Helping my nephew learn to DM, and he's running a campaign for us soon. They're 11, and really smart, but also very nervous. I showed them my collection of Adventurers Guild content, and they didn't like any of those, so I decided to buy them a pre-made campaign book. Someone suggested SKT to me and I remember that being a nightmare to run. Aside from the confusing combat scenarios, it's a lot of book keeping, and I don't want to overwhelm and ruin my DM in training's first crack at it. Any advice out there? The group is all level 3, and a mix of seasoned vets, and a few new faces. Table of 5, not counting the DM. We are all agreed to support Max in whatever they choose, and make good DM friendly choices.
So....Mad Mage, Tiamat, and Tomb of Horrors is out.
I suggest more of something of a fairytale style adventure dungeon of the mad mage gets really relentless its fine for older players I just have a hard time seeing 11 year olds do that module.
My advice would be to have them start on a few one shots. one of the most overwhelming parts of DMing can be memorizing all of the content, and having practice getting your head around a complete scenario can really help with that. I would also say that if your group is able to use something like Roll20, buying a module on there can be really helpful with all of the maps and tokens already set out for them. I would also concur with rammsorrow that you should definitely looking for something more like a fairytale style or a more classic sword and shield to get them started. You may even want to look for some decently made homebrew with a more straightforward campaign.
You could have them start with something like The Secrets of Skyhorn Lighthouse. Its very user friendly, compact, and easy to learn. Its a decent little one shot and it definitely lends itself to newer dms. Its free on dms guild right now, and I think they are doing a promotion with Roll20 this week to make the module on there free too.
Lost Mines of Phandelver is a good starter campaign.
Agreed. However, once the party gets to town - there's SO MANY quests available if they go around talking to the NPCs.
So I always recommend new DMs to have some "unlocked" after other quests are completed in the area. "Oh, I heard you helped XYZ, well I just so happen to have an issue with orcs..."
And that might be difficult for 11 year old to try and sort through. But if the OP helps with that, and makes notes for the kiddo, that would be feasible.
Lost Mines of Phandelver is a good starter campaign.
Agreed. However, once the party gets to town - there's SO MANY quests available if they go around talking to the NPCs.
So I always recommend new DMs to have some "unlocked" after other quests are completed in the area. "Oh, I heard you helped XYZ, well I just so happen to have an issue with orcs..."
And that might be difficult for 11 year old to try and sort through. But if the OP helps with that, and makes notes for the kiddo, that would be feasible.
All he really needs to do is pick one or two quests that he likes and have the players go there. He doesn't need to have them all available at one time. Once they finish one quest, another option will appear.
Or you and nephew could sit down with a notebook and pad of graph paper Teach the boy that what is written in the book is a starting point and not the end all be all. He will have questions try make him understand between what is written, what is intended and how you might rule differently and why.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
Helping my nephew learn to DM, and he's running a campaign for us soon. They're 11, and really smart, but also very nervous. I showed them my collection of Adventurers Guild content, and they didn't like any of those, so I decided to buy them a pre-made campaign book. Someone suggested SKT to me and I remember that being a nightmare to run. Aside from the confusing combat scenarios, it's a lot of book keeping, and I don't want to overwhelm and ruin my DM in training's first crack at it. Any advice out there? The group is all level 3, and a mix of seasoned vets, and a few new faces. Table of 5, not counting the DM. We are all agreed to support Max in whatever they choose, and make good DM friendly choices.
So....Mad Mage, Tiamat, and Tomb of Horrors is out.
Any helpful advice is greatly appreciated!
I suggest more of something of a fairytale style adventure dungeon of the mad mage gets really relentless its fine for older players I just have a hard time seeing 11 year olds do that module.
My advice would be to have them start on a few one shots. one of the most overwhelming parts of DMing can be memorizing all of the content, and having practice getting your head around a complete scenario can really help with that. I would also say that if your group is able to use something like Roll20, buying a module on there can be really helpful with all of the maps and tokens already set out for them. I would also concur with rammsorrow that you should definitely looking for something more like a fairytale style or a more classic sword and shield to get them started. You may even want to look for some decently made homebrew with a more straightforward campaign.
Strangely Changed- 99 new curses for 5e https://www.dmsguild.com/product/415251/Strangely-Changed?affiliate_id=2763792
You could have them start with something like The Secrets of Skyhorn Lighthouse. Its very user friendly, compact, and easy to learn. Its a decent little one shot and it definitely lends itself to newer dms. Its free on dms guild right now, and I think they are doing a promotion with Roll20 this week to make the module on there free too.
Strangely Changed- 99 new curses for 5e https://www.dmsguild.com/product/415251/Strangely-Changed?affiliate_id=2763792
Try one of the published adventures from the starter sets? Or spelljammer academy. Or one of the many other WOTC published adventures.
Lost Mines of Phandelver is a good starter campaign.
Agreed. However, once the party gets to town - there's SO MANY quests available if they go around talking to the NPCs.
So I always recommend new DMs to have some "unlocked" after other quests are completed in the area. "Oh, I heard you helped XYZ, well I just so happen to have an issue with orcs..."
And that might be difficult for 11 year old to try and sort through. But if the OP helps with that, and makes notes for the kiddo, that would be feasible.
Check out my publication on DMs Guild: https://www.dmsguild.com/browse.php?author=Tawmis%20Logue
Check out my comedy web series - Neverending Nights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Wr4-u9-zw0&list=PLbRG7dzFI-u3EJd0usasgDrrFO3mZ1lOZ
Need a character story/background written up? I do it for free (but also take donations!) - https://forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?591882-Need-a-character-background-written-up
All he really needs to do is pick one or two quests that he likes and have the players go there. He doesn't need to have them all available at one time. Once they finish one quest, another option will appear.
Or you and nephew could sit down with a notebook and pad of graph paper Teach the boy that what is written in the book is a starting point and not the end all be all. He will have questions try make him understand between what is written, what is intended and how you might rule differently and why.