This Week In TTRPG News: One D&D To Rule Them All

Welcome back to another edition of TTRPG news! It was a big one, as Wizards of the Coast laid down the future of Dungeons & Dragons to expectedly mixed reactions. Outside of that, it’s Wisdom Save Weekend! Come join a fun group of TTRPG creators and pro GMs for hilarious actual plays and one-shots. 

One D&D Ditches Editions For Digital

D&D producer Wizards of the Coast held a “Wizards Presents” video event yesterday that focused on the future of D&D and Magic: The Gathering. The big news was the reveal of 2024’s revamp of D&D, which is not 6th Edition or even 5.5. The branding is One D&D, and it seems more in line with the way online games evolve via small updates rather than sequels every few years.

The design team even plans to integrate digital tools from D&D Beyond into One D&D, as evidenced by a free playtest PDF for new character creation rules released on the platform. Finally, WotC showed a preview of an official virtual tabletop that renders minis and terrain in Unreal Engine. Reactions to the One D&D preview have been strong on both sides. Many are enjoying the way foundational mechanics like feats are being reworked, while others are still wary of how WotC is choosing to change the concept of race.

WotC also showed the 2023 release schedule for D&D books, along with their titles and premises. To see them and everything else shown during Wizards Presents, see our full event breakdown.

Wisdom Save Weekend: Play Games And Watch Games

This weekend, starting today, in fact, is the three-day charity event Wisdom Save Weekend! StartPlaying is partying up with several TTRPG groups to raise funds for Take This, a mental health in gaming nonprofit. If you’re looking for something to watch this weekend, head on over to Total Party Chill on Twitch where you’ll find several wild one-shots and giveaways galore!

For those who prefer to get more hands-on, several StartPlaying GMs are running special games for Wisdom Save Weekend. A portion of the funds from paid games will be donated to Take This. Come play Pathfinder, Avatar Legends, D&D, and more for a good cause. 

Lord Of The Rings Is All Over The News Again

As Amazon readies audiences for a return to Middle Earth, the LOTR world is coming back to gaming in full force. Wizards detailed the gorgeous art of its upcoming LOTR Magic set, with borderless cards that come together to make an epic battlefield tableau. Last week, Free League announced that it is bringing its One Ring Roleplaying Game to 5E. Now, the whole LOTR franchise is being acquired by Embracer Group. What this means for the One Ring RPG is still unknown, but Embracer does own other gaming properties like Tomb Raider and Borderlands. 

Dark Souls TTRPG, But You Play As A Weird NPC

In this week’s edition of strange projects, we have Fucked Up Little Man. This odd one-pager is designed by Grant Howitt of Honey Heist fame. The premise? You play as one of the odd NPCs from a From Software game. Not the blighted hero, but the creepy potion seller or witch who speaks in vague riddles. What does one do in this game? What is the goal? Find out on Howitt’s Patreon, where the game is out a week early before its wider release. 

As always, we have plenty of games on StartPlaying looking for new players! Whether it's Dark Souls, LOTR, or D&D homebrew that avoids the new rules, we probably have something just for you!