D&D (2024) D&D 2024 Player's Handbook Reviews

On Thursday August 1st, the review embargo is lifted for those who were sent an early copy of the new Dungeons & Dragons Player's Handbook. In this post I intend to compile a handy list of those reviews as they arrive. If you know of a review, please let me know in the comments so that I can add it! I'll be updating this list as new reviews arrive, so do check back later to see what's been added!

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Review List

• The official EN World review -- "Make no mistake, this is a new edition."
• ComicBook.com -- "Dungeons & Dragons has improved upon its current ruleset, but the ruleset still feels very familiar to 5E veterans."
• Comic Book Resources -- "From magic upgrades to easier character building, D&D's 2024 Player's Handbook is the upgrade players and DMs didn't know they needed."
• Wargamer.com -- "The 2024 Player’s Handbook is bigger and more beginner-friendly than ever before. It still feels and plays like D&D fifth edition, but numerous quality-of-life tweaks have made the game more approachable and its player options more powerful. Its execution disappoints in a handful of places, and it’s too early to tell how the new rules will impact encounter balance, but this is an optimistic start to the new Dungeons and Dragons era."
• RPGBOT -- "A lot has changed in the 2024 DnD 5e rules. In this horrendously long article, we’ve dug into everything that has changed in excruciating detail. There’s a lot here."

Video Reviews
Note, a couple of these videos have been redacted or taken down following copyright claims by WotC.

• 2024 PHB Rules Changes D&D 5.24 (Treantmonk's Temple)
• Dungeons & Dragons Players Handbook 2024 Preview & Review | Key Takeaways and Comparisons with 2014 (Awesome Black)
• 10 Unexpected Changes in the D&D 5E 2024 Player's Handbook (This Effin' GM Games)
• Every Class and Subclass Change for 2024 (d4: Deep Dive)
• D&D Player's Handbook 2024 Winners & Losers! (The Character Sheet on ComicBook.com)
• 2024 Player's Handbook First Look Review (Dungeon Dudes)
• The 2024 Player's Handbook: Full Spoilers Review (DnD Shorts)
• Full Early Review! D&D 2024 Player's Handbook (JoeFudge)
• First Look at the 2024 Player's Handbook for Dungeons & Dragons (GameMasters)
• 2024 PHB Flip through (Jorphdan) [taken down]
• D&D New Player's Handbook, DM's Guide, Monster Manual, and Project Sigil Info (maturemindedgamers)
• 2024 Player's Handbook: Questions Answered! (Alphastream)
• D&D 2024 Player's Handbook Walkthrough (Sly Flourish) [redacted]

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Release timeline (i.e. when you can get it!)

• August 1st: Reviewers. Some reviewers have copies already, with their embargo lifting August 1st.
• August 1st-4th: Gen Con. There will be 3,000 copies for sale at Gen Con.
• September 3rd: US/Canada Hobby Stores. US/Canada hobby stores get it September 3rd.
• September 3rd: DDB 'Master' Pre-orders. Also on this date, D&D Beyond 'Master Subscribers' get the digital version.
• September 10th: DDB 'Hero' Pre-orders. On this date, D&D Beyond 'Hero Subscribers' get the digital version.
• September 17th: General Release. For the rest of us, the street date is September 17th.

 

[Steampunkette]

Right here you state that Warlocks get their power from a specific entity. Likely a single entity... well, what if I want to play a John Constantine character who has deals and pacts with dozens of entities? Under your design visions, I can't do that. There must be a new class created, because the Warlock only makes deals with a single entity, and doing anything else is disallowed by the very design of the class.

Then make the patron archetype into a collective rather than a single entity. Here, I'll give you a start on it with an A5e version:

Dealmaker
You've taken not to making pacts in the traditional sense, but deals. Bits and pieces of your soul in hock to different entities, contracts of service in exchange for favors, even a few bets that dropped some markers you can call on. You gain the following benefits.

Contract Manager
At 1st level you get to choose between the following two options.

Curse of the Fine Print
You can use a bonus action to place a curse on a creature you can see within 30ft by invoking the clauses of a contract you've made. The curse lasts for 1 minute, and ends early if the target dies, you die, or you become incapacitated. The curse has the following effects:

• When your target fails a Wisdom, Intelligence, or Charisma saving throw against any effect they take 1d4 psychic damage from this curse. This increases to 2d4 at 5th level and increases by 1d4 at 10th and 15th levels.
• You gain a pool of Favor Dice. When a creature affected by your curse fails any saving throw you add 1d4 to your favor pool. As a reaction to making a saving throw, yourself, you may add one favor die from your pool to the result. Your favor pool becomes empty at the end of a short or long rest.

Once you use this feature you cannot do so, again, until the end of your next short or long rest.

Make a Deal
Once per short rest you can cast a modified version of Charm Person on a creature you can see within 30ft. Instead of a Wisdom save the target must make a Charisma saving throw. On a successful save, the target can use their reaction to redirect the spell back to you.

Legalese
Also at 1st level, you've learned how maddeningly arcane contracts with outsiders and other entities can be. You gain proficiency in Insight Checks and a language of your choice from the following list: (insert some Devil/Angel/Fae languages appropriate to your setting)

Finally, you gain expertise on Insight checks related to reading contracts to determine loopholes or find sneaky clauses that would be detrimental to you.

Maybe at 6th level give them the ability to cast Blood-Writ Bargain as an action instead of a 1 minute casting time with a ritual option, probably 1/short rest. At 10th level they get a "Loophole" ability to get out of contracts, charms, and illusions either auto-saving or some kind of contract-manipulation thing... 14th level they can get the ability to call in their "Big Contracts" and cast Conjure Aberration, Conjure Fey, Planar Ally, or Wormway for free once per long rest.

