Out of curiosity, would it be possible to do a subscription of say $15 or $20 and include all of the digital content. I think a lot more people would be inclined to sign up for that than shell out the $360 + $3/month to have this. I'm dying to use this but sadly can't afford it.
Out of curiosity, would it be possible to do a subscription of say $15 or $20 and include all of the digital content. I think a lot more people would be inclined to sign up for that than shell out the $360 + $3/month to have this. I'm dying to use this but sadly can't afford it.
It would be expensive for a group to have this.
Lets say a group with 5 people needs 5 accounts. Thats between $75 to $100 a month. After three month you can have all for just $6 a month if all buy just one book each and one get a Master tier subscription.
I know that our group would never use DDB if it was a high monthly cost.
As it is right now we have one person bying all the stuff we need and we pitch in if he wants it.
Then we share the cost for a Master tier and he shares all the books.
So for the group it costs us less than $1 each month for each person as the rest can use a free account.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
I'm not stupid. I'm just unlucky when I'm thinking.
I get that for the group it's cheaper in the long run, but for players like me it works better. My group are not all close friends, and to ask people to put money into something that only 1 person truly has is not really cool. Let's say the group splits up for whatever reason, who gets the master account. What if the master account holder decides he wants to kick someone out and now they no longer have access to something they put money into. I know its a bit complicated and should be solved personally but I'm just being a realist.
For me, I would much rather pay a monthly subscription and retain access to everything for as long as I want,just like I would a MMO or Xbox live
If I've already purchased the hard copies of the various guides and books can I get access to that specific content on D&D Beyond without having to purchase said content for a second time? Is there a page somewhere on here that I'm not finding for this very situation or is it not an option? I'd rather not waste the money buying things multiple times just to have a mild convenience. Using beyond when I don't have access to my books, on the road or what have you, and supplementing my books with the extra content available with beyond when I'm at an actual table. Most of my games take place IRL.
Any help and clarity would be greatly appreciated.
Public Mod Note
(Stormknight):
merged from seperate thread
I get that for the group it's cheaper in the long run, but for players like me it works better. My group are not all close friends, and to ask people to put money into something that only 1 person truly has is not really cool. Let's say the group splits up for whatever reason, who gets the master account. What if the master account holder decides he wants to kick someone out and now they no longer have access to something they put money into. I know its a bit complicated and should be solved personally but I'm just being a realist.
For me, I would much rather pay a monthly subscription and retain access to everything for as long as I want,just like I would a MMO or Xbox live
I think what you're asking for is not unreasonable, but at the same time, it doesn't seem to fit what Curse and WOTC have determined is best for them for this product. Which is a bummer for your group because this is a nifty toolset and service.
My gaming group is pretty solid. There are six of us, and we've been meeting each week and playing together for decades without DDB. It was a hard sell for them. What I did was make purchases for me, to make my life easier, first as a DM, but also as a player. While the service was in beta, the rapid access to SRD content alone facilitated running the game. Someone on here a while back made a brilliant suggestion to folks who would rather have a subscription-based content delivery service: Spend that $15/month on materials here. Everything you purchase prorates the cost of the book it comes from. Once you've bought a book piecemeal like that, you don't have to pay for it any more. Go through and purchase as much as you like that way. And at some point, pick up the subscription and share your materials with the group. If the group falls apart, you still have all your stuff. If it doesn't others in your group will start to pick up things as well. That has been my experience. At this point, all the players in my group are here, and some of them are buying content of their own.
Out of curiosity, would it be possible to do a subscription of say $15 or $20 and include all of the digital content. I think a lot more people would be inclined to sign up for that than shell out the $360 + $3/month to have this. I'm dying to use this but sadly can't afford it.
I don't really understand the "all or nothing" attitude I keep seeing in this forum. You don't really need to spend that much to make use of this site. If you're a DM, just get the 3 core books, and maybe the adventure you're currently running if you want that. If you're a player, you can just buy the PHB plus any additional piecemeal features you may need. If you're a solo player in one game, you don't really need either subscription. My situation is a little different than yours, in that my group are close friends and we were willing to throw in together, but even then we didn't get everything. We just got what we needed to keep playing our campaign as needed.
There's also homebrew, which you are allowed to use to copy content from the hardback books. So you could really skip over some of the extra purchases, even the MM and DMG altogether, and just homebrew things as you need them. Once homebrew subclasses come out, you don't really have to buy anything to have a fully functioning character creator. It's a little bit more work on the front end, but once an option is entered, it's saved to your account and you never have to enter it again.
