D&D advice for a noob [Archive] - Wizards Community

D&D advice for a noob [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
soulreaver17
07-14-07, 08:02 PM So after watching a lengthy documentary on TV about Dungeons & Dragons, I picked up the three 3.5 Core Rulebooks, the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting, the D&D Basic Game box (the miniatures are way cool) and a second set of game dice. I have a few questions.

Being the speed reader I am, I've already torn through the Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide and the FR Campaign Setting. I've played a session with a friend of mine just to test the ground and to get him familiar with the rules and functions of the game and to give us both a feel for the gaming style.

Because I consider myself something of a collector, I want more books as much for gaming as I do for reading and looking pretty on my bookshelf. Here is what I'm planning to pick up:

Core Game
Dungeon Master's Screen
The Book of Exalted Deeds
The Book of Vile Darkness
The Monster Manual II
The Monster Manual III
The Monster Manual IV
The Monster Manual V
Player's Handbook II

Forgotten Realms
The Player's Guide to Faerun
The Underdark
Waterdeep: City of Splendors
Drow of the Underdark
Monsters of Faerun

If anyone can suggest anything else or give me reason to not pick up one of the items I have listed, I would appreciate it. Also I have some questions regarding miniatures:

Are the Miniatures used in the Dungeons & Dragons Miniatures Game used for D&D as well, or is there a seperate brand to be purchased for the pen and paper game? As much as I enjoy the imaginative aspects of the game, I just want to get a hold of a dozen or so more miniatures for visual representation of combat and such.

I know this has been something of a lengthy post, so I'll leave it at that for now. Thanks for any help that there is to be had, and I look forward to enjoying the D&D game, even if I am a couple decades late.
crazy_monkey1956
07-14-07, 08:17 PM The minis can be used interchangeably for the skirmish game or for regular D&D. Dungeon Tiles and Fantastic Locations products are also a good investment if you plan to use the minis during D&D combat.

As for your potential collection...

Monster Manual II, Book of Vile Darkness, and Monsters of Faerun were all released under the 3.0 version of the rules. There is an update file available on the main D&D site (the downloads section) for Monster Manual II. The Web Enhancement for Players Guide to Faerun contains 3.5 update information for the monsters in Monsters of Faerun.

I notice that you've included all of the Monster Manuals in your list. You may also want to consider Fiend Folio to round out your monster collection. It is "almost" 3.5. There is an update file available for it as well, in the same section of the website as the Monster Manual II update.

Your list seems to indicate a preference for critters, so you may also want to consider the various books that go into more detail on specific creature types: Draconomicon (Dragons), Libris Mortis (Undead), Lords of Madness (Aberrations), Fiendish Codex I (Demons), and Fiendish Codex II (Devils).

All from me. Good Luck and Good Gaming.
Raiden Drake
07-14-07, 08:28 PM The complete series is also a good addition... my personal favorites are:
Complete Adventurer and Complete Arcane; almost all of them have something useful but the cost is not always worthy.
There's also the ambient series (Frostburn, Sandstorm, etc...), my favorite from those is the Stormwrack.
If u like melee, and gishes as I do, give a look to the Tome of Battle, not everybody like it but is good book.
Thomar_of_Uointer
07-14-07, 08:42 PM So after watching a lengthy documentary on TV about Dungeons & Dragons, I picked up the three 3.5 Core Rulebooks, the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting, the D&D Basic Game box (the miniatures are way cool) and a second set of game dice. I have a few questions.

Being the speed reader I am, I've already torn through the Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide and the FR Campaign Setting. I've played a session with a friend of mine just to test the ground and to get him familiar with the rules and functions of the game and to give us both a feel for the gaming style.

Because I consider myself something of a collector, I want more books as much for gaming as I do for reading and looking pretty on my bookshelf. Here is what I'm planning to pick up:

Core Game
Dungeon Master's Screen
The Book of Exalted Deeds
The Book of Vile Darkness
The Monster Manual II
The Monster Manual III
The Monster Manual IV
The Monster Manual V
Player's Handbook II

Forgotten Realms
The Player's Guide to Faerun
The Underdark
Waterdeep: City of Splendors
Drow of the Underdark
Monsters of Faerun

If anyone can suggest anything else or give me reason to not pick up one of the items I have listed, I would appreciate it. Also I have some questions regarding miniatures:

Are the Miniatures used in the Dungeons & Dragons Miniatures Game used for D&D as well, or is there a seperate brand to be purchased for the pen and paper game? As much as I enjoy the imaginative aspects of the game, I just want to get a hold of a dozen or so more miniatures for visual representation of combat and such.

