Ben dares thee to find a more drawn out, never-ending game debate than D&D 4th edition vs. all previous editions (but mostly D&D 3.5 edition). This RPG dispute has nearly taken on a north vs. south civil war mentality in the world of the InterGoogle.

The gang at the Pile thinks that all this pent up D&D edition anger is particularly silly. So much so, that we decided to make a little tongue-in-cheek video of our own on our YouTube channel. The classic iPhone vs. HTC vid was our inspiration. Xtranormal was our technology weapon of choice.

Of course, we absolutely love 4E for all the myriad of reasons mentioned in our comedic short. Still, we haven’t abandoned Dungeons and Dragons rich history. What tickles our funny bones is how angry and often irrational a few of the diehards get when discussing the D&D editions differences. Just remember the golden rule – any D&D is good D&D.

Enjoy a quick top 5 on why D&D 4E makes Ben so gosh darn happy:

1. Latest and Greatest: WotC supports it with new monthly product releases.
2. Enhanced Combat: Battles are much more diverse and interesting.
3. Game Flow: The overall game moves quicker with a streamlined rule set.
4. Role Play: Group determines RPG weight. Never been the edition’s job.
5. Remembered Roots: Plenty of Gary G’s original ideas and love remain.

Finally, here are a couple fun online articles to peruse at your leisure:

1. Boycotting 4th Edition D&D
2. A Comparison of Content
3. A GM’s First Impressions of D&D 4e: Looks Like Fun
4. 3.5 E, older D&D and Pathfinder. What do D&D vets think of pathfinder
5. Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition Review

Questions to ponder: Which edition do you play most frequently? What is a pro of 4E? What is a pro of 3.5E? What is a con of 4E? What is a con of 3.5E? Will you ever try 4E? Will you ever go back to 3.5 or earlier? Do you play Pathfinder instead of 4E?

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OK – he’s not going to lie to you…Ben has been dying to use that Lord of the Rings’ play-on-words headline for some time now. Still, can you ever have enough door variety in your D&D terrain life? With that obvious answer, here’s installment number 2 in this gripping series.

Ben loves to mix up the entry and exit points in his dungeons. Big or small, wide or tall, it simply doesn’t matter. He relishes the game group’s reaction and tactics based on the mere appearance of the barrier in front of them. With that said, here’s our latest batch of door goodness.

We’ve utilized the portcullis from Dwarven Forge (from Wicked Editions Set I) – a must-own). Our homebrewed jail cell doors work great for your typical prison area but could also serve as slick gates.

We crafted an imposing door to serve as our entry way into the second Horned Hold tower inside Thunderspire Labyrinth. A small door served as a special getaway inside the Duerger Trading Post cave.

Ben mustered a broken door for Brugg’s Halfmoon Inn assault. And he even made a partially clawed door in a recent Friday Night Strike Dungeon Delve.

Seem like overkill? Too much? Nah – remember, variety is the spice of life.

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What in the bloody hell happened to our once proud world of miniatures?! We go from a bursting abundance to near annihilation in less than four months! Wizards officially gave the bad news back in January that they were cutting back to one little ol’ set (Lord of Madness) for all of 2010.

Reaper Miniatures, long known for its unpainted metal sculps, decided to dip its toes in the pre-painted arena in March 2007 with Legendary Encounters. The depth of its first line (5 figs) is paltry in comparison to the WotC Harbinger debut (80 minis) in November 2003.

The results are encouraging though. Monsters like the spider, great worm and ghost are slam dunks for any D&D game session. However, Reaper’s release schedule is painfully slow – maybe those boats from China just need more horsepower.

Reaper has released additional miniatures since then but sadly, at a near glacial pace. New product managers, poor selection (a unicorn – really?) and the rising cost of raw materials are the biggest culprits. Still, one can only dream if Reaper had gotten right and could have capitalized on Wizards’ downsize decision.

Ben gives props to Reaper for giving it the college try. They brought us the pack concept (Skeletons and Orcs). And they’re only one of two companies (with Rackham being the other) to try and give Wizards a run for their money.

It’s a very high probability that the industry will move to depressing flat cardboard tokens for 2010. Let’s say a prayer to Bahamut that this isn’t the case. Let minis reign!

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Behold the sanctity of a gamer’s dice bag. One dares not violate it. Ben knows there’s a story and superstition behind every precious die in one’s collection. So, let’s delve into his dice pile and see what we find (and remember no touching – just looking).

Ben has attained quite a mishmash of dice goodness. He never knows when a bitter cold streak is going to hit. He demands variety and humor in every of roll.

His favorite RPG dice finds include:

• Oddballs: d3 or d4 as an eight-sided No problem
• Language: Always nice to fail in a foreign tongue
• Locator: In the?
• Clear: Hopelessly in love with this style
• Oversized: Bigger can sometimes be better
• Treasure: Pick the parcel on the spot
• Directional: The incredibly hard to find scatter die
• Monster: Great for wandering
• Huh: What was Ben thinking?
• Go-to: This DMs favorite set (for now)
• Metal: Heavy but effective
• Misfits: There’s a die for every occasion
• Memorable: Good times…good times
• Utility: DM tools
• Humorous: Funny as in ha-ha funny
• Nouns: Random objects

The where-to-buy in dice hunting is just as elusive as the what-to-buy. Online options are a mess. Your local game store, like a Gamers’ Inn, will net you some periodic pleasure. However, Ben recommends saving the biggo search for your annual Gen Con Mecca. All the distributors proudly display their wares in huge quantities. Finding dice gems there are fun and easy.

Gen Con is also the infamous home of the dice dive. You can pay $30-plus and use an empty frat-like beer pitcher to scope up as many as you can. It’s the perfect way to amass a community dice stash for guests. You gotta experience this once in your gaming lifetime.

And we didn’t even really talk about all the dice trays and rollers out there.

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What’s not to love about a D&D 4E action point? It’s an opportunity to take a tactical second swing or deliver the decisive blow. When that crucial time comes a callin’, Ben likes to declare it with glee by throwing in an Action Point Counter from Dark-Platypus Studios.

These pewter coins are one inch in diameter and a great way to visually represent the earning and spending of Action Points during your adventure. Let’s face it, there’s a lot to track in 4E so these tokens are a welcome game accessory for any DM.

A heavier coin would be nice for a more thunderous throw-in but there’s no arguing the price ($12.99 for a pack of 10). Pick up a bag for your next game session.

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