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SamTheCleric
2008-05-05, 01:17 PM
I don't know if anyone has seen and/or posted this as of yet... but I just found it while looking at the art preview from today... [Information Current as of DDXP 2008]

Original Article (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dndifaq)

And for those of you behind the dreaded Firewall of Legend,


Official D&D Insider FAQ




This FAQ includes information that is current as of D&D Experience 2008. As new information becomes available, this document will be updated. Please visit often for the latest news on Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition and D&D Insider.


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The Basics
What is Dungeons & Dragons?
D&D is an imaginative, social experience that engages players in a rich fantasy world filled with larger-than-life heroes, deadly monsters, and diverse settings. As a hobby game, D&D is an ongoing activity to which players might devote hours of their time—much like a weekly poker game—getting together with friends on a regular basis for weeks, months and even years.

What is a roleplaying game?
The D&D game is a fantasy game of your imagination. It is part acting, part storytelling, part social interaction, part war game, and part chance. You and your friends create characters that develop and grow with each adventure they complete. One player is the Dungeon Master (DM). The DM controls the monsters and enemies, narrates the action, referees the game, and sets up the adventure. Together, the Dungeon Master and the players make the game come alive.

Who are the player characters?
Each player chooses the character that he or she plays. Your characters star in the adventures you play, just like the heroes of a book or movie. Each character has unique strengths, weakness, and abilities—yours might be a battle-seasoned warlord with a hundred campaigns under his belt, or a clever rogue with a quick wit and a quicker blade. You might be a ranger trained in survival techniques, or a wizard who has mastered the arcane arts. As your character participates in adventures, he or she gains experience and becomes more powerful.

What does the Dungeon Master do?
The Dungeon Master (DM) is the one who plays the "bad guys." He knows the secrets of the adventure, either because he has read the adventure that the players explore, or because he’s created that adventure himself.

How do I get started?
That’s easy. To get started, you need a group of friends and the three core rulebooks:

The Player’s Handbook (to learn about the kind of characters you can make, and what powers your character can use)
The Dungeon Master’s Guide (to help instruct the DM on how to run the game)
The Monster Manual (to provide many of the opponents the characters will battle)
You’ll also need a set of dice for each player, and miniatures to represent each of the player character and the monsters they’ll face.

Where can I find these materials?
All of the above materials can be found at your friendly local gaming store (FLGS). For a list of these stores, consult our online locator.

You can also buy these materials online, from sites including www.amazon.com, www.barnesandnoble.com, or www.borders.com.

Where can I find adventures?
One person in your game needs to be the Dungeon Master, and will run the adventure. The rest of you will be the players, running your characters through the adventure. These adventures can be created by the DM himself or purchased from local retailers.

Our first published 4th Edition adventure, H1: Keep on the Shadowfell, provides an introductory adventure for characters level 1-3, followed thereafter by H2: Thunderspire Labyrinth for levels 4-6, and H3: Pyramid of Shadows for levels 7-10.

Dungeon Magazine, a subscription component of the D&D Insider website, also offers an ongoing selection of adventures across all levels, as well as advice for DMs and their games.

Where can I find a gaming group?
If you’re looking for fellow gamers to start up a new campaign, there are a number of different places you can turn. Wizards of the Coast hosts a message board, Gamer Classifieds, advertising groups in all areas of the country. Meetup.com also hosts gaming groups looking for new members.

For more organized games, you should also look at the RPGA (Roleplaying Gamers Association), run by Wizards of the Coast. As stated on the newcomers’ information page, the RPGA’s “ultimate goal is to enhance your roleplaying experience, so you can play more, with more people and receive rewards for the games you already love.”

Finally, with the launch of the D&D Insider tools, you’ll also be able to find gaming groups and play adventures online.


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4th Edition
Why 4th Edition?
Refreshing a living game such as D&D is very important. Our understanding of what works best for today’s players is always evolving, and ignoring that would result in a stagnant game that few people play. We've been dreaming of and experimenting with ways to improve the game—from better rules to more exciting characters to great online tools—for years, and now we're finally ready to show folks the best Dungeons & Dragons game we've ever made.

When does 4th Edition release?
The three core rulebooks—the Player’s Handbook, Dungeon Master’s Guide and Monster Manual—release June 2008.

What are some of the notable changes to 4th Edition compared to 3.5?
The Design & Development column on D&D Insider is the best location to see the changes and developments that have gone into 4th Edition. This column offers a unique behind-the-scenes look at the making of the game, with members of the R&D Team sharing their insights and philosophies.

You can also pick up a copy of the two 4th Edition preview books, Wizards Presents: Races and Classes, and Wizards Presents: Worlds and Monsters.