I know this has been something of a lengthy post, so I'll leave it at that for now. Thanks for any help that there is to be had, and I look forward to enjoying the D&D game, even if I am a couple decades late.

I made my own DMs screen out of two manilla folders and two staples. It works great, and it didn't cost me anything.

None of the books you've listed are "core game" material. However, they're all good sources if you're into that sort of thing. I would recommend skimming through each book before you purchase it, just to make sure you don't buy a lemon (not all books WotC publishes are of equal value). However, if you're really ready to indiscriminately blow money on WotC products, I'm not going to stop you (please spend it on Incarnum and Psionics, WotC tracks that sort of thing).

Also, the MMII is a 3.0 product. There's an update booklet for it on wizards.com/3e. I don't own the PHBII, but my initial impression of it was good.

I would recommend the Expanded Psionics Handbook and Magic of Incarnum, both are highly balanced alternate magic systems that are great for spicing up your game and adding variety to villains and giving players more options.

Faerun is only one D&D setting. Check out Eberron, it also has some good stuff in it (like warforged and the artificer class).

The D&D minis come with two-sided stat cards. One side has the abbreviated D&D miniatures stat block, while the other has a low-detail D&D monster stat block. The D&D combat system is centered around grid combat, so you should probably invest in miniatures, a playing mat, and other various sundries (unless you're the kind of guy who likes painting miniatures and making terrain himself). I just use grid paper and pencils, as most fights don't last long enough to be worth the setup, and I don't have the time to build up a repetoire of terrain pieces and minis.

Finally, I would recommend you re-read the PHB. And then read it again, just to be sure. Trust me, knowing the rules well speeds things up greatly, and it lets you pick up the slack for players who are new to the game.
soulreaver17
07-14-07, 09:06 PM Thank you for the great replies!

I also wanted to ask how viable it is to play with a DM and two players. I don't see there being a problem, apart from the Challenge Rating system which seems to be based on a group of four characters, and I would prefer that each player only have one character so that he/she may better diversify the personality of the character, though I will be willing to step it up to two characters each. I could even operate a third myself, though I don't know how viable it is for a DM to also run a character.
WALNUTT
07-14-07, 09:27 PM From your list I see that money is of no object so I'm guessing you work for the goverment jk but I would really suggest the "Unapproachable East" from the Forgotten Realms it has a wloe lot of everything in it and is my personally favorite book.
Raiden Drake
07-14-07, 09:30 PM From your list I see that money is of no object so I'm guessing you work for the goverment jk but I would really suggest the "Unapproachable East" from the Forgotten Realms it has a wloe lot of everything in it and is my personally favorite book.

How could i forget such a good book?
IMO the best from faerun.
Shiftkitty
07-14-07, 09:41 PM Well, part of my campaign is on hold because not everyone can get together, so that particular chapter that hangs on the shoulders of 5 players is in limbo while my husband and I run a smaller part of the gameworld as DM and one PC. I just play the other members of this part of the campaign as NPCs. I had some minor acting experience, so it's no big deal for me to put on different masks for the different characters. The rogue and his ex-wife cleric ("Great. Are you gonna get half of my dungeon haul, too?" "You can keep that. Maybe you can use it to hire a good therapist, you immature jerk!") and the barbarian with a knack for making money ("Hey, you know there's more than just gold and gems in this room. We can get a pretty penny for the lumber and iron they used to make that bannister railing on the stairs. The hardware on the door we smashed in should get a few goldies, too.") Of course, then I have to switch over to be the monsters, the villains, and the standard NPCs, like the townspeople. Sometimes it can border on schizophrenia! I like character acting, though, but doing all the voices can get rough on the vocal chords, so I go through a LOT of water in one of these games!
Jinnetics
07-14-07, 10:10 PM I'd like to know more about this documentary!:)
crazy_monkey1956
07-15-07, 11:18 AM Thank you for the great replies!

I also wanted to ask how viable it is to play with a DM and two players. I don't see there being a problem, apart from the Challenge Rating system which seems to be based on a group of four characters, and I would prefer that each player only have one character so that he/she may better diversify the personality of the character, though I will be willing to step it up to two characters each. I could even operate a third myself, though I don't know how viable it is for a DM to also run a character.

