RPG Review: Dungeons & Dragons Starter Set (Stranger Things Edition)

The D&D Stranger Things Starter Set is a great introduction for players new to D&D and familiar with the Netflix show, but if you want something with more substance, or are already a D&D player, there are better options.

The tie-in to Stranger Things is natural for D&D. The very first episode of the show featured the boys playing a game of Basic D&D, hunted by the dreaded Demogorgon. Of note, my players have also faced off against Demogorgon as well, but the two-headed Demon Prince variety, who you can find in the adventure Out of the Abyss. The tie-in looks great on the shelf, has the retro look of classic D&D, and drops players right into the game. The box comes with six marbled blue dice (no percentile die, multiple d6’s or a second D20 for advantage), the basic rules, five premade characters, two Demogorgon minis, and an adventure.

The basic rules are the same you’ll find on WotC’s website or in their non-Stranger Things themed Starter Set (the one that includes the Lost Mines of Phandelver). Missing from the Basic Rules from their site is character creation. The beginning of the “How to Play” chapter does have a nice script of a couple of actions so you can see how players would communicate at the table. Each chapter features screen shots from the series and honestly, does a really good job of explaining everything to a brand new DM.

The spell book features Bard spells, because on the the pregens is one, and the Monster section includes exactly the low-level creatures you’d expect, while adding in the Demogorgon, who is a CR4 Medium Monstrosity who can regenerate and has a blood frenzy. The Thessalhydra is another interesting addition, which doesn’t have the hydra’s typical regrowing of heads, but does have a tail pincer.

One thing I would have loved to see is more descriptions of the monsters beyond the one or two sentences at the end of each entry. The entries don’t tell very much, and there’s no art to match. If you’re completely unfamiliar with D&D, or fantasy games in general, would you know what an ochre jelly is? All it tells you is “Ochre jellies stalk and consume organic creatures, and they have  enough bestial cunning to avoid large groups.” Okay, but what do they look like? How do they move? Tell me more! Luckily, the monsters do include a young green dragon, fulfilling the “& Dragons” part of the game’s name.

The five premade characters are a Half-Elf Wizard, Half-Orc Ranger, Human Paladin, Wood Elf Cleric, and Hill Dwarf Bard, and are all 3rd level. Each sheet includes, on the back, an explanation of the race, the class, and your background. It also gives you rules for gaining 4th and 5th levels, which is nice, so you’re not stuck with just the one level of characters. I’ve seen other people upset you don’t have 1st level heroes, but I don’t mind it at all. This adventure really is a one-shot, so making the characters a little more powerful isn’t such a bad thing. I also appreciate that not all the characters are the stereotypical mashups. The Half-Orc isn’t a Barbarian, the Ranger isn’t an Elf, and the Cleric isn’t a human.

The Adventure is the Hunt for the Thessalhydra, and is written up as an adventure by Mike Wheeler. The pages are on a faux-lined paper, and the text is oversized. Honestly, this book would be about half the size if the text was as large as it is in the basic rulebook. The characters meet with their patron, Sir Tristan, who wants them to venture into a series of caverns to hunt for the Thessalhydra. The maps within all look very handmade on grid paper, and are pretty straightforward dungeons. The Cursed Labyrinth section is interesting, in that it really is completely random, with the players rolling a D20 to determine what way the tunnels wind. The random encounters they face along the way cause them to eventually meet the lost knight, who has a pair of riddles for the players to answer.

Once the players solve them, the knight guides them into the Upside Down, an alternate plane to the Material Plane. In my mind, this was always a bit like the Shadowfell. One feature of the Upside Down is the players generate no hit dice, and cannot naturally heal. Only magical healing will do the trick. Within the Upside Down, the players will meet a warrior princess, who will help them hunt for the Demogorgon to help them on their quest.

One thing I find interesting is how the Demogorgon, this terrifying monster from season one is merely a diversion for the players. The box comes with two models (despite the adventure specifically stating that only one exists), and it isn’t even the main focus of the adventure. I’d have rather seen the second model be the Thessalhydra, or something similar, but more than that, I’d have rather the adventure been about the Demogorgon itself. Other than that, it’s a pretty standard adventure.

After fighting the Demogorgon and then the Thessalhydra, the adventure is over. It’s really meant for a single session, though I guess it could take two or three if the players are still stumbling their way through the rules.

The adventure in the other Starter Set, Lost Mines of Phandelver, is a much better adventure, with a lot more to do, a lot more content. While the adventure is a great intro to the game, it’s very very light.

The two models of the Demogorgon that I mentioned before are identical, except that one is “painted”, and the other one unpainted. Here, you can see the painted one on the left, vs the unpainted one that I painted myself on the right. The painted one in the box has a light brushing of a kind of pink over its brown plastic, with some darker pink in its mouth. I’m planning on getting both the models painted up similarly. Again, I’m really confused as to why there were two of these models in the box. It really doesn’t make sense to me. For myself, I’ll probably introduce these creatures as extra-dimensional hunters who stalk their prey in pairs, and use their stats from the box.

Overall, the Stranger Things starter set is fine. If you’re interested in getting something you’ll use a lot more, however, check out the original Starter Set, or the Essentials Kit which I reviewed a couple weeks back.

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