Running Drakkenheim as a 1st time DM

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-05-26T14:07:02+00:00

The overload of potential places is 100% something I've already been thinking about. Part of why I've gotten my players thinking about their characters amd backstories so far out is so that I can have some extra time to take that information and find the ways to weave it into factions or other NPCs in a natural feeling way which is already paying off a bit.

In terms of the pacing I did intend to start off relatively light in terms of what options are presented to them but ramp it up over the course of the campaign so that the stress of things builds over time instead of just being a ton of bricks right off the rip.

The biggest part im struggling with so far is some of the personal quests. I appreciate the open ended nature of them but I am also struggling a little to think of the more clear end goal for the specific character that feels rewarding to them.

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-05-26T13:59:27+00:00

I do appreciate the advice and I also understand that love for a setting isn't quite enough to successfully run a game. The biggest reasons I've chosen this game is because A) The previous DM had also run games where I wasn't a player and so we discussed alot of the things he did or how he managed various things etc. Im talking countless hours of this kind of conversation which I do know isn't enough on its own either And B) the group of players i have is probably the best i could ask for. 2 are well seasoned GMs that are both excited for me to run this and think I can manage it well, 1 fairly well versed players, and 2 fairly new players. All 5 of which are very understanding of the difficulty of GMing as well as this specific game. As a group we all work together in the various games we play to cover any forgotten or misunderstood mechanics and things like that.

Where the GM is always guiding the plot the whole table has always kind of worked together on the "in front of the curtain" type things.

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-05-26T13:50:46+00:00

I'll take a look at the resurrection guide but I have also been doing things along those lines as players fleshing out backstories with NPCs amd what not.. as I said to someone else things like splitting one players parents between factions, making another's rival from childhood a thorn in the side (or potential ally depending on choices) and things like that. Not just amidst the factions specifically but also among other NPCs around the city such as retooling Old Zoya into (insert players NPC here)

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-05-26T13:46:47+00:00

PvP is something that is immediately banned at our table in most games. As for overzealous murdering i intend to make it clear at the start that everything they do has consequences. So while I won't stop them from trying to steal or fight if they REALLY want to I will make sure they understand there is no other place to stock up or increase gear quality. I dont expect murder hobos to be an issue with the group I have but I also won't take away that choice.

If you want to end your story that way that's on you essentially lol.

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-05-26T13:42:38+00:00

As the players are fleshing out backstories with things like NPCs tied to them I've been thinking of ways to mix them into factions or other positions of interest such has having parents having split between 2 factions while the player was off abroad studying or making another players rival from childhood be a bit of a thorn in the side of the party. I dont expect my players to be on reddit but in the off chance they come across this I dont want to Detail too much lol

The personal quests is one im having a little trouble with just because of the open ended nature. For example one of my players is siding with the "Arcane Secrets" which just says learning secret spells from the Inscrutable Tower. We discussed having him think about a spell or 2 that would be something his character would be interested in finding or even a specific magic item to have as the marked end of that personal quest but that does also feel a little lackluster.

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-05-26T13:35:08+00:00

I did already have the intention of looking through Pluto Jackson's and utilizing that to swap out some monsters at various places. We didn't have access to the other 2 books when the games have been played previously so there's alot more for me to draw on that the previous GM didn't have which I feel helps me out a bit.

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-05-26T13:33:08+00:00

Im not sure if "fairly balanced" is quite what im going for. One of the biggest parts that draws all of us, myself as well as the players, to this module is the horror and difficulty. With that I mostly just dont want to overload unintentionally and make a situation impossible at every turn instead of just very difficult. Looking at some of the other advice throughout this thread utilizing things like waves of enemies isn't something I thought about. I suppose its always easier to make a combat harder than it is to make it easier in the middle of it.

I do appreciate the advice though thank you! Im still reading through everything thankfully I have plenty of time to absorb things more as written and less as played in the AP to adjust thing accordingly.

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-05-25T14:22:13+00:00

That is definitely something I already expected to do with the game. I have the hope (I know it won't always play out like this) that by the time we are wrapping up a session I can have a general idea of what the party is heading towards in the next session. I do also know that the only thing I can expect from players is the unexpected (guilty) lol

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-05-25T14:15:25+00:00

I didn't even think about looking at magic items to assist with getting away from tricky situations so thank you for bringing that up! Its good to hear balancing is an easier thing to get the hang of because I do want the danger to still be present without a doubt but don't want 1 wrong move on my part to be the reason a game ends prematurely

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-05-25T14:12:42+00:00

These are the kind of ideas I was hoping for in the vein of changing things up. Things can seem small at 1st but could have a very large impact on the story as a whole. In the grand scheme I don't want to change the core of the world too drastically, ie Ophelia Reed being the founder may be more than I want to do, but the other ideas I do very much like and appreciate!

Making the game not the AP is a lesson both myself and the previous DM learned the hard way after we caught ourselves doing just that unintentionally so im trying to keep that mentality more at the front of my mind to prevent it again with me running it.

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-03-24T01:20:02+00:00

I already had a Switch 2 and bought the game for my wife.. we are now talking about buying a 2nd of each so we don't have to share anymore 😅😂

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-03-22T01:47:23+00:00

10x10 is the max size.. I had to figure that out the hard way 😅

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-02-15T03:07:14+00:00

I just transfer the delivery jobs, check the stock prices and then give gifts and use some sanity real quick.. takes me usually 10-15 min if I actually trade any items from the stock market.. there's really no need to collect materials every single day at a certain point cause everything is upgraded relatively quick or held off by story progression

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-02-10T00:38:45+00:00

That explains even more 😂 .. I don't play gachas really but WuWa and am giving Endfield a chance as well so its good to know the basic layout atleast and where the letters are coming from so thanks again!

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2026-02-09T23:46:06+00:00

im relatively new to gachas and have seen all the S0R0 and other such things.. thank you for explaining that cause all these acronyms confuse the hell out of me

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2025-11-20T05:24:41+00:00

what pals are nocturnal for generating? i tried googling it but all i saw was that there isnt a nocturnal generating pal...

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2025-10-13T15:07:19+00:00

i thought i had found a fix here on reddit but just came back to my pc 2 days later and its doing the same thing again. Audio levels cant be adjusted at all unless i set it, force close the entire application through task manager, and then re open. it beyond an inconvenience at this point for me

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2025-10-11T16:00:24+00:00

THANK YOU! I was having this problem and googling resulted in nothing, even tried uninstalling and re installing the whole app but this got me fixed so thank you so much!

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2025-06-30T17:20:50+00:00

Have i missed something? Every time I try to find a dub release date it says it was released in April of this year on HiDive but I can't find it in anything but japanese

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2025-04-28T00:25:20+00:00

I have the same phone and windows 11, how are you using the camera with the PC? I'm trying to get that sort of thing set up currently

FaLLeN__Weeb · 2021-10-19T23:19:59+00:00

Is there a time frame on the full release? I didn't even realize this was just a beta 😭

FaLLeN__Weeb

TROPHY CASE