June 2025... and I decided it can't be all about doom and gloom. Let's talk about something fun! How about Dungeons & Dragons? Or... how I managed to spend more on D&D than ever before 🤔
February 18
Please remember it's February 18 when I wrote this...
Away from home
For nearly a year I've been living in the south west of the Netherlands, and been working in the utter north, just as far as I could get away from home. Yep. I got paid for it, and with working just four days a week, it was fine. Also, I didn't mind not standing in a traffic jam, for a change. And my employer paid my apartment in the north, which was another boon.
But there were things I was missing. Such as cleaning up the mess back home. Or playing D&D.
Lately, I've been getting back into D&D again, after a year of non-playing. For me, it isn't just about the game, it is also about the books. Over the years I build up a fun collection (it's worth nothing, but it's just fun to browse the pages), and I spent some of my time away-from-home reading, and adding to that collection.
My daughter if she could borrow my D&D PHB handbook, and I said no 😳
Instead, I gifted her her own copies 😁 Second hand as I couldn't find the 2014 versions anywhere new, but they look and feel brand new (and have more flavor than the 2024 versions). But she was still short of a Monster Manual.
So I gifted her my own MM. I'm such a nice guy 😇
Marktplaats
Actually, I found a bundle of books that someone was selling on Marktplaats (Dutch equivalent of Craig's List) containing this:
Yes. That's the gift bundle version of the three core books. There's also an anthology Keys from the Golden Vault, and 8 third party books from Media Lab books.
- 5e14 PHB - Player's Handbook
- 5e14 DMG - Dungeon Master's Guide
- 5e14 MM - Monster Manual
- WOTC - Keys from the Golden Vault
- The Game Master's Book of Random Encounters
- The Game Master's Book of Non-Player Characters
- The Game Master's Book of Traps, Puzzles and Dungeons
- The Game Master's Book of Villains, Minions, and their Tactics
- The Game Master's Book of Legendary Dragons
- The Game Master's Book of Instant Towns and Cities
- The Game Master's Book of Legendary Locations
- The Game Master's Book of More Random Encounters
I already owned the Keys from the Golden Vault (with a normal cover) so I passed that one on to my daughter, and replaced it with this limited edition cover. But... I mostly picked up this bundle for those 8 'Game Master's' books. I had my eyes on some of those for a while, and at half price... well...
They're not new, but the damage might be mostly from shipping, as opposed to actually having been used. Great!
I also might appreciate them more after reading Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master. A quick glance showed that the contents are a bit over the place and that some will be more useful than others, but I suspect the majority will still come in handy - especially the Book of NPCs looks promising.
One thing bothers me though... Now I suddenly own two copies of the DMG and PHB. Does that mean I'll know the rules twice as well? 🤔 or have to play twice as much? Yes! 😇
Update (September).
I found another job. I might be returning to the south-west, and return to my bi-weekly games. Now that's something to look forward to!
Until that time I have these books (those I left in my apartment for now) to bridge the time - until then... until when.
This ol' man wants to play again.
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