New to d@d board game. 1st encounter night. General ?s

enderandrews · Feb 10, 2011

our story line was;
were in a caravan...... chose to go through the mountaines instead of the forest...... got attacked by big flying bugs, and done.

What version was this under and where can i go online to find how to level up my Lv1 ranger?

Any advice in general to help with the game play would be cool too.

Tell me your secrets to get more Xp during the dialoge stages or whenever.

Thanks everyone

Wik · Feb 10, 2011

First, welcome to the boards! Second, welcome to D&Ding!

Now, let's get to the meat of your questions.

I'd like to begin by gently pointing out that D&D is not really a "board game", at least, most gamers would cringe at that moniker being applied to D&D. It can sometimes start nerd wars, which are actually kind of funny.

It sounds like you were playing Dungeons and Dragons Fourth Edition. To level up your ranger, you need one of the player's handbooks for this game system. I'd recommend checking out www.wizards.com, which will have links to the appropriate books. A better route would actually be to go to where you had the session, and ask the people at the store what book you'd need, because they'll have all the relevant info (and might even have free stuff to give you!). The main book used these days is called something like "heroes of the fallen lands" and it has all the rules for your ranger in there.

As for advice to help with the game play? It gets a bit more complex. There's a LOT of advice to give - as with any hobby or deep interest, there's a lot of areas to explore. How much of that you want to explore depends on how much time you want to invest with the hobby. Luckily, you can get by just fine with investing time only as you sit at the table... but you can also spend a lot of free time working on the hobby, too. That's pretty much what this site is all about.

But generally, good play advice? Listen to your Game Master, work well with the other players, don't interrupt when someone else is talking, be a team player, be a good sport, don't cheat or approach the game as if you're there to "win" it, and generally do what you can to make the game "fun" for everyone sitting at the table.

Also, as a ranger, remember it is your job in the group to damage monsters. Not to hold off bad guys, not to try to heal others, and not to try and figure out traps or anything. Do whatever you can to dish out buttloads of damage to dangerous monsters, and you'll do fine.

As for secrets for getting more xp... Well, the game sort of doesn't work like that. Someone giving you all the tricks and ways to maximize XP for individual encounters kind of ruins the game for everyone - it falls under the category of "cheating". And most of the time, it really doesn't matter, especially with the encounters line.

I'd focus less on XP, and more on the team aspect of the game. If you're a happy and fun team player, you'll still probably get the exact same XP reward (maybe even more.... Game masters love handing out bonus XP to people who make the game more enjoyable).

Welcome to the hobby, and hope you enjoy the encounters line!

Janx · Feb 10, 2011

welcome to the game.

Wik's covered most the bases.

To expound a little bit more on the XP thing:

there's a lot of different ways GMs decide to hand out XP, and though the rule have some guidance on that, GMs are free to deviate. That means it depends on your GM.

Generally, XP is handed out to the group and divided by the number of PCs, so you're not likely to get more XP than another player.

You could get some roleplaying bonus XP by acting in character (yet not acting like a dick). This doesn't mean talking with a funny accent, just drop all the modern colloguialisms like "yo, i'm gonna bust a cap in im, dude" and act like a person who lives there would.

Its been my experience that you get as much XP as the GM wants you to get. If he wants you to level up, you'll get that much XP. If he wants you to level up every 3 games, then that's how much you'll get.

Also realize, at least by 3rd edition standards, it was expected that you'd play through about 13 encounters per level, by the standard XP math. Assuming a similar pattern in 4th edition, you've played 1 encounter.

My advice, getting XP is nice. Playing the game and getting stuff done is nicer. Have fun.

DMZ2112 · Feb 11, 2011

Ender --

Did your ranger have at-will, encounter, and daily powers? If so, then Wik is right and you were playing 4th Edition. [Edition war comment removed by admin.] If your ranger didn't have powers then we're going to need more information to suss out which edition you were playing.

If you are playing 4th Edition, Heroes of the Forgotten Kingdoms will be a valuable book for you. It's full of rules (including the basic ranger rules), as well as tips about playing the game. But if you are specifically looking for the rules online you can get them at Wizards.com for a subscription fee (look for Dungeons & Dragons Insider links). Unfortunately, no matter how you slice it, getting into D&D is not free.

If you want to focus on XP, you should focus on XP. The most important thing in D&D is that you do what's fun for you and your group. A big part of the fun in 4th Edition is getting new powers and feats and being able to do new and better cool stuff, and that's all in the XP.

The best advice I can give you as far as maximizing your group's XP is to know your character and your fellow players' characters well, and understand what skills and powers they are good at. If you know how to work as a team, whether you are talking or fighting you will end more encounters with greater success and get more XP. D&D, especially 4th Edition, is not a game you can win on your own.

