Heroes of the Borderlands Starter Set Price Point Revealed

The new Heroes of the Borderlands D&D boxed set will be significantly more expensive than past Starter Sets. Pre-order pages up on D&D Beyond and Amazon confirm that the new Starter Set, made to introduce the new version of 5th Edition rules to newcomers, will cost $49.99. Previous starter sets, such as the Essentials Kit or the Dragons at Stormwreck Isle, had much lower price points ranging from $19.99 to $24.99.

One reason for the price increase is that the new Starter Set will contain many more components than previous Starter Sets. A trailer (seen below) shows off many of the cards, tokens, and handouts that are included in the boxed set in addition to the standard quickstart guide and character sheets. Per Amazon, the new Starter Set will contain 3 adventure booklets, 8 character class boards featuring iconic D&D classes, 1 quick-start guide, a reference booklet, 5 in-world immersive handouts (including a tavern menu and shop catalogs), 9 double-sided poster maps, a combat tracker, 11 dice, 210 game cards (including spells, magic items, and equipment), and 273 tokens (including monsters, terrain, and resources).

One twist for this new boxed set is that it will include tiles that will add a modularity to character creation. Players will choose their background and class and then build a character sheet using corresponding tiles.

Hasbro also previously stated that the Starter Set was produced in China, so the increased price could be impacted by the current tariffs imposed by the US on foreign-made goods.


The new Heroes of the Borderlands Starter Set will be released on September 16th, 2025.

 

[Parmandur]

Agreed. I'm a big, BIG fan of low-cost intros, but this seems fine.

It looks like they've added enough value to it, too - as many of those elements will be useful going forward, even after you've finished the Keep. Those maps look great, too!

This is still fairly low cost, particularly as they seem to be selling it more like a pick up and play board game suitable for kids.

 

[Parmandur]

Fair enough. I just don't think $50 is quite in the impulse buy category, especially as peoples' purchasing powering has been eroding.

The set itself looks awesome, I'm not disputing that, the content looks to exactly as you say. I'm just unsure as to whether the price point will turn people away that would otherwise give it a try and enter intot he D&D funnel and then the larger TTRPG .

It is not an impulse buy...but it is well situated for a pretty standard board game purchase.

 

[FitzTheRuke]

The digital+physical bundle only being an extra $5 is surprisingly nice

I suspect that much of the content isn't really useful digitally, and much of it is free (basic rules) - but $5 for the digital maps and the adventure is still pretty darn good!

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

But just like all of the Magic: The Gathering starter kits with similar mid to low value proposition I don't see many enfranchised players buying this.

I am picking it up with the intention that it'll be the family board game we play on my birthday each year. My youngest has been talking about DMing ever since her first game of Tails of Equestria and with the rotating DM style of Heroes of the Borderland, she's going to be tapped to do at least one stage of this later this year.

We'll probably enhance it with my PHB idol dice tower I just got from GameStop (which is unexpectedly great) and maybe even a low level version of the Deck of Many Things using that boxed set as well. Physical media all the way!

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

It looks like they've added enough value to it, too - as many of those elements will be useful going forward, even after you've finished the Keep. Those maps look great, too!

I suspect there's going to be a land rush trying to get more physical props made for it on DMs Guild (I've thought about doing it myself), which I think will really enhance things.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

And not only does the castellan get a name this time, we even get his signature.

 

[abazaba]

I'm slightly confused. With this starter-set, it looks like they are trying to turn D&D into a boardgame-like thing, that doesn't really translate to how most people are currently playing TTRPG's, including but mot limited to D&D ? And setting up wrong expectations about how the potential buyers are going to play D&D after the starter set ?

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I'm slightly confused. With this starter-set, it looks like they are trying to turn D&D into a boardgame-like thing, that doesn't really translate to how most people are currently playing TTRPG's, including but mot limited to D&D ? And setting up wrong expectations about how the potential buyers are going to play D&D after the starter set ?

What board game expectations are they setting? People using handouts and playing with battlemats and miniatures goes back to the beginning of the hobby.

The modular character sheets are, I think, pretty clearly training wheels for making more customizable characters later on. And I'm confident that will be called out in the included rulebook.

Also, if this sells really well, I suspect there will be pressure for them to do expansion sets along the same model anyway. (Adventures in the Borderlands, Villains of the Borderlands, Saga of the Borderlands, Legends of the Borderlands, Beneath the Borderlands, Beyond the Borderlands, etc.)

 

[timbannock]

I'm slightly confused. With this starter-set, it looks like they are trying to turn D&D into a boardgame-like thing, that doesn't really translate to how most people are currently playing TTRPG's, including but mot limited to D&D ? And setting up wrong expectations about how the potential buyers are going to play D&D after the starter set ?

D&D's a tactical roleplaying game that leans into combat positioning and movement. This boxed set is closer to how I've been playing D&D since 3E than most of the other starter sets outside of 4E. It's also very close to Pathfinder's various beginner boxes across both (technically all 3 if you include the latest revision?) editions. My play style was not unique among the 3 or so gaming stores I've frequented over the past decade, either, across a couple major cities.

 

[Bravesteel25]

It is not an impulse buy...but it is well situated for a pretty standard board game purchase.

Oh, for sure, it's definitely a good price if we are comparing it to board games.