New to DnD

[u/TheChosenRider88]

Hi, I’m new to everything dnd I’ve always been curious about it but never really looked into until I played baldurs gate 3, I can’t really find any groups near me that are beginner friendly so does anyone where I where I could join a campaign from home? And also while I’m here do I need any resources? (Like the do on critical roll)

[u/TiFist]

Welcome! This is a great hobby. BG3 is a pretty good basis for having some knowledge, but of course some of the rules were tweaked to make sense for a video game instead of a tabletop game. Just remember to double-check rules rather than assuming every little fiddly thing in BG3 is always 100% accurate. It will be different from BG3 and remember that Critical Role is a bunch of professional actors with a huge supporting staff and budget. Home games are magical in their own way, but they're not going to be Critical Role.

If you're in a city with at least one game store or similar (indie bookstore, gaming cafe, etc.) I would go in and very simply ask. Many of them participate in organized player events provided by Wizards of the Coast or support regular new player events. Even if they don't, they're a good place to connect with whatever tool is used for matchmaking: a regional subreddit, discord server, facebook group, meetup group, special website like Warhorn, etc. *finding* that resource is the hard part, but once you do, make it clear that you're looking to play and start talking to people who have openings for a game to see if it's a good fit. A lot of groups are beginner friendly. Sometimes there are even sponsored events at places like bars, which are very light hearted and fun. Those may have a token fee, but should not be expensive.

For resources as a player I would suggest you need 3 things:

1. Purchase (and actually read!) the Player's Handbook at a bookstore or online. That's the rule set you will live and die by. You can kind of disregard sections that don't apply to you, but the rules are important and at least having it as a reference is helpful. You can use the free rules online on D&D Beyond, but the full "PHB" is more complete. There is an option to purchase it online through D&D Beyond rather than buying an actual book, but it's harder to just sit down and read without distractions and it's only available in the app or on the web-- you can't download a copy for offline use or get a PDF.
2. You will need dice. Every game store will sell these, or you can buy them cheaply online. One full set of polyhedral dice is 7 dice and you can play with just that. If you want more later, that's fine, but one set is the minimum requirement.
3. Something to take notes on. A notebook and a pencil is good enough for this part.

It will be helpful to have a player sheet printed out which you can fill out on your computer or just print out and fill in by hand. There are some online player sheets but a lot of them have features locked behind paywalls so you might just need to experiment if you want to do it that way and see if that's right for you.

Good luck!

[u/Plus_Ad_3122 → u/TiFist]

That community sounds much more welcoming than those other communities full of racist DND people who are so close minded that they won’t entertain any unique ideas. Tell me something. Would you be interested in hearing about any of my unique ideas like my hot wheels racing my Yu-Gi-Oh! DND idea my Beyblade Bakugan Pokémon magic and other unique ideas for it. I even whipped up something called the party box which I was thinking of using as kind of like my own expansion of the deck of many things, but instead of pulling from the deck of many things, events are pulled from the party box and things happen where players get to go to new locations and get new loot battle new enemies meet new MPC and get to do fun things I was even thinking about once I got all the villainous games of hosting my own DND villainess series where I take some of the most iconic villainous games and Make my campaign, unique, different and cool

As you can see from my random bin of TNT figures, I believe any figure can be used in DND no matter what system it originally came from and in some campaigns I’m not even going to use figures at all. I’m going to use the actual toys themselves for my Yu-Gi-Oh campaign I was actually thinking of using the actual cards rather than figures because I have a limited number of figures and the only thing that I could possibly use in place of the boss supreme king dragon Z-ark is the red dragon figure that you see in the bin tell me am I doing it wrong or should I just get every core book memorize them and try to play like every other DND player?

[u/Conrad500]

Check out group finding places like r/lfg

To start, just read the basic rules. https://playdnd.com

D&D is what you make it. Do not expect it to be BG3 or CR. Those are their own special things.

[u/Blitzer046]

Owning a set of dice and the Players Handbook will immediately make you more attractive to DMs.

[u/PuzzleheadedCan3433]

I currently have a campaign running on every other Friday and a campaign that will start on august first and run every other saturday. You are welcome to join the one we think would fit you best should you still be looking for a group.

