Planescape Manual of the Planes for 5e on DMSGuild

New on the DMSGuild is the Manual of the Planes for 5th edition. The cover is stunning.

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It's over 300 pages and the credits page includes folks from The Draconomicon, The Dragonlance Companion, Tasha's Crucible of Everything Else, Planescape: Metropolis, The Honkonomicon and Planewalker.com

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I love the special thanks.

This project was made possible by Roll20. Thank you for unlocking new horizons for the latest generation of planewalkers, bashers, berks, and touts. We’d also like to thank the giants on whose shoulders we stand when writing this book: Justice Ramin Arman, Richard Baker, Wolfgang Baur, David “Zeb” Cook, Bruce R. Cordell, Jeff Grubb, David Noonan, F. Wesley Schneider, Rick Swan, and all others who helped create and cultivate Planescape and the planes.

I've just bought it and am reading it now.

Manual of the Planes (5e) - Dungeon Masters Guild | Dungeon Masters Guild

Manual of the Planes (5e) - From creators behind The Draconomicon, Tasha's Crucible of Everything Else, Planescape: Metropolis, The Honkonomic

www.dmsguild.com

Here is the table of contents.

 

[kenmarable]

I'd be curious to hear your reviews of both Planescape and this Manual of the Planes, and the ways in which the latter is superior to the former. I haven't had chance to look at this book yet (it's a 300 page book and it only came out yesterday). What makes this one worth my money over the Planescape book?

And as one of the people who worked on this Manual of the Planes, I am extremely curious to hear honest opinions of what people like and don't like with it! With a fully digital release having no page count limit and not including a campaign-sized adventure, there are certainly things we could do that Planescape (PAM) couldn't, and it's 100% intended as an extension to PAM filling in where it couldn't (like 200 pages on all of the planes), not a replacement of PAM

 

[darjr]

I do think they serve different audiences. I think that's also intentional now. The only problem is I think I am in both those audiences!

 

[darjr]

And as one of the people who worked on this Manual of the Planes, I am extremely curious to hear honest opinions of what people like and don't like with it! With a fully digital release having no page count limit and not including a campaign-sized adventure, there are certainly things we could do that Planescape (PAM) couldn't, and it's 100% intended as an extension to PAM filling in where it couldn't (like 200 pages on all of the planes), not a replacement of PAM

I noticed that! The verbiage and names match. That's incredibly cool for me.

Did you folks work with WotC to coordinate that?

 

[mamba]

The Draconomicon, it's twin in this space, is $70 in print.

if you compare print, WotC will always win on economics of scale…

 

[Reynard]

I don’t disagree with that. But the frequency quality in the material have all exploded thanks to 5e and the guild. I think denying that is just foolish.

I think you misunderstand me. I think you think I am disparaging the DMsGuild or the people that produce work there. I'm not. I am merely saying that the existence of the DMsGuild has changed the way some fan content gets made,pushing g much of it into a paid space. That isn't always a good thing. I am also sure that a lot of stuff that would never have gotten made has because the DMsGuild has created a market for it. That's a good thing, too.

My biggest problem with the DMsGuild is it is impossible to navigate and find the best material unless it also happens to be a best seller, and I have yet to find a website, blog, Discord, Facebook page or YouTube channel that is dedicated to reviewing the material on DMsGuild. It has all the problems of the d20 Glut without at least being on the shelf so you can page through it.

I am sure there is some great work on there, just as surely there is some real dross. But it's hard to tell the difference before investing.

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

I feel curiosity about the PC species. Someones seem to be new.

Other point is the "backrooms" of the World Sepert Inn. If a "reality glitch" could cause troubles...

Mount Olympus as an interplanar landmark? And what if Theros had got its own interplanar landmark?

 

[Micah Sweet]

if you compare print, WotC will always win on economics of scale…

This is why I don't compare print. I want the content, and most of the time I'll pick pdf over print for storage and price point. If I want something specific in print, I'll get it.

This is definitely a pdf for me. I'll likely pair with the offline document I'll make of the monsters from the new WotC book when I get around to buying that section off D&DB (the only part worth paying for to me).

 

[Henadic Theologian]

I'd be curious to hear your reviews of both Planescape and this Manual of the Planes, and the ways in which the latter is superior to the former. I haven't had chance to look at this book yet (it's a 300 page book and it only came out yesterday). What makes this one worth my money over the Planescape book?

So far I've only read the 17 page free preview because I literally just dropped $47cad on the Scarred Lands PDF Bundle of Holding with Thrust hold or level up whatever its called ($270+cad value) and a $70 on Amazon for Midgard 5e Worldbook physical copy because I wanted at least 1 pretty much complete setting (was part of the Southlands kickstarter so between worldbook and city book I got that is 930 pages roughly if setting material and a city or two that gets in depth treatment.

So I'm low on cash and honestly the exchange rate isn't my friend.

And I want to see if they came out with Pod + PDF option later on.


BUT based on those 17 pages and the ToC, it's already clear that this is far closer to what Planescape Setting product. I will note it tries to not to step on P: AitM's toes, which means they made this amazing product in around 3 weeks at most, VS years for P: AitM.

I really like the flavour and mechanics of the feats in the MP5e that we get to see in the preview.

I'd do a reread of the Preview and ToCs for a deeper dive. I know that's not the whole book, but it's enough to get a taste of the quality and the ToC tells me exactly what the book includes, so between that I feel reasonable confidant in my a assessment of MP5e VS P: AitM.

I will say that MP5e doesn't have much in the way of art in the first 17 pages, but if they had the budget that WotC, that would not be an issue, so I cut it alot if slack on that issue.

Honestly toying with doing an Aborea focused book myself.

I'll also note long before P: AitM was announced there was a 300 page Acheron book on dmsguild, but under I believe from a general/FR umbrella, not Planescape, I don't have that one either, but I find the idea intriguing.

 

[Micah Sweet]

So far I've only read the 17 page free preview because I literally just dropped $47cad on the Scarred Lands PDF Bundle of Holding with Thrust hold or level up whatever its called ($270+cad value) and a $70 on Amazon for Midgard 5e Worldbook physical copy because I wanted at least 1 pretty much complete setting (was part of the Southlands kickstarter so between worldbook and city book I got that is 930 pages roughly if setting material and a city or two that gets in depth treatment.

So I'm low on cash and honestly the exchange rate isn't my friend.

And I want to see if they came out with Pod + PDF option later on.


BUT based on those 17 pages and the ToC, it's already clear that this is far closer to what Planescape Setting product. I will note it tries to not to step on P: AitM's toes, which means they made this amazing product in around 3 weeks at most, VS years for P: AitM.

I really like the flavour and mechanics of the feats in the MP5e that we get to see in the preview.

I'd do a reread of the Preview and ToCs for a deeper dive. I know that's not the whole book, but it's enough to get a taste of the quality and the ToC tells me exactly what the book includes, so between that I feel reasonable confidant in my a assessment of MP5e VS P: AitM.

I will say that MP5e doesn't have much in the way of art in the first 17 pages, but if they had the budget that WotC, that would not be an issue, so I cut it alot if slack on that issue.

Honestly toying with doing an Aborea focused book myself.

I'll also note long before P: AitM was announced there was a 300 page Acheron book on dmsguild, but under I believe from a general/FR umbrella, not Planescape, I don't have that one either, but I find the idea intriguing.

We all know I'm not put off by a lack of art.

 

[Corinnguard]

I feel curiosity about the PC species. Someones seem to be new.

Most of the PC species in this PDF aren't new, they're from 3e's Planar Handbook. What is new about them is that they're being treated as subraces for several others. I wish this PDF had included the Mephlings.