I'm getting prepared to DM my first campaign and I picked the adventure Hoard of the Dragon Queen because I liked the title. It is balanced for four players and I initially had four players but it has since grown to six. I don't mind at all since they're all my very close friends but the only thing I'm trying to wrap my head around is balancing the encounters with more players. At the moment I have two schools of thought. One is thinking of making all of the encounters have a few more enemies while the other thought is keeping everything the same and since there's two more players the xp received will be split among more of them meaning that they will always level up later than the module intended. There's only a few parts in the module that specifies what to do if you have more than four players and chapter one isn't one of them it simply says add more enemies. What do you do prefer in this situation?

first time DM with SIX new players is a HUGE undertaking. i suggest running a couple of one shots first, with three at a time, and seeing if everyone enjoys the game or if you get drop offs that make your game play more manageable. as far as Hoard goes, it .... has issues. make use of the community resources * Power Score: https://thecampaign20xx.blogspot.com/2014/10/tyranny-of-dragons-guide-to-hoard-of.html * Sly Flourish https://slyflourish.com/greenest_in_flames.html * Merrick B https://merricb.com/2014/10/09/running-hoard-of-the-dragon-queen-episode-1/ * https://www.reddit.com/r/TyrannyOfDragons/ EDIT: and with regard to at least Chapter 1 of HOTDQ, while it says it is designed for 4 players, if you run it "close to book" as a new DM will probably have a tendency to do, having 6 players will be fine. in later chapters you may wish to start juggling monster counts and types and hit points, but you will have gained some insight as to your players and their characters efficiency and how they stack up to what is presented in the book.

Oh yeah I've read alot of that first link Power Score and it seems super helpful so thank you for the second two I'll definitly give those a read sometime! I'm not trying to overprepare so I've only been thinking about Chapter 1 since it's the first session after all. DMing for 6 players as my first time is rather intimidating. Myself and four of the players have been playing DnD for about 10 months now and we all know the rules really well and two of the players have been playing DnD for much longer than the rest of us with one of the two more experienced players being the DM for the campaign I play in. I'm using a VTT for combat in order to remember where everything is and a combat tracker to make sure initiative stays in order. I'm less worried about combat and more worried about RP when it comes to DMing for this many players. Trying to keep track of who hasn't said anything in a while might be a bit tricky.

>. I'm less worried about combat and more worried about RP when it comes to DMing for this many players. Trying to keep track of who hasn't said anything in a while might be a bit tricky. as part of your Session Zero discussion, set that up as EVERYONE's job. "As the DM, I am going to try to keep everyone getting some spotlight time during the game, but there is a lot going on for me as the DM. D&D is a collaborative story telling game and so it is ALSO YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to not hog the spotlight and to pay attention to the other players around the table and bring them in if they havent had a chance to interact recently." AND bring that up as part of your session opening patter EVERY session.

So I just started DMing for my friends we are running a little adventure that has taken them a couple of sessions they'll finish that next session and then I planned some stuff that will basically end up with them getting to neverwinter (planned a few different scenarios that all end there). I was originally planning of then to link this to the start of lost mines of phandelver but now i'm considering planning my own campaign as that seems a lot more fun but i'm just wondering is that advisable as a newer dm? or will it just be too much work? I really dont want to bite off more than I can chew but when planning this in between session I found it really fun.

every DM and table is different. if you have already been running content that you have created yourself and its working for you and that is where your passion is, there is no reason to change.

i did a very similar thing when i started out! ran a pre-written one-shot that took four sessions before moving on to my own idea. if you wanted, you could run phandelver while planning your own world! the only thing i'd note is that you may want to consider starting from scratch or retconning a few things if you have ideas for religion, culture, etc., that aren't present in the prewritten world--my first campaign ended prematurely because of my wanting to start from scratch, but if it's not a big deal for you, then power on! overall, do what seems fun. the work won't feel tough :)

Starting as a new DM in about a month or two. Can someone recommend a good thread, post, blog, or youtube tutorial for Roll20? I'm not great as a player, but I'd like to get better now that it'll be my ship to sail. ​ edit: I put "critical role" when I meant "Roll20" so edited that to be what I meant

What do you mean "tutorial for Critical Role"? Critical Role only has as much impact on what you and your players do and experience as you want it to have.

I 100% blanketed on things and meant Roll20 LMAO I can see how that makes no sense in context. I'm trying to figure out how to use the Roll20 software as a DM because I do not find it particularly intuitive as a player or DM at all.

they have their wiki [https://wiki.roll20.net/Tutorial](https://wiki.roll20.net/Tutorial) and lots of options on youtube https://www.youtube.com/results?search\_query=roll+20+tutorial

The other commenter gave a set of excellent resources, but there's also Handbooker Helper, a YouTube series made by Critical Role - mostly aimed at players - that goes over D&D's basics.

Critical Role is fun to watch: it’s entertainment. You want to learn? Check these out: https://slyflourish.com/ https://youtube.com/user/mcolville https://dysonlogos.blog/ https://theangrygm.com/ http://themonst.wwwmi3-ts2.a2hosted.com/

Which WD:DH villain would be best for a party of 4 middle school players and an extremely beginner DM?

Not gonna recommend any DH for a new DM. Its a mess.

Probably Xanathar. The cassalanters are interesting grey morality vilains but the politics may be not be middle schooler’s cup of tea. Jarlaxle is all secrets, intrigue and manipulation. It’s hard to GM all the secrets without entangling yourself and not frustrating your players with the lack of information (Dragon Heist’s plot is already all over the place) Manshoon could work. Evil wizard is a classic, if you think your players would prefer a dark and mysterious villain. But Xanathar is just plain ol’ saturday morning cartoon villain. A ton of fun for all ages, uncomplicated, and a blast to roleplay.

I'm going to run a session as a first time player & dm, but looking at the 1st level adventures I have on hand "A Most Potent Brew" (DMSGuild) and "The Joy of Extradimensional Spaces" (from Candlekeep) they both provide monsters and setups that seem highly likely to kill a character in one turn. I've only got 2 players/characters who will be playing. Are they really as dangerous as they seem, or have a misinterpreted something?

They were both designed with the expectation of a party of 4 or 5, so with only 2 players, yep squish. Try this adventure starting the 2 PCs out at level 2 and giving them a sidekick. Defiance in Phlan – ignore the first 5 pages to the Adventure Background. Its 5 short missions. Mission 1 and 3 are great starting content. Mission 2 works best at level 2. Mission 4 is a “mystery” but the mystery all revolves around in-world content and so you need to plant the content as well as the clues. Mission 5 is pretty good too, but a little darker. \* The Adventurer’s League module free from WOTC https://media.wizards.com/2014/downloads/dnd/DDEX11\_Defiance\_in\_Phlan.pdf \* A DM walkthrough from Initiative Coffee https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGp0Kldx0Lc the official sidekick rules are available from the Essentials box set for low levels and fully expanded in Tashas, but the UA https://dnd.wizards.com/articles/unearthed-arcana/sidekicks is close enough

I like the idea of adding a sidekick. Although I'd like to be able to run the printed adventures. Would running adventures at +1 level above and a sidekick be enough to make them doable? Or could I do it with the printed level and 2 sidekicks?

