D&D 3E/3.5 The DMG: A CRITICAL HIT at 93.5%!

The 5th Edition Dungeon Master's Guide is still pulling in rave reviews, and is trending at 93.5%. io9 says its "like a Hacker's Manual for D&D", and Geekdad reports that "this 5e ruleset has completely won me back!" There are dissenters, of course - 5 Minute Workday feels its "a whole lot of appetizers but no real main course" - but these are outweighed by reviews from the likes of boingboing who called it "gorgeous, evocative, hefty, organized, and readable".

So, clearly the Dungeon Master's Guide has garnered critical praise. You can look at the list of critical reviews from outlets around the web. The critics have given it an aggregate score of 85%; but fans have shown more support and weigh in with a whopping 93.5%!

Fun with stats: D&D 5th Edition Dungeon Master's Guide is ranked #3 out of 24 products with 10 or more reviews, placing it in the 92% percentile. It is rated 15.1 points higher than the overall average product rating of 78.4%. With 43 reviews, this is the #3 most reviewed product.

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[mouselim]

@ delericho: Agree and fair points. However, as someone who had gone through all the editions (ok, maybe not totally on 4e), I had to review it as such. A review also goes into how much effort and thought-process the designers had sink into it, its relevance and then how durable (not just physically) is the book. Of course there are many other factors too.

Most if not all of the reviewers here who gave a score to DMG will most definitely have some experience under their belt and notably D&D. I wonder about the perfect scores given...seriously, I do. Again I wonder if each and everyone of the reviewers are to only choose one book to be that perfect 5/5, will it be the DMG?

Covering the aspect of a newbie DM, I've already replied Umbran. Let's take a scenario whereby a newbie DM is to approach either of us for advice on how to create a new world, what reference material or books will we give? DMG? Yes. Kobold Guide to World Building? Yes. Dawn of Worlds? Gary Gygax World builder? Reference websites? And if he is to ask us to rank the level of usefulness or relevance, which of any of these (and more!) will receive a 5/5?

 

[Reynard]

Reviewing the 5E DMG in light of previous DMGs is fine, but reviewing it as if one is assumed to have all those DMGs on hand for running 5E is not. The same with reviewing based on what might have been suggested or "promised" previous to its publication. The measure of a book like this is, "Does it do what it needs to do? And how well?"

 

[mouselim]

But the DMG isn't billed as a worldbuilding guide... how would you rate one of those worldbuilding guides on magic items? or creating new classes or designing monsters? I'm having a hard time understanding your logic in rating these products?

There are nine chapters in the DMG. Yes, its a DM (GM) guide. It's split into world building and managing, adventure building and managing, rules building and managing.

You're right it isn't billed as a world building guide but there are world building materials found therein.

It isn't billed as a adventure building guide but nearly 1/4 of the book is based on that.

It isn't billed as a treasure or magic item compendium yet nearly 1/3 of the book is based on that.

Let's take Torchbearer as an example. The core book essential covers two main sections. One for players (PHB) and the other for GM (DMG). It goes from pages 58 to 80. If you have the book, help me to review these two sections and give me a score on each section ranging from 1 to 5.

 

[SilverfireSage]

No. It's not just me. Since you directed it at me, let me return the question. Are you an experienced DM? Have you created worlds, campaigns, adventures? If so, will you use it?

Are you an inexperienced DM? If so, if you have a full book on world building and a chapter of this in the DMG, what will you use? The former or latter? Both? None? How much materials and help will you get from the one chapter in DMG or from the entire book on world building? By the way, I'm not going to name any of such books as there are many good books on world building in the market now.

Speaking as a DM who is now experienced but used to be inexperienced, if the DMs guide I had originally read (3e) had not contained the worldbuilding things that it did, I likely wouldn't have continued DMing, as I had little access to such materials except that one book. Every edition is someone's first edition, so they have to cater to both the newbies and the grognares. Considering how fantastically difficult pleasing both of those groups can be, I'd say they did an awesome job.

 

[SilverfireSage]

Also, a 5/5 doesn't mean perfect and never has. It's simply the highest recommendation a reviewer can give.

 

[Blackwarder]

Anyway, I'm not saying that DMG is that bad but it is definitely not that good to be in the league with books like (PHB, Calidar, 13th Truer ways) or better than The Strange, Call of Cthulhu 7th Edition, 13th Age core book, Fate Core system(!?!), DCC, PF core.

Dude, seriously, PF core? Fate?? 13th AGE??? Those are definitely only in league with the nearest trashcan...

/sarcasm
#opinions_are_like_a$$holes...

