I am a very new DM and my family have heard me playing with my group and wanted to have go to. In preparation of playing a Christmas eve session with my them I thought I would try a one shot and decided to purchase a copy of Candlekeep mysteries from Amazon.
I decided to play the first story, the Joy of Extradimensional spaces, and was going through it in preparation. I come across the part with the Mimic chair and started to look for the stat block but there was no sign of it. Having only recently joined D&D I decided to search on here. I came across the Mimic chair very quickly and clicked on it to get the stats.
However it then states that this creature is used in Candlekeep mysteries and it gives me the opportunity to purchase it. I am obviously not going to buy it again, but is this honestly the only way to get what I need? This seems like a money grab to me.
As I said I am really new at this and maybe I'm making a simple mistake. But I wouldn't be surprised if I come across this more and more often if I work my way through the book and would like to get this sorted out.
Further from my original question I've also looked for stats for faerie dragons and flying swords and both times I was directed to other books I can buy. I'm pretty annoyed by this
Buying a physical book doesn’t unlock anything on D&D Beyond, they’re two different products in the same way you don’t get a Kindle book if you buy the paperback
Yeah I understand that. But by purchasing the book WOTC have already profited from me spending out and yet I don't get access to stats I need. Either include them in the book, or make it clear whenever you purchase it that other books will be necessary. If I cant have access to the stats why bother selling hard copies? It seems that the only way I can get the stats I need is to purchase the digital copy. Or am I wrong?
The Mimic Chair (M8, p22) is just a Mimic, it should be available to you as part of the free Basic Rules on DDB - if you click on that link, it'll provide the Statblock for you. Physically, it's part of the Monster Manual - which you are expected to buy or otherwise have access to in order to run the adventures (indeed, any adventure), as stated on the back cover ("For use with the Fifth Edition Player's Handbook, Monster Manual and Dungeon Master's Guide") and as explained on p4 under "Running Adventures".
I'm not sure why DDB is coding it as a specific creature for CM, it's in the Monster Manual. You'll need the MM for other creatures, and the CM book provides statblocks for anything not in the MM. If it's in CM and not MM, it'll direct you to where the Statblock is (see Animated Broom, p20, M4, final paragraph). If it's in the MM, it'll just state what it is (like the Mimic example).
If you're not willing or able to to discuss in good faith, then don't be surprised if I don't respond, there are better things in life for me to do than humour you. This signature is that response.
Actually, now I see why they've created a separate Statblock for the chair mimic, it has reduced stats. If you don't want to pay for the digital version, you can just used the standard Statblock from the Monster Manual or Basic Rules, and alter it accordingly.
If you're not willing or able to to discuss in good faith, then don't be surprised if I don't respond, there are better things in life for me to do than humour you. This signature is that response.
Just pulled my hardcopy of Candlekeep mysteries off the shelf and the Mimic Chair is very odd, doesn’t seem to be a stat block for it anywhere despite D&D Beyond saying it’s on page 22. If it helps it’s basically the regular mimic with 22 HP instead of 58. The regular mimic (and the flying sword) are in the 2014 free rules which you can download on the DDB app or read on the website. The Faerie Dragon is a bit tougher as it’s only in the Monster Manual. Best bet for that is to Google image search for “Faerie Dragon 5e Stats” and there’s a few to choose from
As for making it clear you need other things they are a little underhanded about it if you’re new to the hobby but every book has a little disclaimer at the beginning saying you need the Players Handbook, Dungeon Masters Guide and Monster Manual to play and any adventure you buy will likely refer to stuff in those three books. As I said a lot of it is in the free rules too and Google is your friend for the rest
Buying physical causes the money to fund the various departments and subcompanies and what-have-you for the physical product - or the retailer, if bought from someplace other than this site/wotc online store. Buying digital causes the money to fund the devs who made the digital tools. They are not the same product. Likewise buying the kindle version on amazon will fund amazon devs that run the kindle service while buying a physical paperback funds the store you bought it from and the companies that printed it. In both cases the author of the book still gets their royalties. It's the same sorta thing (albeit actually more complicated) with D&D books and digital tools.
If you have something from a physical book you want to use on D&D Beyond, you need to either:
Buy the digital version.
Have the digital version shared with you in a campaign.
Replicate that something using the Homebrew tools.
