Dungeons & Dragons goes adults-only for the first time ever as lawyers force warning onto new book

Dungeons & Dragons is going adult-only for the first time in its history, and the new book is coming shrink-wrapped with a warning label slapped on the front.

The setting getting the adults-only treatment is Dark Sun, a sun-scorched wasteland world that has not had a proper release in decades. It lands in 2027 with a content warning flagging violence, bloodshed, nudity and sexuality.

And it was not the designers who insisted on it. At a press briefing ahead of the announcement, the team admitted the lawyers told them the warning had to go on there.

The tagline says it all. Dark Sun, they reckon, is not a world you save. It is a world you survive.

Not messing about

This is not one book with a rude bit in it either. Dark Sun is getting a full range, with close to 500 pages of new material across a player expansion, a Dungeon Master expansion, a map pack, a DM screen and a posh alternate-art Player’s Handbook.

It also brings in a brand new character class, the Psion, playable from level one all the way to level 20. Mind powers have been a sore point for D&D fans for decades. This is the fix.

World of Warcraft is coming to the table

The other big one is a full-fat World of Warcraft crossover, out on 17 November this year and built alongside Blizzard.

The pitch is simple: rebuild your WoW main, or roll a fresh alt, and play them at the tabletop. Every species from the MMO is in there, with 11 new ones added, plus new elf lineages.

Every class is covered too, through six new subclasses and three updated ones. Death Knight, Priest, Demon Hunter, the lot, right down to individual specs.

There are 26 magic items, more than 60 spells, over 50 monsters, 23 factions and a stack of Azeroth’s most famous dungeons converted for dice.

The Lich King himself is in the book, and a separate Icecrown Citadel map pack recreates the raid with poster maps, tokens and a digital adventure that throws a dozen bosses at levels 16 to 20. There is an official range of miniatures on the way as well.

Joe Manganiello is now in charge of something

The biggest shock of the night was who turned up. Actor Joe Manganiello, of True Blood and Magic Mike, was announced as Chief Creative Officer of D&D Icons, a new programme dragging the game’s founding names back to the table.

That includes a proper reunion. Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, who created Dragonlance and wrote the novels that made it massive, are writing a new Dragonlance book together for the first time in over 20 years.

Luke Gygax is finishing an adventure built from unpublished material left behind by his dad Gary Gygax, who co-created D&D back in 1974. And R.A. Salvatore is bringing back Drizzt Do’Urden, fantasy’s most famous dark elf.

A video game, and a witch you already know

Greyhawk is back too, in an adventure called Crown of the Witch Queen, where players take on Drelnza, the vampire daughter of the witch Iggwilv. You might know her better as Tasha.

Tasha turned up twice, in fact. She is confirmed for Warlock: Dungeons & Dragons, a new single-player action game, played by Maggie Robertson through voice and performance capture. She is up against Tricia Helfer of Battlestar Galactica, who leads the game as a warrior called Kaatri. First gameplay drops on 25 August at gamescom.

Ninety-nine pence to get started

Wizards also went after the thing that actually stops people playing D&D, which is not knowing anyone who plays it.

A Looking For Group tool went live on D&D Beyond on the night, with a finder for local games, a rebuilt Discord and a tie-up with StartPlaying to match you with a professional Dungeon Master. For a limited time, first-timers can book one of those games for 99 cents.

A rebuilt D&D Beyond mobile app is coming in early 2027, built for playing round an actual table rather than replacing one.