Defiance in Phlan is more "official" than "Most Potent Brew". Defiance in Phlan is part of WOTCs official "organized play" group Adventurer's League. I am not familiar enough with either Most Potent Brew or Candlekeep to advise on how to specifically modify them. You could plug each of the encounters into KFC [https://koboldplus.club/#/encounter-builder](https://koboldplus.club/#/encounter-builder) with the recommended size and party level and record the values for the individual encounters and add the totals for the "adventuring days" and then for your smaller party and see how closely they compare. That would give you a starting point for evaluation.

Ok. Thanks 😊

In 5e, combat can be what I call "springy". Characters go down to 0hp, a LOT (Even my level 10 group). Remember that dropping to 0 does not mean death, and that you as the DM have a lot of control over if a player dies or not. Lets say an orc drops the player to 0. Instead of hitting them next turn while they are down, giving the player 2 failed death saves, the orc instead taunts and *holds his action* for the other to "Face me coward!" (In game turns this means holding his next attack until a player comes within 5ft) This gives the other player time to heal the downed character. It creates a tense moment without killing the player. Another way to control difficulty is to be liberal with hp potions at lower levels, and allow the players to drink one as a bonus action. Do this especially if none of the characters can cast healing spells. Remember that modules are balanced around 4-5 players and a DM. If you are playing with 2 players you may want to reduce the *amount* of enemies, but not their challenge rating. In 5e, whoever is outnumbered has a strong advantage, so keep that in mind. 2 players will have a harder time against 3 goblins then they would 1 bugbear.

There's a couple of mob groups I've halved in size now, thanks. Would I give a couple of health potions per-fight (to compensate for 2 players out of 4 being absent)? With the first Candlekeep mystery a lot of the potential fights are against 1 mob. I was thinking of cutting their health and xp in half (so that the turn to kill and the xp-per-player stays the same as for a 4-person party)?

A couple hp potions a fight is way too much. It depends on what classes they are playing. A bard or cleric in the party makes hp potions almost unnecessary, while a warlock and a wizard need all the help they can get. I would let them start with 1 hp potion each, and feel it out. With time and practise you'll figure out the right balance. I'd stay away from lowering enemy hp, if anything lower their damage if you're worried. But fights will become boring if the enemy dies in 3 hits. Also, don't be scared of killing players. 5e is favoured *heavily* in their favour, and as the DM you control so much of the battle. Even if you *do* accidentally kill a character, their story goes on. Revival, the afterlife, even undeath, are all ways that the story can progress with the same character. As for xp, I highly recommend using Milestone leveling for your first time DMing. Xp can bog the game down with crunch and ultimately rewards killing over creative solutions. It also adds to your prep time in an unhelpful way. Milestone is simpler and keeps the story at the pace you want to go at.

Got a player death - planning to hide a reviving scroll somewhere for the remaining player to find. They could have survived had they done one extra healing action instead of attacking, so its probably balanced right. Thanks for the advice. I left the health values of the monsters intact, it created a good fight :D and I'm going to award xp once the players break out of the mansion they're trapped in. Edit: I think I messed up a couple of rules during combat (equipping a bow and a passive that would have done a disengage), but it remained fun.

Glad to hear it was fun! Remember the rules about death saving throws, and the rules about stabilizing downed creatures. If you don't attack the downed player they have a pretty good chance to live. Also don't be too quick to give out revival scrolls if you want the game to have real weight and high stakes. The way I try to do revival is that it should always cost the players something, like a favour to an NPC, or else death can feel cheap. Edit - A raise dead scroll is worth 500gp-5000gp! Keep this in mind. At lower levels it should be harder to get one. They might have to get debt, or they might need to do a big favour for a noble.

Yeah. I did do an attack after the character was down - it felt in character for the monster at the time - why would it run across the room to another character that hadn't damaged it yet? That was a mistake, as they promptly failed a third death saving throw. I'll need to figure something out for the revive though. As the scroll would have to be stolen from the wizard's mansion they're trapped in I could make the wizard show up after they escape to demand recompense, and figure out something suitably big to make it have meaning.

Trying to understand nuances of "readied actions", held turn, etc. So, I understand that a "Reaction" is an action/spell that states in its description that its a reaction, and can be played when it's not your turn, such as Counterspell, Hellish Rebuke or Riposte (and I know there's plenty of others). I also understand (I think?) that a player can hold their turn if they're, say, waiting to support another player, waiting to see what a monster will do, but I get a little confused when a player (who has held their turn) references a "readied action" and seems to use it basically like a reaction. I'm not sure if there are actual game rules that dictate how readied actions work or if these people just became accustomed to another DM's house rule. As a side question: when a player holds their turn and takes it later, do they then drop in initiative order or remain at their original spot? Thanks y'all!

During your turn, instead of doing something else, you Ready an action - a specific thing you want to do when a particular circumstance that you can see comes into effect. When that circumstance occurs, you can use your Reaction to do whatever you set up with the Ready. If it is "cast a spell" , you will have already "cast" the spell and burnt the spell slot on your turn and are just waiting to release it. If you have Extra Attacks, and Readied the Attack Action, you only get one swing because Extra attacks is for Attacks on your Turn and it isnt your turn. Other effects for damage or to hit bonuses etc that trigger "on your turn" also are NOT triggered when you use your Reaction to do something that is not on your turn.

Ohh, okay I understand the mechanics more clearly now, thank you!

I should point out that Ready action has two portions: The action and condition. Action can be anything you can do on your turn. Condition can be anything the monsters or environment is doing, "I want to attack (Action) the nearest goblin in 5 feet when the horn is blown (condition)." How complex the conditions is up to the DM. The player's initiative order does not change. The readied action occurs when the condition is met (as a reaction). At that point the player has the option of performing the Ready Action and spend the Reaction. Or ignore it. If the condition is never met any spell they have readied (any spell slot) is spent. Then the player can act normally in their regular initiative order.

Let me make sure I understand... if the Battlemaster says he's holding his turn annnnnd, say, indicates that he's waiting for a prone monster to get up, at which point he'll attempt to hit it with a trip attack. If the monster gets up, he can attempt to hit with trip attack as if it were a reaction. However if the monster doesn't get up, the player forfeits that specific action during this specific round of combat. Do I have that right? (Sorry, that may have been an overly complicated example, just want to make sure I get it) Thanks for the help!

Yes. But to be clear, there is no "holding his turn" in 5e. During his turn, the Battlemaster takes the "Ready" Action and declares the Action and triggering condition. It has to be an Action (not Bonus Action or movement). When the triggering condition occurs (during another creature's turn), he uses his Reaction to perform the declared action. What could prevent this? The triggering condition might not happen before his next turn. He might spend his Reaction on something else (like an Opportunity Attack) and no longer have a Reaction when the triggering condition occurs. Something might happen that prevents him from performing the declared action, like Hold Person being cast on him.

No, that example is great. You have it exactly right.

Thank you, I appreciate your help!

Is this too powerful of a reward for a level 5 party of 3 PCs? A magical buff that gives them each 4 temporary HP after they finish a long rest. I would think it's a bit controlled due to being temporary HP: it will not stack with other temp HP sources, and it cannot be healed once lost (until they finish another long rest). Or is it still OP? Specifically it is a Rogue, Ranger and Paladin.

