No masterpiece, but mandatory

Relatively long I had to wait my copy that went unhappily lost in the mail. That is why for my D & D5Kampagnen went already months into the country before I held the Dungeon Masters Guide (DMG) in hands. Thus I missed also all the recommendations made by the authors, are to be completed as certain details in the game. The Player Handbook, Monster Manual and the also the Basic Rules refer yes all on the DMG, so I was curious to see if the book would deliver what I had expected and hoped for it.

Content

One was me already clear from the outset, as I put this review: The DMG is a melting pot for everything you elsewhere could not accommodate or wanted.

Build adventures and campaigns

It does now not necessarily a book of the Wizards that tells us how to write adventure. The relevant part of the book is largely system-neutral and therefore are not really unique to D & D5. Its appeal but the whole thing already: This part of the book shines with good examples and many, many lists. With these you can Cams Categories much good stuff, be it the peculiarities of a rogue, mission objectives, adventure Spawn or moral dilemmas. All these tables are naturally brimming with inspiration for all those who want to generate it for their adventure groups.

This is followed by a recommendation for creating reasonably balanced monster encounters. This part is the same as the free version of the Basic Rules. Some I have already mentioned to the article about leveling up. The following description for creating NSC summarizes the theme of the character background from the Player Handbook (PHB) again very briefly together and enriches it with mannerisms and visual abnormalities. There are included as a playable classes nor villainous versions of Paladins (Oathbreaker) and the cleric (Death Domain).

Warm the whole thing then runs properly with the Adventure Environments in chapter 5. Here all the material is delivered, which one can do well to conduct a dungeon crawls, a wilderness adventure or to Revive a settlement. I would have certainly liked to see more examples on cases, but with what you find here, you can sure work well. Until DMG indeed remained the question of how one has to deal with cases in D D5, largely unanswered. The theme Dungeon is the way by generating tables attached a wonderful extension. These are of course not only for Roll for, they can also be cross-read for inspiration. Even the tricks of previous editions (wondrous oddities) made it into these tables.

When wilderness section I must already be wondering why collecting food comes at this point, the Tracking until Chapter 8. Here prevails throughout the book such a mess. How do I build an encounter with monsters? Chapter 3, Creating Adventures. How I Create or varying a monster? Chapter 9, Dungeon Masters Workshop. Magic items? Chapter 7, Treasure. How do I create a magic item? A few paragraphs in turn in Chapter 9. The theme dungeon is spread across Chapters 3 and 5 as well as the Appendix. The breakdown of the total book seems quite in need of improvement.

Schätzelein!

A big load content provides the chapter Treasure. Well D & D will be happy and often made fun of as a game about Hobos Murder: Murder Hobos are heroes who draw Dungeon murdering and plundering of Dungeon and leave a trail of bloody devastation. You have to be playing not raise so, but at least it is very fitting that with not less than one hundred pages the theme Treasures is operated. Seventy pages account for this on the magic items that enrich adventurous life the most.

Especially this is noticeable that overloading of the characters with bonuses compared to other editions sent prevented. The spells from the PHB, true that the work of too many prolonged effects is prevented by concentration. A spell caster may only receive one award upright, if it requires concentration. This limits most buffs, so that you simply can not act anything that might be useful, but must act more effectively.

The same design is also used in magic items to wear: require many magic items Attunement, and the number of items that you can keep such willing is limited to three. Attunement also assumes that the SC spends an hour with the object to this to loyalty. Thus, lots of bonuses can not easily pass from character to character, and in turn you have to make a choice, what effects the own SC are most useful.

Clarity is certainly a property that you have the new D & D concede frankly compared to other editions. A meaningful limit simultaneously acting effects it facilitates both the SL and the group to manage these and to bring to bear in the game also. As with many innovations in D D5 I feel that as an effective and good game and control design.

The magic items are generally well designed. Also cursed items have a use it is just mostly outweighed by the bad disadvantages. Thus the Armor of Vulnerability extra protection against damage and makes the character for two other types of damage are especially vulnerable. In general I like the cursed objects well, so I would have liked more of it in the list. Of course, some items such as the nichtverwunschene Deck of Many Things are just as powerful as dangerous. Moreover, it was definitely not skimp on the illustrations in this section.

Guesswork enchanted scrolls

Unfortunately, not everything is in the book of this quality. Example scrolls:

Any creature That can understand a written language can read the arcane script on a scroll and attempt to active it. (P.139) Can thus act each the saying on the role?
No. This is described elsewhere under Activating an Item: A magic item, color: such as Certain staffs, may require you to use your own spellcasting ability When you cast a spell from the item. [] If you dont have the spellcasting ability Perhaps youre a rogue with the Use Magic Device feature your spellcasting ability is +0 Hanes item, and your proficiency bonus does not apply. (P.141) Is this the whole picture?

Again, no! Under the entry Spell scroll we find this description: If the spell is on your classs spell list, you can use to action to read the scroll and cast its spell without having to Provide any of the spells components. Otherwise, the scroll is unintelligible. (P.200)

The rules for failures while casting scrolls are again on p.140 So Happy hunting when you have pitched to act S.200, and then something goes wrong!

