Dungeons and Dragons Core Rulebook Gift Set, 4th Edition Hardcover – Box set, June 6, 2008

Dungeons and Dragons has been a staple in my nerd pedigree since I was 16 years old. I've played on and off since high school, playing D&D 2nd edition and D&D 3.5. For most of this time I was the dungeon master of the game, putting together adventures, customizing monsters and encounters, and building the story through which the players would all play.About a year ago I got quite frustrated with D&D 3.5. Our gaming group, a group of adult friends who gathered monthly to play for about four or five hours, had reached level 13. Most of the players ran more than one character, sometimes because another member of the group left and sometimes to fill a role the party missed. During these games every battle took nearly two hours. It got so bad that I had to tune adventures around four, three, and sometimes as few as two combat encounters per adventure simply to ensure we'd leave at a normal time. Modules like "City of the Spider Queen" had to be completely re-written to let our group have any chance at finishing it.At Gencon 2007, Wizards of the Coast announced Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition and, a year later, I now have the 4th edition Players Handbook, Monster Manual, and Dungeon Master's Guide sitting on my desk.D&D 4th edition solved many of the problems I have with 3.5. Combat is fast, characters are streamlined but still powerful, I'm able to write and run the adventures I want, and everyone at the table is having a great time.Dungeons and Dragons 4th edition is the best tabletop RPG I have ever played.What makes 4th Edition GreatThere's a lot of great stuff in 4th edition but a few of these stand out as the clear advantages of the system.First, the rules are simplified and more consistent. For example, attacks against enemies always mean rolling a d20 and adding your modifier. It doesn't matter if you're hitting with a sword or firing a fireball. You always roll attack rolls. This is a big switch from 3.5 where spells required defenders to roll saving throws while fighters rolled attacks against static defender ACs. The four defenses in 4th edition; AC, fortitude, reflex, and will; make sense and feel natural.Second, all character classes are fun to play. The cleric in 4th edition sure isn't your daddy's cleric. Though healing is still a large part of a cleric's job, the cleric can drop a lot of damage and boost a party's effectiveness quite a bit. This is the first D&D cleric that is genuinely fun to play.Third, class powers rock. I remember when I first saw feats in D&D 3.5 how I saw them as the evolution of skills. Feats were skills that actually meant something in combat. Now combat powers take that up a step further. Character powers are the true strength in your character. They are the abilities you will use the most often in any given combat. They are the cinematic action-packed moves that impress the rest of the players and make you feel like a real hero instead of a farmer with a sword.Fourth, character power and monster power is very well balanced. The power curves in D&D is much smoother from level 1 to 30 than it was from 1 to 20 in 3.5. One of the brilliant changes in D&D 4th edition is the monster power levels. Instead of simply having a monster level that compares to a character level, monsters can come in four different types: minions, standard guys, elite guys, and solo guys. Minions may be as powerful statistically as a player at any level but any single successful attack kills them in a single blow. This way a level 23 party may get attacked by twenty level 20 abyssal ghouls but any single hit on any of them will drop them dead. Normal guys are the typical monsters we're used to. Elite guys are powerful versions of normal guys but count as two, have twice the hit points, and often have some sort of secondary attacks. Solo guys, like dragons and beholders, can fight off an entire party by themselves. Again, these can be at any level, so a level 3 solo white dragon still counts as a single solo creatures as does a level 30 solo ancient red dragon. As a DM, these make it a lot easier to build powerful boss creatures surrounded by threatening fodder like a good John Woo movie.Fourth, and most importantly, 4th edition is simply more fun to play. Players focus on their powers instead of digging into the minutia of the rules. Fighters have a whole pile of actions to perform while wizards are much more streamlined and focused instead of choosing from hundreds of possible options while the rest of the players look bored.The Problems of 4ED&D 4th edition isn't perfect. For one, since every attack requires an attack roll, players will miss a lot more often than they used to in 3.5. Wizards always had the option to cast a magic missile and do a little damage. Now magic missiles can miss, something unheard of for the last 30 years. When your turn may not come around for ten minutes or so, it's pretty lame to miss your roll and have to wait another ten minutes.Second, 4th edition is really built around miniatures on a battle grid. While players can possibly play D&D with just dialog and maybe some paper diagrams, most of the rules focus on a square battle grid and miniatures. For the past two years or so I've become hopelessly addicted to D&D miniatures so this isn't a problem for me. It justifies the money I've spent.Third, character creation is still pretty complicated. Attributes, races, classes, and items all have