Between celebrating its 50th anniversary and launching two new core rulebooks,Dungeons & Dragonshad a busy year in 2024, but 2025 doesn’t look like it’s slowing down all that much. Kicking off with the Februaryrelease of the updatedMonster Manual, the slate of books should have no trouble keeping game tables busy in the coming months, even if the pace of releases takes a while to spin up. 2025’s variety of releases embraces some long-standingD&Dtraditions, but it also breaks a couple of 5e trends in interesting ways.
D&Dfirst revealed a 2025 roadmap in August 2024, but a February press briefing thatScreen Rantattended at the Wizards of the Coast offices revealed that a couple of releases were being left out. While Wizards confirmed one of these to be a sourcebook that returns to Eberron and re-introduces the Artificer class, the other remains a mystery.There’s currently no long-form campaign book announced for 2025, so one could always fill that gap, but Wizards has made it clear that the overall pace of campaign book releases has been slowed for the foreseeable future.
Monster Manual - July 08, 2025
D&D’s Biggest Compendium Of Creatures
The February release ofD&D’s revisedMonster Manualcompletes the trilogy of new core rulebooksthat started publication in 2024. Like thePlayer’s HandbookandDungeon Master’s Guide, theMonster Manualmaintains compatibility with the past decade ofD&Dmaterial. Challenge rates for all returning monsters remain the same, but tweaks to abilities, health, and more make for different combat experiences.
“That Blob Is My Baby”: D&D’s Jeremy Crawford Talks The 2025 Monster Manual
Screen Rant sat down with lead designer Jeremy Crawford to discuss what’s in D&D’s 2025 Monster Manual and the upcoming slate of releases.
Higher-level challenges are getting a particular boost, with buffs to some existing ones and an assortment of additions. The newcomers are among over 85new creatures in the 2025Monster Manual, making for a tome that’s just as hefty as the other new rulebooks. The book can be accessed two weeks early on February 4 with a Master Tier D&D Beyond subscription or a purchase from a participating local game store, a pattern that should also apply to some other upcoming releases.
Dragon Delves - July 24, 2025
10 Short Adventures Starring D&D’s Namesakes
Initially announced in 2024 under the placeholder descriptor “Dragon Anthology,“Dragon Delvesis a new anthology book for fans ofD&D’s most iconic creatures. Each adventure focuses on one ofD&D’s ten chromatic and metallic dragon types, with major differences in art style and tone to best represent the nature of each creature.
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The book serves double duty as an adventure anthology and a follow-up toFizban’s Treasury of Dragons, so even those unsure about running the adventures might get some useful information out of it.Dragon Delvesalso adopts some of the principles of adventure design and prep laid out in the 2024Dungeon Master’s Guideto provide DMs with quick launching points into the story.
Eberron: Forge Of The Artificer - July 09, 2025
D&D Returns To An Off-The-Wall Setting
After bringing the Eberron campaign setting to fifth edition withEberron: Rising from the Last Warin 2019,D&Dis returning to the pulpy world of magic mechanisms withEberron: Forge of the Artificer.This is meant to serve as a companion piece for the last book rather than a replacement, as well as a means to deliver anupdated version of the Artificersubclass. Interestingly, lead designer Jeremy Crawford noted thatit will come in a somewhat different format and price than prior 5e books, although details on what that might look like remain unconfirmed.
Heroes Of The Borderlands Starter Set - August 03, 2025
The Best Way To Jump In
Starter sets are intended to ease newcomers intoD&Dmore naturallythan picking up any old campaign book and set of rules, andHeroes of the Borderlandsis the first release to do this after 2024’s rules revisions. Revisiting the classic location of the Keep on the Borderlands, the new starter set applies new mechanics and approaches the teaching process in a different way from its predecessors. This apparently includes anew method of character creationthat Wizards posits is faster than any previous option (excluding pre-generated ones).
Untitled D&D Release - October 2025
October’s Release Remains A Mystery
While the 2025 roadmap originally laid out in 2024 included no indication that Eberron would eventually muscle its way into the schedule, the newer lineup does specify that something is coming in October. The nature of that something, however, is a complete mystery, and the question of why Wizards won’t yet reveal it is equally tantalizing.D&Dmay simply be trying to keep the focus on the other books for now, but choosing to tease an October release hopefully implies that it won’t be anything underwhelming.
Forgotten Realms Player’s Guide & Adventure Guide - July 24, 2025
Finally Detailing D&D 5e’s Primary Setting
The final twoD&Dbooks for 2025 are coming out on the same day, witha heap of new Forgotten Realms material being split across two tomes. ThePlayer’s Guidecontains useful additions likeeight new subclasses, while theAdventure Guideis intended to be more of a setting resource for DMs. 5e hasn’t traditionally provided setting books that don’t multitask on adding new player options, so splitting these two up should let theAdventure Guidego into more detail.
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My biggest problem with the lineup of modern Dungeons & Dragons products will finally be solved in 2025 thanks to the addition of two new books.
Five key areas of the Forgotten Realms will be the focus of the new material —Baldur’s Gate, Calimshan, the Dalelands, Icewind Dale, and the Moonshae Isles. Each of these settings is meant to support a different kind of fantasy adventure, with art that, like inDragon Delves, goes in different directions for each.
According to Jeremy Crawford, the Forgotten Realms books will contain bits that will “delight"Baldur’s Gate 3fans.
Not every book inD&D’s lineup for 2025 will appeal to every player and DM, and although the lack of a traditional campaign book is a nice change of pace, it could be disappointing for some. Nonetheless, a variety of books that includes some widely useful ones should have at least one or two options that will interest mostD&Dparties. Whether the mysteryDungeons & DragonsOctober release ends up being a major or minor addition remains to be seen, but the year is already shaping up nicely without it.