If you are keen on mixing physical and digital books, you may want to consider purchasing the physical + digital bundles on here (or via wotc store if outside US) to get the digital version discounted to $10.
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It's super annoying that having the hard copies doesn't unlock anything digital, and further that the VTTs are separate so you potentially have to buy it on multiple VTTs, and none of this is obvious when you are making your first purchases.
That said, on Roll20 it was straightforward for me to make NPC statblocks that have all of the features I needed, either by modifying an existing free creature or by entering it from scratch. It's a little tedious to copy them all out of the book if you have a lot of uniques to deal with but not terrible. I think the same will be true on dndbeyond.
They could add a sealed one use digital access code to the books if they wanted to, even if just a discount to effectively get a bundle. I like having the books and I like supporting my local gaming store, so for now I just work around it in various ways.
Mostly it's just a matter of - what is the best use of your time vs money.
It's super annoying that having the hard copies doesn't unlock anything digital, and further that the VTTs are separate so you potentially have to buy it on multiple VTTs, and none of this is obvious when you are making your first purchases.
That said, on Roll20 it was straightforward for me to make NPC statblocks that have all of the features I needed, either by modifying an existing free creature or by entering it from scratch. It's a little tedious to copy them all out of the book if you have a lot of uniques to deal with but not terrible. I think the same will be true on dndbeyond.
They could add a sealed one use digital access code to the books if they wanted to, even if just a discount to effectively get a bundle. I like having the books and I like supporting my local gaming store, so for now I just work around it in various ways.
Mostly it's just a matter of - what is the best use of your time vs money.
The sealed code is an idea in theory, but there's a considerable risk of people stealing those, which is a worst case scenario for most everyone involved since now customers won't want the book because they're not getting everything offered, so the store is losing money because they either have to mark the price down or eat the loss on the book, and that discourages stores from stocking them in the first place so D&D won't be selling as many books.
And, again, keep in mind that Beyond is not just an electronic transcript of the physical copy; I'm no web design expert, but I expect it's a fair bit of work to format the layout for all the pages of a new book on this site and write up all the spell, magic item, subclass, etc. features so they play nice with the character sheet. And it's a similar deal when you purchase the books from VTT's; you're not just paying for the text, you're paying for having a lot of the most relevant content already integrated with the site's interface for the game.
It seems that this particular problem stems from the fact that the physical book does not actually contain the stat block in question while the digital one does (I don't own either, so I can't confirm). Before this turns into yet another thread where people disparage and defend the economics of digital products, maybe we can focus on the specific help this person needs?
If you own the book, as you said for Roll20, you can manually add them as a homebrew monster. In the future, you can just buy the digital copy of a book on whatever platform you want. It'll give you all the stat blocks, spells, magic items, etc as well as the rest of the books content. If you want both a physical and digital (its what I do), D&D Beyond sells bundles on many of the books for cheaper than buying the two seperate. They are different products with different people working on them. The core content is Wizards but Physical has to pay printers and publishers while Digital has to pay Coders and Web Designers so the profit from a sale goes to different people depending on the format. A code inside would be nice but runs the risk of theft and would make all books sealed in stores so you couldn't flip through them before buying. I would guess when Sigil launches, there will be people (like me) who want codes in the phyical mini boxes as they use both. Dependending on how micro transactions will work on Sigil, it might work but it runs similar risks. In the future, assume anything that doesn't say "Code Inside" won't have a free digital copy and even if it does they often expire (like movie codes).
Have the Physical Books? Confused as to why you're not allowed to redeem them for free on D&D Beyond? Questions answered here at the Hardcover Books, D&D Beyond and You FAQ
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If you are new to D&D, I strongly discourage spending money on this hobby until you have at least one or two campaigns under your belt. There is so much free content out there that there is absolutely no reason for new hobbyists to spend money at all. Always do your research before you spend money. And this does not apply to just D&D either, it applies to other hobbies and life in general. Seriously do your homework and research, ask your D&D community and local game store for help, and run at least one or two games first before you open your wallet. You need that time to familiarize yoursel with the hobby to know what is out there and which products are tailored to your needs.