My point is that there are affordable options. If your main issue is that you want a fully functional tool without having to pay anything, then I can't really offer any more advice. This is a service, and services usually cost money.
There is currently no way to validate purchases of the Physical books to get the content here in DDB. This is due to the main reason that there is no unique code identifying each single copy of the books. Furthermore, DDB is owned by Curse, working on license of WotC, therefore two separate companies (if that wasn't clear). WotC does not seem, at this time, interested in tying the Physical version with the Digital content here in DDB (or any other platform offering digital versions of their products, like Roll20 or Fantasy Grounds).
If what DDB offers you is not worth the price, that is an understandable point of view, but I'd like to point out a couple of things, for the sake of offering as much information as I can: - The price of the content here is arguably very competitive when compared to the price from a local shop or in general the suggested price from WotC, and there is also the possibility of buying single pieces of content within the books themselves (spells, subclasses, magic items, monsters etc.) for a further reduced price; - "Soon" enough (no ETA), the possibility of creating homebrew subclasses should see the light, effectively allowing anyone to re-create any content present in the official books, as we can already create magic items, spells, backgrounds, feats and monsters - use of all homebrew tools is completely free; this would technically allow anyone having access to the official content to re-create it for personal use and, while it will not be possible to be published, said content can still be used within personal campaigns, and shared with anyone inside the campaign.
Hope this information can be helpful for you. In any case and always, enjoy the game, and may the rolls be ever in your favor!
That suggestion of using it like a subscription is actually a really good way to think about it, especially when combined with my point that most players and DMs don't actually need every single book on here. If you buy things piecemeal as you need them, it's really not that bad at all.
Thank you, LeK, for the welcome. This was very helpful. I wasn't aware that a second company owned DDB. And you are correct and I agree that the online prices are better than they are in stores. I'm old school in that I very much prefer physical copies of a product to their digital counterparts.
Overtime I should like to build up my homebrew content within this resource as well as use it to supplement what I have already purchased. Seeing as the prices are reasonable and, as you pointed out, a person can purchase small amounts of content and not an entire book.
It sounds like budget constraints are the only/main issue keeping you from using DDB. As others pointed out, there are far more options than $360+3/month. If you share how you want to use the site in your games, I and probably others can suggest options that would cost far less.
I don't really understand the "all or nothing" attitude I keep seeing in this forum. You don't really need to spend that much to make use of this site..
I know. I really need to find time to write "a buyers guide to DDB" that lays out some options based on budget and what folks want to do. Won't happen this week. Maybe not until after Easter.
Thank you, LeK, for the welcome. This was very helpful. I wasn't aware that a second company owned DDB. And you are correct and I agree that the online prices are better than they are in stores. I'm old school in that I very much prefer physical copies of a product to their digital counterparts.
Overtime I should like to build up my homebrew content within this resource as well as use it to supplement what I have already purchased. Seeing as the prices are reasonable and, as you pointed out, a person can purchase small amounts of content and not an entire book.
Again, thank you for the assistance.
Hi there and welcome,
I've merged your thread into this one. We have a standard rule of doing so for all threads asking about obtaining access based upon owning the physical books.
You may also find the first page of this thread (the FAQ) handy to take a look at, as it explains some of the pricing and purchase options. :)
I really wish a good 3rd party youtube personality would do a comprehensive review of the site. Taking 20 did one right after launch, but a lot has changed since then. But I guess on that same note, it would probably be best to wait until the homebrew subclasses and the new sheet are out before wishing for such a thing.
I'm going to be a bit pedantic here (pushes up glasses) and take issue with this...
There is currently no way to validate purchases of the Physical books to get the content here in DDB. This is due to the main reason that there is no unique code identifying each single copy of the books.
Whether or not the physical books have, or could have, a code is not relevant, because even if they did, the product being sold on D&D Beyond is not the same product.
The only relevant thing here is that D&D Beyond and WotC are not the same company. DDB is a reseller of Dungeons & Dragons.
It is analogous to a brick & mortar store ordering PHBs from WotC. The store pays WotC for the books. At that point, they belong to the store, not WotC. The store becomes a reseller of those books, and can choose to discount them or not. The money you pay for the books goes to the store and not to WotC.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
You don't OWN your books on DDB: WotC can change them any time. What do you think will happen when OneD&D comes out?
I get that for the group it's cheaper in the long run, but for players like me it works better. My group are not all close friends, and to ask people to put money into something that only 1 person truly has is not really cool. Let's say the group splits up for whatever reason, who gets the master account. What if the master account holder decides he wants to kick someone out and now they no longer have access to something they put money into. I know its a bit complicated and should be solved personally but I'm just being a realist.
