D&D (2024) D&D Player’s Handbook (2024)

[Vael]

The sticker shock is real, especially since the exchange rate gets the PHB close to $100 CDN (guesstimate after tax), but given the use I got out of the 2014 PHB, I still think it'll be worth the investment.

 

[mamba]

Unless they're still available like all the old books as PDFs. Existing books will, of course, not self destruct the last time I checked if you want to continue using them.

All books I am aware of that you can (legally) get as PDFs are before 5th edition. I don't expect the 2014 books to become available as PDFs now...

 

[mamba]

Average (in USD) house price: 800K; Average annual income: 37K. Mortgage payments on that place, assuming you somehow put 20% down, would be 45K in a year. Not doable.

how does that even work, how can the average house price be more than the average income can even pay for? Unless there are a ton of cheap houses that somehow never go on sale....

 

[Zardnaar]

Meanwhile, only 1 person is playing BG3 at a time, not 5-7 or more and you have to buy the gaming machine. You can always share the costs of the books, the only person who needs to pay more than $60 is the DM. Even then, we just shared books back in the day. The comparison is a bit apples to oranges.

I mean, if you feel you can't afford it, you can't. We can't always get what we want but I also see no reason for WOTC to sell books at a loss.

I don't expect wotc to sell books at a loss.

But some people genuinely can't afford ot or the opportunity cost is to high vs something else.

So breaking down cost per hour is a bit pointless when other things eh games can be similar and don't require time and effort investment.

You can get hundreds of hours out of a $3 game on steam or gog for example.

 

[Zardnaar]

Our story is basically the same. Bought slightly above our means at the very bottom of the real estate bust in Los Angeles in early 2009. Our home is, at least on paper in theory, worth nearly triple what we paid. Which feels absurd to me to triple in value in 15 years. I could never afford our home if bought now.

2010 here.

O suspect if I was born in the states I would be screwed 7 ways to Sunday in the same situation. Rent here was $40-50 usd a week in 80s and 90s. 3 bedroom house. Wasn't a great house but still.

Wife probably bit better off but not by a lot.

 

[Zardnaar]

how does that even work, how can the average house price be more than the average income can even pay for? Unless there are a ton of cheap houses that somehow never go on sale....

Housing shortages price out first home owners.

So basically investors buy up all the stock for capital gains. Rent optional eg some will sit empty.

Those who bought early enough rent covers the mortgage on empty/future property.

Time it wrong rent doesn't cover mortgage bubble pops.

Think USA is bad try Australia, Canada or NZ. Supply outstrips demand new builds cant keep up.

 

[Zardnaar]

That was a joke, right?

Not really no. D&D usually cones down to DM skill, player engagement, story etc.

I run OSR games for modern players. Filled up one game no problem alongside my 5E game.

Retro games are dirt cheap but even slightly older games think late ps3/360 games or 5 year old PS4 games are deeply discounted.

And sone are huge or infinitely replayable.

 

[FitzTheRuke]

how does that even work, how can the average house price be more than the average income can even pay for? Unless there are a ton of cheap houses that somehow never go on sale....

Nope. Just most people can't buy houses.

You want to know the sad truth? It might sound like a conspiracy theory but it is very likely true, at least in part?

I once read a book on the subject written by an RCMP police investigator who explained this: Our housing market (For the record, this is Vancouver, BC, Canada) is artificially jacked up by the Pacific Rim drug and human trafficking trade. The criminals, if this book is to be believed, launder their money through the purchase of real estate. The more they spend, the more they launder. The sky is the limit.

Officially, we call them "Foreign Investors" - but they're not really investors, and not all of them are foreign.

This is, of course, on top of the fact that it's the only place in Canada that doesn't freeze in winter.

... The PacRim crime thing might apply to @Zardnaar's NZ too, come to think of it.

 

[Oofta]

I don't expect wotc to sell books at a loss.

But some people genuinely can't afford ot or the opportunity cost is to high vs something else.

So breaking down cost per hour is a bit pointless when other things eh games can be similar and don't require time and effort investment.

You can get hundreds of hours out of a $3 game on steam or gog for example.

Then ... go to gog for games. As much as I like playing video games it's not the same. As others have pointed out, adjusted for inflation the books are cheaper than they were 10 years ago. Not sure what else to say, I can spend nothing and get books from our local library as well. If I want a cheap in-person game we'll play cards, buy a used board game, any number of things. What we won't do is go out to dinner and a movie with friends because that would be far more expensive than all the books combined for my group.

Sucks if you can't afford the games, but in comparison to other forms of in-person group entertainment it's cheap.

 

[mamba]

So basically investors buy up all the stock for capital gains. Rent optional eg some will sit empty.

ok, that does work to a degree... foreign investors then, because most people in the country cannot really afford to buy. Not sure how much investors buy as a percentage of the available houses however. I would be surprised if it were significant (outside of some major cities), not sure how much that affects the average, but might be a matter of where you live / how large the country is.