If you are a GM and you are complaining about price, then you seriously have not done your research. You can access all that D&D has to offer legally for free by asking your local and/or online D&D community for help. There are plenty of GMs out there who have spent thousands of dollars on this hobby so their players do not have to, and quite a few of them are happy to help out fellow GMs as well. Ask your community for help. For real. Go to your local game store, Reddit, Facebook, or whatever social place or platform you prefer and ask nicely. Borrow our physical books and access our digital tools, it has literally already been paid for. And after you get help from the community, if you still can, return the damned book back to Amazon and get your money back.
And if you still want to spend money for some reason, here is a quick summary of the most common products GMs spend money on, do your research on each of them, and this list is by no means exhaustive: PHYSICAL TOOLS: - Books (Adventure Books vs. Source Books; the core three of PHB, MM, and DMG; BR/SRD/FR and EEPC are free) - Character Sheets (usually low cost or free) - Dice - GM Screens - Cards (monsters, magic items, class/subclass features, etc.) - Mats (square vs. hex grids; drawable/markable mats, dungeon tiles, terrain features, etc.) - Minis (WizKids, Hero Forge, LEGO minifigs, etc.) DIGITAL TOOLS: (D&D Beyond, Roll20, Fantasy Grounds, and Foundry are the four official digital tools) - D&D Beyond - Roll20 - Fantasy Grounds - Foundry - World Anvil (unofficial tool) - Google Workspace (unofficial tool; free) - Microsoft Office (unofficial tool; browser version of certain software are free)
And as you probably found out, if you want to use a new format/platform, you will have to pay for it again in that new format/platform. Just as it costs money to print physical books, it costs money to develop and maintain digital books and tools.
It's super annoying that having the hard copies doesn't unlock anything digital, and further that the VTTs are separate so you potentially have to buy it on multiple VTTs, and none of this is obvious when you are making your first purchases.
It's frustrating but the nature of the beast, as converting files for a VTT or a character builder is more complicated than making a PDF, which is largely done when you layout a book.
While many companies give you a free PDF (some limited to preorders or from the official store) I can't think of any that give Roll20 or Demiplane access for free.
If you are new to D&D, I strongly discourage spending money on this hobby until you have at least one or two campaigns under your belt. There is so much free content out there that there is absolutely no reason for new hobbyists to spend money at all. Always do your research before you spend money. And this does not apply to just D&D either, it applies to other hobbies and life in general. Seriously do your homework and research, ask your D&D community and local game store for help, and run at least one or two games first before you open your wallet. You need that time to familiarize yoursel with the hobby to know what is out there and which products are tailored to your needs.
If you are a GM and you are complaining about price, then you seriously have not done your research. You can access all that D&D has to offer legally for free by asking your local and/or online D&D community for help. There are plenty of GMs out there who have spent thousands of dollars on this hobby so their players do not have to, and quite a few of them are happy to help out fellow GMs as well. Ask your community for help. For real. Go to your local game store, Reddit, Facebook, or whatever social place or platform you prefer and ask nicely. Borrow our physical books and access our digital tools, it has literally already been paid for. And after you get help from the community, if you still can, return the damned book back to Amazon and get your money back.
And if you still want to spend money for some reason, here is a quick summary of the most common products GMs spend money on, do your research on each of them, and this list is by no means exhaustive: PHYSICAL TOOLS: - Books (Adventure Books vs. Source Books; the core three of PHB, MM, and DMG; BR/SRD/FR and EEPC are free) - Character Sheets (usually low cost or free) - Dice - GM Screens - Cards (monsters, magic items, class/subclass features, etc.) - Mats (square vs. hex grids; drawable/markable mats, dungeon tiles, terrain features, etc.) - Minis (WizKids, Hero Forge, LEGO minifigs, etc.) DIGITAL TOOLS: (D&D Beyond, Roll20, Fantasy Grounds, and Foundry are the four official digital tools) - D&D Beyond - Roll20 - Fantasy Grounds - Foundry - World Anvil (unofficial tool) - Google Workspace (unofficial tool; free) - Microsoft Office (unofficial tool; browser version of certain software are free)
And as you probably found out, if you want to use a new format/platform, you will have to pay for it again in that new format/platform. Just as it costs money to print physical books, it costs money to develop and maintain digital books and tools.
This advice is partially why so many local game stores are going belly up.
