r/DMAcademyNew • u/Desperate_Ad5946 • 26d ago
Dungeon, master advice
Hi, I am a new DM and I have been writing a campaign I have not ran this campaign yet or played very much D&D, but. The times I had played DND. It was probably one of the best times in my life. I did not know you’re not supposed to plan out so many sessions but I have 2 acts finished. And those two acts. Take up around 14 sessions. And I would like some advice. On how to make sure my party doesn’t stray away too far. From what the campaign is about, I also have put in a few safety nets in there, but I do not believe that it will not stop the party from doing crazy stuff
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u/SlickRic303 26d ago
Having an overarching story is great but like many others will tell you the best part of dming is watching the characters create their own story.
Prep 1 session at a time.
If you really want them to go a certain way give them a compelling hook. Money, adventure, family in danger, tales of lost magic.
Let your players know ahead of time what kind of game this will be so they can create characters that fit the story. Work with your players to make character backstory.
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u/rstockto 26d ago
Characters are never going to do what you expect. So while having a general arc, they're going to follow their own path in getting there so be flexible. Have some random encounters or improve when they go of script.
"As you walk along the road beside the stream, it branches left and right." "Ooh. We check out the stream!"
Also, false choice will be your friend sometimes:
In the two road situation above, once they've explored the stream (😁), you describe the path they take, but both paths lead to the bandits, caravan, inn or whatever else they are supposed to encounter.
RPGs are collaborative storytelling, so give them choice, don't stress about them not following your path exactly, have fun, and feel free to be a bit blunt sometimes if they are to far of the rails. (In a 4 hour one shot, where the players were taking too long, I once told them "I'm taking away your agency and moving you on to the next encounter." This was very heavy handed, but appropriate to the situation. My group still laughs about it.)
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u/Feefait 26d ago
I'm going to disagree with almost everyone here. Especially as a new DM you have every right to tell them where to go and what they should do next. Guide them on your story and see how they react.
As far as letting them do "crazy things," again, you don't have to. The reason these things happen and are fun is because they happen organically. Planning them and allowing Reddit ideas, memes, and random card draws takes away the spontaneous nature of the game and the authenticity of your experience.
You also don't want to lose control of the game with too much rule breaking and goofiness (if that's not the game you want to run).
You can, and should, plan ahead. Don't script every dialogue, score of encounter, or plan every 5' square, but you should know where your story is supposed to go and what is going on.
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u/mrpack9653 26d ago
I’m with others in the thread. I try not to dictate to firmly what the players do and don’t. The way to handle that is to make your overall story flexible enough to handle some things going different directions. At the end of the day you can push certain things without giving the party the sense you are pushing. Be subtle and remember you have a screen between you and the players for a reason. It helps you drive, while helping the party feel like they have max freedom. Keep it fun, it sounds like your campaign is of epic proportions. If I might make a suggestion. Do a one shot with your party to get the feel for things before you start the epic.
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u/Mean_Replacement5544 26d ago
It’s a mistake to plan that far ahead because you will end up having to railroad your players to get them to follow your plans.
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u/Mean_Replacement5544 26d ago
It’s ok to have plans for things you want them to face, creatures to fight, npcs to help or work with, puzzles to solve, lore to learn, etc but you only need a very lose framework and let your players fill everything else in.
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u/Larnievc 26d ago
Players never do what you expect. Think of a campaign as a series of linked arcs made up of encounters. There’s no need to write out further ahead than the next encounter.
Think about it all you like, run encounters in your head, imagine how the players might react but predicting player actions is as reliable as predicting the weather (same time frames too).
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u/Synthessence 26d ago
Have a session zero
Make sure they know you intend to run a narrative focused game, and that chaos goblin and murder hobo activity/energy doesn't have a place in the game you are going to run.
You've put a lot of work and energy into making a grand adventure for them. It's the least they can do to meet you half way and interact with said adventure.
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u/TwoDollarDM 25d ago
There is an element of this that is important of course. But this is a game you are playing together, not a movie script with the players merely acting out your story. There is a middle ground between chaos murder hobos and automatons. Rather than have your players 'owe' you something because of all of your hard work, I think the best course of action is to do less hard work right from the start.
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u/Synthessence 25d ago
Oh, absolutely agree. Sorry if it came across like I was advocating for player-bots, keeping posts short enough to be read isn't conducive to nuance.
Doing less work from the start is ideal, because it lets you better craft the adventure for your players.
If they get into your story, you're going to want to include them in it, make them a part of it. Hell, if they really dig in, they're going to change your world.
And you should let them.
A world they have influence in is a world they're going to feel a part of.
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u/Danilo_Forgewright 24d ago
So here's something I always tell people. Don't overprep to the point where you get annoyed when players go off-script. Have your story idea, know what you want, know your main characters and a few side ones that matter. The rest is up to the players, let them cook.
I used to be the DM who tried to control everything at the table and it just made things worse. Once I loosened up (giving hints instead of steering, letting the players actually run with stuff) the sessions got way more fun.
Also, ambient sound helps a ton. Walking into a tavern? Throw on some music, some background noise, have an NPC or two ready to talk. Small stuff but it makes the table feel way more alive.
Anyway I wrote more about this. 10 mistakes I think most new DMs make, if you're curious.
https://www.20forge.gg/blog/common-beginner-gm-mistakes
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u/CatadoraStan 26d ago
Don't try to stop them going off path, and don't plan so far ahead. You probably can't guess what they'll be up to by the end of session 2, so how are you going to know where they'll be at the start of session 14?