I had been eagerly awaiting D&D Con, held from 30 July to 2 August 2026 as part of Gen Con in Indianapolis. Wizards of the Coast certainly did not do things by halves: the Indiana Repertory Theatre was transformed into a true D&D Tower, with six floors entirely dedicated to Dungeons & Dragons. The programme included live games, talks, shows, music, interactive experiences and, of course, the highly anticipated D&D Vision Keynote 2027.
The keynote was hosted by Theo Solomon, the voice of Wyll in Baldur’s Gate 3. To be completely honest, I did not really know what to expect. A few interesting announcements? A new roadmap? Perhaps two or three additional books?
Well, I was very far off the mark.
The announcements just kept coming and, as far as I am concerned, almost all of them were excellent surprises. If you would like to watch the entire presentation, you can view the D&D Vision Keynote 2027 on YouTube.
D&D Enters the Age of Seasons
Since the beginning of 2026, Dungeons & Dragons has organised its releases around themed seasons. We have just concluded the Season of Horror, marked by the return of Ravenloft, before entering the Season of Magic with Arcana Unleashed. The next one, the Season of Champions, was already known, but very little information about it had emerged before this presentation.
Above all, the keynote revealed the three major themes that will follow:
- the Season of Survival;
- the Season of Sword & Sorcery;
- the Season of Rebellion.
At first glance, these may seem like nothing more than names. Yet each one conceals the return of a legendary setting or the arrival of a particularly ambitious crossover. And that is where things become truly interesting.
D&D Icons: Legends Return to the Table
One of the conference’s biggest announcements was the creation of D&D Icons, a new initiative led by Joe Manganiello as creative director.
I mainly knew Joe Manganiello from his appearances in The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother and True Blood. I also knew that he was a huge Dungeons & Dragons fan, but I did not expect to see him take on such an important role in the future of the franchise.
The idea behind D&D Icons is particularly appealing: bringing together legendary D&D creators and giving them the opportunity to return to the settings or characters that defined their careers.
Luke Gygax, son of Gary Gygax—one of the co-creators of Dungeons & Dragons—will work on Greyhawk Legacy, using notes and unfinished material left behind by his father. Greyhawk will also return to centre stage during the Season of Sword & Sorcery.
For Dragonlance, its original creators, Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, will prepare a new book bringing together and expanding upon forty years of history and lore.
Then came the announcement that personally made me jump out of my seat: R. A. Salvatore will work on a project devoted to Drizzt Do’Urden and his legend in the Forgotten Realms. Given my current enthusiasm for Salvatore’s novels, you can easily imagine my reaction!
On paper, D&D Icons looks like a wonderful bridge between the game’s history and its future. Wizards of the Coast is not merely reviving familiar names: it is inviting back some of the creators most closely associated with these worlds and allowing them to bring those settings to life once more.
Dark Sun Is Back!
After D&D Icons, another major announcement followed: Dark Sun is officially returning.
Created in the early 1990s, Dark Sun is set on Athas, a devastated, brutal and almost entirely desert-covered post-apocalyptic world. Resources are scarce, survival is difficult and powerful sorcerer-kings rule over ruthless city-states. It is a world far removed from the heroic and comparatively comfortable fantasy found in certain parts of the Forgotten Realms.
This return will form the heart of the Season of Survival. Dark Sun will receive two books, Dark Sun: Blood and Power and Dark Sun: Edge of Oblivion, amounting to nearly 500 pages in total. The tone will clearly be harsher and more mature than that of the usual D&D publications.
I find this choice particularly interesting. It shows that D&D can offer radically different experiences while keeping the same game system: heroic adventure, gothic horror, post-apocalyptic survival or sweeping fantasy epics.
D&D Beyond and a New App
The conference also provided an opportunity to showcase several developments for D&D Beyond, including new ways to find a group of players and a new mobile experience designed to accompany games played around a physical table.
This new app is planned for 2027. Personally, I hope it will be more polished, more stable and, above all, less prone to bugs than some of D&D Beyond’s current features. The idea of a mobile tool genuinely designed for in-person play is excellent; we will now have to see how well it is implemented.
More of Warlock: Dungeons & Dragons Revealed
We then saw Tricia Helfer, the unforgettable Number Six from Battlestar Galactica. She will portray Kaatri in the upcoming video game Warlock: Dungeons & Dragons.
