While the D&D Essentials Kit doesn't include any miniatures, it still may be my favorite D&D starter set to date.
The box includes:
Abridged rulebook (64 pages)
Dragon of Icespire Peak adventure (64 pages)
Double-sided map (Sword Coast and the town of Phandalin)
4-panel DM Screen
6 blank character sheets
11 dice (1d4, 4d6, 1d8, 1d10, 1 percentile, 1d12, 2d20), translucent red with white numbers
81 cards (magic items, sidekicks, conditions, combat step-by-step, quests, initiative)
A box for the cards
Codes for D&D Beyond content (The included adventure, some follow-up adventures, and a 50% off coupon for the Player's Handbook)
The rulebook isn't much different than the free Basic Rules you can find on the official website. It has instructions for building a character and advancing them to level 6. It has four races (Dwarf, Elf, Halfling, Human), five classes (Bard, Cleric, Fighter, Rogue, Wizard) with two archetypes each, and five backgrounds (Acolyte, Criminal, Entertainer, Sage, and Soldier).
About the only significant new thing in the rulebook is the sidekick rules (which can also be found for free in Unearthed Arcana). This is important, though, because it acknowledges one of the biggest barriers to getting a new group together - finding enough players to make a well-rounded group.
Dragon of Icespire Peak is one of the better starting adventures I've seen. Not because it's a particularly memorable plot or anything, but because it's presented in such an efficient manner that they managed to cram a lot of content into a 64-page adventure book.
When you reach the town of Phandalin, you find a job postings board with three short quests on it. You can complete them in any order, and after you finish a couple, more quests will be posted. There are nine quests altogether. Instead of experience points, the adventure encourages milestone-based leveling based on how many quests you complete. These quests take place all over the surrounding area, so the PCs will really have a good layout of the land by the end.
Dragon of Icespire Peak will take the characters from level 1 up to level 6. The included code unlocks three follow-up adventures on the D&D Beyond website, which bring the characters up to level 11. That's a pretty good value for the price; it's enough to keep the players busy for several sessions.
The included cards are pretty cool, but kind of cheap. They're not pre-cut cards, just perforated cardboard sheets you have tear apart yourself. The card box is also thin cardboard that you have to fold into a box. The quest, item, and sidekick cards make good handouts specifically for this adventure, and the rest of the cards are useful in any campaign, especially for beginners.
My only real complaint is the sidekick cards. Each one shows a picture of the character on one side, and describes their personality on the back. I would have preferred their stats being printed on the cards, with multiple versions of the cards for when they level up. But it's a minor complaint.
The DM screen has some useful information on it. The first panel has some basic rules - Actions in combat, things you can do on your turn, etc. Panel 2 has conditions. Panels 3 and 4 have miscellaneous charts like common prices, light distances, cover effects, sample DCs, and so on. It's a handy reference, but I don't tend to use DM screens so I probably won't get much use out of it.
Overall, I think this is a great value for new players. I plan to run Dragon of Icespire peak next time I DM for new players. I do wish it had included a few minis or tokens and a combat grid, but it's still a good value. If you're new to D&D and trying to decide which starter set to get, this is the one I recommend.
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