Spelljammer D&D Direct Live Report: 9am PDT (5pm BST) SPELLJAMMER CONFIRMED! DRAGONLANCE!

D&D Direct, WotC's new video-format announcement show launches today at 9am PDT (5pm BST). If you aren't able to watch it, I'll be updating this article live. Feel free to comment below! Once it launches, you will need to refresh this page when you want to see new updates. The video is expected to last about 30 minutes.

If you CAN watch it, you'll find it on YouTube or Twitch at the above times. Otherwise, follow along below!

• 45 mins to go. Live updates incoming!
• 30 mins to go!
• 5 minutes to go!
• Here we go! Opens with a sea shanty.
• Forgive typos. They talk fast and I can't type.

• Spelljammer is confirmed!
• They talk REALLY FAST!
• Spelljammer Adventures in Space, project lead Chris Perkins, Trystan Falcone graphic designer
• Cities built on asteroids, dead gods floating in the ether
• 6 races---astral elves, autognomes, hedozi(?), gif, plasmoids, thri-kreen
• 3 hardcovers in a slipcase: Astral Adventurers Guide, Boo's Astral Menagerie, Light of Xaryxis adventure
• Prequel adventure in July
• Wizkids miniatures

Other stuff also discussed!

• Baldur's Gate 3 CRPG preview video (game is in 2023)
• Journeys Through Radiant Citadel intro video -- 3 of the adventures are: Wages of Vice (5th level), Caribbean; Orchids of the Invisible Mountain (14th level), feywild, far realm, Whistler new monster; Fiend of Hollow Mind (4th level), skeletons and spirits

• "Campaign Cases" -- Creature tokens! Terrain tiles! July!

D&D Movie directors now onscreen. The movie in March 2023 is called HONOR AMONG THIEVES.

• New D&D starter set. Comes with 'digital onboarding'. Dragons of Stormwreck Isle. We knew about that one.
• D&D digital monstrous compendium. Available to those with WoTC or D&D Beyond Accounts. Volume 1 has an eldritch lich and the 10 legged asteroid spider. And the starlancer. Might have misheard some of that!

• MMO Neverwinter video. Dragonslayer begins June 2022. (I wonder if they'll need a dragonance for that?)
• New D&D actual play video, Legends of the Multiverse. Lots of 80s cartoon style soft rock music. Boo is in it.

WIzKids skirmish game D&D Onslaught. October

Finally -- DRAGONLANCE WARRIORS OF KRYNN! SHADOW OF THE DRAGON QUEEN!

 

[Grendel_Khan]

Man I am in a time loop. I've said REPEATEDLY how the new format is ridiculous as it includes a bunch of things I don't need, including the DMs Screen and the slipcase (not including the map, so many books have these included already).

If this is one release version, and you could just pick up a normal Spelljammer book for $60, great! No complaints from me. When Curse of Strahd Ravamped was announced, I didn't complain; I can get normal Curse of Strahd within my budget.

But locking consumers into nick-nacks they don't need to getting more $ out of them is NOT something I'm happy about, and breaking down the price isn't going to convince me to shell out more of my wallet.

I think this is an important point--factoring in the added value of the screen, map, and slipcase only matters if you want that stuff. If those components were part of some bundled set, while the books were also available on their own, sure, have at it. Making those components, and their associated costs, a mandatory part of the purchase seems worth griping about.

 

[overgeeked]

Same reason you keep responding to me I suppose... because this an internet forum?

I’m trying to understand the reasoning. What will you accomplish by constantly complaining? WotC isn’t going to change their plans because you personally don’t like them. Isn’t there something in the world you like and enjoy? Why not post about that?

 

[Ruin Explorer]

I was saying that speculating about how WotC could "do you wrong" just to add extra negativity is not necessary or constructive to the thread. "I really hope the next classic campaign setting release is Planescape or Dark Sun" would have gotten the same point across without being unnecessarily negative.

