History TAbletopGame / DungeonsAndDragons

* ''Council of Wyrms'': Dragons plus politics. Set on an island chain called the Io's Blood Isles, the dragon residents have a loose democratic government and must work together on issues affecting dragon welfare. They retain CharacterAlignment inclinations, but those are less important than matters of honor and politics. If the Council send a party with a gold dragon as a substitute of paladin and a black dragon as a substitute of thief on a mission, they'll fly. There are no native humans in the setting; any humans that appear are dragon slaying adventurers. [[invoked]] This setting was published in 1994.

* ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms'': Technically the oldest D&D setting, due to being made by Ed Greenwood around 1967 as the setting of his childhood stories but didn't start publication as an official setting until 1987. Set on the planet Toril, and the continent Faerûn in particular: a world of {{Fantasy Counterpart Culture}}s, partially [[LostColony shanghaied from Earth]] (Egyptian- and Mesopotamian-derived at that, to be exact), prominent features are constant conflicts between [[OddJobGods numerous and very active deities]], the world being one big GambitPileup between dozens of factions, and scads of high-powered {{Non Player Character}}s (mostly the stars of the setting's popular novel lines) running around. The most popular and most developed setting, although some feel that the setting is overused due to this.

** The first version was the original home campaign, dubbed the "Original Lake Geneva Campaign" by Robert Kuntz, created after Gygax played a game of ''Blackmoor'' in 1972. Games in this version ran constantly from 1972 to 1979, slowed down from 1980 to 1985, and completely ceased on December 31, 1985, right after Gygax was ousted from Creator/{{TSR}}, with the setting itself being "destroyed" in 1988 in the last ''Gord the Rogue'' novel. Due to the number of games played each week, Gygax didn't have the time to make a world map completely from scratch and simply used a blank map of North America, filling it in as the campaign went on. Despite the name, the 1975 ''Supplement I: Greyhawk'' digest wasn't a ''Greyhawk'' setting book, but a rulebook that helped eliminate the game's dependence on ''Chainmail'', setting the groundwork for what would become Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. Not much is known about the home campaign version, apart from what is presented in the ''Gnome Cache'' novella from the earliest issues of ''Dragon'' magazine and the ''Gord the Rogue'' novel series. Despite washing his hands of the setting, fans wanted the original home campaign version of the Castle Greyhawk megadungeon to be published, so Gygax finally greenlit the project as ''Castle Zagyg'' in 2003. Although its immensely troubled production ended with just two of the proposed seven books and a small number of adventure modules and supplements being released. [[note]]The Castle Greyhawk dungeon as of 1985 had around 50 floors, meaning Gygax and Kuntz had to sift through years of notes and pick the 13 best parts for publication, while Gygax had to rewrite everything that was still copyright of [=WotC=]. Gygax's health decline in 2004 led to the already slow-moving project to grind to a near halt, while Kuntz had to withdraw due to working on other projects. Not long after Gary's death in 2008, his widow Gail pulled all the licensing from Troll Lord Games and transferred them to her own company, Gygax Games, but hasn't done anything with the project since.[[/note]]

While ''Dungeons & Dragons'' may not have created tabletop roleplaying games, it codified many of the mechanics and tropes associated with them, [[SmallReferencePools is what most people picture when they think of a tabletop RPG (even if they've never played one)]], and is by far the most popular tabletop RPG of all time. ''Dungeons & Dragons'' is one of the {{Trope Codifier}}s of the modern era, having single-handedly mashed SwordAndSorcery and epic HighFantasy into the fantasy genre as we know it today, and having been the source of more than a few of the UsefulNotes/RoleplayingGameTerms and RPGElements that the influential [[RolePlayingGame computer RPG]] genre was founded on. Many, many excellent computer games (especially [=RPGs=]) have also been made directly off the ''[=D&D=]'' license. It is also commonly seen as the most popular nerd game due to all the strategic elements involved.

