Revised Players Handbook
SurgicalSteel
First Post
The first Players Handbook was released in 1978, the second of the core triad of AD&D books. The Monster Manual was released the year previous, and the Dungeon Masters Guide the year following. Prior to this, in the D&D system (before "O"D&D or Basic D&D), the organization was rather ad hoc, with new booklets released to provide supplementary material to the boxed set of three booklets.
The core triad was a systematic compilation of the material that existed to that point, divided into the appropriate manuals. It updated the material and organized it for ease of reference.
Released in 2000, the 288 page 3E D&D Player's Handbook (with apostrophe this time) was in a sense a different game, being easily the most significant revision of the Dungeon's and Dragons system, ever.
Along with a simple unified mechanic, the class system and way races work changed drastically. Its mechanics derived from its wargaming roots were mostly removed (with the glaring exception of Hit Points), and Armor Class was somewhat altered. Emblematic of the simplifications was the systematization of the skill system, which previously existed as class abilities, each with individual rules.
The 320-page 3E D&D Revised Player's Handbook ("3.5") is most similar to the release of the first Players Handbook, as it revises pre-existing material, and adds additional material to the core.
Here is the chapter and page break down for the new PH:
Introduction..................................2
Character Creation Summary....................1
Chapter 1: Abilities..........................4
Chapter 2: Races..............................10
Chapter 3: Classes............................40
Chapter 4: Skills.............................26
Chapter 5: Feats..............................16
Chapter 6: Description........................8
Chapter 7: Equipment..........................22
Chapter 8: Combat.............................28
Chapter 9: Adventuring........................8
Chapter 10: Magic.............................12
Chapter 11: Spells............................123
General Guidelines and Glossary...............11
Index.........................................3
Character Sheet...............................2
Unrevised 3E PH Chapter and Page Breakdown
Character Creation Basics.....................2
Introduction..................................1
Chapter 1: Abilities..........................4
Chapter 2: Races..............................10
Chapter 3: Classes............................36
Chapter 4: Skills.............................20
Chapter 5: Feats..............................10
Chapter 6: Description........................8
Chapter 7: Equipment..........................20
Chapter 8: Combat.............................26
Chapter 9: Adventuring........................6
Chapter 10: Magic.............................12
Chapter 11: Spells............................116
General Guidelines and Glossary...............8
Index.........................................3
Playtester Credits............................1
Character Sheet...............................2
The immediate observations one makes are that the class, skills, and feats sections are longer. The combat chapter is shorter, the Glossary has been expanded, and the section of spells has grown slightly (by a few pages).
The changes to the class section primarily of detailed errata to the classes. For example, there is an extensive clarification of what one can and cannot do while a Barbarian rages. Bard Inspire songs are augmented, and they gain a new song, Song of Freedom. Rangers are more evenly weighted, have a d8 HD, and can pursue the 2 Weapon track or the archery track. The treatment of Animal Companions is expanded. So on...
The Skills and Feats sections are the most changed. Some skills that were never used have been permanently dropped, others are absorbed into other skills. Read Lips is absorbed into Spot, and Intuit Direction is an automatic benefit of the Survival skill. Pick Pockets has been renamed Sleight of Hand. The total number of skills has decreased by a half-dozen. The expansion of the page count comes in expanded descriptions, and a more detailed explanation of skill use rules and adjudication. The clarification of the skill rules is the most important addition here.
Feats appear to have been expanded enormously. There is a new 2 page table which features improved usability over the first version, with a short description of the feat on the table itself. This proves deceiving, as more than a dozen of the new feats are simply revisions of the Skill Focus feat. These feats now give +2/+2 to a pair of skills. For example, the Deft Hands feat now gives +2/+2 to Sleight of Hand and Rope Use. Less than a dozen of the new feats are from the 3E class handbooks, such as Natural Spell.
The biggest real change is probably to Two Weapon Fighting. The Ambidexterity feat no longer exists. It has been absorbed into TWF. The other significant new feat is Improved Counterspell. With this feat, there is some chance of counterspelling actually occurring during a game. The Weapon Focus/Specialization tree has been expanded, as has the TWF tree.
The changes to these sections are the most significant ones. The combat section has been shrunk and streamlined, and furnished with improved diagrams, and the glossary has been expanded. These changes make the new PH an improved play aid.
