D&D (2024) What's In D&D's New Starter Set?

There's a new Dungeons & Dragons Starter Set, titled Heroes of the Borderlands, coming in September. WotC has given us a quick peek at what's inside! The set is designed to be replayable, and comes with maps and cards, which are presumably part of the tile-based character creation system WotC has hinted at recently. The video doesn't reveal much else, but we should have more information over the coming months.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Also new, beyond the gnolls and red dragon: The battle map says "nothic lair." Nothics weren't even a thing until 3E's Miniatures Handbook, as I recall, so that's definitely new.

 

[Arilyn]

I see on the map of the castle that gnolls are the new orcs, judging from the monster tokens.

Now I'm wanting to make good gnolls. But more seriously, if gnolls are now fiends, there will not really be any incentive or perhaps even abity to negotiate. Any idea what other creatures are lurking in the caves?

 

[Spectral Anomaly]

I didn't even think about that. A red dragon in the Borderlands is new to me. (No idea if one was in Return.) This definitely looks like part of the thinking with Dragon Delves, that players probably expect to encounter dragons in and around a dungeon in their games.

"Woah woah woah, hold on a second. Isn't it a little presumptuous to expect to see both dungeons AND dragons in this game?"

 

[FitzTheRuke]

Now I'm wanting to make good gnolls. But more seriously, if gnolls are now fiends, there will not really be any incentive or perhaps even abity to negotiate. Any idea what other creatures are lurking in the caves?

You can guarantee Kobolds. Heck, the Red Dragon is probably their boss.

 

[mearls]

I love the dungeon maps! This looks like a really clever way to approach a starter set.

 

[Parmandur]

I love the dungeon maps! This looks like a really clever way to approach a starter set.

Somewhere between the 2019 Essentials Kit and the old 90s Black Box.

 

[billd91]

The most shocking thing about this update is that they're actually naming the NPCs this time around. What a concept!

Well, they named them in Return to the Keep on the Borderlands back at the 25th anniversary too.

 

[Spellslinging Sellsword]

The images remind me of the ones in this thread from the Japanese Sword World starter sets.

 

[Lidgar]

Given the whole D&D multiverse thing they are pushing, I wouldn’t be surprised if this was a reimagining of KotB versus a sequel to either of the modules.

Looks good though, especially for beginners.

 

[Stormonu]

I’m intrigued. Is this keep on the borderlands

I'm sure it's a remix more along the lines of Tomb of Annihilation being a remix of Isle of Dread/Tomb of Horrors/Dwellers in the Forbidden City and less along the lines of the "reprints" in Tales from Yawning Portal or Quests from the Infinite Staircase.

Still, I'd like to see more. If nothing else, I'm a sucker for collecting Starter sets and seeing what designers are trying to do to teach the game to new players and where their head is with how they expect the game to sort of run.