Though a number of ''D&D''-based {{MUD}}s and other online games existed prior, most notably the original ''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights'', in 2006, Wizards of the Coast and Atari released the {{MMORPG}} ''VideoGame/DungeonsAndDragonsOnline: Stormreach'', set on the fictional continent of Xen'drik in the campaign world of TabletopGame/{{Eberron}}. The game has since been renamed ''Dungeons & Dragons Online: TabletopGame/{{Eberron}} Unlimited'', and uses a free-to-play model with optional microtransactions. It later added a ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms'' expansion. ''TabletopGame/TempleOfElementalEvil'' received a [[VideoGame/TheTempleOfElementalEvil computer game adaptation]] via the late Creator/TroikaGames, and is notable for being the only "proper" use of the 3.5 rules (fully turn-based, all special options, bar grapple, and counterspell, intact), ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheChalice'' is an unofficial indie successor to this adaptation built by using the OGL license, with a sequel coming eventually.

Two companion magazines -- ''Magazine/{{Dragon}}'' and ''Magazine/{{Dungeon}}'' -- have been published since 1976 and 1986 respectively, offering additional content, articles, and resources for ''D&D''. Since 2007, the magazines have ceased paper publication and can now be found in digital format on the ''Wizards Of The Coast'' website. ''AD&D'' has its "Core Rules" toolset sold on CD. With the release of 4E, a set of virtual tabletop software called ''D&D Insider'' was set to be released that would have given gamers an official way to play ''D&D'' over the Internet, but [[VaporWare now the idea seems dead]], as Fifth Edition is in publication. In 2015, ''Dragon'' magazine made a reappearance as ''Dragon+'', a free app released for [=iOS=] and Android, with new issues of the e-magazine being released every two months.

For the animated series based on the game, see ''WesternAnimation/DungeonsAndDragons1983''. For the Creator/{{Bally}} {{pinball}} game, see ''Pinball/DungeonsAndDragons1987''. There are also four movies. The first (''Film/DungeonsAndDragons2000'') is InNameOnly. The second (''[[Film/DungeonsAndDragonsWrathOfTheDragonGod Wrath of the Dragon God]]'') [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel is a lot better]], despite being made on a low budget. The third, ''Film/DungeonsAndDragonsTheBookOfVileDarkness'', was a made-for-cable-TV affair that premiered on Creator/{{Syfy}} in November 2012. A reboot of the film franchise, produced by Creator/{{Paramount}}, debuted on March 31, 2023 with the largely well-received ''Film/DungeonsAndDragonsHonorAmongThieves''.

* ''Blackmoor'', a.k.a. ''The First Fantasy Campaign'': The '''very''' first campaign setting created for the system, originating from Dave Arneson's wargaming days, the result of a slow weekend in October 1970 consisting of '50s monster movies, "fantasy hero" novels, a slump during his most recent wargame session, and the thought of "I can do better than this". So he drew a six-floor dungeon layout, then created a castle and town from a Sicilian castle model he had lying around. The new setting was a huge hit among his fellow ''Braunstein'' players and when he showed the game to Gygax in 1972, the rest, as they say, was history. It was portrayed as a Good-vs-Evil setting, rather than a Law-vs-Chaos one, with the various duchies, kingdoms, and major characters vying for power while the mysterious Egg of Coot pulls strings from the shadows. While the "official" version was a released in 1977 as a combination battle report and gazetteer by Judges Guild, alternate versions appeared in both Greyhawk (as an archbarony near the Land of Black Ice) and Mystara (as a kingdom from the world's distant past that [[AndManGrewProud rose to great heights]] [[CataclysmBackstory and quickly fell, changing the world in the process]]). The setting only had four adventure modules released for it during its Creator/{{TSR}} days: ''Adventures in Blackmoor'', ''Temple of the Frog'', ''City of the Gods'', and ''The Duchy of Ten''. While officially discontinued during AD&D 2nd Edition, Arneson was able to keep the rights for the setting and eventually worked with Zeitgeist Games to release setting books for 3.5 and 4th Editions. Blackmoor proudly has the honor of being one of the longest continuously played fantasy role-playing campaign settings in existence, even spawning an epic play-by-post game called ''The Last Fantasy Campaign'', which ran from 2005 to 2015.

