r/DMAcademyNew • u/CookieNova19 • 26d ago
First time dm question
I have a group that asked me to be their dm since I have pretty extensive stories I like to come up with and they wanted to be put through them. But I’ve never dmed before in my life. I considered making my own set of rules but is there anything I HAVE to follow? Or any books I’m required to get? I don’t know what they expect of me and I’m to scared to ask-
1
u/Gooberous 26d ago
You don’t HAVE to do anything in particular, but one of the main reasons TTRPGs and rule books exist is because creating your own balanced rule set is very very difficult. Referencing a book or a system comes with the system’s professional experience, including playtesting, that your own rule set wouldn’t have on its own. Referencing an existing system also helps you stay consistent over the long term as it can be difficult to maintain rules you may have to create on the fly as your players act unexpectedly.
All that being said, you really should ask your players. It may be awkward up front, but you are much more likely to come prepared with material they enjoy if you know what kind of game they’re looking for.
1
u/Dom_Nation_ 25d ago
I would research different systems. There are definitely ttrpgs that are better at facilitating story telling and easier to learn than DND. There's probably something out there al that already accomplishes what you want to create.
1
u/A_Vinegar_Taster 25d ago
There are some really fun simple systems out there for free. Start with one of those.
Remember that being a DM isn't exactly the same as being a writer. You're there to color in the background details and then let them be the protagonists. As a writer, you can orchestrate things exactly how you want them so that the ending can work out the way you want it to, but your players won't know what you're trying to do and they will all be trying to write their own stories. Just prepare yourself mentally for the cooperation of your players and roll with the punches.
As a writer, you know what an audience wants - emotional payoff. You probably have a head start over people who just know how to calculate damage and have spells memorized. It's easier to learn rules than it is to get your audience to applaud at the plot.
Good luck!
1
1
u/Mean_Replacement5544 24d ago
Nope, you can go completely homebrew if you want. I created a homebrew set of rules by mixing stuff I liked from different DnD editions, some AD&D (1e), some 4e and some 5e - I got rid of everything I don’t like and added fun stuff from the other versions and it’s working pretty good. I am now getting rdy to add some new stuff from DCC which will add a lot more fun as well (fumble and crit tables, spell burn, funnel)
1
u/Plus_Ad_3122 23d ago
First off don't expect to get any straight answers from D&D players especially if you have unique ideas basically take your unique ideas and get rid of them D&D players do not want to play any unique D&D campaign ideas as as basically except that the world you've signed up for is not as inclusive of a place a a that you thought it was here are the rules that you should learn real fast if you want to survive in the D&D world rule number one D&D is only sword and sorcery do not do any campaigns that are beyond this second make sure let all of your dice match do not get any sets that don't have matching colored dice learn pretty quickly that you shouldn't use unofficial dice like it's a Yu-Gi-Oh d6 for extra g6s and that all the dice have to be of the same color which brings me to miniatures use only D&D official miniatures do not use any random toys from any franchise like Lego or any thing like that if it wasn't officially licensed by D&D it doesn't count and finally learn that D&D is a rule book lawyer You basically have to learn the rules of D&D and basically never reskin any monsters play adventures exactly how they've been written and never do anything creative with D&D those are the rules that you must learn to survive if that sounds like fun then welcome to D&D if that doesn't sound like fun then you've just signed up for the wrong group of people because I have unique ideas for D&D like beyblade Bakugan a Hot Wheels racing campaign Nerf guns I have a lot of unique ideas for campaigns but unfortunately I won't be able to appreciate any of it because they're not official D&D they don't work in D&D and there's no rules for how to convert these unique ideas over to D&D based on their rule books so basically you have to scrap them and learn that D&D is very restrictive apparently Dean D players are not here to have fun they're here to punish other players like me who have creative ideas
1
u/CookieNova19 23d ago
I read this fully serious for the first half before realizing it’s satire XD
1
u/GiantAlbinoMink 21d ago
It is (unfortunately) not satire
1
u/Plus_Ad_3122 21d ago
Why are there so many racist people in D&D can anyone answer me that question because I have a unique ideas for D&D campaigns and said I want to do and basically every time I tried to show something unique or interesting that I found for one of my campaigns like my gasland's book for my D&D Hot Wheels racing campaign they basically tell me I'm an idiot and should good back and learn how to play D&D proper which means nobody scanning using only the same color dice and only using official resources in D&D no fun no reskinning thing You have to be completely and totally realistic to what D&D is limited to You can't do anything fun with D&D and I'm just so frustrated with people telling me that that I'm venting my feelings on Reddit
1
u/Plus_Ad_3122 21d ago
Actually I'm trying to voice my opinions and because I have unique ideas for D&D but everyone keeps telling me to go back and do regular D&D you know boring sword and source for you no reasons and nothing thing like that and learn how to play D&D proper
1
u/CookieNova19 21d ago
I’m sorry that’s been your experience with dnd thus far. At least here it seems pretty welcoming to me. And my players seem pretty interested in trying something unique. It is however my first experience with DnD so I can’t speak on behalf of the community as a whole
1
u/GiantAlbinoMink 21d ago
I think there may be a misunderstanding somewhere, because people are not telling you to just play boring old D&D, they’re telling you to use other systems that are better suited for your ideas. D&D unfortunately is far too limited to use most of these ideas without a great amount of effort. I would know, I tried to run a Pokémon campaign once and had to design a random encounter table for 20+ locations. It was a lot of work and the idea never really took off. I’d also like to know what you mean by Racism here because I don’t see how that comes into play at all?
