Level Up (A5E) Introduction with Starter Boxed Set

CellarHeroes · Dec 12, 2024

I'm not seeing any ratings for the Boxed Starter Set, and I'm wondering if folks who have used it find it useful. Is it a good introduction to A5E? Are the adventures a good representation of how you would expect it to play?

I'm starting to get my convention plans and games together. After some hemming and hawing, I've decided to run these adventures at a few smaller conventions next year.
I will also be running it as a new A5E DM.

jeffh · Jan 24, 2025

Reaction to the intro set on here seems to be remarkably muted. Literally no-one is talking about it on the only forum dedicated specifically to Level Up! that I'm aware of. This seems to be the only post mentioning it in about six weeks.

I know that when I got it, I tried to read through the first adventure it came with, liked the basic plot, but found that it needed a lot of work at the nitty-gritty detail level. Specifically the maps and the encounters were clearly designed separately by people who had little if any communication with each other rather than one being designed with the other specifically in mind. There was one map I couldn't make heads or tails of at all, and another that I thought would have been really cool for a slightly different encounter with the same basic premise as the one it was paired with, but the encounter didn't mention, or even make much sense with, the map's unique features. Be prepared to do a lot of this sort of work yourself.

Overall Memories of Holdenshire is probably a better intro. It's not flawless either but it's very good.

W'rkncacnter · Jan 24, 2025

jeffh said:
Reaction to the intro set on here seems to be remarkably muted. Literally no-one is talking about it on the only forum dedicated specifically to Level Up! that I'm aware of. This seems to be the only post mentioning it in about six weeks.

my suspicion is that the sorts of people you'll find on this forum are the same sort who don't have much need for a level up starter set (especially considering how late it released compared to the core books) and thus have just never looked at it. i know personally that the first time i ran level up i just grabbed a dungeon i found interesting and used the core books.

CellarHeroes · Jan 24, 2025

jeffh said:
Overall Memories of Holdenshire is probably a better intro. It's not flawless either but it's very good.

Thank you!

If I end up enjoying A5E, Memories of Holdenshire will be my next stop for getting into something more long-term. For now, it looks like I'll continue my search for a decent introductory one-shot.

Selganor · Jan 25, 2025

Just a note... The "Starter Box" wasn't created to introduce people new to rpgs (or 5e) to A5E.
To quote the first page of the booklet:
"We assume that you have access to the core 5th Edition rulebooks and are familiar with the 5th Edition ruleset."

Memories of Holdenshire is probably a better introduction for completely new players (with additional hints for narrators on how things are a bit different than O5E/D14) and could be a test run for a new group.
If the players are happy with the game (and setting) they might always continue with their own characters (either at level 3 or with a longer first act with more side quests) with "To Save a Kingdom".

Level Up (A5E) Introduction with Starter Boxed Set

CellarHeroes

Adventurer

jeffh

Adventurer

W'rkncacnter

Hero

CellarHeroes

Adventurer

Selganor

Adventurer

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