Wizards of the Coast has just unveiled the new One D&D playtest, which focuses on five new classes. Dungeons and Dragons players can now try out new versions for the Barbarian, Fighter, Sorcerer, Wizard, and Warlock, and then share their opinion on the changes.
One D&D was announced last year, and it has released several playtests, revamping the base rules of the game, as well as all classes. The upcoming update of the Dungeons and Dragons formula won’t keep its name for long, though, as it seems that One D&D is only a codename for the revision. Despite several major changes, Wizards of the Coast is still trying to convince gamers that this is still the 5th edition.
In the latest Unearthed Arcana, which can be seen in a video or a 50-page document, there are changes for five classes: the classic Fighters and Wizards, as well as Barbarians, Sorcerers, and Warlocks. Martial classes such as the Fighter and Barbarian will change by getting a Weapon Mastery ability, which will give them unique powers based on what weapon they are using. Fighters, for instance, got an improved ability to self-heal with more uses of Second Wind and also scored more feats. In comparison, Barbarians can now extend their rage with a bonus action when not attacking, as well as some other minor improvements.
Wizards did not change too much, though, which makes sense, as they were already considered some of the most powerful classes in the game. Now, however, they get the Academic feature, which boosts their skills, and gained some new cool abilities for spells. Also, their Epic Boon is very powerful, as they can improve one score to 30 when they reach level 20. Warlocks were greatly revamped, losing their Pact Magic power and gaining standard spellcasting abilities, which made them look more similar to Sorcerers, who got new meta-magic tricks. After playing around with the new version of these classes, gamers can send their feedback to Wizards of the Coast, which opens on May 17.
Tabletop RPG players who are not happy with the changes or believe Wizards of the Coast is not going far enough should not be worried, though. Previously in 2023, Matt Colville announced a D&D 5E alternative. The goal of the brand-new system, which still does not have an official release date, is to have "tactical and cinematic gameplay."
Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition is available now. One D&D will be released in 2024.