I’ve been a dedicated subscriber to D&D Beyond since its launch. Over the years, I’ve purchased all official Wizards of the Coast content, choosing to support the core vision of the game. As a high school teacher who runs a thriving D&D club and the owner of two tabletop game stores in California, I’ve invested deeply—personally and professionally—in the success and future of Dungeons & Dragons.
D&D Beyond was once an indispensable tool—something that truly empowered both players and Dungeon Masters to create, prep, and play with ease. But since Wizards of the Coast acquired it from Fandom, its functionality and focus have noticeably declined. Rather than enhancing the tools that support in-person tabletop play, many features have become more cumbersome and less intuitive.
For example, the Encounter Builder still lacks full support for the latest ruleset. Basic searches—for a monster, a magic item, a spell, or even a core rule like the Insight skill (link)—return a cluttered list filled with content I don’t own and have no interest in purchasing. This not only hampers my ability to run effective games but also makes it difficult to teach and inspire new players.
What’s most disheartening is the apparent shift in focus. It feels as though the current direction prioritizes transitioning traditional tabletop players into online gaming spaces. I believe there's room to support both communities, but right now, those of us who champion the in-person experience—the DMs and players who gather around real tables—are being left behind.
I urge Hasbro, Wizards of the Coast, and the D&D team: please remember what makes Dungeons & Dragons truly special. It is, at its heart, a tabletop roleplaying game. Recommit to supporting that experience. Reinvest in D&D Beyond not as a digital storefront, but as a powerful and intuitive toolkit for the community that continues to play, teach, and grow this game around real tables in real communities.
I agree and I also fear that the downsizing of staff only leaves us on life support. The forums themselves have discontinued many of the community feedback threads. The encounter creator has been in beta for ever, and does not include the 2025 Monster Manual. To create an encounter with 2025 monsters you're urged to create it in "Maps". I want to keep using this as a tool, but as you stated, it's becoming increasingly harder.
I’ve been a dedicated subscriber to D&D Beyond since its launch. Over the years, I’ve purchased all official Wizards of the Coast content, choosing to support the core vision of the game. As a high school teacher who runs a thriving D&D club and the owner of two tabletop game stores in California, I’ve invested deeply—personally and professionally—in the success and future of Dungeons & Dragons.
D&D Beyond was once an indispensable tool—something that truly empowered both players and Dungeon Masters to create, prep, and play with ease. But since Wizards of the Coast acquired it from Fandom, its functionality and focus have noticeably declined. Rather than enhancing the tools that support in-person tabletop play, many features have become more cumbersome and less intuitive.
For example, the Encounter Builder still lacks full support for the latest ruleset. Basic searches—for a monster, a magic item, a spell, or even a core rule like the Insight skill (link)—return a cluttered list filled with content I don’t own and have no interest in purchasing. This not only hampers my ability to run effective games but also makes it difficult to teach and inspire new players.
What’s most disheartening is the apparent shift in focus. It feels as though the current direction prioritizes transitioning traditional tabletop players into online gaming spaces. I believe there's room to support both communities, but right now, those of us who champion the in-person experience—the DMs and players who gather around real tables—are being left behind.
I urge Hasbro, Wizards of the Coast, and the D&D team: please remember what makes Dungeons & Dragons truly special. It is, at its heart, a tabletop roleplaying game. Recommit to supporting that experience. Reinvest in D&D Beyond not as a digital storefront, but as a powerful and intuitive toolkit for the community that continues to play, teach, and grow this game around real tables in real communities.
We love this game. Help us continue to share it.
"real" tables. "real" communites
I respectfully ask:Have you played online with people who, for medical reasons, cannot leave their house that often, or not at all?
I don't think you meant it to be ableist, but it could come off as such.
It's incredibly unfairly dismissive of the online experience, for sure(not everyone can host or find a table reasonably, for example), but I assume good faith, & think the concept of disabled players just slipped your mind.
If you want the digital sales gone, don't buy anything. You don't have to click on it.
