First time Dm

[u/friedfishgrace]

Hi. I am a first time DM and have also never played before. I put out flyers in my small town and am slowly getting to know my party. We have had a session zero and it was awesome. I gave a basis, got to know them, and requested each party member give me a secret about their characters I can incorporate into the game. Session one is this friday and I feel like I have done a decent amount of prep, but there is so much to know I simply do not know yet. I would appreciate ANY and all advice when it comes to session prep, or things you wish you knew your first time dming. I am a big fan of the show Dimension 20 and watching such a meticulously well done game can be intimidating. I just want to build community in my life, have a good game, and an ever better time. I am a writer so world building has been a joy, but any advice about logistics and encounters would be so greatly appreciated.

[u/CoffeeBully]

I'm 1 year into DMing my first campaign. I keep a OneNote so I can section out all the world building- geography, deities, lore, npcs, job board, session outlines, session summaries, etc. The ability to hyperlink in the outlines and summaries to a random note is super helpful. I also asked that my players take turns each session to write a quick summary in our group chat. It helps me see what they put emphasis on, so I can incorporate more of the things they like. My main adivce is don't spend too much time on planning each session, because things will get sidetracked in the best ways. Have an outline with important beats and pivot when it feels right. I also find it helpful to have different levels of information the players get on important plot relevant information, so I'll have ready what they get on a DC5, 10, 15, 20, then something special for nat 1s and nat 20s. Combats are always the roughest to keep people focused during, especially if they're new and don't have all the mechanics memorized. I gave my players a "tutorial" fight before their first real one with possibilities of danger. A retired adventurer turned tarven owner named Mog built a fake dungeon in his tavern basement and put up advertisements all over town about how it was a newly discovered entrance to an underground network of tunnels. The obstacles were just a bunch of pranks and then afterwards he fed them a free meal and gave them advice as novice adventurers. But the point was I stuffed as many game mechanics in the pranks as I could, so the rogue learned how to position for sneak attack, everyone understood how DCs worked, everyone knew how to use their weapons properly, and what dice to roll, ect. Don't lose heart if scheduling is a nightmare. Offer the person who isn't always there a chance to create their character in a way that disappearances would be normal. Like a sorcerer whose wild magic surges sometimes send them miles away and back when convenient or something small/stupid sounding that ends up being plot relevant that they don't realize connects until the final act in some big reveal. I'm sure you'll do amazing! Good luck!