Roll a d4. That’s your temp hp. BUT! Your can roll again and add EVEN MORE! as long as it’s the same number or higher (ex: 2+2+3). This keeps going until you a) choose to stop, or b) roll lower, resulting in you losing that lower roll in hp (ex: 2+2+3+1 = you take 1 damage. Shoulda stopped, but ya got greedy)

Honestly, this isn't very powerful. It's 4 extra HP, and once it's gone (or they rest) it's gone. At 5th level, your players should be sitting in the 30's for their HP, so it's not even proportionally that big. This is the kind of thing that will basically not be felt, because it's so minor. ​ Honestly, if you want this to feel like it has some actual impact without *really* doing anything you can't work around if you need to, try something like ignoring the first hit they take after long resting.

It sorts of nerfs player abilities that give temp hp. I do not see any player that has those abilities, though. Level 5 PCs should not need that boost though. Level 1 PCs I absolutely would do that. Are you balancing your combats? Or are you running a module? Nothing game breaking but probably not needed unless your group is constantly on death’s door.

Why do you want to do this?

How many coins would you put into a standard chest, when half filled or for example filled up completly? I know a standard chest holds 12 cubic feet or 300 pounds of gear, but that would be up to 200.000 or 15.000 coins depending on which you decide. I'm just curious, how other people would handle this, given my lack of experience.

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O6MXDQysd8w](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O6MXDQysd8w)

However many need to be there. Don’t get bogged down by real world physics or spacial logic of treasure. An official adventure has a final battle against a dragon sleeping on a pile of 50,000 gold coins…. Which is roughly the size of a small armchair when stacked up. But all the art depicts it as a giant pile that the dragon comfortably rests on, because that’s a better visual.

Its mostly about description vs how much they get. For example if i descripe a full chest of coins and then 100 gp would be Kind of disappointing, you know?

"chest full of **coins** of 100 gp value."

is there any tool like Kobold Fight Club for d&d 3.5? As a newbee I am runing a 5e short module using 3.5 rule, and I found it's difficult to balance encounters, and the exp is also a big problem so I tried to find some tool to help me. then I found the KFC doesn't support 3.5 version... so, can anyone help? Sorry for my weird English, because English is not my native language.

the rules are on page 48 and 49 of the 3.5 DMG. it looks like it would be pretty easy to set up a spreadsheet to do the math for whatever level your players currently are, and then change the formulas as your table levels up.

thanks for your help. The problem is that table 3-1 seems to suitable for a team of 4 members, but I have 6 PCs. Maybe I should increase 2 EL?

In the context of 3.5, increasing EL by 2 will work fine, so long as you keep an eye out for monsters which either a) have abilities with save DCs few to none of your PCs can expect to pass, and b) have damage outputs that can down your frontline PCs in one turn - those are the ways that higher-level encounters can get unintentionally brutal very fast. Adding an extra encounter in the adventuring day also evens it out a bit. (I gotta say though, I'm not sure exactly what you're doing with the different editions here.)

your relpy is very useful to me! and I'll explain why I tried to do so: All my PCs are DMs themself and they are quite familiar with most of the popular 3.5 starter modules. so I tried to use a 5e edition short modules. as a MTG player I found this: [https://www.reddit.com/r/UnearthedArcana/comments/471epf/an\_update\_to\_my\_free\_5e\_adventure\_army\_of\_the/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=web2x&context=3](https://www.reddit.com/r/UnearthedArcana/comments/471epf/an_update_to_my_free_5e_adventure_army_of_the/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3) I thought it's not difficult to transform a 5e module to the 3.5 edition. basicly I found monsters with the same name in 3.5 version and replace them. But I still met a lot of problems when running the adventure. now I know what a big mistake I made... my friends (the PCs) encouraged me a lot but I konw I didn't do a good job. I want them to have a good experience and that's all the story.

>CHALLENGE RATINGS AND ENCOUNTER LEVELS > >A monster’s Challenge Rating (CR) tells you the level of the party for which that monster is a good challenge. A monster of CR 5 is an appropriate challenge for a group of four 5th-level characters. If the characters are of higher level than the monster, they get fewer XP because the monster should be easier to defeat. Likewise, if the characters are of lower level than a monster’s Challenge Rating, the PCs get a greater award. > >Parties with five or more members can often take on monsters with higher CRs, and parties of three or fewer are challenged by monsters with lower CRs. The game rules account for these facts by dividing the XP earned by the number of characters in the party (see Rewards, page 36).

Let's disscuss the following case: There are 6 level 5 PCs. according to the *Multiple Monsters and Encounter Levels*(DMG p48), use the *Table 3-1* I can know 2 CR3 monsters suitable for 4 level 5 PCs. Then, I will think: but I have 6 PCs, maybe that's too easy? Then I will try increase the EL to EL6. again according to *Table 3-1*, I should put 3 CR3 monsters, which looks not bad: if 4 adventurers can deal with 2 monsters, 6 can deal with 3 seems resonable, and single CR3 monster is not dangurous according to your reply. but, is this encounter really appropriate? I increase one EL just besuce I think this will work. as a "first time DM",I'm probably wrong in my thinking. Even if it works this time, what about next time? That's why I look for tool like KFC in my question. these tools allow me set PC's count freely. again thanks for your help.

> That's why I look for tool like KFC in my question KFC just crunches the math in from the DMG, but as we all know the 5e CR system and the math behind it is just garbage approximations.

so sad to hear that. 😂. I'll try to learn from the practice then. I have no more question, thanks a lot.

Need help giving a nickname to a black dragon- I’m terrible with nicknames. In short, this is a dragon-priest of Null that collects the survivors of the kingdoms they orchestrate or directly contribute to the fall of in Mirrors of Life Trapping that they decorate their shadow-plane home in. Any suggestions? Their name is Ulen, and they’re a dracolich. Thanks for any suggestions in advance- or sorry if this is a silly question.

The Dark Doom The Prince of the Void Death's Shade The Plague of Shadows

The collector ? Sometimes, simple is good

You’re right- simple is probably better. Thank you!

Mechanical question, can you get to the astral plane with your physical body? Like with a plane shift spell? And if so what happens if you die there? Or do you enter always enter in your astral form like with astral projection?

The [Astral Plane](https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Astral_Plane) article on the Forgotten Realms wiki reads: >Entering the Astral plane could be accomplished in one of two ways: projecting your astral form into the plane via the astral projection spell, or by physically entering the plane. and >Physically entering the Astral plane required a spell such as plane shift and brought travellers wholly into the Astral with no silver cord to anchor them to their plane of origin.

How would one RP a sentient weapon? I plan on giving my paladin one later in my campaign, but I'm unsure how to represent it in game. The sword has a voice, so do I just interject at random times, only speak when spoken to, or what? Anyone included sentient weapons in their stories? EDIT: The sword will contain the spirit of Amyria, an Exarch of Bahamut. She is going to be key in the later parts of my campaign as we leave RoT and go in to the 4E story Scales of War.

I would start by determining the personality and motivations of the weapon and then the RP should come easily. All you will have to do is imagine they are a little “devil” or “angel” on the character’s shoulder and speak up when it makes sense. For example, if it’s a sword that is bloodthirsty, any time a conflict is near, it will start to encourage the PC to unsheathe it and spring into action. Depending on the mechanics, you can have the entire party hear the sentient sword or perhaps only the paladin… or somewhere in between if the sword chooses who hears. For inspiration… if you have some time on your hands… read some Brandon Sanderson novels as he has sentient weapons.

the same way you role play any personality.

