WotC: We Are Not Making AI Dungeon Masters

Adding to the recent spate of YouTube-based claims about WotC's plans for Dungeons & Dragons were some additional claims -- (a) that D&D Beyond would have $30 subscription fee; (b) that homebrew content would not be permitted on lower tiers; and (c) that DDB was actively working on AI Dungeon Masters.

Some of this was based on a (long ago debunked) slide from a presentation last year.

WotC has made some clarifications:

Hey, everyone. We’ve seen misinformation popping up, and want to address it directly so we can dispel your concerns.

Rumors of a $30 subscription fee are false.

No one at Wizards is working on AI DMs. We love our human DMs too much. If you’re looking for a DM, we suggest heading to our Discord where DMs and parties are looking for players.

We have designers whose core job it is to compile, analyze, and then act upon your feedback. Your feedback has made the game better over the past decade, and your feedback is central to D&D’s future.

Homebrewing is core to D&D Beyond. It's not going away, and we're not going to charge you for it. Your homebrew is, and always will be, yours. We’ve always been excited to see your creations both on and off D&D Beyond!

There is still no clear statement regarding the Open Gaming License v1.0a, however.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

Wow, Jeremy Crawford is posting about the survey thing. Yet he's been silent on the OGL for weeks.

this effects him... if we distrust the surveys it directly effects his job.

 

[Reynard]

WotC intern: "ChatGPT, please write an AI DM app to be used in our D&D VTT."
Done!

Oh, geez, it's the singularity already.

 

[Scribe]

just the other day when my fiancé asked how much I spent on the groceries I said "I kept it below $100" and she INSTANTLY shot back "That could be 99.99 from you tell me what you spent..."
(if it matters it was like $78)

I know that pain. I always round (time, costs, whatever) because largely, I do not care. My wife always wants exact figures...SMH.

 

[GMforPowergamers]

WotC intern: "ChatGPT, please write an AI DM app to be used in our D&D VTT."
Done!

I played with it and it wont write a new AI... thank god, I am not ready for the singularity

 

[Zaukrie]

Yes, but all that matters to me is their intent to nullify the OGL. And they’re not denying that.

It's literally not about that. This is about another topic

 

[ThrorII]

$30 monthly subscription is ridiculous. It's going to be $29.95.

And of course no one at WotC is working on an AI DM. They've contracted an outside company with programming expertise in AI chatbots to do that.

This man understands CorpSpeak.

In all fairness, I really don't think WotC cares about 3PP and the OSR movement. It is chump change. I really think this is about their business plan for a WoW-ification of D&D (VTTs, microtransactions, online only play, etc.). They want a virtual only D&D (no printing, no owning of books, no face-to-face paper and pencil play). They just don't know exactly how to wall off 1D&D from the rest of the OGL......

If 5.5e/6e/1D&D is too similar to 5e, then the OGL applies and they can't wall it off.

 

[Riley]

It's literally not about that. This is about another topic

(I simply noted that this careful denial of several rumors does NOT deny what I see as the core rumor/plan. Your mileage, of course, may vary.)

"Please, look at all the pretty chaff. Doesn't it make you want to forget about the OGL?"

 

[J.Quondam]

This man understands CorpSpeak.

In all fairness, I really don't think WotC cares about 3PP and the OSR movement. It is chump change. I really think this is about their business plan for a WoW-ification of D&D (VTTs, microtransactions, online only play, etc.). They want a virtual only D&D (no printing, no owning of books, no face-to-face paper and pencil play). They just don't know exactly how to wall off 1D&D from the rest of the OGL......

If 5.5e/6e/1D&D is too similar to 5e, then the OGL applies and they can't wall it off.

Even more specifically, maybe they just want to corral "visible" (read: "marketable") game elements the like spells and monsters, especially really iconic things like gelatinous cube and drow. The actual rules probably don't matter a whole lot to them.

I've said it half-jokingly elsewhere, but I bet they really do want to corner the market on owlbear plushies.
.

 

[JEB]

It's a whole thread. I'll try to get it all capped.
My trust in wotc is very low.

Links embedded in the images.

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Regarding that last point: I thought they already charged for sharing homebrew outside of your campaign group?

 

[Greggy C]

this effects him... if we distrust the surveys it directly effects his job.

It's important to note that "writing by committee" can also have negative connotations, as it can lead to a lack of clear vision or direction, and a final product that is a compromise rather than a cohesive work.

chatgbt.