D&D Game Architect Chris Perkins Promoted to Creative Director
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This year remains a pivotal one for Wizards of the Coast, with the company launching an updated version of Dungeons & Dragons in the form of a new 2024 Player’s Handbook and new Dungeon Master’s Guide. One of the principal creators behind these new products is longtime senior D&D game designer Chris Perkins.
Recently, however, WotC announced that Perkins is being promoted to Creative Director, a role that will have him overseeing the larger ongoing development of the game. So just what does this mean for the future of D&D? Below, we break out all the details.
Who is Chris Perkins?
Christopher Perkins has been a key part of D&D for more than two decades. Originally joining Wizards of the Coast in 1997 after contributing to Dungeon Magazine, Perkins was later promoted to editor-in-chief of periodicals and was known for his long-running blog “The Dungeon Master Experience,” which detailed advice on running a campaign, using his own homebrew setting of Iomandra as an example.
Perkins would later contribute to numerous other DnD 5e books, including most notably the Curse of Strahd campaign. In 2007, Perkins served as the DM of the popular Acquisitions Incorporated” live-play sessions at the PAX game convention; a series that was seen by many being instrumental in launching similar shows like Critical Roll and Dimension 20.
By 2018, Perkins was promoted to senior story designer for D&D, overseeing the content and narrative structure of a wide range of fifth edition products including Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus, Candlekeep Mysteries and Waterdeep: Dragon Heist.
By 2022, Perkins had taken on the role of D&D Game Architect (also known as a Product Lead), with his primary responsibility being to manage a team of designers and editors. Along with D&D Lead Jeremy Crawford, Perkins was one of the guiding forces behind the new 2024 Player’s Handbook, Dungeon Master’s Guide and 2025 Monster Manual.
What is a D&D Creative Director?
Within the context of the Dungeons & Dragons brand, the Creative Director is an essential strategic role. Their job is to oversee the creative vision of current and future D&D products. This includes everything from the stories and settings that define new campaigns, to ensuring consistency in the game’s lore, artwork and design.
While the role has evolved over the years at Wizards of the Coast, typically a Creative Director on the D&D brand works closely with various teams, including writers, artists and game designers, and can often has significant influence on future editions, sourcebooks and even multimedia projects such as television adaptations and video games.
Final Thoughts
Perkins promotion to Creative Director is a significant move on Wizards of the Coast’s part, but it’s one that fans and industry watchers should welcome. The fact is that the D&D brand is still recovering from the black eye it received in the wake of the OGL scandal. Perkins, however, is someone who has consistently represents the best of what D&D has to offer, both as a game and as a brand. It remains to be seen, however, what he does with his newfound role.
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Cameron Nichols is a Senior Editor who lives in Boston, Massachusetts, and has been playing D&D since the early 90s, when he was introduced by his older brother and cut his teeth on AD&D 2nd Edition. Since then he’s played virtually every RPG he could get his nerdy little mitts on (including a weird Goth phase in the early 2000s when he rocked Vampire: The Masquerade pretty hard). His favorite D&D campaign setting is the Forgotten Realms and his favorite character to play was a Half-Orc Barbarian named Grug (who was unfortunately devoured by a gelatinous cube).
