New to 4e... questions - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

New to 4e... questions

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
yennsid
Jul 08, 2009 3:54:02 Greetings fellow roleplayers,

Throughout my life, I have been a fan of (A)D&D, however, I haven't always had the time (or required group of friends) to play. Now that I am done with school (yay!), I seem to have found much more free time.

Unfortunately, as a result of not always being able to play, I am not too keen on the rules. In fact, 2e is basically as far as I have gotten. My friends and I recently started a weekly game (which explains my sudden interest in all things D&D) using 2e rules, but after doing a little research, I think that, in addition to being a little easier, that 4e seems MUCH more interesting.

I have already read the downloadable Player's Handbook, so I have an extremely basic concept of how the game is played, and I will be receiving the three core books shortly. I am confused on a few things, though (this is where the questions come in)...

Where can I go about getting some cheap miniatures? I've checked online, and I can only seem to find overpriced sets (or individual pieces). Would a local hobby shop carry generic monster/hero figures? Also, how do I go about getting maps for the dungeons and land my companions and I will no doubt trail blaze? In the handbook I read, for example, there were maps, but only about 1/4 the size of a standard piece of paper. Do the core books come out with tear-out maps, or something of that nature?

Also, I am interested in picking up an online game. I've never done one before, and obviously I am new, but I am a quick learner and would greatly appreciate being taken under the tutelage of a veteran. And I know there is a board for this (which I will be going to after making this post), I just thought that throwing my interest in an online game in this thread couldn't hurt :-p. Thanks for any and all information. I look forward to learning this great game with you all,

Yen
#2
Neutronium_Dragon
Jul 08, 2009 5:34:37 Miniatures generally don't come cheap. A local game store might have some, but the cost will add up quickly. You don't need to use actual miniatures though, as long as you have some means of representing creatures. In absence of miniatures, anything from tokens to chess pieces to lego men can (and have) been used.

Some adventures have a few pre-printed maps, and map packages are also available. Dungeon Tiles are another option, but the most flexible one is to get a vinyl game mat with a 1-inch grid. Any game store that carries D&D products will likely either have them in stock or can order them in. These are used with wet or dry erase markers (it varies from map to map, so be sure to check which yours is before marking it).
#3
pschirf
Jul 08, 2009 6:25:36 If you're the type who likes to make his own maps, the local arts and crafts store is likely to carry post board sized paper with a light 1/2 in grid. I buy them in 3-packs for a very reasonable price. Add markers and you're set...
#4
Matt_James
Jul 08, 2009 7:24:48 PSchirf's suggestion is solid. You can also purchase the big flip-charts that are gridded. More expensive, but cheaper in the long run. You can also have them lamenated if you want to keep them for future purposes.

On eBay, you can usually find the 'common' minis from the D&D Miniature game for pretty cheap. I usually buy them in bulk. It can be pricy at times but overall I am pleased with the collection I've gathered.
#5
pheonixiv
Jul 08, 2009 7:39:56 As for online games, if you're willing to pay for it Fantasy Grounds II has worked well for me; there's a ton of games going on in just about every system you can think of and i'm actually currently planning a 4e campaign.

There's also a branch of the RPGA that runs fairly frequent FGII games.

Fantasy Grounds II Link
RPGA Fantasy Grounds II Link

If you want to go with free options, i think MapTools is the goer, although organising games for that seems to be a bit harder than FGII.

[Shameless Plug]FGII's 4e ruleset is also wonderfully automated, automagically determining if an attack roll hits and even allowing you to automagically deal damage as well as determining bonuses for skill rolls and such. One the one hand i know some people don't like that sort of thing, but i find it really helps speed things up, which nicely counters the fact that online games tend to take longer. Online DnD is very much a completely different experience from face-to-face DnD, you may or may not like it.[/Shamless Plug]
#6
sbloyd
Jul 08, 2009 8:18:13 I took the three-pack of half-inch squared posterboard, and sharpied every other square for a one-inch grid, then overlaid the dry-erasable posterboard I found in the same rack. It's thin enough that the grid shows right thru.

And from NewbieDM.com, picked up the idea to grab bags of 1-inch diameter quarter-inch thick round wooden stick-on letters... 52 for $1.99. Print out a bunch of monster pics, stick them on the adhesive side, they work fine as stand-in minis.
#7
rustyknight
Jul 08, 2009 8:31:55 What kind of miniatures do you want? Prepainted (the D&D miniatures game) or unpainted? I use Reaper Dark Heaven and Warlord figs. They tend to run five dollars a pop for a single dude. You do get to choose exactly what you want, and Dark Heaven is just a line of generic fantasy monsters and heros. E-bay would be a good place if you want to get any miniatures in bulk.

