New GM to Eberron/in general [Archive] - Wizards Community

New GM to Eberron/in general [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Kalatash
12-26-05, 03:15 AM Okay, while I have had some GMing experience, that was mostly just babysitting another person's campaign for a couple of sessions. This time, it will be completely mine. It will also be a new setting.

Now, the group usually starts off at 1st level and works up from there, but the group is tired of doing that over and over, as the campaigns are naturally restricted by the school schedule [gotta love collage]. So this time, they wanted to start at 5th level. Does that sound like a good idea? I think they really had their hopes uo for having at least a few levels under thier belts...

Also, currently, I only own the Campaign Setting and one of my Chistmas presents was a Barnes and Noble gift card. So what other books do you you guys recommend I get, in order of prefrence? I was thinking at least Magic of Ebberon, but what else?

[Also, the group mostly owns 3.0 books, but I hope the SRD will help fill in the gaps that will naturally be there.]
Korhal_IV
12-26-05, 03:21 AM Eberron is a real playground for levels 1-10, so starting at 5th might rob you of some of your fun. I would highly recommend Five Nations, Sharn: City of Towers, and Explorer's Handbook before Magic of Eberron. MoE has a lot of grafting stuff and a few spells, but it's the other books that have the info you really want as a DM (or a player looking for a good background). Races of Eberron might also be one that I put before Magic of Eberron - MoE is not bad at all, but it's sort of an afterthought if you're scrambling to get the bare minimum. I suggest poring through WotC's site to find the book previews and deciding from there, perhaps, or browsing through B&N's stock.

You can pick up two modules that start at roughly the same level as you desire: Whispers of the Vampire's Blade (4th level) and Grasp of the Emerald Claw (6th). Whispers is a blast, I just finished it. Grasp is one I'm about to go through. I highly suggest reading through 'em; even if you don't want to run them, they give you a good handle on adventuring in Eberron.

If you have an artificer in the party, remember that a lot of spells got changed or shuffled around during the .5 transition (in fact, this was arguably the point of the .5 transition - some spells were just WAY too good), so his crafting might be a bit off. There is also a 3.0-3.5 transition guide; I'll try and look it up for you.

EDIT:
This is the 3.5 Accessory Update Booklet: http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/20030718a

Handy little PDF for ya!
Save-vs-DM
12-26-05, 03:34 AM Well, for books, I actually recommend picking up a copy of the 3.5 Player's Handbook and Monster Manual. Yes, the SRD can work, but it cuts out so much of your time trying to convert monsters that it sometimes isn't worth it.

I would check around your area for a used book store. Most will trade books for store credit, so you might be able to trade in your old 3.0 books (just the core 3) for the newer books.

If you're strapped for cash, then yes, the SRD will do fine. But realize that the SRD doesn't offer some of the most important things for a newer DM - fluff text and examples. I really think that you owe it to yourself to at least get a new copy of the PHB and DMG and really the MM as well.

One thing I did in college when all of us were strapped for cash was buy community books. If everyone pools $5, you can get one book at a time for everyone to share (this requires pretty good friends in the same dorm, usually).

As for Eberron books, I'd really recommend Five Nations first. That will be the most valuable to you in the long run, as it gives a good overview. Next I'd probably get either Explorer's Handbook (if you're doing a world spanning game) or Sharn: City of Towers (if you're running a Sharn central game). Magic of Eberron can wait on a limited budget, honestly.

As for the starting level, I'd really recommend not starting that high. It's easier to DM full time if you start at level 1 and work on up, as your skill grows with the power of the players. As a compromise starting at level 3 might be a bit easier than level 5.

Welcome to the DM's chair and good luck!
Save vs DM
Eksem
12-26-05, 05:52 AM If I would recommend one book, I actually recommend the novel The City of Towers (The Dreaming Dark Book 1) by Keith Baker. It's a bit dark, at least compared to how I like my games, but the story is a very good example of how to make the world really feel Eberron, including many of the most important parts of the setting (Sharn, Dreaming Dark, Mournland etc). Actually, you might even rip off much of the story in the book for your campaign, since it would fit quite well for PCs around level 5 or so.
The book also includes two very useful appendix, one is a very good introduction to Eberron, useful to let the players read prior to campaign start, the other is a very handy glossary.