If you are new to D&D, I strongly discourage spending money on this hobby until you have at least one or two campaigns under your belt. There is so much free content out there that there is absolutely no reason for new hobbyists to spend money at all. Always do your research before you spend money. And this does not apply to just D&D either, it applies to other hobbies and life in general. Seriously do your homework and research, ask your D&D community and local game store for help, and run at least one or two games first before you open your wallet. You need that time to familiarize yoursel with the hobby to know what is out there and which products are tailored to your needs.
If you are a GM and you are complaining about price, then you seriously have not done your research. You can access all that D&D has to offer legally for free by asking your local and/or online D&D community for help. There are plenty of GMs out there who have spent thousands of dollars on this hobby so their players do not have to, and quite a few of them are happy to help out fellow GMs as well. Ask your community for help. For real. Go to your local game store, Reddit, Facebook, or whatever social place or platform you prefer and ask nicely. Borrow our physical books and access our digital tools, it has literally already been paid for. And after you get help from the community, if you still can, return the damned book back to Amazon and get your money back.
And if you still want to spend money for some reason, here is a quick summary of the most common products GMs spend money on, do your research on each of them, and this list is by no means exhaustive: PHYSICAL TOOLS: - Books (Adventure Books vs. Source Books; the core three of PHB, MM, and DMG; BR/SRD/FR and EEPC are free) - Character Sheets (usually low cost or free) - Dice - GM Screens - Cards (monsters, magic items, class/subclass features, etc.) - Mats (square vs. hex grids; drawable/markable mats, dungeon tiles, terrain features, etc.) - Minis (WizKids, Hero Forge, LEGO minifigs, etc.) DIGITAL TOOLS: (D&D Beyond, Roll20, Fantasy Grounds, and Foundry are the four official digital tools) - D&D Beyond - Roll20 - Fantasy Grounds - Foundry - World Anvil (unofficial tool) - Google Workspace (unofficial tool; free) - Microsoft Office (unofficial tool; browser version of certain software are free)
And as you probably found out, if you want to use a new format/platform, you will have to pay for it again in that new format/platform. Just as it costs money to print physical books, it costs money to develop and maintain digital books and tools.
This advice is partially why so many local game stores are going belly up.
OP bought the book from Amazon, not from a local game store, Amazon does not need any more help to be profitable, and returning it back to Amazon is not hurting local game stores. I encouraged OP to go to the local game store to seek the local D&D community for help. That helps drive traffic to the local game store, and helps build the local D&D community. Books are not the only thing that local game stores sell: snacks, drinks, and minis are small purchases that can ease new players and GMs into the community and hobby. There is also a lot of cross exposure to other adjacent hobbies, like other TTRPGs not named D&D, CCGs, boardgames, comics, etc. that the store might cater too.
Everyone's financial situation is different, not everyone is fortunate enough to spend money willy-nilly on a hobby that is a literal glorified game of make-believe. We as a community need to meet people where they are at. Just as we as a community have a duty to stamp out piracy, we also have a duty to provide people with a legal alternative that is affordable, accessible, and fair to all parties and stakeholders. Just as it is unacceptable for people to demand free products, it is also unacceptable to pressure people into spending money that they do not want to spend. And GMs are in unique position where they naturally already want to spend money on this hobby. For crap's sake, OP is a brand spanking new GM and they instinctively already dropped their wallet to pick up a book, so their players do not have to shoulder that financial burden. The urge to spend is strong. I want new players, and especially new GMs, to do their research, take advantage of all the free stuff, and really slow down. When new players and GMs are really ready, they will be able to make a better and more informed financial decision. And the more we as a community ask new hobbyists to take their time and help educate them, the less stupid crap and preventable regrets we will see and deal with about D&D being expensive, or why people have to pay two or three times for the same content, or what the hell is going on behind the scenes at D&D Beyond.
D&D is not going anywhere. Local game stores are not going anywhere either; if local game stores have to resort to deceiving or pressuring people to buy products people do not need nor want, that is not a business worth supporting, let alone it being financially sustainable. OP should only support businesses they find value in, and they have no duty nor moral obligation to support failing businesses.
And if the OP is shy, that is fine too, and I suggested online communities as an alternative. Not everyone is a social butterfly in real life; it is up to the local game store to make their business as welcoming as possible if they want to capture shy customers. Not everyone has a local game store close by either, and there is nothing a game store can do if they are not local.
