So you’re ready to start playing D&D. Or more accurately, you want to be ready to start playing D&D. The only problem is… you don’t know where to start. Or what to start with. Or what you might need.

It’s easy to say “pen, paper, and dice,” but in truth not only do you need a few things more than that, but as a newcomer I understand you might sometimes not know which of these are correct. Will any dice do? No. Will any pens do? Maybe. Will any paper do? No.

So all in all, it’s a bit more complicated than just getting random things off your local office supplies department. Not too much, but a bit. Which is why we’ve put together this starter kit, letting you know what you’ll want, what you’ll need, what you should consider, and where to get those things from!

THE ABSOLUTE NECESSITIES

These are the things you just can’t play D&D without, no matter what. Make sure to have them, or else you won’t be able to play. Or maybe you’ll be able to play, just not D&D.

Pen & Paper

Ideally white paper and pencils rather than pens (because pencils can be erased.) Also a printer unless you fancy doing character sheets by hand. I know I don’t.

You want a few sheets of this paper to have character sheets on them. You can get them easily from Wizards of the Coast’s website and print them. You can also fill them up digitally and use them from your PC or phone.

Dice

Not just any dice, though. You’ll need a proper set of D&D dice, which consists of six different dice - specifically dices with four, six, eight, ten, twelve, and twenty sides.

You can get these dice in many places, and usually just googling “D&D dice” or “RPG Dice” will return good results. For a decent basic set, you can check out totalpartychill. Otherwise, the designs and models are endless, as are the prices. A dice set can cost from a few dollars to a few hundred, depending on materials. Most are, luckily, quite affordable.

Rules

D&D has a set of free rules, so luckily this won’t be a problem. They teach you how the game works just fine, giving you access to a portion of the content the full rulebooks have - at no cost. If you want to go deeper, getting the Dungeon Master’s Guide, Player’s Handbook, and Monster Manual will be important - but for starters, the free rules will be more than enough and won’t break your bank.

OR A PROFESSIONAL DUNGEON MASTER WHO HAS EVERYTHING ALREADY

Dice, paper, and rules are all things you would normally need, but if you are playing with a pro GM on StartPlaying, they will have the rules, the tech, and everything else needed to run the game. In that case, you really just need a mic and internet connection, and the DM will provide everything else!

THE THINGS YOU MIGHT WANT TO HAVE

Here’s where things get trickier. Yes, you can play D&D with just what’s outlined above. Except almost nobody plays it like that anymore. There are hundreds—perhaps thousands—of different ways to enhance and simplify your experience. Are they technically superfluous? Yes. Will you want to have them? At least some you will.

D&D Beyond

First on the list, the ultimate tool for creating and maintaining character sheets - D&D Beyond, owned by Wizards of the Coast, has a digital character creator that offers the absolute best experience in the market. And it’s free, to boot. You’ll just need to create an account and you’ll be ready to create characters using the free rules.

If you do want access to the full set, you’ll either need to buy a digital copy of the books or have a game master who is subscribed and owns the books share them with you — but to start with, you can just go with free tools.

Adventures

Because while making up your own adventure is a great idea, it’s not the best to start with. D&D Beyond, mentioned above, has several free adventures. However, for a somewhat more involved experience or one that’s specifically tailored towards newcomers, the current starter set is your best bet. There’s even a free introductory adventure for it that allows you to try before you buy.

The physical version of the starter set also comes with dice and printed rules and character sheets, thus checking all the items in the first part of this list.

Playmats And Dice Trays

The most annoying part of playing anything that includes dice is having players roll the dice by throwing them under your furniture. When I started DMing with my friends, one of my first purchases was a set of dice trays I’ve since carried with me across an ocean. I trained my players and anyone who plays with me to use them by declaring any dice not rolled on the dice tray are invalid. You might want to try that or not.

A smaller, more portable and honestly very useful version of this is Totalpartychill’s set of playmats. They can be rolled up, used for many games, and come with sets of rules printed (DM and players) that can serve as reminders.

A Dungeon Master Screen

Because while not necessary, those look super cool, allow you to roll dice secretly if you’re the dungeon master, and usually have rules reminders printed in the back. Looking great, rolling away from anyone’s eyes, and looking like I know everything even when I’m just reading from the screen? Sign me up.

D&D Beyond has a nice official one with 2024 rules, but there are hundreds of offers on other sites with different designs.

Graph Paper

Almost a necessity if you want to play with the rules as written, where you can calculate distances easily. You can always purchase printed maps, or print them yourself, but outright using graph paper and drawing on it will often do. There are several brands you can find, although even the most basic one can be used.

Battle mats are also an excellent option.

Miniatures

Look, I’m no one to tell you how to play. If you want to bring out your collection of limited-edition chapstick sticks and use one for each monster, be my guest. Same if you want to use your collection of rocks, erasers, or buttons. It’s your game, play it your way.

But one of the coolest parts of playing tabletop games is the awesome minis you get to play with, because deep inside we all want to play with toys again, even when it’s considered in poor forms for adults to do so.

You can source your miniatures from many places also. Dungeon Masters often cannibalize their own board games for miniatures (some of those board games being official D&D games,) others purchase them from the thousands of packs regularly offered and others go for specialized shops for the most iconic monsters, and when it comes to painting them (because plain figurines just aren’t as cool) one can even get painting supplies and spend a relaxing (or horribly stressful and triggering, depending on your skills and standards) afternoon with them.

You, as a player, will sure want a personalized miniature that shows off your character exactly as they are. For that, you can’t go wrong with HeroForge.

A Virtual Tabletop (VTT)

If your intention is to play D&D online, or if you want a huge helper when running the game that automates most of the math and many of the rules, a virtual tabletop is the way to go. These pieces of software allow you to run D&D on a computer, letting you play with people far away or close by while having the software carry most of the weight.

VTTs can be free, such as Roll20 and Owlbear Rodeo, or paid, like Foundry or Fantasy Grounds. Features and requirements vary widely among them, so make sure to research them before committing.

D&D Beyond also has an official tabletop, called Maps.

NOW THAT YOU HAVE EVERYTHING

By now, you should have everything you need to play D&D, perhaps only missing some swag to show your love for the game and its worldbuilding. At this point, all I can say is have fun, and roll for initiative! 

And if you happen to prefer online gaming and would like to play D&D with an experienced, professional Dungeon Master in a curated group and a safe space, you might also want to consider joining StartPlaying.

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Tizzy is a lover of cats, dragons, writing, and tabletop games. Every adventure is a new opportunity for insanity!