The 2024 rules — the Player’s Handbook, Dungeon Master’s Guide and Monster Manual released in 2024, and the free SRD 5.2 — are still fifth edition. Characters and adventures from 2014 mostly work alongside them. But a handful of changes matter at the table, and new players will meet the 2024 versions first.
Character creation
- Ability score increases come from your background, not your species. Each background lists three abilities; raise one by 2 and another by 1, or all three by 1.
- Every background gives an origin feat at level 1, such as Alert, Magic Initiate or Savage Attacker.
- Species replace races. The SRD has nine: Dragonborn, Dwarf, Elf, Gnome, Goliath, Halfling, Human, Orc and Tiefling. Half-elves and half-orcs are gone as separate options.
- Every class picks its subclass at level 3.
Combat
- Weapon mastery: fighters, barbarians, paladins, rangers and rogues unlock an extra effect on certain weapons — see our weapon mastery guide.
- Surprise no longer skips your turn: a surprised creature just has disadvantage on its initiative roll.
- Grapple and shove are options of your Unarmed Strike, and the target makes a saving throw against your DC instead of a contested check.
- Bloodied is now a rules term: a creature at half its hit points or fewer.
- Monster stat blocks list initiative and write attacks as “Attack Roll: +5”.
Conditions and rests
- Exhaustion is simpler: each level gives −2 to every d20 test and −5 feet of speed, and you die at level 6. A long rest removes one level.
- Heroic Inspiration lets you reroll a die instead of granting advantage. See Inspiration explained.
- Long rests restore all spent Hit Point Dice, and taking damage or rolling initiative interrupts a rest.
Can you mix them?
Mostly, yes. Many groups use the 2024 Player’s Handbook with older adventures. Agree as a table which version you use for each rule so nobody is surprised mid-fight — a session zero is the right moment.
Look up the new rules
Our free compendium now follows the 2024 rules (SRD 5.2.1), with the older 2014 pages kept and labelled. Start with backgrounds, feats and the conditions.