Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition Reactions

I thought since I didn’t get the new Dungeons and Dragons 4th edition books yet that there should be some reviews up here anyhow.  I have to admit the reactions surprised me a lot.  It actually makes me leary to buy the books and attempt to play with the new rules.  So here is what I have found.

there are things i like and things i dislike about 4e. i think that if they were going for a simplification they missed the mark, and they could have put the books together better. although that may be my own fault. as a veteran gamer i have a tendency to skip whole chapters (i don’t think i need to read about what a roleplaying game is AGAIN) so when i missed something and had to go hunting for it that was probably why. i really dislike what they’ve done with armor. i can’t say i’m a fan of what they’ve done with equipment in general. when all the old school gamer fanboys cried foul and said wizards was turning their beloved game into world of warcraft i brushed it off as the same sort of hysteria that happened when 3.0 came out. but in looking at the new books, i have to say, it’s almost worse than WOW, they’ve turned the game into legend of zelda. on the other hand, i like a lot of what they did.

i don’t have a problem with the class and race redesign and i think the breakdown of powers into at will/encounter/daily is cool. i think the solution to what to do about halfling weapons makes more sense than either of the two things i’ve seen so far (a large longsword is a medium greatsword, a small shortsword is a medium dagger, a medium shortsword is a… fine greatsword? remember how much fun that was?). i kind of like the changes to magic. i think the split between character powers and ritual magic is interesting. i miss multiclassing but i like the new sort of roll-your-own way of multiclassing. i particularly like the fact that with proper skill (and feat) selection anyone can cast ritual magic.

I still really like 3.5 and this is very different. I expect my game group will use both sets of rules for quite a while.

http://community.livejournal.com/dnd4e/13204.html

Initial Impressions

The gift set: I opted for the slipcased giftset. I love slipcases, it’ll be handy for transport and it didn’t cost any extra. I’m glad this was an option at launch.

Quality: Physically, these are great books. Nicely bound, good pages and I love the matte/shiny effect on the covers.

Layout: The layout makes me think of a programming guide — I felt like I was reading a book about learning HTML or PHP. That’s not a bad thing! It’s a bit dry, but it’s easy to find stuff, boxed text is handled nicely and — best of all — the type is larger and white space is used better than in the 3.5e books. These are easy books to read, and they look like they’ll be equally easy to reference.

Artwork: WotC has a history of using great artists, and the core books continue that trend. At first, I thought the books felt light on art, but flipping back through my 3.5e core books, it’s about the same — but 4e uses its artwork better, focusing on full-color splash pages and dramatic pieces. The neatest thing for me is that all the art depicts stuff that looks like fun and feels like what you do in a D&D game; it’s well-matched and evocative. And that splash page in the PHB? Man, does that make me want to play D&D.

This is actually only a small bit of his thoughts.  He goes into detail about each of the three new books.  You can read more about it here: http://www.gnomestew.com/specific-rpgs/a-gms-first-impressions-of-dnd-4e-looks-like-fun

4e Verdict

I like it a lot! It’s an entirely new action role playing game based on common elements of prior editions. I love how fluid and fast the action can get, how easy it is to adjudicate actions not directly covered by the rules. All calls felt natural and players agreed to my proposed calls without debate.

I adopted 4e once and for all sometime during the afternoon of my 2nd game… Here I was with complete strangers (most of which had no intention to switch to 4e), killing their PCs and still seeing excitement, trepidation and fun on all their faces.

Well except one, but he kept complaining of being screwed by the dice and more or less doubting that I could play so many 20s without cheating.

http://chattydm.net/2008/06/08/playing-4e-game-day-experience-and-dming-thoughts/

Subscribe to this blog's RSS feed

With the launch of Wizards of the Coast 4th edition Dungeons and Dragons series tomorrow, a huge game day will commence. This game day has been months in planning and if you are looking to join one now, you will probably be to late as they will all be filled since space at them is limited. However if you purchase the books yourself and have a group to play with, you can have your own game day. Of course you may get lucky and be able to find one that still has an opening or two from the list below.

Eastern US

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/4dnd/gameday-eus

Western US and Guam

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/4dnd/gameday-wus

Canada

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/4dnd/gameday-locations

Asia and Pacific

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/4dnd/gameday-apc

Europe and Israel

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/4dnd/gameday-eur

Mexico, Central and South America, and Caribbean

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/4dnd/gameday-csc

They are even going to have special places for thos in the military to play.

http://www.militarydnd.com

To find out more go to Wizards of the Coast official site

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/4dnd/gameday

With the 4th edition of Dungeons and Dragons coming out this week, some people have been wondering why a new edition is out so soon after the last one. Wizards of the Coast has an FAQ to help people understand.

