D&D (2024) WotC Reveals The Confirmed Release Dates of 2024's D&D Slate

We now have the actual release dates of the upcoming slate of Dungeons & Dragons books, as shared by WotC via a press release emailed out a few minutes ago.

• Vecna: Eve of Ruin (May 21)
• The Making of Original Dungeons & Dragons: 1970-1977 (June 18)
• Quests from the Infinite Staircase (July 16)
• Player’s Handbook (Sept 17)
• Dungeons Master’s Guide (Nov 12)
• Monster Manual (Feb. 18, 2025)

Vecna: Eve of Ruin

• Adventure Campaign
• For characters of levels 10-20
• A high-stakes adventure in which the fate of the entire multiverse hangs in the balance. The heroes begin in the Forgotten Realms and travel to Planescape, Spelljammer, Eberron, Ravenloft, Dragonlance, and Greyhawk as they race to save existence from obliteration by the notorious lich Vecna who is weaving a ritual to eliminate good, obliterate the gods, and subjugate all worlds.
• Release Date: May 21, 2024

The Making of Original Dungeons & Dragons: 1970-1977

• History of D&D
• The ultimate book showcasing D&D’s inception, including Gary Gygax’s never-before-seen first draft of D&D written in 1973, a curated collection of published fanzine and magazine articles contribute to D&D’s origin story. Each document is introduced, described, and woven into the story by one of the game’s foremost historians, Jon Peterson.
• Release Date: June 18, 2024

Quests from the Infinite Staircase

• Adventure Anthology
• For character levels 1 to 13.
• This anthology weaves together six classic DUNGEONS & DRAGONS adventures while updating them for the game’s fifth edition. The Infinite Staircase holds doors leading to fantastic realms. It’s home to the noble genie Nafas, who hears wishes made throughout the multiverse and recruits heroes to fulfill them.
• Release Date: July 16, 2024

Player’s Handbook (2024)

• Player resource
• Take your game to the next level with the revised 2024 Player's Handbook. More player options, enhanced organization, and engaging additions to the fifth edition rules, make this a must have for your next Dungeons & Dragons campaign.
• Release Date: September 17, 2024

Dungeon Master’s Guide (2024)

• DM resource
• It's never been easier to become the Dungeon Master than with the revised 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide. Learn the craft from the experts in a cleverly crafted and accessible approach to running your own game. With more tools than ever before, becoming the master of your own multiverse will be a snap.
• Release Date: November 12, 2024

Monster Manual (2025)

• DM Resource
• The revised 2025 Monster Manual brings you the greatest selection of foes to face off with your player's characters than ever assembled in the history of the game. More options at all levels of play means more ways to provide the challenges that will keep them coming back to the table again and again.
• Release Date: February 18, 2025

 

[Micah Sweet]

Sure. but not for a party of five PCs fighting NPCs.

Maybe let the fight spread naturally through the house?

 

[WisdomOfWombats]

Not really, the PHB is coming out in September, which is their power slot for releases (beginning of the school year). That part seems to be according to plan, and matches prior PHB release dates well.

Late reply I would have expected a GenCon release.

 

[MonsterEnvy]

I don't expect Staircase to be limited to 1e Adventures. The other 2 books were not after all.

 

[Stormonu]

And after One D&D comes Two D&D?

Well, they got to Pentium, so it's time to go back obviously.

 

[Stormonu]

At the end of the adventure, the PCs use the Rod of Seven to travel back in time to knock some sense into the TSR game circa 1986! Total reset to pre Time of Troubles Realms! (Sorry Drizzt fans, like 30 novels are getting de-canonized.)

I don't think you're far off the mark actually. Reset FR, Dragonlance and Greyhawk (maybe the Van Richten rendition of Ravenloft....) - hey, all of a sudden everything WotC/fanbase doesn't like or is problematic is suddenly gone!

 

[doctorbadwolf]

The two demographics it seems to be pitching towards are "Wants a high level campaign that goes to 20th" and "Wants a lore heavy campaign that draws deep on D&D's history". How big those combined demographics will be, and how happy they'll be with the actual book, remains to be seen. But they've certainly voiced their desires for something like this.

Three. Those two, and the folks who mine adventures for thier own homebrew games, which is probably a bigger demo than the other two.

Yeah, Perkins was apparently running the Ravenloft portion at Cons last year, it entailed a visit to Dearh House having to do with the Rod of Seven Parts. This is goojg to revisit sites from 5E Advenrures, eecontextualized in this cosmic struggle.

That actually sounds rad.

Yeah, it's simply too easy to run everything from my laptop now. I don't reference the books for character building because I don't want to flip through 3 or more books. A good chunk of the monsters I use are in books that I only partially purchased.

I'll probably still order the core 3 from my local store just to support them and because I really do like flipping through books, but that's about it.

The PHB is the only one I’m worried about tbh, unless the DMG gets really good reviews.

