by It’s here! The newest Wizards of the Coast (WOTC) release – Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse (MOM) was available for individual purchase on D&D Beyond on May 16, 2022 – one day earlier than expected. It was up and hopping into customers’ carts around noon EDT.
“I’m most excited about the changes in starting stats. It will give us more options to move things around so you aren’t making one particular race really good for one particular class. Plus, there are a lot more options for small-sized races.”
– Terry L., 5e player and collector of previous edition sourcebooks
This new rules expansion both compiles and updates playable races and creatures/monsters we first saw in Volo’s Guide to Monsters, Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes, and other Dungeons & Dragons books. Those two books – Volo’s Guide and Tome of Foes – have actually already been removed from D&D Beyond’s marketplace.
Image courtesy Wizards of the Coast (WOTC)
Wizards of the Coast, which recently announced its purchase of D&D Beyond, is clearly excited about its newest offering.
Hailing from every corner of the multiverse, these creatures represent some of the most benevolent and malevolent forces that D&D heroes might face.
– WOTC website
The book also gathers together fantastical peoples from many different worlds. Each of these peoples represents a race option when you create your D&D character, expanding on the choices in the Player’s Handbook.
Image courtesy WOTC
Gathering the Races – Monsters of the Multiverse
MOM actually does something quite amazing. It essentially brings together all the races that have ever been introduced throughout all of Fifth Edition’s history into one place. Well, two places. There are still the original races to be found in The Player’s Handbook.
Compiled, updated
The over 30 playable races to be found in Monsters of the Multiverse have been gathered from multiple sources, including adventure books from previous editions.
It’s great to have it all brought into one volume. It means a player doesn’t have to buy every adventure to get access to every race’s stats.
– Niall H., new DM and homebrewer
Image courtesy WOTC
The Creatures – Monsters of the Multiverse
MOM includes over 250 creatures, including monsters and nonplayer characters (NPCs). There is a lot of stuff in here that both players and DMs are looking forward to. There is detailed lore, updated monsters, and artwork of creatures never illustrated before.
With MOM replacing Volo’s Guide to Monsters and Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes, you can no longer purchase those volumes on D&D Beyond. For those that already owned them on D&D Beyond, the content has already been labeled “legacy.” This essentially means the content does not reflect the latest rules and lore.
I have mixed feelings about this book. I feel it is more of a Rehash or Rewrite of old things. I don’t know if I will buy it. I don’t know how much of it is new. These Kinds of publications Frustrate me they tell me what you bought yesterday is no longer Good today if you want to play “Officially”… I may still take a gander at a friend’s copy but I feel there are so many Independent Creators and Developers that are putting awesome content into dungeons and dragons why do I need to buy a book that puts subtle changes into stuff I already have. I do that already with my own Homebrewing.