I primarily DM & play using Beyond & the Beyond20 app because the closest table to me is to pricey, gas-wise, for the effort. Yes, I've tried IRL hosting. I got stiffed 3 times.
Also, again, I know this probably slipped your mind in a benign way, but....are you personally letting minors on Beyond, especially the forums? I'm not assuming anything, I just want you to consider that this website may not be appropriate for minors to use, & I'd talk to a legal counsel about letting minors use Beyond.
While I am also frustrated at the monetization amounts on here, asking for a megacorp to give things away for anything less than a card number or Paypal account isn't going to work. THe people with the relevant power to do what you want do not even play D&D, certainly not in person, or even with humans.
So, please, consider the following:
Do not let minors on Beyond w/o the legal clear if you are doing so & are not their parent/legal guardian(if you didn't, that's great)
Please re-evaluate your stance on digital play, as there are people who have no or extremely limited other choices, be it economic or medical(If you're from Western Mainland Europe, this applies less)
& this might not be the place to make a plea for unmonetized Beyond. Or the right company.
Have a nice day/night.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
DM, player & homebrewer(Current homebrew project is an unofficial conversion of SBURB/SGRUB from Homestuck into DND 5e)
Once made Maxwell's Silver Hammer come down upon Strahd's head to make sure he was dead.
Always study & sharpen philosophical razors. They save a lot of trouble.
You know you can use digital resources for in person games, right? Like everything from just using the online character sheets instead of paper ones to rollling the dice from there to having the resource material handy to actually running the whole campaign on the Maps VTT while you all sit in the room together cause you can sit in any size room without needing a physical table to put maps and minis on.
I'm just saying. Digital resources are not the death knell of in person gaming.
My concern isn’t with the use of digital resources in tabletop games—it’s with how the current direction of D&D Beyond seems to deprioritize tools that support that kind of hybrid or in-person experience. Features like the Encounter Builder not supporting current rules, or search results being cluttered with the wrong information, or monsters and spells being filled with irrelevant or paywalled content, make it harder—not easier—to run a game efficiently, regardless of whether you’re at a table or on a screen.
I’m not anti-digital. I’m pro-functionality. And I’m hoping we can get back to a version of D&D Beyond that’s focused on empowering all playstyles—whether you’re around a kitchen table, on a VTT, or anything in between.
My concern isn’t with the use of digital resources in tabletop games—it’s with how the current direction of D&D Beyond seems to deprioritize tools that support that kind of hybrid or in-person experience. Features like the Encounter Builder not supporting current rules, or search results being cluttered with the wrong information, or monsters and spells being filled with irrelevant or paywalled content, make it harder—not easier—to run a game efficiently, regardless of whether you’re at a table or on a screen.
I’m not anti-digital. I’m pro-functionality. And I’m hoping we can get back to a version of D&D Beyond that’s focused on empowering all playstyles—whether you’re around a kitchen table, on a VTT, or anything in between.
I think I read somewhere that they don't ever plan on doing anything with the out of Maps encounter builder. That the encounter builder in Maps is meant to be used instead. I do think they should take the other one down completely, if that's the case. So people don't see it and then wonder why it is so wrong when they try to use it.
Sadly it seems the only chance this site has is if people stop using it, maybe then they will address some of the many unfinished issues to get people back.
Yes, it is disappointing. I don’t want to stop using D&D Beyond—I’ve invested in it and have relied on it for years. But when core tools like the Encounter Builder and search functionality feel outdated and unsupported, it becomes harder to justify staying. When third-party resources like Kobold Fight Club offer better usability for running 2024 games, it’s frustrating to have to look elsewhere. I just wish D&D Beyond would prioritize improving the features that once made it essential.
Yes, it is disappointing. I don’t want to stop using D&D Beyond—I’ve invested in it and have relied on it for years. But when core tools like the Encounter Builder and search functionality feel outdated and unsupported, it becomes harder to justify staying. When third-party resources like Kobold Fight Club offer better usability for running 2024 games, it’s frustrating to have to look elsewhere. I just wish D&D Beyond would prioritize improving the features that once made it essential.
