Dionysus and D&D

[cavalier973]

On another thread, you recommended sticking with 3.5 edition of D&D.  Do you have specific criticisms of 4E based on personal experience, or is an impression you have from listening to other people?

I've not played either tabletop version, just computer (of course, there's no 4E computer game yet)...Except that I have the 3rd edition "Basic Game" and the 4th edition "Roleplayer's Starter Kit".  The Basic Game is better because it has a lot more stuff to it (the mini-DM guide even has store items and ways to implement traps and that sort of thing for creating mini-adventures with the Basic Set; the RPSK has some of that, but not nearly as much.  Plus, the Basic Game had actual miniatures, while the RPSK only has tiles--nice tiles, but still, tiles).

Still, I am intrigued by the changes in 4E, and have listened to the podcasts with the Penny Arcade guys, and it sounds like they were having fun...

I suspect that if the economy tanks as badly as some are predicting, we'll all be sitting around in candle-lit rooms with nothing to do--certainly no computer games.  So I figure I could pull out the ol' D&D game for entertainment....

[The ghost of a ghost of a ghost]

 Nerd

[blackie]

My oldest kid wants some D&D stuff. I haven't played in over 20 years. What is the right stuff to get?

[cavalier973]

My oldest kid wants some D&D stuff. I haven't played in over 20 years. What is the right stuff to get?

I recommend the D&D Basic Set; it's set up like a board game, it has miniatures and nice dungeon tiles, it's easy to get into, and has a lot of information on "continuing adventures".  There are two different sets; one has 16 miniatures (the one I have), the other only 12 miniatures.  There are other differences in the two sets, I understand.

I bought mine off either amazon.com or ebay.

Of course, if you want to do 4E, then the Roleplaying Starter Kit, but you can also download the first dungeon romp, "Keep on the Shadowfell", which has basic start rules, characters, maps, etc. free of charge off the website www.wizards.com

This review is interesting: http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/374175/goodbye-descent-how-4e-made-this-jaded-dad-love-d

[cavalier973]

Nerd

Actually, I have 7 ranks in nerd, then multi-classed to geek (which uses Charisma rather than Intelligence for spellcasting), and one level of dork, for the bonus feat

[cavalier973]

Why Plato didn't play Dungeons and Dragons:
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/issues/issue_151/4931-Dungeons-Dragons-Owns-the-Future.3

[The ghost of a ghost of a ghost]

Nerd

Actually, I have 7 ranks in nerd, then multi-classed to geek (which uses Charisma rather than Intelligence for spellcasting), and one level of dork, for the bonus feat

[davann]

Ah, a D&D thread. Love it.

Have not played since the days of Tracy Hickman.

Former Nerds Unite!

I've heard it has been seriously dumbed down for the new generations of nerds.

[Brooklyn Red Leg]

May I offer the alternative to 3.5: Castles & Crusades. It keeps the basic simplicity of d20, but goes a step further in not requiring people to spend upwards of an hour making a character. Instead of skill points and feats, the more elegant Siege Engine Mechanic is used. Literally, you can TRY anything with the mechanic, meaning you can try and pick a lock as a Fighter. Your Difficulty depends upon if its a native skill (pick locks would be a Thief skill) and modifies the result as necessary.

The system is easily adaptable to ANY edition of D&D, though 4th Edition is very difficult. However, OD&D, 1st/2nd AD&D and HackMaster are all 'compatible'.

RPGNow Castles & Crusades Quickstart Rules page

As for Alignments, in my own game I took it a step further than D&D 4E by modifying the OD&D Holmes Basic chart. I have 5 Alignments: Good, Unaligned, Evil, Lawful & Chaotic. Choose 1 and that's it. Most people, all animals and some monsters are Unaligned. Paladins are Good or Evil. All Undead (except for Self-Willed Revenants) are Chaotic (think Cthonic Insanity). And so on and so forth.

[anarchir]

I played up through middle school and then tried playing again my first semester in college (it was going to make me a major social outcast, and I wasnt having fun with the people I played with because they were way too devoted so I quit).  I'd go with 3rd edition simply because it is the one most people use. I was thinking about getting rid of all my books (3rd edition, not 3.5) plus I have some of my dads old 2nd edition stuff.

[cavalier973]

Thanks for the info; what of Pathfinder?

[cavalier973]

Despite all the excellent advice I got regarding D&D 4E, I went ahead and bought the 4E core books.  Sorry for wasting your time.

[anarchir]

GAH!

[cavalier973]

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

We lost another one...

D&D 4E had me at hello....

My problem is that I don't have a lot of history with the game (being the child of a Southern Baptist pastor, the games were eeeevil....EEEEEVIIIIILLL!!! http://www.chick.com/READING/TRACTS/0046/0046_01.ASP ), so I don't have the preconceived notions of what TT D&D is supposed to be; I'm fine with a game that
1. Forces you to use miniatures (or some equivalent)
2. Makes all the classes "the same"
3. Neuters the wizard class
4. Everything else bad that WOTC did to destroy the roelplaying genre as we know it in pursuit of dirty profits

[davann]

My problem is that I don't have a lot of history with the game (being the child of a Southern Baptist pastor, the games were eeeevil....EEEEEVIIIIILLL!!! http://www.chick.com/READING/TRACTS/0046/0046_01.ASP ),

Hee hee, I had the same issue when my step son took his players handbook to the Baptist school and was reading at lunch. Those people were all up in arms and I had to go in for a consult. I told the idiot behind the desk I did not care if my son was reading Playboy at lunch, at least he was reading. Fools don't understand how hard it is some times to get kids interested in reading. I say let 'em read what ever strikes their fancy and it might grow into an actual love for it.

Man, you should have gone old school with 3rd edition. There was so much to learn the game took on a level of an actual trade level education. This stuff now is obviously for the masses that have a hard time putting 2 and 2 together. It is like the taking the short bus to dnd.