Are there any conversion plans in place for transitioning 3.5 to 4th Edition?
We learned with 3rd Edition that accurate conversion really doesn't work. Thus, we're encouraging everyone to start at 1st level in 4th Edition and learn the new system from the ground up. While you'll certainly be able to reinvent many existing characters with the new system, there's no conversion guide that could adequately cover the vast array of options that have been published over the lifespan of the game.

With the introduction of 4th Edition, will existing 3.5 product be obsolete?
We are moving to a new edition, and the rulebooks that we’ll release from June 2008 forward will use the 4th Edition system. However, Dungeons & Dragons has always been a game involving campaign and world-building and your books from past editions still contain thousands of pages of information that you may consult when creating your world and/or updating your campaign. While there are no official plans to convert 3rd Edition material into 4th Edition, it is always possible to convert your favorite materials on your own.

That said, we’re also making sure that many products released before 4th Edition are “edition-proof,” meaning they can be used in any edition of the game (such as the Grand History of the Realms). In addition, other 3.5 products (such as Exemplars of Evil and Elder Evils) will receive 4th Edition updates, via D&D Insider.

What campaign setting support will there be?
A new version of the Forgotten Realms campaign setting will be released in August 2008. Eberron will be released some time in 2009. Beyond those, other campaign settings will receive some level of support in the future, but we’re still working on our plans.


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D&D Insider
What is D&D Insider?
D&D Insider is a suite of online tools and editorial content created to digitally enhance the tabletop experience. This added component of D&D works along with the physical product, organized play, and community to offer robust gameplay.

Why did Wizards of the Coast decide to develop D&D Insider?
Wizards’ decision to develop an online application suite came from player feedback and interest. Wizards of the Coast intends to meet the high expectations in providing robust gaming materials that allow players to create unique and challenging gaming experiences. By developing and evolving our own digital offerings, we can ensure the quality of gameplay is consistent with the experiences we’ve been able to provide through our analog gaming materials.


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D&D Insider Subscriptions
How do I sign up for D&D Insider?
Just go to the front page of the D&D Insider website, and look for the sign-in box in the top right-hand corner. Click “Join Insider” and you’re on your way!

What does a D&D Insider subscription include?
A D&D Insider subscription will provide access to a host of different tools and applications that will enhance your Dungeons & Dragons experience, including Dragon and Dungeon Magazines, a Character Creator, the D&D Game Table, and the D&D Compendium. D&D Insider also offers a way for players to connect with each other, play the game, or tap into 100% official Wizards of the Coast-sanctioned content that will enhance a group’s gameplay.

How much will the D&D Insider subscription cost?
$14.95/month, or you can buy a 3-month or 12-month subscription at a discount. A 12-month subscription works out to $9.95/month.

What portions of D&D Insider will remain free after the preview ends?
Certain elements of the D&D Insider tools will remain free in limited use for non-subscribers. For example, non-subscribers can use the Dungeon Builder to create encounter maps and use their .jpgs in offline games. Subscribers will be able to load these maps directly onto the D&D Game Table. As another example, non-subscribers can use the Character Builder to manually input character information or print out 4th Edition character sheets.

How much will the digital magazines cost?
Dragon and Dungeon Magazines are included as part of your subscription. Nonsubscribers will also be able to purchase individual PDF issues of the magazines (pricing TBD).

If I purchase a subscription for a year, what content will I be able to access after my subscription expires?
After your subscription ends, you will no longer be able to access the subscription portion of the D&D Insider website. However, you will retain access to any PDFs of Dragon and Dungeon Magazines downloaded during your subscription. You will also retain access to any digital books, minis, and tiles you’ve purchased.

Do I need a D&D Insider subscription to play 4th Edition?
No, you do not need D&D Insider to play 4th Edition D&D. A D&D Insider subscription will provide you access to the online magazines and tools, but these are simply new and compelling options to enhance your overall gaming experience. Dungeons & Dragons will fundamentally remain a pen-and-paper roleplaying game.

In response to player demand and the evolution of the gaming space, we felt that creating D&D Insider was a way to help grow and sustain the strategy gaming industry and invest in the community to ensure it thrives for years to come. For example, the D&D Game Table will provide you with the ability to essentially play at an online kitchen table—allowing groups to play across the country (or even countries) and for old gaming groups to reconnect. Other online tools will provide resources for all users, regardless of whether they play live or online.

First and foremost, 4th Edition D&D will remain a physical product, with printed rulebooks, minis and dice. But starting with the release of 4th Edition, D&D Insider will offer additional online tools to increase your options for gameplay.

Will I be missing out on needed 4th Edition content if I don’t subscribe to D&D Insider?
No, we want to make sure that your analog D&D experience is as complete as possible. Should you choose to remain a pen-and-paper gamer, you will always have a complete and outstanding experience using our printed rulebooks, adventures, physical minis, etc. As a non-subscriber, you may still also choose to purchase individual PDF issues of Dragon and Dungeon Magazines for additional editorial content.

