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!

 

[Parmandur]

Well their product page says:



describes Astral as "gateway to the heavens" and you can spelljam to astral so its at least implied.

"Heavens" doesn't necessarily mean the Outer Planes, and I doubt that marketing blurb is a precise cosmological statement.

 

[Parmandur]

Because your definition is too simplistic. If something being on a plane is Planescape, then there have been a lot of things that are Planescape: Ravenloft (shadowfell) Radiant Citadel (Ethereal), Witchlight Carnival (feywild) would all be Plane- something by your definition.

Despite the movement of travel being astral, I think Spelljammer is going to keep its focus on going between prime worlds and not on the other planes. No sailing to the Abyss, docking in the elemental plane of air, or crashing into Mt Celestia.

One plane does not a Planescape make.

Exactly, and people were predicting exactly such a thing.

 

[see]

"Heavens" doesn't necessarily mean the Outer Planes, and I doubt that marketing blurb is a precise cosmological statement.

Yeah, using "the heavens" to mean space is a long-established English usage.

I note in particular that the original Spelljammer boxed set had, on page 2 of the Concordance of Arcane Space, Robert Browning's "Ah, but a man's reach should exceed his grasp, or what's a heaven for?" When Jeff Grubb included that quote, he was not trying to suggest the idea that you could take your Hammership to visit Yondalla.

It's still possible that the books will set up things so that everybody can visit the Outer Planes in their spelljammers. But that has not been established yet, and people really should stop taking unrestricted counsel of their fears.

 

[Parmandur]

Yeah, using "the heavens" to mean space is a long-established English usage.

I note in particular that the original Spelljammer boxed set had, on page 2 of the Concordance of Arcane Space, Robert Browning's "Ah, but a man's reach should exceed his grasp, or what's a heaven for?" When Jeff Grubb included that quote, he was not trying to suggest the idea that you could take your Hammership to visit Yondalla.

It's still possible that the book will set up things so that everybody can visit the Outer Planes in their spelljammers. But that has not been established yet, and people really should stop taking unrestricted counsel of their fears.

I wouldn't even mind if it is borderline conceivable, but just having two Settings in the cosmology is a far sight from them being consolidated.

 

[overgeeked]

"Heavens" doesn't necessarily mean the Outer Planes, and I doubt that marketing blurb is a precise cosmological statement.

That's reaching. That's literally how the Outer Planes are described, as "many sages refer to the Outer Planes as divine planes, spiritual planes, or godly planes, for the Outer Planes are best known as the homes of deities." But, sure, somehow they're not heavens.

The marketing uses Astral Plane repeatedly...

"Spelljammer: Adventures in Space presents the Astral Plane as a Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting unlike any other. Home of the stars and gateway to the heavens, the Astral Plane teems with excitement and possibility."

One of the book's title is The Astral Adventurer’s Guide another is Boo’s Astral Menagerie...but sure. Maybe they're just kidding about that whole Astral Plane thing.

Being on the Astral Plane means you have fairly easy and reliable access to the Outer Planes...at least according to the DMG. But sure, they might change what's in the DMG to suit Spelljammer to prevent it somehow from traveling the same color pools and portals as everyone else...because...reasons.

I get that some will simply refuse to believe the marketing and Winninger himself when they all say, "Yep, it's planejammer" but whatever. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what the next argument is after the books are released.

 

[SkidAce]

I have no "fears".

Its just my opinion, because you certainly can use the astral to reach "Mt Celestia", so why couldn't you while in the Astral on a ship?

I mean they say "ply the silvery void known as the Astral Sea", in all other situations that characters have done that they could reach Outer Realms.

Not expecting them to divide the astral into separate types of zones for separate types of travel, but I certainly can be and have been wrong before.

 

[SkidAce]

Better spoken than I @overgeeked , thanks.

 

[Parmandur]

That's reaching. That's literally how the Outer Planes are described, as "many sages refer to the Outer Planes as divine planes, spiritual planes, or godly planes, for the Outer Planes are best known as the homes of deities." But, sure, somehow they're not heavens.

The marketing uses Astral Plane repeatedly...

"Spelljammer: Adventures in Space presents the Astral Plane as a Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting unlike any other. Home of the stars and gateway to the heavens, the Astral Plane teems with excitement and possibility."

One of the book's title is The Astral Adventurer’s Guide another is Boo’s Astral Menagerie...but sure. Maybe they're just kidding about that whole Astral Plane thing.

Being on the Astral Plane means you have fairly easy and reliable access to the Outer Planes...at least according to the DMG. But sure, they might change what's in the DMG to suit Spelljammer to prevent it somehow from traveling the same color pools and portals as everyone else...because...reasons.

I get that some will simply refuse to believe the marketing and Winninger himself when they all say, "Yep, it's planejammer" but whatever. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what the next argument is after the books are released.

No Sigil, and no extendeddiscussion of the Outer Planes in the 64 page book? If not, then no "Planejammer." Simple, really. If they go into detail about sailing to Mt. Celestia, then maybe. But I expect they will barely address it, if at all.

They also use the term "Astral Sea," which is different from the DMG usage. And Winninger says that there is "nuance" yo the Phlogiston being gone, so we will see what that means.

 

[Parmandur]

I have no "fears".

Its just my opinion, because you certainly can use the astral to reach "Mt Celestia", so why couldn't you while in the Astral on a ship?

I mean they say "ply the silvery void known as the Astral Sea", in all other situations that characters have done that they could reach Outer Realms.

Not expecting them to divide the astral into separate types of zones for separate types of travel, but I certainly can be and have been wrong before.

A distinction between Spelljamming and Planar travel seems to be still present, as all talk is of material 0lanes connected by the Astral Sea.

 

[overgeeked]

No Sigil, and no extendeddiscussion of the Outer Planes in the 64 page book? If not, then no "Planejammer." Simple, really. If they go into detail about sailing to Mt. Celestia, then maybe. But I expect they will barely address it, if at all.

Ah. So you’re objecting because you have a mistaken view of what Spelljammer fans called the use of Spelljammer ships in 4E. Planejammer is not a combination of the Planescape and Spelljammer settings into a single thing. It’s Spelljammer where the ships cross into other planes. That’s it. Spelljammer ships leaving the prime material plane. So, Spelljammer as mentioned in 4E, where the ships plane-hop…Planejammer. So, now in 5E, where the ships plane-hop…yep, still Planejammer. That’s literally all it means.