D&D Essentials Kit (Dungeons & Dragons Intro Adventure Set)

I love the way that this set has been put together for a group of beginning adventurers. The extras added in compared to the starter set are a huge value and take away some of the complications of a beginning DM having to memorize everything. The cards for magic items, NPCs, and quests will help both players and DM quickly reference quests and magic items. The extra dice in the set are also a nice touch. Two d20s for advantage rolling and multiple d6s to save time rolling a single die multiple times are helpful.An additional added feature is the included DM screen. While it’s not as sturdy as the one you can purchase, it provides a great value since it has the same printed information that a DM can quick-reference as the regular screen. It also has beautiful artwork foreshadowing what is to come for the adventuring party.The story itself is why I would recommend this as an additional purchase to the starter set if you’re just getting into Dungeons and Dragons or are buying this for someone who is new. My reasoning isn’t because this story is bad. Actually it’s pretty great! But I’m of the opinion that it’s much harder to run for a beginning DM than the starter set is. This story is set up very well to provide more context to the area around Phandin and give more quests for the DM to pick and choose from to seamlessly insert into the Mines of Phandelver. It can definitely be ran as a self contained adventure with a good story. But a DM should be aware of a few of the challenges stated in other reviews. If those can be overcome or the story tweaked to fit your party a bit better, then you’ll be golden .I highly recommend this set for beginning adventurers and experienced DMs alike. I personally have been DMing for years and have fallen in love with starting off new people in D&D. This book and set is going to add a ton to my next campaign and I can’t wait to make it happen!

If you're looking for a way to get into D&D, this is a great resource. It includes everything that you need* to get started:* dice (a full set including 2d20s so you can easily roll advantage and 4d6 which are good for rolling stats). If you don't have extras, you can pass these around the table as needed, but buying a few extra sets of dice so everyone has a set is about the only thing that you NEED beyond this set. (They're even selling them at the dollar store now, but you can play with one if you must, it'll just slow things down a bit.)* an adventure that goes from levels 1-6 -- great for new players to start in or experienced players can roll up new characters for* basic rules book - this tells you all the basics of how to play the game. There's much more in-depth information and options in the Player's Handbook, the DM Handbook, and expanded in Xanathar's Guide and Tasha's Cauldron of Everything. I would recommend buying them in that order if you can afford them, but you can certainly play with just what's in this box without them (and if you don't want to be overwhelmed with too many options or spend more money, just using what's in the box is fine).* character sheets (a blank set of 6; you can run photocopies of one or download more later) -- the only thing I would have changed would have been to include pre-generated characters for new players, as new character generation can be one of the most daunting and boring tasks if you don't know what you're doing. Just make copies before you start, because if your characters get killed and you need new ones, you don't want to have them all used up. And use pencils, because you'll be doing a lot of erasing and updating!* DM screen (pretty basic version but a good starter one)* a set of perforated cardboard cards detailing magic items and NPCs that can be found in the adventure, character conditions, and combat steps. There's also a set of numbered cards that can be passed around during combat for initiative order -- this is the least useful thing included, as a good initiative tracker (like a flag style) or even just a whiteboard that everyone can see is much more helpful than having to look around the table. Even getting some spring-loaded clothespins with characters' names painted on them and clipping them to the DM screen in order is better than the cards. But the condition cards (that explain what happens when you're grappled, blinded, etc) are boku useful and can be passed around the table as needed. I use the condition cards in my games all the time.* A 2-sided fold-out poster map (about 15x22") that shows the area the adventure occurs in (there's a world-map on one side and a town on the other). This is helpful for showing stuff to players, but some parts of the game happen inside building and caves and such, that aren't on the poster map. If you want to have visual aids for those (which are helpful to the players) I'd recommend getting some wrapping paper with the grid on the backside. You can redraw the building maps on that, and then get some tokens to represent your players. You don't need expensive minis, if you go to printableheroes.com or grab pieces from another board game or just use coins or something. You can also just use "theatre of the mind" and describe what's going on, but most players think having a visual "board" makes the game easier and more fun.D&D is a hobby you can easily spend hundreds of dollars on if you really enjoy it (trust me, I have) but for $8 with this introductory set you can't go wrong. A copy of the Player's Handbook and Dungeon Master's Handbook and some extra dice would help things, but aren't necessary.

Use this set! The Starter set comes with pre-made characters. That’s the big difference between this(Essentials) and the starter set as i understand it.The value in this set is real: a portion of the dnd ruleset complete with character creation rules ,combat rules, equipment, spells and a few other rules along with a couple of pages on the general concept of what DnD is and how to play it.You also get a Dm’s screen and 6 THICK paper character sheets. Buying these separately is 20 clams, granted you get a lot more sheets and a few extras but it’s nice to have them included as they are very helpful.You get a full set of dice which includes an extra d20 and a couple more six-sided dice as well.Also provided are a lot of play-aids like status-effect , player-aids, magic items, initiative cards , npc cards, a lil fold-out box to put them in and even a double-sided map of the adventure area done by the searingly skilled Mike Schley.The rulebooks have a mix of excellent color and ink art created by a host of talented individuals.Finally you get a full color adventure book that will take player characters from 1-6th level. I don’t run premade adventures , so I can’t assess it as well as one who has run it, but it seems like a fun, semi-sandboxy adventure. Monster art and stat blocks are included.The classes , backgrounds and races aren’t as varied as in the full game, but there is a nice mix with as many backgrounds. Players can choose to be Human(ewwww ;)) , Hill or Mountain Dwarves, High or Wood Elves, and halflings. Classes choices are Bard, Cleric, Fighter, Rogue and Wizard.This set has my utmost recommendation for those who want to check out “the world’s greatest role playing game”.