My boyfriend and mine's anniversary is coming up in just under two month, and I want have trying to create a homebrew campiagn for him, with everything completely personal (weapons, character, bosses, etc.). Unfortunately, I have had no experience DM'ing and only have done one solo one-shot campaign, but I know he loves DND, so I want to create a solo one shot campaign for him. I know what I want the story to be, and I know I want to pre-make a paladin for him, so that he does not have to create one and just focus on being surprised and having fun. I wanted to asked experienced DM's what I need to know about making a homebrew campaign and how to DM effectively. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, I want this to go as smoothly as possible and put in as much effort I can.
Hi, I would suggest to use a pre-made one-shot adventure suitable for a Paladin and customize it as much as possible instead of doing everything from scratch.
For example, I can suggest those of mine, set in various settings:
If you have no experience DMing, you should NOT homebrew everything, unless none of the statblocks work for your concept. By homebrew, I mean subclasses, races, spells, monsters, etc. It's totally fine to write your own adventures.
My boyfriend and mine's anniversary is coming up in just under two month, and I want have trying to create a homebrew campiagn for him, with everything completely personal (weapons, character, bosses, etc.). Unfortunately, I have had no experience DM'ing and only have done one solo one-shot campaign, but I know he loves DND, so I want to create a solo one shot campaign for him. I know what I want the story to be, and I know I want to pre-make a paladin for him, so that he does not have to create one and just focus on being surprised and having fun. I wanted to asked experienced DM's what I need to know about making a homebrew campaign and how to DM effectively. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, I want this to go as smoothly as possible and put in as much effort I can.
That sounds like a lovely idea. I assume you're thinking of just a one shot? If you've not got much experience DMing anything more would be very ambitious and in that case I'd suggest trying something prewritten.
If you are doing a one shot then the best advice is keep it simple. There's a concept called a Five Room Dungeon that gives a framework that works well for giving one shots a structure and can result in some nice stories that aren't likely to get out of control by being too big for you to manage. There's a YouTube channel called Mystic Arts that did a good explanation of how the framework can be applied and also has a lot of very good advice in other videos too. It can be surprising how little you actually need to fill up 3 hours of game time but having a structure to rely on helps a lot.
For the bosses I'd again say keep it simple, you're not experienced enough to be home brewing monsters from the ground up so either find an existing monster that fits the bill or find something close and just change the names
Thank you, I will look into those 😊. Is it possible that I use concept of original things from the base game and mold them to my campaign, such as using a base background and slightly changing it to fit the character better or other things like that?
That’s absolutely possible. To be honest for most of us that DM that’s what we do, steal anything that looks fun, change the names so no one realises, stitch it all together into a hideous patchwork quilt of a story. I know one person who ran a two year campaign based on a favourite film and none of his players ever noticed. Especially if this is your first time doing it I’d try and reuse as much existing stuff as you can and change it to suit what you have in mind, if for no reason other than to make it easier on yourself, but also don’t be afraid to create bits to connect existing things into the shape you want.
One important thing to consider is are you planning on using maps and minis or theatre of the mind? I’d suggest theatre of the mind, basically everything only exists in the story and you have to describe and narrate everything, which means you have slightly more to do whilst playing but also means you have less to prep upfront because you don’t need to find or draw suitable maps and print them off. You could also blend the two, do most of the session as theatre of the mind but have a really show stopping map for the final big boss
I'm not entirely sure, I was going to make a quest scroll in the begining to surprise him so he could walk into the room with it decorated and an ancient looking scroll to start the campaign as a surprise. The scroll wil be the godddess of night (a nickname he gave me) asking for aid finding the celestial map of devotion (which will be a real gift i make him of a star map from the firs titme we ever met). What I am considering is creating a world using an old lulaby his parents sang to him. He will have to go through a bay full of fog (a maze) and there will be two islands that will have mini bosses that are to do with different anxities he overcame to show him how much he has grew since well fell in love. Then he will recieve some sort of key from each Island, when both keys are found the fog lifts and he finds the gate to a mountain, and as he treks up the montain he will maybe fight and meet people along the way (i am not sure) and at the top is the final boss. The boss will be holding to the map, he will have to defeat the boss for the map and end the campaign. I was thinking of going off of theatre of mind, because I do not know how to make any maps and stuff. Though, I was thinking of getting him a character mini, the map, replicas of the keys, and the map, as gifts/ tokens to remember the experience. The campsign though is not going to be completely fighting, the minibosses use dialogue mainly with a small fight after, does that make sense?
