Starter Set Review

This particular post has been a long time coming as I've digested all the contents in the new Starter Box. I have yet to run a party of adventurers through it so be warned that most of these opinions are untested. I will eventually be posting play reports which will provide more detailed assessments.  I've also tried hard to keep it spoiler free so players who might be venturing into The Lost Mine of Phandelver may proceed without fear.

Dice:

The starter set comes with six dice: one  each of the standard polyhedra. While it may seem weird not to have 2d10 percentile dice are only mentioned once in the mechanics for the Augury spell so chances are good you won't miss them much. A second d20 would have been nice given how frequently advantage and disadvantage could come up. They have a deep blue pearl finish and roll nicely with satisfying weight to them, a far cry from the  disintegrating, pastel dice of yore that seemed to be made from recycled ballpoint pen caps.

The Characters:

In lieu of character creation rules you get five printed character sheets representing the classic archetypes of wizard (elf), cleric (dwarf), rogue (halfling) and two fighters (one melee, one ranged; both humans). All the information you need to play them is included on the sheets including information on alignment and how they advance up to 5th level.

While I generally don't care for pre-gens there are two things I love about these.

First (and most importantly) they are effective without being game optimized. While this does lead to a few weird gaps in logic (the rogue is the most likely character to be surprised for instance), it's nice that the designers are presenting characters that do not take advantage of every rule to eke the most damage from every hit. It's refreshing to see a product for beginners that doesn't cater to the worst impulses of the munchkin.

Second the character's personal stories are very well integrated into the story of the adventure. Every one of them has a good reason to undertake various quests above and beyond blind greed and the usual adventurer's imperative. The integration of the background element (one of my favorite bits of the new edition) really makes them more than just  stereotypes. They also play against type by making the cleric a soldier and the wizard an acolyte (a devout non-cleric).

The Rulebook:

The included rulebook is a fairly solid rendition of the game, though there are some cases in which the lack of character creation rules could potentially cause some confusion when a player moves up from the starter set to Basic D&D or the full Player's Handbook. For example, mention is made of Clerics being proficient with all armor but this is only the case because of a class and race feature built into the particular cleric included with the set rather than a general rule. It also makes it less attractive to the experienced player as a quick reference.

While the material presented is mostly solid there are a few vague areas, particularly as regards vision, lighting the ability to hide and the targeting of spells. Though  some of this is an inevitable consequence of moving the game away from requiring miniatures, but I think there was plenty of room for improvement in this area.

Adventure:

The Lost Mine of Phandelver is not likely to stand alongside Castle Ravenloft and The Temple of Elemental Evil in the pantheon of great modules but it is quite good as introductory adventures go. It's really more of a mini campaign as it covers enough encounters to bring the players up through fifth level and should take between four and five sessions to play.

There's a good mix of combat, exploration and social interaction as well as plenty of  advice for the novice DM about how to make it all work. A few bits  felt a little forced but it's a solid example of adventure design which bodes well for Wizards of the Coast given that their business plan seems to hinge on the successful sales of modules. 

A word of caution: although the adventure is set up in four parts and the designers expect players to go through them in order there exists a strong possibility that the players will skip half of the first chapter and proceed to the second (especially if they are experienced players who are  wary of DM meddling). This can wreak all sorts of havoc with the plot and leave the characters critically underpowered at critical moments in parts 3 and 4. Part three is also almost completely freeform. The DM must be familiar with the character's background at this point, as each of the pre-gens has specific goals that tie into something. If a player forgets that their character has a reason of her own to explore the ruined village of Thundertree the DM should be ready with a reminder. Far from a weakness, this is actually a strength of the entire package. The integration of the characters' personal history transforms what would otherwise be a melange of side quests designed for level grinding into a part of their evolving biography in a very organic way and encourages the players to move beyond the published plotline in potentially interesting ways.

It would behoove you to read the entire adventure through at least once and make copious notes because it's much more complex then your standard dungeon crawl with a simple map and key...though it's got that in there too!

The Final Analysis:

The Starter Set is a decent product. Not great but good enough to get folks who have never played excited about the game. It certainly helps that the rules themselves are the most accessible that they've ever been. A lot has been made of the fact that there is no battle mat, or cardboard tokens as was included in the 4th ed red box or the Pathfinder beginner box. This is another strength in my opinion. The starter set includes everything you need to play D&D in it's simplest form. A bunch of components you don't really need would only serve to intimidate new players, especially since the addition of miniatures would require more detailed rules for their use. The one thing I would have liked better would have been some form of character creation rules in the box. Though they are available online for free, the new player is more likely to encounter D&D through the starter box and I feel that the process of creating your own persona is so integral to the Dungeons and Dragons experience that it should have been included.