For me, I would much rather pay a monthly subscription and retain access to everything for as long as I want,just like I would a MMO or Xbox live
Here'e the thing about subscriptions. Eventually you'll end up spending MORE money than a buy-once model.
Lets say they had a $20/month subscription that included all content. In 2 years, that would amount to $480. Now for me, I spent $60 on the 3 core books at launch, $30 on Xanathars, and $13 for the monsters in Volos, for a total of $113. Factor in $120 for 2 years of a Master tier subscription, and another $60 for 2 future content books. This brings my 2-year total to just under $300. I have very little need for the adventure books, but could get one piecemeal if I wanted it.
So now, after two years, I would have spent $180 MORE with a subscription than I would have with the buy-once model. On top of that, if I stopped paying the subscription, I would lose access to all that content. That's the key thing here, I'm spending more already, and have to KEEP paying in order to continue to use any of it. With the buy-once model. I can continue to use all the content I've purchased for as long as D&DB exists.
If you absolutely HAD to purchase everything, the only thing that changes is how long it takes to reach the point where you're just throwing money away.
Yes, the buy-once model has a higher upfront cost. I'm fortunate that I have the disposable income to afford that cost. The benefit is a much lower long-term absolute cost, especially if you don't buy everything, which is about 1000% more attractive to me. But I'm certainly willing to accept that some people find the subscription model more attractive, even if they're paying more.
I get that for the group it's cheaper in the long run, but for players like me it works better. My group are not all close friends, and to ask people to put money into something that only 1 person truly has is not really cool. Let's say the group splits up for whatever reason, who gets the master account. What if the master account holder decides he wants to kick someone out and now they no longer have access to something they put money into. I know its a bit complicated and should be solved personally but I'm just being a realist.
For me, I would much rather pay a monthly subscription and retain access to everything for as long as I want,just like I would a MMO or Xbox live
Here'e the thing about subscriptions. Eventually you'll end up spending MORE money than a buy-once model.
Lets say they had a $20/month subscription that included all content. In 2 years, that would amount to $480. Now for me, I spent $60 on the 3 core books at launch, $30 on Xanathars, and $13 for the monsters in Volos, for a total of $113. Factor in $120 for 2 years of a Master tier subscription, and another $60 for 2 future content books. This brings my 2-year total to just under $300. I have very little need for the adventure books, but could get one piecemeal if I wanted it.
So now, after two years, I would have spent $180 MORE with a subscription than I would have with the buy-once model. On top of that, if I stopped paying the subscription, I would lose access to all that content. That's the key thing here, I'm spending more already, and have to KEEP paying in order to continue to use any of it. With the buy-once model. I can continue to use all the content I've purchased for as long as D&DB exists.
If you absolutely HAD to purchase everything, the only thing that changes is how long it takes to reach the point where you're just throwing money away.
Yes, the buy-once model has a higher upfront cost. I'm fortunate that I have the disposable income to afford that cost. The benefit is a much lower long-term absolute cost, especially if you don't buy everything, which is about 1000% more attractive to me. But I'm certainly willing to accept that some people find the subscription model more attractive, even if they're paying more.
So I think there is confusion here. Content you buy is yours until Curse as a company decides to leave the business. The subs serve a different purpose. Please check the sub info Curse has put up.
Also, I'm in the same boat as you. I'm the most vested in D&D and paid for it all. Now I decide who I play with. Those that I do not play with do not get access to the books. Boohoo for them as they were paying absolutely zero before. It's no different than your friend using your book then leaving the game. Do they give you your book back? They better.
I'm not asking anyone to give me money or share the cost with me. So yeah it's my content. Now I have a good group of friends some of whom decided to pitch in and give me some money. But these are people I've played with for over 20 years. So we're solid. If you don't have that. Then don't try to share the cost and spread the cost.
Not sure how this would be any different with physical materials in my opinion. The Master Sub just let's you share content with others.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
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So I think there is confusion here. Content you buy is yours until Curse as a company decides to leave the business. The subs serve a different purpose. Please check the sub info Curse has put up.
There's no confusion. I'm speaking of a hypothetical subscription that includes all content, not the currently-available D&DB subscriptions.
