Hi all. On my return to DMing after well over 25 years away we are now in Phandalin and next up(I presume ) is the Manor.
Its been a few weeks since our last session and I have a few things that have kinda slipped my mind while keeping track of the story and also helping the players (all new to DnD) with characters and levelling (it feels a lot to take on this heh).
I have 3 questions re the Manor itself and 2 more generic reminders. Thanks for any info, it is really appreciated.
1- Inside the Manor is a trap in the floor(area 3) . It says A character searching will find the trap on a DC15 Wis Perception check. If they are not searching, would they auto fall into it?
2- Room1, the secret door. So if they are not searching for the door, they can find it on a DC 15 wis/perception, if they are, its a DC10? So just roll for each player (or get them to) as they are in the room...wont that alert them something is there, so they will then actively search...even if they fail the first roll when not actively searching?)
3 Also the Redbrands in room 2. If the PCs make noise, the RB's try to sneak in and surprise them. I have kinda lost myself on how surprise works.
Lastly, 2 more generic points.
4- Gaining inspiration. Is that just when they play the character / RP their character? They then get inspiration and can then use inspiration to gain 'advantage' on a roll? What other ways might advantage come about? For example, if a Goblin is knocked to the ground...would a PC attacking it just be awarded 'Advantage' in attacking it?
5- Do you tell players what DC each roll is. For example, they are climbing a cliff and I assign DC 12 to it. Do you tell them to Roll Athletics needing DC12 or just tell them to roll and go from there?
EDIT- two more-
6 Should the players draw themselves a map as they go through the Manor? Just rely on my description (its quite a crowded complex place) or is there a resource somewhere or way to let them see where they have explored?
7. The rogue pre made char has background if being a red brand ..can't see any reference to implementing it?
From the times I've run this module and my understanding of things:
1: If they aren't actively looking for it then stepping on it will trigger the drop which has a DEX save to avoid falling (DC15)
2: For that if they say they generally want to search the room go with DC15 Perception. If the specifically search the wall for an anomoly use DC10. If someone has a high passive perception you could point out something seems off about the wall in that corner.
3: The redbrands in that room stay there and get ready to attack when someone opens the door. Roll bandits stealth vs the players passive perception - those that fail are considered surprised:
If you're surprised, you can't move or take an action on your first turn of the combat, and you can't take a reaction until that turn ends. A member of a group can be surprised even if the other members aren't.
4: Yep! Your call when to hand it out for good RP be that in character actions or something that matches their bonds/flaws or something similar.
Other ways to get advantage might be class features (Barbarian Reckless Attack) or attacking a prone enemy with a melee attack whilst you're within 5ft of them (i.e. standing next to them)
5: Entirely up to you! I prefer not to tell them the DC to add a little more tension. In that case I'd just ask for Athletics and have them roll.
6: Drawing a map is entirely up to the players really. It also depends how you're playing - at a table? Grab some graph paper and get going! If you're playing remotely on a Virtual TableTop (VTT) then that opens new options!
As a rule of thumb, aim to award inspiration to each character about once per session of play. Over time, you might want to award inspiration more or less often, at a rate that works best for your table. You might use the same rate for your entire DMing career, or you might change it with each campaign
DC: You can tell your players what the DC is. I generally don't. They'll find out through rolling if it's a tough or easy difficulty. Again, this just boils down to what you prefer for your game. I prefer having the DC value unknown to prevent metagaming and to maintain a sense of danger and uncertainty. But you may decide you prefer just telling them. Either way is fine.
4- Gaining inspiration. Is that just when they play the character / RP their character? They then get inspiration and can then use inspiration to gain 'advantage' on a roll? What other ways might advantage come about? For example, if a Goblin is knocked to the ground...would a PC attacking it just be awarded 'Advantage' in attacking it?
5- Do you tell players what DC each roll is. For example, they are climbing a cliff and I assign DC 12 to it. Do you tell them to Roll Athletics needing DC12 or just tell them to roll and go from there?
7. The rogue pre made char has background if being a red brand ..can't see any reference to implementing it?
4. I use inspiration both for great in-character role-play and for great teamwork. Usually, I'll award it at the end of a session for use in the next session. I'm finding that my party of all-new dnd players are either reluctant to use or forget to use it, so I'm tossing around making it only usable for the next campaign, after which it automatically is lost until awarded again. A lot of things can give advantage
In the case of the goblin, having fallen it would be considered as having the "Prone" condition which can grant either advantage or disadvantage to those attacking as described; "A prone creature's only movement option is to crawl, unless it stands up and thereby ends the condition. The creature has disadvantage on attack rolls. An attack roll against the creature has advantage if the attacker is within 5 feet of the creature. Otherwise, the attack roll has disadvantage."
5. I think it was one of Sly Flourish's newsletters for DMs that suggested occasionally sharing the DC of checks at critical moments as a means of building drama and tension. I've done it a few times with my group, and they LOVED it. So, I don't share DCs most of the time, but if there's a big moment happening where the check's success or failure is really important, I'll say, "OK look, you need to get at least a 15 for this." Then EVERYONE's eyes are riveted on the roll, and that player is now the center of attention for a few moments.
