D&D Player Wisdom

Not the stat – the received body of knowledge that everyone “knows”. Whether or not they’re actually correct, here are some bits of wisdom for new players.

• Don’t split the party. Even when it seems harmless, just don’t.
• Let the Bard do the talking.
• Keep an eye on the Rogue (and check your pockets).
• Take good notes. You never know what NPC or lore tidbit will be important later.
• Always check for traps. Maybe you need a 10-foot pole and a little bit of water.
• Balance the party – get a healer, a face, somebody for melee, and somebody for ranged.
• Focus fire to start cutting down on the incoming hurt.
• Combat isn’t everything and alternate approaches can be way less painful.
• Corollary: you can’t win every fight.
• Run away and live to fight another day.
• Get a bag of holding as soon as you can.
• Get healing potions immediately.
• Not every magic item is actually helpful… and some are cursed.
• You can do more than what’s on your character sheet. Let the DM figure out what you should be rolling.

If you have other timeless player advice, please share!