So, someone pretty new to the tabletop scene here. Been part of an online campaign for a few months now (through roll20), so I know the basic gist and whatnot, but I've never really done it physically/locally and don't own any real materials - no dice, rulebooks or player books or... whatever else there even [i]is[/i].

Now, I've a few local friends who'd really like to try out D&D, and I'd be interested in running a game for them. I've read up on some advice for novice DMs, but all guides seem to assume that I already have the necessary materials and can just... start. My problem is that I'm still one step behind; I don't really know [i]what to even get[/i] to start DMing.

I know there's [url=http://dnd.wizards.com/products/tabletop-games/rpg-products/rpg_starterset]this[/url], for example, which sounds like just what I need - but I'd need to order it from abroad (as is the case with most D&D material, I'm afraid) so I'd rather know in advance whether it's a good buy. Do you guys have any experience with that particular starter kit? Or can you recommend some others? Are starter kits even needed, or can I find everything I need online, just to test the waters before I commit to a physical copy?

... That's a bunch of questions, welp.