Everything we learned about Fizban’s Treasury of Dragons at D&D Celebration

With The Wild Beyond the Witchlight in the rearview mirror, it’s time to start looking forward to Fizban’s Treasury of Dragons, due out in three weeks. D&D Celebration revealed tons of new details about the next Dungeons & Dragons 5E sourcebook, including player and dungeon master options, and Fizban’s looks like it’s going to contain a wealth of information far beyond that of the Draconomicon of prior editions.

As suggested by the presence of Fizban in the title, there are going to be some references to Dragonlance in the book, as well as nods to the Magic: the Gathering plane Tarkir, and the 2nd edition Council of Wyrms, which let you play as dragons — although that desirable option is not coming in Fizban’s. Eberron too will get new content; while not a dedicated chapter, the setting has been promised “more than a sidebar” of information. Ultimately, though, it will concentrate on providing generic information appropriate to any plane in the multiverse, starting with the origin story of Bahamut and Tiamat (oddly, despite the arrival of gem dragons, Sardior does not appear to be included).

Player options were teased in Unearthed Arcana articles last October and in April detailing additional options for the Dragonborn race and two new subclasses for Rangers and Monks. These all made it in to Fizban’s, with previews of the final versions of the Drakewarden Ranger subclass and the Metallic Dragonborn racial option made available during D&D Celebration. Besides these and a few related feats (also revealed in the Dragonborn UA), and spells, the sourcebook will provide some tips on how players can connect their characters to dragons, with an example provided of a Warlock having a Moonstone Dragon as its archfey patron.

This sourcebook contains a dragon’s hoard of content for DMs

The dungeon master portion of Fizban’s is substantially meatier, with four full chapters of information that DMs can mine for dragon ideas. From developing a dragon’s personality to developing its lair (and hoard), the sourcebook contains in-depth information on 20 types of dragons — the familiar chromatic (red, black, blue, green, white) and metallic (gold, silver, bronze, brass, copper) varieties, the reintroduced gem dragons (amethyst, crystal, emerald, sapphire, topaz), as well as deep dragons, faerie dragons, moonstone dragons (previewed here), shadow dragons, and the dragon turtle.

Of particular interest in “dragon building” is that the traditional alignments will both be examined and challenged, with additional options provided to create outlier dragons — such as an evil gold dragon or a good blue dragon — that play against the standard types. Even if you want to keep your chromatic dragons evil, your gem dragons neutral, and your metallic dragons good, several pages of tables are included to help you build nuance into the dragon’s portrayal.

The bestiary section provides around 80 statblocks of dragons and associated monsters, including the powerful Aspects of Bahumat and Tiamat (both with a challenge rating of 30), an elder brain dragon for your eldritch needs, and an eyedrake, which is a cross between dragon and beholder. Various minions — including the return of Draconians from the Dragonlance setting — are also described, helping to fill out the challenge of your dragon encounter or campaign. Between these statblocks and the chapter dedicated to lairs, the DM will be able to easily craft sessions dedicated to confronting dragons.

Fizban’s Treasury of Dragons will be available online and at your local gaming store on Tuesday, October 26th.