Warder

 

[Agamon]

@ delericho: Agree and fair points. However, as someone who had gone through all the editions (ok, maybe not totally on 4e), I had to review it as such. A review also goes into how much effort and thought-process the designers had sink into it, its relevance and then how durable (not just physically) is the book. Of course there are many other factors too.

Most if not all of the reviewers here who gave a score to DMG will most definitely have some experience under their belt and notably D&D. I wonder about the perfect scores given...seriously, I do. Again I wonder if each and everyone of the reviewers are to only choose one book to be that perfect 5/5, will it be the DMG?

Covering the aspect of a newbie DM, I've already replied Umbran. Let's take a scenario whereby a newbie DM is to approach either of us for advice on how to create a new world, what reference material or books will we give? DMG? Yes. Kobold Guide to World Building? Yes. Dawn of Worlds? Gary Gygax World builder? Reference websites? And if he is to ask us to rank the level of usefulness or relevance, which of any of these (and more!) will receive a 5/5?

It's not a rating out of 1000, you get 5 choices. Statistically, 20% of all RPG books you read should get a 5. Logically, you're only going to read stuff you tend to enjoy, so that will go up, especially if one isn't a collector and only buys games with intent to play.

The rating for 5 is "Excellent." It goes down to Good, then Average, Poor and Awful. Those are the choices. 5 doesn't mean the best darn RPG book I've ever laid eyes upon, it just means it's a great book.

Finally, this is opinion-based, Arguing that someone else's opinion is flawed is...let's just go with, a waste of time.

 

[delericho]

@ delericho: Agree and fair points. However, as someone who had gone through all the editions (ok, maybe not totally on 4e), I had to review it as such.

That's fair.

(And, FWIW, I actually like it when reviewers state where they're coming from up-front - far better to be aware of the likely biases when reading what they say, than to have to try to guess from context.)

Covering the aspect of a newbie DM, I've already replied Umbran. Let's take a scenario whereby a newbie DM is to approach either of us for advice on how to create a new world, what reference material or books will we give? DMG? Yes. Kobold Guide to World Building? Yes. Dawn of Worlds? Gary Gygax World builder? Reference websites? And if he is to ask us to rank the level of usefulness or relevance, which of any of these (and more!) will receive a 5/5?

For a newbie DM, I'd give them the DMG* and only the DMG. Because a new DM already runs the risk of being overwhelmed just be the 1,000ish pages of core rules in 5e (or 4e, 3e, Pathfinder...).

Those other works may well be better specialised tomes for the narrow subjects they deal with, but they're most suited to more advanced DMs wanting a more in-depth treatment.

* In fact, my understanding is that the 5e DMG is itself aimed largely at advanced DMs, with newbies catered too more with the Starter Set at the as-yet-upcoming "how to DM" articles on the WotC website. Again, having not read the DMG I can't comment, but if this is indeed accurate then I'd probably not even give them the DMG. Instead, I'd point them to the Starter Set and advise them to start on learning how to run and then build adventures first - the world can wait.

 

[Agamon]

#opinions_are_like_a$$holes...

LOL, I was going to write that exact line and backed off. Thank you, sir.

 

[mouselim]

Reviewing the 5E DMG in light of previous DMGs is fine, but reviewing it as if one is assumed to have all those DMGs on hand for running 5E is not. The same with reviewing based on what might have been suggested or "promised" previous to its publication. The measure of a book like this is, "Does it do what it needs to do? And how well?"

So if EN World is also to have a review for DMG 3.5, what score will it receive? If it gets a 3.5/5, does it mean that DMG 5E is better than DMG 3E? What are scores if not relative?

Anyway, I had reviewed fantasy novels before and aren't there some stories that left a bad taste in your mouth after completing it? You'll felt that it will have been a perfect story if this and that were covered or it would have been wonder if that entire section didn't take place. Isn't this what review is all about?

Furthermore, when I reviewed the DMG, I did not just assumed that the audience is me but what it will mean to a DM, both inexperience and experienced and anyone in-between. How often the DM will reach out for it on the shelf of all his books and how the materials will last the entire lifespan of the game. Has sufficient work been done on it (If Shadowrun 5th edition is a total rehash of the 4th, will it still be a perfect score?) and how it is presented.

There are fluffs, actually quite too much of it in the DMG. There are also too much inconsistency (e.g. page 9, "The World is a Mundane Place" and then if this is the case, how will it affect healing?) and materials that are incompete (siege equipment are detailed but where are the siege rules?)

Again, I'm not saying that it is a bad book and that it totally missed its mark but it definitely can be better and when I see a score that shows 94% and trending upwards against better books which are languishing in the 70 and 80 score regions, I had to voice out.