be completely wrong as well. Might beat 2014 overall. Shrugs.

 

[OptionalRule]

not if that source book was the fastest selling book previously

But that doesn't really mean anything. Total sales is what matters and contrasting it against other core books. If you sell 10 of something in an hour, that may be the fastest you've ever sold it but if you only sell 10, I'm not sure that means anything. I have no doubt Tasha's sold well, but I also don't think it sold anywhere near PHB numbers. So again, as a benchmark, I'm not sure that means anything.

 

[I'm A Banana]

And I could be completely wrong as well. Might beat 2014 overall. Shrugs.

So many more people play D&D today than played in 2014. Even if this was a deeply unpopular revision (and early indications are more "mixed" than "bad" from where I'm sitting), the potential audience for a new core book is a lot bigger than it was in 2014.

I just hope that Hasbro DOESN'T get the lesson that revisions sell, and so they should do a lot of revisions. Though if I was in charge of D&D, that would be a question I'd expect from the board!

 

[OptionalRule]

Comments are all over the map here as is sentiment. I will always root for DnD, but don't particularly care about WotC or Hasbro. They are however, linked at the hip.

A few items that continue to make this discussion strange and somewhat meaningless to me.

DnDBeyond has 18 million users, not subscribers. In 2022 they reported 10 million users. Perhaps they almost doubled that in 2 years. I have no idea if that is accurate, I have no idea how many paid accounts they have. With the push for online content, the "early access" pre-order, dragon virtual mini-etc. I think it's hard to say people created accounts to make a content purchase, but most would not convert to subscription.

THere's a number floating around that 17 million of the 18 million DnDBeyond users purchased the PHB. This seems an unusually high converstion number and unlikely even in a marketers wildest dreams. Perhaps though. I honeslty can't find if that online chatter or an actual number.

The Fastest selling number I also can't tell anything from. Is that just sales on the first specific day? The people enthusiastic enough to buy on day 1 probably pre-ordered. The PHB has been the most aggressive pre-order program to date. I think they're likel counting all the pre-order plust first day numbers as first day numbers. That feels like a meaningless number. Also, what is "first day" when you have an extended early access period? Is it the first day of early access, first day of public access with no subscription level required?

I know what story they want to tell, that DnD 2024 is a huge success. Good on them, I hope it is. I think what people are looking for is some kind of yardstick to understand what the uptake by the community is so we can align our time. Is it the 2nd edition slow burn? has everyone jumped ship at once?

 

[mamba]

But that doesn't really mean anything. Total sales is what matters and contrasting it against other core books. If you sell 10 of something in an hour, that may be the fastest you've ever sold it but if you only sell 10, I'm not sure that means anything.

you will have to wait longer than a week or a month to see how things go. For now all they can tell you is how fast it was selling for the first week relative to the first week of other products

I have no doubt Tasha's sold well, but I also don't think it sold anywhere near PHB numbers. So again, as a benchmark, I'm not sure that means anything.

it means the 2024 PHB is selling faster than any 5e book before it, including the 2014 PHB. The 'problem' with lifetime sales is that you do not know them after a week...

 

[OptionalRule]

you will have to wait longer than a week or a month to see how things go. For now all they can tell you how fast it was selling for the first week relative to the first week of other products


it means the 2024 PHB is selling faster than any 5e book before it, including the 2014 PHB. The 'problem' with lifetime sales is that you do not know them after a week...

This wierd take that it's only been on sale for a week, when it's actually been on sale since the spring is exactly the kind of wierdness and fact twisting I'm addressing. I'm not sure what you're defending here. I think most peopel want DnD to be successful, and think it will be.

 

[mamba]

DnDBeyond has 18 million users, not subscribers. In 2022 they reported 10 million users. Perhaps they almost doubled that in 2 years. I have no idea if that is accurate, I have no idea how many paid accounts they have.

no idea how many are paid either, but chances are they grew at about the same rate as overall accounts

THere's a number floating around that 17 million of the 18 million DnDBeyond users purchased the PHB. This seems an unusually high converstion number

that number is nonsense, nothing more to say

The Fastest selling number I also can't tell anything from. Is that just sales on the first specific day? The people enthusiastic enough to buy on day 1 probably pre-ordered. The PHB has been the most aggressive pre-order program to date. I think they're likel counting all the pre-order plust first day numbers as first day numbers. That feels like a meaningless number.

not meaningless, but ultimately not the most important one. At the same time the book has been out for a week now, so not sure what other numbers than initial ones you were expecting

I know what story they want to tell, that DnD 2024 is a huge success.

so far it is, but it will take years to get a clear picture

 

[mamba]

This wierd take that it's only been on sale for a week, when it's actually been on sale since the spring is exactly the kind of wierdness and fact twisting I'm addressing.

I am sorry, it has been on sale for a week. It was on preorder for a while, but I doubt that was spring. Not sure what is weird about that, I assume it was not much different for the 2014 PHB or Tashas. Preorders always count towards initial sales, they did then, they do now.

I'm not sure what you're defending here

I am defending no one, I am telling you how sales work

 

[Warpiglet-7]

The question before me is whether I want the new phb or not…I don’t know.

What I do know is that the revision whether to my liking or not is not exploitative. 10 years…is 10 years.

And I am also sure this won’t tank. It’s going to do pretty well to fabulous and I am thinking fabulous by “normal” standards but perhaps not to 2014 standards. But It’s going to sell…

I just don’t know yet if they will sell to
Me!

 

[Chaltab]

You hit the nail on the head with that last point. Three times the book sales sounds like a lot... but when the books still sell out given the increase in D&D players since 2014, where will those desperate players go? To buy the book online, thus falling right into WotC's trap to convert us all to digital sales! MWAHAHAHAHA!!! It's GENIUS, I say, pure GENIUS!

...I wasn't talking about D&D Beyond