Like, personally, I'd have the 14th level ability allow them to choose any of those four spells each long rest, rather than selecting one at 14th level and sticking with it, to maximize the flexibility of the bargains. But YMMV.

Anyway. Yeah. It'd work fine as a patron. And now that I've written this much of it I'm going to finish writing the rest of it out and put it into a future book after Martial Artistry. Think I'll call it "Occult Omens". So thanks for that.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Then make the patron archetype into a collective rather than a single entity. Here, I'll give you a start on it with an A5e version:



Maybe at 6th level give them the ability to cast Blood-Writ Bargain as an action instead of a 1 minute casting time with a ritual option, probably 1/short rest. At 10th level they get a "Loophole" ability to get out of contracts, charms, and illusions either auto-saving or some kind of contract-manipulation thing... 14th level they can get the ability to call in their "Big Contracts" and cast Conjure Aberration, Conjure Fey, Planar Ally, or Wormway for free once per long rest.

Like, personally, I'd have the 14th level ability allow them to choose any of those four spells each long rest, rather than selecting one at 14th level and sticking with it, to maximize the flexibility of the bargains. But YMMV.

Anyway. Yeah. It'd work fine as a patron. And now that I've written this much of it I'm going to finish writing the rest of it out and put it into a future book after Martial Artistry. Think I'll call it "Occult Omens". So thanks for that.

That all sounds awesome. Hope it makes it into one of your works.

 

[Maxperson]

The issue you really do face with half elves is they're Elves Light. At the moment, in a case where races aren't adding too much to things, it does raise the question of using your limited space for two options that are really similar to each other

I get they have their fans, but that's the problem you have. They're a watered down version of one of the races already around, and if that one is already fairly watered down as designed? You'd start looking at other things to replace it with rather than two things that are fairly identical to each other.

This has already been proven incorrect. They only have two abilities in common and one of those is darkvision which doesn't count because almost every race gets it. They are not watered down elves. They are not watered down humans. They are distinctly half-elves which take both races and combine them into a new race.

As Fitz says, this could just be they're hot. Folks will make dozens of new race and texture things just for making their character look fancy. Look at Skyrim mods for an example of how far folks will go for that perfect waifu to play as

I doubt that it's because they are just hot right now. Half-elves have been popular in games I've played in since 1e. Definitely one of the top races among the many, many players I've played with over the decades.

 

[Maxperson]

Tanis had a charisma of 15 (as a pregen in the modules), he was something of a natural leader. But the only thing that made him different from a human is he had pointed ears and a beard at the same time. And Mirror Spock did it first.

I wasn't aware that Mirror Spock had infravision, could see secret doors just by walking by, and had a 30% chance to automatically resist sleep and charm spells. Where did you find something that said Mirror Spock could do those things?

 

[Maxperson]

I've been a bit of a half elf fan from back in the day.

Originally elves, including my first character, in Mentzer Basic. When I was little I wanted to be Legolas. Then more half elves, including my first long-running AD&D character Sir Gareth of Labelas (Fighter/M-U/Specialty Priest of War in 2E), particularly since I was really into multiclassing. I suspect Tanis may also have been an influence in my getting into half elves, though I was also a big Gilthanas Stan (really enjoyed that I got to play as him in Advanced D&D Gamebook #10 Lord of Doom).

Human, half-elf and elf are my three favorite races(in that order) after deity, but since I don't get to play my top race very often, I go with those three most of the time.

 

[Maxperson]

Could you cite your source? Everything I'm finding indicates that they got to choose as well (as did Arwen), and were permitted to delay their choice, and lingered in Middle Earth after their father had left for Valinor.

Arwen did, because she remained mostly elf with Elrond's wife being elven. Elros, though, had a human wife and their children were mostly human. Those went on to be long lived human kings who could decide when to die, but not to live forever. Eventually one didn't decide when to die and died fairly quickly on his own after that.

Apparently mostly human = human, but mostly elf = half-elf since they were not full elf.

 

[Maxperson]

Why... why should Paladins swear their oath at level 1?

As to your second point is this discussion about cool powers or narrative? You've shifted goalposts.

Because the oath should be where all of their power comes from. The oath is the paladin. Paladins have no business laying on hands and smiting before they've sworn the oath that gives them the power.

WotC created this problem by creating the training wheels levels. Most, if not all, classes should be committed to being their class and subclass at level 1.

 

[Maxperson]

No they have powers outside their oaths... so that's not in fact THE narrative.

Here it is.

"A paladin swears to uphold justice and righteousness, to stand with the good things of the world against the encroaching darkness, and to hunt the forces of evil wherever they lurk. Different paladins focus on various aspects of the cause of righteousness, but all are bound by the oaths that grant them power to do their sacred work."

 

[Paul Farquhar]

Here it is.

"A paladin swears to uphold justice and righteousness, to stand with the good things of the world against the encroaching darkness, and to hunt the forces of evil wherever they lurk. Different paladins focus on various aspects of the cause of righteousness, but all are bound by the oaths that grant them power to do their sacred work."

Levels 1 and 2 the character is a squire or novice. They don’t swear thier oath until they hit level 3. Role play the character standing a vigil or some similar ceremony.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Levels 1 and 2 the character is a squire or novice. They don’t swear thier oath until they hit level 3. Role play the character standing a vigil or some similar ceremony.

But where does the level 1 and 2 character get their cool powers from?

Supplemental question: why is this question considered so irrelevant? How can this issue not be considered worth discussing?