I am a new DM. I am trying to get my friends to play dnd and to get them into the dnd world I am looking for a one shot campaign to teach them how to play dnd. Any suggestions? (I can use some tips for DM ing)
I don’t know of a one shot. I’d just go with Dragon of Icespire Peak since it is free or good ol Lost Mines of Phandelver which is also good for a new DM.
Welcome to the hobby, Mertozkan. I'm relatively new to DMing as well, but I've had a ton of fun so far.
I started by running the Lost Mines of Phandelver that comes in the Starter Set. The story starts in a relatively linear and railroaded simple combat and dungeon crawl which gives you a chance to teach the main mechanics of the combat system and exploration. The module then opens up to a much more open-choice town environment with three or four possible directions players can choose to dive into. This has the added benefit of forcing you to stretch your improvisation skills as a new DM. You can read the whole adventure and add/subtract your own ideas to give it more simplicity or depth as you see fit.On the other hand, you could just do your own thing and make it up yourself, but that takes a bit more confidence and planning.
Here's what I would do:
- Start everyone at level 1 - Run a simple 1-2 session dungeon crawl game to get people interested and encourage NEW players to stick to non-spell casting classes (lots of complexity and homework involved in those for new players). This one is simple and great for a learning session and comes with a youtube video on how to DM it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bL43rhEsU_g http://dontstopthinking.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Death-Pit-of-Moloch.pdf - After that session, start from scratch with a pre-made adventure like the Lost Mines of Phandelver and allow your players to choose any class they want (including spell casters). - Once everyone has chosen their characters, review each of the classes they chose in the Player's Handbook to be sure you understand how their classes work. That way you can help them during the game if necessary. BONUS: You can use this information to come up with more appropriate loot for them to find than is offered in the pre-made adventure (Druids don't really care about finding swords) OR create interesting challenges that require them to use their unique abilities. - Ask your players (especially spell casters) to review their skills and spells BEFORE each session. - If you do choose to use a pre-made adventure READ THE WHOLE THING BEFORE YOU START THE CAMPAIGN. This will help you improvise and help you move the story along when your player's don't know what to do.
Some good tips for a new DM: - Learn the rules. If you know the rules well, your game will run much more smoothly and you can improvise much better. Dive into that Player's Handbook. - Don't get bogged down in the rules DURING the game. If you don't know what to do, just make it up on the spot and write down what was confusing. Then AFTER the session, look up the rule in the handbook so you can make a better choice next time. - Make the dice rolling fun. A good rule of thumb is: "If they succeed, make it awesome, if they fail, make it funny" If your player wants to do a backflip off the top of a building and land on the Orc with his sword, let them roll for it. If they succeed, describe it with a lot of energy and make it seem super awesome. If they fail, maybe they totally miss the orc, but they hit the ground so hard they shit their pants. EITHER WAY ITS FUN! That's the key. - Don't let the pre-made material ruin the fun. For example, sometimes there's just WAY too much combat...just skip it! That room that's supposed to have 30 goblins for no particular reason could actually be just empty in your story. OR BETTER YET, make up a cool trap or puzzle to break up the combat a bit. This is a choice you can make on the fly. - DON'T OVER-PREPARE! It's easy to get lost in intricate details or spend hours and hours creating a dungeon or event that the players don't want to do and you'll likely just have to throw it out or save it for later. There's a better way! Check out "Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master" by Sly Flourish. This book will help you improvise your game like a BOSS and your players will think you had it all planned from the beginning. It's great.
Overall there's just one real tip that matters: HAVE FUN.
As the DM, it's your responsibility to make sure your players are having a good time, so if they want to do something that seems stupid to you, let them try it anyway. It always leads to something you awesome that you never thought of. This is improve, man. Say "YES" to your player's choices, and work out the consequences of those choices afterward.