I'm not sure why people who don't want to pay the upfront costs, just don't purchase a couple of things a month from the various books. For instance, if you are willing to pay 20 bucks a month, just use that 20 bucks to purchase some content (say a class and race you are playing or some magic items and spells). Once you hit that threshold of paying equivalent to the cost of the book, you have unlocked the whole thing. You get a small portion of the stuff you need, but you don't have to buy it all. Give it a year or so and you have all of the player material.
I am wondering if there's a way for me to gain access to the books I've bought the hard copies of? I have almost all of the D&D 5e player and DM books but I bought them as hard cover copies. These are typically each ~50 dollars so I'm not sure I want to spend even more just to get access to them on here. Is it possible to add a feature where players who already own the books could get access to the online content too? Or maybe just get a significant discount to the content they already paid to have? Being able to do that would make this site significantly more valuable to me and to other people who might have already spent a lot of money on the books before this site came out.
I am wondering if there's a way for me to gain access to the books I've bought the hard copies of? I have almost all of the D&D 5e player and DM books but I bought them as hard cover copies. These are typically each ~50 dollars so I'm not sure I want to spend even more just to get access to them on here. Is it possible to add a feature where players who already own the books could get access to the online content too? Or maybe just get a significant discount to the content they already paid to have? Being able to do that would make this site significantly more valuable to me and to other people who might have already spent a lot of money on the books before this site came out.
Hi, cjwash,I moved your post here so you can find more opinions on the matter.
But the short answer is, unfortunately, no, you can't redeem D&D content with the hard copies here in DDB.
I am wondering if there's a way for me to gain access to the books I've bought the hard copies of? I have almost all of the D&D 5e player and DM books but I bought them as hard cover copies. These are typically each ~50 dollars so I'm not sure I want to spend even more just to get access to them on here. Is it possible to add a feature where players who already own the books could get access to the online content too? Or maybe just get a significant discount to the content they already paid to have? Being able to do that would make this site significantly more valuable to me and to other people who might have already spent a lot of money on the books before this site came out.
Hi, cjwash,
D&D Beyond is not owned by Wizards of the Coast.
D&D Beyond is owned by Curse, which is owned by Twitch, which is owned by Amazon.
D&D Beyond (aka Curse/Twitch/Amazon) did not sell you the physical books - Wizards of the Coast did.
D&D Beyond (aka Curse/Twitch/Amazon) has to pay a licencing fee to WotC for the rights to resell their content in a new format (this web site), just like all the other legitimate web sites like Roll20 and Fantasy Grounds.
For these reasons, you cannot get a free/discounted copy of the book here, because what you paid for was a physical book from WotC, not a digital format from D&D Beyond, just like when you buy the physical copy of a novel you don't get the digital/audio version for free/discounted.
Out of curiosity, would it be possible to do a subscription of say $15 or $20 and include all of the digital content. I think a lot more people would be inclined to sign up for that than shell out the $360 + $3/month to have this. I'm dying to use this but sadly can't afford it.
I'm not stupid. I'm just unlucky when I'm thinking.
I get that for the group it's cheaper in the long run, but for players like me it works better. My group are not all close friends, and to ask people to put money into something that only 1 person truly has is not really cool. Let's say the group splits up for whatever reason, who gets the master account. What if the master account holder decides he wants to kick someone out and now they no longer have access to something they put money into. I know its a bit complicated and should be solved personally but I'm just being a realist.
For me, I would much rather pay a monthly subscription and retain access to everything for as long as I want,just like I would a MMO or Xbox live
If I've already purchased the hard copies of the various guides and books can I get access to that specific content on D&D Beyond without having to purchase said content for a second time? Is there a page somewhere on here that I'm not finding for this very situation or is it not an option? I'd rather not waste the money buying things multiple times just to have a mild convenience. Using beyond when I don't have access to my books, on the road or what have you, and supplementing my books with the extra content available with beyond when I'm at an actual table. Most of my games take place IRL.
Any help and clarity would be greatly appreciated.
There's also homebrew, which you are allowed to use to copy content from the hardback books. So you could really skip over some of the extra purchases, even the MM and DMG altogether, and just homebrew things as you need them. Once homebrew subclasses come out, you don't really have to buy anything to have a fully functioning character creator. It's a little bit more work on the front end, but once an option is entered, it's saved to your account and you never have to enter it again.
My point is that there are affordable options. If your main issue is that you want a fully functional tool without having to pay anything, then I can't really offer any more advice. This is a service, and services usually cost money.
Hi B3ard3doned3r, welcome to the forums o/
There is currently no way to validate purchases of the Physical books to get the content here in DDB.
