There are many articles and Youtube videos comparing D&D 5th Edition Starter Kit and Essential Kit as to which one makes the best starting adventure for new player. I have started with Starter Kit myself, and now playing Essential Kit. I have played about 80% of both adventures. The difference here of my review from others are mine is from solo beginner D&D player perspective who is playing these as an alternative to adventure board games.
Contents
I would not go into a detail of every single difference between the two kits as there are many great reviews talking about them already.
First point, I’d like to emphasize is when looking at the comparison table, you may initially identify essential kit has so many more extra contents than the starter kit for only $5 extra. The essential kit value is unbeatable but many of the extra items are optional and different cards are made of card boards and just plain texts except sidekick cards. So they are not high quality. Basically, I do not believe they add any real value. However, there are other parts that Essential kit has better value than Starter kit, which I will come back later.
As far as rulebook goes, essential kit has twice as many pages. In most situations, more pages equal more contents and therefore, better value. However, when it comes to D&D rulebook, the official basic rulebook is available for free to download and its 180-page long. So here as a starter, shorter/simpler version could be strength. If you already know or intend to dive deep into the full rule, neither may matter as you might as well just use basic rulebook or even consider purchasing a full rulebook, player’s handbook.
Soloplay key factors
When D&D 5th edition is played in solo, there are 3 critical factors.
- Player character (PC) factor
- Adventure factor
- Monster/Non-player character (NPC) factor
The third point, Monster/NPC factor refers to Monster AI. Since none of D&D 5th edition adventure is made to be played without Dungeon Master, neither covers this. This is something you need to make your own.
If you don’t know where to start, I have been developing a monster AI making system for 5E on my own and you can check it out on my another article.
So the primary comparison points are the first two.
Player Character Factor
Unlike adventure board games, a player character in D&D 5th edition has many options of what it can do during its turn and various customization. These details come with side-effects for solo players, especially as a beginner.
Pre-generated Characters
First, the making of player character has very detailed rule of its own. Essential kit assume the entire first session to be spent making characters. For many players, this may be fun part of the D&D; however, if you want to play this like an adventure board game and dive right into the game as soon as possible, this step will feel a hinderance.
The starter kit adventure, Lost mine of Phandelver comes with five level 1 pre-generated characters. So you can forget about making own character and just dive right into the game.
On the contrary, essential kit guides and asks you to create own character before starting the adventure. It does not come with any pre-generated player character.
Therefore, as written the Lost Mine of Phandelver appears to be more beginner friendly from the making of character stand point. However, it turns out that all pre-generated characters on the starter kit and more characters including higher level versions are available for free download on the Wizard of the Coast official site. So if you know where to look, this is not a real advantage for starter kit.
all pre-generated characters on the starter kit and more characters including higher level versions are available for free download on the Wizard of the Coast official site. So if you know where to look, this is not a real advantage for starter kit
Sidekick system
Controlling multiple PCs by yourself is far more involved than any other adventure board game. However, D&D adventures are written to be played by several player characters forming a party, usually four. So as a solo player, this could be one major hinderance.
The Lost Mine of Phandelver adventure in starter kit is built for 4-6 players. One player plays a dungeon master role, so this is built for 3-5 players.
On the contrary, Dragon of Icespire peak adventure in the essential kit is built to even support 1 on 1 play. This means the adventure is officially balanced even for a single PC. This is possible because of newly introduced game mechanics called “sidekicks.” On 1 on 1 play, the adventure recommends the player to use 1 player character and have one sidekick character to form 2 character party.
Sidekicks are highly simplified version of player character that uses only monster stat block equivalent of details. Sidekick system makes controlling multiple characters manageable even as a beginner. They are simple, but well balanced. Some even suggests a beginner should perhaps start adventure with sidekick version of character. Once the player familiarized enough with the rule and knows which type of character he/she wants to use, then step up to the full player character.
Essential kit contains 9 sidekick characters, 3 for each sidekick role types. This rule is the major advantage of essential kit over starter kit as a solo player.
The official site has sidekick rule draft version from 2018 free for download. Since then, the sidekick rule has been added in one of official 5e rule expansion series, Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything ($29.99). Therefore, it is perfectly acceptable to use sidekicks in the Lost Mine of Phandelver adventure.
Prior to knowing the sidekick system existence, I had started playing the Lost Mine of Phandelver using two level 3 characters to compensate four level 1 party characters based on the Dungeon Oracle ($1.99) player party # conversion table suggestion.
