Sipex
2010-11-22, 09:49 AM
I just had a pretty sweet D&D filled birthday party and as one of the presents, I got this:
http://www.mk1.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/token-set-pic1.JPG
So, besides another attempt by WOTC to get our monies, what exactly is this and is it actually useful?
Well, I have to admit, I've wanted this since I laid eyes on it so my opinion may be a bit biased. When I opened it I was very excited, I had no idea this was coming and I've always had trouble tracking (and making sure to apply) statuses. Touching the actual box was a tad dissapointing, it's made of a cheaper wood (not splint wood or anything but it's very light), BUT it does cost...what...20 bucks? So I'm not going to expect thick dark wood anyways.
That said, it's still pretty damn sturdy and the light wood makes it a lot easier to take around, especially if you're lugging this, plus your books plus whatever else you need for a D&D session.
Opening the box I was a little more pleasantly surprised. First of all, the lid doubles as a rolling box. It's padded with a thick felt so the dice don't bounce too much or make an incredible amount of noise (I even rolled my 1/2lb d20 in it which barely gave a 'thunk'). The felt is a nice dark colour and is applied very carefully so it's not peeling and there aren't any gaps.
The lower half of the box is more of the same wood divided up into sections, the larger section being able to hold small tiles, any dice, and medium or smaller creature figurines (the box isn't deep enough to hold large creatures). The smaller sections can hold about 9 D20s each or whatever you want to stick in them.
Now, the pieces. It comes with 50 some-odd status pieces which have a durable but see through plastic on the top of them (to give them weight, durability and make it so you can draw on some) while the bottom has more of the same felt on each one to allow for extra traction on the board while still being easy to slide around.
Most pieces (except the bloodied and prone) are made to sit around the base of any figurine. This may cause space issues if you have a lot (A LOT) of statuses thrown around a small area but most of the time I think it'll be fine. The pieces do slide around easily enough that you can easily rotate them around your minis if need be. Bloodied pieces (little droplets of blood) easily sit on the base of most of the minis so they don't take extra spaces.
There are pieces for all the basic statuses (immobilised, grabbed, slowed, dazed...etc) and then pieces which are little blank scrolls which you can write on (with wet erase markers) to customise for ongoing damage or unique statuses. I can definitely see 'on the board' statuses working out for me as well, it'll help me remember which ones need saving throws and which need to be applied.
Overall, I would say, if you have problems remembering or labelling statuses and you don't already have a solution in place, look into this. Although I wouldn't recommend it if you don't use circular based miniatures or tokens.
http://www.mk1.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/token-set-pic1.JPG
So, besides another attempt by WOTC to get our monies, what exactly is this and is it actually useful?
Well, I have to admit, I've wanted this since I laid eyes on it so my opinion may be a bit biased. When I opened it I was very excited, I had no idea this was coming and I've always had trouble tracking (and making sure to apply) statuses. Touching the actual box was a tad dissapointing, it's made of a cheaper wood (not splint wood or anything but it's very light), BUT it does cost...what...20 bucks? So I'm not going to expect thick dark wood anyways.
That said, it's still pretty damn sturdy and the light wood makes it a lot easier to take around, especially if you're lugging this, plus your books plus whatever else you need for a D&D session.
Opening the box I was a little more pleasantly surprised. First of all, the lid doubles as a rolling box. It's padded with a thick felt so the dice don't bounce too much or make an incredible amount of noise (I even rolled my 1/2lb d20 in it which barely gave a 'thunk'). The felt is a nice dark colour and is applied very carefully so it's not peeling and there aren't any gaps.
The lower half of the box is more of the same wood divided up into sections, the larger section being able to hold small tiles, any dice, and medium or smaller creature figurines (the box isn't deep enough to hold large creatures). The smaller sections can hold about 9 D20s each or whatever you want to stick in them.
Now, the pieces. It comes with 50 some-odd status pieces which have a durable but see through plastic on the top of them (to give them weight, durability and make it so you can draw on some) while the bottom has more of the same felt on each one to allow for extra traction on the board while still being easy to slide around.
Most pieces (except the bloodied and prone) are made to sit around the base of any figurine. This may cause space issues if you have a lot (A LOT) of statuses thrown around a small area but most of the time I think it'll be fine. The pieces do slide around easily enough that you can easily rotate them around your minis if need be. Bloodied pieces (little droplets of blood) easily sit on the base of most of the minis so they don't take extra spaces.
There are pieces for all the basic statuses (immobilised, grabbed, slowed, dazed...etc) and then pieces which are little blank scrolls which you can write on (with wet erase markers) to customise for ongoing damage or unique statuses. I can definitely see 'on the board' statuses working out for me as well, it'll help me remember which ones need saving throws and which need to be applied.
Overall, I would say, if you have problems remembering or labelling statuses and you don't already have a solution in place, look into this. Although I wouldn't recommend it if you don't use circular based miniatures or tokens.