That’s all sounds really sweet, I’m sure he’ll love it. Without even realising it you’ve basically made a five room dungeon: you’ve got a puzzle as room one, two islands with mini bosses as rooms two and three, climbing the mountain as room four and then the final boss as room five. All sounds like it should work pretty well so long as you’re feeling confident enough to improvise based on what he chooses to do. It might help to draw yourself a little map (nothing fancy, just pencil and paper) of the lay out you’ve got in mind, especially for the maze, as that’ll help you describe what he’s encountering at each step. Otherwise theatre of the mind sounds like the way to go for you but if you did want a map for the final boss it can be as easy as just googling “RPG map of X” and you’ll probably find a hundred people have already drawn a map you like and can just print out
This is a fantastic gift idea for your boyfriend! To make it truly special, the best approach depends on how he typically plays D&D.
Here's what to consider:
Tabletop with Minis vs. Online Platforms vs. Theatre of the Mind:
If he's a tabletop player who loves minis and physical maps, creating a few simple 11x17 printed maps (easily generated with AI) would be perfect. You could also grab a few tokens from Amazon. This is likely the easiest path for you, as learning a new online platform for a one-shot can be a lot.
If he plays online with AI-generated or animated maps and digital tokens, you might want to explore creating digital assets. Hoenstly though option 1 is still likely best.
Theatre of the Mind (purely descriptive storytelling without visual aids) can be great if that's his preferred style, but some players find it less engaging.
Crafting Your Adventure:
Maps and Tokens: Regardless of the style, AI can be a huge help in generating snazzy maps or even character art for tokens.
DM Notes: Create a basic "cliff notes" version of your story, creatures, and key plot points. AI can also assist with fleshing out ideas.
Creature Stats: Don't feel obligated to create everything from scratch! You can easily pull creature stats and hit points from resources like D&D Beyond and then "reskin" them by giving them new names and descriptions to fit your unique story.
Starting Level: Consider starting your boyfriend at Level 6. Many veteran players prefer this as it allows them to have a good set of class skills and abilities right away, rather than starting from Level 1.
Test Run: If you have a friend who plays D&D, I highly recommend doing a test run of your one-shot with them. This can help you iron out any kinks and get comfortable with the flow.
Good luck!
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My boyfriend and mine's anniversary is coming up in just under two month, and I want have trying to create a homebrew campiagn for him, with everything completely personal (weapons, character, bosses, etc.). Unfortunately, I have had no experience DM'ing and only have done one solo one-shot campaign, but I know he loves DND, so I want to create a solo one shot campaign for him. I know what I want the story to be, and I know I want to pre-make a paladin for him, so that he does not have to create one and just focus on being surprised and having fun. I wanted to asked experienced DM's what I need to know about making a homebrew campaign and how to DM effectively. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, I want this to go as smoothly as possible and put in as much effort I can.
Hi, I would suggest to use a pre-made one-shot adventure suitable for a Paladin and customize it as much as possible instead of doing everything from scratch.
For example, I can suggest those of mine, set in various settings:
Greyhawk's Expeditions - Volume C: The Restless Mounds - Dungeon Masters Guild | Dungeon Masters Guild
RAVNICA: Against the Golgari - Dungeon Masters Guild | Dungeon Masters Guild
EBERRON24: The haunted shrine - Dungeon Masters Guild | Dungeon Masters Guild
RAVENLOFT: A night in the abyss - Dungeon Masters Guild | Dungeon Masters Guild
If you have no experience DMing, you should NOT homebrew everything, unless none of the statblocks work for your concept. By homebrew, I mean subclasses, races, spells, monsters, etc. It's totally fine to write your own adventures.
That sounds like a lovely idea. I assume you're thinking of just a one shot? If you've not got much experience DMing anything more would be very ambitious and in that case I'd suggest trying something prewritten.
If you are doing a one shot then the best advice is keep it simple. There's a concept called a Five Room Dungeon that gives a framework that works well for giving one shots a structure and can result in some nice stories that aren't likely to get out of control by being too big for you to manage. There's a YouTube channel called Mystic Arts that did a good explanation of how the framework can be applied and also has a lot of very good advice in other videos too. It can be surprising how little you actually need to fill up 3 hours of game time but having a structure to rely on helps a lot.
