Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="WizarDru" data-source="post: 3300129" data-attributes="member: 151">The problem with the current D&D basic sets, and what sets them apart from the Moldvay Red Box, for example, is that it isn't a complete game on its own.  The D&D boardgame is both fun and introduces new players to the basic ideas of D&D, if not the actual mechanics.  Rogues search for traps, fighters do battle, wizards cast spells and clerics heal and turn undead.  You could run a series of adventures and even an extended campaign using the D&D board game.  You can make your own adventures and keep going for a while, if you so desire.  You can at least level twice.The Moldvay set had everything you needed to start playing IMMEDIATELY.  The D&D basic sets give you too brief a taste...some minis, some dice and a poorly chosen set of dungeon tiles.  Why poorly chosen?  Because you can't lay out more than a quarter of the dungeon at one time, due to the need to flip the tiles.  BOGUS.  The D&D basic game emphasizes the wrong things, IMHO.  The D&D boardgame even has expansions, not unlike the old Basic game.  The D&D basic game should be simple enough that a 12-year old can start DM-ing a game after a couple of hours of reading, IMHO.  WotC is so enamored of flashy graphics, they missed the ease and simplicity of the Moldvay release and it's clear layout and concise text.Here's another the next big thing:  An Online Tutorial and Beginning Session that introduces you to D&D, using a free online system to introduce you to it.  Turbine's DDO game is adapted to a free tutorial that introduces you to play...no group required!  Now the gatekeeper can play and discover the game with experienced players (real or not) and learn the game in a controlled environment.  Rich Baker himself is the voice of the DM in your first Eberron adventure.Or how about:  D&D Lite.  Following in the footsteps of GURPS and using the SRD as a base, WotC releases a 16-page pamphlet suitable for running any of the four free basic adventures given away on Free Comic Book Day at your local store.  Enough to whet the appetite of the novice and entice him to further explore the game, it allows a novice and some friends to play an adventure in an hour, with only a few minutes prep time.</blockquote>

Verification