Besides the books, power cards, and character sheets, the D&D Essentials comes with a one-page ad for other Essentials products, a card with a redemption code for another solo adventure (yay!) a two sided dungeon/wilderness map, and tokens for PCs and all the monsters in the DM book.

Each monster type comes with four tokens, identical except that they’re numbered 1 to 4. I’m seriously considering using tokens from now on, instead of minis, and it’s solely because they’re numbered. We always have a problem matching identical monster minis with their HPs. “Which hobgoblin did you hit?” “The one who is to the left of the hobgoblin who is next to the fighter.” We’ve tried putting numbered scraps of paper under the minis, but that’s cumbersome. We’ve tried replacing the minis with dice, with the pip number representing the monster number, but dice get rolled, and you do NOT want to roll some hobgoblins.

Each of the PC tokens can be flipped over to show a red-ringed Bloodied version of the PC. If you flip over the monster tokens, they just turn into different monsters. It would be nice if there were Bloodied versions of the monsters too, but if a goblin turns into a swarm of rats when bloodied, that will add an interesting new dimension to combat.

More Red Box thoughts…

Every magic item in the D&D Essentials starter adventure comes with a power card. Or a magic item card, I guess: none of the magic items (lifedrinker greataxe, darkleaf leather armor, magic staff, chainmail armor, bag of holding, amulet of health, 2 potions) actually have a power. None of the cards are marked Common, Uncommon, or Rare, either.

Would it be convenient to have a card for every magic item? I guess it would be fun to get cards as part of getting treasure. Also, returning cards to the DM is a good way of tracking the use of expendable items. Still, sometimes my party goes into a dungeon loaded for bear: everyone buys, like, 5 potions. Where are we going to get 20 potion cards? (Hmm, 10 Essentials Starter sets, only $130 on Amazon!)

More Red Box thoughts…

I was looking over the Wizard at-wills, and some of them are pretty powerful! Paul already talked about Hypnotism, so I’ll focus on the others:

Wizard!:

• Stone Blood + Freezing Burst: I’m surprised it took so long for the wizard to get one of these. It’s been something WotC has talked about since the release of the PHB II and the invoker power Vanguard’s Lightning, which went a step beyond Scorching Burst by adding a minor effect to an area burst 1 w/in 10 power beyond just a die + ability modifier. Stone Blood and Freezing Burst slow and slide 1 respectively, as well as doing 1d6 + intelligence damage! Both very solid effects that beef up the wizards at-will arsenal.
• Phantasmal Force: I love rogues even while admitting they aren’t the most powerful of the strikers (though making the daggermaster crit only work on rogue powers certainly helps). Phantasmal Force provides a very nice way to give a rogue combat advantage, with a nice side effect (no OAs) AND does a very nice 1d10+ Int damage! And it targets Will (no surprise, considering the name). A very powerful and fun single target at-will.
• Magic Missile: This is no surprise since the errata has been around for a while, and it was mentioned in the preview. The card says it can target 1 or 2 creatures, which is clearly pretty broken and probably a misprint! With a maxed Intelligence level 1 wizard that would be a guaranteed 14 damage a round split between two targets! Making it 1 target cuts the power down a lot, obviously, but it will still have its place for when the DM describes the target as “on its last legs, barely standing” and that sort of thing, something I do as DM quite a bit. Also, savvy players often figure out a monsters rough HP from tracking when it becomes bloodied, which can make this a great choice for dealing the death blow with no fuss. Finally, it never hurts to have a ranged 20 spell to fall back on when your enemy is across a huge chasm or just not in range of your other spells yet!
• Hypnotism: Screw it; I’ll talk about Hypnotism. I like the flavor, but I’m not super impressed with the mechanics. Still, a good slide spell is always nice for when the DM dangles a huge pit in front of the players. Even with the successful attack roll and only 45% chance to slide the monster over, spells like these can be worth it when success means killing a near full HP elite outright! The melee attack is not super impressive on account of the two attack rolls needed to hit, but it never hurts to have it as an option when some crazy elite or solo has some totally badass basic melee attack!