Although the CR system is set up to handle 4 characters, there's really no problem with varying the number of players. The Dungeon Master's Guide has some good advice on this topic on page 48 (Encounters). Also, it is important to keep in mind what your characters are capable of. If your two characters are a Wizard and a Rogue, don't send them against heavy melee combatants. Likewise, if you have a pair of Fighters, don't send them against something with loads of Spell-Like Abilities. CRs and Encounter Levels, while the book has formulas and such, are really more of an art than a science. Get to your know your players and their preferred styles first, then determine what kind of challenges are appropriate for them.
Thomar_of_Uointer
07-15-07, 12:06 PM Thank you for the great replies!

I also wanted to ask how viable it is to play with a DM and two players. I don't see there being a problem, apart from the Challenge Rating system which seems to be based on a group of four characters, and I would prefer that each player only have one character so that he/she may better diversify the personality of the character, though I will be willing to step it up to two characters each. I could even operate a third myself, though I don't know how viable it is for a DM to also run a character.

That's called a "DMPC". It's possible and generally frowned upon, but if you think it's necessary feel free to do it. I'd recommend a cleric for healing and melee backup (or possibly a multi-cleric, where you have him multiclass into cleric again and again so he just has gobs of low-level spells, call him a cleric of a pantheon or something), and never let him upstage the PCs.
Mælstrøm
07-15-07, 01:57 PM I agree with Drake, the Complete series is really good, my personal rank listing (from good to bad) of those is:

Complete Warrior
Complete Arcane
Complete Adventurer
Complete Divine
(Complete Scoundrel)

I put the scoundrel in parentheses because there are no base classes or prestige classes in it, it is just a ton of supporting info on how to make a stealthy character. It is a very good book, but it doesn't hold anything you couldn't develop yourself, given enough time for reading and cross-referencing ;)

I left out the Complete Psionics because it is a book on Psionics AND because it is the second of a series of two, a follow-up on the "Expanded Psionics Handbook" - you'll need both if you want to make use of Psionics. As personal note, though I really love Psionics, you don't need them to get started with real good D&D evenings or all-nighters. It adds flavor, but it is not necessary, and it's even more rules to keep track of. Thus, I would suggest to keep it simple until you got the core rules down ;)

Hope you'll enjoy playing and DMing as much as I do! Greetz!
HerbalTea
07-15-07, 05:30 PM The Dungeons Master's guide 2