I also recommend using cards to keep track of your powers (if you're playing 4th Edition). You don't have to use the official ones. I find handwritten index cards very helpful.

Good luck, and welcome to the hobby! Have fun!

Wik · Feb 11, 2011

DMZ2112 said:
Ender --

Did your ranger have at-will, encounter, and daily powers? If so, then Wik is right and you were playing 4th Edition. I'm not sure why he just assumed that, other than because you called it a board game, which 4th Edition definitely is. If your ranger didn't have powers then we're going to need more information to suss out which edition you were playing.

For what it's worth, I assumed 4e for a few reasons:

1) Most current edition
2) "1st encounter night" in the title, suggesting the D&D Encounters line which introduces new players (makes a lot of sense, since encounters is a fairly short play experience)
3) there are only two editions of D&D that tend to assume the presence of a "board", and I happen to figure the current edition would be the one of choice. I happen to challenge the idea that 4e is really a "board game" though.

I'm assuming a game store session because, if it were a more traditional setting, these questions would probably not be asked here.

If you want to focus on XP, you should focus on XP.

What? That's like saying "If you like playing Xbox games, you should focus on the 'a' button".

I get what you're trying to say, but I think telling a newbie to focus on Experience Points is kind of a way to ruin the game for 'em.

DMZ2112 · Feb 11, 2011

Wik said:
2) "1st encounter night" in the title, suggesting the D&D Encounters line which introduces new players (makes a lot of sense, since encounters is a fairly short play experience)

I didn't even pick up on this use of the word 'encounter,' but I suspect you are probably right!

I happen to challenge the idea that 4e is really a "board game" though.

Suit yourself, but it has a lot more in common with Descent than AD&D, for my dollar. A rose by any other name...

What? That's like saying "If you like playing Xbox games, you should focus on the 'a' button".
I get what you're trying to say, but I think telling a newbie to focus on Experience Points is kind of a way to ruin the game for 'em.

Oh, I couldn't disagree more. Character development and advancement is the most fun thing about D&D4, and is the only reason I still play the game at all. It's a great complex and cooperative adventure board game with roleplaying elements. I used to play DUNGEON! the same way, back in the day.

It's more like saying "If you like playing XBox games, you should focus on FPSes" -- that I will grant you. But it's been a long time since I played a good RPG on the XBox.

I think we ought to be encouraging Ender to play the game the way he wants to play it and not trying to impose upon him our own views on the way the game ought to be played. The man wants XP; give him XP.

VictorC · Feb 11, 2011

DMZ2112 said:
Suit yourself, but it has a lot more in common with Descent than AD&D, for my dollar. A rose by any other name...

Your opinion that it has more in common with a board game than a previous edition of d&d doesn't make it a board game. So while Decent may be a rose, calling something else a rose doesn't make that thing a rose. Sorry

Piratecat · Feb 11, 2011

Guys, getting off on a board game tangent will make me a very cranky Admin. I advise against it.

Enderandrews, welcome! Was this the first session of the new D&D Encounters? Sounds like it, I think. Did you have fun?

jimmifett · Feb 11, 2011

This was from last wednesday's DnD Encounters adventure. The OP would have been playing an essentials hunter.

What you played is the first part of a story that will continue every week. As a Hunter, your job is to either keep the enemies at a distance, or move them where you want them to be via your special shots. If one of the Stirges (bugs) attacked the caravan or a player and hit, it would grab onto that creature and suck the blood out it's next turn. With your special shot's ability to slide creatures around, you can essentials shoot the bug off whatever it's grabbing and move it 3 squares away. One of your other special shots knocks the bugs on to the ground, which means they have to spend thier move action just to get back up and flying.

Our table managed to save the entire caravan and kill the bugs, but we don't have enough points to get to level 2 yet, about halfway there.

When the fight broke out between the dwarf and the other guy, about crossing the turbulent stream, we managed to convince the dwarf of the safer route with "Please, think of the beer!", as we're all sure it'd be the ale carts that would have been lost. The prospect of loosing the dwarven brew calmed him down and let him see the wisdom of not risking the caravan with haste.

Almacov · Feb 11, 2011

DMZ2112 said:
If you are playing 4th Edition, Heroes of the Fallen Lands will be a valuable book for you. It's full of rules (including the basic ranger rules), as well as tips about playing the game.

Just to clarify, because this mistake has been made twice in the thread, Heroes of the Forgotten Kingdoms is actually the book with the essentials Ranger in it.
(Though Fallen Lands contains the Slayer Fighter build, which can be used to make a pretty decent ranged/melee combatant too.)

Those names are way too similar for their own good.