For experienced players most of the appeal will be lost once the full set of core rulebooks is released (or when monsters and magic items are added to the basic rules). That being said if you're an old time grognard who is on the fence about whether to plunk down 150 dollars for The Trilogy the starter set does provide a taste of what 5th edition has to offer with a fraction of the time and effort that building an adventure of your own using the basic rules would take.

Five Spells That Are Too Good Not to Have Prepared

The nature of spell casting in Dungeons and Dragons is such that there will never be a single best spell*. A lot depends on the situation of the moment and spells are very limited in their purview. Sleep is perfect for when you're surrounded by goblins but pretty useless when being attacked by skeletons or drowning in a flooding chamber. That being said there are some spells that are so good that not preparing them is almost silly. What follows are one DM's picks of five, a mix of Cleric and Wizard from the first level list provided in the starter set and basic rules PDF. Feel free to agree or disagree in the comments.

*Except of course for the ever elusive Wish.

5)Shield (wizard): In previous editions Shield was the poor man's Mage Armor. It's limited duration and relatively low bonus to AC combined to make it relatively unattractive despite the fact that it blocked Magic Missile. So what's changed?  In fifth edition certain spells, including Shield, can be cast as a reaction,  meaning that the spell is actually cast in an opponents turn when triggered by another action in this case being hit by a successful attack. This means that you don't have to use the spell slot until you know you're going to need it because the enemy just flung a magic missile at you or hit you with an attack. Plus if the DM is rolling in the open or telling you what his attack rolls are you know whether the spell will make a difference and can choose not to waste the slot.

4) Burning Hands (wizard). Burning Hands has always been sort of the hipster equivalent of Magic Missile, the first level attack spell you take just to be contrary to the accepted wisdom or because your character happens to have a bad case of pyromania. In fifth edition the improvement of Shield has made Magic Missile less effective locking the two spells in a kind of arcane detente.  In this environment Burning Hands really shines. Shield offers no protection against it (nor armor for that matter) and it has the potential to cause more damage if spread over multiple targets.

3) Healing Word (cleric): Healing Word not only allows you to heal damage on a target at a distance (60 feet) it is also a bonus action. This means that after casting it you can cast a cantrip with a casting time of 1 action or make another action (such as an attack or a disengage). Though it doesn't heal as much as Cure Light Wounds, it's a great way to beat the old problem of the cleric not getting to do anything in combat but buff. The third level version (Mass Healing Word) is even better as it allows you to heal more than one companion at a time.

2) Guiding Bolt (Cleric): This has got to be one of the best spells ever designed for any edition. Not only does it have a range of 120' (better than the max range of a hand crossbow) it requires no material components and does 4d6 radiant damage...at first level. But wait there's more! In addition to all of that, the first attack against the target gets advantage, effectively doubling it's chance of a hit. Time it just right and a rogue can use that advantage to add an extra d6 from sneak attack. It does require an attack roll to hit but you should have a more than decent shot of pulling it off.

1) Ray of Frost/Sacred Flame (wizard/cleric): I've cheated a bit and lumped these two together since they are essentially the same spell. Ray of Frost requires a ranged attack and imposes a movement penalty whereas Sacred Flame can be avoided with a Dexterity save, but both spells cause the same amount of damage (d8). They also share a 60' range and neither requires any material components that can be lost or taken away. Both are cantrips so they can be cast at will and in addition to a spell cast with a bonus action. They also increase their damage automatically as the character raises in level whereas every other spell must be cast using a higher level spell slot to do more damage. These factors combine to make Ray and Flame the most reliable way for the wizard or clerics to keep pace with the fighters extra attacks and the rogues sneak attack ability at higher levels.

Welcome to the Dungeons

It has come to my attention that folks over on Facebook may be becoming weary of my incessant posts regarding the 5th Edition of the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game produced by the fine folks at Wizards of the Coast. They perhaps wish to see less about how awesome the dagger is or the chances of a rogue against a fighter in a balanced fight and more dog videos/pictures of cute babies. I cannot say they are wrong in these desires and so I have begun to delve these dungeons for myself.

Others may wish for additional detail or a more archival venue that makes it easier to return to savor the posts of old for comfort in the dying glow of their twilight years. You are just the sort of creatures I am looking for to infest these catacombs and keep those damn adventurers away from my treasure.

Perhaps you have come here through the mystical meanderings of the Digital Plane. Welcome! I hope you find much here to enlighten and entertain.