Perhaps I'm pedantic here but, no, you don't need "a bookshelf". The PHB/DMG split is obvious; you don't need the DMG (or MM) if you're a player. You don't need

Perhaps I'm pedantic here but, no, you don't need "a bookshelf". The PHB/DMG split is obvious; you don't need the DMG (or MM) if you're a player. You don't need any of the supplements. Also, you can run D&D games with or without TPK, you know. You can do troupe play. You can do all sorts of game modes. Rules are a framework for your game, that you build, not natural law.