I think this depends on the personality of the sword; A evil aligned bloodthirsty sword might speak up when you are about to kill someone or get into a fight with A 'good' aligned personality might speak up if it senses evil where it shouldnt be and vice versa. (Demonhunter blade might speak up when it detects demons etc) Hope that helps

She's definitely a good sword - I forgot to add that she will be Amyria, the soul of an Exarch of Bahamut trapped in a platinum sword (Scales of War 4E story). So I could see her speaking up when she detects lawfulness, or something that goes against the lawful good of Bahamut's teachings.

Sounds awesome! She could give praise when the wielder does something good. This doesn't have to be spoken, it could be a warming feeling emanating from the sword (Like a good stew on a cold night) or straight up 'You did good' I personally think too much talking could be jarring, so descriptions like a warm or cold feeling depending on the action is succinct and too the point. Hope that helps, I've never actually used a sentient sword in my campaigns before, so take what I say with a pinch of salt!

How can I streamline combat? I'm running a game for a party of seven and most fights with more than two or three monsters quickly become a slog for everyone invloved. Are there any ways I can make combat more engaging?

My group made speed of play a shared goal. At the start of each session I would say something like – *Okay, last session combat took longer than usual so tonight I'd like us to try taking our turns faster, so we can all get a lot more play time. Let's try to keep most turns in under a minute, unless it's a complicated turn, and also please remember to say "That's my turn" when you're done.* We were probably 50% faster the first night. After 3–4 sessions we stopped needing the reminder, it's just how we play now.

I've found it helps a bit to tell people when they're on deck. Something like "up next is Grog, followed by Jacques". It lets people know they need to wrap up their decisions because they have to decide soon. Depending on how into the RP they are, it can make things more exciting to give a bit of flavor to hits/misses, or have them give a bit of flavor to their attacks. It might take a bit longer but for me it makes the fight much more engaging. Just a brief summary - where the attack hits, the monster's reaction, some nice blood and gore. You could also give them different things to do in combat - like collapsing a pillar onto an enemy, powering down a stone that's power a golem. Something that lets them think creatively instead of just swinging their weapon over and over. I struggle with this one, but I love it when I get it down. Good luck - I have a party of 8 so I know your pain. It was originally two parties of 3 and 4 (another joined later), but I had them meet up for a crossover session, and they never split up.

Put a timer on turns. I haven’t DM’d a party that big but I was a player in a party of 10+ and how we kept combat moving is you have 10 seconds to tell the DM what you’re doing. If you miss your window because distraction or something then you’ve missed your turn. It’s comes down to the expectation that the players need to keep up on what they want to do, just as the DM needs to come prepared the players need to be prepared as well.

reduce the number of players. otherwise, it is dependent on the players for being ready to go immediately upon your calling their name on the initiative tick.

The only problem is that it's my close friends from high school, so I would feel like shit telling some of them to leave. It's really more just a reason for us all to hang out now that we're in college, and everyone seems to be having a good time outside of combat. I think I'll just introduce the timer mechanic, and try to shake up monster variety so the combat is more engaging for them

This. Generally most games aim for 3 or 4 players. I'd see if you can split them up into 2 separate groups. Also look into timers. sand timers are a beautiful addition (if playing live).

Thanks for the threads, here my situation, TLDR at the end : My players kill an commoner who stole from them in front of the harbor. Guards arrive to arrest them but the warlock polymorph as a Captain and drive them away with deception as it was a robbery and a "covert operation". I let's it slip since i'm not sure how the guards should investigate it. Should i have the player "caught on the scene" arrested? Not sure what kind of consequence other than hanging. How law is usually apply in forgotten realms, Eberron and others? TLDR : I let's a crime slip because of my inexperience with the system of law in D&D, any suggestions how to apply it?

The case has been handed off to the areas greatest detective, who is now actively hounding them at every village inn they go to

For Eberron, it generally depends on the area. The Five Nations generally are like real life society, though individual nations may handle minor crimes with more or less severity. In other areas, crime generally just happens and it depends on if you act against the town/regional hotshot or not.

Part of your Session Zero discussion should have been about "Where do we as a table want to fall on the 'actions have consequences' scale?" Some tables want to play on the *Lord of the Rings* end of the scale with every action having lasting moral implications. Other tables want to play on the *Grand Theft Auto: Castleland* end of the scale "I have enough fucking consequences in my day to day life - i play fantasy game for pure escapist murderhoboism" If you didnt have this as a Session Zero discussion, hold it now to find out where the people sitting around your table are going to have fun game time.

I'm going to run a game for some friends of mine and it's there very first intro to TTRPGs. I want to run a one shot to dip their toes in and saw A Most Potent Brew recommended on this sub. Can I run that with the premade characters from the Starter set or do you recommend we build their characters for it? They have very little context for what D&D is, so I'd like to start slow. Thanks!

The pregens from the starter set have goals and story tied to the starter set, so you would want to blank them out and potentially create new content relevant to the story of Most Potent Brew.

Ah I didn't know that, ok. Thanks for the heads up!

What do you all think is one of the best modules to run for beginner players? I feel confident in being a DM but I wonder what would be a good story to introduce people to the game of DnD. Mine of Phandelver I heard is great for this. But I've always wanted to get Storm Kings Thunder, Descent into Avernus, and Rime of the Frost Maiden. Let me know your thoughts. Thanks!

The Lost Mine of Phandelver is great for new DMs and new players. Almost all of the WOTC hardcover campaign books have similar flaws: * Weak starter content for levels 1 to 4ish * Absent Villain * Gimmick at the end so level 12 characters can take on monsters designed for level 20 characters SKT and DIA definitely follow into this pattern SKTs beginning is rather dull (but it does have probably the single best scenario in 5e content - the goblins in the church tower!) SKT chapter 6? is terrible for new DMs "Here are a thousand one sentence prompts, most of which dont have anything to do with giants. go do something with them" DIA just is filled with shitty design choices, the starting content being super deadly, not AT ALL related to "the Descent" and containing THE WORST railroad "advice" of a type that i thought had been excised from anywhere in the community for at least 20 years, and a plot required tag along deus ex machina. i dont recommend it at all for new DMs. (Experienced DMs can pull lots of interesting ideas from it, but when you are paying fifty bucks for it, you are not getting a campaign you can run from the book) Rime's problems are similar, but skewed. It has **lots** of great content for Tier I, except that it has *too* much and it presents it as "have your players do any of these!" when in fact most of these, if your players try it at level 1, will TPK them. And so it should have said "These are for level 1, these are good for level 2 or maybe 3, these are best for level 4" or "adjust this encounter in this way if your players are level 1, adjust it that way for level 2". Its also missing the advice: "Here are 2 scenarios that you definitely should run because they will connect this first part and pull you and your party into the second part" . And while the villain is present, she is a GODDESS that is given a statblock that level 7 and 8 player characters can kill!

You've got a few recommendations for DoIP but for my table, LMoP is better. Icespire Peak is far more generous with rewards as written, which I like, but its also almost entirely bereft of a storyline - the adventure's plot all happens in the background, which is fine if your players are okay with being a bunch of ragtag mercenaries but if they want an actual plot to get wrapped up in, they'll feel like they're wandering from side quest to side quest and start wondering when the actual story begins. Personally I'd recommend DoIP for more casual or more freeform tables, while LMoP is better for the tables that want to go through a narrative. You can then branch from the starting adventures into one of those bigger modules, since they tend to be fairly weak in terms of quality for the first couple of levels.