100% agreed. It felt more justified to use D&D Beyond in its unfinished state years ago when updates were happening consistently, and the devs were transparent on their roadmap for features. Now it feels we are stuck in limbo, with no communication regarding upcoming features and improvements to the site.
We are still waiting on things like a Tasha's Sidekicks builder and the ability to permanently filter searches by materials you own. The fact that I have to manually input the 10+ source books I own when searching for Monsters every single time is unreal. Adding to that the inability to filter out 2024 content and that spells/abilities are automatically updated on character sheets, even if the campaign is explicitly using only 2014 rules makes DMing difficult, as the players are simply reading the spell description they have access to and then I have to double-check that it is not the updated version.
Some roadmaps/timelines and transparency on addressing key, simple features would go a long way.
Can the marketplace stop with saying like 70 new magic items and list the same magic item over and over but just different variations of + bonus. Gets real annoying when you think you going to get a bunch of magic items and having to read the same crap over
For example, the Encounter Builder still lacks full support for the latest ruleset. Basic searches—for a monster, a magic item, a spell, or even a core rule like the Insight skill (link)—return a cluttered list filled with content I don’t own and have no interest in purchasing. This not only hampers my ability to run effective games but also makes it difficult to teach and inspire new players.
The Encounter Tool in the VTT has:
Filter by monsters you own.
Technically supports 2024 rules (it's broken but that's a bug)
So the tool they wish you to use now, has the things you want. And as someone who uses the Maps VTT for in-person gaming, it works just great for running the encounters. It doesn't do as well for building them though.
But I agree there are plenty of things that need to be addressed. The VTT itself has a lot of work to do, and much of that work is being done like locking shapes to a player to simulate auras, and declaring that combatants are friends to the players.
Bugs:
The VTT uses the encounter budget incorrectly, treating it as a minimum instead of a maximum. This still isn't fixed four months and three updates on.
General Site issues:
Homebrew needs to support the new rules properly. One aspect is being able to make Origin and Epic Boon feats that show up. Another is being able to set the Ability choices in a custom background.
The Encounter Tool needs to provide the ability to both build the encounters for 2024 AND use that tool to create a template that can be applied to map to place all the creatures in the encounter on the map without having to select and build it mid game.
The Encounter Tool needs the same filters provided by the Maps VTT.
Alternate crit methods such as the Perkins Crit should be supported in character sheets and tools.
VTT Features Needed:
There's no cut and paste, so you can't duplicate a monster or a set of monsters or move them between maps.
There's no indications for conditions. Especially mechanically the bloodied condition and death, but also the other conditions like Restrained, Poisoned etc. We use the coloured circles, but this should be additional.
There's no snap to grid option and no way to draw paths using diagonal 5ft movement.
Please let the middle mouse button be always Panning. So I don't keep having to switch away from a tool to move the map.
Change tracking - Or at least the ability to snapshot a map state to return to.
Allow us to rename maps in a Campaign - Blah (1) doesn't cut it, especially when you want us to build our encounters in maps beforehand.
Allow us to make our own folders for our uploaded maps - You gave us 10GB of space and ZERO tools to manage it. Your Sourcebooks already have the infrastructure, just allow us to add blocks at the top for our own different campaigns.
In the Combat Tracker allow me to apply damage to a Player. If they're tracking via paper, and I've got them in the combat for token/initiative purposes, let me apply their damage directly.
According to the Summon Beast spell, In combat, the creature shares your Initiative count, but it takes its turn immediately after yours. This can't be organized during the game, and often the companion will appear before the player in the list.
I agree and I also fear that the downsizing of staff only leaves us on life support. The forums themselves have discontinued many of the community feedback threads. The encounter creator has been in beta for ever, and does not include the 2025 Monster Manual. To create an encounter with 2025 monsters you're urged to create it in "Maps". I want to keep using this as a tool, but as you stated, it's becoming increasingly harder.
All monsters in the 2025 Monster Manual are supported in the Encounter Builder. Though there's no templating ability for making flavoured Bandits etc.
So the tool they wish you to use now, has the things you want. And as someone who uses the Maps VTT for in-person gaming, it works just great for running the encounters. It doesn't do as well for building them though.