As a Dungeon Master, I plan on subscribing. Will all my players have to subscribe to receive benefits from the D&D Insider content and tools?
Your players who subscribe will also gain the full benefits of the D&D Insider features. We’re creating the D&D Insider experience to be as useful as possible to every player, not just every group. That said, some functionalities will be available without needing to subscribe; for example, we are planning that subscribers will receive a set number of Guest Passes for the D&D Game Table (and can purchase more) that they can provide to their players, allowing them to join an individual game session.

Will it be possible to purchase individual features of D&D Insider?
Your D&D Insider subscription will grant access to all benefits. There are no a la carte options currently planned, with the exception of Dragon and Dungeon Magazines—non-subscribers will have the option to purchase individual PDF issues of these magazines.

What’s the connection between D&D Insider and Gleemax?
Gleemax will host many of the community elements integral to D&D Insider, including the message boards as well as individual gamers’ Campaign Vault and Character Vault pages. Additionally, this arrangement will support other community features including player repositories and campaign setting wikis, which will be released later on.

When you subscribe to D&D Insider, you also become a Gleemax member and your D&D Insider log-in will jointly serve as your Gleemax.com log-in.

What is Gleemax?
Gleemax is the community for gamers on the web—a combination of social networking, online gaming and game-related content for everyone. Whether you play RPGs, TCGs, board games, turn-based strategy games, miniature war games or almost any type of tabletop/hobby game, you will find a home here.

Gleemax is built on three pillars—Community, Games and Editorial Content—each representing the essence of what Wizards of the Coast has been offering strategy gamers for more than 15 years. Specific site features include: an online social community, existing and future releases of Wizards of the Coast digital gaming properties, independent strategy games, player profiles, interactive analog and digital community activities, editorial content including community message boards, staff blogs, player blogs, regularly updated industry news, and game rankings and reviews.


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Technical Specifications
What are the minimum system requirements to run D&D Insider’s tools?
The D&D Insider applications have been developed for the PC platform. Two of the applications (the D&D Game Table and the Character Creator) use a 3D engine based on DirectX. Our recommended specs include Windows XP SP2, 512MB RAM, AMD XP 2400 + or Intel P4 2.6Ghz, and a graphics card with 128 MB RAM and support of Shader 2.0. These recommended specs allow you to experience the full range of lighting and shade effects our 3D engine offers.

Will I need a high-speed internet connection to make use of the high-end features?
The D&D Insider applications will not require high-speed internet, but some of them utilize VOIP and users will benefit from having a faster connection.

Why did you design D&D Insider’s tools for a PC platform?
There are at least two reasons why we chose the PC/DirectX route. Market research indicates that PC users are the largest user base; additionally, we already had access to a DirectX-based 3D engine which enables us to more quickly and easily develop and release robust online tools.

The applications are designed for Windows, but applications that do not rely on the 3D game engine will be able to be used on other systems, including Mac computers, using the dual boot system.

When will previews of the D&D Insider tools be available?
The timing of D&D Insider previews has not yet been unveiled.

What sort of Digital Rights Management (copy protection) will there be?
For the D&D Insider client applications, the most compelling functionalities will require that you be online and a subscriber.


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D&D Insider Tools
Will the D&D Game Table be "savable" between moves?
The D&D Game Table is a roleplaying tool that allows you to play D&D online, and facilitates roleplaying using the internet as your gaming table when your group is geographically dispersed. This said, the D&D Game Table will allow DMs to save their game sessions so as to resume them at a later date. Since this is not a turn-by-turn computer game using the traditional concept of “moves”, the choice to save progress will be left to the DM, who can save the session at any point during play.

On the D&D Game Table, will it be possible for players to act "blind" from one another?
We are building the infrastructure that will allow us to implement this in the future, but this specific functionality is not planned for launch. For launch, the implementation is similar to the experience you have around your table, i.e., all players can see what the other players see and have to make abstraction of their meta-game knowledge when playing their character. In addition, the DM will have the ability to “whisper” text messages to individual players and receive secret messages from players without alerting the others.

We do plan to implement more intricate functionalities, such as the ability for the DM to separate players into groups that can’t hear each other or have limited visibility from one another.

Will non-D&D features (e.g., sci-fi minis, a hex grid, mini facing) be implemented?
Our first goal with D&D Insider is to support 4th Edition Dungeons & Dragons. This said, we are simultaneously looking to make the D&D Game Table a generic online roleplaying tool which will include a simplified facing system. However, other features such as hex grids or sci-fi minis are not planned for launch.

By fully embracing this domain of electronic tools, Wizards of the Coast is very aware of the enormous potential for these tools in the future. Our goal is to enhance our digital offerings over time, incorporating our community’s ideas about improvements and evolution of these tools.