If I would recommend an accessory, I would probably recommend Sharn: City of Towers. If you want to play in Sharn, it's a must-get, and it's my favorite book of the ones released (not including Eberron Campaign Setting of course). Otherwise I think maybe Explorers Handbook, even if it feels a bit thin, it has a lot of material to make the game really feel Eberron. Five Nations, I did not really like that much. It was not bad or anything, but it was just a bit more on some countries that already are pretty well described. The only thing I really used from that book in my game were the parts on food, clothing and the sayings. That was really useful. Also, I think the GM-screen is really cool (and has a very handy little table on the dragonmarks which is really useful for a beginner-DM since the Dragonmarked Houses come into play almost all the time), and the map that comes with it is very very useful. You should get that.
nastynate
12-26-05, 07:15 AM No offense intended to Keith, but that book was terrible. It painted a very good picture of the setting, but the story line was lacking. As far as I know it was his first book, so he may indeed become a fantastic author. None-the-less I have read dozens of fantasy books that were superior.

I actually think you get much more in an Eberron campaign setting from pulpy action flicks, than this book. Raiders of the Lost Ark, Bladerunner, and even old Hitchcock films have been shamelessly ripped off in my stories. As a DM, fluff is sooo much more important than cruch. Painintg a good picture of setting is job #1.
Eksem
12-26-05, 07:35 AM As a book it was fairly... bad, yes. But as an introduction to how to portray Eberron it's great, and the story would work as an RPG-campaign (RPG is a very forgiving medium I think, a lot of Xena-episodes would work as DnD-sessions, no matter how awful they are as TV-episodes). And the Eberron-introduction and glossary are useful for introducing new players to the setting.
swichfang
12-26-05, 08:55 AM I just started a campain for level one PC's. It's a blast, we are running the Forgotten Forge. You might really miss out if you start at level five but that's your choice. I have the Campaign Setting, Sharn City of Towers, Magic of Eberron, Race's of Eberron, and the Explorer's Handbook. For the most part I am only using the campaign setting and the Explorer's Handbook for some flavor. I havent even looked at Magic of Eberron or Race's of Eberron. I found out it is better to start small and grow. I started with just the forgotten forge adventure and went from there. When I started I had only skimmed through the Campaign setting looking up the most important things like the Gods, Infromation on the Lord of Blades, some Flavor text on Sharn (in Sharn City of Towers), and looked how all the classes and races fit into the setting. Also get to know the Nations, and some of the orginazitions.
Right now my PC's are at 3rd level and are almost experts on playing dark and gritty. The Explorers Handbook helps with travel (Its a life saver) and having starting, mid, and ending point's for a adventure. So the only books i would recomend would be the campaign setting and the Explorers Handbook for now. Then buy a few more later. Remember if you try to load the Pc's with to much fluff without them knowing a lot about eberron they may get fried. So hopes that helps. ;)
ChronosCrow
12-26-05, 10:43 AM Keep some of that money.
Get the Player's Guide to Eberron next month.
Edymnion
12-26-05, 12:31 PM No offense intended to Keith, but that book was terrible.Heh, you've never read any of the other D&D books, have you? Or fantasy books in general? It may not have been LotR quality, but it stands head and shoulders above the vast majority of the genre, which typically reads as nothing more than horrible 14 year old fan fiction. But, we're not supposed to be discussing novel quality on the boards, its a no-no.

For the topic, you are going to need the 3 Core Rulebooks (the Players Handbook, the Monster Manual, and the Dungeon Master's Guide). There really is no way to seriously play this game without them. Its can be done, but in the same way you can play monopoly without the board, dice, or money.

Next up, the Eberron Campaign Setting book is obviously required for an Eberron game. You can play the game quite well with just those books (we did for ages until more came out).

As for the quality of the expansion books for Eberron, this is the order I would try to buy them in:

Sharn: City of Towers
Five Nations
Magic of Eberron
Explorer's Handbook

Also, Players Guide to Eberron is supposed to be out here sometime, although I've been hearing some negative reports on it that have me a bit worried, but we'll see when it comes out.

Not included on my list, but potentially helpful, is Races of Eberron. Its not part of the Eberron line of books, but has some good material in it. Just so long as you realize that much of the flavor text is mediocre at best, and downright wrong at worst. The developers even admit to the fact that they fence sat on it, trying to make it generic enough for non-Eberron players, while still trying to pass it off as an Eberron product, and you know that when you try to fence sit, you get something thats crap forth both sides.

