Post/Author/DateTime	Post
paperboys231 02-21-08, 09:32 PM	i have been saveing money up to buy d&d 3.5,but i heard of something called minis and i looked up some info on them and i was wondering do i HAVE to buy them to play 3.5? thanks:)
Ariakus 02-21-08, 09:51 PM	If you are not going to wait for 4 months for 4.0 to come out, you don't have to worry about buying mini's for 3.5. Mini's add a little visual to the game, but you can use pure imagination :D If you want to use something to show your individual positions on a map, use the free or cheap stuff like stones, other dice, bottle caps, etc... plastic mini's aren't that expensive either, if you do want to buy them by the box...you can get the cheaper on Ebay as individuals, you just have to watch shipping costs :)
paperboys231 02-21-08, 10:00 PM	thanks,i would be waiting for 4th edition but my older brother is moveing into the house next to mine in about 6 months and when he does hes gonna play 4th with me but i cant wait ill then becouse i have heard so many great things about d&d and i read alot of the dragon lance books so im gonna play 3.5 till then.
GeeBee 02-22-08, 06:59 AM	No, you don't *have* to buy minis to play; just using counters or whatnot like Ariakus said works just fine. Personally, I like to use square 1" ceramic tiles for monsters. They cost about $7 for a sheet of 144 tiles, and can be marked on with dry or wet erase markers. I think you're wondering about D&D minis, though - the pre-painted, random plastic figures sold by Wizards of the Coast. D&D minis have the advantage of being supported by the D&D game books, and come with cards that have the figure's 3.5 statistics on one side; this is handy for a quick game. The downside is that you can't see what you're getting if you buy a box, and ordering singles online can be expensive. You do have other options for figurines, however. Reaper Miniatures sells a HUGE line of metal figurines that are designed for fantasy role-play. These are a bit more expensive than plastics, but they are a lot better quality and much more durable. Reaper also sells pre-painted plastic figures that are not random. The price is comparable to D&D minis, though the quality is (at this point) not as good as the WotC stuff. Other companies that sell neat miniatures for gaming are Rackham (for their game "Confrontation"), Magnificent Egos, and Freebooter Miniatures. A quick search on the web will find all of these.
CCS 02-22-08, 04:05 PM	Nope. Although WoTC, retailers, the rules themselves, and even many on these boards, would love to have you believe so, not a single cent must be spent on minis. It's entirely possible to run a game without models/battle mats. Though if you're new to this it'll certainly be harder..... But anything can be used if you find you must have combats represented on the table. My favorite stand in (even though I'm an actual miniture wargamer & have whatever I need?): Pennies, nickles, dimes & quarters. Why? Because I don't tend to haul all my models around with me & I always need something not "on-hand". But I always have pocket change. :)
Ariakus 02-22-08, 11:42 PM	Dragonlance is an excellent gateway to D&D I think, of course I am biased since that's what started me on D&D back in '83 :D But it really introduces you to a good mixture of the rules, magic, imagination, character development (excellent on this IMHO) that D&D has to offer. But on the the 3.5 vs. 4e debate... you will be beginning in one set of rules only to begin in another with your brother, the changes are likely to be confusing...but I understand your anxiousness, I am a freak for D&D :D
CastTiltowait 02-23-08, 12:42 AM	If you haven't already spent a ton of money on the 3.5 books, you can get by if you use the SRD "generic" rules available online at http://www.systemreferencedocuments.org/35/sovelior_sage/home.html I agree with others, miniatures aren't required, and simple counters like dice, etc. can easily be used. You can also make simple quick mini's by copying a picture from the SRD (or any other source) and paste it into something like Paint or even Powerpoint. Put it inside a rectangle and resize it so it's the correct width (1" for medium, etc.). Copy and paste it again, just flipped and reversed above the first picture. You'll be able to print this out (ideally on heavy paper called cardstock) so that you can cut it out, then fold it over and glue it together. You can attach that to a base of some sort, or add small tabs to glue or tape it to something like a checker or a circle done in cereal box cardboard. You can see an example of this at http://flickr.com/photos/32116892@N00/411003060/in/photostream/ The nice thing about this is that you can make and print out pretty much unlimited amounts of whatever miniature you want for literally pennies per mini. If you want to spend money on real minis, however, I recommend http://stores.ebay.com/Auggies-Games-n-Movies Auggie's sells single minis for low prices, and better yet, they have a flat shipping fee so you don't have to try to figure out what the "real price" is.
Chaosepoch 02-23-08, 08:33 AM	If you are not going to wait for 4 months for 4.0 to come out, you don't have to worry about buying mini's for 3.5. Mini's add a little visual to the game, but you can use pure imagination :D If you want to use something to show your individual positions on a map, use the free or cheap stuff like stones, other dice, bottle caps, etc... plastic mini's aren't that expensive either, if you do want to buy them by the box...you can get the cheaper on Ebay as individuals, you just have to watch shipping costs :) http://www.juniorgeneral.org/Medieval.htm + card stands = win