Not really much good for experienced DMs as it has been deemed "the book of tricks I discovered 20 years ago" but in my opinion, a must-buy for new players. This is mainly for the little tweaks and the more detail on how to run a highly successful campaign - albeit with new interesting plot hooks, how to keep the player's attentions, trap ideas etc etc.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
soulreaver17 07-14-07, 08:02 PM	So after watching a lengthy documentary on TV about Dungeons & Dragons, I picked up the three 3.5 Core Rulebooks, the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting, the D&D Basic Game box (the miniatures are way cool) and a second set of game dice. I have a few questions. Being the speed reader I am, I've already torn through the Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide and the FR Campaign Setting. I've played a session with a friend of mine just to test the ground and to get him familiar with the rules and functions of the game and to give us both a feel for the gaming style. Because I consider myself something of a collector, I want more books as much for gaming as I do for reading and looking pretty on my bookshelf. Here is what I'm planning to pick up: Core Game Dungeon Master's Screen The Book of Exalted Deeds The Book of Vile Darkness The Monster Manual II The Monster Manual III The Monster Manual IV The Monster Manual V Player's Handbook II Forgotten Realms The Player's Guide to Faerun The Underdark Waterdeep: City of Splendors Drow of the Underdark Monsters of Faerun If anyone can suggest anything else or give me reason to not pick up one of the items I have listed, I would appreciate it. Also I have some questions regarding miniatures: Are the Miniatures used in the Dungeons & Dragons Miniatures Game used for D&D as well, or is there a seperate brand to be purchased for the pen and paper game? As much as I enjoy the imaginative aspects of the game, I just want to get a hold of a dozen or so more miniatures for visual representation of combat and such. I know this has been something of a lengthy post, so I'll leave it at that for now. Thanks for any help that there is to be had, and I look forward to enjoying the D&D game, even if I am a couple decades late.
crazy_monkey1956 07-14-07, 08:17 PM	The minis can be used interchangeably for the skirmish game or for regular D&D. Dungeon Tiles and Fantastic Locations products are also a good investment if you plan to use the minis during D&D combat. As for your potential collection... Monster Manual II, Book of Vile Darkness, and Monsters of Faerun were all released under the 3.0 version of the rules. There is an update file available on the main D&D site (the downloads section) for Monster Manual II. The Web Enhancement for Players Guide to Faerun contains 3.5 update information for the monsters in Monsters of Faerun. I notice that you've included all of the Monster Manuals in your list. You may also want to consider Fiend Folio to round out your monster collection. It is "almost" 3.5. There is an update file available for it as well, in the same section of the website as the Monster Manual II update. Your list seems to indicate a preference for critters, so you may also want to consider the various books that go into more detail on specific creature types: Draconomicon (Dragons), Libris Mortis (Undead), Lords of Madness (Aberrations), Fiendish Codex I (Demons), and Fiendish Codex II (Devils). All from me. Good Luck and Good Gaming.
Raiden Drake 07-14-07, 08:28 PM	The complete series is also a good addition... my personal favorites are: Complete Adventurer and Complete Arcane; almost all of them have something useful but the cost is not always worthy. There's also the ambient series (Frostburn, Sandstorm, etc...), my favorite from those is the Stormwrack. If u like melee, and gishes as I do, give a look to the Tome of Battle, not everybody like it but is good book.
Thomar_of_Uointer 07-14-07, 08:42 PM	So after watching a lengthy documentary on TV about Dungeons & Dragons, I picked up the three 3.5 Core Rulebooks, the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting, the D&D Basic Game box (the miniatures are way cool) and a second set of game dice. I have a few questions. Being the speed reader I am, I've already torn through the Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide and the FR Campaign Setting. I've played a session with a friend of mine just to test the ground and to get him familiar with the rules and functions of the game and to give us both a feel for the gaming style. Because I consider myself something of a collector, I want more books as much for gaming as I do for reading and looking pretty on my bookshelf. Here is what I'm planning to pick up: Core Game Dungeon Master's Screen The Book of Exalted Deeds The Book of Vile Darkness The Monster Manual II The Monster Manual III The Monster Manual IV The Monster Manual V Player's Handbook II Forgotten Realms The Player's Guide to Faerun The Underdark Waterdeep: City of Splendors Drow of the Underdark Monsters of Faerun If anyone can suggest anything else or give me reason to not pick up one of the items I have listed, I would appreciate it. Also I have some questions regarding miniatures: Are the Miniatures used in the Dungeons & Dragons Miniatures Game used for D&D as well, or is there a seperate brand to be purchased for the pen and paper game? As much as I enjoy the imaginative aspects of the game, I just want to get a hold of a dozen or so more miniatures for visual representation of combat and such. I know this has been something of a lengthy post, so I'll leave it at that for now. Thanks for any help that there is to be had, and I look forward to enjoying the D&D game, even if I am a couple decades late. I made my own DMs screen out of two manilla folders and two staples. It works great, and it didn't cost me anything. None of the books you've listed are "core game" material. However, they're all good sources if you're into that sort of thing. I would recommend skimming through each book before you purchase it, just to make sure you don't buy a lemon (not all books WotC publishes are of equal value). However, if you're really ready to indiscriminately blow money on WotC products, I'm not going to stop you (please spend it on Incarnum and Psionics, WotC tracks that sort of thing). Also, the MMII is a 3.0 product. There's an update booklet for it on wizards.com/3e. I don't own the PHBII, but my initial impression of it was good. I would recommend the Expanded Psionics Handbook and Magic of Incarnum, both are highly balanced alternate magic systems that are great for spicing up your game and adding variety to villains and giving players more options. Faerun is only one D&D setting. Check out Eberron, it also has some good stuff in it (like warforged and the artificer class). The D&D minis come with two-sided stat cards. One side has the abbreviated D&D miniatures stat block, while the other has a low-detail D&D monster stat block. The D&D combat system is centered around grid combat, so you should probably invest in miniatures, a playing mat, and other various sundries (unless you're the kind of guy who likes painting miniatures and making terrain himself). I just use grid paper and pencils, as most fights don't last long enough to be worth the setup, and I don't have the time to build up a repetoire of terrain pieces and minis. Finally, I would recommend you re-read the PHB. And then read it again, just to be sure. Trust me, knowing the rules well speeds things up greatly, and it lets you pick up the slack for players who are new to the game.
