Well, I went out and bough the D&D 4th Edition player's handbook last week. I've actually been playing this with my gaming group basically since it came out, but I kept putting off getting the book, mainly because I wasn't sure it was worth the cost ($35)...

I'm not a huge D&D fan, never have been. I've always thought it was a little silly and unrealistic. A few examples that pop into mind from 2nd edition (which I played a lot of during college) - one minute combat rounds (how many fights do you think actually last more than a minute?) and the ridiculous damage system. I mean, last time I checked, you could be killed by a dagger with one hit - no matter who you are. It's obviously a deadly weapon. However, in D&D it would take lots of hits to kill a high-level character. Combine that with one minute combat rounds and you get some silliness. Like spending half an hour knifing someone before they die.