My friends and I are all pretty new to DnD. This will be our first time playing in general and we couldn't find anyone to DM, so i stepped up and now I'm running a small campaign for us all. As we're getting closer to having our first session (we did a session zero already) and I'm lowkey very nervous now? so if anyone would like to give any advice on running the session, especially a combat moment (that is what i am most anxious for), please help.
Here’s the thing to always remember: You will mess up and that’s generally fine. Even expert DMs will do bad calls, make mistakes with NPCs, create combat encounters that are too easy, too hard, or just boring. You will make more mistakes than an expert DM, but you’re playing with your friends and you were willing to jump into the chair - they should be forgiving as long as you treat them with respect and have fun.
I would also recommend you remember that it might be your NPcs, your puzzles, your plots, but it is everyone’s story. Players should be able to make choices and influence events - and you should not try to force the “correct” story onto the players or otherwise step into the realm of player agency. I have seen lots of DMs make the mistake of being too possessive of the campaign - it is one of the few really damaging things that can destroy a campaign, or even entire friendships, as it shows a lack of regard for respecting the players.
It also is important to remember that, while DMing is more work, you also deserve to have fun.
For more practical advice on combat, start small and find your groove. Designing good combat is hard, but it is a skill you develop as you experiment more. Especially early, it helps to put a lot of thought into encounter design and prep reading your monsters, so you have a good understanding of what they do in combat and are not checking the rules on them every few seconds (which, you still might end up doing - that’s part of learning also).
The best advice I can give is start with a very basic premise and don't try to be a storyteller on your first go. Let the game evolve at your table, the way the game evolved.
In the begining D&D was about going into dungeons, fighting monsters and getting treasure. That is a great starting point with new players because they have no idea about all the other things D&D can be and that simple experience, at the begining, is going to already be more than enough to have a metric ton of fun.
You will eventually be flooded with creativity that will guide your exploration into a million directions, and before you know it, like the rest of us, you are going to have a million ideas and come to the realization that you are not going to live long enough to explore them all.
Agree with the advice above, keep it simple and stay flexible depending on what the PCs want to do.
IMO another important principle is to make sure/keep the players interested. The best way to do this is by incorporating the PCs interests into the campaign design, i.e., quests/magic items/etc that the PCs care about. Another way is to let the players have some creative authority, e.g., allow the cleric PCs to worship the deity they want, etc.
Take Risks, Have fun and the worst thing that you will possibly do is make an encounter too hard for your players. That is an easy fix, the players can not see the stat blocks and life. It is your world, let them beat the enemies that are to tough. On the opposite side of that scale if the encounter is too easy take a little less from the enemies, add some that were hiding in the bushes, roll with it.
The fact that you are stepping up to learn how to play is impressive. You will fumble and make bad calls, say some stupid shit, and try to hard. We all have done it. We all planned on things that never made it into the story because your players led you astray. That is their job to be the characters in the story. Your job is just find away to keep a resemblance of a plot and make it fun for them.
In a nutshell, You will do fine and no one will worthy of playing in a campaign will give you a hard time. Let us all Know one thing, If you and your table had fun. That is the only way that people win at DnD.
May your adventures be epic and your treasures be grand my friend
Now this is a topic that I can go on and on and on about. As someone who's been doing it for more than 25 years I can tell you that as a new DM regardless of the version you're playing it's going to be a learning process and if at any point you discover you're not passionate about it let it go. Crafting stories creating interesting NPC's, tying peoples back stories into your campaign, creating unique quests, all of that stuff is just a ton of work and it's honestly a massive undertaking. Some dungeon masters prefer a linear campaign or use pre-made modules in the beginning and I highly recommend that method for a new DM. It will show you how to set up for success by having your monsters prepared, having all the information you need for encounters, special circumstance rules and things like that.
As you develop your skills you're going to start making charts for random monster encounters as you travel through the Wilds and things of that nature that make your job as a DM easier. All of that happens over the course of a DM's career. As other people in the lobby have said you're going to make mistakes your players are going to make mistakes as well but if you're keeping the focus on fun, if everyone at the table is having a good time then you're already winning. Mistakes can be laughed at so can failures. The whole process should end up being fun and again if it's causing you stress, just let it go. DMing is absolutely not for everyone.
Make sure your players are comfortable with the content that you're going to create and keep in mind that not everyone that sits at the table is looking for the same thing. Some people want to create powerful characters that dominate in combat, others want to be fantastic role players while others might just enjoy experiencing your worlds or solving puzzles, discovering ancient treasures, the sky is the limit.
Having that session 0 where you sit down with the players or even if you're introducing a new player to a campaign that loss to player is really really important. Some of the content that you create may have been to the taste of certain players and not to the taste of others especially in new players so make sure you understand what they're comfortable with and if they're not comfortable with a large portion of your content you need to be comfortable as a DM and tell that player I'm sorry but my campaign setting doesn't seem to be for you. Not every player will fit into your world and not every player will fit into the party dynamic that you've already built. It's not a failing as a DM it's just some people don't get along and even if the people get along the goals or the aspirations of their characters in game can absolutely conflict with the rest of the players in the party. Just make sure you have a cohesive vision as a group as to what it is that you're aiming at and what they'd like to accomplish.
