by Wizards of the Coast (WOTC) dropped a dragon-sized load of big news on August 18 with the announcement of their One DnD plan. This marks a major milestone in the history of the game that will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2024.
Some kind of “new” something has been expected from Wizards for quite a while. It was hinted at on multiple occasions, especially since WOTC purchased the super-popular D&D Beyond platform earlier this year. There was also the release of Monster’s of the Multiverse in May, and the 5e reboot of the Spelljammer.
Image courtesy WOTC/Carla Bumstead
One DnD – the New Generation
WOTC is calling this new vision/plan “One D&D.” In their August 18 announcement, WOTC officials referred to One D&D as a new generation of the “world’s greatest role-playing game.” They defined three initiatives that will “shape the future of the game.” These initiatives are expected to fully launch in 2024.
1. D&D Rules. This takes what we love about fifth edition and updates the rules of the game to reflect the feedback we have heard from players and where the game is today.
2. D&D Beyond. This will be the platform for your digital D&D collection, content, and tools.
3. D&D Digital Play Experience. In early development, D&D Digital will offer an immersive player experience, rich creation tools for Dungeon Masters, and a connected space for DMs and players to get together and play D&D.
– WOTC, August 18, 2022
Image courtesy Netflix/Carla Bumstead
D&D Beyond is the Platform – One DnD
We all know that, with WOTC now in control of D&D Beyond, the Wizards will be calling a lot of shots when it comes to how people will play the game as it enters its 50th year. D&D Beyond will be expanding and will have its own VTT (virtual tabletop.) To be called “D&D Digital, officials said it will be designed in Unreal Engine 5. From first glance, it looks like an all-in-one hybrid of current VTTs like Roll20, etc. It may also bring in aspects of custom mini makers like HeroForge. The idea is to create a fully integrated experience.
“Currently, players are cobbling together all kinds of different apps and websites to have a true integrated D&D experience. What we want to do is actually just provide all the tools that the players need to play themselves in one space.”
– Kale Stutzman, Principle Game Designer for D&D Digital, WOTC
End of Editions
Of major note with WOTC’s August 18 announcement is how the tabletop team will deal with the evolution of the game. In the words of Chris Perkins himself, they are no longer thinking in terms of “editions.”
“We did a smart thing with Fifth Edition, by listening to the fans. And what came out of that process was a system that is stable, that is well loved, that incorporates the best elements of earlier editions. Now that we have that, we are no longer in the position where we think of D&D as an edition – it’s just D&D.”
– Chris Perkins, D&D’s Game Design Architect
