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Jun 20, 2011 -- 6:48AM, Arronius wrote:

So i've been looking for a while now at starting up a DnD group, but Im at a lose for what equipment I would need to buy. I'll Im really looking for are the rules for playing (combat, exploration, etc...) and character building information for some simple classes. I bought the red box thinking it had a full version of the player handbook, so now I need rules and level up info.
 So my question is, what is the difference between the Player Handbooks, and the DnD Essentials lineup in terms of which has the information neccesairy to play and progress at a feasable cost?

The Player's Handbook 1 has complete information to play all the familiar races (humans, dwarves, elves, halflings  -  and a few less familiar ones), 8 classes, 18 builds of those 8 classes, with all the rules, gear, magic items, rituals, ans whatnot a player needs, complete in one, big, hard-bound $35 book.  The PH2 and 3 do not have complete player rules, but rather have extra races and classes (and feats, and the like), you /need/ the PH1 to use the PH2 or PH3, but don't /need/ either of them unless there's a new race or class in them that you want.

The Essentials line lets you get started with just the Red Box (for two levels, as you've discovered) or just one of the Heroes of the _______ books (softbonus, digest-sized, 20 bucks).  Each of the Heroes books has about half the classes/builds/races as the PH, all the basic rules you need to build a character, a very limited selection of items, gear (except for 'superior weapons), and lacks rituals.  Additional rules are in the Rule Compendium, also 20 bucks. 

Like the Red Box, the Essentials classes are generally intended to be easier to understand, build and play than the PH1 classes.  They are also meant to feel more mechanically distinct, though, which can have the opposite effect if you try to play several different classes over time.

Really, the less you want out of the game, the better Essentials is for you.  If you want to keep it very casual, and not invest much time in your building or playing your character - if you're into D&D more for the socialization and maybe the story than the game, itself - then you can just get one book, and learn to build/play one of the simpler classes (the Slayer is the flat-out simplest, for instance).  If you want to try a variety of classes, customize your characters, or otherwise get 'serious' (obsessively geeky) about the game, then you'd get more for your money out of the PH1 (with all the downloadable errata and Class Compendium articles that update and modify it), and would probably ultimately want all three PHs and all the Heroes of books.