Are you going to buy an EXTRA copy of the PHB?

[Simplicity]

First let me state, I am still unsure if I am buying 4e as of yet...


If I do, I usually only buy 1 and then start collecting additional copies from secondary markets. I currently have over 20 copies of 3.5e PHBs

Okay, I see the point of getting multiple PHBs. I have three 3.5 PHBs, and having a few really speeds up play. But TWENTY of them? What possible purpose could you have for twenty PHBs? How do you use that many?

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

Why would I buy a copy of the PHB when I can just use the SRD?



Oh, wait.

 

[AZRogue]

I'm buying myself a copy of the 3 core books, and I've also bought a second gift-set for the other, occasional, DM of our group (as encouragement to DM so I can play!), and I've bought 5 PHBs, one for each other member of the group (6 players, and me, total).

I just told them to consider the books their birthday/christmas whatevers for the year.

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

I doubt I'll buy a second "table copy" but if I like 4E and want to get people to play, I think its likely that I'll be buying a few folks PHB's as birthday presents.

 

[HeinorNY]

Why would I buy a copy of the PHB when I can just use the SRD?



Oh, wait.

Party's over.

 

[Zaruthustran]

I just buy one set of books. I expect my fellow gamers to own their own sets. I don't think that's an unreasonable expectation, especially since the books are only twenty books each at Amazon.

It just helps if everyone has their own set, so everyone can look up rules or help answer questions about spells and whatnot.

Whoa, wait a minute. I think this is less of a requirement for 4E than it is for 3E. In 3E, everyone needed their own book because of the constant rules references: how does Grapple work? What does that spell do? What kind of bonus is this; does it stack with that other kind of bonus? Spells were the biggest problem--each caster *definitely* needed his own book, and everyone else had to twiddle thumbs after each 10 minute adventuring "day" as the casters looked up and picked new spells.

In 4e, you pick your powers when you levelup and off you go. Assuming you do a decent job copying your powers onto your character sheet, you don't really need to look up anything in the PHB during play--not even the wizards or clerics. The DM, too, has all the needed info contained in his monster stat blocks.

I *just* had this epiphany. No more debate over a half-remembered spell, ending in the DM handing a PHB to a player and saying "okay, look up the spell while the rest of us continue". No more flipping through the MM to look up what's all included with the "celestial" creature type (*how* exactly does smite evil work, again?). It's all right there on the sheet.

Didn't mean to detail into a pro-4E revelation, but holy cow--just the lack of page-flipping alone is a huge boost to speed of play. Less time rules-referencing, more time getting into the game.

 

[thalmin]

I generally pick up a second PHB for my own use. I find it handy to keep one in the game room, plus one upstairs. In other words, I'm too lazy to run up or down stairs to get a book that I reference so much.

 

[HeinorNY]

d.p.

 

[HeinorNY]

I generally pick up a second PHB for my own use. I find it handy to keep one in the game room, plus one upstairs. In other words, I'm too lazy to run up or down stairs to get a book that I reference so much.

You should buy an extra copy to keep in the bathroom in the case of a prolonged number 2, and another copy to keep in the car for those traffic jam moments.

 

[thalmin]

You should buy an extra copy to keep in the bathroom in the case of a prolonged number 2, and another copy to keep in the car for those traffic jam moments.

That was just when I played 1E.