Its still got some useful (if sometimes questionable and/or objectionable) material in it, so in my above ranking, I would put it just under Magic of Eberron and above Explorer's Handbook (which I just didn't find very useful at all).
Logos7
12-26-05, 12:43 PM I wouldn'ty suggest 5 nations unless you want a lot of the human fluff as a Dm, I have the book i like the book but all and all it's a Dm boook not really a player friendly book (It's essentially the human book for eberron)

Explorer's handbook looks really neat, i'd say this be the first stop unless your playing in sharn ( i dont like sharn , we played in Thrane/Mournlands)

Magic of Eberron seems to either be liked or hated, thought i wasn't going to like it , then i finally "aqquired" a copy from a friend and i ended up really likeing the book, and not having a problem with anynumber of things including half daelkir (it sounds so bad) except for breed worms , just where do they go? ( dont believe all the hate on the forums anywhere for anybook)

Races of Eberron was kind of popular with my players but it's getting no love as far as use goes unless perhaps for the Kalishtar (1 PrC out of a whole book = somewhat stinky sinking sense)

Other than that the CS is so the best book in the set so far, probably followed by explorer's , magic, 5Nations/Sharn,

Logos
LugWrench
12-26-05, 02:11 PM Sharn: CoT is a good book for a starting campaign. Its the largest city that the group is likely to start in, and is the kickoff point for quite a few missions. Also, with the information it contains on the various power blocs, guilds, cults, mobs, gangs, and so on, its possible for a creative DM to make a Sharn campaign, taking the group all the way to level 20 without leaving the city.
If the group is running primarily 3.0, see if you can find any of the 'blue modules'. The Sunless Citadel, The Forge of Fury, Speaker in Dreams , and others. They were written for a 3.0 campaign, but can be adapted to 3.5 and Eberron with a little work. Finding these modules also means that the players with 3.0 books means they dont have to rush right out and spend money on newer stuff right away.
Take care with starting the group at 5th level, though. About that time, a lot of the classes gain some pretty powerful skills and abilities, and a lot of the prestige classes start becoming attainable, too. While Im a pretty fair DM, Im not sure if Im ready to sit down and have someone playing a Warforged Juggernaut right off the bat. Thats just my :twocents: , though.
PoeticJustice
12-26-05, 04:27 PM Given the variety of sourcebook recommendations, you should assume they are roughly equal in overall quality and buy the book you NEED, not what is percieved as BEST.

The explorer's handbook has 2 very good NPCs anddoes a lot of the work for you when designing an exploration adventure. It supplies the locales and encounters, so all you need to do is get them there.

Sharn: City of Towers does virtually the same thing but on a much grander scale with a smaller focus. Sharn is laid out to the smallest detail, which can be mined for many, if not countless adventures.

Five Nations can best be described as ECS2. Some of the material is questionable, but no book goes further than making the Five Nations on a whole feel authentic and distinct. It does more to make NPC encounters rather than adventures.

Magic of Eberron neither expands the minutiae of Eberron nor create new areas of interest. Of all the books, this contains more game data (as opposed to setting information, a pair of terms I use in place of crunch and fluff, respectively) than any other book. Note that most of the material is mechanically inferior to Forgotten Realms material, so don't look here for something flashy and game-breaking.

However, if you are looking to 'sell' a doubter on the quality of setting, I would strongly consider Races of Eberron. It converted three of mine to diehards, it could work for you as well!
Kalatash
12-26-05, 05:54 PM Wow, lots of responces. More than I expected by now, really. Thanks!

Now, some clarifications: I want to run straight 3.5, not some hybrid. The only hybriding would come from third party material that might come up. Also, the group already owns a 3.5 PHB, but not the other books. So yeah, I should probably get some of those. Also, I'll be using the 3.0 [i]Manual of the Planes and the Fiend Folio [both actually my sisters]. The group has primarially stayed 3.0 because they just don't want to spend the money getting the new books. That, and their favorite setting is FR [which I can't stand, really].

As for starting with some levels, the group REALLY likes to plan their characters ahead, aiming for PrCs and such, but have yet to actually GET any of them. So I really want them to get PrCs, at least once.

Also, my begining idea for the campaign will steal a hook from... well, the 'Steal This Hook!' thread. The campaign will be based around getting some specific parts for a eccentric gnome researcher of Morgrave University all over. After getting all the parts, he will reveal himself as working for the Daeklyr, and that this device will help allow thier plane to come back sooner than it would otherwise, and when the PCs fight him, he will have some symbiotes and grafts on him. One of the places will be gathered from Xen'Drik, and another would be taken from a renegade dragon in the Q'Barra, and such.

