D&D 5th Edition Dungeon Master's Guide
5 out of 5 rating for D&D 5th Edition Dungeon Master's Guide
This 5e ruleset has completely won me back, and I’m so happy to be welcomed back to the game with what is an obvious labor of love by the crew at Wizards of the Coast. This is the Dungeons & Dragons I remember playing… with a few changes here and there. New classes. New races. Some changes in combat rules. And the 5e DMG has made me remember just how much fun I had running adventures. It’s given me a great platform from which to get started again, and boy do I plan on diving in deep.
This 5e ruleset has completely won me back, and I’m so happy to be welcomed back to the game with what is an obvious labor of love by the crew at Wizards of the Coast. This is the Dungeons & Dragons I remember playing… with a few changes here and there. New classes. New races. Some changes in combat rules. And the 5e DMG has made me remember just how much fun I had running adventures. It’s given me a great platform from which to get started again, and boy do I plan on diving in deep.
boingboing
First Post
4 out of 5 rating for D&D 5th Edition Dungeon Master's Guide
I’ve got an advance copy myself and I’ve given it a quick look. While I’ve promised Wizards of the Coast not to divulge too much about its guts, I can tell you a few things. First, like the Player’s Handbook and Monster Manual, its design is gorgeous, and the art is evocative and painterly, without being cartoonish or trying to mimic video-game art. Like the other two volumes in the set, this one is also priced at $49.95, making part 3 a significant investment. At 320 pages, the DM’s Guide is a hefty read, but much better organized, more readable, less unwieldy, and not as crammed with random or little-used information, compared to that first edition.
I’ve got an advance copy myself and I’ve given it a quick look. While I’ve promised Wizards of the Coast not to divulge too much about its guts, I can tell you a few things. First, like the Player’s Handbook and Monster Manual, its design is gorgeous, and the art is evocative and painterly, without being cartoonish or trying to mimic video-game art. Like the other two volumes in the set, this one is also priced at $49.95, making part 3 a significant investment. At 320 pages, the DM’s Guide is a hefty read, but much better organized, more readable, less unwieldy, and not as crammed with random or little-used information, compared to that first edition.
dungeondude
First Post
5 out of 5 rating for D&D 5th Edition Dungeon Master's Guide
Long time player (since the Red Box), just getting back into D&D after not playing any 4th Edition. The new DMG, just magnificent! Well laid out, easy to use, freaking awesome illustrations!!!
Long time player (since the Red Box), just getting back into D&D after not playing any 4th Edition. The new DMG, just magnificent! Well laid out, easy to use, freaking awesome illustrations!!!
Jester David
Hero
3 out of 5 rating for D&D 5th Edition Dungeon Master's Guide
5th Edition is a strong contender for my favourite edition. The Players Handbook was decent, if just an expansion of the Basic rules. And the Monster Manual was simply fantastic. At the end of the Dungeon Master's Guide is an excellent book, but it also a somewhat flawed book. The DMG is a worthy addition to the edition, but not the best DMG ever and arguably the weakest book of the three core books. The advice and optional rules are excellent. But the book tries to do a lot and doesn't quite cover enough topics, and is not comprehensive enough on the topics it does discuss. But, as complaints go, wanting more is a not a bad complaint to have (but it is still a complaint). This is a book that leaves you wanting so much more - which makes it more of a shame we're unlikely to see more any time soon. For new Dungeon Masters, both new to the game or just new to DMing, the book should be more than adequate. It does a decent job of teaching the running of the game and managing of the table. It's an empowering book that fosters creativity as much as rules knowledge. It emphasises story and DM adjudication in all the right places, focusing on being the arbiter while also promoting fairness. I think, more than other DMGs, this product will help teach people to be good Dungeon Masters. There's are numerous examples of omitted content, like rules for critical fumbles, alternate xp and magic item tables, making house rules, and many other topics. The more you look at the book, the more you realize what isn't there. However, there's still a decent amount of optional rules, so the absences are less felt. While the idea of a DMG that is equal parts how-to-play guide, worldbuilding book, and hacker's guide is a nice idea, the amount of content requires makes fitting everything in a single book impossible. Which makes me sad, as I was such a supporter of the idea. Focusing on the main rules and essential optional rules while also planning an Unearthed Arcana or other dedicated book of customizations might have produced better results. Hindsight is 20/20 in that regard.
5th Edition is a strong contender for my favourite edition. The Players Handbook was decent, if just an expansion of the Basic rules. And the Monster Manual was simply fantastic. At the end of the Dungeon Master's Guide is an excellent book, but it also a somewhat flawed book. The DMG is a worthy addition to the edition, but not the best DMG ever and arguably the weakest book of the three core books. The advice and optional rules are excellent. But the book tries to do a lot and doesn't quite cover enough topics, and is not comprehensive enough on the topics it does discuss. But, as complaints go, wanting more is a not a bad complaint to have (but it is still a complaint). This is a book that leaves you wanting so much more - which makes it more of a shame we're unlikely to see more any time soon. For new Dungeon Masters, both new to the game or just new to DMing, the book should be more than adequate. It does a decent job of teaching the running of the game and managing of the table. It's an empowering book that fosters creativity as much as rules knowledge. It emphasises story and DM adjudication in all the right places, focusing on being the arbiter while also promoting fairness. I think, more than other DMGs, this product will help teach people to be good Dungeon Masters. There's are numerous examples of omitted content, like rules for critical fumbles, alternate xp and magic item tables, making house rules, and many other topics. The more you look at the book, the more you realize what isn't there. However, there's still a decent amount of optional rules, so the absences are less felt. While the idea of a DMG that is equal parts how-to-play guide, worldbuilding book, and hacker's guide is a nice idea, the amount of content requires makes fitting everything in a single book impossible. Which makes me sad, as I was such a supporter of the idea. Focusing on the main rules and essential optional rules while also planning an Unearthed Arcana or other dedicated book of customizations might have produced better results. Hindsight is 20/20 in that regard.
