D&D 4th Edition Core Rule Books

[Custom_Hobby]

:icon_study: Did anyone on the forum either recieve the books in the mail or download the pdf's online? :whatsthis:

[Balgin Stondraeg]

Well I've got nothing myself Mike (wasn't too interested) but some of you might find this link interesting.

Talk about dumbed down for wallies :(.

[S1ND3X]

i got them recently and while i was unimpressed and certainly won't be playing the game i see what they've done and i don't blame them for it, i blame World of Warcraft
originally WoW based itself on DnD but it achieved popularity the like of which DnD has never seen so what did WotC do? they made a tabletop version, and good for them, they'll increase the popularity of RPGs and get kids to interact away from the net for a while
i do feel bad for members of the RPGA that will have to convert to the new system but for the rest of us it'll mean a whole raft of cheap 3.5 books while places get rid of their stocks :icon_wink:

[Custom_Hobby]

Places have already started slashing prices and there are some terrific deals out there.

[Keeper]

Places have already started slashing prices and there are some terrific deals out there.

In that case, can I request linkage in case anyone sees a bargain?

I recently picked up a dozen d20 Modern books of a guy in Surplus Wargaming.  $30 for the books $60 for postage, and still a bargin!

[Fabian]

Well, call me a wally, but I like 4E.

A lot of the "OMG it's so WoW!" complaints are fallacies.

[Caerban]

My DM says: More gimmicky, simpler but less flexible, waste of money. (Which is what, more or less, I said about all the GW games after Rogue Trader and 3rd Ed. Battle.) He's pretty good on this kind of reviewing thing and all his shiny new 4th Ed stuff went straight to the bottom of a box when he'd finished reading it and down to the cellar. As he's running the campaign that means we stay at 3.5, which is fine by me, I have better things to spend my money on.  Plus my (possible) upcoming campaign is mostly 3.5 sourced so I won't be upgrading for my group either.

[Custom_Hobby]

I am still neutral on it. I find that it is limiting only because a lot of the books have not been released yet. It does look like it was built to be flexible (despite there not being much at the moment). I'll give it some time and see where it goes.

[Balgin Stondraeg]

It does look like it was built to be flexible (despite there not being much at the moment).

Erm, multiclassing is in 10 level blocks now (you can only change classes every 10 levels). Now I'm sure some people abused the (really open) multiclassing system of 3rd ed to no end but it did allow for almost any character concept to easily fit into the rules. Now it won't be so easy (and you'll need to take the rules and then create a concept around them).

My DM says: More gimmicky, simpler but less flexible, waste of money.

Although I haven't seen it yet, from what I've heard (and read) from various sources I'd agree with all of that apart from possibly the last bit about the waste of money aspect. There's better pictures you see (sometimes a bit cartoony but no dragonpunk!). I'd need to see how much they ram the "Forgotten Realms is the official setting" stuff down your throat in the new PHB (despite the fact that the "high magic, everyone has loads of spell like abilities" thing is clearly endorsed in the rules) before forming an opinion.

Just a quick little note: Night Below will not convert to 4th ed (it will remain 3.5 all the way through). Dark Awakenings is shorter and can afford to use one ruleset all the way through (especialy as some stuff towards the end is reliant on 3rd ed rules and concepts). Deathtrap Dungeon is an amusing one off and I could probably change the rules during the game (but I don't see the need to complicate it).

Any new games I run might use 4th ed (or any other rules) if I like the rules. Night Below's definitely going to be fun when it gets to dealing with some bandits, death cultists, trolls, mind flayers, giants, dragons and worse still - very nasty stuff! :)

[Custom_Hobby]

Erm, multiclassing is in 10 level blocks now (you can only change classes every 10 levels). Now I'm sure some people abused the (really open) multiclassing system of 3rd ed to no end but it did allow for almost any character concept to easily fit into the rules. Now it won't be so easy (and you'll need to take the rules and then create a concept around them).

Just remember that it is still very early on. There are a lot of sourcebooks yet to be released and something in the next wave might make it work better. Personally I can't wait to see the Martial Power book scheduled for October

Although I haven't seen it yet, from what I've heard (and read) from various sources I'd agree with all of that apart from possibly the last bit about the waste of money aspect. There's better pictures you see (sometimes a bit cartoony but no dragonpunk!). I'd need to see how much they ram the "Forgotten Realms is the official setting" stuff down your throat in the new PHB (despite the fact that the "high magic, everyone has loads of spell like abilities" thing is clearly endorsed in the rules) before forming an opinion.

Just a quick little note: Night Below will not convert to 4th ed (it will remain 3.5 all the way through). Dark Awakenings is shorter and can afford to use one ruleset all the way through (especialy as some stuff towards the end is reliant on 3rd ed rules and concepts). Deathtrap Dungeon is an amusing one off and I could probably change the rules during the game (but I don't see the need to complicate it).

Any new games I run might use 4th ed (or any other rules) if I like the rules. Night Below's definitely going to be fun when it gets to dealing with some bandits, death cultists, trolls, mind flayers, giants, dragons and worse still - very nasty stuff! :)

Sounds good. That is the best way to handle it. No sense in mucking up something that is working.

[Fabian]

I'm playing both. I like both 3.5 and 4E.

It's all good.  :icon_wink:

The 4E books are beautiful and really well laid-out. Multiclassing isn't in 10 level blocks, but to go into more detail would take some typing.

[Bodhi]

I bought 3.5 in a boxed edition including loads of plastic minis dirt cheap. And the shopkeeper adviced against me buying it because 4th edition was coming along. Couldn't care less.I was after the cheap plastics and thought I might as well get a rulesbook with them. Runequest/Stormbringer/Call of Cthullhu (same rulesystem) will beat D&D any day anyway (no matter what edition) and character classes - multilevel or not - is an utterly utterly silly concept. Real humans are SO much more complex than that.

And I've had a few glasses of wine so will probably regret having wrote this in the morning  :icon_wink:

[Custom_Hobby]

I am waiting on the next set of releases and also seeing what they have planned for 2009 before I decide.

[PaulH]

Hi

Having spent a lot of money, time & effort in 3.5 I'm not going to give that up any time soon. However, we've just started playing 4th Ed at our club in Gloucester, and it doesn't seem too bad. (Except 'At Will' powers mean thqt Wizards now a version of Warlock, and Warlock seems to be a Warmage/Warlock hybrid now).

And like Bodhi - I too bought the Starter Box set for the cheap minis - especially the Large Blue Dragon!   :icon_wink:
(Though Brapsmagic on EBay do an excellent range of cheap minis)

My other two favourite systems are:
1) WFRP/WFRP2
2) Call of Cthulu (1920's British setting only)

Cheers
Paul H