A Hybrid Information Ecosystem

I was initially skeptical about what books and in what format I would purchase the 2024 Dungeons and Dragons game (2024 5e). However, I ended up pre-ordering a digital copy via D&D Beyond (D&DB) and went down to my local game store to pre-order a physical copy from them.

Overall, I was happy with 2014 Dungeons and Dragons, and where I wasn’t happy I have enjoyed what publishers like En Publishing, Kobold Press, and others have done to expand the game. I have spent time on a setting search for a space opera game1, and that has only made me appreciate the level of mechanical crunch and story that 5e provides. I went with digital and physical books as I enjoy the hardcover books for browsing and campaign prep. At the same time, I like the online character builder from D&DB and their integrated maps tool for character tracking, in-game look-up, and character creation.

Imperfectly Perfect

I am not thrilled that D&DB is a closed system. All the content you’ve purchased or built is locked behind your account and there is no PDF or other document you can use as an escape hatch though it enables our game group to minimize bookkeeping and get more game time.

Before our latest Dungeons and Dragons campaign, our group ran an Eclipse Phase game without any formal VTT and managed the game through dddice and ad-hoc character sheets via a spreadsheet2 with Inkarnate as an ad-hoc VTT. At the time, I was happy that we didn’t need D&D Beyond to play the game. We had an amazing time and it was a great campaign. Yet, after our session zero for our latest D&D campaign I am running I realized how much easier it is with a tool like D&D Beyond. The process went so smoothly with the guided steps for character creation and the integrated dice rolling (this excludes the integration with Maps, which deserves a separate post). D&D Beyond is certainly not necessary though it does let groups get gaming more quickly and more time playing games is better than less time playing games.

Play Over Bookkeeping

Outweighing D&D Beyond’s closed system is that the tool makes the game more accessible. D&D Beyond is searchable and can enlarge print, interface with a screen reader, adjust fonts, etc. making it a more flexible interface for a broader user base. D&DB handles the math and provides easy character set-up and tracking so the players can focus on rolling dice and interacting with NPCs.

Play the Game

I love tabletop roleplaying games, and I think they are a great tool for bringing people together to laugh, learn, and empathize. I know I am not alone too as it has been used to foster reading3, help those with social anxiety4, and foster connection during the pandemic5. Given everything, if someone intimidated by playing Dungeons and Dragons comes to the table because of tools like D&DB then that is great, and that outweighs the other concerns I may have over the digital tools.

  1. I backed the EnPublishing Kickstarter for their space game based on the A5e rules and am looking forward to the game. ↩

  2. See this post for more information about the game, and then this post about our first playtest session of the Eclipse Phase rules. ↩

  3. CBC News. “How a Librarian Is Using Dungeons and Dragons to Foster a Love of Reading.” December 1, 2022. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/lucas-maxwell-guidebook-dungeons-and-dragons-uk-librarian-1.6670658. ↩

  4. Hazel, Andy. “‘A Safe Haven’: How Dungeons & Dragons Is Slaying Social Anxiety.” The Guardian, November 29, 2021, sec. Games. https://www.theguardian.com/games/2021/nov/30/a-safe-haven-how-dungeons-dragons-is-slaying-social-anxiety. ↩

  5. “The ‘Critical Role’ Of Dungeons & Dragons During The Pandemic,” January 28, 2021. https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2021/01/27/dungeons-and-dragons-pandemic. ↩