The more I think about it, the more I think that Hypnotism should have been something like “Effect: an enemy makes a melee basic attack” or “Hit: an enemy makes a melee basic attack, which always hits”. That would significantly increase its power, letting the wizard do as much damage as the most powerful enemy, but it would still be situational. Hypnotism is only powerful when the enemy brute is adjacent to allies, and it doesn’t give the wizard as much choice over target as do most attacks. My fix would also eliminate a die roll: over the course of a wizard’s career, trimming a die roll off an at-will attack will save a lot of mileage.

Also, am I wrong, or is a critical hit on Hypnotism’s first attack roll absolutely meaningless? That’s something I’d work hard to avoid.

More Red Box thoughts…

I’ve finished reading the Essentials Player’s Book and DM’s Book. Others have taken pictures of the power cards and tokens, so you can get more complete spoilers there. I do have a couple of power-card powers that I’d like to call out.

Hypnotism is a very flavorful wizard at-will. On a hit, you force the target to make a basic attack against an adjacent creature with a +4 bonus. Even with the bonus, this attack requires two hit rolls before it does any damage, so it may be on the weak side. I think I might play a Hypnotism wizard anyway, because it feels like a different kind of character – like a Commander’s Strike warlord, someone who never personally makes attacks.

Backstab: Once again, the rogue preview differs from the Starter version. The preview version of Backstab gives +3 to an attack and +1d6 to damage. The Starter backstab just gives +3 to attack.

Slimy Transmutation is a hilarious wizard daily power. “A billowing cloud of greenish fog surrounds your foe. When the fog dissipates, your enemy is gone, and an ugly toad stands in its place.” Hit or miss, the “target turns into a Tiny toad.” You’ve been TOADED! It’s Save Ends, not permanent, but never before has Baleful Polymorph been available to a 1st level wizard.

I’d like to see Slimy Transmutation used as a utility spell. There could be occasions where you want to make yourself or an ally Tiny for a few turns.

I’m disappointed that there is no power card for the Prestidigitation cantrip. How will I clean up to 1 cubic foot of materials, WOTC? How will I make a smell? HOW??

More Red Box thoughts…

Of the three kobolds in the Essentials DM’s book, two (kobold tunneler, a level 1 minion and kobold quickblade, a level 1 skirmisher) are new. The Kobold Slinger is updated from the MM1.

The Kobold Slinger’s attacks have been made more accurate, and damage has been slightly fiddled with, but the big change is that Special Shot is now a random effect. Instead of the type being chosen by the DM, Special Shot now requires a d6 roll: on a 1-2 it’s a Stinkpot, 3-4 Firepot, 5-6 Gluepot.

Someone at Wizards is going back through old rules and adding random die rolls!

Do you think his name is Mike Mearls? I do! But maybe I’m wrong!

More Red Box thoughts…

According to the Essentials Red Box rules for leveling up, rogues get the Weapon Finesse class feature at level 2. That gives them +1 to attack and damage with light blades, light crossbows, short bows, and slings.

According to the Thief preview from the WOTC site, Weapon Finesse is granted at level 1. It’s not explained in the preview article. Not sure which source is right.

Also according to that article, a feature called “Improved Weapon Finesse” is granted at level 9. I have a theory about what that feature gives you, and my theory involves the modifier +2.

Go thou and play a level 9 thief!

Interesting! Dagger will probably take a backseat to short sword as the defacto rogue weapon for thieves! Though I suppose trading a range 5/10 weapon for a +1 to weapon damage is a legitimate dilemma.

If Improved Weapon Finesse does give an additional +1 to hit and damage, it will be pretty darn powerful (+2 attack and damage over most other classes!), and I’ll have a lot of respect for the thief class in terms of pure power. Should be interesting to see if that’s the case.

More Red Box thoughts…