It’s been declared somewhat outdated, as explained in this detailed discussion. But the real question for many D&D enthusiasts remains: what exactly was lacking in Volo’s Guide to Monsters that led to it being superseded?
The truth is, Volo’s Guide isn’t inherently bad. The content is still perfectly usable and enjoyable in your D&D games, and in many scenarios, you might not even notice a significant difference. However, several key updates and design philosophies prompted the shift away from it in favor of newer materials like Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse (MotM).
Key Reasons for the Shift Away from Volo’s Guide
Several factors contributed to the perceived obsolescence of Volo’s Guide, primarily driven by Wizards of the Coast’s (WotC) evolving design principles for D&D 5th Edition:
Reworked and Unified Player Races
One significant change was the overhaul of player races. For instance, the original Kobold race featured Pack Tactics, a trait that could sometimes lead to imbalances in gameplay. To move away from rigid racial stereotypes, the design philosophy shifted to allow all races to freely assign their ability score increases. Furthermore, there were other adjustments to player character races, such as reclassifying some from humanoid to fey and making languages beyond Common more dependent on setting and culture. Wizards of the Coast has provided a detailed explanation of these creature evolutions here.
Weaker Alignment Strictures
Another notable change involved loosening the rigid alignment system. Races and monsters are now portrayed with less prescriptive alignments, moving away from the idea that entire groups are inherently good or evil. For example, the Bodak’s alignment was adjusted from “Chaotic Evil” to “Typically Chaotic Evil” (credit to @Jack for pointing this out). This change aims to reduce stereotyping and allow for more nuanced character and monster portrayals.
Simplified Monster Spellcasting
To simplify the Dungeon Master’s (DM) workload, monster and NPC spellcasting was streamlined. Instead of providing full spell lists, many creatures now have a selection of at-will spells or spells usable a few times per day. The rationale behind this simplification is that typical combat encounters often last only around 3 rounds, so DMs would likely only use a handful of spells anyway. For combat situations, offensive spell options are frequently incorporated directly into actions or bonus actions, making monster stat blocks more DM-friendly. (While practical, some DMs may prefer the older, more comprehensive spell lists).
Commercial Interests
Finally, it’s important to acknowledge the commercial aspect. Deprecating older books like Volo’s Guide, to some extent, serves WotC’s business interests. It creates a demand for newer publications like MotM, even if the core content overlaps significantly. This encourages players and DMs to purchase the latest materials to stay current with the “official” rules and creature statistics.
Balance and Lore Considerations
Despite these changes, you generally don’t need to worry about balance issues when using Volo’s Guide. Many monsters from the original Monster Manual remain unchanged and are still perfectly playable. If there’s any discernible trend in 5e design, it’s arguably towards making player characters even more powerful relative to monsters. Considering that PCs were already quite strong after the initial tiers of play, and many monsters in Volo’s Guide are designed for higher-level encounters, the power balance remains largely unaffected. For your personal games, ignoring MotM and continuing to use Volo’s Guide is perfectly acceptable. The updates primarily become relevant for official play, such as in Adventurers League (AL), which mandates the most current official versions of rules and stat blocks.
Moreover, older books like Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes and Volo’s Guide to Monsters offer a wealth of lore about the monsters they describe and their societies. This valuable information is often absent in MP:MotM and can significantly enrich your game when roleplaying these creatures and building your campaign world. If monster lore and in-depth creature descriptions are important to your game, Volo’s Guide remains a valuable resource.
In conclusion, while Monsters of the Multiverse represents the current official direction for D&D 5e monster design, Volo’s Guide to Monsters is far from useless. It’s still a rich source of monster information and perfectly functional for home games, especially if you value detailed lore and don’t mind the older design paradigms. Understanding the reasons behind the shift helps you make informed decisions about which resources best suit your D&D 5e games.