This has started well. When the third part of the adventure was reached, normally played character should reach to third to forth levels. My two characters who started at level 3 were only at level 4. So I am now playing with two level 4 characters on the missions that are designed to be played by four level 4 party. I started to feel a bit unbalanced and this is actual reason why I had decided to give a try on the essential kit.
Someday, I plan to go back to the Lost Mine of Phandelver using 1 player character and 3 sidekicks from essential kit and see how well it works. I have no doubt it works fairly well, but essential kit’s 1 player character and 1 sidekick on Dragon of Icespire peak is still less character control, which is certainly a huge benefit to solo beginners.
Sidekick rule is one of the major advantage of essential kit over starter kit as a solo player.
Adventure Factor
The general consensus across internet is Lost Mine of Phandelver adventure is one of the best official campaign. While Dragon of Icespire Peak isn’t usually listed on top 10 by most reviewers.
Personally, I feel both are equally enjoyable. Dragon of Icespire peak is undoubtedly more of a compiled quests approach than progressive story style in the Lost Mine of Phandelver. However, in my head, Dragon of Icespire peak translates into a typical Japanese anime series. Initial a few episodes are usually independent to each other. Then toward the mid arc, couple episodes connected extended event or story take place. As the season progress, snippets of the main quest from earlier episodes starts to connect, and becomes final few episodes focus on it as the last, main event. Basically, it felt natural to me, but this may not apply to everyone. As far as which adventure is better, I will basically leave up to other sites for the comparison.
Let’s take a look at two main pieces as a solo player.
XP vs. Milestone Level Up
Each adventure uses a different type of level up system. Lost Mine of Phandelver uses experienced based level up system while Dragon of Icespire Peak uses milestone system.
In XP system, each encounter gives a certain amount of experience points. When enough points are accrued, the character levels up. This is how the classic RPG video game level up system works.
Milestone system is rather than basing on how much XP one gets, the story progression point determines the timing of level up.
XP based level up requires a player to keep tracking XP, and depending on which path one take, character’s level may be different when reaching to a certain quest. This can make the quest too easy or too hard. Milestone approach can ensure each quests are balanced as designer intended.
Milestone system is not necessary the better system, but easier to keep track as a player and also keep the game balanced.
Personally, I feel the milestone progression a bit arbitrary. In RPG video game, I usually try to over-prepare my characters before boss battle. This is nothing but grinding for XP to level up my characters before a boss battle, but this gives me the element of satisfaction.
Milestone approach will eliminate the grinding and therefore this satisfaction. Nonetheless, as a solo player, especially beginner, my recommendation is Milestone level up approach. It is simpler and keeps game balance under control.
As a solo player, especially beginner, my recommendation is Milestone level up approach. It is simpler and keeps game balance under control.
Spoiler-less
In an ideal world, the adventure is written in a choose your own adventure book style format to keep spoiler free. Since the official adventures are not written to be played without DM, neither has this ideal format.
So the main element aided me here is a digital book format with hyperlinks.
Physical book has a potential of unintentional, avoidable spoiler. As I search for specific section in a book to jump to, I was afraid that some parts may come into the view by accident. Hyperlink in the digital book minimize this risk.
Dragon of Icespire Peak comes with free digital version on D&D Beyond website. Lost Mine of Phandelver does not come with any digital code; therefore, if you want to get digital version, you need to buy it separately or just buy digital version instead of physical.
Dragon of Icespire Peak comes with free digital version on D&D Beyond website.
Values
As I promised at the beginning, I am coming back to a value comparison.
Technically, this is not a benefit specific to solo play, but discount code for D&D beyond digital version of player’s handbook in essential kit makes essential kit really great value for its price.
Player’s Handbook is over 300-page full version of D&D 5e player rulebook. Essential kit comes with 50% discount code for its digital version.
This is a really good deal because normally it retails $29.99 on D&D Beyond. Even during the site’s best of the year sales during after the Thanksgiving event, they had only given 30% discount.
Conclusion
If one has to choose one vs. the other, I would go with essential kit first as a beginner solo player. Although it does not come with pre-generated characters, you can download them from official Wizard of the Coast website for free. In fact, there are more options to choose from than what’s contained in the starter kit.
The major element making essential kit better for solo player is the sidekick system, and overall game is designed to be balanced for 1 player 1 dungeon master setup.
If Lost Mine of Phandelver is chosen, I highly recommend you to consider using sidekicks as the other three party members, or may be even all four at first. Although the official, draft version of sidekick rule is available for free and one can make own sidekicks, but pregenerated sidekicks from essential kit are not available for free access. Since you can buy essential kit ~$10 on sale, I would recommend just buying essential kit anyways for this purpose.