* ''Council of Wyrms'': Dragons plus politics. Set on an island chain called the Io's Blood Isles, the dragon residents have a loose democratic government and must work together on issues affecting dragon welfare. They retain CharacterAlignment inclinations, but those are less important than matters of honor and politics. If the Council send a party with a Gold dragon as a substitute of paladin and a Black dragon as a substitute of thief on a mission, they'll fly. There are no native humans in the setting; any humans that appear are dragon slaying adventurers. [[invoked]] This setting was published in 1994.

* ''Literature/{{Dragonlance}}'': Set on the planet Krynn. The purest HighFantasy setting of them all and hews closest to Creator/JRRTolkien's works, arguably. The most major difference would probably be Tolkien preferred to imply the influence of Divine Providence, while in Dragonlance the intervention of deities tends to be much more explicit. More popular for its series of novels, which have come out non-stop for years, than for its sporadically-published game products.

** The Eberron setting puts a unique spin on the concept of alignment as well. There are no AlwaysChaoticEvil or AlwaysLawfulGood races; any intelligent creature (including sentient undead) can be of any alignment, and even clerics don't necessarily have to be of the same alignment as the god(s) they worship... or don't worship, since divine magic in Eberron isn't actually tied to any specific deity. There are angels in the setting, and that's what a cleric gets if he casts a spell like ''Commune''. However, if pressed, the angels will admit that even ''they'' haven't ever actually seen any deities. About the closest the world comes to AlwaysChaoticEvil is the aberrations. Changelings aren't, but are treated as such by most other humanoid races.
* ''Exandria'': The setting of the popular live ''D&D'' stream ''WebVideo/CriticalRole.'' It became an official setting in 2019 with the ''Explorer's Guide to Wildemount'', which details the cold continent filled with political intrigue and horrible remnants of a GreatOffscreenWar. It also retroactively ties the events of both seasons of the stream and Creator/MatthewMercer's earlier ''[[TabletopGame/CriticalRoleTaldoreiCampaignSetting Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting]]'' into the ''D&D'' multiverse. Exandria's simultaneous status as an official ''and'' third party setting means it has to come up with... [[WritingAroundTrademarks creative ways]] to sometimes sidestep its own official status; particularly noticeable in ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfVoxMachina'' and the re-release of the Tal'Dorei source book.
* ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms'': Technically the oldest D&D setting, due to being made by Ed Greenwood around 1967 as the setting of his childhood stories, but didn't start publication as an official setting until 1987. Set on the planet Toril, and the continent Faerûn in particular: a world of {{Fantasy Counterpart Culture}}s, partially [[LostColony shanghaied from Earth]] (Egyptian- and Mesopotamian-derived at that, to be exact), prominent features are constant conflicts between [[OddJobGods numerous and very active deities]], the world being one big GambitPileup between dozens of factions, and scads of high-powered {{Non Player Character}}s (mostly the stars of the setting's popular novel lines) running around. The most popular and most developed setting, although some feel that the setting is overused due to being in the limelight so often. [[note]]This is likely due to the publishing contract between Ed Greenwood and TSR/[=WotC=]/Hasbro, with two of the apparent stipulations contained therein being a minimum of one full-length novel wrote by him per year and a minimum of one full-length sourcebook on the setting either by him or containing significant contributions by him per year.[[/note]]

