Post/Author/DateTime	Post
DaemonStryker 11-28-06, 07:45 PM	Thanks in advance. You see, I can't choose- I saw the new MMIV, looking nice, but thinking back, I've heard a lot about the Expanded Psionics Handbook, or PHII or something... anyways, I currently have Draconomicon, MMI-III, Eberron Guide + Explorer's Handbook. Of course, if there is another book I simply must get, other than MMIV of PHII (Expanded psionics?) then please tell me. v3.5 Thanks. =D
Bluebrush 11-28-06, 08:13 PM	First, I'd suggest avoiding MMIV. Not worth it, from what I've seen inside. Second... Out of the other two, it depends on how much you want to change your game around. XPH will change things by opening up Psionics, PHBII will offer more options for what you presently have.
Korhal_IV 11-28-06, 08:29 PM	MMIV was terrible, honestly. They just started doing classed versions of old monsters, plus some truly poor new monsters (including all the new D&D Minis monsters - as a DDM player, trust me, these are terrible monsters to ever use in a campaign). I'd strongly recommend PHBII. It does a lot to rebalance the gap between melee-types and spellcasters, while offering new stuff to both. XPH will be untouched by most of your characters unless you make all psionicists from now on, because it's hard to integrate psionics into non-psionic characters/campaigns, but PHBII offers something for everybody. If you're into Eberron, Dragonmarked is probably the single best book for Eberron since the ECS, no joke. It is 100% pure awesome.
DaemonStryker 11-28-06, 08:37 PM	Definately into Eberron. What's in Dragonmarked, and do you need and PH to use the PHII? Or is it stand-alone? Also, Ur-Priest and Tainted Scholar are some interesting [read- broken] classes I've heard about. Anyone remember the books?
ressurrector 11-28-06, 09:24 PM	You need the PHB to play, period. If you don't have one of those, get it and stop mooching off your buds. As far as books to buy: MMIV sucks, I own one and it sucks. PHBII ain't that great either as far as I see it, only good things in it are feats and 2 of the 4 classes, the rest is mainly junk. Dragonmarked is a good book of the Eberron Setting XPH is good to have if you plan to play a psion, or run an Eberron game (unless you do the non-psionic variant) The various Complete books are good: Arcane, Mage, and Adventurer being the best three. Warrior is alright and Divine didn't do much for me. Tome of Battle is good, though it should wait until you're fully aquainted with the basics. Magic of Eberron has some interesting stuff, it's not that useful overal however. Same for Faiths of Eberron. For you: I'd suggest Completes or XPH (unless you still need DMG, PHB, or MM in which case these come first)
Raziel_Brokodar 11-28-06, 10:13 PM	MMIV was terrible, honestly. They just started doing classed versions of old monsters, plus some truly poor new monsters (including all the new D&D Minis monsters - as a DDM player, trust me, these are terrible monsters to ever use in a campaign). I'd strongly recommend PHBII. It does a lot to rebalance the gap between melee-types and spellcasters, while offering new stuff to both. XPH will be untouched by most of your characters unless you make all psionicists from now on, because it's hard to integrate psionics into non-psionic characters/campaigns, but PHBII offers something for everybody. If you're into Eberron, Dragonmarked is probably the single best book for Eberron since the XPH, no joke. It is 100% pure awesome. MMIV is indeed terrible, it offers up horrible monsters (aside from the Zern or whatever they're called), and some monsters with class levels... not worth the money I paid for it :( which is why I copied the Zern stat block and returned the book lol Dragonmarked would be a good option, but of the ones you mentioned; pick either the Expanded Psionics Handbook or Players Handbook II :P
darkdragonk 11-28-06, 10:53 PM	The complete books are awsome. if you dont have PH get it. the MM and DM guide are not xtremely important unless your a DM. I personaly use races of the Draggon alot but that is me. PH2 is ok but not massivly inspiring. some good feats, the dusk blade,a couple spells, and the Dragon Shaman are abot all. P.S Draconomicon works excellent with RotD for dragonic characters.
McFrankPatrick 11-30-06, 02:18 AM	Dragonmarked is a great book. Plenty of good fluff, I drooled over it for two nights after I bought it and its made me a lot more confident about including marked and affiliated NPCs in small ways in the campaign just for flavor. Also the stuff about aberrant marks is a campaign waiting to happen, I just wish I had time to run all of the ideas that book gave me! sigh In addition the feats and PrCs give characters a lot more options, and I think the House-specific favors listed throughout the book make the benefits of being an heir a little more tangible to PCs on the edge about whether its worth the character investment. It might not fundamentally change the way you see the setting, but it will immerse you that much more in the intrigues of the Dragonmarked Houses.
lordalm 12-02-06, 06:52 PM	I have to chime in on the MM4, not great. I think if your running Eberron, you need the Faiths of Eberron (it really helps any cleric out, as well as help explain the scope of the religions), Dragonmarked (I have just got my copy and haven't read it, but all the posts have been positive), Sharn: City of Towers (Sharn is the Rome of Eberron and all roads lead to Rome). The rest of the Eberron books, which I own, add nice bits but can be lived without. Psionics, love it, but really haven't any cause to bring it up in game yet. No one played a Kalashar. :( Lords of Madness and the book of the Undead (that I can't remember the name of) give some nice background info you can use for the setting. Keith Baker has recommended both books on that score.