Why 4th Edition?
Refreshing a living game such as D&D is very important. Our understanding of what works best for today’s players is always evolving, and ignoring that would result in a stagnant game that few people play. We’ve been dreaming of and experimenting with ways to improve the game—from better rules to more exciting characters to great online tools—for years, and now we’re finally ready to show folks the best Dungeons & Dragons game we’ve ever made.

When does 4th Edition release?
The three core rulebooks—the Player’s Handbook, Dungeon Master’s Guide and Monster Manual—release June 2008.

What are some of the notable changes to 4th Edition compared to 3.5?
The Design & Development column on D&D Insider is the best location to see the changes and developments that have gone into 4th Edition. This column offers a unique behind-the-scenes look at the making of the game, with members of the R&D Team sharing their insights and philosophies.

You can also pick up a copy of the two 4th Edition preview books, Wizards Presents: Races and Classes, and Wizards Presents: Worlds and Monsters.

Are there any conversion plans in place for transitioning 3.5 to 4th Edition?
We learned with 3rd Edition that accurate conversion really doesn’t work. Thus, we’re encouraging everyone to start at 1st level in 4th Edition and learn the new system from the ground up. While you’ll certainly be able to reinvent many existing characters with the new system, there’s no conversion guide that could adequately cover the vast array of options that have been published over the lifespan of the game.

With the introduction of 4th Edition, will existing 3.5 product be obsolete?
We are moving to a new edition, and the rulebooks that we’ll release from June 2008 forward will use the 4th Edition system. However, Dungeons & Dragons has always been a game involving campaign and world-building and your books from past editions still contain thousands of pages of information that you may consult when creating your world and/or updating your campaign. While there are no official plans to convert 3rd Edition material into 4th Edition, it is always possible to convert your favorite materials on your own.

That said, we’re also making sure that many products released before 4th Edition are “edition-proof,” meaning they can be used in any edition of the game (such as the Grand History of the Realms). In addition, other 3.5 products (such as Exemplars of Evil and Elder Evils) will receive 4th Edition updates, via D&D Insider.

What campaign setting support will there be?
A new version of the Forgotten Realms campaign setting will be released in August 2008. Eberron will be released some time in 2009. Beyond those, other campaign settings will receive some level of support in the future, but we’re still working on our plans.

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dndifaq

Origins is a 24 hour gaming convention held every year in Columbus, OH. For the area it is one of the largest and attended by many big name people. It is a five day convention that never stops so someone that attends has to choose wisely what they want to see and do. There is just about anything that a gamer could want. And this year it is being held June 25-29th in Columbus, Ohio. If you are interested in table-top role-playing, live action role-playing, miniatures, seminars, or other gaming areas, this is the place for you.

This year however the name has changed. Also changed this year is the extension to five days of gaming fun. The fair has signature events for all fans of games, fantasy, various shows, etc. I in fact got a signature from the actor who played Badger on Firefly. You just never know who will be there.

If it is your first year to Origins, they have created a new special pass for $3 per person or $10 per family. This pass lets you explore the Exhibit Hall, the Art Show and the demonstration booths lining the main corridor for this low price. They can only be purchased for Saturday and Sunday and only at the show. There are no advance special pass tickets.

It is $70 to attend Origins but it is well worth the trip. Of course if you want to get in free, you can volunteer to help with the event. Not only can volunteering get you in free, but it can also give you free hotel stay.

And this year is in memoriam of Gary Gygax who passed away earlier this year. The founder of Dungeons & Dragons helped get fairs like Origins started with the creation of D&D so it is very fitting for this. The man will be missed but his ideas and creativity will last forever thanks to the millions of players.

If you would like to find out more, visit the Origins website at http://www.originsgamefair.com/

In honor of the new 4th edition Dungeons and Dragons coming out, I wanted to get people ready to play. If you never have and like to use your imagination, give it a try. There are lots of things you can do with table-top roleplaying. One thing is have a minature be your character in the game. This is a represetation of the Player Character, or PC, you are in the game. And the most fun to create that character is to paint a minature. So watch this video on how to paint them.