Will 3rd party companies be able to use the D&D Insider tools? Specifically, could a company recreate one of their adventures or produce Digital Minis for a 4th Edition product?
Anyone, individuals and companies, will be able to use our tools to create free maps and adventure content usable on the D&D Game Table. Regarding the production of D&D Insider Digital Objects (3D tiles or Digital Miniatures), we will consider establishing new types of partnerships with other companies to expand the scope of these digital tools in a structured way.

Can I personalize D&D Insider for my “house rules”?
There will be ways for you to use the D&D Insider tools for your own system of house rules. For example, the D&D Character Creator will allow you to both create characters that adhere to the official system of character generation (“RPGA legal”), or that can be filled out however you wish. And, as mentioned previously, the D&D Game Table essentially allows it to be used as a generic roleplaying tool, allowing the DM to run the game however he or she sees fit.

Other elements of D&D Insider will offer varying levels of customization. For example, there is no plan at this time to allow customizable tiles, but users can draw and use their maps as a base texture.

Are there limits to the number of characters that may be stored online? Offline?
Yes, there are limits to the number of characters that a subscriber may store in his or her Character Vault. However, there is no limit to the number of additional characters that may be stored on your hard drive.

Are there limits to the number of maps, adventures and other digital products that may be stored online? Offline?
User-created maps and adventures, for the most part, will be stored on your local hard drive (so you will determine your limit for these). Official scenarios produced by Wizards of the Coast will be stored online and accessed by subscribers who are entitled to them (via their subscription or additional purchase).

Is there a limit to the number of players that can access my online game?
We are designing the D&D Game Table to accommodate between 10 to 15 players plus the DM simultaneously.

What topic/subjects will the D&D Insider Wikis cover?
We are looking at several wikis, as part of the Gleemax/D&D Community features. The first will be private wikis associated with a DM’s individual Campaign Vault pages—essentially, a wiki a DM may use to flesh out his or her campaign, with restricted permission for others to access or modify.

The second wiki will be open to the entire community as well as select authors and game designers and will primarily be used to compile information related to official campaign settings; Forgotten Realms and Eberron are the first such wikis planned.

The third wiki has been referred to as the Player Repository (name subject to change). Also open to the entire community, this wiki will compile house rules, options and character builds as submitted from around the player community for ranking and potential inclusion in future official releases.


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D&D Miniatures
Will DDM be compatible with 4th Edition?
The D&D Miniatures game is being revised to align the rules with changes that are happening in 4th Edition D&D. The new rulebook is available now and can already be downloaded here. The new game debuts in April 2008 with the Dungeons of Dread expansion.

Will existing sets will be converted to 4th Edition DDM stats?
Yes. Existing miniatures will all receive new stats to make them compatible with the new rules. We will roll out the new stats using the following schedule (subject to change):

January 2008: Desert of Desolation
March 2008: Night Below
April 2008: Dungeons of Dread Release
May 2008: Unhallowed
June 2008: Fan-selected All-Stars
What is the new DDM tournament format?
As announced on January 23rd, DDM tournaments will now include the Standard format, which uses all miniatures from the two most recent calendar years, plus the All-Star set of miniatures selected from earlier sets.

In addition, the DDM Vintage format uses miniatures from all past sets and includes championship-level events; the first Vintage Championship will take place at D&D Experience in 2009.

Both the Standard and Vintage formats will use the new DDM rules published on the Wizards of the Coast website in January 2008 (and available for purchase with the D&D Miniatures Starter Game in April 2008), and the updated stat cards for each expansion after they become available. Only models with updated stat cards published by Wizards of the Coast are legal in sanctioned play.

For more information, please see January’s full announcement.

Will D&D Insider subscribers need to purchase Digital Miniatures/3D Tiles individually?
The D&D Insider subscription will include a number of Digital Minis and 3D Tiles. Additional packs of minis and tiles can be purchased individually.
How will miniatures be involved in the online RPG game?
There is no difference between using minis in online or traditional gameplay. Using Digital Miniatures or 3D Tiles on the D&D Game Table is entirely optional, as maps and tokens will also be available. The Digital Miniatures and 3D Tiles enhance online gameplay by providing more detailed accessories for your digital game, much like physical minis and tiles enhance traditional gameplay.

Will all monsters be available as Digital Minis?
Just as with the physical minis, there will not be a Digital Mini for every monster in the Monster Manual. However, those monsters that do not have a Digital Mini at launch will have a token that comes preset with the monster’s 4th Edition stats.


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RPGA/DCI
Since online play will become more common, how will the RPGA adapt to it?
The RPGA is formulating its programs with increased online play in mind. Formal announcements have not yet been made as to their online features and programs; check the RPGA website for additional information as it becomes available.