D&D Ultimate N00b!

[adamas]

I dont know if this is the place for this or not. . .it looks like the best place tho!

Yeah, im a complete n00b when it comes to the D&D world. . .i've played online RPG/MUD's like Achaea and Aardwolf and i've played Magic and Warhammer 40k, but D&D is a 100% new concept to me. . .kinda, from what i've read online it seems KIND OF like warhammer 40k meets achaea. Anyways, here's my thing, me and some of my friends have heard alot about D&D but we know absolutely nothing about it. now i know some of you will prolly say that the best thing would find some kind of gaming group or something at our local game store. . .arround here there isn't any. so my question is, how does D&D work?? what are the basics? How do i get started? whats up with maps? whats up with minatures? do i need minatures? what is the DM's role? How customizeable is this thing realy? If anyone feels like helping me out, send me an email to adamas_orion@yahoo.com ASAP! please. . .desperate gammers need your help! BTW, i have looked all over the place online. . .and all i seem to get is vague answers, no good to-the-point explinations or anything

 

[Thanee]

Well, your best bet, unless you are broke or anything, is to buy the Player's Handbook (PHB) and the Dungeon Master's Guide (DMG), and probably the Monster Manual (MM) also, and read them.

The PHB and DMG explain the whole concept quite well. There is also a starter kit available for complete newbies, like yourself, but I think the actual core rule books are a better choice.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Darkness]

Welcome! I'll slide this over to General Discussion.

 

[vortex]

Welcome,

Have you seen the online demo at the Wizard's of the Coast website?

I think the best thing for the total newby is get is the Basic Game . Its cheap and it will give you the idea. Its got miniatures and other fun stuff in the box. But, you'll outgrow it pretty soon and will want to buy a Players Handbook.

Lastly there is one new product that could be helpful to someone like yourself.

good luck!

 

[moritheil]

If you played Diku, I think many of those were based on DnD 2.0 . . . but I have no recollection as to what systems achaea and aardwolf were.

DnD is infinitely customizable, although at some point you will discover that you have a different game altogether

 

[adamas]

thanks. . .yeah, the books are kinda expensive. . .like 30$ each. . .eh well, i guess i'll deal w/ it! yeah i did the demo. . .didn't really help much, . . .i'll look into that "starter set" thing for now i guess.


So, how do you customize it and still keep it D&D???

 

[IronWolf]

Either the Player's Handbook or the Basic set are probably your best places to start. As for the price, you may want to shop around a little, they are easily found in the $20 range....

 

[Andor]

thanks. . .yeah, the books are kinda expensive. . .like 30$ each. . .eh well, i guess i'll deal w/ it! yeah i did the demo. . .didn't really help much, . . .i'll look into that "starter set" thing for now i guess.


So, how do you customize it and still keep it D&D???

First off you can get most of the content of the books (Except the parts that'll help a newbie like you figure out what to do) here. The basic set will help you grasp the bits you are missing. To get ideas of what games can be like read the story boards here on ENworld.

To customize it, realize that the rules are modular. If you want elves to be different then change the elves racial traits. If you want magic to be different, simply define how it works now. I'd suggest reading the SRD and running a game to see how things work. Then if you hunger to change things and can't quite see how to do what you want get Unearthed Arcana which is a books full of nothing but ideas for how to customize your DnD game.