6. The Redbrand connection in this background is never made explicitly. That's for the DM and the player to figure out. In my game, the rogue had the same background. I set it up that another organization was attempting to infiltrate the Redbrands and was close to being discovered. To protect themselves, the mole framed the PC as the traitor forcing them to run. As they journey through Tresendar, one of the Redbrands they encounter is the one who framed them. That's just one possibility among millions. Let your imagination run with it, but you may wish to check with your player about what ideas they may have as well.
Hi all. On my return to DMing after well over 25 years away we are now in Phandalin and next up(I presume ) is the Manor.
Its been a few weeks since our last session and I have a few things that have kinda slipped my mind while keeping track of the story and also helping the players (all new to DnD) with characters and levelling (it feels a lot to take on this heh).
I have 3 questions re the Manor itself and 2 more generic reminders. Thanks for any info, it is really appreciated.
1- Inside the Manor is a trap in the floor(area 3) . It says A character searching will find the trap on a DC15 Wis Perception check. If they are not searching, would they auto fall into it?
2- Room1, the secret door. So if they are not searching for the door, they can find it on a DC 15 wis/perception, if they are, its a DC10? So just roll for each player (or get them to) as they are in the room...wont that alert them something is there, so they will then actively search...even if they fail the first roll when not actively searching?)
3 Also the Redbrands in room 2. If the PCs make noise, the RB's try to sneak in and surprise them. I have kinda lost myself on how surprise works.
Lastly, 2 more generic points.
4- Gaining inspiration. Is that just when they play the character / RP their character? They then get inspiration and can then use inspiration to gain 'advantage' on a roll? What other ways might advantage come about? For example, if a Goblin is knocked to the ground...would a PC attacking it just be awarded 'Advantage' in attacking it?
5- Do you tell players what DC each roll is. For example, they are climbing a cliff and I assign DC 12 to it. Do you tell them to Roll Athletics needing DC12 or just tell them to roll and go from there?
EDIT- two more-
6 Should the players draw themselves a map as they go through the Manor? Just rely on my description (its quite a crowded complex place) or is there a resource somewhere or way to let them see where they have explored?
7. The rogue pre made char has background if being a red brand ..can't see any reference to implementing it?
Thanks again
From the times I've run this module and my understanding of things:
1: If they aren't actively looking for it then stepping on it will trigger the drop which has a DEX save to avoid falling (DC15)
2: For that if they say they generally want to search the room go with DC15 Perception. If the specifically search the wall for an anomoly use DC10. If someone has a high passive perception you could point out something seems off about the wall in that corner.
3: The redbrands in that room stay there and get ready to attack when someone opens the door. Roll bandits stealth vs the players passive perception - those that fail are considered surprised:
4: Yep! Your call when to hand it out for good RP be that in character actions or something that matches their bonds/flaws or something similar.
Other ways to get advantage might be class features (Barbarian Reckless Attack) or attacking a prone enemy with a melee attack whilst you're within 5ft of them (i.e. standing next to them)
5: Entirely up to you! I prefer not to tell them the DC to add a little more tension. In that case I'd just ask for Athletics and have them roll.
6: Drawing a map is entirely up to the players really. It also depends how you're playing - at a table? Grab some graph paper and get going! If you're playing remotely on a Virtual TableTop (VTT) then that opens new options!
Inspiration: It's really up to you. The DMG covers it pretty well: https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/dmg/running-the-game#Inspiration:
DC: You can tell your players what the DC is. I generally don't. They'll find out through rolling if it's a tough or easy difficulty. Again, this just boils down to what you prefer for your game. I prefer having the DC value unknown to prevent metagaming and to maintain a sense of danger and uncertainty. But you may decide you prefer just telling them. Either way is fine.
4. I use inspiration both for great in-character role-play and for great teamwork. Usually, I'll award it at the end of a session for use in the next session. I'm finding that my party of all-new dnd players are either reluctant to use or forget to use it, so I'm tossing around making it only usable for the next campaign, after which it automatically is lost until awarded again. A lot of things can give advantage
https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/basic-rules/using-ability-scores#AdvantageandDisadvantage
In the case of the goblin, having fallen it would be considered as having the "Prone" condition which can grant either advantage or disadvantage to those attacking as described;
"A prone creature's only movement option is to crawl, unless it stands up and thereby ends the condition.
The creature has disadvantage on attack rolls.
An attack roll against the creature has advantage if the attacker is within 5 feet of the creature. Otherwise, the attack roll has disadvantage."
5. I think it was one of Sly Flourish's newsletters for DMs that suggested occasionally sharing the DC of checks at critical moments as a means of building drama and tension. I've done it a few times with my group, and they LOVED it. So, I don't share DCs most of the time, but if there's a big moment happening where the check's success or failure is really important, I'll say, "OK look, you need to get at least a 15 for this." Then EVERYONE's eyes are riveted on the roll, and that player is now the center of attention for a few moments.
6. The Redbrand connection in this background is never made explicitly. That's for the DM and the player to figure out. In my game, the rogue had the same background. I set it up that another organization was attempting to infiltrate the Redbrands and was close to being discovered. To protect themselves, the mole framed the PC as the traitor forcing them to run. As they journey through Tresendar, one of the Redbrands they encounter is the one who framed them. That's just one possibility among millions. Let your imagination run with it, but you may wish to check with your player about what ideas they may have as well.