Melvin the Mediocre 12-04-06, 04:18 PM	PHBII ain't that great either as far as I see it, only good things in it are feats and 2 of the 4 classes, the rest is mainly junk. Just out of curiosity, which two classes do you like? (I read them all and shrugged.) Personally I don't think you need the Player's Handbook. You can print what you need off of the SRD.
ressurrector 12-04-06, 06:14 PM	Just out of curiosity, which two classes do you like? (I read them all and shrugged.) Personally I don't think you need the Player's Handbook. You can print what you need off of the SRD. Origionally I liked the Duskblade and the Beguiler, however after seeing two duskblades in use, they're pretty weak.
mhacdebhandia 12-05-06, 04:35 PM	You see, I can't choose- I saw the new MMIV, looking nice, but thinking back, I've heard a lot about the Expanded Psionics Handbook, or PHII or something... I would recommend the Expanded Psionics Handbook. It's a textbook example of how to do a self-contained add-on system to the game - classes, races, feats, skills, powers, prestige classes, monsters, everything you need in one volume. Of course, if you don't like psionics in your game, it's worthless to you. Still, it's a versatile and balanced system, and everything in it (with the probable exception of the psionic races) could be useful in an Eberron game. I'm in the minority of gamers who like the Monster Manual IV, but the best way to decide if you want it is to look through the book and decide if it has enough monsters you find interesting. The Player's Handbook II is, I think, very good. It has some great feats for high-level fighters that have been necessary since they first published Third Edition, some interesting new classes (again, I think I'm in the minority of gamers who liked the knight class), and some very useful optional retraining and rebuilding systems.
Melvin the Mediocre 12-05-06, 04:51 PM	Are you runing a game, or plaing in one? My two favorite Eberron books Five Nations and Player's Guide to Eberron with Magic of Eberron a distant runner up. I don't have Sharn or Xen'drik. But I run games, and don't know how a player would change their mind. If you are playing a game, I would avoid the base books like Player's Handbook and the Psionic book as you can just use the SRD. Eventually when you money is flowing freely enough that you can pretty much get all the books you want (see, there is an advantages to getting old!) you can pick them up for the nice pretty layouts.
Edymnion 12-05-06, 07:37 PM	For an Eberron game, the following books are absolute must owns: Core Books: Duh, you can't play any D&D without the core books, this should go without saying. Every player needs their own PHB at the very least. Eberron Campaign Setting: Another duh, if you're playing in Eberron, you need the ECS. Player's Guide to Eberron: Just ignore the sidebars, and you should be okay. Seriously, the main text of this book is gold, but they hired some drunk hobo off the street to write the sidebars. Put duct tape over those stupid things if you have to, but ignore them. Dragonmarked: Great book for getting the Dragonmarked houses into the game, but one thing to keep in mind is that it tends to try and even the houses out. The more popular houses, like Cannith, get more attention payed to their darker sides, while the less popular houses, like Vadalis, get really played up in how good they are. Just realize that its trying to even out how much love the big names got before, and you'll be fine. Five Nations: A little erratic in it's layout, but the flavor and fluff it brings to the table is top notch and important in getting your head around the countries.With those, you should be well set to play. In addition to the must haves: Expanded Psionics Handbook: A must have if you plan on doing anything with the Dreaming Dark or Kalashtar. Its a duh here as well, if you plan on using psionic characters, then you need the psionics book. Sharn: City of Towers: If you're a DM and you ever plan on having the party visit one of the biggest attractions in the setting, S:CoT is another no brainer, its almost a mini campaign setting in it's own right. Players Handbook II: Nothing particularly Eberronish with this book, but its the officially apology from WotC for the Fighter. The feats in this book alone make it well worth the money. Magic of Eberron is good for Artificers, and Secrets of Xen'Drik is okay if you plan on spending a lot of time down there, but are entirely skippable. Books to actively avoid, IMO, are Races of Eberron and Explorer's Handbook. RoE is okay if you just want to harvest some generic crunch, but other than some feats and PrC, the book is worse than useless, its outright wrong in many cases. Explorer's Handbook isn't bad, it just isn't very useful IMO.
DaemonStryker 12-13-06, 08:23 PM	Thanks a lot, everyone. Sorry for responding so late, looked at the first three posts and made a mental list. Anyways, thanks, you've all been a big help.