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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Bodhiwolff" data-source="post: 4976318" data-attributes="member: 71196">I feel that 4E is a wonderful version for introducing to new players!  I've introduced a number of complete newbies to 4E, and they've all thoroughly enjoyed it (and we've also converted some old-fogeys like myself as well!). I won't repeat the (very good) advice already stated here, but I would add a point or two. 1.  POWER CARDS -- they are your best friend!  More to the point, don't use automatically-generated power cards, but instead make your own (using a computer) and simplifiy them by including only the necessary information, and the proper calculations for the character in question.  When a newbie can glance down at his cards and see that one attack is +4 to hit with 1d8+4 damage for one creature, while another attack is +2 to hit with 1d6 damage for every creature within one square, it makes the decision-making easier, and really showcases the system. And *do* write out the final calculations ahead of time.  You'd think that calculating "1W+STR" would get faster over time, but it doesn't.  It is much easier to read 1d8+4, and have done with it. Go the extra mile and make an at-will  power card for "All Out Defense" (reminding players that they can go completely defensive), and two encounter copies of "Second Wind" (including exactly how much they will heal, and the bonus to defense).  Make an at-will card for "Do Something Cool!" to remind players that they always have the option to just wing it, and try to swing on the chandelier!   When players can look down at their cards and isntantly see some interesting options -- ones which are easily differentiated from each other -- then they can relax and get into the game.  The rules are all right there at their fingertips, and they don't have to worry.   2.  Character Sheet - we've done away with the character sheet.  At the very least, simplify it, and don't use a full writeup.   For the first few sessions, you don't need to have 2 pages of complex information staring back at the player.  They can't find anything in the miasma of text anyway.  What they *really* use are initiative, movement speed, the 4 Defenses, Hit Point Total, Bloodied Total, Surge Value, Number of Surges per day, and skill values. We actually use a "character mat" with these values written down, (all pretty and formatted nicely)  and then poker chips  in two stacks on the mat for hit points, and tokens for healing surges.  The character mat sits in front of the player and puts all of the useful information at their fingertips at a moment's notice, without searching through 3 pages of text.  When one stack of chips is gone, you're bloodied.  When they're both gone, the rules for death saving throws are written underneath the spot where the chips went, so you know what to expect. If they really need to look up something (which they only have to do about once every three sessions) we have their character sheet hidden under the mat. The tactile aspect of using poker chips to track hit points also lets people look around and instantly assess how wounded your friends are., which adds to the drama.  Throwing away a big pile of chips shows everybody just how big a hit you took! My players adore the gaming mat option.  We're never going back. 3.  Condition Placards -- we have a number of placards all made up with "You are Blinded" and "You are Weakened", etc.  The rules and impact on the character are printed below, and thus nobody ever has to be reminded of what the impact of a certain condition might be.  We also have some tokens which we use to represent "ongoing 5 damage" and "ongoing 10 damage", which helps remind people of an ongoing effect.  Save vs. the effect, remove the token from your mat, and cheer!  ................... With all of these "props", the rules get completely subsumed below the surface.   The proof that it works is that we managed to teach a complete newbie how to play a 4E wizard within a single gaming session, all without cracking a book.  By the end of the session, he was giving other players advice on how to tactically position themselves, how to coordinate attacks, etc.  He went out that week and bought his very first player's handbook, and rolled up his own version of his character, but *now* he understood what it was he was reading! Props (which contain rules explanations and pre-made calculations) speed things up, simplify the game for newcomers, and stop all of the tedium of looking things up in boois. We haven't cracked a book at the table in ages.</blockquote>

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