A DM who loves the game. I am a 3.5e dungeon master of 25+ years experience. It has been my passion since I discovered the starter box set as a kid. My table is always fair and fun, we like to laugh and leave the table excited for the next session.
Avid hiker and explorer IRL. Getting outside is the best unplug. I hope to hear from anyone curious about 3.5 edition and would love t include you in my next campaign.
I'll be honest, I couldn't find a set one that I was dead set on using. I'm using the Explorer's Guide to Wildemount for the world setting, and for some monster encounters. The main plot is going to be a race between the party and the villain to find The Book of Exalted Deeds and it's counterpart The Book of Vile Darkness!
Excellent points have been made so far, but I'll one more that I find extremely important: it's not you vs. the players. Sure, you play the monsters, but you're just the storyteller and its the players vs. the story.
Don't act out of spite against players because they didn't do some activity you wanted them to do or they found an exploit to an encounter you designed. You can modify the story in ways that they still face your encounter or find the key information even if one encounter "fails". Instead, reward their ingenuity with some hidden information from later in the campaign, an extra magic item, or something similar.
Don't deliberately leave out information that might kill the players. Asking "are you sure?" is a typical hint for the players so they realise they're doing something stupid.
And don't make it personal for anyone. Don't single out a player and focus only them in combat or give them less focus in exploring and only ask the other players what they are doing, etc. Yes, everyone will make some decisions that infuriate you, but when you start lashing out back at them in the game, it becomes very frustrsting for them to play and soon no one is having fun.
If you're all new, just try to have fun and stay relaxed. You'll mess up all the time (and that's fine) so it's better to just enjoy the ride. DnD is fun when everyone is having fun, and that includes you. If the players make anyone feel bad, then tell them that and make sure that everyone is having a good time. It's a game, not a job or an important interview or something, so act that way.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
He doesn't have much besides the skin on his bones. Me: I'll take the skin on his bones, then.
"You see a gigantic, monstrous praying mantis burst from out of the ground. It sprays a stream of acid from it's mouth at one soldier, dissolving him instantly, then it turns and chomps another soldier in half with it's- "
My friends and I are all pretty new to DnD. This will be our first time playing in general and we couldn't find anyone to DM, so i stepped up and now I'm running a small campaign for us all. As we're getting closer to having our first session (we did a session zero already) and I'm lowkey very nervous now? so if anyone would like to give any advice on running the session, especially a combat moment (that is what i am most anxious for), please help.
Here’s the thing to always remember: You will mess up and that’s generally fine. Even expert DMs will do bad calls, make mistakes with NPCs, create combat encounters that are too easy, too hard, or just boring. You will make more mistakes than an expert DM, but you’re playing with your friends and you were willing to jump into the chair - they should be forgiving as long as you treat them with respect and have fun.
I would also recommend you remember that it might be your NPcs, your puzzles, your plots, but it is everyone’s story. Players should be able to make choices and influence events - and you should not try to force the “correct” story onto the players or otherwise step into the realm of player agency. I have seen lots of DMs make the mistake of being too possessive of the campaign - it is one of the few really damaging things that can destroy a campaign, or even entire friendships, as it shows a lack of regard for respecting the players.
It also is important to remember that, while DMing is more work, you also deserve to have fun.
For more practical advice on combat, start small and find your groove. Designing good combat is hard, but it is a skill you develop as you experiment more. Especially early, it helps to put a lot of thought into encounter design and prep reading your monsters, so you have a good understanding of what they do in combat and are not checking the rules on them every few seconds (which, you still might end up doing - that’s part of learning also).
The best advice I can give is start with a very basic premise and don't try to be a storyteller on your first go. Let the game evolve at your table, the way the game evolved.
In the begining D&D was about going into dungeons, fighting monsters and getting treasure. That is a great starting point with new players because they have no idea about all the other things D&D can be and that simple experience, at the begining, is going to already be more than enough to have a metric ton of fun.
You will eventually be flooded with creativity that will guide your exploration into a million directions, and before you know it, like the rest of us, you are going to have a million ideas and come to the realization that you are not going to live long enough to explore them all.
Agree with the advice above, keep it simple and stay flexible depending on what the PCs want to do.
IMO another important principle is to make sure/keep the players interested. The best way to do this is by incorporating the PCs interests into the campaign design, i.e., quests/magic items/etc that the PCs care about. Another way is to let the players have some creative authority, e.g., allow the cleric PCs to worship the deity they want, etc.
Started playing AD&D in the late 70s, took a 40 year hiatus, re-started with 3.5 and 5e in 2023
Take Risks, Have fun and the worst thing that you will possibly do is make an encounter too hard for your players. That is an easy fix, the players can not see the stat blocks and life. It is your world, let them beat the enemies that are to tough. On the opposite side of that scale if the encounter is too easy take a little less from the enemies, add some that were hiding in the bushes, roll with it.