Oh, absolutely not a coincidence.

Based on the "revisiting 5E products" metric:

• Spelljammer: tying into LoX from the box set?
• Planescape: tying into the Turning of Fortune's Wheel?
• Ravenloft: revisiting Death House from Curse of Strahd
• Eberron: tying into the sample Adventure from the campaign book...?
• Greyhawk: dollars to donuts, this will be Saltmarsh
• Dragonlance: tying into Shadow of the Dragon Queen?

Now, the really odd question is, what FR connection?

- Lost Mines of Phandelver, particularly actually addressing what the Forge of Spells is about

Makes sense, along with the whole obelisks thing.

Maybe the Dead Three are also trying to get in on the action, and we fight Bhaal, or even all three.

And since your post made me find that illustration of the back cover, the ring of seven symbols just goes even further towards confirming the involvement of the Rod of Seven Parts...

I’d love to murder Bhaal tbh

I think it's more like people already pissed off will warp whatever WOTC says to be the new thing they are pissed off about or proof that they were justified in the prior thing(s) they were pissed off about.

This, and also

Controversial take: Wotc wasn’t trying to do what everyone likes to claim with the OGL thing. The whole “kill all the 3pp” rhetoric is just rage, not actually reasonable analysis of what happened.
They were trying to tighten up the IP protection of D&D and make sure that really big players couldn’t get the same benefit as small 3pp. The document that was leaked wasn’t final, and only the NDA was meant to be signed, and they started reworking the document upon getting negative feedback from 3pps. Then the community pushed again, and again, and in spite of no impact on overall sales numbers of any sign there would be any impact they completely capitulated and gave more than was being demanded of them.

I think Kyle Brink’s press tour was about 80% truth, and the other 20% was professionalism (don’t throw your fellows under the bus, just apologize, explain what can be explained without any bus throwing, and talk about next steps) and spin, not lies.

 

[Parmandur]

I don't want to lose track of this thread

Ok, 6 adventures that haven't been in any other 5e adventures so far. Also assuming that big multi-part adventures probably wouldn't be used, as they would make good fodder for future entire adventure books or take place in areas WotC doesn't currently seem to want to develop (Slave Lords, Shadowdale/Cormyr, Sword of Dales, etc)

Village of Hommlet (OR! Keep on the Borderlands)
Dwellers of Forbidden City
Shattered Statue (to honor Jennell J)
Tsojcanth
Forgotten Temple of Tharizdun
Barrier Peaks

Good thoughts: Tsojcanth and Barrier Peaks suggest big fat modular Dungeons are the order of this book, so fairly similar to Yawning Portal bit with a better frame story.

Given Tsojcanth and Barrier Peaks and that vibe, I would propose five possibilities for the other 4 Advebgures:

• Against the Cult of the Reptile God. A bestseller on the DMsGuild PDFs, a Stoneville classic, and there has to be a Level 1 in here. Seems a good fit without implying a series like T1.
• Dwellers of the Forbidden City.
• Forgotten Temple of Tharizdun
• Ghost Tower of Iverness
• Gates of Firestorm Peak

 

[Parmandur]

would like that, not sure where he dropped that though, was that today?

No, back at Gameholecon he was teasing images of Loat Caverns of Tsjocanth, Barrier Peaks, the Infinite Staircase, and the Rod of Seven Parts. And running the Death House portion of Vecna, the Ravenloft bit, at tables.

 

[Parmandur]

Late reply I would have expected a GenCon release.

GemCpn hasn't been a major focus for WotC releases since 4E.

 

[Zarithar]

Good thoughts: Tsojcanth and Barrier Peaks suggest big fat modular Dungeons are the order of this book, so fairly similar to Yawning Portal bit with a better frame story.

Given Tsojcanth and Barrier Peaks and that vibe, I would propose five possibilities for the other 4 Advebgures:

• Against the Cult of the Reptile God. A bestseller on the DMsGuild PDFs, a Stoneville classic, and there has to be a Level 1 in here. Seems a good fit without implying a series like T1.
• Dwellers of the Forbidden City.
• Forgotten Temple of Tharizdun
• Ghost Tower of Iverness
• Gates of Firestorm Peak

Solid choices. Against the Cult of the Reptile God is a personal favorite of mine. I wouldn't mind seeing Rahasia and/or the Desert of Desolation series... but I am doubtful that would make the cut given the fact that it was 3 modules. Ghost Tower also seems likely.
Tomb of the Lizard King would be another great pick.
Dwellers of the Forbidden City has already (sort of) been done with Tomb of Annihilation. It was confirmed that Omu = The Forbidden City, so I doubt it will be that one. Maybe a couple of the UK series? The Sentinel, The Gauntlet, etc. Those were well done IIRC.
My absolute favorite though is Night's Dark Terror... but again that might be too big to fit in as it is more of a mini-campaign.