Who has found and read all the places may be scratching your head. When quick reference prevails rather confusion. In a brief Internet research, I found some conflicting opinions especially as the other products that are previously appeared for D & D5 because also could not agree, and have changed the rules since their appearance. In fact, there seems to be only two kinds of magical scrolls: spell scrolls and scrolls protection. This could have been much more skilful compressed to one or two pages.

On past target

Relatively short fall is Running the Game. Honestly, that would be for me really the meat, which is part of the bone of a Dungeon Masters Guide. The few paragraphs about how to run a group, just return it to one and a half pages. About the paragraph to avoid Metagaming way, I laughed heartily. Well, it was worth a try

Also not a lot of space occupy the recommendations for storing samples. Assessing a litter problem puts it in half a page. It's worth more, because the examples falling or Dungeon hazards to read from previous chapters that are essential because concrete. It affects everything written down very spongy and quickly. Important issues are discussed, but details and detailed examples in vain. This should be the part that teaches you to manage the game? Looks more like a chore. I'm disappointed.

The recommendations on the subject of inspiration read like an easy topic misconduct. Inspiration allows players at any one time on a litter Advantage to have. The Inspiration So you can save (but only one point). The recommendations, when to grant inspiration to read some more like guidelines in which tosses you should give the players Advantage.

In general, the variant recommendations are the most interesting. A small additional rule for automatic successes can speed up the game. The asides to partial successes are indeed only sketchy, but can be an asset. The idea to link a Proficiency with different attributes, depending on the situation, although at first sounds interesting: So could a swimming throw long distance on a throw Athletics (Constitution) instead require on Athletics (Strength). In practice, this is rarely cause a bigger difference. The framework for handling social interactions is easy to implement and gives a good indication of the SL.

In this wild hodgepodge, there are still rules to play with and to Hex and grid maps, as well as for the settlement of surface effects. That would fit well into the Player Handbook. Then chases. Then the effects of siege weapons. The disease must extend three. The toxins are described at least 14. A few little exhausted fermentation Optional Rules for madness. And last Experience: This central gameplay element brings it to any full page I want to here a friendly quote SL: According to the experience of so many editions I would have hoped they would have had to say what more meaningful on XP. That's the way it is!

Price / performance ratio

Here, for me the question: What do I get with the DMG commanded that the Basic Rules have not served?

The part with adventure and campaign structure: This one you can most likely find system neutral.

The full 70 pages magical items.

Additional rules, rule variations and options: Quite nice, but not a must.

Monster creation and calculation of Challenge Ratings (CR): Very useful tools would also fit well into the Monster Manual (MM).

Rules for poison, diseases, traps, Tracking, wild life, property damage and NSC loyalty: all essential and mostly in good hands here.

The purchase decision is probably not difficult for most SL: The material on CR calculation and magic items are each D & D5spezifisch that it is difficult to do without it. The rest so you get it.

Also in reverse must be true: For a hardcover of this size and design of the DMG is cheap. Because you can not bear it when a familiar is presented again. D & DAnfänger among the SL should definitely begin nevertheless with the Starter Set.

Appearance

dmg 5e coverDas book is lavishly illustrated again, being here like to fall back sometimes to the fundus of the already published books. Colored and opulently, so the whole guide provides is the reader. Font and typesetting are legible. Sometimes introducing formatting and illustrations deceptive but downright over how short some sections have fallen from the pure in content.

Who have PHB and MM like, the like also the DMG. The three books are all of a piece, in terms of design, layout and design.

Conclusion

What kind of impression remains with me? First of all, that of a colorful mess. D & D5 would have deserved a separate book with magical items, but that does not seem to correspond to the publisher calculus. The additional rules are nice and can spice up the game, but remain sketchy and vague. What you have to look for rules for the fight on a Hexkarte especially in DMG, me remains a mystery. Anything else nowhere had place seems here to be in there.

Many important game elements come to me again simply too short. In cases, for example, would have been even more. The few reflections on experience points beyond the fighting are a fig leaf, no longer. On the other hand, one can not accuse the book that some would blatantly missing. If the core consideration was, freshly baked SL almost bring directing, so there is a lack of comprehensive examples of implementation of rules. For a simple campaign style with no frills this provides but actually the Starter Set.

The theme of adventure and Kampagnenbau fills the book significantly. Anyone who wants to warm up the classic three-Akter, is served here. Advanced Fantasy campaigns beyond the stereotypical high fantasy are indeed touched upon briefly, but remain so vague that one can imagine little less. The many tables are definitely a big plus and provide ideas and values ​​that part clearly on.

Speaking of filler: The part that warms the new Planescape setting, has nice ideas for varying the D & DKosmos to offer that I find inspiring. The extensive Standardmultiversum is the rest of the chapter but not justice. Again: Independent book comes hopefully, or you have to stop access to older editions.

My overall impression: Good ideas are there, but their drafting sometimes left entirely to the SL. Most supplements usually fall under the category nice, but many remain vague or are to use only for very few campaigns. Thanks to the lists for the magic items, the purchase of the book is certainly worth. Who in other products such as I harbored the hope on the basis of cross-references that there referenced matters dealt with extensively in the Dungeon Masters Guide, will be disappointed. The chore was done, reached the target number of pages and goofed in the freestyle in my opinion. The value in use of the Player Handbook or the Monster Manual is far from being reached. A journeyman, but no masterpiece.