modifiers to your baseline statistics that require quite a lot of page flipping. For example, to calculate your athletics skill check you have to know your level, your attribute modifier, your possible racial modifier, your class trained skills, and any possible armor modifier. For an experienced player this isn't so bad, and its a LOT better than the overly complicated skill system in 3.5, but it makes it difficult to quickly build characters for a one-night game. I personally can't wait for some sort of online javascript character generator that can help me quickly build PCs for a one-night game. In the mean time, I'm back to using PC-like D&D miniatures for quick games or 1 on 1 games.The Fear of ChangeThere's a lot of criticism surrounding 4th edition. Amazon currently posts a customer rating of 3 out of 5. Many of the reviewers don't even own the books but simply attack with many various criticisms that generally come down to the following:4th Edition is too simplified and misses a lot of the stuff I had and liked in 3.5.I already have too much invested in 3.5 and I don't want to switch.4th Edition is World of Warcraft on paper.Nearly all of these arguments come down to a single problem; a fear of change.I don't know how many of the critics are actual Dungeon Masters and I don't know of those who are DMs how many have tried 4th edition, but after reading through and playing through a few D&D 4th edition games, as a DM I can't see ever going back. In my 3.5 games the planning was too complicated, too much time was spent at the table looking up strange rules, and combat took forever. 4th edition gets rid of all of that without losing the tactics and fun that makes a game like D&D great.I can understand those who feel like their shelf full of 3.5 books suddenly became worthless. However, looking at my own substantial collection of books, I see very few I'd actually give away. Many of them, like the Book of Vile Darkness and the two Fiendish Codices bring me nostalgia even now. Game systems change and there's no one forcing anyone to switch. Everyone knew Wizards would come out with a new version some day and frankly, I'm glad they did.The "D&D = Warcraft" straw-man argument is perplexing. First, a pen and paper game is never like a computer game. Second, WoW is pretty popular so who cares if it does steal from it. There are elements to D&D that mimic some of the rules of WoW such as the talent trees and some of the character class attributes, but combat is still very much D&D and 4th Edition definitely has its own flavor.D&D's Biggest ProblemThere's one large unwritten problem surrounding a game like D&D, one that has nothing to do with the rules or the cost of the books. Sometimes its just hard to find a group with which to play. I've been lucky in my life to have four of five good D&D groups that played for over a few years. I'm very lucky to have two groups now, one a weekly game that I run with my friends and another that I play in every other week. This mostly comes from the location in which I live, there are enough people around the DC area to find a few different groups of folks. For folks living out in the sticks, however, finding a group can be rough.Add onto this the stigma of being a D&D player, one we often enjoy together but one that gets in the way when we want to find or build a group, and many might toss D&D aside and focus on computer games instead. I know there were times in my life where I really wanted to play D&D but was too shy to really hunt down and find a good group. It takes a lot of guts to invite yourself into a group of a bunch of strangers, especially for socially awkward folks like myself who tend to gravitate towards games like this.There's no clear solution to this. The internet helps with sites like Meetup.com and various D&D boards where people meet and get together. However, as long as the game isn't mainstream, it will be hard for a lot of people to play.I can think of only one solution that may help give players the opportunity to play: adventures written for two players. Like D&D miniatures, D&D could be played by two players, one as a DM and one as a player. The player character would have to fight alone but could fight down a series of nasty bad guys and solve a simple plot. I've read enough posts to see a high demand for one-on-one adventures but so far have seen very few ever published. Like soloing in World of Warcraft, one-on-one D&D adventures have a better opportunity to bring D&D to more people. I hope to see this expand in the future.Until better solutions can be found, D&D will always be a hobbyist game played by a few folks in dark basements scattered across the country.4th Edition, My New Favorite GameAs a DM, 4th edition is a dream. It gives me all the tools to build an exciting adventure that feels like an excellent action movie without worrying about power balance. Combat is fast and fun, with lots of options for both the players and the DMs. The rules are easy enough for veteran players to jump right in with mostly logical conclusions to the questions that come up during gameplay.As a player, D&D 4th edition makes every class fun, gives enough options and customization to build the sort of character one wants to play without so much customization as to overwhelm. Class powers are the next evolution in character action providing the action-packed actions we'd expect in a good book or movie.Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition is the best tabletop RPG I've ever played.