She was joined by Maggie Robertson, best known for playing Lady Dimitrescu in Resident Evil Village, who will provide both the voice and motion-capture performance for Tasha.
Warlock: Dungeons & Dragons will be a third-person, single-player action-adventure game set in an open dark-fantasy world. Its release is scheduled for November 2026. We will obviously have to wait until we can play it before forming a proper opinion, but the atmosphere shown during the conference certainly piqued my curiosity.
D&D: Universes Beyond Begins with World of Warcraft
This was probably the announcement that thrilled part of the audience… while making another part bristle: Dungeons & Dragons is launching its own version of Universes Beyond, a concept already very familiar to Magic: The Gathering players.
The first major franchise to join D&D will be World of Warcraft, if we set aside the previous crossover with Stranger Things. This setting will open the Season of Champions, with a 256-page book scheduled for 17 November 2026. It will include new species, new subclasses and several iconic dungeons adapted for tabletop role-playing.
Personally, I am incredibly enthusiastic. I never really played World of Warcraft, but I loved Warcraft III. Exploring Azeroth, its peoples, locations and conflicts through the rules of D&D could therefore be tremendous fun.
I can still understand the reservations. For some players, Dungeons & Dragons should remain tied to its own worlds and to a particular form of medieval fantasy. In my eyes, however, D&D is also—and perhaps above all—a game system. If we can let go of the idea that D&D must correspond to one single form of fantasy, the possibilities become enormous.
Three Studios to Keep Classic Settings Alive
Wizards of the Coast does not intend to produce all this new content alone. Three studios have been selected to provide official and regular support for several settings beloved by players:
- Ghostfire Gaming will work on Ravenloft, with its first publication planned for 2027;
- Visionary Productions will take charge of Eberron, with a project announced for 2028;
- Kobold Press will develop content for the Forgotten Realms, also beginning in 2028.
The choice of Kobold Press is particularly interesting, given the studio’s experience in creating D&D-compatible content. This collaboration could bring some excellent things to the Forgotten Realms.
Dungeon Masters Heads to Azeroth… Then Icewind Dale
The next two campaigns of the Dungeon Masters actual-play series were also announced.
The cast will feature Jasmine Bhullar behind the Dungeon Master’s screen, joined by Neil Newbon, Devora Wilde, Christian Navarro and Mayanna Berrin. Theo Solomon will now join the team as well.
The third campaign will take them to Azeroth, in the world of World of Warcraft. The fourth will then head to Icewind Dale, in the Forgotten Realms, with the announced return of familiar characters from Baldur’s Gate 3.
Azeroth followed by Icewind Dale: honestly, that is huge!
And Suddenly… Darth Vader
Just as the conference appeared to be drawing to a close, one final surprise awaited us.
An ominous breath. A silhouette everyone recognises instantly. And then… Darth Vader.
After World of Warcraft, Star Wars will also join D&D: Universes Beyond. The reveal seems naturally connected to the future Season of Rebellion, although many details have yet to be announced.
This choice may seem disconcerting. On the surface, Star Wars is a very long way from the traditional image of Dungeons & Dragons. Yet Star Wars role-playing games and D&D have long shared the same fundamental ingredients: a group of heroes, complementary classes or archetypes, extraordinary powers, combat, exploration and a grand adventure told collectively.
If the adaptation is handled intelligently, I sincerely believe that it could work extremely well.
A Future That Has Me Truly Excited
This D&D Vision Keynote was far richer than I had imagined. Between the return of Dark Sun, Greyhawk, Dragonlance and Drizzt, the creation of D&D Icons, the collaborations with new studios, the developments for D&D Beyond, Warlock, World of Warcraft, Icewind Dale and the arrival of Star Wars, Wizards of the Coast presented a particularly ambitious roadmap.
Of course, not everything will appeal to everyone. Some will prefer D&D to remain focused on its historic settings, while others will be delighted to roll their dice in Azeroth or in a galaxy far, far away.
For my part, I mainly see a game that is finally daring to make full use of its flexibility. Dungeons & Dragons has its own worlds, history and identity, but it can also become a gateway to other universes without losing what makes it so powerful: gathering around a table and building a great adventure together.
One thing is certain: I am extremely excited about the future of D&D!
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