The Free5e Kickstarter Is Live! Join the Movement

For years, financial and corporate barriers have kept people from experiencing the magic of Dungeons & Dragons. But today, that changes. Free5e, the first fully free, open-source alternative to D&D 5e, is now live on Kickstarter.

What Is Free5e?

Free5e is a complete, fully compatible TTRPG system based on the 5e rules, built for accessibility, community, and creative freedom. It includes three core books—the Player’s Guide, GM Handbook, and Free Range Monsters—all available for free download and licensed under Creative Commons (CC-BY). That means you can play, modify, publish, and even sell Free5e content—without restrictions.

Why Free5e?

TTRPGs should be for everyone. Free5e removes the financial paywalls and corporate control that have locked too many players out of the game. With print-at-cost books, accessible formats, and no licensing fees, Free5e ensures that everyone—players, Game Masters, teachers, libraries, and publishers—has the freedom to use and expand on the game as they see fit.

Key Features of Free5e:

• Completely free, forever – No paywalls, no subscriptions, no corporate restrictions.
• Compatible with D&D 5e – Play with your existing adventures, monsters, and modules.
• Fully open-source (CC-BY licensed) – Modify, translate, publish, and sell your own content.
• Disability representation – Three different systems for including disabled characters.
• Designed for accessibility – Dyslexia-friendly PDFs, digital braille, audio, markdown, and more.
• Affordable print options – Hardcover and softcover books available at or near cost.
• A massive bestiary – Over 500 monsters, plus templates to create thousands more.

Why a Kickstarter If It’s Free?

We’re funding Free5e through Kickstarter to cover professional editing, layout, and all-new, human-made artwork—all of which will also be released under Creative Commons for anyone to use. Backers will get exclusive rewards, including printable GM tools, engraved wooden accessories, and collectible metal art.

Join the Free5e Revolution

Help us change the TTRPG industry forever. Download Free5e today, share it with your friends, and support the Kickstarter to help make this vision a reality. Let’s set 5e free—forever.

👉 Back Free5e on Kickstarter now!

Update: March 17, 2025: Due to unexpected prototype material shipping delays, we need to push this back another week.

We’ve got a slight change of plans regarding the launch of our Kickstarter campaign for Free5e! Instead of launching on March 4, we’re pushing back the date to March 25.

Why the delay?

We’re waiting on some key supplies that are essential for fulfilling our backer rewards. We want to ensure that everything is perfectly in place before we open the campaign. This includes running test production so that we can be confident in the quality of the products we’re offering. By getting actual samples in hand before the campaign starts, we’ll be able to show our backers exactly what you’re getting.

We will make every reward in-house after the campaign, and we will personally check every item for quality before it gets delivered. We want to be 100% confident that the rewards we send out are the high-quality, lasting keepsakes you deserve.

We’re all about making these rewards something special—a reminder of when the hobby started to change for the better and that you helped make it happen. Free5e isn’t just a game; it’s a movement toward accessibility and inclusion for every player, and we want our backers to feel proud of supporting this vision for years to come.

We know you’re as excited as we are, and we’re committed to delivering rewards that reflect the importance of this project. Thank you for your patience and understanding. We’re making sure these rewards are something you’ll cherish for generations to come.

Mark your calendars or follow the project! The new launch date is March 25, and we can’t wait to share everything with you.

Thank you for your incredible support!

How can we make tabletop RPGs more inclusive for blind players—and why does it matter? This episode of Gaining Advantage tackles accessibility in TTRPGs with Blind Temple, an advocate for blind gamers.

Temple shares firsthand experiences, challenges, and solutions for making RPGs more accessible, from game design to play at the table. We also unveil #Free5e, our ambitious project to provide a fully accessible, cost-free alternative to D&D 5th Edition.

00:00 Introduction – The Accessibility Problem in TTRPGs

00:22 The Cost Barrier in D&D – What is Free5e?

05:17 Meet Blind Temple – Advocate for Blind Gamers

06:49 Common Challenges Blind Players Face in RPGs

09:10 Exclusion at the Table – Real Stories

11:32 The Role of Digital Tools in Accessible Gaming

15:02 How GMs Can Make Their Games More Inclusive

17:06 The Biggest Accessibility Mistakes in TTRPGs

22:57 What Publishers Must Do to Improve Accessibility

27:11 Debunking Myths About Blindness in RPGs

34:38 Ableism in Gaming – What Needs to Change

42:02 The Impact of Accessibility in RPG Communities

50:04 A Message to Game Designers & Players

51:27 Upcoming Projects from Blind Temple

53:42 Final Thoughts & How You Can Help

Join us as we break down myths, share practical solutions, and fight to make tabletop RPGs truly welcoming for all!

Links & Resources:

🔗 Free5e: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/wyrmworkspublishing/free5e-a-free-open-source-dungeons-and-dragons-alternative?ref=ahzrcq 

🔗 Blind Temple on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/blindtemple.bsky.social 

🔗 Blind Temple on Twitter: https://x.com/BlindTemple 

🔗 Dots RPG (Braille Dice & Resources): https://dotsrpg.org 

🔗 Wyrmworks Publishing Patreon (Support Community Copies!): https://patreon.com/WyrmworksPublishing 

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