After the wild disparity of comments about 4th edition, both here and elsewhere on the net, it's probably difficult for a prospective buyer to figure out which opinions he should heed. Here are my observations, for what it's worth:1) The books are well produced and good looking. The layout is friendly to the eye, and the slip cover will help the longevity of the product.2) The system is cohesive and even-handed at last. There's just one task resolution system, and it works for spells, sword slashes, daring feints, and divine prayers. A player who's been playing a fighter can easily understand how the wizard works if he rolls up a new character. Powers, be they martial, arcane, or divine, all work in the same manner. In addition, since the heuristic for going up in level is now shared between all classes, there are no big surprises when you try a new class. Finally, by giving characters a set number of hit points at each level, there are no massive disparities between those who "rolled well" and those who didn't.3) No one has to stand around. Since there are powers that are at-will, per-encounter, and per-day for all character classes, there's always some spell, prayer, or maneuver that a character can try. No more stopping to rest after a single encounter, just because the wizard's all out of spells and can't get them back until the next day.4) Characters start out cool. Even at first level, your character is a stud, able to pull off heroic moves in combat. Extended adventures are well within the reach of a first level group. With the advent of healing surges, players can recuperate, even if there's no cleric in the party.5) Combat stays fast. Even at high levels, since 4e does away with the iterative, multiple attack sequence, the combat rounds should remain managable.6) Manageable choices. At high levels in 3.x D&D, characters could become absurdly complex. In addition, some of their lesser powers became useless, since they were not sufficiently impressive to make a difference in a level-appropriate encounter. With the advent of swapping out powers and feats, 4e allows characters to change, to adapt themselves to their new challenges. They won't be saddled with useless feats or powers forever. Also, since the number of possible powers to bring to bear is much less, the player doesn't have to muddle through book after book trying to figure out what to memorize. In fact, most classes don't need to make these choices at all, since their powers are ready to go at whatever frequency is indicated in the description.7) Race matters. Yes, a Tiefling fighter will be different from a Dwarf fighter. Every race has special powers and exploits that will have a strong effect on what feats they use and their "flavor" in combat.8) The monsters just work. The layout and methodology used to create monsters is a quantum leap forward. Every encounter can be challenging, tactical, and full of neat tricks on both sides. This can be done without brain-bursting labor on the DM's part. Prepare for fights to take a few more rounds, but for each round to pass more quickly, since the combat sequence is more elegant. Minions, especially, are a great addition, since they allow for dangerous but glass-jawed adversaries to rush the characters in the first wave.9) Cooperation pays. Because of the way the character classes are designed, the party gains huge benefits from working together. When, for instance, a rogue and a warlord work in concert, they can push an opponent into flanking position or into a dangerous area where a clever wizard can blast them with a spell. Paladins are rewarded for being in the thick of the action and challenging a tough opponent to fight them. The elegant way the class synergies work really makes even thorny players see the advantage in working together.10) Yes, there are concerns. Not all the "classic" races or classes appear in this book. It's really not possible to directly upgrade your 3.x character, expecially if you've taken prestige classes or are heavily multi-classed. Yes, the cosmology has been altered, and some of the old creatures have been changed radically. Yes, there are some elements that seem as if they've been adapted from online games. If you fear change, these can all be thought of as negatives. I choose to see them as great opportunities, just as 3.x gave us a world of opportuinties after 2nd edition.11) Some have already said that 4e is too "generic", and that there are too few options for building a character. I have to disagree. You have so many granular elements by which to create a unique