Dungeons and Dragons Core Rulebook Gift Set, 4th Edition | 
 enlarge | Author: Wizards Rpg Team
Brand: Wizards of the Coast
Category: Book
List Price: $104.95
Buy New: $56.24
You Save: $48.71 (46%)
New (32) Used (9) from $50.62
Avg. Customer Rating:  187 reviews
Sales Rank: 1592
Format: Box Set
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 4th
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 832
Shipping Weight (lbs): 6.9
Dimensions (in): 11.6 x 8.7 x 2.4
ISBN: 0786950633
Dewey Decimal Number: 793
EAN: 9780786950638
Publication Date: June 6, 2008
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Product Description
All three 4th Edition core rulebooks in one handsome slipcase. The Dungeons & Dragons Roleplaying Game has defined the medieval fantasy genre and the tabletop RPG industry for more than 30 years. In the D&D game, players create characters that band together to explore dungeons, slay monsters, and find treasure. The 4th Edition D&D rules offer the best possible play experience by presenting exciting character options, an elegant and robust rules system, and handy storytelling tools for the Dungeon Master.This gift set features a handsome slipcase containing all three of the 4th Edition D&D Roleplaying Game core rulebooks: the Players Handbook rulebook (320 pages), the Monster Manual rulebook (288 pages), and the Dungeon Masters Guide rulebook (224 pages).
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| Customer Reviews: Read 182 more reviews...
 A new generation of a classic game June 6, 2008
129 out of 174 found this review helpful
At first I was a bit skeptical about this new edition after reading a lot of the material coming from the forums and seasoned veterans of table top RPGs, but when I picked it up and tried it out for myself, I was pleasantly surprised. A lot of the fears people had about the game being over the top action is somewhat unfounded, if anything its quite the opposite.
I whipped up a quick adventure about a mind flayer controlling town politics and went at it. The first thing I noticed was that the players spent much less time looking up modifiers and rolling dice then they did interacting with the game world. With the skills being simplified a bit, it made the game so much easier to get to the bottom of things and actually, dare I say it, role-play. I threw in a complex skill challenge and was impressed out how smooth and excited the players were just interacting with the local thieves guild, which is something I havent seen in awhile.
Eventually the players were forced in combat. I remember in 3.x there seemed to be a formula for combat depending on the type of enemy involved. That exists to a degree, but combat is so much smoother than it used to be. The abilities that the classes get really mesh well and the new system is so much easier. Instead of 4 steps for a grapple its one! The players acted much more tactically and really got into the nitty gritty only relying on the dice when it was completely necessary. Throw in a few action phrases and its a much more focused game play experience.
The dungeon masters guide and monster manual feel like theyve been designed for ease of use as well. Some people will say the game has been dumbed down, and I know what they mean. I felt that way until I saw the game in action and realized the new strategic depth that was never there before. I can already see a strategy guide coming out for battle strategy. Overall I would recommend this product to both veterans and new people to the hobby-both for its new ease of use and re-imagining of a classic hobby.
4th edition D&D -- a great game June 9, 2008
45 out of 64 found this review helpful
I call the new rule set:
"Everything that is old is new again"
As other reviewers have mentioned, there are significant changes to the rules. Having lived with the rules for the past 6 months, I can say that the game is much more balanced (in general) and most importantly -- REALLY FUN TO PLAY AND DM.
I played and ran a significant amount of 3.5 rules and the system had come to the natural conclusion. There were so many rules and options that it was becoming unplayable.
I'll give a few examples:
* The "Dunkin Donuts" effect of prestige classes was getting silly. The "I'm a fighter...well, really a Fighter 4, Barbarian 1, Occult Slayer 2, Reaping Mauler 2, etc..." was becoming the normal with high level characters...fighter types in particular.
This was a nightmare for the DM to keep track of everyone's abilities at high level
* Monsters had too much to do...that's right, monsters, especially complicated or high level monsters, were just a pain to run. I can cast this laundry list of spells -- but really, I only cast 3-4 of my most powerful spells ever
* One word -- grappling. Let's use it in a sentence:
In 3.5, some of the most difficult and annoying rules revolve around...grappling.
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I have already heard the complaints -- it's too simple, it doesn't allow flexibility, etc..
At least for me, I am more than willing to give up flexibility (at least for now...you know there are more books on the way in the next year) for now in order to have a system that is fast and fun to play
What's great about 4th edition?