As for maps, I use two things for dungeons. A 1" grid Battle Mat and a large, thirty MM scale dungeon made from dental plaster brick molds. I'd reccomend the Battle Mat. For large scale maps, there are some floating around, or you can make your own.
#8
pheonixiv
Jul 08, 2009 9:00:04 Also, i just remembered; if you have an Insider account there are a number of official poster maps in .pdf format that you can download and print off at your lesuire. I don't think all the adventures have them, but many do.
#9
bone_naga
Jul 08, 2009 14:14:33 An easy way to get cheap miniatures is to buy a few old fantasy boardgames off of ebay or something. I have gotten some great miniatures from Heroes Quest and Dragon Strike. Battlemasters had tons of miniatures, although its a little extra work to mount them because of the stand they were intended for, but not too difficult. Those games also come with boards that you can use in your game. Sometimes you can also find cheap minis at your local gaming store, usually common ones from mini packs of various games.

For maps, like I said many old fantasy gameboards will do nicely, Chessex and Paizo have excellent wet-erase maps (I own a Chessex one right now but I think I'm going to purchase a few of the Paizo ones). In addition to those being reusable, they have an advantage in that you can draw (or have your players draw) the dungeon out as they explore, as opposed to automatically knowing how large the board/tile is. Theres also programs like Dunjinni where you can make your own, and RPGNow has some fairly cheap pdf tiles. Of course, you will probably want access to a color laser printer for those.

And for online games, obviously the forums dedicated to that can help you there, but definitely take a look at Maptools. Its a free program used for playing RPGs online. It can easily create maps, and while it includes some tokens, another program on the same site called Tokentool lets you easily create your own.

Hope that helps and welcome to the game.
#10
yennsid
Jul 08, 2009 19:35:06 Wow... thanks everyone for the responses.

I will definitely use your guys' ideas for the maps. Anything cheap and easy is good, and I will most likely hit up my local hobby shop in search for some cheap miniatures. And Bone Naga, you reminded me that I have (or SHOULD have) my old Hero Quest sitting around somewhere. The miniatures from that would be perfect.

