My co-workers and I have been talking about doing some type of game night together. I suggested D&D and most everyone agreed, but had never played the game before. I have the 5e Starter set and have played a few times way back in high school so I said I'd DM. Few issues though, 1: I don't have the DMG or PHB (and I REALLY cannot afford either one at the moment), 2: I have NEVER DMed any game in my life, 3: It's been so long and the system is a bit different so I'm not even sure how well I'll be at it. I've read the mini rule book and the campaign that came with it but I still feel like I'm under prepared. Any tips or advice for me?
My co-workers and I have been talking about doing some type of game night together. I suggested D&D and most everyone agreed, but had never played the game before. I have the 5e Starter set and have played a few times way back in high school so I said I'd DM. Few issues though, 1: I don't have the DMG or PHB (and I REALLY cannot afford either one at the moment)
That's not an issue. The Starter Set covers the real basics, and the free basic rules that you can find here at D&D Beyond or as PDFs on the Wizards of the Coast website cover enough of the game to play for years. The PHB and DMG are just full of more options, not things which are necessary to run the game and not present in the free basic rules.
2: I have NEVER DMed any game in my life
That's not a problem either - every DM has, at one point, been in the same situation and gotten through it. My advice is to start as simply as you can (which is easy if you don't have all the extra options from the PHB and DMG at your disposal) and build up over time. There is no one "right way" to DM, so most advice doesn't really work until you figure out what your way is going to be like and can ask for assistance on more specific things.
3: It's been so long and the system is a bit different so I'm not even sure how well I'll be at it.
It is entirely unfair for you, or any of your players, to expect your first sessions DMing to be anything but the worst sessions you will ever be in charge of - by which I mean it is a matter of course that you won't be as good as you can be right from the start, you, like every other DM in the world, will make mistakes. What is key is to learn from your mistakes and improve your DMing over time like any other skill you possess.
I still feel like I'm under prepared. Any tips or advice for me?
Try to remind yourself that the point is to have fun, and it doesn't matter what goes "wrong" along the way so long as you and the people at your table have a fun time with it. And remember that, because no plan ever survives contact with the players of an RPG, you will always be under prepared - so you should make yourself comfortable with being unprepared (I have done that by focusing on improvisational DMing skills like reacting to player actions with reasonable sounding obstacles, and only planning a minimal outline so less of my preparation efforts go unused when the players deviate from the plan - if you are comfortable with improv that may work for you. If not, you may want to think up some encounters in isolation and prepare them, things like "what if the party meets a merchant along the road while traveling?" or "what if they go into the woods and get ambushed by orcs?" that you can just drop into place if/when your players deviate from the original plan).
My suggestion would be to have the monster stat blocks copied onto another paper. When I did the caves of phan, I spent entirely too much time flipping back to monster stats on the book. It breaks the flow.
The other issue was describing the locations. Read and re-read the descriptions of rooms and jot down notes of what it looks like to you. Include details about your five senses. There is a big difference between "There is a tunnel in front of you that runs forward and up to the right. In the distance, you see a bridge with a goblin pacing back and forth." And "As you approach the entrance of the cave, the sudden light change hits your senses hard and you're temporarily blinded while your eyes adjust. There's a faint sound of water drops and trickling if you listen close. As your eyes start adjusting, you start being able to make out shapes as a putrid smell suddenly assails your nose (You can have your characters roll a history check here if you think they can remember the smell of goblins). The smell rotting flesh of old fish and goblins who have clearly long given up the notion of bathing burns your nose so fiercely, it leaves a wretched taste in your mouth. As you continue stepping a bit further, you can feel the ground turn from soil to the slippery slope of rocky terrain beneath your boots as a tunnel winds upward and right with pebbles peppered along it. Just above the slope, standing on a fallen pillar of rock made into a makeshift bridge is your first culprit pig the horrid smell: A goblin pacing to and fro, torch in one gnarled little hand, bow clenched by the other."
The second may be a lot of detail (Bordering too much actually) but make it your own. You are the story teller and if you really get into that mindset of wanting to share a story and captivate your friends, put some mystique and suspense in your voice for the appropriate parts. Don't Just be the story teller at the library. Be the voice over guy for action moments, Morgan Freeman for adventure moments, and Samuel L Jackson for the snakes on planes moments.
Also you could watch gm tips by Matt Mercer and Satine Phoenix for some basic tips that are really good as well.
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You only lose if you die. Any time else, there's opportunity for a come back.
For me, it boils down to faking it til you make it. I've been DMing for maybe a year now and by seeming confident in my answers and portraying that the story should be going exactly like how I'm describing it, the players buy into it a lot more. Here's the kicker though: I frequently mess up specific details or situations (at least in Hardcover adventures & DDAL modules) but the players are none the wiser because I play it off as it being intentional. :D
For me, it boils down to faking it til you make it. I've been DMing for maybe a year now and by seeming confident in my answers and portraying that the story should be going exactly like how I'm describing it, the players buy into it a lot more. Here's the kicker though: I frequently mess up specific details or situations (at least in Hardcover adventures & DDAL modules) but the players are none the wiser because I play it off as it being intentional. :D
This. This this this. If you can't remember something and you just want to pretend like you remember and it's wrong. Pretend you are right. It's your world and for all the shiggles, you are right. If for one day, for all intents and purposes of this argument, god decided the sky would be green with massive duck shaped clouds, no one will say god was wrong, they will just say he was drunk...maybe.... Lol
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You only lose if you die. Any time else, there's opportunity for a come back.