* ''Hyperborea'': The setting of the ''Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea'' retro-clone. The setting itself is a reimagining of the mythical Hyperborea: a ''Literature/DyingEarth'' styled flat earth realm in the shape of a giant hexagon, set adrift in space with the Hyperborean Sea cascading off of it in unearthly waterfalls. The realm is lit by a dying red sun; there's a 13 month calendar of 364 days, although the sidereal year itself lasts for 13 calendar years, meaning that the seasons last for years at a time; and an extreme version of the polar circle's day-night cycle where polar night and midnight sun each last a whole year. The lands are harsh and unforgiving, environments ranging from mostly hospitable grasslands and marshlands to nigh uninhabitable deserts and tundras. Magic items are abundant, yet a rare breed all at once: while treasure hordes can contain ancient Atlantean technology and enchanted Hyperborean arms and armor, the means of making them has been lost to the point that the only things that ''can'' be made are spell scrolls and alchemical potions and poisons.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Ravenloft}}'': Gothic fantasy and Film/HammerHorror in a maybe-sentient demiplane called the "Domains of Dread" that seems to exist solely to inflict ThePunishment on its inhabitants, especially the 'dark lord' of each region but also everyone else who was swept up into the demiplane in their wake. The mysterious 'dark powers' lift these 'dark lords' and their surrounding territories from various Prime Material Plane worlds, and each 'dark lord' is both the most powerful being in their domain and a literal and figurative prisoner of their own destructive behavior. Initially a one-off module (the classic "weekend in hell"), it was popular enough to become its own campaign setting. Fifth Edition brought it full circle by releasing an updated and expanded version of the original ''Ravenloft'' module, titled ''TabletopGame/CurseOfStrahd''.
** ''TabletopGame/MasqueOfTheRedDeath'': The same setting concept, but transplanted to a low-magic version of Victorian-era Earth ("Gothic Earth").

* ''TabletopGame/{{Spelljammer}}'': ''Dungeons & Dragons'' [[RecycledINSPACE IN SPACE]]! Prominently featured the extended solar systems of ''Dragonlance'', ''Greyhawk'' and ''Forgotten Realms'', as well as mentioning ''Birthright'', ''Dark Sun'' and ''Mystara''. [[AllMythsAreTrue All Cosmologies Are True]]... at least, ''somewhere''. The solar system of each campaign setting that's set on the Prime Material Plane is enclosed within a crystal sphere and flying vessels called spelljammers can navigate the "wildspace" within the spheres and the phlogiston between them. Most [[labelnote:relatively normal]][[TabletopGame/DarkSun Athas]] is explicitly said to be abnormal plane-wise and the [[TabletopGame/{{Ravenloft}} Demiplane of Dread]] by definition isn't a Prime world at all[[/labelnote]] are accessible this way. ''TabletopGame/{{Spelljammer}}'' and ''TabletopGame/{{Planescape}}'' are stitched together well enough, but don't cross much, being alternate ways to handle transit between worlds: spaceflight and Jules Verne-ish exploration, or magical portals with linking dimensions.
* ''Wilderlands of High Fantasy'': The first officially licensed and published third-party campaign setting for OD&D, created by Judges Guild after the success of their ''City State of the Invincible Overlord'' cityscape setting and released in a collection of 4 32-page booklets. In 2002, Judges Guild ended up working together with Necromancer Games to release a boxed version for 3.5 Edition. Rather than go for the localized "megadungeon" style of very early Blackmoor and Greyhawk, the Wilderlands went the sandbox route: 18 maps that altogether cover an area about 780 miles wide by 1080 miles long, roughly the size of the Mediterranean. Each individual map contains a number of pre-established points-of-interest, with the accompanying books containing entry upon entry for every bastion of civilization, set of ruins, and monster lair within each region. The Wilderlands sticks to the gonzo origins of D&D, a time when the lines between sci-fi and fantasy were very murky and SchizoTech was everywhere, meaning you could have people who just invented the wheel potentially meet people who use calculus and ''then'' have them potentially happen upon a crashed alien spaceship from an age long before recorded history.

