Over the past few weeks, we have been monitoring the spread of COVID-19 and closely following the situation and adjusting as recommended by local governments. That means Wizards of the Coast is working from home as we continue to craft new D&D stories and supplements for our fans. Some D&D streaming programming will be disrupted during this time, including introductions of new series, but we’re working hard on that front to provide as much entertainment as possible.
We believe the social connection playing games, including D&D, can continue to be helpful for those of us who feel isolated or alone in our homes in order to stay safe from transmission. As social distancing impacts our ability to get together in person, we wanted to offer the following resources and advice for more remote play—many of which are free.
On behalf of the D&D Team, we want to encourage everyone to stay safe and take all necessary precautions. Please take care, and hang in there everyone.
Tips & Tricks
To help support fans playing D&D digitally, we’ve put together a few tips and tricks for safely enjoying D&D with others without breaking out your 10-foot poles.
Basic Rules
The Basic Rules for fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons are available for free!
- Download the free 180-page PDF which includes information on how to create a character, how to play the game, 120 spell descriptions, and tips for Dungeon Masters.
- Everything you need to start playing Dungeons & Dragons can be found here!
Virtual Spaces
Taverns can take on many forms. While it may not be advisable to meet in an actual tavern, you can still gather your party before venturing forth.
- Utilize virtual tabletop platforms like Roll20 and Fantasy Grounds if you prefer using battle maps and minis. You can even find new groups to adventure with online!
- Manage your campaign virtually using D&D Beyond.
- D&D Adventurer’s League content can be played and logged from the comfort of your own home. Learn more about how to organize an official Adventurer’s League game here.
- If you don’t require a battle map and minis to play, programs like Skype, Zoom, and Discord are great for both voice and video chat and free to download.
Dice
No dice? No problem! If you find yourself dice-less you can still roll a natural 20.
- We have resurrected an ancient and arcane dice roller for all your digital dice rolling needs.
- As James Wyatt discovered a few years ago, virtual assistants like Siri and Alexa can roll a d4, d6, d8, d10, d20, or d100. Just ask!
- Consider the DIY route and create your own paper chits by numbering cardstock pieces and drawing from a hat or bowl to simulate rolling. You’ll be playing D&D like folks in 1977!
Support content creators
- Many content creators in the community may be impacted by the current situation. Check out their work on the Dungeon Master’s Guild and consider tossing a few coins their way if you are able.
- You can also support the online streaming community by watching other adventures. Check out the Dungeons & Dragons category on Twitch and find a new group to watch.
These are just a few ways to enjoy Dungeons & Dragons with your friends and loved ones. Let us know what other solutions you find so we can share them with the wider community!
More About Online Tools
D&D Beyond
Your digital D&D source: fifth edition tools, rules, races, classes, items, spells, monsters and more! D&D Beyond aims to enhance the Dungeons & Dragons experience by making game management easier by putting all of the game information you need to tell fantastic stories with your friends into a digital format, eliminating the need to manually search through books, and taking the load off of players through other features.
Learn more at: dndbeyond.com.
Fantasy Grounds
Fantasy Grounds is an application acting as a virtual online gaming table primarily intended for pen-and-paper style narrative roleplaying games (such as Dungeons & Dragons). Designed to perform many of the things you can do while playing at a conventional gaming table and move it online.
Run games as the Dungeon Master or take part as a player, the application provides all the necessary tools to communicate, manage information and perform tasks such as rolling the dice or creating drawings.
Learn more at: fantasygrounds.com.
Roll20
With the award-winning Roll20 virtual tabletop, you can play Dungeons & Dragons with friends across the world. It's free-to-use, browser based, and features a full suite of tools to quickly build characters, roll dice, and run any campaign.
Roll20 provides a rich toolset including a character builder, map tools, dynamic lighting, video and voice chat, and a powerful dice roller. Explore full digital conversions of official D&D content, including ready-to-play adventures, drag-and-drop monsters, integrated rulebooks, and more.
Learn more at: Roll20.net.