Hi there,
I am a very new DM and my family have heard me playing with my group and wanted to have go to. In preparation of playing a Christmas eve session with my them I thought I would try a one shot and decided to purchase a copy of Candlekeep mysteries from Amazon.
I decided to play the first story, the Joy of Extradimensional spaces, and was going through it in preparation. I come across the part with the Mimic chair and started to look for the stat block but there was no sign of it. Having only recently joined D&D I decided to search on here. I came across the Mimic chair very quickly and clicked on it to get the stats.
However it then states that this creature is used in Candlekeep mysteries and it gives me the opportunity to purchase it. I am obviously not going to buy it again, but is this honestly the only way to get what I need? This seems like a money grab to me.
As I said I am really new at this and maybe I'm making a simple mistake. But I wouldn't be surprised if I come across this more and more often if I work my way through the book and would like to get this sorted out.
Thanks
Further from my original question I've also looked for stats for faerie dragons and flying swords and both times I was directed to other books I can buy. I'm pretty annoyed by this
Buying a physical book doesn’t unlock anything on D&D Beyond, they’re two different products in the same way you don’t get a Kindle book if you buy the paperback
Yeah I understand that. But by purchasing the book WOTC have already profited from me spending out and yet I don't get access to stats I need. Either include them in the book, or make it clear whenever you purchase it that other books will be necessary. If I cant have access to the stats why bother selling hard copies? It seems that the only way I can get the stats I need is to purchase the digital copy. Or am I wrong?
Thanks for responding.
Minor spoilers for Candlekeep Mysteries:
The Mimic Chair (M8, p22) is just a Mimic, it should be available to you as part of the free Basic Rules on DDB - if you click on that link, it'll provide the Statblock for you. Physically, it's part of the Monster Manual - which you are expected to buy or otherwise have access to in order to run the adventures (indeed, any adventure), as stated on the back cover ("For use with the Fifth Edition Player's Handbook, Monster Manual and Dungeon Master's Guide") and as explained on p4 under "Running Adventures".
I'm not sure why DDB is coding it as a specific creature for CM, it's in the Monster Manual. You'll need the MM for other creatures, and the CM book provides statblocks for anything not in the MM. If it's in CM and not MM, it'll direct you to where the Statblock is (see Animated Broom, p20, M4, final paragraph). If it's in the MM, it'll just state what it is (like the Mimic example).
If you're not willing or able to to discuss in good faith, then don't be surprised if I don't respond, there are better things in life for me to do than humour you. This signature is that response.
Actually, now I see why they've created a separate Statblock for the chair mimic, it has reduced stats. If you don't want to pay for the digital version, you can just used the standard Statblock from the Monster Manual or Basic Rules, and alter it accordingly.
If you're not willing or able to to discuss in good faith, then don't be surprised if I don't respond, there are better things in life for me to do than humour you. This signature is that response.
Just pulled my hardcopy of Candlekeep mysteries off the shelf and the Mimic Chair is very odd, doesn’t seem to be a stat block for it anywhere despite D&D Beyond saying it’s on page 22. If it helps it’s basically the regular mimic with 22 HP instead of 58. The regular mimic (and the flying sword) are in the 2014 free rules which you can download on the DDB app or read on the website. The Faerie Dragon is a bit tougher as it’s only in the Monster Manual. Best bet for that is to Google image search for “Faerie Dragon 5e Stats” and there’s a few to choose from
As for making it clear you need other things they are a little underhanded about it if you’re new to the hobby but every book has a little disclaimer at the beginning saying you need the Players Handbook, Dungeon Masters Guide and Monster Manual to play and any adventure you buy will likely refer to stuff in those three books. As I said a lot of it is in the free rules too and Google is your friend for the rest
Buying physical causes the money to fund the various departments and subcompanies and what-have-you for the physical product - or the retailer, if bought from someplace other than this site/wotc online store. Buying digital causes the money to fund the devs who made the digital tools. They are not the same product. Likewise buying the kindle version on amazon will fund amazon devs that run the kindle service while buying a physical paperback funds the store you bought it from and the companies that printed it. In both cases the author of the book still gets their royalties. It's the same sorta thing (albeit actually more complicated) with D&D books and digital tools.
