Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Scion_of_The_Eternal 04-14-08, 04:10 AM	I hope you guys doesn't mind with another new DM thread... So I am a noob. I have several DnD books and know the rules somewhat but I never play it. Just some PbP. Recently I got two people (who know nothings of role-playing except CRPG/MMORPG) interested to play. Now I need to teach both of them how to play and teach myself DMing while doing adventures. One of the players has already decided to be a druid (actually, I'm a bit reluctant because it seem rather complex). Since I love Eberron so much, I planned to make it the adventure setting. Probably start with The Forgotten Forge. If anyone has any suggestion, please tell me. Thanks before
wtsutton 04-14-08, 07:10 AM	1. First bit of advice is to be patient. It is going to take a while before you not only feel comfortable with the rules of a new game system but also know enough about the flavor of a game world to make it come alive. 2. Read as much as you can and know your adventure like the back of your hand before actually running it. The less time and energy you have to spend looking up info in the adventure the better. It will take a lot of pressure off you when you guys actually play and it will result in less stoppages due to looking up what happens when a player goes left instead of right.
iserith 04-14-08, 09:29 AM	Forgotten Forge is a good starting adventure. It's simple, straightforward, and has some Eberron flavor. It also dovetails nicely with the other published Eberron adventures, most of which I have played. I enjoyed all those that I played. So if you're looking to use published materials to get started, by all means pick up the series. In addition, check out my own little Eberron adventure here (http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=1014860). It is for 1st-level characters and takes place on the lightning rail. I'm interested in getting feedback. I playtested it on Saturday and it was very fun. It is a little more dynamic and complicated than Forgotten Forge, however.
Scion_of_The_Eternal 04-14-08, 09:42 AM	Thanks for the advice:) both of you. I have a rather dumb question, how you track party's movement out of combat, like exploring city? Speak of which, anybody know where I can find a map of Sharn? Iserith, I'm downloading your adventure now.
iserith 04-14-08, 09:54 AM	Thanks for the advice:) both of you. I have a rather dumb question, how you track party's movement out of combat, like exploring city? Speak of which, anybody know where I can find a map of Sharn? If you really intend on running a mostly-Sharn campaign, I'd recommend picking up Sharn: City of Towers. Map of Sharn here (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/eb/20050211a). It is notably missing labels for each ward and district which are included in the book. On foot, it takes 3d6 minutes to go to a place in the same district. It takes 6d6 minutes to go to a place in the same ward. It takes 3d6x5 minutes to get to a destination in an adjacent ward or 6d6x5 minutes farther than the adjacent ward. Cut this by a third if you're flying in a sky cab or the like. Iserith, I'm downloading your adventure now. Cool, enjoy.
Some_call_me_Tim 04-14-08, 12:08 PM	Well, my advice is, if all possible, find someone who already knows how to play to help you through the game mechanics. There are a lot of people in the RPGA who are willing to help teach the game. Believe me, it is a helluva lot easier to learn how to play by doing than reading the books and trying to figure it out. This doesn't have to be an on-going thing, just a game or two at the local game store. My advice to any new player/DM is to start slowly. Avoid the temptation of using anything but the core rules. Start everyone at 1st level. You will have your hands full running the game without having to worry about a zillion different abilities, skills, classes, etc. There will plenty of time for that later but you need to learn to walk before running. I wouldn't worry about a first level druid. It doesn't start to get complex until they 5th level and they get wild shape. Hopefully by then you will have many sessions of learning behind you. Don't feel like you need to include everything in your first campaign. You could limit players to fighter, wizard, cleric, and rogue to keep things simple. I'm not overly fond of Eberron. When I've used/allowed stuff from the campaign setting I found it too often overly-powerful and broken. By which I mean, it doesn't always play well with the core rules. If you are talking about just using the setting and none of the rules then you should be OK. As for out of combat movement, I would generally ignore this level of minutiae, especially when starting out. It is seldom important if it takes you five minutes or an hour to walk across town, as this movement happens 'off-screen.' If timing matters, the characters will generally arrive precisely when it would be the most dramatic. i.e. They walk in on the evil necromancer just before he completes the spell of summoning absolute evil. Not to belittle what iserith said, but would you really want to roll 3d6 and have it take you 18 minutes to walk across town to find that the evil necromancer only needed 15 minutes to complete his spell? :eek: If a player asks how long go ahead roll some dice, or better yet just make something up. You will soon learn that a big part of DMing is thinking quickly and winging it.
