Dungeon Master's Kit (4e)
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f you're a Dungeons & Dragons player looking forward to your first experience as the Dungeon Master¸ this box contains everything you need to get started¸ including expert advice on making your game the best it can be. Create monster-infested dungeons¸ gather your friends¸ and let the fun begin. In the Dungeons & Dragons world you create¸ anything is possible-the only limit is your imagination!
Contents:
- Dungeon Master's Book¸ containing everything you need to build and run exciting D&D adventures
- 2 books containing "Reavers of Harkenwold¸" a ready-to-play two-part adventure
NOTE: This is a digital download product and does not include the double-sided¸ fold-out battle maps; the 3 sheets of cut-out hero and monster tokens; or the fold-out¸ four-panel DM's screen that were included in the original physical product.
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Product History
If you're planning to be a DM for 4e D&D¸ this is the product you want to use. The D&D Essentials Dungeon Master's Kit (2010)¸ by James Wyatt and Jeremy Crawford¸ is the boxed set that many people wish that 4e D&D had started off with¸ instead of the actual DMG; it's a beautifully illustrated¸ clearly organized¸ rewritten guide to running 4e D&D. They got this one right.
This PDF includes the main 272-page rulebook from the Dungeon Master's Kit and the adventure booklets¸ but not the other components of the boxed set such as the monster tokens.
Setting the Scene. Okay¸ maybe I have a soft spot for DM empowerment¸ but I was won over quickly when I read that the world-building chapter begins with "It's Your World." Teaching new DMs often means flat-out telling them that they should change things¸ add things¸ and take things away from the default setting of D&D. Naturally¸ the default assumptions of D&D are clearly laid out¸ from the nature of villages and cities to the outer planes to the presence and nature of Gods. The kit makes it easy for a DM to understand what those basic elements are¸ all the better for helping her customize her own world.
Running the Game. New DMs are walked through the role of the Dungeon Master step by step. This instruction includes narration and adjudication¸ handling exploration¸ how to read monster statistics¸ how skill checks work¸ and how to improvise.
The chapter on running combat encounters is clear and precise¸ laying out how encounters work and what the DM's job is while running them. D&D has fairly complex combat¸ and that's one of its joys; with the advice and organization in this chapter¸ running combat becomes significantly easier and more fun.
Visualizing the Game. I want to call out the superior art and layout design in this book. For new players in particular¸ being able to visualize and imagine the world they're playing in is critical. The D&D Essentials line has taken this truism to heart. In every piece of art¸ from cartography to combat diagrams to the vibrant and action-filled illustrations¸ the magical tone and feel of the game comes through. Just looking at the book will give a browser an idea of what it feels like to play and run D&D¸ and that's a pretty impressive achievement.
Overall¸ this is the PDF that you give to new players and new DMs. The Essentials line makes D&D easier and possibly more fun to run; the Dungeon Master's Kit is an excellent entry in this line.
About the Creators. James Wyatt is a former United Methodist minister who¸ as an Origins and ENnie Award-winning novelist and game designer¸ has written and co-authored numerous D&D publications since 2000.
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