This is due to the main reason that there is no unique code identifying each single copy of the books. Furthermore, DDB is owned by Curse, working on license of WotC, therefore two separate companies (if that wasn't clear).
WotC does not seem, at this time, interested in tying the Physical version with the Digital content here in DDB (or any other platform offering digital versions of their products, like Roll20 or Fantasy Grounds).
If what DDB offers you is not worth the price, that is an understandable point of view, but I'd like to point out a couple of things, for the sake of offering as much information as I can:
- The price of the content here is arguably very competitive when compared to the price from a local shop or in general the suggested price from WotC, and there is also the possibility of buying single pieces of content within the books themselves (spells, subclasses, magic items, monsters etc.) for a further reduced price;
- "Soon" enough (no ETA), the possibility of creating homebrew subclasses should see the light, effectively allowing anyone to re-create any content present in the official books, as we can already create magic items, spells, backgrounds, feats and monsters - use of all homebrew tools is completely free; this would technically allow anyone having access to the official content to re-create it for personal use and, while it will not be possible to be published, said content can still be used within personal campaigns, and shared with anyone inside the campaign.
Hope this information can be helpful for you.
In any case and always, enjoy the game, and may the rolls be ever in your favor!
Born in Italy, moved a bunch, living in Spain, my heart always belonged to Roleplaying Games
That suggestion of using it like a subscription is actually a really good way to think about it, especially when combined with my point that most players and DMs don't actually need every single book on here. If you buy things piecemeal as you need them, it's really not that bad at all.
Thank you, LeK, for the welcome. This was very helpful. I wasn't aware that a second company owned DDB. And you are correct and I agree that the online prices are better than they are in stores. I'm old school in that I very much prefer physical copies of a product to their digital counterparts.
Overtime I should like to build up my homebrew content within this resource as well as use it to supplement what I have already purchased. Seeing as the prices are reasonable and, as you pointed out, a person can purchase small amounts of content and not an entire book.
Again, thank you for the assistance.
Trying to Decide if DDB is for you? A few helpful threads: A Buyer's Guide to DDB; What I/We Bought and Why; How some DMs use DDB; A Newer Thread on Using DDB to Play
Helpful threads on other topics: Homebrew FAQ by IamSposta; Accessing Content by ConalTheGreat;
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I really wish a good 3rd party youtube personality would do a comprehensive review of the site. Taking 20 did one right after launch, but a lot has changed since then. But I guess on that same note, it would probably be best to wait until the homebrew subclasses and the new sheet are out before wishing for such a thing.
I'm going to be a bit pedantic here (pushes up glasses) and take issue with this...
Whether or not the physical books have, or could have, a code is not relevant, because even if they did, the product being sold on D&D Beyond is not the same product.
The only relevant thing here is that D&D Beyond and WotC are not the same company. DDB is a reseller of Dungeons & Dragons.
It is analogous to a brick & mortar store ordering PHBs from WotC. The store pays WotC for the books. At that point, they belong to the store, not WotC. The store becomes a reseller of those books, and can choose to discount them or not. The money you pay for the books goes to the store and not to WotC.
You don't OWN your books on DDB: WotC can change them any time. What do you think will happen when OneD&D comes out?
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There's no confusion. I'm speaking of a hypothetical subscription that includes all content, not the currently-available D&DB subscriptions.
I'm not sure why people who don't want to pay the upfront costs, just don't purchase a couple of things a month from the various books. For instance, if you are willing to pay 20 bucks a month, just use that 20 bucks to purchase some content (say a class and race you are playing or some magic items and spells). Once you hit that threshold of paying equivalent to the cost of the book, you have unlocked the whole thing. You get a small portion of the stuff you need, but you don't have to buy it all. Give it a year or so and you have all of the player material.
I am wondering if there's a way for me to gain access to the books I've bought the hard copies of? I have almost all of the D&D 5e player and DM books but I bought them as hard cover copies. These are typically each ~50 dollars so I'm not sure I want to spend even more just to get access to them on here. Is it possible to add a feature where players who already own the books could get access to the online content too? Or maybe just get a significant discount to the content they already paid to have? Being able to do that would make this site significantly more valuable to me and to other people who might have already spent a lot of money on the books before this site came out.
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ModeratorFor these reasons, you cannot get a free/discounted copy of the book here, because what you paid for was a physical book from WotC, not a digital format from D&D Beyond, just like when you buy the physical copy of a novel you don't get the digital/audio version for free/discounted.
You don't OWN your books on DDB: WotC can change them any time. What do you think will happen when OneD&D comes out?