character. With each class, there are a number of choices for powers. Your choice of these powers will dictate the tactical decisions you make. Then there's race, which has been given far more weight in this edition. Each feat choice emphasizes one element of your character, as well. Among the feat choices, there are "multiclass" feats, which give your character just a hint of power from another class. As you progress, there are Paragon Paths and Epic Destinies with which to concern yourself. Again, these further define your character. When I remember the days of 2nd edition, when fighters were fighters and orcs were scared, it's a pretty huge leap forward. Remember, too, that there will be more options, more classes, more races, more feats as the game begins to mature. It's impossible to cram dozens of books into one, no matter how good your game designers are.12) A few will say that, with all this talk of combat mechanics, this edition has to be for munchkins and power gamers alone. They will point to the fact that there are even codified rules for non-combat challenges. Roleplaying is discussed in the first chapter of the new Player's. If you want to have a fifty page backstory for your character, and know what his third cousin's middle name is, great. That's still possible. All of the roleplaying realms of inquiry are still on the table. In point of fact, roleplaying isn't tied to the game system at all. It's merely the place where creative players and a fine DM converge. You can't adjudicate roleplaying. You can't codify it. You can only suggest it. I submit that a system that doesn't boggle the players and send them into a fury of rule-playing somewhere in a text will naturally lead to better roleplaying.13) Finally, there's the feeling that this new edition comes too soon on the heels of 3.5. The product cycle has been vastly sped up since the 1st and 2nd edition days, and there's no getting around it. If you look at the number of releases, though, this was bound to happen. If Wizards releases a hardback book every month, that'll quickly burn through the "low hanging fruit" in gaming terms. I think that most reasonable people would agree that 3.x had more than enough spells, feats, prestige classes, game worlds, and so on. In order to move away from well-trodden ground, companies had to come up with more and more esoteric material, most of which would not be that exciting to the average gamer. In a business sense, it's clear that there had to be a new version of D&D. As a consumer, it's your choice as to if you'll pursue it. I advise that you do. Remember, all the ideas from the older products can be used or adapted to a new game system. If you want to run "Against the Giants" from 1st edition, adapting it to 4e would not be a herculean task. Don't be afraid of change. Try it out while it's still on sale.

Box/slip case was in kinda rough shape but I don't care about the box really. Books all look good. I'm looking forward to learning about this era of the game.

I am not a D&D player. My son and his friends are wild about this latest edition of the D&D Rulebooks and had to have it. In the past his book collection was pieced together. I hesitated, but went ahead and splurged and spent the extra 10 bucks or so to get the Gift Set. Wow! He was thrilled. It really makes for a nice presentation and I know he is so proud when he pulls out his "boxed set" when friends are over. I believe it is no different than the individually sold hard backs, but he likes it because it sets his apart from the rest. Pretty cool.

Im Gegensatz zu einigen bisherigen Rezensionen, die persönliche Meinungen zum Inhaltlichen der 4. Edition D&D abgegeben haben, möchte ich den Schwerpunkt auf das Produkt an sich legen:Die Hülle in der sich die 3 Bücher befinden, ist aus sehr dickem Karton gefertigt, und macht einen sehr soliden Eindruck. Die Oberfläche ist matt glänzend und ohne Vertiefungen oder Reliefs. Das im Hintergrund durchscheinende Drachenprofil beispielsweise ist durch unterschiedlichen Glanz der Oberfläche erzeugt, nicht durch einen erhabenen Aufdruck wie ich erwartet hatte.Die 3 Bücher sitzen passgenau in der Hülle, ohne Spiel aber auch nicht zu stramm, sodass sie sehr angenehm herausgleiten wenn man die Hülle leicht schräg hält. Das hat mir sehr gefallen.Die Bücher an sich sind natürlich Hardcover-Editionen mit einem sehr dicken Pappdeckel. Die Deckbilder sind auch hier wieder mit Hochglanz auf seidenmattem Hintergrund aufgebracht.Vermutlich sind die Cover dadurch auch Wasser- bzw Kaffeabweisend, was ich jedoch tunlichst nicht ausprobieren