If you have something from a physical book you want to use on D&D Beyond, you need to either:
If you are keen on mixing physical and digital books, you may want to consider purchasing the physical + digital bundles on here (or via wotc store if outside US) to get the digital version discounted to $10.
Click ✨ HERE ✨ For My Youtube Videos featuring Guides, Tips & Tricks for using D&D Beyond.
Need help with Homebrew? Check out ✨ this FAQ/Guide thread ✨ by IamSposta.
It's super annoying that having the hard copies doesn't unlock anything digital, and further that the VTTs are separate so you potentially have to buy it on multiple VTTs, and none of this is obvious when you are making your first purchases.
That said, on Roll20 it was straightforward for me to make NPC statblocks that have all of the features I needed, either by modifying an existing free creature or by entering it from scratch. It's a little tedious to copy them all out of the book if you have a lot of uniques to deal with but not terrible. I think the same will be true on dndbeyond.
They could add a sealed one use digital access code to the books if they wanted to, even if just a discount to effectively get a bundle. I like having the books and I like supporting my local gaming store, so for now I just work around it in various ways.
Mostly it's just a matter of - what is the best use of your time vs money.
The sealed code is an idea in theory, but there's a considerable risk of people stealing those, which is a worst case scenario for most everyone involved since now customers won't want the book because they're not getting everything offered, so the store is losing money because they either have to mark the price down or eat the loss on the book, and that discourages stores from stocking them in the first place so D&D won't be selling as many books.
And, again, keep in mind that Beyond is not just an electronic transcript of the physical copy; I'm no web design expert, but I expect it's a fair bit of work to format the layout for all the pages of a new book on this site and write up all the spell, magic item, subclass, etc. features so they play nice with the character sheet. And it's a similar deal when you purchase the books from VTT's; you're not just paying for the text, you're paying for having a lot of the most relevant content already integrated with the site's interface for the game.
It seems that this particular problem stems from the fact that the physical book does not actually contain the stat block in question while the digital one does (I don't own either, so I can't confirm). Before this turns into yet another thread where people disparage and defend the economics of digital products, maybe we can focus on the specific help this person needs?
If you own the book, as you said for Roll20, you can manually add them as a homebrew monster. In the future, you can just buy the digital copy of a book on whatever platform you want. It'll give you all the stat blocks, spells, magic items, etc as well as the rest of the books content. If you want both a physical and digital (its what I do), D&D Beyond sells bundles on many of the books for cheaper than buying the two seperate. They are different products with different people working on them. The core content is Wizards but Physical has to pay printers and publishers while Digital has to pay Coders and Web Designers so the profit from a sale goes to different people depending on the format. A code inside would be nice but runs the risk of theft and would make all books sealed in stores so you couldn't flip through them before buying. I would guess when Sigil launches, there will be people (like me) who want codes in the phyical mini boxes as they use both. Dependending on how micro transactions will work on Sigil, it might work but it runs similar risks. In the future, assume anything that doesn't say "Code Inside" won't have a free digital copy and even if it does they often expire (like movie codes).
I thought I felt the arcane sigil go off - Hardcover Books, D&D Beyond and You FAQ
#Open D&D
Have the Physical Books? Confused as to why you're not allowed to redeem them for free on D&D Beyond? Questions answered here at the Hardcover Books, D&D Beyond and You FAQ
Looking to add mouse-over triggered tooltips to such things like magic items, monsters or combat actions? Then dash over to the How to Add Tooltips thread.
If you are new to D&D, I strongly discourage spending money on this hobby until you have at least one or two campaigns under your belt. There is so much free content out there that there is absolutely no reason for new hobbyists to spend money at all. Always do your research before you spend money. And this does not apply to just D&D either, it applies to other hobbies and life in general. Seriously do your homework and research, ask your D&D community and local game store for help, and run at least one or two games first before you open your wallet. You need that time to familiarize yoursel with the hobby to know what is out there and which products are tailored to your needs.
If you are a GM and you are complaining about price, then you seriously have not done your research. You can access all that D&D has to offer legally for free by asking your local and/or online D&D community for help. There are plenty of GMs out there who have spent thousands of dollars on this hobby so their players do not have to, and quite a few of them are happy to help out fellow GMs as well. Ask your community for help. For real. Go to your local game store, Reddit, Facebook, or whatever social place or platform you prefer and ask nicely. Borrow our physical books and access our digital tools, it has literally already been paid for. And after you get help from the community, if you still can, return the damned book back to Amazon and get your money back.