Addendum: Also, a friend of mine suggested I have one of the players be Dragonmarked, since that can really make things interesting.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Kalatash 12-26-05, 03:15 AM	Okay, while I have had some GMing experience, that was mostly just babysitting another person's campaign for a couple of sessions. This time, it will be completely mine. It will also be a new setting. Now, the group usually starts off at 1st level and works up from there, but the group is tired of doing that over and over, as the campaigns are naturally restricted by the school schedule [gotta love collage]. So this time, they wanted to start at 5th level. Does that sound like a good idea? I think they really had their hopes uo for having at least a few levels under thier belts... Also, currently, I only own the Campaign Setting and one of my Chistmas presents was a Barnes and Noble gift card. So what other books do you you guys recommend I get, in order of prefrence? I was thinking at least Magic of Ebberon, but what else? [Also, the group mostly owns 3.0 books, but I hope the SRD will help fill in the gaps that will naturally be there.]
Korhal_IV 12-26-05, 03:21 AM	Eberron is a real playground for levels 1-10, so starting at 5th might rob you of some of your fun. I would highly recommend Five Nations, Sharn: City of Towers, and Explorer's Handbook before Magic of Eberron. MoE has a lot of grafting stuff and a few spells, but it's the other books that have the info you really want as a DM (or a player looking for a good background). Races of Eberron might also be one that I put before Magic of Eberron - MoE is not bad at all, but it's sort of an afterthought if you're scrambling to get the bare minimum. I suggest poring through WotC's site to find the book previews and deciding from there, perhaps, or browsing through B&N's stock. You can pick up two modules that start at roughly the same level as you desire: Whispers of the Vampire's Blade (4th level) and Grasp of the Emerald Claw (6th). Whispers is a blast, I just finished it. Grasp is one I'm about to go through. I highly suggest reading through 'em; even if you don't want to run them, they give you a good handle on adventuring in Eberron. If you have an artificer in the party, remember that a lot of spells got changed or shuffled around during the .5 transition (in fact, this was arguably the point of the .5 transition - some spells were just WAY too good), so his crafting might be a bit off. There is also a 3.0-3.5 transition guide; I'll try and look it up for you. EDIT: This is the 3.5 Accessory Update Booklet: http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/20030718a Handy little PDF for ya!
Save-vs-DM 12-26-05, 03:34 AM	Well, for books, I actually recommend picking up a copy of the 3.5 Player's Handbook and Monster Manual. Yes, the SRD can work, but it cuts out so much of your time trying to convert monsters that it sometimes isn't worth it. I would check around your area for a used book store. Most will trade books for store credit, so you might be able to trade in your old 3.0 books (just the core 3) for the newer books. If you're strapped for cash, then yes, the SRD will do fine. But realize that the SRD doesn't offer some of the most important things for a newer DM - fluff text and examples. I really think that you owe it to yourself to at least get a new copy of the PHB and DMG and really the MM as well. One thing I did in college when all of us were strapped for cash was buy community books. If everyone pools $5, you can get one book at a time for everyone to share (this requires pretty good friends in the same dorm, usually). As for Eberron books, I'd really recommend Five Nations first. That will be the most valuable to you in the long run, as it gives a good overview. Next I'd probably get either Explorer's Handbook (if you're doing a world spanning game) or Sharn: City of Towers (if you're running a Sharn central game). Magic of Eberron can wait on a limited budget, honestly. As for the starting level, I'd really recommend not starting that high. It's easier to DM full time if you start at level 1 and work on up, as your skill grows with the power of the players. As a compromise starting at level 3 might be a bit easier than level 5. Welcome to the DM's chair and good luck! Save vs DM
Eksem 12-26-05, 05:52 AM	If I would recommend one book, I actually recommend the novel The City of Towers (The Dreaming Dark Book 1) by Keith Baker. It's a bit dark, at least compared to how I like my games, but the story is a very good example of how to make the world really feel Eberron, including many of the most important parts of the setting (Sharn, Dreaming Dark, Mournland etc). Actually, you might even rip off much of the story in the book for your campaign, since it would fit quite well for PCs around level 5 or so. The book also includes two very useful appendix, one is a very good introduction to Eberron, useful to let the players read prior to campaign start, the other is a very handy glossary. If I would recommend an accessory, I would probably recommend Sharn: City of Towers. If you want to play in Sharn, it's a must-get, and it's my favorite book of the ones released (not including Eberron Campaign Setting of course). Otherwise I think maybe Explorers Handbook, even if it feels a bit thin, it has a lot of material to make the game really feel Eberron. Five Nations, I did not really like that much. It was not bad or anything, but it was just a bit more on some countries that already are pretty well described. The only thing I really used from that book in my game were the parts on food, clothing and the sayings. That was really useful. Also, I think the GM-screen is really cool (and has a very handy little table on the dragonmarks which is really useful for a beginner-DM since the Dragonmarked Houses come into play almost all the time), and the map that comes with it is very very useful. You should get that.