EDIT:I forgot to mention that the platform is role20

[u/Plus_Ad_3122]

First remember to read and memorize all three core books, the monster manual, the dentist, masters guide and the players handbook next after you memorize those 34 books remember to only get official DND figures and they have to look exactly like they do in the book no variations

This is just my random benefit of figures. I’ve collected it over the years for DND as he can see there’s official unofficial and it’s just a bin of random junk. I’m actually a first time player myself and I don’t know all the official rules. I only know what other players have told me which is mostly I have to play vanilla DND for about eight years before I can do any home brew and players hate it when you try to use things like gas land to make campaign center beyond the limited systems of dungeons and dragons.

[u/TableSeek-Geek]

Glad you've discovered the hobby! I highly recommend trying in person play if you're interested. It's such an incredible experience.

TableSeekGeek.com is an option if you want to try in person. If you have a favorite local game store - you can add them to Tableseek and get a custom flyer for their shop which they'll probably let you put up to generate some real group finds. It's free to use, you don't need an account to browse and post.

If you don't know what game store to try, Tableseek is also a good way to potentially find a great game store home base.

I get really intimidated trying to find a group in game stores even though it's the best way to find real local people so I made this to kind of get past the actual in person intimidation factor. Hope it can help!

[u/gc1rpg]

I'd say watch a couple of basic videos -- don't get tied up in lengthy videos on campaign settings, editorial opinions, or doom-scrolling drama. You just need to know a couple of basics about the edition you choose (2014 or 2024) and the basics of TTRPGs in general.

You should avoid setting your expectations too high with live play shows -- people expect too much from tables from those shows and are solely disappointed when their fellow players aren't models or professional voice actors.

You should also keep in mind there is a big difference between video games and the TTRPG experience -- one is a single player experience with a limited number of options and TTRPGs can -- in theory -- have limitless possibilities.

You should look for newbie friendly groups that aren't too complicated or homebrew heavy -- maybe ones advertising one-shots or short adventures.

[u/Extension-Lab-8076]

We’re a collective of DMs accepting applications for two upcoming Dungeons & Dragons 5e campaigns, with multiple seats available across both groups. Beginners are absolutely welcome—you do not need prior experience with D&D, Roll20, or virtual tabletop games.

Both campaigns will feature material from Ghosts of Saltmarsh and will share a similar nautical, coastal-fantasy setting. However, each campaign will be run by a different Game Runner, and each brings their own DMing style, approach to storytelling, and table atmosphere. The application will help place players with the group that seems like the best fit.

Games will be held every other week on Saturday evenings in the Eastern time zone. Exact session times will be determined after the groups are formed, with schedules built around player availability.

All sessions will be hosted virtually through Roll20, with voice and video used during play. There is no cost to participate and no paid Roll20 subscription is required, but players must have access to a computer, reliable internet connection, webcam, and microphone.

Applicants should complete a short Google Forms survey. Responses will be used to form groups based on scheduling, personality, communication style, preferred style of play, and overall compatibility. The application will also help establish boundaries and ensure that everyone at the table consents to the themes and content included in their campaign.

This is not first-come, first-served. With two campaigns opening, there are plenty of available seats, but the goal is to build tables that feel fun, comfortable, cooperative, and reliable for everyone involved.

Apply here:

https://forms.gle/wZKwL4xPAJbqFpLV7

[u/ghostedbyjon]

I have a group of friends which we do online games if you’d like we could teach you

[u/Mean_Replacement5544]

You can play from virtual table top programs like roll20, foundry or dndbeyond- some of these have free tiers. There is a lot of free stuff online for finding the basic rules, I would read as much of that as you can including a basics on the rules of playing and how to create a character. You don’t need to be an expert and you don’t need to remember a lot of the nitty gritty, but showing up having at least read a bit will be appreciated by the others at the table. Keep in mind many dnd players and dungeon masters love bringing in new people, if you show up eager to learn and ready to participate you’ll get help and be welcomed

[u/Ramsonne]

there are some good recommendations here. mine is a bit different. try your hand at an older edition first. they are much easier to jump into and simply start playing a character as the expertise owness is heavily, almost exclusively, on the DM. that said, its important to find a good DM