A second influential figure in Dungeons & Dragons has announced his departure from Wizards of the Coast. Jeremy Crawford, the Game Director behind the recent and most popular edition of the iconic fantasy TTRPG, will be leaving the major tabletop company.
Jeremy Crawford is Leaving Wizards of the Coast
According to an official report by Screen Rant, Jeremy Crawford’s last day at Wizards of the Coast will be at the end of this month. This announcement coincides with Christopher Perkins, another major part of Dungeons & Dragons, also leaving the company.
As for why these departures were happening, a Wizards representative cleared the air. Vice President of Franchise and Product Jess Lanzillo stated that Perkins’s and Crawford’s departure was something the company knew about in advance. In addition, both men were leaving the company of their own accord and not part of some sweeping corporate initiative.
“Both of them have been working on Dungeons and Dragons for a very long time,” Lanzillo said. “It’s been a point of discussion for some time and something that we’ve been training up everyone for. They feel really good about the teams that they have in place and the legacy that they’re passing on.”
Both Christopher Perkins and Jeremy Crawford’s final project with Wizards of the Coast was overseeing the production of the new 2024 core rulebooks. These updated versions of Fifth Edition’s core rulebooks have been praised for their updated, streamlined presentation of rules, but have drawn some ire from fans for feeling more like a rules update than a new edition.
The influence Jeremy Crawford has had on Dungeons & Dragons cannot be overstated. Him overseeing the design of Dungeons & Dragons has sent untold ripples through the TTRPG design community. He oversaw the introduction of Advantage/Disadvantage as a game mechanic, and streamlining rules complexity, lowering the barrier of entry for new players.
This design ethos has gone on to influence not just the TTRPG player community, but many in the tabletop design space. In addition to being the most successful edition of the game ever, Fifth Edition’s emphasis on malleable, modular design has greatly aided the explosion of the actual play space as seen in Dimension 20 and Critical Role.
In addition, other TTRPG peers like Cyberpunk Red and Vampire: The Masquerade have also adopted scaling back rules complexity for broader appeal.
With Perkins and Crawford’s departure from the company, the future of Dungeons & Dragons is uncertain. While the 2024 rules helped refine an iconic foundation, these departures are happening alongside the severe scaling back (and employee layoffs) of their in-house VTT, Project Sigil.
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