Remember that you and the players are there to have fun, first and foremost. The rules provide an effective and fair medium to share a story in, but can be bent when needed.
I would also work on some basic storyboarding. You have situation 'a' and the players could do Thing 1 or Thing 2 (in reality they usually end up doing Thing 23g, but that's players :) Be general in your planning, so that your paths can accommodate multiple ways in. And, even if you have it all planned out, still give the players the feeling of control.
House rules are very important. If there is something not specified in the book, just use your best judgment but make sure you write it down. After that be consistent with them. Also, make sure your players know them so there aren't any hurt feelings where there needn't be.
Also with the Lost mine and with any printed story you get. Read it through before trying to run it. It helps having some idea of the flow and direction of the whole story so if anything unexpected happens (and it will) that you know how to bring it back in without feeling to forced.
My co-workers and I have been talking about doing some type of game night together. I suggested D&D and most everyone agreed, but had never played the game before. I have the 5e Starter set and have played a few times way back in high school so I said I'd DM. Few issues though, 1: I don't have the DMG or PHB (and I REALLY cannot afford either one at the moment), 2: I have NEVER DMed any game in my life, 3: It's been so long and the system is a bit different so I'm not even sure how well I'll be at it. I've read the mini rule book and the campaign that came with it but I still feel like I'm under prepared. Any tips or advice for me?
That's not an issue. The Starter Set covers the real basics, and the free basic rules that you can find here at D&D Beyond or as PDFs on the Wizards of the Coast website cover enough of the game to play for years. The PHB and DMG are just full of more options, not things which are necessary to run the game and not present in the free basic rules.
That's not a problem either - every DM has, at one point, been in the same situation and gotten through it. My advice is to start as simply as you can (which is easy if you don't have all the extra options from the PHB and DMG at your disposal) and build up over time. There is no one "right way" to DM, so most advice doesn't really work until you figure out what your way is going to be like and can ask for assistance on more specific things.My suggestion would be to have the monster stat blocks copied onto another paper. When I did the caves of phan, I spent entirely too much time flipping back to monster stats on the book. It breaks the flow.
The other issue was describing the locations. Read and re-read the descriptions of rooms and jot down notes of what it looks like to you. Include details about your five senses. There is a big difference between "There is a tunnel in front of you that runs forward and up to the right. In the distance, you see a bridge with a goblin pacing back and forth." And "As you approach the entrance of the cave, the sudden light change hits your senses hard and you're temporarily blinded while your eyes adjust. There's a faint sound of water drops and trickling if you listen close. As your eyes start adjusting, you start being able to make out shapes as a putrid smell suddenly assails your nose (You can have your characters roll a history check here if you think they can remember the smell of goblins). The smell rotting flesh of old fish and goblins who have clearly long given up the notion of bathing burns your nose so fiercely, it leaves a wretched taste in your mouth. As you continue stepping a bit further, you can feel the ground turn from soil to the slippery slope of rocky terrain beneath your boots as a tunnel winds upward and right with pebbles peppered along it. Just above the slope, standing on a fallen pillar of rock made into a makeshift bridge is your first culprit pig the horrid smell: A goblin pacing to and fro, torch in one gnarled little hand, bow clenched by the other."
The second may be a lot of detail (Bordering too much actually) but make it your own. You are the story teller and if you really get into that mindset of wanting to share a story and captivate your friends, put some mystique and suspense in your voice for the appropriate parts. Don't Just be the story teller at the library. Be the voice over guy for action moments, Morgan Freeman for adventure moments, and Samuel L Jackson for the snakes on planes moments.
Also you could watch gm tips by Matt Mercer and Satine Phoenix for some basic tips that are really good as well.
You only lose if you die. Any time else, there's opportunity for a come back.
For me, it boils down to faking it til you make it. I've been DMing for maybe a year now and by seeming confident in my answers and portraying that the story should be going exactly like how I'm describing it, the players buy into it a lot more. Here's the kicker though: I frequently mess up specific details or situations (at least in Hardcover adventures & DDAL modules) but the players are none the wiser because I play it off as it being intentional. :D
You only lose if you die. Any time else, there's opportunity for a come back.
Remember that you and the players are there to have fun, first and foremost. The rules provide an effective and fair medium to share a story in, but can be bent when needed.
I would also work on some basic storyboarding. You have situation 'a' and the players could do Thing 1 or Thing 2 (in reality they usually end up doing Thing 23g, but that's players :) Be general in your planning, so that your paths can accommodate multiple ways in. And, even if you have it all planned out, still give the players the feeling of control.
House rules are very important. If there is something not specified in the book, just use your best judgment but make sure you write it down. After that be consistent with them. Also, make sure your players know them so there aren't any hurt feelings where there needn't be.
Also with the Lost mine and with any printed story you get. Read it through before trying to run it. It helps having some idea of the flow and direction of the whole story so if anything unexpected happens (and it will) that you know how to bring it back in without feeling to forced.
Mathew collevile. YouTube. He has a series on DMing and even an adventure: the Delian tomb.
Other than that read over the adventure three or four times. Know aproapproximately what's sopposed to happen