Hi, I'm a new DM (but seasoned player) running my first campaign. My players are 3 friends but are all new to DnD.
I'm running Lost Mine of Phandelver, and I ran the first two sessions with 2 of my players (I added a PC of my own for the time being to heal and support) because the third player was out of town and would be coming back in 3 months and my friends and I really wanted to start. I assured my third friend she could just jump into the campaign as soon as she gets back.
The problem is I though the PC's would stay in lvl1 for much longer than they did. I'm using the experience point system of Lost Mine and they are now on lvl3. My friend is back, but she's never played DnD before and I don't just want to throw her right into the fray at lvl3, I want to give her the same experience of actually leveling up.
I'm thinking of running a one-to-one with her so she can level up on her own and then have her character meet the party once she's lvl 3. But she's one player.
What sort of encounters can I give her that would give enough experience points for her to leveling up without being overwhelming? She can't take on a mansion filled with bandits by herself :( I know you can't have a DnD session with just the DM and one player, but I really don't want to give her a lvl3 character as her first. I want her to see how combat, roleplay, and adventuring works before she has to worry about new feats and skills.
More info: Her character is a wood elf ranger and is running away from her father trying to kill her and spent like 70 years with this hermit caring for the woods until a dragon killed him. My friend is super enthusiastic and is ready to go and I'm sure she'll be up to whatever I decide. I just want to decide something good. T.T And it doesn't have to stick with the plot of Lost Mine, could be something like, in the woods... or maybe when she gets to town?
Thanks for reading and any ideas and/or suggestions will be hugely appreciated!
There are rules out there for sidekicks. Not 100% fleshed out characters and controlled by the player. I know it is a step up in complexity to "run" two characters, but it might allow you to give her a better feel for what the group will be like. The best single player stuff is mostly roleplaying and the combats at low level need to be measured. There is no safety net when rolls go bad. And if you are too forgiving, that feeling of security could carry over.
1st level ranger would be good with small pack of kobolds, goblins, giant rats, pretty basic stuff to just get a feel for things.
I think you need to add at least one NPC or sidekick to the party. At level 1, even fighting one creature can be a challenge if you are by yourself and roll badly. As soon as there are any more creatures, the action economy quickly goes against the creature group with smaller numbers. A single kobold could potentially kill a first level character on a single hit with a critical. If there are two characters and one has some healing then the encounter can still be salvaged but without that the very swingy randomness of level 1 becomes more challenging.
Just for fun you could link your ranger up with a level 1 bard NPC for the first few adventures and then you could either keep the NPC or have them leave when the ranger joins up with the others.
I would really recommend the Essentials Kit for this situation. It has been specifically designed for the potential situation of 1 DM and 1 PC (plus 1 sidekick). And not only that, it takes place in Phandalin, so it should be easy to transition the new character to the other characters' campaign.
Hi, I'm a new DM (but seasoned player) running my first campaign. My players are 3 friends but are all new to DnD.
I'm running Lost Mine of Phandelver, and I ran the first two sessions with 2 of my players (I added a PC of my own for the time being to heal and support) because the third player was out of town and would be coming back in 3 months and my friends and I really wanted to start. I assured my third friend she could just jump into the campaign as soon as she gets back.
The problem is I though the PC's would stay in lvl1 for much longer than they did. I'm using the experience point system of Lost Mine and they are now on lvl3. My friend is back, but she's never played DnD before and I don't just want to throw her right into the fray at lvl3, I want to give her the same experience of actually leveling up.
I'm thinking of running a one-to-one with her so she can level up on her own and then have her character meet the party once she's lvl 3. But she's one player.
What sort of encounters can I give her that would give enough experience points for her to leveling up without being overwhelming? She can't take on a mansion filled with bandits by herself :( I know you can't have a DnD session with just the DM and one player, but I really don't want to give her a lvl3 character as her first. I want her to see how combat, roleplay, and adventuring works before she has to worry about new feats and skills.
More info: Her character is a wood elf ranger and is running away from her father trying to kill her and spent like 70 years with this hermit caring for the woods until a dragon killed him. My friend is super enthusiastic and is ready to go and I'm sure she'll be up to whatever I decide. I just want to decide something good. T.T And it doesn't have to stick with the plot of Lost Mine, could be something like, in the woods... or maybe when she gets to town?
Thanks for reading and any ideas and/or suggestions will be hugely appreciated!
There are rules out there for sidekicks. Not 100% fleshed out characters and controlled by the player. I know it is a step up in complexity to "run" two characters, but it might allow you to give her a better feel for what the group will be like. The best single player stuff is mostly roleplaying and the combats at low level need to be measured. There is no safety net when rolls go bad. And if you are too forgiving, that feeling of security could carry over.
1st level ranger would be good with small pack of kobolds, goblins, giant rats, pretty basic stuff to just get a feel for things.
Everyone is the main character of their story
Oh I see, thanks!
I think you need to add at least one NPC or sidekick to the party. At level 1, even fighting one creature can be a challenge if you are by yourself and roll badly. As soon as there are any more creatures, the action economy quickly goes against the creature group with smaller numbers. A single kobold could potentially kill a first level character on a single hit with a critical. If there are two characters and one has some healing then the encounter can still be salvaged but without that the very swingy randomness of level 1 becomes more challenging.
Just for fun you could link your ranger up with a level 1 bard NPC for the first few adventures and then you could either keep the NPC or have them leave when the ranger joins up with the others.
I would really recommend the Essentials Kit for this situation. It has been specifically designed for the potential situation of 1 DM and 1 PC (plus 1 sidekick). And not only that, it takes place in Phandalin, so it should be easy to transition the new character to the other characters' campaign.
https://dnd.wizards.com/products/tabletop-games/rpg-products/essentials-kit
Finally, you also get access to the D&D Beyond Essentials Kit Bundle for free via an included coupon.
https://www.dndbeyond.com/marketplace/bundle/essentials-kit-bundle
Here's the info on how to run the adventure for one player:
https://www.dndbeyond.com/sources/doip/running-the-adventure#RunningforOnePlayer