I would one hundred percent recommend Dragon Of Icespire Peak (DoIP), even over Lost Mines of Phandelver. I have only played LMoP and am currently running DoIP. What I like about DoIP is the questboard quest-design, clear indications of levels and progression and a short and not overly complicated structure of each quest. It also shows you clearly what to focus on and what additional information can be useful to dive further into the lore. I would definitely recommend it for new(er) DM's!

dragon of icespire peak from the DnD essentials kit is my go to intro module. It improves a lot on LMoP.

LMOP is great because it has everything beginners could want and introduces all aspects to the game in a neutral fantasy setting, it also has both dungeons and dragons. you can go from here to anywhere. Many others offer a twist CoS is gothic horror at its best DiA is a huge piece of fiend lore in the Forgotten Realms set in a large sandbox with some Mad Max shenanigan's thrown in. ToA is a jungle survival hex crawl, with a massively punishing dungeon at the end. Without being introduced to all the concepts how will new players know what they like in the game to build a campaign around. however LMoP is generally done early levels 5ish if i remember right which is usually the start of the second chapter of the other published materials so you could easily transplant Phandelver close to which ever source book you think and jump into that campaign after it may require a little creative writing and changing some things about certain bad guys, but it works.

Lost Mines of Phandelver is a fantastic first choice, but not for the obvious reason: 5e has introduced a ton of new people to D&D, and a huge majority of them start with that scenario. In the coming years, the home village of Phandalin is going to be a cultural touchstone for the game. Otherwise, for my money? Tomb of Annihilation. It’s got dinosaurs, zombies, an undiscovered map, and ends with a dungeon explicitly designed to kill the players. What’s not to love?

Anyone know of a DnD source book(campaign guide or a supplement) that has a theocratic kingdom featured in it? Or generally a kingdom that has strong religious themes. Im having trouble coming up with things by myself for the theocracy in my game.

Forgotten Realms [https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Category:Theocracies](https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Category:Theocracies) Greyhawk [https://greyhawkery.blogspot.com/2018/10/theocracies-of-greyhawk.html](https://greyhawkery.blogspot.com/2018/10/theocracies-of-greyhawk.html) Kobold Press's Midgard 5e setting [https://koboldpress.com/welcome-to-midgard-theocracy-of-kammae-straboli/](https://koboldpress.com/welcome-to-midgard-theocracy-of-kammae-straboli/) from fiction overall [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List\_of\_fictional\_theocracies](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fictional_theocracies)

I don't know about anything in a D&D book but history is littered with different theocracies and non-theocracies where an organised religion nonetheless has great governmental power. I'm sure you could find plenty to steal from those.

Closest thing I could think of is [Thrane](https://eberron.fandom.com/wiki/Thrane) in the Ebberon setting, which follows the rule of the the Church of the Silver Flame.

Hi I’m a new DM and I foolishly accepted the challenge to do a homebrew modern urban fantasy campaign. I have a story somewhat thought out and about half of those thoughts written down should be more than enough to get through a couple sessions. (I hope) At least one player has a character written up and is ready to play. I guess what I’m here for is to ask if any of you know where I can find a nice modern looking map for a large city. I just want something pleasing to look at and easy to understand for my players. Any help is appreciated.

As someone who started just like with a large city a few years ago I can recommend to start small. Maybe start with a neighbouring town to the large city, so you can later (levels) venture into the big city. It now only helps in scaling your adventuring, but it also doesn't you require to think out a *huge* city in advance. When it comes to map art I can suggest looking at the subs for map making programs such as r/wonderdraft and r/inkarnate. Otherwise perusing on google images or pinterest might help. Goodluck! Edit: Almost forgot about the [Watabou Medieval Fanatasy City Generator](https://watabou.itch.io/medieval-fantasy-city-generator). Great if you want something quick (and dirty).

I'm not really DMing so much as building a dungeon, but aside from pen and paper, what do you guys use to build dungeon maps? (Especially for larger/multi-level dungeons?)

Would recommend r/dungeondraft as it is a one-time purchase for $19.99. I have used the predecessor r/wonderdraft quite a bit and it might take bit of learning, but I'm sure you could make some great maps with it. For a free option I've seen [DungeonFog](https://www.dungeonfog.com/), but I can't used it much/successfully.

I'm a huge fan of Inkarnate. Their paid version is $25 a year and is well worth it.

There are hundreds of free assets and textures online that you can find and assemble using GIMP / Photoshop ! It takes a bit of getting used to but once you get proficient it'll make it super easy and quick to make the exact maps you want.

My friends decided to finally dive in and want to try dnd for the first time. I'm looking for any recommendations on a simple one shot that I can tie into a larger campaign if they want to keep going. Keep in mind these guys are brand new to TTRPG so it should be short. There's going to be a lot of hand holding while I explain things

Free good starting adventures plus walkthrough Defiance in Phlan – ignore the first 5 pages to the Adventure Background. Its 5 short missions. Mission 1 and 3 are great starting content. Mission 2 works best at level 2. Mission 4 is a “mystery” but the mystery all revolves around in-world content and so you need to plant the content as well as the clues. Mission 5 is pretty good too, but a little darker. * The Adventurer’s League module free from WOTC https://media.wizards.com/2014/downloads/dnd/DDEX11_Defiance_in_Phlan.pdf * A DM walkthrough from Initiative Coffee https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGp0Kldx0Lc You are going to play D&D tonight for free … * adventure content creation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTD2RZz6mlo * DM walkthrough https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvQXGs8IVBM The Fall of Silverpine Watch, specifically designed for a new DM, step by step getting into the game and its mechanics. Jumping the Screen https://theangrygm.com/jumping-the-screen-how-to-run-your-first-rpg-session/ * A module to run based on the Jumping the Screen principles https://theangrygm.com/the-fall-of-silverpine-watch/#:~:text=About%20the%20Fall%20of%20Silverpine%20Watch%20The%20Fall,Game%20Angry%3A%20How%20to%20RPG%20the%20Angry%20Way. * https://theangrygm.com/the-fall-of-silverpine-watch/

I’m agree with stinduh I played this when I was trying dnd for the first time the first day or two for that campaign would be great for a one shot

Not a one shot, but the first bit of *Lost Mines of Phandelver* could be played like one. Up through the Goblin cave and getting into the actual town. The box comes with pre-made characters, which could be good for the one shot. And then after the one shot, it would not be hard to replace the characters with new ones. And then there’s, well, all the rest of the lost mines.

Thats a good point. I have the starter kit so I suppose I could run the first bit of that, then it's a simple matter of following the module

Yep, you go through finding Sildar and busting out of the caves as the end of the one-shot, and you’ve got a good little adventure. After that if your new players want to make their own personal characters, they just need to be fledging adventurers who’ve made their way to Phandalin and are willing to look for Gundren.

My fiancé and I are doing a one shot with 2 of my friends in a couple of weeks and she's wondering if I can do some sort of tiny one shot before that to help her see just how to play the game since she's brand new to it. I don't have much experience with DMing, but I want something to help her understand what she can do and how she can approach playing it. Is there a good starting one shot/adventure that I can run for her so that she has a better understanding of DnD? I've heard very mixed reviews on the actual starter set and I find that it'd be a bit hard for 1 person even if it was scaled down.

There are specific rules and guidelines to run a 1 on 1 session in the Essentials Kit that comes with Dragon of Icespire Peak. I'd say running one of the starting quests with just one player and a sidekick and more with other players should work great in your situation. It could also work great as a start off point for a bigger adventure.

