The lead-up to the 2024 Player's Handbook for selling 3000 copies at GenCon, a lot of copies are already in the hands of players.

An advanced copy of the 2024 Player's Handbook was sent to Screen Rant, and during the last month, I've gotten to use it quite often. In fact, my D&D group and I have been using it in our latest campaign. And, yes, it's true - the new ruleset can work pretty well alongside 5e adventure books and content that already exists. In fact, we've rarely had any hiccups at all during the sessions we've played this month in which we combined 5e content with the 2024 updates.

D&D Rules & Class Changes Rundown

Rules and Character Creation Are Easier Than Ever

Comparatively, the 2024 Player's Handbook is to 5e what 3.5 was to 3e, but that's underselling it a bit. Rules have been streamlined, some rules have returned (big fan of Bloodied being officially back), and some rules have been abandoned entirely. The most noticeable differences are probably in the way characters are created now - species, classes, subclasses, and backgrounds have all gotten some pretty big overhauls - but it's in the way all this new information is presented that works so successfully for the new D&D book.

The 2024 Player's Handbook for D&D makes it easier than ever to look up rules and go through the process of character creation. Something as small as the Index in the back of the book has been a godsend, and rules are far easier to check in this edition than they ever were in 5e's rulebooks. They're easier to spot, and are given better explanations. If there's one complaint I've regularly had with the 2014 books, it's how difficult it can be to find a solid explanation on some rules.

Many of the subclasses are found in content that already exists for 5e, but there are some new ones thrown around for classes like Barbarian and Druid. Every D&D class has changed in some way, and there are now easy-to-read rundowns of each class, subclass, feat, and background as players roll through the creation process. It's hard to put into words just how much easier this makes character creation, but it's especially great when rolling high-level characters right out the gate, or when characters have leveled up.

Is The New 2024 Player's Handbook Worth Using?

Or Is D&D 5e Still Better To Use?

The big question on everyone's minds seems to be whether the new 2024 Player's Handbook is worth it or not. D&D 5e has been a massively successful and popular edition, and I suspect it may be why this updated version isn't simply called 5.5e or even 6e. In of newcomers, the 2024 Player's Handbook is easily the best place to start. Nearly everything about the book is better than the 5e Player's Handbook from 2014.

At the end of the day, everyone who currently plays is just going to use whichever edition they prefer, which is fine (and it's great that it's even an option). But the 2024 changes are welcome, and I've found them to be mostly improvements from what was in earlier editions. This is definitely the rulebook I'd recommend to people who are trying to get into Dungeons & Dragons. The organization and accessibility are just much better than the 2014 edition.

The 2024 Player's Handbook Is Beautiful

Some Of The Best D&D Artwork To Date

The 2024 Player's Handbook also features some of the best D&D artwork to date. And there's so much of it to see. My group and I were constantly surprised by how much art is featured in the book. And while it may not be the main reason people will purchase the new rulebook, it's certainly something that works in its favor.

The 2024 Player's Handbook is easily the best place to start.

Final Thoughts On The New Player's Handbook

Where Will D&D Go From Here?

At this time, the new ruleset is somewhat incomplete. After all, the DM's Guide won't be arriving until November and the Monster Manual isn't released until 2025. That being said, the 2024 Player's Handbook gets things off to a strong start. Even as someone who mostly loved 5e, I'm still sold on these new changes and improvements. For all intents and purposes, this is a new edition of Dungeons & Dragons, and it's definitely worth checking out.

A copy of the Dungeons & Dragons 2024 Player's Handbook was sent to Screen Rant for the purpose of this review.