And if you still want to spend money for some reason, here is a quick summary of the most common products GMs spend money on, do your research on each of them, and this list is by no means exhaustive:
PHYSICAL TOOLS:
- Books (Adventure Books vs. Source Books; the core three of PHB, MM, and DMG; BR/SRD/FR and EEPC are free)
- Character Sheets (usually low cost or free)
- Dice
- GM Screens
- Cards (monsters, magic items, class/subclass features, etc.)
- Mats (square vs. hex grids; drawable/markable mats, dungeon tiles, terrain features, etc.)
- Minis (WizKids, Hero Forge, LEGO minifigs, etc.)
DIGITAL TOOLS: (D&D Beyond, Roll20, Fantasy Grounds, and Foundry are the four official digital tools)
- D&D Beyond
- Roll20
- Fantasy Grounds
- Foundry
- World Anvil (unofficial tool)
- Google Workspace (unofficial tool; free)
- Microsoft Office (unofficial tool; browser version of certain software are free)
And as you probably found out, if you want to use a new format/platform, you will have to pay for it again in that new format/platform. Just as it costs money to print physical books, it costs money to develop and maintain digital books and tools.
Check Licenses and Resync Entitlements: < https://www.dndbeyond.com/account/licenses >
Running the Game by Matt Colville; Introduction: < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-YZvLUXcR8 >
D&D with High School Students by Bill Allen; Season 1 Episode 1: < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52NJTUDokyk&t >
It's frustrating but the nature of the beast, as converting files for a VTT or a character builder is more complicated than making a PDF, which is largely done when you layout a book.
While many companies give you a free PDF (some limited to preorders or from the official store) I can't think of any that give Roll20 or Demiplane access for free.
This advice is partially why so many local game stores are going belly up.
OP bought the book from Amazon, not from a local game store, Amazon does not need any more help to be profitable, and returning it back to Amazon is not hurting local game stores. I encouraged OP to go to the local game store to seek the local D&D community for help. That helps drive traffic to the local game store, and helps build the local D&D community. Books are not the only thing that local game stores sell: snacks, drinks, and minis are small purchases that can ease new players and GMs into the community and hobby. There is also a lot of cross exposure to other adjacent hobbies, like other TTRPGs not named D&D, CCGs, boardgames, comics, etc. that the store might cater too.
Everyone's financial situation is different, not everyone is fortunate enough to spend money willy-nilly on a hobby that is a literal glorified game of make-believe. We as a community need to meet people where they are at. Just as we as a community have a duty to stamp out piracy, we also have a duty to provide people with a legal alternative that is affordable, accessible, and fair to all parties and stakeholders. Just as it is unacceptable for people to demand free products, it is also unacceptable to pressure people into spending money that they do not want to spend. And GMs are in unique position where they naturally already want to spend money on this hobby. For crap's sake, OP is a brand spanking new GM and they instinctively already dropped their wallet to pick up a book, so their players do not have to shoulder that financial burden. The urge to spend is strong. I want new players, and especially new GMs, to do their research, take advantage of all the free stuff, and really slow down. When new players and GMs are really ready, they will be able to make a better and more informed financial decision. And the more we as a community ask new hobbyists to take their time and help educate them, the less stupid crap and preventable regrets we will see and deal with about D&D being expensive, or why people have to pay two or three times for the same content, or what the hell is going on behind the scenes at D&D Beyond.
D&D is not going anywhere. Local game stores are not going anywhere either; if local game stores have to resort to deceiving or pressuring people to buy products people do not need nor want, that is not a business worth supporting, let alone it being financially sustainable. OP should only support businesses they find value in, and they have no duty nor moral obligation to support failing businesses.
And if the OP is shy, that is fine too, and I suggested online communities as an alternative. Not everyone is a social butterfly in real life; it is up to the local game store to make their business as welcoming as possible if they want to capture shy customers. Not everyone has a local game store close by either, and there is nothing a game store can do if they are not local.
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Running the Game by Matt Colville; Introduction: < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-YZvLUXcR8 >
D&D with High School Students by Bill Allen; Season 1 Episode 1: < https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52NJTUDokyk&t >