* Skill Challenges -- awesome mechanic -- basically allows you to abstract almost any situation and roleplay with very little restrictions.
Negotiations with the town council -- skill challenge
Trying to get out of a maze -- skill challenge
Playing a game of poker against an opponent -- skill challenge
You can use just about any skill or ability to try to influence the challenge -- one person used streetwise in the poker game to try to tip me off on the other person's hand.
* Race matters -- just like in the original rule books, race plays a big part. A dwarven fighter really is different than an elf or eladrin fighter and that's just cool
* The DMG is a great book. They are not afraid to call it as they see it and "expose" the various types of gamers, what they want and how to handle them well in a group.
* Easy for the target market (12+ -- especially on the lower end of the age range) to pick up the game and run with it.
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I was a huge skeptic going into this new editon but I have converted and become an advocate for 4th edition
Much easier than ed. 3.5, but still retains the D&D fun October 7, 2008
4 out of 6 found this review helpful
My only criticism is of Amazon's handling of the product.
I actually preordered this set from Amazon.com two months before the release. It was annoying that Amazon pushed my delivery date back a month and a half because they ran out of supplies. Don't pre-order on Amazon.com unless you want to take a chance and not get your item till much later.
The game itself is great because it is simplified down from 3.5 rules. I learned DMing on my own in 3.5 editon and played with people that were newbies as well. The game was very hard to DM in 3.5 and DMing it in 4th is a lot easier due to encounter xp tables, treasure being standardized, and classes working in a similar fashion(i.e. daily, encounter, and at-will powers). I love it, and my players like it better than 3.5 as well.
An overall improvement over 3rd/3.5 edition October 12, 2008
4 out of 6 found this review helpful
The first time I played 4th edition I was in a group of 4 players plus the DM, and our DM had the only set of core books (everyone else besides myself was brand new to the game). I had skimmed sections of the books as I was making my character, and I was VERY apprehensive. It seemed to me like this was a completely different game, and in some ways it is. I have some friends who don't like it (though they've only played one session), simply stating that "it's not DnD." For any who have had experiences similar to this, I say give the new edition a few more tries. It's jarring to get used to the new system, which in some ways is more streamlined and in some ways is not.
First, the bad. The addition of powers is the most radically different aspect of this game. While these are the meat of your character's combat abilities, they are a bit more difficult to organize than a 3rd edition character's abilities (unless you enjoyed complicated spellcasters in 3rd, in which case the powers makes it a bit easier). In 3rd, you had everything on your character sheet, for there was really only one basic attack with each weapon. As long as all of your bonuses and modifiers were kept track of, it was simple. You just add those numbers to your attacks/damage. The powers of a 4th edition character give them more flavor (I think it makes combat come alive more), but since each power is different you must keep track of them separately. Some give different bonuses or cause different effects than others. If you're unorganized, at higher levels this could get really complicated. You may end up resorting to referencing the Player's Handbook every time you use anything other than an At-Will power (which are usually simple, CAN be written right on your character sheet, and are used so frequently that you shouldn't have any trouble remembering what they do). What I've done is cut standard 3X5 index cards in half and I write each different power on a card. I then place them in a plastic card protector page (the type that you can put in a binder to display collectible cards, much like a photo album) and keep that page with my character sheet. The best thing about this system is that you can make a mark on the plastic over the power with dry erase marker when you've used the power, and it erases right off at the end of the encounter or day. Some might say that a system like this in addition to the character sheet shouldn't be necessary to play a DnD character, but it works.
Now for the good. Going back to my first 4th edition game, I mentioned that all of the other players were completely new to DnD. With that in mind, I thought that they caught on fairly quickly. In the case of a 1st level 4th edition character (who only has a few powers), character creation is a bit easier than it was in 3rd edition. I don't want to say more intuitive, because I found MY first character frustrating to make because I was used to the 3rd edition process. Now, however, I can make a given character much quicker. This is assuming that in both cases I'm using just the core books. Even as a 3rd edition player, I usually didn't stray too far from the core books, as it made character creation more of a chore than it should have been. Now, a lot of DnD players like this aspect of 3rd edition. Perhaps when more supplemental material comes out for 4th then the new system will succumb to the same fate. For players that love multiclassing 4 different classes and 2 prestige classes, 4 edition is not for you (you can only multiclass into ONE other class, and even then you just dabble). However, you don't NEED to multiclass to make your character different then another member of the same class. And although base classes have different builds, until more supplemental material comes out you probably won't be satisfied. But I have digressed, and I must now reiterate: the basic process behind making a character is easier. Players new to DnD or who have played 3rd edition only a couple of times would benefit from starting with 4th.