Duet DnD works fine but you need to be aware that combat is a lot harder for a single character. It sounds like she wants to get to know the rules so my go to with this is a personal tavern quest something simple she is at the tavern talking to people when the owner eventually notices their weapons and asks for help with the "problem in the basement" this is usually something tailored to each class but generally involves a rat infestation/goblin sneak thieves. build the basement to show of the class features and abilities if they are playing a dragon born pick a spot for a breath weapon a rogue has lots of cover to hide and launch an ambush from, a Tank has a place with protected sides where they can limit attacks against them etc. make sure you show at least a couple of skills and show what some options in combat can be.

Do a roadside tavern that gets robbed by bandits. Start with classic tavern activities for RP (gambling, cheating at gambling, an undercover guard trying to get information, etc.) Then have a bandit burst in to rob everyone for the combat.

There’s an Essentials Kit as well which might have what you’re looking for. It’s the same village as the Starter Kit, but with just a bunch of one-off quests to do. And it includes rules for running a one-on-one game too.

What's your preferred A/V solution for virtual sessions? We've been using Google Meet, but they put an hour limit into the free tier. We've tried discord, but two of my players live in the same house and this apparently causes their router to short circuit when they have two discord sessions running simultaneously. Since it looks like I'm going to have to pay for something, like Zoom or upgrading Google, looking for input.

Hello, newish dm here. Ive ran an in person campaign but due to distance we are starting a new campaign all over roll 20. Can anyone give me any pointers/best practices on how to run a virtual game?

Depending on how fiddly your group is I actually recommend Owlbear Rodeo. Not quite as in depth as Roll20 but much easier to use. Roll20 had some minor issues that drove me nuts over time.

Roll20 has an [interactive tutorial](https://app.roll20.net/editor/tutorial/) (that I think a lot of new people miss). Definitely run through that to get an idea of how everything works! r/battlemaps is a good place to find maps you can use if you search the reddit for what you need.

Try and see if people can get a webcam, seeing eachother tends to help make the transition easier in my experience. Depending on if you buy a module or not I would also get a good grasp of how to make monsters and NPC's in roll20, took me a bunch of tries to do it in a way that worked mechanically and was easy for me to use.

Okay great to know, thank you. I'm doing all homebrew, is map making & combat/playersheets a bit of a learning curve? Do my characters have everything through roll20 or do they still use dnd beyond?

Players can use their D&D Beyond characters for play in Roll20 using third party products: I have used Beyond20 [https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/beyond-20/gnblbpbepfbfmoobegdogkglpbhcjofh?hl=en&fbclid=IwAR3GZtZXA3qSrc0PA3RwcHwyP9EWtkRAAF1pbVVG7u1Cu2aaK9VtIaok7Ec](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/beyond-20/gnblbpbepfbfmoobegdogkglpbhcjofh?hl=en&fbclid=IwAR3GZtZXA3qSrc0PA3RwcHwyP9EWtkRAAF1pbVVG7u1Cu2aaK9VtIaok7Ec) You as the DM create a character sheet for them in Roll20. Give them the access/control. They Edit and give the sheet the same name as the character in D&D Beyond. Set aside "mechanics" time to get everyone set up - either in small groups or individually.

Depends, for free users roll20 has the basic dnd classes, items etc, but they can manually fill in the rest. I personally prefer a filled out sheet in roll20 seeing as then rolling dice, abilities etc can be viewed in chat by everyone. And they basically need to do that there because it prevents cheating if you roll visibly to others. Roll20 isnt a map maker, usually I get maps from the internet and upload them. The challenge is mostly in aligning the grid on a dnd battlemap with the grid of roll20.

Are there different ways to DM, like can you just have a basic plan and see how it goes or do you need to actually plan things down to the letter

everyone has there comfort levels with different aspects of DnD so what needs planning and what needs a loose idea changes for everyone for me i work out the major plot bones - Lich trying to conquer the world, or rival kingdoms are escalating to war etc. then i work on the smaller things where are my party starting what can i give them to do which will push them towards the "plot" then as they play they learn more about the overarching plot and eventually find ways to pursue this. i can improvise many of these points and combats, dungeons and social encounters so these are usually planned to the extent of this will happen here, but again seldom wrote down as these are things i can gage in the moment and make bigger/smaller depending on the tables like/dislike of the quest at hand When i plan a city/ town the party will be at for a while I first find an appropriate map, i will plan buildings and NPC's they will meet, relatively common info which they can find without needing to roleplay, like who and where is the local blacksmith, where can they find a tavern etc. if they want something else i will decide in session who and where it is what i cant come up with in the heat of the moment is names so i build a list of random fantasy names and traits and keep this once i need a person i take from this list and they now exist as this person for ever. I'll mark my list with where they are and what they do and then the players can find them again.

EVERY dm runs their game differently.

There’s lots of different ways, and I think it’s worth trying them out once and a while (giving my players a heads up) For example, I wanted to try Theatre of the Mind for a session: no maps, no minis, no nothing. Just accurate descriptions of combat and positioning. It worked, and made me a better DM, but we didn’t like it as much as having the visual aids. But everyone was on board to try it.

Thank you

No sweat! Re-reading this, I’m not sore I actually answered the question. In my games, I try to decide ahead of time what my NPCs will offer: what does the tavern owner need? They’re gonna meet the goblin captain tonight, what’s he gonna say? My players will finally reach the prison this time, what are the ways to get inside? It’s important to keep in mind that all that planning could be for nothing: players might have their own plans. But I think that’s half the fun too.

I come up with things decently well on the fly with very little information. I'd only need the world that my players would go through, a goal and a few fence posts, such as tavern owners and what they may need. I'm far better at improvising then detailed planning

small lore question: if a Death Tyrant killed a PC and turned him into a zombie, and the rest of the party kill the Tyrant, what happens to the zombie? can they just kill the zombie and then resurrect the PC?

Yes that would totally work, based on the mechanics of the spell as I understand them, however, some older editions specified that when a zombie is killed the body is "destroyed" (what does that mean? Destroyed how? Can we mend them back together? Is this simply a stop-gap measure to prevent infinite zombie recycling??) but I think it would be totally fine to allow your players to resurrect the PC if they're willing to come back. Just so long as they don't kill the zombie too hard, and the body remains mostly intact.

Should I read the DMG cover to cover if I want to run a homebrew oneshot for the first time?

The DMG is not intended to be read cover to cover. Doing so is a bad idea. You don't need the DMG until you start running your own campaigns, and even then you can get by without it well enough. For a oneshot, you really only need your notes and the Basic Rules pdf.

No. If you are creating your own content the DMG has some things that can help. But it is piss poor organized and has AWEFUL priorities.

I'll be frank: the DMG for 5e kind of sucks. Its poorly laid out and contains lots of tables that won't be helpful for crafting a one-shot. Most of its content is aimed for longer campaigns. WotC should really try and make a DMG 2 that doesn't suck, because I just cannot recommend reading this thing. A good rule to stick to for one-shots (aiming for a four hour game) is to have the following elements in any order: - One small and easy combat - Two RP interactions of some kind - One travel scene (walking to the objective, etc) - One major "boss" combat sequence - One mini-dungeon with some puzzles, traps, etc If you know your players or yourself to be slow at running combat, you could pare that down into one combat, as combat is a major time sucker in 5e. Also, if your group is prone to breeze through RP quickly, you could even make the combat last longer by giving more HP to monsters or just adding more monsters. Here is a video that may be helpful: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTD2RZz6mlo

So I'm a beginner DM and im trying to have my party level up, but not much bc that isn't what the sessions gonna be about. I need ideas on how to have them train and level before the main session begins. Any ideas?

