Comepletely new to dnd [Archive] - Wizards Community

Comepletely new to dnd [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
CrabHeart
12-02-06, 08:59 PM one of my friends bought the books and he printed me a character sheet... im a human ranger... i still havnt filled it out becouse my friend has the book

i was wondering if i could get any advice on anything

and what do you have to have other than miniatures to play minis? (a diff rule book special stuff e.c.t.)
Artector
12-02-06, 09:06 PM To play DND you need the Player's Handbook and the Dungeon Master's Guide. The Monster Manual isn't essential, but its pretty darn close.

Materials-wise you do need dice. That should be explained in the Player's Handbook.

The best way for you to learn is to find other players in your area. Game shops are the best way to find other players, failing that you can check around the Gamer Classifieds located on these boards and hopefully find a group near you.

There is also the option of the RPGA which decently noob-friendly. Go to the site (www.wizards.com/rpga) to get started on them.
CrabHeart
12-02-06, 09:12 PM well im borrowing my friends books before i get deep into the game.. i want to see if i like it first...

and are the miniature rules in thows books?
Artector
12-02-06, 09:18 PM If you're talking about the miniature rules, the rules are on the cards that come with the adventures and in the starter pack.
This page should help you out on the miniatures game:
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/mi/20040520b

What books does your friend have? Are you already in a group? I guess I should have asked those, that might have saved me a bit of typing.
darcdante
12-02-06, 09:21 PM As a player, you'll probably want your own copy of the PHB (Player's Handbook) at some point. A set of dice or two is essential and can be found at any local gamestore. And a pencil, that's about it.

As for suggestions, just make sure to have fun. Since your friend just bought the books, I'm guessing that nobody in your group has any experience playing. This will make learning a slightly slower process than normal, but so long as your friend has the time to read through the PHB and DMG a fair amount (simply to learn the rules), you should be good to go.

Let's se...character suggestions....

You're a human, so you don't have darkvision. This makes it necessary to purchase some torches for when you go underground. As a human, you get an extra feet at first level. Try and decide what kind of ranger you want to be: do you want to specialize in ranged attacks or two weapon fighting? Then just look through the feats when your friend comes by and pick one that goes along with the kind of ranger you want to be. If you have a hard time deciding on one, you can never go wrong with improved initiative (which gives you a better chance to go earlier in combat).

You probably want your highest stat to be dexterity (DEX) if you're going with ranged, but probably strength (STR) if you're going with two-weapon fighting.

Anyhoo, these are just suggestions. Like I said, the main point is to have fun, so just read the ranger section when you get to look at the book and your friend will probably be able to help you with character creation at that point.

Oh, and one last thing:
http://www.d20srd.org/

That has the core rules on it, so browse around. Here's the ranger entry:
http://www.d20srd.org/srd/classes/ranger.htm

Looking over the feats and skills is probably a good idea also. Good luck to ya, and let me know if I can help you with anything.
CrabHeart
12-02-06, 09:22 PM yea weve got 4 ppl he dosnt have the dungeon masters book yet but hes got the monster and player manuals

and hes got dice..

so you cant play with miniatures unless you have a card for every mini?(so if i bought a lot off of ebay theyed be useless?)
darcdante
12-02-06, 09:26 PM All you need the minis for (the way I play at least) is to represent your character on a mat so you know where you are in relation to everything else. This makes combat easier as the players and DM don't have to try and picture it in their heads, and it keeps the players from asking the DM constant questions like "Can I move in for the flank without taking an attack of opportunity). So, if you play with minis like I do, then all you need is the mini itself. The cards that come with the plastic D&D minis are just for playing the minis game, which is separate from Dungeons and Dragons itself (although, from what I can tell, it's pretty similar to a typical D&D combat because it goes by many of the same combat rules....I think).
Artector
12-02-06, 09:27 PM so you cant play with miniatures unless you have a card for every mini?(so if i bought a lot off of ebay theyed be useless?)

For the miniatures game, in DND they work fine without the cards.

I really gotta say, the DMG will help out severly.

EDIT~the first line should be clear now.
CrabHeart
12-02-06, 09:27 PM ah ok yea thats the way i wanna play

is it good to buy mini boosters just for the monsters?
darcdante
12-02-06, 09:30 PM Only if you're the DM. Players won't really need them, especially since they're all randomized.
CrabHeart
12-02-06, 09:31 PM random monsters? the dm cant pic what he wants to throw at you lol

i guess thats better but i dunno.. i still know only vveeeeryy little
Saion2014
12-02-06, 09:39 PM That depends on what you want to use them for. They can be used in Dungeons and Dragons to represent some arbitrary unit with your current supplies.

However, there is another game called D&D Miniatures. For that, you will need the stat card, since the stats aren't determined by your character or a stat block in the Monster Manual (I think; I've never actually played Minis).
King Bulba
12-02-06, 09:55 PM Welcome to the neightborhood.

You need only a few things as already stated by most, the players handbook and dice. You do not need the DMG if you have access to the internet (which you obviosly do) by using the The Hypertext d20 SRD (http://www.d20srd.org/). Only thing missing is the exp table and the gold level if you start after level 1 which most people do.