Additionally, as of now the 4th edition classes seem to be much more balanced than the ones in 3rd. I don't know how many times I've been asked "why are you playing a ranger? A two weapon or archery fighter is a mechanically superior character!" And everyone knows that when it comes to combat, Bards rarely hold their own (this is coming from someone who does actually LIKE the Bard class). In 4th Edition you will be much less likely to be penalized for making a poor character choice. Furthermore, little mistakes in the advancement of your character can actually be alleviated: you can now retrain feats and powers (one at each level) in case you made a bad decision. Personally, I feel that having balanced characters allows you to focus more on concept, flavor, and background since you don't have to worry about mechanics as much (and those who don't think 4th edition has enough options, just wait for the supplemental stuff to come out if that's how you like to play DnD).
Finally, I come to the best aspect of 4th edition. This is the reason that I gave the product 5 stars, because otherwise there are aspects of 3rd edition that I prefer. This reason is, it is a LOT easier and more intuitive to DM. So if you DM in your group, definitely consider making the switch to 4th edition. Building encounters of the appropriate level is a breeze: there is a table with an experience point pool, and you simply add in enemies until their combined experience point values equals the total encounter experience. And instead of the vague concept of CR (I've DMed a few years now, and it still takes forever to plan an encounter with multiple enemies using the CR system, partially because it's restrictive and vague), the enemies are given a LEVEL, much like the characters. Also, the DMG has simple rules for scaling a given monster up or down (within about 4 or 5 levels). The monster manual has never been so easy to use! And because the rules in general have been streamlined, the DM has less to remember and look up while playing. In fact, there is a table on page 42 of the DMG that solves all of your misc. DC and damage issues not directly addressed in the rules. The result: a flexible and simplified mechanic that allows you to focus more on plot, storyline, and roleplaying. And as an added bonus, DMing should be less intimidating, so more players can give it a shot (allowing the poor DM to actually play a character every once in a while!).
So to sum up a longer-than-expected and somewhat rambling review, if you don't have any/much DnD experience and want to give the game a shot, 4th edition is the system you should use. If you're an experienced player/DM who simply wants to experience a new take on DnD, give it a shot. If you like creating character concepts more than fiddling around with complicated mechanics that may or may not work to your advantage, you will prefer 4th edition. If you like said fiddling around with mechanics, you might want to stick to 3rd edition.
A Review from a DM June 8, 2008
46 out of 70 found this review helpful
Alright, here's a warning: if you do like 3.5, don't look at this. If you've found all the flaws I have, then do look.
3.5's flaws were painfully clear. Powergamers were frequent and cheap, using tactics that allow 16th level characters to one shot monsters double their level. The system actually discouraged roleplaying and skill use, since the wizard could just do all of that. Long live the wizard and the sorcerer, they were the only classes really worth using. Story took a backseat because roleplaying took a backseat.
4th has fixed these flaws. Every class has been made even. This means that non-casters can actually do cool stuff.
The main power of powergamers, multiclassing, has been made fair. You wanna multiclass? Take a feat for it. Granted, I don't like the actual feats given, but that's what houserules are for.
The skills have been consolidated into a sensible few. C'mon, if you're gonna be good at climbing you'll be good at swimming. The skill point system has been removed, turning it from the longest to the shortest area you spend on your character sheet.
Combat has sped up, and has gotten alot better. Movement is expected and encouraged, giving the game a more cinematic feel.
There are a few flaws besides the multiclassing feats, and here they are:
Most of the classes are more homogeneous, with the descriptive text and name being the only difference in some powers.
There just isn't...enough, to the system, but it's really not a flaw, it's a fact. The Player's Hand is so full of stuff that it couldn't hold anymore, which is why there are supplements coming out. As time goes on, the homogeneous feel of the classes will vanish, since new options will open up as time goes on. And that's what homebrewing's for anyway.
My two games of 4th have been better than the last two years of 3.5. Long live 4th. Don't listen to the others, this is the real deal. This is fantasy roleplaying. This is Dungeons and Dragons.
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