That’s great for those who enjoy using the VTT—I’m glad it’s working well for you. Personally, I’ve spent years collecting WizKids D&D miniatures and prefer using physical maps at the table. The VTT just doesn’t fit my style of play, and I know I’m not alone in that.
D&D Beyond should be a versatile tool that supports all types of players—whether they’re online, in-person, or somewhere in between. I don’t want to build a full digital map and load it with tokens just to check if an encounter is balanced. I just need the Encounter Builder to reflect the current ruleset accurately and efficiently—something that should be basic functionality at this point. So sad.
So the tool they wish you to use now, has the things you want. And as someone who uses the Maps VTT for in-person gaming, it works just great for running the encounters. It doesn't do as well for building them though.
That’s great for those who enjoy using the VTT—I’m glad it’s working well for you. Personally, I’ve spent years collecting WizKids D&D miniatures and prefer using physical maps at the table. The VTT just doesn’t fit my style of play, and I know I’m not alone in that.
D&D Beyond should be a versatile tool that supports all types of players—whether they’re online, in-person, or somewhere in between. I don’t want to build a full digital map and load it with tokens just to check if an encounter is balanced. I just need the Encounter Builder to reflect the current ruleset accurately and efficiently—something that should be basic functionality at this point. So sad.
Thing is, you don't need anything more to use the Encounter Builder, except a single manual table lookup when designing it. I outlined here in this thread how to use the 2014 builder for 2024. Literally the only thing missing is the adjusted Difficulty indicators, which you can do manually.
The 2024 method is literally just "Does the Total XP fall under my budget".
I don't think that is the problem. I would expect them to take some time to integrate the new rules into the digital tools. Maps is getting regular updates, and I no longer use the Encounter Builder. I also would prefer them to focus on the 2024 rules for updates, while making it possible to just use the 2014 rules.
I don't think that is the problem. I would expect them to take some time to integrate the new rules into the digital tools. Maps is getting regular updates, and I no longer use the Encounter Builder. I also would prefer them to focus on the 2024 rules for updates, while making it possible to just use the 2014 rules.
I still use the Encounter Builder to plan my combats. It's less clunky than trying to evaluate monsters in the Map.
I just wish I could template those encounters onto the Map.
I returned to DNDBeyond after playing another game (that founded the ORC license) for a year and a half. I wanted to see how good the support was for the 2024 rules. I have to say I was rather shocked at the lack of 2024 specific adventures. I also found it hard to believe that the character builder didn't directly support something as simple as the 2024 Custom Backgrounds. Haven't the PHB and DMG been out for over six months?
The focus now is clearly in churning out as much 3rd party content as possible, whether it fully works or not.
They have been very slowly fixing minor bugs from the PHB/DMG, but there doesn't seem to be any intention of fixing larger issues or any of the 2014 content that was broken by the new releases.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
I’ve been a dedicated subscriber to D&D Beyond since its launch. Over the years, I’ve purchased all official Wizards of the Coast content, choosing to support the core vision of the game. As a high school teacher who runs a thriving D&D club and the owner of two tabletop game stores in California, I’ve invested deeply—personally and professionally—in the success and future of Dungeons & Dragons.
D&D Beyond was once an indispensable tool—something that truly empowered both players and Dungeon Masters to create, prep, and play with ease. But since Wizards of the Coast acquired it from Fandom, its functionality and focus have noticeably declined. Rather than enhancing the tools that support in-person tabletop play, many features have become more cumbersome and less intuitive.
For example, the Encounter Builder still lacks full support for the latest ruleset. Basic searches—for a monster, a magic item, a spell, or even a core rule like the Insight skill (link)—return a cluttered list filled with content I don’t own and have no interest in purchasing. This not only hampers my ability to run effective games but also makes it difficult to teach and inspire new players.
What’s most disheartening is the apparent shift in focus. It feels as though the current direction prioritizes transitioning traditional tabletop players into online gaming spaces. I believe there's room to support both communities, but right now, those of us who champion the in-person experience—the DMs and players who gather around real tables—are being left behind.