As for minitures I find that they help people visualize the battle. Even if you only have a battlemap (gridmap for a table) you can use anything to represent your characters. They dont actully have to be minis, could be squares that have your name on them.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
CrabHeart 12-02-06, 08:59 PM	one of my friends bought the books and he printed me a character sheet... im a human ranger... i still havnt filled it out becouse my friend has the book i was wondering if i could get any advice on anything and what do you have to have other than miniatures to play minis? (a diff rule book special stuff e.c.t.)
Artector 12-02-06, 09:06 PM	To play DND you need the Player's Handbook and the Dungeon Master's Guide. The Monster Manual isn't essential, but its pretty darn close. Materials-wise you do need dice. That should be explained in the Player's Handbook. The best way for you to learn is to find other players in your area. Game shops are the best way to find other players, failing that you can check around the Gamer Classifieds located on these boards and hopefully find a group near you. There is also the option of the RPGA which decently noob-friendly. Go to the site (www.wizards.com/rpga) to get started on them.
CrabHeart 12-02-06, 09:12 PM	well im borrowing my friends books before i get deep into the game.. i want to see if i like it first... and are the miniature rules in thows books?
Artector 12-02-06, 09:18 PM	If you're talking about the miniature rules, the rules are on the cards that come with the adventures and in the starter pack. This page should help you out on the miniatures game: http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/mi/20040520b What books does your friend have? Are you already in a group? I guess I should have asked those, that might have saved me a bit of typing.
darcdante 12-02-06, 09:21 PM	As a player, you'll probably want your own copy of the PHB (Player's Handbook) at some point. A set of dice or two is essential and can be found at any local gamestore. And a pencil, that's about it. As for suggestions, just make sure to have fun. Since your friend just bought the books, I'm guessing that nobody in your group has any experience playing. This will make learning a slightly slower process than normal, but so long as your friend has the time to read through the PHB and DMG a fair amount (simply to learn the rules), you should be good to go. Let's se...character suggestions.... You're a human, so you don't have darkvision. This makes it necessary to purchase some torches for when you go underground. As a human, you get an extra feet at first level. Try and decide what kind of ranger you want to be: do you want to specialize in ranged attacks or two weapon fighting? Then just look through the feats when your friend comes by and pick one that goes along with the kind of ranger you want to be. If you have a hard time deciding on one, you can never go wrong with improved initiative (which gives you a better chance to go earlier in combat). You probably want your highest stat to be dexterity (DEX) if you're going with ranged, but probably strength (STR) if you're going with two-weapon fighting. Anyhoo, these are just suggestions. Like I said, the main point is to have fun, so just read the ranger section when you get to look at the book and your friend will probably be able to help you with character creation at that point. Oh, and one last thing: http://www.d20srd.org/ That has the core rules on it, so browse around. Here's the ranger entry: http://www.d20srd.org/srd/classes/ranger.htm Looking over the feats and skills is probably a good idea also. Good luck to ya, and let me know if I can help you with anything.
CrabHeart 12-02-06, 09:22 PM	yea weve got 4 ppl he dosnt have the dungeon masters book yet but hes got the monster and player manuals and hes got dice.. so you cant play with miniatures unless you have a card for every mini?(so if i bought a lot off of ebay theyed be useless?)
darcdante 12-02-06, 09:26 PM	All you need the minis for (the way I play at least) is to represent your character on a mat so you know where you are in relation to everything else. This makes combat easier as the players and DM don't have to try and picture it in their heads, and it keeps the players from asking the DM constant questions like "Can I move in for the flank without taking an attack of opportunity). So, if you play with minis like I do, then all you need is the mini itself. The cards that come with the plastic D&D minis are just for playing the minis game, which is separate from Dungeons and Dragons itself (although, from what I can tell, it's pretty similar to a typical D&D combat because it goes by many of the same combat rules....I think).
Artector 12-02-06, 09:27 PM	so you cant play with miniatures unless you have a card for every mini?(so if i bought a lot off of ebay theyed be useless?) For the miniatures game, in DND they work fine without the cards. I really gotta say, the DMG will help out severly. EDIT~the first line should be clear now.
CrabHeart 12-02-06, 09:27 PM	ah ok yea thats the way i wanna play is it good to buy mini boosters just for the monsters?
darcdante 12-02-06, 09:30 PM	Only if you're the DM. Players won't really need them, especially since they're all randomized.
CrabHeart 12-02-06, 09:31 PM	random monsters? the dm cant pic what he wants to throw at you lol i guess thats better but i dunno.. i still know only vveeeeryy little
Saion2014 12-02-06, 09:39 PM	That depends on what you want to use them for. They can be used in Dungeons and Dragons to represent some arbitrary unit with your current supplies. However, there is another game called D&D Miniatures. For that, you will need the stat card, since the stats aren't determined by your character or a stat block in the Monster Manual (I think; I've never actually played Minis).
King Bulba 12-02-06, 09:55 PM	Welcome to the neightborhood. You need only a few things as already stated by most, the players handbook and dice. You do not need the DMG if you have access to the internet (which you obviosly do) by using the The Hypertext d20 SRD (http://www.d20srd.org/). Only thing missing is the exp table and the gold level if you start after level 1 which most people do. As for minitures I find that they help people visualize the battle. Even if you only have a battlemap (gridmap for a table) you can use anything to represent your characters. They dont actully have to be minis, could be squares that have your name on them.