I am a new DM. I am trying to get my friends to play dnd and to get them into the dnd world I am looking for a one shot campaign to teach them how to play dnd. Any suggestions? (I can use some tips for DM ing)
I don’t know of a one shot. I’d just go with Dragon of Icespire Peak since it is free or good ol Lost Mines of Phandelver which is also good for a new DM.
Welcome to the hobby, Mertozkan. I'm relatively new to DMing as well, but I've had a ton of fun so far.
I started by running the Lost Mines of Phandelver that comes in the Starter Set. The story starts in a relatively linear and railroaded simple combat and dungeon crawl which gives you a chance to teach the main mechanics of the combat system and exploration.
The module then opens up to a much more open-choice town environment with three or four possible directions players can choose to dive into. This has the added benefit of forcing you to stretch your improvisation skills as a new DM. You can read the whole adventure and add/subtract your own ideas to give it more simplicity or depth as you see fit.On the other hand, you could just do your own thing and make it up yourself, but that takes a bit more confidence and planning.
Here's what I would do:
- Start everyone at level 1
- Run a simple 1-2 session dungeon crawl game to get people interested and encourage NEW players to stick to non-spell casting classes (lots of complexity and homework involved in those for new players). This one is simple and great for a learning session and comes with a youtube video on how to DM it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bL43rhEsU_g
http://dontstopthinking.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Death-Pit-of-Moloch.pdf
- After that session, start from scratch with a pre-made adventure like the Lost Mines of Phandelver and allow your players to choose any class they want (including spell casters).
- Once everyone has chosen their characters, review each of the classes they chose in the Player's Handbook to be sure you understand how their classes work. That way you can help them during the game if necessary. BONUS: You can use this information to come up with more appropriate loot for them to find than is offered in the pre-made adventure (Druids don't really care about finding swords) OR create interesting challenges that require them to use their unique abilities.
- Ask your players (especially spell casters) to review their skills and spells BEFORE each session.
- If you do choose to use a pre-made adventure READ THE WHOLE THING BEFORE YOU START THE CAMPAIGN. This will help you improvise and help you move the story along when your player's don't know what to do.
Some good tips for a new DM:
- Learn the rules. If you know the rules well, your game will run much more smoothly and you can improvise much better. Dive into that Player's Handbook.
- Don't get bogged down in the rules DURING the game. If you don't know what to do, just make it up on the spot and write down what was confusing. Then AFTER the session, look up the rule in the handbook so you can make a better choice next time.
- Make the dice rolling fun. A good rule of thumb is: "If they succeed, make it awesome, if they fail, make it funny" If your player wants to do a backflip off the top of a building and land on the Orc with his sword, let them roll for it. If they succeed, describe it with a lot of energy and make it seem super awesome. If they fail, maybe they totally miss the orc, but they hit the ground so hard they shit their pants. EITHER WAY ITS FUN! That's the key.
- Don't let the pre-made material ruin the fun. For example, sometimes there's just WAY too much combat...just skip it! That room that's supposed to have 30 goblins for no particular reason could actually be just empty in your story. OR BETTER YET, make up a cool trap or puzzle to break up the combat a bit. This is a choice you can make on the fly.
- DON'T OVER-PREPARE! It's easy to get lost in intricate details or spend hours and hours creating a dungeon or event that the players don't want to do and you'll likely just have to throw it out or save it for later. There's a better way! Check out "Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master" by Sly Flourish. This book will help you improvise your game like a BOSS and your players will think you had it all planned from the beginning. It's great.
Overall there's just one real tip that matters: HAVE FUN.
As the DM, it's your responsibility to make sure your players are having a good time, so if they want to do something that seems stupid to you, let them try it anyway. It always leads to something you awesome that you never thought of. This is improve, man. Say "YES" to your player's choices, and work out the consequences of those choices afterward.
Hope that was helpful. Happy gaming.
Thanks man
The season 9 adventure's league beginning module is really great for new players.
I believe the content is free as well.