The fact that you are stepping up to learn how to play is impressive. You will fumble and make bad calls, say some stupid shit, and try to hard. We all have done it. We all planned on things that never made it into the story because your players led you astray. That is their job to be the characters in the story. Your job is just find away to keep a resemblance of a plot and make it fun for them.
In a nutshell, You will do fine and no one will worthy of playing in a campaign will give you a hard time. Let us all Know one thing, If you and your table had fun. That is the only way that people win at DnD.
May your adventures be epic and your treasures be grand my friend
So One thing that I forgot to ask. What campaign are you running? (More my curiosity than anything of relevance or importance)
Now this is a topic that I can go on and on and on about. As someone who's been doing it for more than 25 years I can tell you that as a new DM regardless of the version you're playing it's going to be a learning process and if at any point you discover you're not passionate about it let it go. Crafting stories creating interesting NPC's, tying peoples back stories into your campaign, creating unique quests, all of that stuff is just a ton of work and it's honestly a massive undertaking. Some dungeon masters prefer a linear campaign or use pre-made modules in the beginning and I highly recommend that method for a new DM. It will show you how to set up for success by having your monsters prepared, having all the information you need for encounters, special circumstance rules and things like that.
As you develop your skills you're going to start making charts for random monster encounters as you travel through the Wilds and things of that nature that make your job as a DM easier. All of that happens over the course of a DM's career. As other people in the lobby have said you're going to make mistakes your players are going to make mistakes as well but if you're keeping the focus on fun, if everyone at the table is having a good time then you're already winning. Mistakes can be laughed at so can failures. The whole process should end up being fun and again if it's causing you stress, just let it go. DMing is absolutely not for everyone.
Make sure your players are comfortable with the content that you're going to create and keep in mind that not everyone that sits at the table is looking for the same thing. Some people want to create powerful characters that dominate in combat, others want to be fantastic role players while others might just enjoy experiencing your worlds or solving puzzles, discovering ancient treasures, the sky is the limit.
Having that session 0 where you sit down with the players or even if you're introducing a new player to a campaign that loss to player is really really important. Some of the content that you create may have been to the taste of certain players and not to the taste of others especially in new players so make sure you understand what they're comfortable with and if they're not comfortable with a large portion of your content you need to be comfortable as a DM and tell that player I'm sorry but my campaign setting doesn't seem to be for you. Not every player will fit into your world and not every player will fit into the party dynamic that you've already built. It's not a failing as a DM it's just some people don't get along and even if the people get along the goals or the aspirations of their characters in game can absolutely conflict with the rest of the players in the party. Just make sure you have a cohesive vision as a group as to what it is that you're aiming at and what they'd like to accomplish.
A DM who loves the game. I am a 3.5e dungeon master of 25+ years experience. It has been my passion since I discovered the starter box set as a kid. My table is always fair and fun, we like to laugh and leave the table excited for the next session.
Avid hiker and explorer IRL. Getting outside is the best unplug. I hope to hear from anyone curious about 3.5 edition and would love t include you in my next campaign.
I'll be honest, I couldn't find a set one that I was dead set on using. I'm using the Explorer's Guide to Wildemount for the world setting, and for some monster encounters. The main plot is going to be a race between the party and the villain to find The Book of Exalted Deeds and it's counterpart The Book of Vile Darkness!
Excellent points have been made so far, but I'll one more that I find extremely important: it's not you vs. the players. Sure, you play the monsters, but you're just the storyteller and its the players vs. the story.
Don't act out of spite against players because they didn't do some activity you wanted them to do or they found an exploit to an encounter you designed. You can modify the story in ways that they still face your encounter or find the key information even if one encounter "fails". Instead, reward their ingenuity with some hidden information from later in the campaign, an extra magic item, or something similar.
Don't deliberately leave out information that might kill the players. Asking "are you sure?" is a typical hint for the players so they realise they're doing something stupid.
And don't make it personal for anyone. Don't single out a player and focus only them in combat or give them less focus in exploring and only ask the other players what they are doing, etc. Yes, everyone will make some decisions that infuriate you, but when you start lashing out back at them in the game, it becomes very frustrsting for them to play and soon no one is having fun.
If you're all new, just try to have fun and stay relaxed. You'll mess up all the time (and that's fine) so it's better to just enjoy the ride. DnD is fun when everyone is having fun, and that includes you. If the players make anyone feel bad, then tell them that and make sure that everyone is having a good time. It's a game, not a job or an important interview or something, so act that way.
He doesn't have much besides the skin on his bones. Me: I'll take the skin on his bones, then.
"You see a gigantic, monstrous praying mantis burst from out of the ground. It sprays a stream of acid from it's mouth at one soldier, dissolving him instantly, then it turns and chomps another soldier in half with it's- "
"When are we gonna take a snack break?"
Best advice i got before starting to DM:
"Plan problems, not solutions. Let your players figure out how to solve them, and the story will form from those choices. "
That's assuming that's the sort of game you want to run, of course.