nastynate 12-26-05, 07:15 AM	No offense intended to Keith, but that book was terrible. It painted a very good picture of the setting, but the story line was lacking. As far as I know it was his first book, so he may indeed become a fantastic author. None-the-less I have read dozens of fantasy books that were superior. I actually think you get much more in an Eberron campaign setting from pulpy action flicks, than this book. Raiders of the Lost Ark, Bladerunner, and even old Hitchcock films have been shamelessly ripped off in my stories. As a DM, fluff is sooo much more important than cruch. Painintg a good picture of setting is job #1.
Eksem 12-26-05, 07:35 AM	As a book it was fairly... bad, yes. But as an introduction to how to portray Eberron it's great, and the story would work as an RPG-campaign (RPG is a very forgiving medium I think, a lot of Xena-episodes would work as DnD-sessions, no matter how awful they are as TV-episodes). And the Eberron-introduction and glossary are useful for introducing new players to the setting.
swichfang 12-26-05, 08:55 AM	I just started a campain for level one PC's. It's a blast, we are running the Forgotten Forge. You might really miss out if you start at level five but that's your choice. I have the Campaign Setting, Sharn City of Towers, Magic of Eberron, Race's of Eberron, and the Explorer's Handbook. For the most part I am only using the campaign setting and the Explorer's Handbook for some flavor. I havent even looked at Magic of Eberron or Race's of Eberron. I found out it is better to start small and grow. I started with just the forgotten forge adventure and went from there. When I started I had only skimmed through the Campaign setting looking up the most important things like the Gods, Infromation on the Lord of Blades, some Flavor text on Sharn (in Sharn City of Towers), and looked how all the classes and races fit into the setting. Also get to know the Nations, and some of the orginazitions. Right now my PC's are at 3rd level and are almost experts on playing dark and gritty. The Explorers Handbook helps with travel (Its a life saver) and having starting, mid, and ending point's for a adventure. So the only books i would recomend would be the campaign setting and the Explorers Handbook for now. Then buy a few more later. Remember if you try to load the Pc's with to much fluff without them knowing a lot about eberron they may get fried. So hopes that helps. ;)
ChronosCrow 12-26-05, 10:43 AM	Keep some of that money. Get the Player's Guide to Eberron next month.
Edymnion 12-26-05, 12:31 PM	No offense intended to Keith, but that book was terrible.Heh, you've never read any of the other D&D books, have you? Or fantasy books in general? It may not have been LotR quality, but it stands head and shoulders above the vast majority of the genre, which typically reads as nothing more than horrible 14 year old fan fiction. But, we're not supposed to be discussing novel quality on the boards, its a no-no. For the topic, you are going to need the 3 Core Rulebooks (the Players Handbook, the Monster Manual, and the Dungeon Master's Guide). There really is no way to seriously play this game without them. Its can be done, but in the same way you can play monopoly without the board, dice, or money. Next up, the Eberron Campaign Setting book is obviously required for an Eberron game. You can play the game quite well with just those books (we did for ages until more came out). As for the quality of the expansion books for Eberron, this is the order I would try to buy them in: Sharn: City of Towers Five Nations Magic of Eberron Explorer's Handbook Also, Players Guide to Eberron is supposed to be out here sometime, although I've been hearing some negative reports on it that have me a bit worried, but we'll see when it comes out. Not included on my list, but potentially helpful, is Races of Eberron. Its not part of the Eberron line of books, but has some good material in it. Just so long as you realize that much of the flavor text is mediocre at best, and downright wrong at worst. The developers even admit to the fact that they fence sat on it, trying to make it generic enough for non-Eberron players, while still trying to pass it off as an Eberron product, and you know that when you try to fence sit, you get something thats crap forth both sides. Its still got some useful (if sometimes questionable and/or objectionable) material in it, so in my above ranking, I would put it just under Magic of Eberron and above Explorer's Handbook (which I just didn't find very useful at all).