soulreaver17 07-14-07, 09:06 PM	Thank you for the great replies! I also wanted to ask how viable it is to play with a DM and two players. I don't see there being a problem, apart from the Challenge Rating system which seems to be based on a group of four characters, and I would prefer that each player only have one character so that he/she may better diversify the personality of the character, though I will be willing to step it up to two characters each. I could even operate a third myself, though I don't know how viable it is for a DM to also run a character.
WALNUTT 07-14-07, 09:27 PM	From your list I see that money is of no object so I'm guessing you work for the goverment jk but I would really suggest the "Unapproachable East" from the Forgotten Realms it has a wloe lot of everything in it and is my personally favorite book.
Raiden Drake 07-14-07, 09:30 PM	From your list I see that money is of no object so I'm guessing you work for the goverment jk but I would really suggest the "Unapproachable East" from the Forgotten Realms it has a wloe lot of everything in it and is my personally favorite book. How could i forget such a good book? IMO the best from faerun.
Shiftkitty 07-14-07, 09:41 PM	Well, part of my campaign is on hold because not everyone can get together, so that particular chapter that hangs on the shoulders of 5 players is in limbo while my husband and I run a smaller part of the gameworld as DM and one PC. I just play the other members of this part of the campaign as NPCs. I had some minor acting experience, so it's no big deal for me to put on different masks for the different characters. The rogue and his ex-wife cleric ("Great. Are you gonna get half of my dungeon haul, too?" "You can keep that. Maybe you can use it to hire a good therapist, you immature jerk!") and the barbarian with a knack for making money ("Hey, you know there's more than just gold and gems in this room. We can get a pretty penny for the lumber and iron they used to make that bannister railing on the stairs. The hardware on the door we smashed in should get a few goldies, too.") Of course, then I have to switch over to be the monsters, the villains, and the standard NPCs, like the townspeople. Sometimes it can border on schizophrenia! I like character acting, though, but doing all the voices can get rough on the vocal chords, so I go through a LOT of water in one of these games!
Jinnetics 07-14-07, 10:10 PM	I'd like to know more about this documentary!:)
crazy_monkey1956 07-15-07, 11:18 AM	Thank you for the great replies! I also wanted to ask how viable it is to play with a DM and two players. I don't see there being a problem, apart from the Challenge Rating system which seems to be based on a group of four characters, and I would prefer that each player only have one character so that he/she may better diversify the personality of the character, though I will be willing to step it up to two characters each. I could even operate a third myself, though I don't know how viable it is for a DM to also run a character. Although the CR system is set up to handle 4 characters, there's really no problem with varying the number of players. The Dungeon Master's Guide has some good advice on this topic on page 48 (Encounters). Also, it is important to keep in mind what your characters are capable of. If your two characters are a Wizard and a Rogue, don't send them against heavy melee combatants. Likewise, if you have a pair of Fighters, don't send them against something with loads of Spell-Like Abilities. CRs and Encounter Levels, while the book has formulas and such, are really more of an art than a science. Get to your know your players and their preferred styles first, then determine what kind of challenges are appropriate for them.
Thomar_of_Uointer 07-15-07, 12:06 PM	Thank you for the great replies! I also wanted to ask how viable it is to play with a DM and two players. I don't see there being a problem, apart from the Challenge Rating system which seems to be based on a group of four characters, and I would prefer that each player only have one character so that he/she may better diversify the personality of the character, though I will be willing to step it up to two characters each. I could even operate a third myself, though I don't know how viable it is for a DM to also run a character. That's called a "DMPC". It's possible and generally frowned upon, but if you think it's necessary feel free to do it. I'd recommend a cleric for healing and melee backup (or possibly a multi-cleric, where you have him multiclass into cleric again and again so he just has gobs of low-level spells, call him a cleric of a pantheon or something), and never let him upstage the PCs.
Mælstrøm 07-15-07, 01:57 PM	I agree with Drake, the Complete series is really good, my personal rank listing (from good to bad) of those is: Complete Warrior Complete Arcane Complete Adventurer Complete Divine (Complete Scoundrel) I put the scoundrel in parentheses because there are no base classes or prestige classes in it, it is just a ton of supporting info on how to make a stealthy character. It is a very good book, but it doesn't hold anything you couldn't develop yourself, given enough time for reading and cross-referencing ;) I left out the Complete Psionics because it is a book on Psionics AND because it is the second of a series of two, a follow-up on the "Expanded Psionics Handbook" - you'll need both if you want to make use of Psionics. As personal note, though I really love Psionics, you don't need them to get started with real good D&D evenings or all-nighters. It adds flavor, but it is not necessary, and it's even more rules to keep track of. Thus, I would suggest to keep it simple until you got the core rules down ;) Hope you'll enjoy playing and DMing as much as I do! Greetz!
HerbalTea 07-15-07, 05:30 PM	The Dungeons Master's guide 2 Not really much good for experienced DMs as it has been deemed "the book of tricks I discovered 20 years ago" but in my opinion, a must-buy for new players. This is mainly for the little tweaks and the more detail on how to run a highly successful campaign - albeit with new interesting plot hooks, how to keep the player's attentions, trap ideas etc etc.