Dungeons & Dragons Reverses Course on D&D Beyond Changes to 2014 and 2024 Spells

D&D Beyond will not forward with a controversial plan to update all spells to their 2024 versions on character sheets.

By Christian Hoffer

D&D Beyond will not move forward with a controversial plan to update all of the spells on its digital character sheets to those found in the 2024 Dungeons & Dragons Player's Handbook after immense pushback from players. In a statement released early this morning, Wizards of the Coast announced that D&D Beyond users would no longer automatically have their character options, spells, and magical items updated to their 2024 versions in their character sheets. Instead, players who only have access to the 2014 version of the Player's Handbook will maintain their current sets of rules on the character sheet, while those with both the 2024 and 2014 version can select from both sources when creating new characters. 

The announcement is a direct reversal of previous plans for D&D Beyond, which acts as one of the primary ways Dungeons & Dragons players manage their characters. Previously, all players, regardless as to whether they purchased the 2024 Player's Handbook, would have their spells, magical items, and mundane items updated to the updated rules found in the new rulebook. Fans protested, as many players have either not committed to using the new revised rules or plan to only switch over after finishing their current campaign. The forced change, while free, was also seen as pushing the new rules on all players, regardless as to whether they wanted to use them or not.

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"Our excitement around the 2024 Core Rulebooks led us to view these planned updates as welcome improvements and free upgrades to existing content," a statement on D&D Beyond's website read. "We misjudged the impact of this change, and we agree that you should be free to choose your own way to play."

D&D Beyond did confirm that it would move forward with some renaming of certain resources or categories based on the 2024 Player's Handbook. Examples include Races to Species, Inspiration to Heroic Inspiration, and Cast Spell to Magic. None of these are mechanical changes though to the extent of those previously planned for the new character sheets. 

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