Logos7 12-26-05, 12:43 PM	I wouldn'ty suggest 5 nations unless you want a lot of the human fluff as a Dm, I have the book i like the book but all and all it's a Dm boook not really a player friendly book (It's essentially the human book for eberron) Explorer's handbook looks really neat, i'd say this be the first stop unless your playing in sharn ( i dont like sharn , we played in Thrane/Mournlands) Magic of Eberron seems to either be liked or hated, thought i wasn't going to like it , then i finally "aqquired" a copy from a friend and i ended up really likeing the book, and not having a problem with anynumber of things including half daelkir (it sounds so bad) except for breed worms , just where do they go? ( dont believe all the hate on the forums anywhere for anybook) Races of Eberron was kind of popular with my players but it's getting no love as far as use goes unless perhaps for the Kalishtar (1 PrC out of a whole book = somewhat stinky sinking sense) Other than that the CS is so the best book in the set so far, probably followed by explorer's , magic, 5Nations/Sharn, Logos
LugWrench 12-26-05, 02:11 PM	Sharn: CoT is a good book for a starting campaign. Its the largest city that the group is likely to start in, and is the kickoff point for quite a few missions. Also, with the information it contains on the various power blocs, guilds, cults, mobs, gangs, and so on, its possible for a creative DM to make a Sharn campaign, taking the group all the way to level 20 without leaving the city. If the group is running primarily 3.0, see if you can find any of the 'blue modules'. The Sunless Citadel, The Forge of Fury, Speaker in Dreams , and others. They were written for a 3.0 campaign, but can be adapted to 3.5 and Eberron with a little work. Finding these modules also means that the players with 3.0 books means they dont have to rush right out and spend money on newer stuff right away. Take care with starting the group at 5th level, though. About that time, a lot of the classes gain some pretty powerful skills and abilities, and a lot of the prestige classes start becoming attainable, too. While Im a pretty fair DM, Im not sure if Im ready to sit down and have someone playing a Warforged Juggernaut right off the bat. Thats just my :twocents: , though.
PoeticJustice 12-26-05, 04:27 PM	Given the variety of sourcebook recommendations, you should assume they are roughly equal in overall quality and buy the book you NEED, not what is percieved as BEST. The explorer's handbook has 2 very good NPCs anddoes a lot of the work for you when designing an exploration adventure. It supplies the locales and encounters, so all you need to do is get them there. Sharn: City of Towers does virtually the same thing but on a much grander scale with a smaller focus. Sharn is laid out to the smallest detail, which can be mined for many, if not countless adventures. Five Nations can best be described as ECS2. Some of the material is questionable, but no book goes further than making the Five Nations on a whole feel authentic and distinct. It does more to make NPC encounters rather than adventures. Magic of Eberron neither expands the minutiae of Eberron nor create new areas of interest. Of all the books, this contains more game data (as opposed to setting information, a pair of terms I use in place of crunch and fluff, respectively) than any other book. Note that most of the material is mechanically inferior to Forgotten Realms material, so don't look here for something flashy and game-breaking. However, if you are looking to 'sell' a doubter on the quality of setting, I would strongly consider Races of Eberron. It converted three of mine to diehards, it could work for you as well!
Kalatash 12-26-05, 05:54 PM	Wow, lots of responces. More than I expected by now, really. Thanks! Now, some clarifications: I want to run straight 3.5, not some hybrid. The only hybriding would come from third party material that might come up. Also, the group already owns a 3.5 PHB, but not the other books. So yeah, I should probably get some of those. Also, I'll be using the 3.0 [i]Manual of the Planes and the Fiend Folio [both actually my sisters]. The group has primarially stayed 3.0 because they just don't want to spend the money getting the new books. That, and their favorite setting is FR [which I can't stand, really]. As for starting with some levels, the group REALLY likes to plan their characters ahead, aiming for PrCs and such, but have yet to actually GET any of them. So I really want them to get PrCs, at least once. Also, my begining idea for the campaign will steal a hook from... well, the 'Steal This Hook!' thread. The campaign will be based around getting some specific parts for a eccentric gnome researcher of Morgrave University all over. After getting all the parts, he will reveal himself as working for the Daeklyr, and that this device will help allow thier plane to come back sooner than it would otherwise, and when the PCs fight him, he will have some symbiotes and grafts on him. One of the places will be gathered from Xen'Drik, and another would be taken from a renegade dragon in the Q'Barra, and such. Addendum: Also, a friend of mine suggested I have one of the players be Dragonmarked, since that can really make things interesting.