So my friend asked me to run a module for him, and not wanting to be mean I said sure, we've done a few sessions and it is really no fun for me. Like they make broken characters on purpose, One player always argues with me, I got players complaining about when I do something that they don't like they call me mean even tho I'm just running the module YOU asked me to run and now I just really wanna quit dming the campaign, but I don't know how to put it without being mean?

(also when we were making characters, I said "let's do manuallly rolled" they all said no. then a new player joined and asked to do manually rolled and the everyone says "I wanna do manually rolled why did you make us do standard array")

Ok. They all sound toxic

Agreed. I would simply say "Ok, this isn't working out unfortunately. I'm going to cancel the module since it appears you guys would prefer to play a different game." Then, if they argue and get toxic again, you can respond by telling them that they don't grasp the rules and you don't feel like teaching them. 

You deserve a better experience!

As a DM it can feel like you have a lot of responsibility, and in many ways you do. One of those responsibilities is making sure you are having fun also. It sounds like nobody is really having fun so like Zyrrel said just bow out. It can be as simple as "I can't Dm this game anymore"

No D&D, is better then Bad D&D. Saying your done is not mean, it is your choice. You don't owe anyone to have to be their DM.  Fun as the DM is just as important as the players having fun if you're not having fun its time to move on. 

Saying it again: no DnD is better than bad DnD.

Do your self a favour and say "nah not really feeling it" and don't schedule any more sessions. If players ask why then you can tell them and you may get a constructive conversation on how you all can have a better time but... they probably won't ask. It's cool. Walk away. Find better games. 

I gotta say, this has happened to a lot of DMs. Probably most. 

Run.

This group sounds awful! You, the DM, of all people, deserve a better experience. If the group refuses to run a module for themselves, then that’s their problem. You are doing them a favor, and receiving backlash and anger and frustration in return. You have ZERO obligation to continue with these folks.

Is it possible that their behavior is rooted in inexperience with TTRPGs? Yes.

Is their behavior excusable? No.

Should you address the problem, and leave the group? Absolutely.

Just one word: Politely :)

"Sorry. This game just isn't working for me. Thanks for asking me to DM but I think I'll take a pass on any more sessions. Perhaps one of you would be happy to continue running it?"

When they ask you why, avoid getting into it. Just say that you aren't enjoying it as much as you thought, the chemistry just isn't working, or you have other things you need to do.

If you actually want to consider continuing, then you could explain the issues but I think it is easier to just bail since it avoids hurting anyone's feelings if these are friends that you hang out with outside of D&D.

Funny thing is this is my first time dming but they've all played before 

Quote from Thunderian_battlehammer >>

Funny thing is this is my first time dming but they've all played before 

 I wouldn't even say it's funny in that sense, that's just them being mean-spirited. They should know better, be it as players or as human beings.

Allow me to add to the chorus and say get out of there. If you want a template, here it is: "hey all, just letting you know that as of today I can't commit to DMing for this group. Apologies for any inconvenience." Further explanation on your part is not required.

I hope you find a group that's worth your time and effort, be it as a player or DM. ^^

Quote from Thunderian_battlehammer >>

Funny thing is this is my first time dming but they've all played before 

Sadly this is not unusual. All of my early bad DMing experiences were with experienced players and other experienced DMs. They made it so unpleasant that it took a global pandemic for me to DM again. 

I think the experienced players forget how challenging and confronting DMing can be for a newbie and not realise how even casual insensitivity can *crush* a new DM. Plus they come with all the baggage of how they think the game "should" be played.

When I got into DMing again it was all with new players (I did it online to keep in touch with isolated friends during lockdown) and it was such a better experience. 

The above advice for quitting a campaign is helpful, but don't rush to quit! Try talking to your players to see if you can sort out your differences. Be open about what the problem is. Perhaps make some compromises, such as "you can minmax, BUT I will increase the difficulty accordingly," and "You can challenge my decisions as a DM, and I will listen to and consider your argument, BUT the final call is still mine." If your friends are really friends, they will try to make things work for you.

If they aren't cooperating or fail to change their ways even after you express your concerns, it's time to ditch your group. There are several posts above that can help you with that.

Oh I've already tried and its hard to adjust the monsters cause I'm running a pre-made module.

Quote from Thunderian_battlehammer >>

Oh I've already tried and its hard to adjust the monsters cause I'm running a pre-made module.

The DM can actually change anything they like, even in a pre-made module. In fact, they have to do so since the capability of individual characters, individual players and the party as a whole will vary a lot and changes to NPCs are needed to keep it interesting and a bit challenging. With an experienced set of players this is even more likely to be required.

If a player says "That isn't in the module" then you can just say "Hmm, how does your character know what might or might not be in the module? and if you happen to have read the module then it should be much more interesting for you if there are unexpected elements :) "

In terms of changes, the simplest is hit points. Every monster has a range (their hit dice are listed in the stat block). A creature might have a listing that says 78 hit points and then a notation of (12d8+24 ) for their hit dice. The 78 is the average hit points and a DM often uses it because it is quick and easy but the reason hit dice are listed is because creatures of that type COULD have hit points ranging from 36 to 120. So if you want to make an encounter a bit more difficult you could just have the opponents be exceptional specimens with 120 hit points each. Or if the combat is going poorly for the characters, some of the creatures could have hit points closer to the low end of the range. 

