Dungeons & Dragons has announced the release dates for its new Player’s Handbook, Dungeon Master’s Guide, and Monster Manual, though they won’t all arrive in 2024 despite that expectation set by publisher Wizards of the Coast.
After more than two years of teasing a major update to the tabletop role-playing game known as One D&D, Wizards of the Coast revealed it will officially kick off on September 17, 2024, with the updated Player’s Handbook.
The Dungeon Master’s Guide will arrive a little later on November 12, 2024, but despite Wizards of the Coast itself suggesting the One D&D refresh would kick off fully in 2024, the Monster Manual has slipped into 2025, launching on February 18.
“The new core rulebooks are expected to be released in 2024,” reads a frequently asked questions post still available on the Dungeons & Dragons website.
The publisher didn’t share much about the contents of these new core rulebooks, but as previously announced they will revamp core elements of the current fifth edition without making it redundant to address player feedback.
While some fans will be frustrated with the delay, especially as One D&D was expected to launch fully as a celebration of the game’s 50th anniversary, which is in 2024, Wizards of the Coast still announced a handful of other events to tide players over.
An adventure campaign called Vecna: Eve of Ruin will be released on May 11, letting players engage in “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.
A book called The Making of Original Dungeons & Dragons: 1970 – 1977 is being released on June 18 too. Wizards of the Coast described it as “the ultimate book showcasing D&D’s inception, including Gary Gygax’s never-before-seen first draft of D&D written in 1973.”
The Quests from the Infinite Staircase adventure anthology will be released on July 16, weaving together six classic D&D adventures while updating them for the game’s current edition (which will be compatible with One D&D). Exactly which adventures these will be hasn’t been announced, but it will be targeted at characters between levels one and 13.
Wizards of the Coast announced the biggest miniature booster set ever in January, also in celebration of the 50th anniversary. The game is growing more popular than ever before, helped by the likes of its appearance in Netflix hit Stranger Things, the Hollywood film Honor Among Thieves, and one of 2023’s most beloved games, Baldur’s Gate 3.
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.
