D&D (2024) New D&D Edition's Player’s Handbook Cover Reveal

Game Informer has revealed the cover to the 2024 Player’s Handbook.

The cover features a gold dragon behind the old-school D&D characters Strongheart the paladin, Mercion the cleric, Elkhorn the dwarf fighter, and Molliver the thief. Ringlerun the wizard is absent (then again he got his showcase on one of the 1E AD&D Player's Handbooks), but a drow mage appears to have joined the party!

 

[dave2008]

The best part of 3E. The book covers.

Those faux-book book covers are one of things that kept me from buying 3e books! I had the core books of 1e, 2e, 4e, and 5e, but no 3e. I hated those covers. Everyone is different, the world keeps reminding me!

 

[Parmandur]

I disagree. I see a lot of AI art (I have both a DA and an AS account) and his work does not look like most AI work.

One would have to be a timely ignorant of AI art to be confused here.

 

[Parmandur]

I Think that remains to be seen. The silver dragon image in the new PHB looks pretty much like the 3e+ design. And really the new red dragon is pretty similar to the 3e+ design too. Differences could be simply artistic style.

So I wouldn’t call those big refreshes. Now, those two are also the ones I would change the least.

I mean, they have at least rethought the designs, whether the changes are big or subtle.

 

[Cadence]

I mean, they have at least rethought the designs, whether the changes are big or subtle.

I feel odd that I never knew they had different designs (or rather that they tried to stay particularly consistent within an edition).

 

[Reynard]

I am married to a woman who got a BFA from SCAD. I should tell her all she had to do was get her art degree from RedditU...

 

[Parmandur]

I feel odd that I never knew they had different designs (or rather that they tried to stay particularly consistent within an edition).

Since 3E, they have had consistent designs that get refreshed every once in while.

 

[Reynard]

Since 3E, they have had consistent designs that get refreshed every once in while.

I think it has been true for every edition. I don't have my 1E and 2E MMs at hand, but I am almost certain each dragon color had its own look even in 1977.

 

[Parmandur]

I think it has been true for every edition. I don't have my 1E and 2E MMs at hand, but I am almost certain each dragon color had its own look even in 1977.

Nope, prior to 3E TSR didn't do style guides, they let the artists cook. Which .ostly worked out well, but dragons in particular were not consistent other than color.

 

[Reynard]

Nope, prior to 3E TSR didn't do style guides, they let the artists cook. Which .ostly worked out well, but dragons in particular were not consistent other than color.

Well, they had distinct heads anyway, as can be seen in this image of Tiamat.

 

[Parmandur]

Well, they had distinct heads anyway, as can be seen in this image of Tiamat.
View attachment 363554

Right, distinct within thwt picture, but not necessarily consistent in other images. My source for this is the artists talking in thwt one documentary, Eye of the Beholder. TSR art was the Wild West, to the end.