Like everything else, the Spell section has expanded explanations. Haste has been powered down, as have Heal/Harm. Harm in particular has been nerfed so badly that a 5th level spell (Slay Living) is better than the 6th level spell. This choice appears to be an instance of caving to whining DMs. Comparing the two, I can't see why anyone would ever choose to use Harm now. Both deal reduced damage with a save. Both have to get past Spell Resistance. Only Slay Living auto-kills if it succeeds, and the damage can kill even if it fails, and Harm never auto-kills, whether it succeeds or fails.
What the heck ? The only thing I see Harm being useful for is fighting things with unusually poor Will save relative to Fort save (which players/characters should not ever know). The increase in spell level for Save DC is better accomplished by using Spell Focus/GSF for a Slay Living, than using Harm. The 6th level spell slot is better spent on a Blade Barrier, Planar Ally for an Astral Deva, Mass Cure Moderate Wounds, or a Domain Spell. If this is really what the designers meant to do, they should have just removed it entirely.
The Races have been tweaked somewhat, with Dwarves benefiting the most. Gnome's new preferred class is Bard, which is probably the strangest decision in this new edition. My guess is that this is an attempt to get people to play the still-worthless bard class.
PRESENTATION
The visual theme of the PH is unchanged. The tome-binding cover is more elaborate now. There are a few new illustrations, but the bulk of the new presentation is in the combat grid diagrams.
Tables in text are much clearer thanks to alternating color bars. It looks as though this is the standard format for tables now, and it is certainly welcome.
And that's about it, for changes in presentation.
CONCLUSION
Ultimately, the only pertinent question here is: Should I buy this ?
These rulebooks are now the authoritative ("official") version of D&D. Thus modules, Dungeon adventures, etc, will all use this ruleset. But then, most of the changes are not tremendously significant. The Skills and Feats section have the most obvious changes.
Generally speaking, the most compelling reason to buy this Player's Handbook is that one does not own a 3E PH, so you might as well get the updated version.
The changes made to the PH are most important during character generation. The combat section is clarified and simplified, making it the best source of resolving in-play rules disputes. Also important are the modifications to spells. But most of the changes boil down to some tweaks here and there, so I personally would make sure my playing group had at least one copy, then probably leave it there.
The backward compatibility guide will soon be available at www.wizards.com/dnd .
The core triad was a systematic compilation of the material that existed to that point, divided into the appropriate manuals. It updated the material and organized it for ease of reference.
Released in 2000, the 288 page 3E D&D Player's Handbook (with apostrophe this time) was in a sense a different game, being easily the most significant revision of the Dungeon's and Dragons system, ever.
Along with a simple unified mechanic, the class system and way races work changed drastically. Its mechanics derived from its wargaming roots were mostly removed (with the glaring exception of Hit Points), and Armor Class was somewhat altered. Emblematic of the simplifications was the systematization of the skill system, which previously existed as class abilities, each with individual rules.
The 320-page 3E D&D Revised Player's Handbook ("3.5") is most similar to the release of the first Players Handbook, as it revises pre-existing material, and adds additional material to the core.
Here is the chapter and page break down for the new PH:
Introduction..................................2
Character Creation Summary....................1
Chapter 1: Abilities..........................4
Chapter 2: Races..............................10
Chapter 3: Classes............................40
Chapter 4: Skills.............................26
Chapter 5: Feats..............................16
Chapter 6: Description........................8
Chapter 7: Equipment..........................22
Chapter 8: Combat.............................28
Chapter 9: Adventuring........................8
Chapter 10: Magic.............................12
Chapter 11: Spells............................123
General Guidelines and Glossary...............11
Index.........................................3
Character Sheet...............................2
Unrevised 3E PH Chapter and Page Breakdown
Character Creation Basics.....................2
Introduction..................................1
Chapter 1: Abilities..........................4
Chapter 2: Races..............................10
Chapter 3: Classes............................36
Chapter 4: Skills.............................20
Chapter 5: Feats..............................10
Chapter 6: Description........................8
Chapter 7: Equipment..........................20
Chapter 8: Combat.............................26
Chapter 9: Adventuring........................6
Chapter 10: Magic.............................12
Chapter 11: Spells............................116
General Guidelines and Glossary...............8
Index.........................................3
Playtester Credits............................1
Character Sheet...............................2
The immediate observations one makes are that the class, skills, and feats sections are longer. The combat chapter is shorter, the Glossary has been expanded, and the section of spells has grown slightly (by a few pages).
