Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Arsonist 07-09-03, 03:58 PM	I hate to ask such an annoying question, but unfortunately I see no clear course through the stacks and stacks of books and revisions of 3.0s and 3.5s. Where does one begin? What is necessary and in what order should they be obtained? How do you even start a group at this point technologically? Being surrounded by powergamers who respond with phrases such as, "Everquest r0x0rs PnP!?!" and "You have to buy books and write stuff down???" how can I be expected to find those of like mind when most are taken by the powergaming gods? I want uniqueness! So this appears to be my last place to turn. Will my gnome druid be turned away from yet another Role-Playing World? Will he be passed up for the Uber- 18str/dex/con/int/wis/cha badass with the +5 sword from god-only-knows-where? I surely hope not! But I need a clear path. Someone out there must be able to recall the best way of establishing yourself in the FR world. I am so confused! Especially with this 3.0/3.5 business! Ah well. Thanks to all who respond. Woot woot! bye.
Jack in the Green 07-09-03, 04:16 PM	How do you even start a group at this point technologically? Being surrounded by powergamers who respond with phrases such as, "Everquest r0x0rs PnP!?!" 24 point buy characters. Where does one begin? What is necessary and in what order should they be obtained? I would suggest Campaign setting for you, and races for your players. But the Setting should be more than enough to get you going. Will my gnome druid be turned away from yet another Role-Playing World? Will he be passed up for the Uber- 18str/dex/con/int/wis/cha badass with the +5 sword from god-only-knows-where? I surely hope not! Looks like your gonna have your hands full.:fight!: Good luck!
GoodOlWillickers 07-09-03, 04:26 PM	My advice on the 3.0/3.5 business... Wait a week or two for the new books to come out. If you buy your books right now, they'll most like be 3.0 and will be outdated within a few days. Once 3.5 comes out (on the 15th or 18th, I think), the essential book for you to pick up is the Player's Handbook. I don't recommend running a campaign for other people until you have some experience simply playing the game. The other "core" books are the Dungeon Master's Guide and Monster Manual, but you don't need these to play. These are for the dungeon master, the guy who runs the game. If you want to play in the Forgotten Realms setting, a great book to have would be the Forgotten Realms campaign setting. Even though you don't really need it to play in the game, I highly recommend picking up this book. It's got a lot of things to help you play in the setting. The problem is though, I don't know if it's going to be re-released for 3.5 or not and if so, when it will be released. As for finding a game to play in, there are a few ways to go about this. The first way would be to gather some friends and play with them. However, if they don't play either, you'll all start out with no game experience which can be frustrating sometimes. Another way would be to find a local game shop (chain stores like Gamekeeper might know, but I've never been in one) and ask if they have a bulletin board about D&D games that are accepting players and are willing to teach the game (the best way to learn D&D is to be taught it). The other way is to look on the internet and look for gaming groups in your area. The only problem with these two ways, is you'll usually play with strangers. Sometimes you'll wind up with cool people, sometimes you won't like the people you play with and sometimes you'll get people who actually live in deungeons. I have nothing against those people, but I know some people do. Hope that helped ya out. The most important thing to remember, which is also the easiest thing about the game to forget, is that you're playing D&D to have fun. If you're not having fun with a group, don't feel like you have to stay. Just remember that it's all just a game. And one final tip: newbies who start off with an evil character (if the DM even allows it) often find that they **** off the group more and faster than an evil character played by a veteran player. Just be careful with that. Good luck gaming! Peace -Will http://www.angelfire.com/md2/willspalace
Serinde 07-09-03, 04:28 PM	I'm not quite clear--are you looking for an online game, or offline? If the latter, try your local game stores and universities. If the former...um, no idea, really, but I think there's another WotC forum for such. In any case, if you're interested in playing in Forgotten Realms, you should immediately go pick up FRCS. Read it through, several times. Then you'll have a better idea of what other supplements you might want.
Faraer 07-09-03, 05:54 PM	Pick one game system (2nd edition, 3rd, 3.5, or something else), stick with it, don't get any supplements except Realms sourcebooks. Play with people who are your friends and have comparable goals for the campaign, or prepare to be disappointed. Different social circumstances need different techniques for attracting players. Read this introduction to the Realms (http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Castle/2566/wellmet.htm). Get a sense of whether you like the world and the way Ed Greenwood designs, and don't waste time changing it drastically if you don't. Start with a small local setting and give enough incidental detail and events to make it feel real.