As DM, you could also give the creatures a bit better than average equipment. Orcs in plate + a shield will have an AC of 20. You can figure out how the Orcs came across plate in the game world and how it isn't in good enough shape for the players to use to avoid the players getting an unexpected equipment upgrade by looting corpses.

However, a DM can add or remove creatures to encounters, especially cannon fodder. I wouldn't remove important NPCs but the point of being DM even when running a module is that you can make adjustments to make the module more fun, interesting, challenging. The goal is the players and DM having a great time. If the players are stomping through encounters with optimized characters then you can toss a few optimized monsters in the way and if the players start to complain "that isn't in the module" then you can ask them if they want to DM and explain that they can expect stuff that isn't in the module from time to time just to keep things interesting.

The problem here is that you aren't having a good time since the players aren't just stomping through the encounters they are stomping on the DM at the same time. They might not even really be aware of it. 

Quote from David42 >>

Quote from Thunderian_battlehammer >>

Oh I've already tried and its hard to adjust the monsters cause I'm running a pre-made module.

The DM can actually change anything they like, even in a pre-made module. In fact, they have to do so since the capability of individual characters, individual players and the party as a whole will vary a lot and changes to NPCs are needed to keep it interesting and a bit challenging. With an experienced set of players this is even more likely to be required.

If a player says "That isn't in the module" then you can just say "Hmm, how does your character know what might or might not be in the module? and if you happen to have read the module then it should be much more interesting for you if there are unexpected elements :) "

In terms of changes, the simplest is hit points. Every monster has a range (their hit dice are listed in the stat block). A creature might have a listing that says 78 hit points and then a notation of (12d8+24 ) for their hit dice. The 78 is the average hit points and a DM often uses it because it is quick and easy but the reason hit dice are listed is because creatures of that type COULD have hit points ranging from 36 to 120. So if you want to make an encounter a bit more difficult you could just have the opponents be exceptional specimens with 120 hit points each. Or if the combat is going poorly for the characters, some of the creatures could have hit points closer to the low end of the range. 

As DM, you could also give the creatures a bit better than average equipment. Orcs in plate + a shield will have an AC of 20. You can figure out how the Orcs came across plate in the game world and how it isn't in good enough shape for the players to use to avoid the players getting an unexpected equipment upgrade by looting corpses.

However, a DM can add or remove creatures to encounters, especially cannon fodder. I wouldn't remove important NPCs but the point of being DM even when running a module is that you can make adjustments to make the module more fun, interesting, challenging. The goal is the players and DM having a great time. If the players are stomping through encounters with optimized characters then you can toss a few optimized monsters in the way and if the players start to complain "that isn't in the module" then you can ask them if they want to DM and explain that they can expect stuff that isn't in the module from time to time just to keep things interesting.

The problem here is that you aren't having a good time since the players aren't just stomping through the encounters they are stomping on the DM at the same time. They might not even really be aware of it. 

 

 I'd also highlight that if your players say something like "that isn't in the module" then that is a HUGE red flag. The players shouldn't know what is or isn't in a module - that is in direct contradiction to the game. Players shouldn't be playing modules that they have read or that they have already played before - unless you as the DM are heavily modifying it. The point to adventuring is to uncover mysteries and overcome challenges. Meta knowledge of the actual adventure script and its important elements destroys the experience for everyone, DM included. 

I am currently running two campaigns - my homebrew world and Curse of Strahd for a separate group. I read the entire CoS module beforehand to orient myself to the story and NPCs and now I run the game without the book even on the table. I give just about everything my own twist for two reasons. 1.) It is more fun as a DM. 2.) Three of my players already played Curse of Strahd for about 3 or 4 levels before their old group fell apart, so they had significant knowledge of the encounters and NPCs already. They quickly learned not to count on their expectations and it has been a great game so far (we are almost at the end!)

Did I not tell you tho my players complain if it gets too hard and they wanted to start at level 5 meaning I'm already trying to focus on story and I don't wanna hear them whining all the time.

Quote from Thunderian_battlehammer >>

Did I not tell you tho my players complain if it gets too hard and they wanted to start at level 5 meaning I'm already trying to focus on story and I don't wanna hear them whining all the time.

 It sounds like you're not enjoying yourself. As others have said, it's important for the DM to have fun too.

I'd recommend against letting players start at a higher level if you're a new DM, and especially since you're running a module. By the way, which module *are* you running, anyway? If it's something like Lost Mine of Phandelver or Dragon of Icespire Peak, letting players start at 5th level would make them way too powerful for the encounters.

To me, it seems like your players are using their knowledge and experience in the game and your lack of experience to take over, so to speak. If I were in your situation, I would leave the group. Your players sound extremely toxic.

IDK...

Say something else like a different heroic NPC has defeated the villain and the players don't have to do anything...

 Then permanently dismiss the party...

THE END... 

BTW, I sorta have a group like that before. They get bored easily and sometimes even argue with me! I forgot how I managed it because it was a few years ago.