D&D (2024) Unearthed Arcana Playtest Packet 7 Live on D&D Beyond

Wizards of the Coast posted the seventh playtest packet for the 2024 update to Dungeons & Dragons. The new playtest packet includes updated class material for the Barbarian, Fighter, Sorcerer, Warlock, and Wizard classes.

Highlights for each class:

Barbarian

• New Path of the World Tree subclass and updated Berserker, Wild Heart (formerly Totem Warrior), and Zealot subclasses.
• Attack recklessly for a full round rather than just one turn.
• Path of the Wild Heart (formerly Path of the Totem Warrior) has updated options.
• Brutal Critical gets damage buffs.

Fighter

• New Brawler subclass excels at using improvised weapons and unarmed strikes.
• Tactical Mind and Tactical Shift expand the use of Second Wind.
• Studied Attacks grants advantage on an attack roll against an enemy after you've missed an attack against them.
• Battle Master and its maneuvers have been updated.

Sorcerer

• Innate Sorcery empowers your spellcasting for a limited time.
• Sorcery Incarnate and Arcane Apotheosis boost your Metamagic while Innate Sorcery is active.
• Sorcerous Restoration is available at 5th level and scales with your sorcerer level.
• Wild Magic Sorcery now more reliably allows you to roll on the Wild Magic Surge table.

Warlock

• Pact Magic is back.
• Eldritch Invocations are now available at 1st level and your options have been revised.
• Pact Boons are now invocations, and Mystic Arcanum is once again a class feature.
• Patron Spells are always prepared.
• Updated Archfey Patron, Celestial Patron, Fiend Patron, Great Old One Patron subclasses.

Wizard

• Spellcasting feature now allows you to swap out a cantrip each long rest.
• Memorize Spell is now a feature. Modify Spell and Create spell have been nixed.
• Updated Abjurer, Diviner, Evoker, and Illusionist subclasses.

Universal changes include a return to class spell lists, more features from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything, and update to some of the spells including arcane eruption, sorcerous burst, counterspell, and jump.

The official Dungeons & Dragons YouTube account also posted an almost 90-minute-long video doing a deep dive on the playtest packet.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

While your language is more... colorful than mine, I agree that this is bad symmetry.

I like the idea of having str requisites for heavy range weapons. It would legitimise both Strength (as an ability score) and the existence of the shortbow/light crossbow as viable (and potentially preferable) weapons.

Yeah exactly, and honestly, longbows could probably stand to have a STR 13 requirement too, as much as it might make some people squeal. Or at least put in composite longbows which do and have slightly superior characteristics to a longbow.

Given the many advantages of ranged weapons and Dex in general, I think stopping Str dump for ranged warriors if you want access to the best ranged weapons would be a fantastic change.

It genuinely would - it even fits the fiction better!

 

[Vincent55]

Completely disagree in almost everything you said, except the part about more classes selling more, because people seem to like having more options.

That is an illusion, it fact limits them and shoehorns them into a specific class and then forces them to multiclass and divide their focus. When if you just put things from all the classes as options under 3 basic classes and let the players mix and match what they want you would get a lot more in line with the ideas of what they want to play.

 

[Laurefindel]

Yeah exactly, and honestly, longbows could probably stand to have a STR 13 requirement too, as much as it might make some people squeal.

don't longbows have the heavy property already?

 

[Ruin Explorer]

don't longbows have the heavy property already?

Oh I may have missed that lol

 

[doctorhook]

I’m disappointed by this playtest packet because of the Warlock and Wizard changes. (Haven’t read the other sections yet.) I loved the way the previous Warlock and Wizard changes went, but this playtest seems like it’s going backwards.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

I’m disappointed by this playtest packet because of the Warlock and Wizard changes. (Haven’t read the other sections yet.) I loved the way the previous Warlock and Wizard changes went, but this playtest seems like it’s going backwards.

Because it is, with those two at least (Fighter and Barbarian are like 2 steps forward, 1.5 steps back). People didn't want change to the Warlock, which was fine, it was intended to be a half-caster and it's popular because it doesn't play like other casters, but WotC threw several babies straight out the window with that bathwater. Wizards WotC just wants them to be as OP as possible, AFAICT, and it seems like the majority of voters agree that Wizards should just be OP and better than other classes (which tells us a lot about the voters, I feel).

 

[Charlaquin]

don't longbows have the heavy property already?

Oh I may have missed that lol

They do, but in this UA the heavy property puts a 13 Str minimum on melee weapons and a 13 Dex minimum on ranged weapons.

I intend to tell them in the survey that I would prefer the Str minimum on both.

 

[OB1]

Yeah exactly, and honestly, longbows could probably stand to have a STR 13 requirement too, as much as it might make some people squeal. Or at least put in composite longbows which do and have slightly superior characteristics to a longbow.

It genuinely would - it even fits the fiction better!

They've gone halfway there, making longbows heavy weapons in UA7, just need to take the final step of requiring STR 13 for all heavy weapons.

Edit: Ninjaed

 

[FitzTheRuke]

Are there any instances where one could use magic without casting a spell? Is there a different action for using a magic item, for example?

I mean, sure, but you're usually using the magic item to cast, maybe not a spell, but a magical effect at any rate. Otherwise the item's power is just "on".

 

[FitzTheRuke]

Yeah exactly, and honestly, longbows could probably stand to have a STR 13 requirement too, as much as it might make some people squeal. Or at least put in composite longbows which do and have slightly superior characteristics to a longbow.

It genuinely would - it even fits the fiction better!

You're right. "This crossbow is sooo heavy! I guess I'd better use my hand-eye coordination to use it!"