The changes to the class section primarily of detailed errata to the classes. For example, there is an extensive clarification of what one can and cannot do while a Barbarian rages. Bard Inspire songs are augmented, and they gain a new song, Song of Freedom. Rangers are more evenly weighted, have a d8 HD, and can pursue the 2 Weapon track or the archery track. The treatment of Animal Companions is expanded. So on...
The Skills and Feats sections are the most changed. Some skills that were never used have been permanently dropped, others are absorbed into other skills. Read Lips is absorbed into Spot, and Intuit Direction is an automatic benefit of the Survival skill. Pick Pockets has been renamed Sleight of Hand. The total number of skills has decreased by a half-dozen. The expansion of the page count comes in expanded descriptions, and a more detailed explanation of skill use rules and adjudication. The clarification of the skill rules is the most important addition here.
Feats appear to have been expanded enormously. There is a new 2 page table which features improved usability over the first version, with a short description of the feat on the table itself. This proves deceiving, as more than a dozen of the new feats are simply revisions of the Skill Focus feat. These feats now give +2/+2 to a pair of skills. For example, the Deft Hands feat now gives +2/+2 to Sleight of Hand and Rope Use. Less than a dozen of the new feats are from the 3E class handbooks, such as Natural Spell.
The biggest real change is probably to Two Weapon Fighting. The Ambidexterity feat no longer exists. It has been absorbed into TWF. The other significant new feat is Improved Counterspell. With this feat, there is some chance of counterspelling actually occurring during a game. The Weapon Focus/Specialization tree has been expanded, as has the TWF tree.
The changes to these sections are the most significant ones. The combat section has been shrunk and streamlined, and furnished with improved diagrams, and the glossary has been expanded. These changes make the new PH an improved play aid.
Like everything else, the Spell section has expanded explanations. Haste has been powered down, as have Heal/Harm. Harm in particular has been nerfed so badly that a 5th level spell (Slay Living) is better than the 6th level spell. This choice appears to be an instance of caving to whining DMs. Comparing the two, I can't see why anyone would ever choose to use Harm now. Both deal reduced damage with a save. Both have to get past Spell Resistance. Only Slay Living auto-kills if it succeeds, and the damage can kill even if it fails, and Harm never auto-kills, whether it succeeds or fails.
What the heck ? The only thing I see Harm being useful for is fighting things with unusually poor Will save relative to Fort save (which players/characters should not ever know). The increase in spell level for Save DC is better accomplished by using Spell Focus/GSF for a Slay Living, than using Harm. The 6th level spell slot is better spent on a Blade Barrier, Planar Ally for an Astral Deva, Mass Cure Moderate Wounds, or a Domain Spell. If this is really what the designers meant to do, they should have just removed it entirely.
The Races have been tweaked somewhat, with Dwarves benefiting the most. Gnome's new preferred class is Bard, which is probably the strangest decision in this new edition. My guess is that this is an attempt to get people to play the still-worthless bard class.
PRESENTATION
The visual theme of the PH is unchanged. The tome-binding cover is more elaborate now. There are a few new illustrations, but the bulk of the new presentation is in the combat grid diagrams.
Tables in text are much clearer thanks to alternating color bars. It looks as though this is the standard format for tables now, and it is certainly welcome.
And that's about it, for changes in presentation.
CONCLUSION
Ultimately, the only pertinent question here is: Should I buy this ?
These rulebooks are now the authoritative ("official") version of D&D. Thus modules, Dungeon adventures, etc, will all use this ruleset. But then, most of the changes are not tremendously significant. The Skills and Feats section have the most obvious changes.
Generally speaking, the most compelling reason to buy this Player's Handbook is that one does not own a 3E PH, so you might as well get the updated version.
The changes made to the PH are most important during character generation. The combat section is clarified and simplified, making it the best source of resolving in-play rules disputes. Also important are the modifications to spells. But most of the changes boil down to some tweaks here and there, so I personally would make sure my playing group had at least one copy, then probably leave it there.
The backward compatibility guide will soon be available at www.wizards.com/dnd .
SurgicalSteel
First Post
CORRECTION: Harm CAN kill on a failed save, if the damage dealt is sufficient, but never on a successful save.
Apologies for the confusion. This does not alter my opinion of the spell, however, since Slay Living AUTO-kills on a failed save.
Apologies for the confusion. This does not alter my opinion of the spell, however, since Slay Living AUTO-kills on a failed save.
Netscape Tester
First Post
Setting Test - Delete this review
This is a setting test, not a review. Delete this post as soon as possible.
This is a setting test, not a review. Delete this post as soon as possible.
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