** After the success of ''Plane Shift'', The ''D&D'' team, the ''Magic'' team, and the Hasbro higher-ups saw potential in a full-fledged ''Magic'' sourcebooks for D&D:

** ''TabletopGame/CastlesAndCrusades'' Published by Troll Lord Games. Not strictly a retro-clone as it doesn't mimic a specific prior version, but goes for an old-school feel, as outright emulation wasn't considered legally possible at the time (it predates the other retro-clones). The general idea was to keep the updated mechanics from 3rd edition that players liked, while bringing back the more rules-light mechanics 1st edition classes (by leaving out the skill points and stacking bonuses of feats), and keeping paperwork to minimum -- skill checks and saving throws are simple d20 + Ability modifier checks, with only a bonus if it's a prime attribute. Also, Gary Gygax approved it, which in itself is a good resume for many old-time players. ''[=StarSiege=]'' is its sci-fi counterpart on the same SIEGE engine. Quickstart version is downloadable [[http://www.trolllord.com/downloads/pdfs/cnc_qs.pdf from Troll Lord Games site]].

** ''[[http://index.rpg.net/display-search.phtml?firstsearch=1&key=title&match=loose&value=Swords+%26+Wizardry Swords and Wizardry]]'': Created by Matt Finch of Mythmere Games and published by Frog God Games. One of the more well-known retro-clones, this game goes all the way back to the original 1974 edition of ''D&D''. Notable for condensing the original five saving throws into a single one, although it includes the option to use the original system. You get to choose whether you want to play with descending or ascending AC. Has a number of variants based on the system, such as ''[=WhiteHack=]'', ''White Star'', and ''Crypts & Things''. There are four versions of this game, all of which are free to download:
*** The [[http://www.lulu.com/us/en/shop/matthew-finch/swords-wizardry-whitebox-rulebook-pdf/ebook/product-14956259.html White Box Rules]], which closely emulate the rules of the core three [=LBBs=] of OD&D, but capped all three classes to 10th level, with the Magic-User having the option to advance up to 16th level for access to 6th-level spells.
*** The [[http://www.rpgnow.com/product/62346/Swords-%26-Wizardry-Core-Rules&affiliate_id=1446 Core Rules]], which incorporates parts of the Greyhawk Supplement like the Thief class... as of the fourth printing. The first through third printings were more faithful to OD&D and didn't include the Thief class, but did include special versions of the Fighter for dwarves (Dwarven Warrior) and the Fighter/Magic-User for elves (Elven Adventurer).
*** The [[https://www.froggodgames.com/swords-wizardry-complete-rulebook Complete Rulebook]], which incorporates most of the content from Supplements 1-3 and some from both ''Strategic Review'' and early issues of ''Dragon'', resulting in something of a middle road between OD&D, Basic D&D, and AD&D 1e, making it easily compatible with material from those editions. There's nine available classes and five races, with other possible racial options being found in the various bestiary books released for the system.

** ''[[http://index.rpg.net/display-search.phtml?firstsearch=1&key=title&match=loose&value=Castles+%26+Crusades Castles & Crusades:]]'' Published by Troll Lord Games. Not strictly a retro-clone as it doesn't mimic a specific prior version, but goes for an old-school feel, as outright emulation wasn't considered legally possible at the time (it predates the other retro-clones). The general idea was to keep the updated mechanics from 3rd edition that players liked, while bringing back the more rules-light mechanics 1st edition classes (by leaving out the skill points and stacking bonuses of feats), and keeping paperwork to minimum -- skill checks and saving throws are simple d20 + Ability modifier checks, with only a bonus if it's a prime attribute. Also, Gary Gygax approved it, which in itself is a good resume for many old-time players. ''[=StarSiege=]'' is its sci-fi counterpart on the same SIEGE engine. Quickstart version is downloadable [[http://www.trolllord.com/downloads/pdfs/cnc_qs.pdf from Troll Lord Games site]].