For the bosses I'd again say keep it simple, you're not experienced enough to be home brewing monsters from the ground up so either find an existing monster that fits the bill or find something close and just change the names
Thank you, I will look into those 😊. Is it possible that I use concept of original things from the base game and mold them to my campaign, such as using a base background and slightly changing it to fit the character better or other things like that?
That’s absolutely possible. To be honest for most of us that DM that’s what we do, steal anything that looks fun, change the names so no one realises, stitch it all together into a hideous patchwork quilt of a story. I know one person who ran a two year campaign based on a favourite film and none of his players ever noticed. Especially if this is your first time doing it I’d try and reuse as much existing stuff as you can and change it to suit what you have in mind, if for no reason other than to make it easier on yourself, but also don’t be afraid to create bits to connect existing things into the shape you want.
One important thing to consider is are you planning on using maps and minis or theatre of the mind? I’d suggest theatre of the mind, basically everything only exists in the story and you have to describe and narrate everything, which means you have slightly more to do whilst playing but also means you have less to prep upfront because you don’t need to find or draw suitable maps and print them off. You could also blend the two, do most of the session as theatre of the mind but have a really show stopping map for the final big boss
I'm not entirely sure, I was going to make a quest scroll in the begining to surprise him so he could walk into the room with it decorated and an ancient looking scroll to start the campaign as a surprise. The scroll wil be the godddess of night (a nickname he gave me) asking for aid finding the celestial map of devotion (which will be a real gift i make him of a star map from the firs titme we ever met). What I am considering is creating a world using an old lulaby his parents sang to him. He will have to go through a bay full of fog (a maze) and there will be two islands that will have mini bosses that are to do with different anxities he overcame to show him how much he has grew since well fell in love. Then he will recieve some sort of key from each Island, when both keys are found the fog lifts and he finds the gate to a mountain, and as he treks up the montain he will maybe fight and meet people along the way (i am not sure) and at the top is the final boss. The boss will be holding to the map, he will have to defeat the boss for the map and end the campaign. I was thinking of going off of theatre of mind, because I do not know how to make any maps and stuff. Though, I was thinking of getting him a character mini, the map, replicas of the keys, and the map, as gifts/ tokens to remember the experience. The campsign though is not going to be completely fighting, the minibosses use dialogue mainly with a small fight after, does that make sense?
That’s all sounds really sweet, I’m sure he’ll love it. Without even realising it you’ve basically made a five room dungeon: you’ve got a puzzle as room one, two islands with mini bosses as rooms two and three, climbing the mountain as room four and then the final boss as room five. All sounds like it should work pretty well so long as you’re feeling confident enough to improvise based on what he chooses to do. It might help to draw yourself a little map (nothing fancy, just pencil and paper) of the lay out you’ve got in mind, especially for the maze, as that’ll help you describe what he’s encountering at each step. Otherwise theatre of the mind sounds like the way to go for you but if you did want a map for the final boss it can be as easy as just googling “RPG map of X” and you’ll probably find a hundred people have already drawn a map you like and can just print out
This is a fantastic gift idea for your boyfriend! To make it truly special, the best approach depends on how he typically plays D&D.
Here's what to consider:
Tabletop with Minis vs. Online Platforms vs. Theatre of the Mind:
If he's a tabletop player who loves minis and physical maps, creating a few simple 11x17 printed maps (easily generated with AI) would be perfect. You could also grab a few tokens from Amazon. This is likely the easiest path for you, as learning a new online platform for a one-shot can be a lot.
If he plays online with AI-generated or animated maps and digital tokens, you might want to explore creating digital assets. Hoenstly though option 1 is still likely best.
Theatre of the Mind (purely descriptive storytelling without visual aids) can be great if that's his preferred style, but some players find it less engaging.
Crafting Your Adventure:
Maps and Tokens: Regardless of the style, AI can be a huge help in generating snazzy maps or even character art for tokens.
DM Notes: Create a basic "cliff notes" version of your story, creatures, and key plot points. AI can also assist with fleshing out ideas.
Creature Stats: Don't feel obligated to create everything from scratch! You can easily pull creature stats and hit points from resources like D&D Beyond and then "reskin" them by giving them new names and descriptions to fit your unique story.
Starting Level: Consider starting your boyfriend at Level 6. Many veteran players prefer this as it allows them to have a good set of class skills and abilities right away, rather than starting from Level 1.
Test Run: If you have a friend who plays D&D, I highly recommend doing a test run of your one-shot with them. This can help you iron out any kinks and get comfortable with the flow.
Good luck!