Thanks again,

Yen

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 yennsid Jul 08, 2009 3:54:02	Greetings fellow roleplayers, Throughout my life, I have been a fan of (A)D&D, however, I haven't always had the time (or required group of friends) to play. Now that I am done with school (yay!), I seem to have found much more free time. Unfortunately, as a result of not always being able to play, I am not too keen on the rules. In fact, 2e is basically as far as I have gotten. My friends and I recently started a weekly game (which explains my sudden interest in all things D&D) using 2e rules, but after doing a little research, I think that, in addition to being a little easier, that 4e seems MUCH more interesting. I have already read the downloadable Player's Handbook, so I have an extremely basic concept of how the game is played, and I will be receiving the three core books shortly. I am confused on a few things, though (this is where the questions come in)... Where can I go about getting some cheap miniatures? I've checked online, and I can only seem to find overpriced sets (or individual pieces). Would a local hobby shop carry generic monster/hero figures? Also, how do I go about getting maps for the dungeons and land my companions and I will no doubt trail blaze? In the handbook I read, for example, there were maps, but only about 1/4 the size of a standard piece of paper. Do the core books come out with tear-out maps, or something of that nature? Also, I am interested in picking up an online game. I've never done one before, and obviously I am new, but I am a quick learner and would greatly appreciate being taken under the tutelage of a veteran. And I know there is a board for this (which I will be going to after making this post), I just thought that throwing my interest in an online game in this thread couldn't hurt :-p. Thanks for any and all information. I look forward to learning this great game with you all, Yen
#2 Neutronium_Dragon Jul 08, 2009 5:34:37	Miniatures generally don't come cheap. A local game store might have some, but the cost will add up quickly. You don't need to use actual miniatures though, as long as you have some means of representing creatures. In absence of miniatures, anything from tokens to chess pieces to lego men can (and have) been used. Some adventures have a few pre-printed maps, and map packages are also available. Dungeon Tiles are another option, but the most flexible one is to get a vinyl game mat with a 1-inch grid. Any game store that carries D&D products will likely either have them in stock or can order them in. These are used with wet or dry erase markers (it varies from map to map, so be sure to check which yours is before marking it).
#3 pschirf Jul 08, 2009 6:25:36	If you're the type who likes to make his own maps, the local arts and crafts store is likely to carry post board sized paper with a light 1/2 in grid. I buy them in 3-packs for a very reasonable price. Add markers and you're set...
#4 Matt_James Jul 08, 2009 7:24:48	PSchirf's suggestion is solid. You can also purchase the big flip-charts that are gridded. More expensive, but cheaper in the long run. You can also have them lamenated if you want to keep them for future purposes. On eBay, you can usually find the 'common' minis from the D&D Miniature game for pretty cheap. I usually buy them in bulk. It can be pricy at times but overall I am pleased with the collection I've gathered.
#5 pheonixiv Jul 08, 2009 7:39:56	As for online games, if you're willing to pay for it Fantasy Grounds II has worked well for me; there's a ton of games going on in just about every system you can think of and i'm actually currently planning a 4e campaign. There's also a branch of the RPGA that runs fairly frequent FGII games. Fantasy Grounds II Link RPGA Fantasy Grounds II Link If you want to go with free options, i think MapTools is the goer, although organising games for that seems to be a bit harder than FGII. [Shameless Plug]FGII's 4e ruleset is also wonderfully automated, automagically determining if an attack roll hits and even allowing you to automagically deal damage as well as determining bonuses for skill rolls and such. One the one hand i know some people don't like that sort of thing, but i find it really helps speed things up, which nicely counters the fact that online games tend to take longer. Online DnD is very much a completely different experience from face-to-face DnD, you may or may not like it.[/Shamless Plug]
#6 sbloyd Jul 08, 2009 8:18:13	I took the three-pack of half-inch squared posterboard, and sharpied every other square for a one-inch grid, then overlaid the dry-erasable posterboard I found in the same rack. It's thin enough that the grid shows right thru. And from NewbieDM.com, picked up the idea to grab bags of 1-inch diameter quarter-inch thick round wooden stick-on letters... 52 for $1.99. Print out a bunch of monster pics, stick them on the adhesive side, they work fine as stand-in minis.
#7 rustyknight Jul 08, 2009 8:31:55	What kind of miniatures do you want? Prepainted (the D&D miniatures game) or unpainted? I use Reaper Dark Heaven and Warlord figs. They tend to run five dollars a pop for a single dude. You do get to choose exactly what you want, and Dark Heaven is just a line of generic fantasy monsters and heros. E-bay would be a good place if you want to get any miniatures in bulk. As for maps, I use two things for dungeons. A 1" grid Battle Mat and a large, thirty MM scale dungeon made from dental plaster brick molds. I'd reccomend the Battle Mat. For large scale maps, there are some floating around, or you can make your own.
#8 pheonixiv Jul 08, 2009 9:00:04	Also, i just remembered; if you have an Insider account there are a number of official poster maps in .pdf format that you can download and print off at your lesuire. I don't think all the adventures have them, but many do.
#9 bone_naga Jul 08, 2009 14:14:33	An easy way to get cheap miniatures is to buy a few old fantasy boardgames off of ebay or something. I have gotten some great miniatures from Heroes Quest and Dragon Strike. Battlemasters had tons of miniatures, although its a little extra work to mount them because of the stand they were intended for, but not too difficult. Those games also come with boards that you can use in your game. Sometimes you can also find cheap minis at your local gaming store, usually common ones from mini packs of various games. For maps, like I said many old fantasy gameboards will do nicely, Chessex and Paizo have excellent wet-erase maps (I own a Chessex one right now but I think I'm going to purchase a few of the Paizo ones). In addition to those being reusable, they have an advantage in that you can draw (or have your players draw) the dungeon out as they explore, as opposed to automatically knowing how large the board/tile is. Theres also programs like Dunjinni where you can make your own, and RPGNow has some fairly cheap pdf tiles. Of course, you will probably want access to a color laser printer for those. And for online games, obviously the forums dedicated to that can help you there, but definitely take a look at Maptools. Its a free program used for playing RPGs online. It can easily create maps, and while it includes some tokens, another program on the same site called Tokentool lets you easily create your own. Hope that helps and welcome to the game.
#10 yennsid Jul 08, 2009 19:35:06	Wow... thanks everyone for the responses. I will definitely use your guys' ideas for the maps. Anything cheap and easy is good, and I will most likely hit up my local hobby shop in search for some cheap miniatures. And Bone Naga, you reminded me that I have (or SHOULD have) my old Hero Quest sitting around somewhere. The miniatures from that would be perfect. Thanks again, Yen