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question for D&D players

revan299srevan299s Member Posts: 64
edited September 2013 in Off-Topic
Myself and some friends have been looking to get into D&D we have never played.

Is $70 really the cheapest you can get the 4e core books? That seems utterly ridiculous to me.(especially for someone who lives paycheack to pacheck :/) I was hoping to get by with maybe spending $40-50. And I don't want that red box starter kit or PDF files. Prefer physical books. I can understand the hardcovers being this expensive but that's all I can seem to find. Were paperback copies never made for 4e?

What I am hoping for is, if someone can direct me to where I can get these books at possibly 50 bucks maximum. If not, will have to just not play D&D.

Comments

  • CorianderCoriander Member Posts: 1,667
    If there's a game/comic shop nearby, they might resell used copies or know if someone local is looking for a buyer. You can also find them used on Amazon or eBay.
  • rexregrexreg Member Posts: 292
    edited September 2013
    @revan299s

    my knee-jerk to this is - don't buy 4th ed...buy 3.5...or use the Pathfinder SRD (everything you need, all online, all for free)...

    paper backs were not made of 4th. ed stuff, PDF's were offered initially, but i don't know if they are still available...

    seriously, avoid 4th ed. & use PF or 3.5...again, the Pathfinder (PF) rules are free online @ PathfinderSRD

    let the edition wars begin
  • revan299srevan299s Member Posts: 64
    edited September 2013
    Coriander said:

    If there's a game/comic shop nearby, they might resell used copies or know if someone local is looking for a buyer. You can also find them used on Amazon or eBay.

    Really? you can't get them NEW for less than $70? that's a ridiculous startup fee for a game lol
    rexreg said:

    @revan299s

    my knee-jerk to this is - don't buy 4th ed...buy 3.5...or use the Pathfinder SRD (everything you need, all online, all for free)...

    paper backs were not made of 4th. ed stuff, PDF's were offered initially, but i don't know if they are still available...

    seriously, avoid 4th ed. & use PF or 3.5...again, the Pathfinder (PF) rules are free online @ PathfinderSRD

    let the edition wars begin

    I would prefer 4th. What makes 3.5 better? (not going with a diff game than D&D)
    Post edited by revan299s on
  • rexregrexreg Member Posts: 292
    that is a big question
    for me it is a matter of personal preference
    3.5 is closer to 'Classic' D&D, imho...
    4th ed. does away w/ weapon proficiencies/feats & makes skills into incredibly broad groups
    i feel classes are not as distinct as they were in earlier editions
    when leveling, there is oftentimes only one Power that gets chosen as it is so far head & shoulders above the the other powers available
    there are no spell levels...heck, i'd argue there aren't really spells in the classic d&d Vancian style of casting
    2 combats can take 3-4 hours once you get close to 10th lvl
    4th ed. has almost hit the end of its run, as D&D Next (5th ed.) just finished up its playtesting (i think)
    4th ed. movement, forced & voluntary, is pretty well done
    i have heard it said 4th ed. breaks the chains of Gygax...to me, this is not a good thing...
    i tried to like 4th ed...i played in a campaign that took us to the mid-teens & DM'd a campaign that ran to 12th lvl...the campaign i DM'd took well over a year to hit 12th lvl...we played every week, pretty much, 4-5 hours/week...
    i hope to never play 4th ed. again...

    check out the Pathfinder SRD site...Pathfinder is essentially D&D 3.75...it came out under the 3rd ed. Open Gaming License & Paizo (PF publisher) continued putting out rules after D&D 3rd gave up the ghost...4th turned many away from D&D & many of those kept playing PF, however...Pathfinder IS 3rd ed. D&D under a different name
  • revan299srevan299s Member Posts: 64
    My reasoning for 4th was I heard It's easier for newcomers than past editions. Also I am not into the PDFs I do not want to spend hours reading from the PC or smartphone(don't own a tablet)
  • Stargazer5781Stargazer5781 Member Posts: 183
    I agree on going with 3.5 or Pathfinder. In my opinion it's a far superior system to D&D 4.0. 3.5 also has a much larger online community supporting it (Heroforge for building characters etc.).

    Looks like you can get the 3 core books for 3.5 for under $50 on Amazon
    http://www.amazon.com/Lucky-13-list-books-youll/lm/30XWKBFEOM8G5

    Pathfinder has the advantage of only requiring a single book to get going. $32 there
    http://www.amazon.com/Pathfinder-Roleplaying-Game-Core-Rulebook/dp/1601251505/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1378874148&sr=8-1&keywords=Pathfinder

    Looks like you can get the 4E books used there for under $50 if you look around.

    PHB
    http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0786948671/sr=8-3/qid=1378873928/ref=olp_tab_used?ie=UTF8&colid=&coliid=&condition=used&me=&qid=1378873928&seller=&sr=8-3

    DMG
    http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0786948809/ref=tmm_hrd_used_olp_sr?ie=UTF8&condition=used&sr=8-7&qid=1378874014

    MM
    http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0786948523/ref=tmm_hrd_used_olp_sr?ie=UTF8&condition=used&sr=8-8&qid=1378874014

    Good luck, hope you can have a great game.
  • revan299srevan299s Member Posts: 64
    Stargazer5781 said:

    I agree on going with 3.5 or Pathfinder. In my opinion it's a far superior system to D&D 4.0. 3.5 also has a much larger online community supporting it (Heroforge for building characters etc.).

