New DM Tabletop Question

[Von Stalhein]

Hi all,

I'm planning on trying my hand at DMing tabletop 4e for a group of friends. I've DMed using Neverwinter Nights (3e) before, and I am playing in a regular game of 4e.

My question is about physical stuff at the tabletop - i.e. maps and miniatures. The DM who I play 4e with has a huge boxful of the things (though regularly they are 'substitutes', that is, not what they are physically representing).

Now, I really like minis, I think because they make th visuals 'stand up' literally, which seems to improve the experience. The DM just uses a wet-erase mat and pen for the map.

So my question is this: as a brand-new DM with nothing but a set of dice, the core rulebooks, and an old dry-erase mat and pen - what should I buy?

I am a lowly student, so I cannot blow oodles of cash. I can obtain one booster pack on average for £15 (I am in the UK) so I probably couldn't get more than three in total. Then again - Christmas is coming up, so I could ask for stuff.

Once again, I am more or less clueless in this regard, so ny advice - as specific as it can be, even! - would be really, really appreciated.

Cheers, and many thanks in advance,

-- VS

 

[S'mon]

#1 - 4e Monster Vault has a huge amount of monster 'counters', a very nice monster book, and a decent adventure - so if I were you I'd consider that. See if you like the counters.

#2 - If I were you I'd get a blank Paizo flipmat to supplement your old mat. Having 2 mats is much better than one, and this is just a great piece of kit: [ame=http://www.amazon.co.uk/Gamemastery-Flip-Mat-Basic/dp/1601251556/ref=sr_1_9?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1322259001&sr=1-9]Gamemastery Flip-Mat: Basic: Amazon.co.uk: Books[/ame]


#3 minis - I love minis. em-4 minis have great stuff, including dirt cheap plastic orcs and dwarves you can use for generic humanoid foes - Welcome to em4miniature online store - they also have cheap but very nice unpainted metal minis, and nicely painted but still rather cheap sets, too. You can get individual WotC minis at eg Tritex, but availability is low these days. Reaper ships fairly moderately priced prepainted plastic minis free worldwide when you buy $35, they have the basic reliable monsters you can build a collection around. Paint quality is better than all but the best WoTC D&D minis, too. Whether you prefer these, or the slightly cheaper metal em-4 prepaints, is a matter of taste.

 

[AbdulAlhazred]

Yeah, the pogs in the MV would probably be pretty handy. Not sure you can pick it up quite that cheap, but you never know. DMK also has pogs. I haven't got a copy of that so I'm not sure how good that set is, but you get an adventure that is pretty good there too.

You could get some minis. You may not get a lot for that price, but you can get enough to represent the party and at least several monsters. Personally I'm not too picky though and I just go with dice for monsters when I have to. Check out your local FLGS, sometimes you can find some used minis too. I know the one here sometimes has some around and they usually will sell them on the cheap side, at least the more common ones.

 

[Jan van Leyden]

If 2d counters, perhaps put into a stand, are sufficient to you, you could also have a look at Fiery Dragon's counter collection designed by ENWorld member Claudio Pozas.

If, on the other hand, only real pre-painted minis float your boat you should scour the well-known e-commerce and auction sites. A lot of minis are available for low prices.

 

[Chris Knapp]

You can occasionally find large lots of minis on eBay, sometimes for cheap, especially sets of commons. A good set of similar minis can also serve double or triple duty: my lolthbound goblins serve as kobolds, norkers, and any other small humanoid.

 

[Riastlin]

Congratulations on making the DM leap! We definitely need more DM's out there.

As for what to buy, well a lot really depends in my opinion. Will you be able to afford say, $25 or so every three months? Or an up front cost of $75 for an entire year? If so, I would say start with a DDi subscription if you don't have one yet. I find DDi to be invaluable as a DM.

If either a) you already have DDi or b) the continued investment isn't feasible, then I would say go with either the DM Kit or Monster Vault. Both have tokens for monsters in them and are a great way to start your collection. You mention having the Core books, so I'm guessing that includes the DMG. If so, I would recommend the Monster Vault over the kit, just my preference though.

If you can't get the Monster Vault or Kit cheaply enough, then I would say don't worry about it. Use coins or glass beads or even foam squares, anything really to represent your monsters. I personally really prefer to have the right mini to represent each monster, but as a practical matter, that rarely happens outside of major villains or the occasional orc fight. Most of it is "The orcs minis are actually drow and the two wolves are really spiders." Getting a bunch of minis to accurately reflect your monsters can get pricey in a hurry. I personally think its better to start off cheap (even if it means using dice, coins, whatever) to represent the monsters and then slowly add to your mini collection. The other advantage to going down this road is it lets you try your hand at DM'ing without having to make a major cost investment. As much as I love being a DM, I know plenty of people who have tried it and not liked it. I would suggest making sure that you love DM'ing and that you keep a stable group together before investing too much into it.

Just my two coppers.

 

[Von Stalhein]

Thanks all for the great advice! I think I'll pick up the Monster Vault to get started, since it has the most monsters-per-pound (under £20 on amazon uk), and then diversify from there into miniatures if all goes well with keeping a group together!

Many thanks to all once again,

-- VS

 

[Cobalt Meridian]

Our group uses minis for the PCs (we buy and bring our own which makes it cheaper for the DM) and I found a tub of large (2cm across) tiddly-winks in a variety of colours at a toy shop for about £6. Those and a whiteboard pen for writing the monster name on allows us to field a LOT of monsters without worry of loss or damage (they're also very light to carry).

Other than that I've recommend a dry-erase mat or cheap whiteboard (places like Staples http://www.staples.co.uk/office-sup...boards/economy-drywipe-board-400-x-300mm?r=sedo these) as the next best value item. We've also gotten a lot of use out of having a copy of the Rules Compendium at our table.

Lastly, welcome to the ranks of DMs!

 

[was]

have the players bring their own character minis. you can use just about anything for monsters...minis, markers, dice, pennies etc

 

[am181d]

As a suggestion: If the old DM has a tub of easily transportable miniatures, he may be open to letting them use them. The inconvenience of having to carry them may be weighed by a feeling that he's getting his money worth from them.

Really depends on the dynamics of the group. I play with family and close friends, so folks would do this in a heartbeat. If they're folks you know primarily through gaming, they may be less accommodating.