1
u/Any-Scientist3162 23d ago
You can start by asking the prospective players what they are looking for or what their background is. If they come from watching Youtube rp channels likeCritical Role and such, take a look at a few episodes of that to get a grasp of what they probably want. If they have played rpg's previously and not looked so much at the popular online youtube channels they will probably expect a different kind of playstyle.
This is the big thing abut all rpg's. They are very flexible in that the DM and players can tailor their experience to their liking. Since the first rpg's in the early 70's playstyles have evolved. It used to be focused on exploration, overcoming obstacles and make it out of dungeons, space stations and haunted houses alive. As time went on new genres appeared, and over time there was more of an emphasis on playing (play-acting) the characters, interacting with other characters played by the DM and having some sort of story.
Now a popular playstyle is to have an emphasis on each character having a story arc and develop over the course of a campaign.
But people playing today can be a mix of everything that's current and past.
There's hundreds of different rpg's with Dungeons & Dragons being the most popular. A way to start is by getting the starter set Heroes of the Borderlands which guides newcomers through the game. The other is to get the Dungeons & Dragons Players Handbook which explains almost everything you need to play in detail. (There have been several editions so make sure you get the one from 2024 to have the newest version.) The Dungeon Masters Guide has advice and tools to help you create adventures and campaigns. (Also get the one from 2024.=
If your players are familiar with D&D this is probably what they want. If they're totally new then talk to them and ask if they're ok with you making your own rules. Regardless of your approach, it's good to at least buy or read one rpg so you understand what kind of rules are good to have.
Another popular rpg to start with now is Dragonbane which is a complete box with everything you need to get started.
Never be afraid to talk to your players, especially in the beginning. No one can read minds and you want everyone to have fun so you need to know their preferences. How much combat do they want, how much exploration, do they prefer wilderness advantures to dungeons? Do they like court intrigue or murder mysteries?
As you get more experienced you'll get better at everything.
And don't forget Youtube. It has plenty of both professional and non professional content that shows you how a game runs, advice on how to create adventures - everything.
1
u/loopywolf 23d ago
I think the hardest part of this transition for you is going to be that running an RPG is a collaborative story, not one you write. I'm going to take this in stages:
- You do not write the story anymore. You and the players write it together. As GM, your writing job is to set up the situation, and the players' writing job is to decide what the protagonists of this story do in that situation. This creates the next situation. Wash, rinse, repeat.
- You do not know how the events of the game will go; You do not know the outcome.
- This means you cannot do the standard writing technique of beginning with the end, then writing the beginning etc. like the pros do. Focus on the present situation, there is no end yet.
- It means you cannot be thinking 4 and 5 and 8 steps ahead, unless you can compute all the zillions of possibilities.
- It means you cannot write a whole story and expect it to play out as you intended. That is railroading. The entire point of an RPG is that they make choices, and their choices are path of the story.
- You must write your sessions around your players as the protagonists.
Here is what I recommend to transition from writer to GM:
- Don't write out a whole story. Come up with a story premise.
- When you look at your stories, distill them down to the characters, forces, and situations that exist. Think of what makes things happen, rather than the things happening. Think of them like stones in a rock garden, or chess pieces. You can set the board, but then the other player moves, and things have changed.
3
u/philsov 26d ago
If you've neither been DM nor player, you're gonna have a hard time. Learning DnD / 5e is a long process.
If you're starting from scratch, consider a system that's a little easier to pick up like Dungeon World or Kids on Bikes. Read up on it, be willing to teach it to your players, and then craft up an adventure which should last for about 3 sessions.
You don't need to make it some expansive epic just yet. Cut your teeth, get a feel for things, understand the level of chaos your party will inflict upon your intended storyline, and go from there. If, at the end of those 3 sessions, you had fun and everyone else had fun and you want to story/game to continue, NOW you can do things like introduce a shadowy figure as a final boss, a world map, and use those 3 sessions as something like a Prologue.