So I am looking to start a new group at my LGS. I don't have a personal group yet but hopefully I can build one after meeting new gamers. That said I have a serious question. I have the core rule book but should I invest into the Beginner Box for its extra content. I have several packs of dice already but I can always use a fourth of course but would the mini Core Rule Book in the box set be useful for new gamers? It would be smaller and it appears all the rules are the same with just less of the situational rules. Having the core rule book for myself I can reference all the more complete rules for my players but for basic rules isn't the beginner rule book just the basics and about the exact same?

Also do you have any advice for running a game in store with strangers? I'm thinking pre-gen characters and one-off mini adventures, or small scale adventures.

Thanks in advance.

The box will help you run that intro game.

The Beginners Box is a little bit railroady and a lot bit handholdy (especially the Edge version), but as an introduction to the game engine I think they're pretty awesome and well worth the money. If I were doing a bunch of strangers or people new to the game, I would go that route for sure.

The Beginner Box adventures are pretty perfect for this, though the Under a Black Sun Free RPG Day module is also a viable option for a one-shot in-store demo. You can grab it from FFG's own site here: https://images-cdn.fantasyflightgames.com/filer_public/18/ff/18ff8afe-bf19-47a3-97e5-a313ded3d6b3/under_a_black_sun_lores.pdf

Thanks everyone, but more specifically is the mini rule book good for a reference for players? Or is it too light on the rules to be a useful reference past the first introductory game?

Many players may not ever get a core rule book and having an easy to read reference will save me a lot of time in game.

What are you looking to reference? There are some cheat sheet type things listed under the resource sticky.

Something that would be good for teaching the basics. How many times has a new player asked how to build a dice pool or how do you contribute to another player's dice pool?

I can probably get away without the beginners box but if it's helpful in future games it will be worth it.

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/9077657/SW-EotE-1page-Reference-Sheet.pdf

Thank you!

Sure, njoy.