Man in the Funny Hat 04-14-08, 01:11 PM	Best way to learn to DM is to watch closely in a game under someone who is already a reasonably good DM. Second best way is to simply DO IT. By all means read what advice you can and when you have specific questions and issues ASK those who would/should know, but just DO IT. You will make mistakes. A good DM is not one who never makes mistakes but who tries to avoid the worst and most common mistakes, learns from mistakes he does make, tries not to repeat them, tries to understand WHY they were mistakes and what led to them, etc. Read a lot. Read the rules and become as familiar with them as possible. Read forums like this. Read about problems other DM's and players have in their games. Read the suggestions of how to fix those problems and then try not to get into situations where they ever become problems for YOU. Most important rule for a new DM is to communicate effectively with the players. Don't feel like you have to keep up a veil of secrecy and seperation between you and your players. Talk to them. Ask them occasionally what they like or dislike about the campaign. You don't have to spill the beans on EVERYTHING but don't be afraid to explain what you are trying to do and why. If something comes up in the game that you don't know the answer to, or how to handle it - SAY SO. The final decisions are yours to make - but let them give their input so that your decision is more informed. And have fun. If you're not enjoying it you're doing it wrong.
iserith 04-14-08, 01:21 PM	Well, my advice is, if all possible, find someone who already knows how to play to help you through the game mechanics. There are a lot of people in the RPGA who are willing to help teach the game. Believe me, it is a helluva lot easier to learn how to play by doing than reading the books and trying to figure it out. This doesn't have to be an on-going thing, just a game or two at the local game store. That's a good idea. There's usually all manner of knowledgeable if smelly critters hanging out at my local game store. They're more than willing to talk your ear off about the rules and might even be willing to join your game to help you out. I'm not overly fond of Eberron. When I've used/allowed stuff from the campaign setting I found it too often overly-powerful and broken. By which I mean, it doesn't always play well with the core rules. If you are talking about just using the setting and none of the rules then you should be OK. This is probably because your players hand-picked something specifically broken to play. On the whole, I have found the setting to be awesome. It's full of flavor and balanced in gaming experience. As for out of combat movement, I would generally ignore this level of minutiae, especially when starting out. It is seldom important if it takes you five minutes or an hour to walk across town, as this movement happens 'off-screen.' If timing matters, the characters will generally arrive precisely when it would be the most dramatic. i.e. They walk in on the evil necromancer just before he completes the spell of summoning absolute evil. Not to belittle what iserith said, but would you really want to roll 3d6 and have it take you 18 minutes to walk across town to find that the evil necromancer only needed 15 minutes to complete his spell? :eek: These are the guidelines set forth in Sharn: City of Towers. I've used them on numerous occasions when it became necessary to know how long it takes. (A scavenger hunt comes to mind.) If it's critical they be somewhere at a given time and nothing is stopping them from the task, then by all means ignore those guidelines.
Scion_of_The_Eternal 04-14-08, 01:49 PM	Again, thanks for you replies. That's a good idea. There's usually all manner of knowledgeable if smelly critters hanging out at my local game store. They're more than willing to talk your ear off about the rules and might even be willing to join your game to help you out. Unfortunately, it is impossible for me. There is none nearby. These are the guidelines set forth in Sharn: City of Towers. I've used them on numerous occasions when it became necessary to know how long it takes. (A scavenger hunt comes to mind.) If it's critical they be somewhere at a given time and nothing is stopping them from the task, then by all means ignore those guidelines. Okay. I'm not overly fond of Eberron. When I've used/allowed stuff from the campaign setting I found it too often overly-powerful and broken. By which I mean, it doesn't always play well with the core rules. If you are talking about just using the setting and none of the rules then you should be OK. Would you mind to elaborate about what is broken from Eberron? I don't plan to use the classes. Just the setting, races, and some feats & spells (as they are needed to support the races and flavour).
iserith 04-14-08, 02:09 PM	Would you mind to elaborate about what is broken from Eberron? I don't plan to use the classes. Just the setting, races, and some feats & spells (as they are needed to support the races and flavour). I've been playing Eberron for 3 campaigns now (just under 3 years). We've used a ton of their classes and liked every single one. For classes we didn't use as PCs, I used them as NPCs (and in some cases went out of my way to do so just to test them out). Nothing ever registered to me as broken at all. So I would definitely recommend using everything in Eberron at least once, then taking out things you don't like for the next campaign. I doubt you'll find much to be honest. If you encourage flavor over optimization, you will have so much fun. What did you think of my adventure? :)
Scion_of_The_Eternal 04-14-08, 02:38 PM	Sorry, I haven't finished it yet. It looks interesting though. Flavor-wise, I hardly can find anything to dislike from Eberron. It will take long time before I try any of those exotic classes. The only class I really interested to implement (when I think me and my players will be able to handle it) is the Artificier. Any advice on teaching the rules to the players?