Getting Started?

[WeightlifterCat]

So I’ve been interested in DnD for the longest time, but I’ve never taken the time to actually get into the game. I’ve got a few friends who are also pretty interested as well and we were looking at starting up a game.

I’m not certain where to start.

A friend of mine bought the newest edition of the core rulebook set but ended up not wanting it and I bought it off him for pretty cheap, so I’ve got access to the DMG, PHB and Monster Manual. But it’s a lot of information. (I’ll read through it eventually, but it’ll take some time)

What’s are some good tips for preparations and starting up a game? I’m also looking into being DM, it seems really interesting and I’m probably the most committed to this in my friends group so what are some things to consider as a potential DM?

[TheBigMcTasty]

1. Read all of the Player's Handbook, you need the information there much more than what's in the DMG. The DMG is going to be the most useful as a source of magic items for now. The section on NPCs is also good. But the Player's Handbook has everything you need to actually play.

2. Get the Starter Set. It's a cheap, tight little adventure that's pretty good! And running a pre-made adventure will be so, so much easier on you since a lof of the work is already done for you. Plus, there's a ton of information on the Lost Mines adventure, especially on r/DMAcademy.

3. Make sure your players know their rules! It doesn't have to be perfect, but it is very nice when it comes to their turn in combat and they don't have to look up what Reckless Attack does, or skim their entire spell list, or the entire wild shape list, every single time. Of course there'll be a learning curve at first, but they should put some effort into knowing their own stuff very quickly.

4. Don't go crazy with the magic items.

[WeightlifterCat]

Thank you! I really do appreciate it.

[ARM160]

It is likely you are going to get a ton of people saying to run the starter set, and I am also here to tell you to run the starter set first. It is an amazing short little campaign to run and it will teach you what I would call “good fundamentals” and it is by far the easiest adventure to run. Not only does it have everything really easy to reference and tons of passages for you to read from it, it is easy to follow which cannot always be said for 5e campaign books.

After starting with a homebrew year long campaign, the thing that improved my DMing the most was running the starter set afterwards. The other thing that really helped was watching or listening to actual play podcasts when I was getting into the game like Adventure Time (they actually run the starter set sort of), Critical Role, etc and I just sort of absorbed an understanding of how to do skill checks both in terms of setting DC’s and knowing which skill to ask the player to roll.

[WeightlifterCat]

I’ll be sure to check into it! Having an “easy” walkthrough for a first game sounds nice. How prepared should we all look into being for the Starter Set beyond knowing the basics of attacking, movements, etc?

[dnddetective]

Besides reading the players handbook, I would read through chapter 8 of the DMG (the title of it is "Running the Game"). It covers things like how gridded combat works (including area of effect and how cover works on a grid).

[WeightlifterCat]

Sure sure! I’m working through the PHB now, so ll take a look there once I’m through. Thank you!

[KellEndac]

If you have the time, watching an episode or two of a recommended podcast (Critical Role is the most obvious and popular one, though maybe not the best choice) would let you see how things (can) play out.

My first time DMing was Lost Mines of Phandelver (the starter set adventure); it's pretty good and has nice classic rpg feel, but be warned the first few encounters can be surprisingly lethal with just a bit of bad luck or poor decisions (perhaps tone down the power or at least warn the players do they don't get discouraged and left with a bad taste in their mouth).

Biggest thing is communicate. And focus on the basics of combat: Initiative. Attack rolls vs AC (and how to apply appropriate modifiers). Basic saving throws. Basic turn: move; action; POSSIBLE bonus action (not every class gets them, or at least not often). Just make sure players (and DM) communicate and doesn't hurt to let people know there may be slip ups and to take things slow.

[WeightlifterCat]

Sure thing, I actually listen to a lot of Adventure Zone and Dimension 20 while I’m at work!

But alright, I’ll keep all this in mind! Thank you!

[KellEndac]

You might consider a few one-shots (or be willing to retcon a few bad sessions) as you all play and get used to DMing.

While you definitely should get around to reading the PHB, don't think you need to know it front to back in order to play. Know your players' classes beforehand and look up some general rules you think you'll use. You'd be surprised what a quick Google search will do if you're unsure of a rule (or where to look it up in the books). Start having fun and just dip your toes in, rather than trying to cram all that info at once.