For the animated series based on the game, see ''WesternAnimation/DungeonsAndDragons1983''. For the Creator/{{Bally}} {{pinball}} game, see ''Pinball/DungeonsAndDragons1987''. There are also four movies. The first (''Film/DungeonsAndDragons2000'') is InNameOnly. The second (''[[Film/DungeonsAndDragonsWrathOfTheDragonGod Wrath of the Dragon God]]'') [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel is a lot better]], despite being made on a low budget. The third, ''Film/DungeonsAndDragonsTheBookOfVileDarkness'', was a made-for-cable-TV affair that premiered on Creator/{{Syfy}} in November 2012. A reboot of the film franchise produced by Creator/{{Paramount}} debuted on March 31, 2023 with the largely well-received ''Film/DungeonsAndDragonsHonorAmongThieves''.

For the animated series based on the game, see ''WesternAnimation/DungeonsAndDragons1983''. For the Creator/{{Bally}} {{pinball}} game, see ''Pinball/DungeonsAndDragons1987''. There are also three movies. The first (''Film/DungeonsAndDragons2000'') is InNameOnly. The second (''[[Film/DungeonsAndDragonsWrathOfTheDragonGod Wrath of the Dragon God]]'') [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel is a lot better]], despite being made on a low budget. The third, ''Film/DungeonsAndDragonsTheBookOfVileDarkness'', was a made-for-cable-TV affair that premiered on Creator/{{Syfy}} in November 2012. A reboot of the film franchise is currently planned by Creator/{{Paramount}}, with the debut installment, ''Film/DungeonsAndDragonsHonorAmongThieves'', due for release on March 31, 2023.

''Dungeons & Dragons'', shortened to ''D&D'', was first published in 1974 by Creator/{{TSR}} (Tactical Studies Rules). TSR founder Creator/GaryGygax based the system of the game on TSR's miniatures combat system, ''Chainmail''. The game revolves around the now-classic set-up of a GameMaster (known in official ''D&D'' terms as the Dungeon Master), who controls all the non-player characters; and the players, who each control a Player Character and deal with the challenges provided by the Dungeon Master.

Whole libraries of novels have been published with ''D&D'' tie-ins, most of them linked to specific game settings such as the ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms''. While the novels'writing quality is inconsistent at best, sheer quantity testifies to these novel lines' profitability. The best-known novels are Creator/RASalvatore's ''Literature/TheLegendOfDrizzt'' series. In addition, Creator/IDWPublishing, famous for their ''Franchise/{{Transformers}}'' and ''Franchise/GIJoe'' comics, have obtained the license to [[ComicBook/DungeonsAndDragons an ongoing series]] based on ''D&D'' -- which have been [[http://www.comicsalliance.com/2011/04/20/dungeons-dragons-comic-idw/ well-received]], mainly due to being written by the writer for Creator/DCComics' ''ComicBook/BlueBeetle''.

Whole libraries of novels have been published with ''D&D'' tie-ins, most of them linked to specific game settings such as the ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms''. While writing quality is inconsistent at best, sheer quantity testifies to these novel lines' profitability. The best-known novels are Creator/RASalvatore's ''Literature/TheLegendOfDrizzt'' series. In addition, IDW Publishing, famous for their ''Franchise/{{Transformers}}'' and ''Franchise/GIJoe'' comics, have obtained the license to [[ComicBook/DungeonsAndDragons an ongoing series]] based on ''D&D'' -- which have been [[http://www.comicsalliance.com/2011/04/20/dungeons-dragons-comic-idw/ well-received]], mainly due to being written by the writer for Creator/DCComics' ''ComicBook/BlueBeetle''.

While ''Dungeons & Dragons'' may not have created tabletop roleplaying games, it codified many of the mechanics and tropes associated with them, [[SmallReferencePools is what most people picture when they think of a tabletop RPG (even if they've never played one)]], and is by far the most popular tabletop RPG of all time. ''Dungeons & Dragons'' is one of the {{Trope Codifier}}s of the modern era, having single-handedly mashed swords and sorcery and epic high fantasy into the fantasy genre as we know it today, and having been the source of more than a few of the UsefulNotes/RoleplayingGameTerms and RPGElements that the influential [[RolePlayingGame computer RPG]] genre was founded on. Many, many excellent computer games (especially [=RPGs=]) have also been made directly off the ''[=D&D=]'' license. It is also commonly seen as the most popular nerd game due to all the strategic elements involved.

