So I'd like to start a D&D 5E game with my 7 friends via discord, dnd beyond, and i think maybe Roll20.
The problem, however, is that although I have watched a lot of D&D( critical role ), I nor my players (except 1) actually have ever played it. I've tried to do a lot of research, and ive found a lot of stuff but its all confusing. Plus idk how im going to do this over discord with my players not wanting to voice chat so i have to type all my descriptions out... I also think that starting as a DM who hasn't even played the game before, I'm most likely going to screw this up and forget a lot of stuff, probably even killing the motivation for the players to come back and ruin their first experience of dnd. I don't want this to happen. Honestly, I'm scared to start and I don't know how to approach this. Currently, I feel like I'm drowning in rules, and don't know how to make sure I'm prepared and my players are prepared. That's why I decided to come here and ask people here if they know of tips and tricks, tutorials, important rules, maps or something of the sort (i have noo clue what im talking about) or anything that could help me make this as enjoyable as possible for my players. I'd really like this to be the start of something great, and not be the end of mine or my players interest in the game......
So yeah, if someone can help me that would be amazing cause i have until this Thursday to figure this out D:
The most important thing to remember is that all of you are in this together. You and your players are all there because you want to have fun. No one is going to remember everything. All of you are going to forget something. And everyone will be forgiving and laugh and move on. Because the fun is the important part.
If you haven't had a session zero yet I highly recommend it. Session zero is a time when everyone gets together and talks through what they want from the game, what they don't want, what kind of characters they want to play, and work out any details about how you are going to play together. Talk with your players, with everyone together, and work out some of those issues about how you are going to play. If they don't want to do live chatting and want to only work in Discord chat then look into doing a Play By Post style game. Or if ask them if they want to try voice chatting to play in a game live! Maybe some of them just need some help figuring out the technical side, or need some encouragement to give it a try. All of this is great for a low pressure session zero.
There are plenty of videos/posts with first time tricks, tips and suggestions out there. This forum is filled with amazing people ready to give advice. Check out the Running the Game videos by Matt Collvile, the GM Tips series with Matt Mercer and Satine Phoenix, or the WebDM series all on YouTube. Join our Discord and ask for help on any number of topics!
But don't worry about learning everything. Start small.
If you are still figuring out what adventure to run, I suggest Lost Mines of Phandelver (https://www.dndbeyond.com/marketplace/source/8) It's a super beginner friendly adventure for both players and DM, and is in my opinion one of the best places to start for everyone!
I have no experience with online DMing, so can't help you there, but as far as DMing in general.... Start with a campaign. Lost Mines of Phandelver is excellent, easy to run, and has everything you need (except info on Neverwinter, which I would suggest getting some). Don't stress to much about getting things right or wrong, you're learning, and any decent player will cut you some slack. When in doubt, remember 2 things. Common sense. Does it sound like it should work? Then rule in favour. Rule of cool. Cool things are fun. So if one of your PC's comes up with an awesome idea, try to make it happen. And if it doesn't work, make it fail spectacularly so they remember it forever. Failure can be just as fun as success.
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So I'd like to start a D&D 5E game with my 7 friends via discord, dnd beyond, and i think maybe Roll20.
The problem, however, is that although I have watched a lot of D&D( critical role ), I nor my players (except 1) actually have ever played it. I've tried to do a lot of research, and ive found a lot of stuff but its all confusing. Plus idk how im going to do this over discord with my players not wanting to voice chat so i have to type all my descriptions out... I also think that starting as a DM who hasn't even played the game before, I'm most likely going to screw this up and forget a lot of stuff, probably even killing the motivation for the players to come back and ruin their first experience of dnd. I don't want this to happen. Honestly, I'm scared to start and I don't know how to approach this. Currently, I feel like I'm drowning in rules, and don't know how to make sure I'm prepared and my players are prepared. That's why I decided to come here and ask people here if they know of tips and tricks, tutorials, important rules, maps or something of the sort (i have noo clue what im talking about) or anything that could help me make this as enjoyable as possible for my players. I'd really like this to be the start of something great, and not be the end of mine or my players interest in the game......
So yeah, if someone can help me that would be amazing cause i have until this Thursday to figure this out D:
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InsiderThe most important thing to remember is that all of you are in this together. You and your players are all there because you want to have fun. No one is going to remember everything. All of you are going to forget something. And everyone will be forgiving and laugh and move on. Because the fun is the important part.
If you haven't had a session zero yet I highly recommend it. Session zero is a time when everyone gets together and talks through what they want from the game, what they don't want, what kind of characters they want to play, and work out any details about how you are going to play together. Talk with your players, with everyone together, and work out some of those issues about how you are going to play. If they don't want to do live chatting and want to only work in Discord chat then look into doing a Play By Post style game. Or if ask them if they want to try voice chatting to play in a game live! Maybe some of them just need some help figuring out the technical side, or need some encouragement to give it a try. All of this is great for a low pressure session zero.
There are plenty of videos/posts with first time tricks, tips and suggestions out there. This forum is filled with amazing people ready to give advice. Check out the Running the Game videos by Matt Collvile, the GM Tips series with Matt Mercer and Satine Phoenix, or the WebDM series all on YouTube. Join our Discord and ask for help on any number of topics!
But don't worry about learning everything. Start small.
If you are still figuring out what adventure to run, I suggest Lost Mines of Phandelver (https://www.dndbeyond.com/marketplace/source/8) It's a super beginner friendly adventure for both players and DM, and is in my opinion one of the best places to start for everyone!
I hope you and your players have tons of fun!!
Find me on Twitter: @OboeLauren
I have no experience with online DMing, so can't help you there, but as far as DMing in general.... Start with a campaign. Lost Mines of Phandelver is excellent, easy to run, and has everything you need (except info on Neverwinter, which I would suggest getting some). Don't stress to much about getting things right or wrong, you're learning, and any decent player will cut you some slack. When in doubt, remember 2 things. Common sense. Does it sound like it should work? Then rule in favour. Rule of cool. Cool things are fun. So if one of your PC's comes up with an awesome idea, try to make it happen. And if it doesn't work, make it fail spectacularly so they remember it forever. Failure can be just as fun as success.