I urge Hasbro, Wizards of the Coast, and the D&D team: please remember what makes Dungeons & Dragons truly special. It is, at its heart, a tabletop roleplaying game. Recommit to supporting that experience. Reinvest in D&D Beyond not as a digital storefront, but as a powerful and intuitive toolkit for the community that continues to play, teach, and grow this game around real tables in real communities.
We love this game. Help us continue to share it.
Feats - Hermit Crab & Superhero Landing
Item - Alertness & Skeleton Key
I agree and I also fear that the downsizing of staff only leaves us on life support. The forums themselves have discontinued many of the community feedback threads. The encounter creator has been in beta for ever, and does not include the 2025 Monster Manual. To create an encounter with 2025 monsters you're urged to create it in "Maps". I want to keep using this as a tool, but as you stated, it's becoming increasingly harder.
"real" tables. "real" communites
I respectfully ask:Have you played online with people who, for medical reasons, cannot leave their house that often, or not at all?
I don't think you meant it to be ableist, but it could come off as such.
It's incredibly unfairly dismissive of the online experience, for sure(not everyone can host or find a table reasonably, for example), but I assume good faith, & think the concept of disabled players just slipped your mind.
If you want the digital sales gone, don't buy anything. You don't have to click on it.
I primarily DM & play using Beyond & the Beyond20 app because the closest table to me is to pricey, gas-wise, for the effort. Yes, I've tried IRL hosting. I got stiffed 3 times.
Also, again, I know this probably slipped your mind in a benign way, but....are you personally letting minors on Beyond, especially the forums? I'm not assuming anything, I just want you to consider that this website may not be appropriate for minors to use, & I'd talk to a legal counsel about letting minors use Beyond.
While I am also frustrated at the monetization amounts on here, asking for a megacorp to give things away for anything less than a card number or Paypal account isn't going to work. THe people with the relevant power to do what you want do not even play D&D, certainly not in person, or even with humans.
So, please, consider the following:
Do not let minors on Beyond w/o the legal clear if you are doing so & are not their parent/legal guardian(if you didn't, that's great)
Please re-evaluate your stance on digital play, as there are people who have no or extremely limited other choices, be it economic or medical(If you're from Western Mainland Europe, this applies less)
& this might not be the place to make a plea for unmonetized Beyond. Or the right company.
Have a nice day/night.
DM, player & homebrewer(Current homebrew project is an unofficial conversion of SBURB/SGRUB from Homestuck into DND 5e)
Once made Maxwell's Silver Hammer come down upon Strahd's head to make sure he was dead.
Always study & sharpen philosophical razors. They save a lot of trouble.
You know you can use digital resources for in person games, right? Like everything from just using the online character sheets instead of paper ones to rollling the dice from there to having the resource material handy to actually running the whole campaign on the Maps VTT while you all sit in the room together cause you can sit in any size room without needing a physical table to put maps and minis on.
I'm just saying. Digital resources are not the death knell of in person gaming.
My concern isn’t with the use of digital resources in tabletop games—it’s with how the current direction of D&D Beyond seems to deprioritize tools that support that kind of hybrid or in-person experience. Features like the Encounter Builder not supporting current rules, or search results being cluttered with the wrong information, or monsters and spells being filled with irrelevant or paywalled content, make it harder—not easier—to run a game efficiently, regardless of whether you’re at a table or on a screen.
I’m not anti-digital. I’m pro-functionality. And I’m hoping we can get back to a version of D&D Beyond that’s focused on empowering all playstyles—whether you’re around a kitchen table, on a VTT, or anything in between.
Feats - Hermit Crab & Superhero Landing
Item - Alertness & Skeleton Key
I think I read somewhere that they don't ever plan on doing anything with the out of Maps encounter builder. That the encounter builder in Maps is meant to be used instead. I do think they should take the other one down completely, if that's the case. So people don't see it and then wonder why it is so wrong when they try to use it.
Still no word on Character Creator updates?
Sadly it seems the only chance this site has is if people stop using it, maybe then they will address some of the many unfinished issues to get people back.