    Looks like you can get the 3 core books for 3.5 for under $50 on Amazon
    http://www.amazon.com/Lucky-13-list-books-youll/lm/30XWKBFEOM8G5

    Pathfinder has the advantage of only requiring a single book to get going. $32 there
    http://www.amazon.com/Pathfinder-Roleplaying-Game-Core-Rulebook/dp/1601251505/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1378874148&sr=8-1&keywords=Pathfinder

    Looks like you can get the 4E books used there for under $50 if you look around.

    PHB
    http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0786948671/sr=8-3/qid=1378873928/ref=olp_tab_used?ie=UTF8&colid=&coliid=&condition=used&me=&qid=1378873928&seller=&sr=8-3

    DMG
    http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0786948809/ref=tmm_hrd_used_olp_sr?ie=UTF8&condition=used&sr=8-7&qid=1378874014

    MM
    http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0786948523/ref=tmm_hrd_used_olp_sr?ie=UTF8&condition=used&sr=8-8&qid=1378874014

    Good luck, hope you can have a great game.

    I wanted New. but it seems if I want 4e I have no choice.(I also have someone who likes 4e trying to convince me I'd be better off going with the essentials than the core books but that seems like it will cost even more since it seems to require more books lol)

    *sigh* I guess I may give 3.5 a go. (I just like using most recent versions in everything lol)

    Thanks for the info guys.
  • DrugarDrugar Member Posts: 1,566
    If you like having the mosg recent version of everything, wait a few months for 5th Edition D&D. It won't be long.

    Otherwise I can only recommend Pathfinder over D&D 3.5. It is the same game only Pathfinder tweaks some balance issues (buffing monks and rangers), offers some more options (character archetypes and tons of traits) and removes some redundant things (putting jump, tumble and balance into one skill; acrobatics).
    I love 3.5 but pathfinder is really an upgrade. It's exactly the same system only thoroughly reviewed. 3.75 instead of 3.5 if you will. Plus it has all three core books in one.
    Check out http://www.d20srd.org and http://www.d20pfsrd.com and compare.
  • DrugarDrugar Member Posts: 1,566
    edited September 2013
    Edit:

    Doublepost, this one can be removed.
    Post edited by Drugar on
  • ajwzajwz Member Posts: 4,122
    revan299s said:

    Coriander said:

    If there's a game/comic shop nearby, they might resell used copies or know if someone local is looking for a buyer. You can also find them used on Amazon or eBay.

    Really? you can't get them NEW for less than $70? that's a ridiculous startup fee for a game lol

    Haha, at least you get a playable game for that cost (The rulebooks are the game). You want to try visiting games workshop :p
  • DrugarDrugar Member Posts: 1,566
    ajwz said:

    Haha, at least you get a playable game for that cost (The rulebooks are the game). You want to try visiting games workshop :p

    Warhammer;
    Rulebook is €60,-
    Armybook is €40,-
    Batallion box (starter army) is €95,-
    It misses a general, which you need so, €15,-
    Dice and templates are €15,-
    If you want some painting done so the models don't look like shit, another €30-40,-
    Starting price of Warhammer: around €250,-

    Yeeeeah...D&D is a lot cheaper than freakin' Warhammer.
    On that note, I should order some more Bloodcrusher daemons...
  • revan299srevan299s Member Posts: 64
    edited September 2013
    Drugar said:

    ajwz said:

    Haha, at least you get a playable game for that cost (The rulebooks are the game). You want to try visiting games workshop :p

    Warhammer;
    Rulebook is €60,-
    Armybook is €40,-
    Batallion box (starter army) is €95,-
    It misses a general, which you need so, €15,-
    Dice and templates are €15,-
    If you want some painting done so the models don't look like shit, another €30-40,-
    Starting price of Warhammer: around €250,-

    Yeeeeah...D&D is a lot cheaper than freakin' Warhammer.
    On that note, I should order some more Bloodcrusher daemons...
    I tried it and even if Warhammer was affordable, I'm not into the modelling/painting.
    But even that had the Battle for Macragge set. Which seems to be OOP now thus costing alot more, maybe theres a different set now?. But atleast that came with the full (maybe abridged?)rulebook. and everything else you needed to get a game going for the price of $49.99, when it was still in print.
  • DrugarDrugar Member Posts: 1,566
    Aye, there's the Battle for Blood Island set with High Elves and Skaven. It's €57,- IIRC and has a smaller rulebook (though still complete), one high elf and one skaven army with one commander and one wizard each and templates.
    Good value for your cash, me and a friend got two boxes, i got all Skaven, he took the elves.
  • revan299srevan299s Member Posts: 64
    edited September 2013
    High Elves and Skaven? Sounds like the Warhammer Fantasy version of Macragge. Only ever tried 40k. Stopped when GW left my area. I have to say one thing about WH. The players are among the nicest people I have ever met. I was in a small tournament and one of the other players gave me units to use on the first day of the tourney. Never met him before that day lol told me to hang on to em till end of the tourney. (it lasted about a month)
  • DrugarDrugar Member Posts: 1,566
    40k version currently is Dark Templar vs Chaos Space Marines, same deal, nice models too.

    And yeah, while the local GW crew is sort of clique-ey, they're all v. nice people and willing to help out with anything.
  • Night_WatchNight_Watch Member Posts: 514
    i remember selling my 3.5 core books about 4 years ago. i kind of regret it now, but considering most of the people i play dnd with have moved away i suppose it isn't too much of a loss. maybe if i ever find a new group to play 3/3.5 i'll pick them up again.
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