werde.Ich persönlich finde das gesamte Erscheinungsbild fast sogar etwas zu glänzend, aber das passt zum allgemein etwas moderner gehalteten Stil der 4. Auflage von D&D, insofern habe ich daran nicht wirklich etwas auszusetzen.Die hohe Qualität der Bücher setzt sich beim ersten Aufklappen fort, Die Druckqualität ist hoch und die Seitenkanten schön sauber. Die Bücher haben eine Gewebebindung, sodass man nicht Angst haben muss dass die Seiten irgendwann aus dem Leim gehen.Alles in Allem kann ich dieses Geschenkset für Liebhaber nur empfehlen, sei es zum Selbstkaufen oder Verschenken. Ich würde mich sehr freuen wenn man mir dieses Set schenken würde, es gehört einfach ins Rollenspiel-Regal. Und dafür ist es meiner Meinung nach auch vordergründig gedacht. Das Set wäre mir zu schade um es für den "täglichen" Hausgebrauch zu verschleißen, obwohl sie dies bei sorgsamer Handhabung sicherlich lange Zeit mitmachen würden.Nun doch noch kurz etwas zum Inhalt:Die Regeln der 4. Edition sind in der Tat massiv zurechtgestutzt worden.Mit Sicherheit handelt es sich hier noch um einen Rohdiamanten, der noch die ein oder andere Revision erleben wird, und Erratas werden sicher auch nicht lage auf sich warten lassen.Nichtsdetotrotz empfinde ich die Vereinfachung als durchweg positiv.Denn letzten Endes sollen die Regeln das Rollenspiel nicht in den Hintergrund drängen, sondern das Zusammenspiel idealerweise wie ein unsichtbares Korsett in Form halten. Die vorherigen D&D - Versionen haben teilweise dermaßen mit Regeln, Erweiterungen, Ergänzungen und alternativen Konzepten um sich geworfen, dass sie sich unangenehm in den Vordergrund des Spiels gedrängt haben. Diesem Trend stellt sich D&D4 nun entgegen, und das finde ich sehr gut.Manche finden, dies sei die Version für Jugendliche, weniger komplex und tiefgründig als die bisherigen. Nun, diese Version ist sicherlich jugendfreundlicher. Aber die Tiefgründigkeit sollte nicht aus in Stein gemeißelten ausufernden Regelwerken entstehen, sondern aus dem, was Spieler und Spielleiter aus dem gegebenen Gerüst machen. Jugendfreundlichkeit oder Einfachheit schließt ja die eignung für Erwachsene Rollenspieler nicht aus. Im gegenteil, hier hat man sehr viel größere Freiheiten als Spielleiter, mittels Hausregeln und eigenen Facetten sein ganz eigenes D&D4 zu erzeugen.Sowohl für den Inhalt der Bücher als auch für die Qualität des Buchsets gibt es von mir eine klare Kaufempfehlung.Gruß

This boxed set of the first three core rule books for 4th Edition Dungeons & Dragons is great for anyone looking to run thier own game. You only need this set if you plan on being the Dungeon Master, a.k.a. "DM". Otherwise you should look into picking up just the Player's Handbook. This new 4th Edition of the game streamlines the whole experience and focuses on making the game more fun and less about micro-managing your numbers and stats. The newly designed books are easier to read and find what you are looking for. The Player's Handbook now has a section for Magic Items, which used to be exclussively found in the DM's Guide. As good as the Player's Handbook is, the Dungeon Master's Guide is a well rounded book explaining everything you need to run a fun game and answer any questions or problems you may encounter. Finally the Monster Manuel is a wonderful addition to this set. Listing hundreds of monster with full color layouts and background and tactics, you can make any game night one filled with adventure and montrous battles. I would say that this new version of the game runs very well, but for those who truly liked the feel of the older games, you need to know that this is a newer version that may feel different to some, or a return to it's former glory to others. It is very easy now to pick up and play, and even people who may have been put off by earlier games will probably find something to like here. I can't recommend it enough. I just want to add that I still play AD&D 2nd edition and D&D 3E with my groups, and 4th Edition has won a place at on our game nights.

I have been roleplaying for over 10 years, and have done a variety of games and systems. I can honestly say that D&D 4th Edition is the most fun my players and I have had since we began.The game is far more friendly for new players now, and much easier for DMs to work with.The three core books are well written, high quality, and evocative.Be sure to visit the website for Wizards of the Coast, in order to get the errata they have published however, as this will neaten up the books.A great set and I would recommend to everyone who loves fantasy and friends.