While the 2024 Player’s Handbook isn’t due out until September 17, early copies will be available at Gen Con in August, so expect the rules to be out in the wild soon. Wizards of the Coast has been continuing to detail the book’s contents in the meantime, recently showing the 10 playable species it will include, and now explaining how the new backgrounds and origin feats will work.
New Character Creation Order
The 2024 Player’s Handbook has introduced a new order for crafting your characters. Previously, players would start with their species, then their class, and lastly their background. The new handbook suggests a reverse approach. You start with where your character is at the beginning of the game (your class), then look at the road that led them to this heroic point (your background), and finally, consider how you began your life (your species).
Enhanced Backgrounds
Backgrounds were traditionally a narrative tool to add flavor to a character, such as a paladin who was once a hermit or a rogue with a criminal past. However, their mechanical impact was minimal. In the 2024 edition, backgrounds are given more weight. They will now be a source of proficiencies, starting equipment, and ability score bonuses. Each background allows players to choose three characteristics to improve: one can be boosted by two points and another by one. This change ensures that backgrounds have a significant impact on character mechanics.
Introduction of Origin Feats
Another significant update is the addition of origin feats. These are free, basic versions of feats that most characters don’t get until level four. The inclusion of a free feat at level one is a common house rule, now officially part of the core rules. Origin feats include options like ‘Lucky,’ which grants luck points to gain advantage or impose disadvantage, and ‘Magic Initiate,’ which allows a character to start with basic spells. Regular feats still exist, with fighting styles and epic boons now categorized as feats as well.
Many of these changes have been carried over from playtests with some tweaks. For example, the playtest version of origin feats was well-received in a Spelljammer campaign, with ‘Lucky’ being a particularly popular choice. As with any major update, there will likely be discussions and debates among the community, especially regarding the revised ranger.