5 out of 5 rating for D&D 5th Edition Dungeon Master's Guide
D&D 5e's DMG is a top-notch work of art, both beautiful and useful to tailor your campaign according to your favorite playstyles. It may be not as packed of "optional modules" as some people expected, but to me this is one of the best DMG's for any edition of D&D- unlike the PHB and MM, it far exceeded my expectations.
D&D 5e's DMG is a top-notch work of art, both beautiful and useful to tailor your campaign according to your favorite playstyles. It may be not as packed of "optional modules" as some people expected, but to me this is one of the best DMG's for any edition of D&D- unlike the PHB and MM, it far exceeded my expectations.
Chimpy
First Post
5 out of 5 rating for D&D 5th Edition Dungeon Master's Guide
Delighted with this book. It's everything I expect from a dungeon masters guide. It really sparks the imagination. The artwork is lovely. It's packed full with ideas for creation of your own adventures, settings, NPCs and even character races. The only thing is- I like it so much, I wish it was twice a long!
Delighted with this book. It's everything I expect from a dungeon masters guide. It really sparks the imagination. The artwork is lovely. It's packed full with ideas for creation of your own adventures, settings, NPCs and even character races. The only thing is- I like it so much, I wish it was twice a long!
TerraDave
5ever, or until 2024
5 out of 5 rating for D&D 5th Edition Dungeon Master's Guide
The 5E DMG does not have everything it could. No long list of hirelings. No areas of sage knowledge. No detailed guidance on the workforce needed to build a custom castle. Practically no rules for fighting battles or managing domains. Only a few diseases, traps and artifacts. But don't be misled. It has a lot. Page after page filled with details on how to customize every element of your game. World building, cosmos building, customizing adventures and NPCs, rules options and guidance to make a more tactical game, a more story oriented game, or a more "challenge the player" type game. Honor, horror, sanity (or the lack thereof) can all be added in. Custom races, classes, backgrounds, and best spells are all covered, as are ways to make magic items unique. And of course it rules for explosives and ray guns. Did I mention magic items? Never better illustrated and clearly explained, these are powerful and distinctive items. Includes rules on sentient items and artifacts, and a few examples from each. Cursed items are back. Options are given for making, buying, selling and finding, but its very clear that this is all up to the DM.The DMG has been pronounced for optional for 5E games, but it would be a shame to DM without it. Much of it could also be applied directly to other versions of D&D.
The 5E DMG does not have everything it could. No long list of hirelings. No areas of sage knowledge. No detailed guidance on the workforce needed to build a custom castle. Practically no rules for fighting battles or managing domains. Only a few diseases, traps and artifacts. But don't be misled. It has a lot. Page after page filled with details on how to customize every element of your game. World building, cosmos building, customizing adventures and NPCs, rules options and guidance to make a more tactical game, a more story oriented game, or a more "challenge the player" type game. Honor, horror, sanity (or the lack thereof) can all be added in. Custom races, classes, backgrounds, and best spells are all covered, as are ways to make magic items unique. And of course it rules for explosives and ray guns. Did I mention magic items? Never better illustrated and clearly explained, these are powerful and distinctive items. Includes rules on sentient items and artifacts, and a few examples from each. Cursed items are back. Options are given for making, buying, selling and finding, but its very clear that this is all up to the DM.The DMG has been pronounced for optional for 5E games, but it would be a shame to DM without it. Much of it could also be applied directly to other versions of D&D.
3 out of 5 rating for D&D 5th Edition Dungeon Master's Guide
PHB is a necessity to play D&D 5e.
MM is packed from page to page, beginning to end information on monsters (duh) to play D&D 5e.
DMG is packed with content and information but not all of it necessary to play D&D 5e. Too much fluff and generic information and only about less than 40% of the materials directly relevant to playing D&D 5e.
On top of that, most of those are informative only in terms of general guidelines that could be read from other books providing greater depths (e.g. how to create a campaign world - there's a entire book by Kobold press on this).
Check out my full review here: http://www.rpggeek.com/article/17648103#17648103
PHB is a necessity to play D&D 5e.
MM is packed from page to page, beginning to end information on monsters (duh) to play D&D 5e.
DMG is packed with content and information but not all of it necessary to play D&D 5e. Too much fluff and generic information and only about less than 40% of the materials directly relevant to playing D&D 5e.
On top of that, most of those are informative only in terms of general guidelines that could be read from other books providing greater depths (e.g. how to create a campaign world - there's a entire book by Kobold press on this).
Check out my full review here: http://www.rpggeek.com/article/17648103#17648103
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