Yes, it is disappointing. I don’t want to stop using D&D Beyond—I’ve invested in it and have relied on it for years. But when core tools like the Encounter Builder and search functionality feel outdated and unsupported, it becomes harder to justify staying. When third-party resources like Kobold Fight Club offer better usability for running 2024 games, it’s frustrating to have to look elsewhere. I just wish D&D Beyond would prioritize improving the features that once made it essential.
Feats - Hermit Crab & Superhero Landing
Item - Alertness & Skeleton Key
100% agreed. It felt more justified to use D&D Beyond in its unfinished state years ago when updates were happening consistently, and the devs were transparent on their roadmap for features. Now it feels we are stuck in limbo, with no communication regarding upcoming features and improvements to the site.
We are still waiting on things like a Tasha's Sidekicks builder and the ability to permanently filter searches by materials you own. The fact that I have to manually input the 10+ source books I own when searching for Monsters every single time is unreal. Adding to that the inability to filter out 2024 content and that spells/abilities are automatically updated on character sheets, even if the campaign is explicitly using only 2014 rules makes DMing difficult, as the players are simply reading the spell description they have access to and then I have to double-check that it is not the updated version.
Some roadmaps/timelines and transparency on addressing key, simple features would go a long way.
Can the marketplace stop with saying like 70 new magic items and list the same magic item over and over but just different variations of + bonus. Gets real annoying when you think you going to get a bunch of magic items and having to read the same crap over
Firstly:
The Encounter Tool in the VTT has:
So the tool they wish you to use now, has the things you want. And as someone who uses the Maps VTT for in-person gaming, it works just great for running the encounters. It doesn't do as well for building them though.
But I agree there are plenty of things that need to be addressed. The VTT itself has a lot of work to do, and much of that work is being done like locking shapes to a player to simulate auras, and declaring that combatants are friends to the players.
Bugs:
General Site issues:
VTT Features Needed:
All monsters in the 2025 Monster Manual are supported in the Encounter Builder. Though there's no templating ability for making flavoured Bandits etc.
That’s great for those who enjoy using the VTT—I’m glad it’s working well for you. Personally, I’ve spent years collecting WizKids D&D miniatures and prefer using physical maps at the table. The VTT just doesn’t fit my style of play, and I know I’m not alone in that.
D&D Beyond should be a versatile tool that supports all types of players—whether they’re online, in-person, or somewhere in between. I don’t want to build a full digital map and load it with tokens just to check if an encounter is balanced. I just need the Encounter Builder to reflect the current ruleset accurately and efficiently—something that should be basic functionality at this point. So sad.
Feats - Hermit Crab & Superhero Landing
Item - Alertness & Skeleton Key
Thing is, you don't need anything more to use the Encounter Builder, except a single manual table lookup when designing it. I outlined here in this thread how to use the 2014 builder for 2024. Literally the only thing missing is the adjusted Difficulty indicators, which you can do manually.
The 2024 method is literally just "Does the Total XP fall under my budget".
Sorry but all the evidence is pointing to corporate greed.
I don't think that is the problem. I would expect them to take some time to integrate the new rules into the digital tools. Maps is getting regular updates, and I no longer use the Encounter Builder. I also would prefer them to focus on the 2024 rules for updates, while making it possible to just use the 2014 rules.
I still use the Encounter Builder to plan my combats. It's less clunky than trying to evaluate monsters in the Map.
I just wish I could template those encounters onto the Map.
I returned to DNDBeyond after playing another game (that founded the ORC license) for a year and a half. I wanted to see how good the support was for the 2024 rules. I have to say I was rather shocked at the lack of 2024 specific adventures. I also found it hard to believe that the character builder didn't directly support something as simple as the 2024 Custom Backgrounds. Haven't the PHB and DMG been out for over six months?
The focus now is clearly in churning out as much 3rd party content as possible, whether it fully works or not.
They have been very slowly fixing minor bugs from the PHB/DMG, but there doesn't seem to be any intention of fixing larger issues or any of the 2014 content that was broken by the new releases.