What do we know of D&D Essentials?

[Stormonu]

It was confirmed that it'll be levels 1-3. There was a thread around here about it with a link. I'll dig it up when I get a chance.

Note that the nostalgia art is a limited run. Only the first printing will have that look. My guess is that subsequent printings will have cover art more like the rest of the essentials line.

Odd, I thought I saw an article where they were considering upping it to level 5.

 

[davethegame]

Ok, sorry to ask again but do you have any official links that clarify this?
I searched for a FAQ but no luck.

What I could only find is this:

D&D XP 2010: Dungeons & Dragons Essentials : Critical Hits

Interesting quote was:



Also they talk about solo mode and a different way to determine your class or role. Perhaps they have designed classes in a way that can perform on more roles so that gameplay can be more circumstancial.

Another one is that they have already announced about 10 different products. 10 products sounds stupid if it is just an introductory kit to 4e.



After reading this, my take is that while you could be able to use monsters from 4e, some rules will be different in the sense of being more streamlined and simple in terms of tracking effects and the like. So that if you run with "essentials only" rules the game will run a bit smoother and perhaps with less specialization for the player characters so that they will do more things.

I wrote that article and was there for the seminar, so maybe I can help?

They described Solo mode as sort of a choose your own adventure thing that also generates your character as you go... like "You see some orcs, do you attack it with your dagger, blast it with a spell, or pray?" It's an alternate way to generate a character that's easier.

10 products includes several dungeon tile sets and other things that have wider appeal. The idea is that you can buy only Essentials products and never have to venture outside of it to play and have character options. Same with Character Builder- "Essentials Mode" is still speculative, but would probably be an option to use only stuff from Essentials, or everything from both.

This is the operative part from the seminar (taken from my notes):

"They made it a point to say that these weren’t “dumbed down” rules, but the actual 4e rules, just laid out and presented differently"

Hope that helps!

 

[darjr]

http://www.enworld.org/forum/genera...4-red-box-basic-set-covers-1st-3rd-level.html

Hmmm... so the exact 'retro' cover may be a bit of a question...

 

[xechnao]

snip

Thanks for the input!

So, it seems that we know the basic mechanics are completely the same (how movement works, how attacks work, defenses etch) while classes could be different (for example if and how a fighter marks, powers, etch).

Oh, and does Rules Compendium make part of this line (checking from its cover) or is it a different thing?

 

[Nikosandros]

Oh, and does Rules Compendium make part of this line (checking from its cover) or is it a different thing?

As I posted upthread, the Compendium is indeed part of the Essentials line.

From what I understand, this book will serve a dual purpose. It will provide detailed rules for players graduating from the basic set and it will also be a collected and printed source of rules for veteran players including the several updates to skills, finding hidden characters, aiding another, etc...

 

[thecasualoblivion]

I'm expecting a paired down, simpler to play/run version of D&D designed to stand on its own within its own boundaries.

Not unlike BECMI D&D, or the 3.5E version, Core only no splats.

 

[Mouseferatu]

So, it seems that we know the basic mechanics are completely the same (how movement works, how attacks work, defenses etch) while classes could be different (for example if and how a fighter marks, powers, etch).

I don't think the classes are going to be that different. They will (I think) have a different selection of powers, but the class features--such as the fighter's various mark-related abilities--are, I believe, the same.

That is, a fighter built with the PHB and a fighter built with the Essentials line are the same class; they just might have pulled from a different selection of powers. And in a given campaign, a fighter built with one could, if you wanted, pull powers from the other.

(There are new builds in Essentials, but there were new builds in, for instance, Martial Power, too. Didn't change the fundamentals of the classes.)

 

[Stormonu]

That is, a fighter built with the PHB and a fighter built with the Essentials line are the same class; they just might have pulled from a different selection of powers. And in a given campaign, a fighter built with one could, if you wanted, pull powers from the other.

My guess is that some of the powers will be pulled from other products than the PHB1 (I'm betting the cards introduced in the PHB mini sets will be there). I think this is most likely to be true with the included wizard powers.

 

[Saracenus]

If folks want to get an overview of the Essentials line the 2010 D&D XP Podcasts have information.

Dungeons & Dragons Roleplaying Game Official Home Page - Article (D&D Experience Roundup)

Check out the 2010 D&D Product Overview (about 2/3 in the podcast).

In short, almost all the content will be new but it is 4e, not a variant.

The latest errata that was released in May made some major changes to the core rules of 4e to bring it in line with the Rules Compendium and the upcoming Essentials line.

In Service,