In the mid-1980s a corporate power struggle inside TSR caused Gary Gygax to be ousted from the company, and a couple of years later, in 1989, the group left behind codified the official rules tweaks and unofficial suggestions that had accumulated in the meantime into ''TabletopGame/AdvancedDungeonsAndDragons2ndEdition''. It continued in popularity for a time, but by the [[TheNineties late 90s]], mismanagement of the company led TSR into bankruptcy.

After TSR was bought by Creator/WizardsOfTheCoast (makers of ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'', and now a subsidiary of Creator/{{Hasbro}}), they published ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragonsThirdEdition'' in 2000, using the UsefulNotes/D20System. A major overhaul of the entire rules set, 3rd edition cleared off the crust that had accumulated around 2nd and unified a scattered assortment of rules and procedures into something more coherent. It was a huge hit and revitalized the game, leading to new players aplenty. Then came an incremental edition known as 3.5e, which was largely concerned with fixing a few very obvious {{Game Breaker}}s and {{Quirky Bard}}s in 3rd Edition.

After TSR was bought by Creator/WizardsOfTheCoast (makers of ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'', and now a subsidiary of Creator/{{Hasbro}}), they published ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragonsThirdEdition'' in 2000 using the UsefulNotes/D20System. A major overhaul of the entire rules set, 3rd edition cleared off the crust that had accumulated around 2nd and unified a scattered assortment of rules and procedures into something more coherent. It was a huge hit and revitalized the game, leading to new players aplenty. Then came an incremental edition known as 3.5e, which was largely concerned with fixing a few very obvious {{Game Breaker}}s and {{Quirky Bard}}s in 3rd Edition.

In the mid-1980s a corporate power struggle inside TSR caused Gary Gygax to be ousted from the company, and a couple of years later, in 1989, the group left behind codified the official rules tweaks and unofficial suggestions that had accumulated in the meantime into ''TabletopGame/AdvancedDungeonsAndDragons2ndEdition''. It continued in popularity for a time, but by the late 90s, mismanagement of the company led TSR into bankruptcy.

'''''[[TropeCodifier The]]''''' TabletopRPG. While ''Dungeons & Dragons'' may not have created tabletop roleplaying games, it codified many of the mechanics and tropes associated with them, [[SmallReferencePools is what most people picture when they think of a tabletop RPG (even if they've never played one)]], and is by far the most popular tabletop RPG of all time.

''Dungeons & Dragons'', shortened to ''D&D'', was first published in 1974 by Creator/{{TSR}} (Tactical Studies Rules). TSR founder Creator/GaryGygax based the system of the game on TSR's miniatures combat system, ''TabletopGame/{{Chainmail}}''. The game revolves around the now-classic set-up of a GameMaster (known in official ''D&D'' terms as the Dungeon Master), who controls all the non-player characters; and the players, who each control a Player Character and deal with the challenges provided by the Dungeon Master.

''Dungeons & Dragons'' is one of the {{Trope Codifier}}s of the modern era, having single-handedly mashed swords and sorcery and epic high fantasy into the fantasy genre as we know it today, and having been the source of more than a few of the UsefulNotes/RoleplayingGameTerms and RPGElements that the influential [[RolePlayingGame computer RPG]] genre was founded on. Many, many excellent computer games (especially [=RPGs=]) have also been made directly off the ''[=D&D=]'' license. It is also commonly seen as the most popular nerd game due to all the strategic elements involved.