But it would have been untruthful.

The truth is, unless it's one of those two, I'm on a break from paying WotC money. I'll definitely keep playing in D&D campaigns run by others, but I already cut off my DDB sub, and haven't bought anything from WotC since Ravenloft (which was cool), and that's going to continue at the current rate. I had been planning to get Spelljammer, assuming it came out, but 192 pages? No thanks, not unless reviews from even bitter cynics are super-positive (as opposed to "fans" who never review anything negatively, only with varying degrees of positivity lol).

 

[overgeeked]

I think this is an important point--factoring in the added value of the screen, map, and slipcase only matters if you want that stuff. If those components were part of some bundled set, while the books were also available on their own, sure, have at it. Making those components, and their associated costs, a mandatory part of the purchase seems worth griping about.

Maybe. Once or twice. But dozens of times? Come on.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

I’m trying to understand the reasoning. What will you accomplish by constantly complaining? WotC isn’t going to change their plans because you personally don’t like them. Isn’t there something in the world you like and enjoy? Why not post about that?

Because this is a discussion forum and stuff you don't want to hear about products is absolutely every bit as valid as positivity, and mindless positivity, as you seem to be advocating, is without value. Create a + thread if you only want to hear positivity.

Your position is unreasonable and unfair, frankly.

 

[Weiley31]

There's a mechanical gnome race in the book.

I figured that too. But the Gnome would be short. (I think, I mean, I don't know what's going on with sizes in DND at this rate. )

And I got my answer on twitter. Riddle be an Auto-Gnome.

 

[Urriak Uruk]

I will try to be a little positive for a moment, as although I'm frustrated about the overall format/price, this is still a good day.

• Spelljammer getting any material, and this much material, is great! I love Spelljammer, glad it's being supported.
• The quality of art, lore direction, and mix of sci-fi and fantasy for Spelljammer looks perfect. Pretty much has the look/feel I want for the setting.
• The Monstrous Compendium, and hopefully more to come, is great! Love that WotC is making these high-quality short PDFs.
• The Starter's Box looks great, especially if its even more streamlined and designed to convince players to DM. It also looks like a fun homage to the cartoon.
• Dragonlance coming, not getting rebooted, exploring a new region, AND tied to a mass combat system? All fantastic, love it all!

Now that I've got that out of the way, I hope no one can say I'm "unnecessarily negative." It just so happens that my complaints are going to get more responses/traction from others than the praise, so don't be surprised if that's what gets the most runtime.

 

[neobolts]

Based on artist's tweets, the double sided map appears to be topside and underside of rock of bral

 

[Urriak Uruk]

I’m trying to understand the reasoning. What will you accomplish by constantly complaining? WotC isn’t going to change their plans because you personally don’t like them. Isn’t there something in the world you like and enjoy? Why not post about that?

See post #427.

Additionally, I do think positive feedback DOES change company's behavior! Heck, I remember when everyone saw creepy Human-Sonic and the film studio actually went back and changed the whole design (and made a successful franchise out of it).

I think it's completely ok to say "Hey, I don't like this format, can you release this eventually in this way instead?" is a perfectly fine and FAIR critique. They'll get my $ out of it if they do!

 

[Grendel_Khan]

Maybe. Once or twice. But dozens of times? Come on.

I hear you. But you're also choosing respond to those gripes, so here we are. It's a specific strategy that WotC made, and, not everyone is going to like it.

In another thread I compared it to Free League's Twilight 2000 box set, which comes with books and lots of doodads, but I've yet to see anyone complaining that you can't buy that game's Referee Guide on its own, and are forced to pony up for the map, counters, dice, etc. to get it. But that's because (imo) those other components seem broadly useful, and because they're part of a core set, not a supplement. In this case, do people really need yet another DM screen? What if the only maps they ever use are battlemaps?

Again, WotC made a choice. imo it's relevant signal when people push back on a given publishing strategy, even if they're in the minority.