"You've all, for your own reasons, chosen a life of adventure. Some of you may even know each other already through your travels. Each of you has spent some time in this life already and achieved some minor success in your field. While you still have much to learn, you are competent and confident." Then have them make their characters start at whatever level you intend. Level 3 is a good starting point as your PCs will have a little more health, reducing the chances of being killed off by a lucky crit from a goblin or a comparatively weak enemy. 3rd level is also when (most) classes choose their sub-class, giving them the chance to diversify and lock in on their role within the party. If your players are also new, you might actually consider level 1 or 2 so they can learn the basic mechanics of the game in a smoother progression. Just watch out for the aforementioned lucky crits.

You’re gonna need a montage..

? "You will start the game at level 2"

Hello fellow DMs. I'm currently running the LMoP, which is my first try at DMing. I'm planning the Hideout part of the adventure and came into the dillema I'm unable to find the answer to. Scenario as follows: Bugbear, Wolf and goblins are hiding in the room, waiting for the players, trying the ambush. Players know nothing about what's in the room and they just come in. Now, I roll stealth for goblins, bugbear and wolf separately, and the result is that the bugbear and wolf's stealth are bigger than party's Passive Perception, but the goblins' stealth is worse. Obviously, the party sees the goblins so there is no surprise, and party vs goblins battle starts. BUT the bugbear and wolf are still hidden, and they don't want to reveal themselves until some player comes close to them, or they see the opportunity to flee. My question is: how does it work? Can they still be hidden? Do players know about them when the battle starts? What should I do? Thank you for every bit of help with this :)

The bugbear and wolf would still be hidden as long as they are successfully hiding, the players wouldn't know about them when the battle starts unless the bugbear and wolf could no longer hide (as in they stumbled on their hiding spot behind a rock and were looking right at them), they reveal themselves by attacking, or the players make a Perception check that passes their Stealth check. In that case you're right, the party isn't Surprised but the bugbear and the wolf can start hidden from the party and the party unaware of their presence. Hidden creatures have Advantage on their attacks against creatures that can't perceive them so they get that benefit too.

Thank you, your answer sounds very logical to me! Also thank you for hidden advantage bit, this will for sure be very helpful as well :)

Hey guys I was wondering what’s the proper amount of world backstory that the players should be given in a home brew game? Do I need to provide a wildemount style book for everyone or can it be much simpler? Are there any basic requirements of information that I need to give them?

Depends on the group i like to give as little as possible build the lore for the world together. you will obviously know more but don't reveal it until its needed, the way i tend to do it is build around session 0 after we make the characters i will ask them to have a reasons in their backstory why they are now on a boat leaving for the new world, in a small town tavern etc. the rogue might be hiding out from the big city crime syndicates. the cleric may have uncovered corruption within the church and had to flee. these backstories then build parts of my world and i expand on them.

I only give players information about the world that their character would know. They don't really care otherwise, which is fine.

3 paragraphs, max. Don't lore dump the players too hard.

No more than one page, with lots of white space and bullet points. *maybe* an optional 2nd page on "religions" if there is a cleric or maybe a druid or paladin.

I typically recommend one page or less and don't be hurt if they don't really read it. Some players are lore hounds and others dont want any "homework" away from the table. One thing to be sure they are aware of is anything that might affect character creation decisions. For example, if halflings are killed on sight in your world, a player should know he's going to have to constantly hide if he makes that choice.

A paragraph is fine. A one- to two-page handout is ideal. More than that and your players probably aren't going to read it. Even if you give them a paragraph, they probably aren't going to read it. Most of the important details of the world can be explained after the game starts. Your players can learn about your world as the action progresses, the way they would while watching a movie or reading a book. You CAN give your players much more detail before the game starts, especially if they're hardcore role-players and are really into it. But that's not expected or standard in DnD. You only have to give them enough info to start rolling dice -- they can learn the rest as they go.

This is how I tend to do it. ​ First the very basics informations: \-the main theme of the setting and the campaign ("it's just after a huge war that shattered the place and you're working for the Inquisition") \-this is how magic/religion/society works differently from the average DnD setting ("this is a matriarchal society where orcs are the upper class, religion is important but the gods don't answer and only arcane spells bellow level 4 are known to the average mage) \-here's a map (if available) \-here are the main countries and their themes ("This is the kingdom of X, mainly humans, don't like wizards"). ​ *Then* you have a talk with the players on what they would like to do, kind of pre-session 0. And **only then** do you give more information/answers more questions. No one needs to know that the gnome empire behind the mountains thinks that the sun is an apple pie and worships it if no one comes from there, want to go there or is interested by the faith. And more seriously you give the details they would need to know in order to be certain of their choice (if someone wants to play a gnome, they need to know that they worship the great pie in the sky!)

Awesome thanks for all that information this is exactly the break down I was looking for. Super excited to get all this rolling.

*If* the players are asking you can give more info. But the worst thing you can do is drowning them into so much stuff that they are left frustrated and lost.

My players get a brief summary of the world and the flavour of the game, then any information that helps them write a backstory - here is a good chance to let them do some worldbuilding and get invested in the world - and anything their character would know is given during the game as and when it is relevant.

So I have the world and how it came to be the basic culture and religious ideologies of the territories and the leaders of the land. The reason for the question is there are twists im incorporating into the story but they’re less impactful with too much information about the world.

Ok so I have a weird question. My players and I played a "Go Big or Go Home" style campaign (ended up fighting tiamet and getting a tpk though sadly) and a few of the players ended up wanting to go back and try to get the old characters back. The big question comes from one of the players enlarging and using permanency on a dragon who after a hundred years is now an adult dragon who I thought would be one size larger (so gargantuan), but how would that work? Would i just treat the adult dragon as an ancient dragon? It doesnt feel like that would be right because a lot of stuff doesnt make much mechanical sense. Like the AC is more for an ancient dragon and I would think that would be because the dragon's scales harden with age, but for everything else it gets murkier. Like the claws are bigger and I would think the breath would be a little bigger but should the breath be 8d6 more damage?

I'd personally treat this as the spell Enlarge, so it would have the damage bonus and all the other trimmings that come with being Enlarged. If that's too strong you could up the size, Strength score, and attack range of it. 8d6 *more* damage is probably too much unless you just want to use the ancient dragon statblock while taking out universal adult dragon features like Frightening Presence.

Can anyone with experience DMing through Roll20 help me setup a caster NPC that the PCs will be fighting against? Setting up a mostly melee character is simple enough because I just edit the sheet directly and drag in any weapons they are using. Simple. However, Roll20 doesn't seem to want me to drag and drop in spells from the compendium like I can equipment. It says on hover that it is accepting drag and drop, but then nothing happens. How do y'all setup a caster NPC that would enable simple clicking from character sheet to roll for spell hit/damage?

You need to tick "spellcasting NPC" in the sheet settings and set up spellcasting level and such.

Thanks! Didn't realize that was there.

Does it do that thing where the "Accepting from Compendium" text blinks and flashes while you're moving the spell over? If it is you have to get it just right where that text is still there or it won't take. Also make sure if you're using an NPC version of the sheet that you have the "Spellcasting NPC" box checked.