For the animated series based on the game, see ''WesternAnimation/DungeonsAndDragons1983''. For the Creator/{{Bally}} {{pinball}} game, see ''Pinball/DungeonsAndDragons1987''. There are also three movies. The first (''Film/DungeonsAndDragons2000'') is InNameOnly. The second (''[[Film/DungeonsAndDragonsWrathOfTheDragonGod Wrath of the Dragon God]]'') [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel is a lot better]], despite being made on a low budget. The third, ''Film/DungeonsAndDragonsTheBookOfVileDarkness'', was a made-for-cable-TV affair that premiered on Creator/{{Syfy}} in November 2012. A reboot of the film franchise is currently planned by Creator/{{Paramount}}, with the debut installment, ''Film/DungeonsAndDragonsHonorAmongThieves'', due for release on March 3, 2023.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Ravenloft}}'': Gothic fantasy and Film/HammerHorror in a maybe-sentient demiplane called the "Domains of Dread" that seems to exist solely to inflict ThePunishment on its inhabitants, especially the 'dark lord' of each region but also everyone else who was swept up into the demiplane in their wake. The mysterious 'dark powers' lift these 'dark lords' and their surrounding territories from various Prime Material Plane worlds, and each 'dark lord' is both the most powerful being in their domain and a literal and figurative prisoner of their own destructive behavior. Initially a one-off module (the classic "weekend in hell"), it was popular enough to become its own campaign setting. Fifth Edition brought it full circle by releasing an updated and expanded version of the original ''Ravenloft'' module, titled ''The Curse of Strahd''.

* ''[[TabletopGame/LegendOfTheFiveRings Rokugan]]'': JidaiGeki style fantasy. Licensed from the makers of the ''Legend of the Five Rings'' card game.

* ''The Planes of the TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering Multiverse'': Ever since Wizards's acquisition of the ''D&D'' brand back in September of 1999, they have kept a strict policy of never crossing their two biggest brands over with each other, keeping them distinct entities. Though a number of fans have been hoping for ''some'' kind of cross-promotion for years. This would change when James Wyatt (former member of the ''D&D Next'' development team and current narrative head of ''Magic'') decided to compile and release some of his homebrew ideas into a free PDF supplement titled ''[[https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/feature/plane-shift-zendikar-2016-04-27 Plane Shift: Zendikar]]'', detailing the temple-and-jungle-filled plane, in April of 2016, as a companion piece to his ''Art of Magic: the Gathering -- Zendikar'' art book (the book would provide the lore while the PDF provided the rules). This was a rousing success, with Wyatt release more supplements alongside more art books, collecting [[http://www.dragonmag.com/5.0/#!/article/106375/102161027 Innistrad]] (which included lore conversion rules for ''TabletopGame/CurseOfStrahd'', as their releases had coincidentally synchronized), [[http://dnd.wizards.com/articles/features/plane-shift-kaladesh Kaladesh]], [[http://dnd.wizards.com/articles/features/plane-shift-amonkhet Amonkhet]], [[https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/feature/plane-shift-ixalan-2018-01-09 Ixalan]], and [[https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/feature/plane-shift-dominaria-2018-07-31 Dominaria]] under the ''Plane Shift'' umbrella over the course of the next two years, with each garnering more praise than the next. The ''D&D'' team, the ''Magic'' team, and the Hasbro higher-ups saw potential in a full-fledged Magic sourcebooks for D&D:
** ''The Guildmaster's Guide to Ravnica'', released in November of 2018. Set in the city-plane of Ravnica where ten guilds jockey for control.
** ''Mythic Odysseys of Theros'', released in July 2020 and set in ''Magic''[='s=] Myth/ClassicalMythology-inspired plane.
** ''Magic'' then returned the favor in 2021, with its own ''Dungeons & Dragons: Adventures in the Forgotten Realms'' card set.
** ''Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos'', released in December of 2021 and set at the campus of Strixhaven, the greatest magical school in the multiverse.

* ''TabletopGame/SandyPetersensCthulhuMythos'']
* ''TabletopGame/WagaduChronicles''

* ''TabletopGame/Brancalonia''

* Plus the countless [[HouseRules homebrew]] settings that [=DMs=] create.