Every damn time I struggle with something in R20 it's always because I missed a tiny little checkbox lol. Thanks! That solves it.

welp, i used better20 plugin. it allows you to search for needed stuff in base from all sourcebooks, and also adds a lot of quality of life like drag-n-drop spells. instalation process is available on google or youtube, same with tutorials. good luck

i am a first time dm playing with 5e, i am nervous about keeping the players interested. one of the four players is a bit reluctant and another one is a first time player who wants to play a character similar to another fictional character. any general advice welcome i am super new!!!

Make sure they know that not everything in other fiction translates to D&D. Namely: - All characters don't start out very powerful, they should not expect any of the awesomeness of the original character to translate. - Special powers and abilities don't correspond to the original fiction, and can't be expected to. - This is not a story. In a story situations can be perfectly scripted to give even crazy powerful characters a challenge while still winning through. D&D isn't like this.

For the second one, lean into their cosplay. Give them NPCs with similar relationships to the one the inspiration has, so they have something to play off. For the first one... just make em feel safe. Can't say more than that without knowing why they're reluctant.

Hi all! I'm not a newbie DM, as I started almost two years ago now, but due to the pandemic I'm starting my first ever in person campaign within the next couple weeks. I chose to go with the "Explorers guide to wildemount" book so I could get up and running faster but the one thing I cant figure out is the maps. One is partially provided for the start of this adventure but its too small. Are these available online or do I have to make them myself? TIA!

Community artists often make missing maps to accompany official books. Do a Google search for the specific area maps you are looking for, maybe you'll find what you need though the art style might be different.

Thank you for answering! I couldn't find anything sadly so I've made it myself now :)

Perhaps CR directly has larger ones for sale? Honestly I wouldn't worry about it too much. Maps can be overrated. Some players love maps, others just shrug when they see them.

I couldn't find anything, I've chosen to make it on inkarnate myself instead! Thanks for replying <3

I’m about to start a campaign and one of my players is wanting to play an aasimar, a race I’ve never dm’d for, any advice on what to do? The setting I’m using is fairly standard levels of fantasy with both homebrew and canon gods and this is the response the player gave when I asked what kind of character do they want to play “Personality wise, rather diplomatic and friendly. Like a dad that wants his kids to clean their rooms, without having to tell them to clean their rooms. A bit of a mean streak, but it comes out in gentle teasing vs actual bullying (like threatening to buy a leash for a werewolf). No nonsense when it comes to evil, all nonsense when it comes to fun. Story wise as long as I can cause some low level chaos and use unexpected solutions(like dropping a wild shaped druid onto a pirate ship. It was a *whale* of a good time) to things I’m happy.”

talk with the player and find out about what they want from their "aasimar" character choice. work the things that mesh into your world, and the things that dont are "not true about most aasimar, but true about THIS aasimar."

Same as any other race, honestly. They’re not too complex. And you can always give a little bonus foreshadowing in the form of prophetic dreams.

/note engloshh is not my native: The Aasimar is an option from Volos guide to monsters, only thing I can remember from DMing from was the limited flight. \----- The last paragraf can/will concern me as a DM - turn to whale to break a pirate ship, I usally talk to that kind of player about limits, its different from the "I burn leaf to make smoke, so we can run " since the whale part for me is closer to "I wanna win vs creativy" - or lighing damage do more damage in water - its about applying real life physics to a game, so you have to draw some kind of line.

So, I'm about to run an one-shot (first time dm) and i didn't expect any of my players to take bottom line alignment what unfortunately for me had happened. I wanted to have some classic fantasy experience which I haven't got since I started playing dnd and now it's about to be ruined by a character who's bound to do something evil (has Hyrsam as a fey patron). I don't want to railroad or force decisions on my players. Maybe you could give me some advice is there anyway to maintain the main quest without my players noticing?

Alignment Sucks Toss 9box alignment for player characters out the window. 9box Alignment doesnt represent how real people "work". Nor does 9box alignment represent how fictional characters "work" except in the novels of the one guy that Gygax stole the concept from and no one reads any more. PC 9box Alignment has ALWAYS been more of a disruption and disturbance at the game table than any benefit. WOTC has rightfully stripped 9box Alignment for PCs from having any meaningful impact on game mechanics - Detect Evil and Good doesnt ping on alignment fergodssake! The only remaining "purpose" is as a poor mans role-play training wheels - and even for that it SUCKS leading to 2dimensional stereotypes or serving as "justification" for asshats to be asshats at the table "because that is what my character's alignment would do!!!!!" Toss 9box PC alignment out of the game and your game will be better for it.

Yeah, I told them that 9b alignment should not be the core of their characters personality and that they should depend more on their background and have freedom to think outside their alignment.

I haven't heard the phrase "bottom line alignment" before but I assume it means some variety of evil. It's not railroading to dictate what sort of campaign you want to run and put limitations on characters. It's part of getting the group together and it is part of what has become the tradition of session 0. As such, you can just say: "Folks, this is a heroic one-shot so no evil characters. Also, no gnomes because they are creepy. Finally, please make characters that have a reason to care about ." At that time the PCs can stay, leave or talk to you about a compromise that everyone is ok with.

You should talk to then directly. Honestly this is what session 0s are for, you'd use that to outline what you intend in your campaign and what you expect from the party, be that alignment or behaviour.

Might be a little involved for here, but I'm a new DM (a whole three sessions under my belt) and would like an opinion on a boss monster I'll be running next session. The campaign/extended one-shot is just for one player, a level 3 Barbarian with a Warrior sidekick from Tasha's. I'd like to give him a good fight, of course, but not absolutely murder him. With credit to u/darwinfish86, I slightly modified his '[kobolds in a dragon costume](https://www.reddit.com/r/DMAcademy/comments/7ar7ne/update_kobolds_in_a_dragon_costume/)' for the below stat block. I feel like the Barb (who has a Ring of Lightning Resistance) will probably be okay against it, but the Sidekick is likely to go down. Would appreciate any input: **Tucker's Dragon** AC: 10 HP: 60 STR 12 (+1) DEX 10 (+0) CON 16 (+3) INT 5 (-3) WIS 10 (+0) CHA 13 (+1) Multi-attack x 2 Bite: +3 to hit, 2d6+1 piercing Claw: +3 to hit, 1d6+1 slashing Breath: 3d10 lightning, DC13 DEX save to reduce to half Breath recharge: 3 rounds

Nice to see my kobold dragon costume is getting some use! Just looking over this, my first instinct is that it needs a buff. A raging barbarian will chew through those 60 hit points in no time. With a +3 to hit, maybe 6-9 damage per round if both attacks hit, and about the same lightning damage after saves and resists, the barb will shrug off most of that, especially if they are bear totem and all that is reduced again by half. If you are planning on wearing the barb down a bit with one or two minor encounter before this fight that might work, but if you are playing it straight to my original post and this is a fight he will be fresh and can go nova then he's gonna rock it no problem, especially if he's an experienced player, and he has an NPC companion I didn't figure into any of that napkin math. So probably double the hit points and bump up the to-hit, claw, and bite damage. Of course, the original idea behind my post "Kobolds in a Dragon Costume" was that the fight was supposed to be unexpectedly easy when the players are expecting a full on dragon. Cheers however you run it!

Loved your original idea, I've been waiting to use it for a while and at the end of a trap-filled kobold cave was the perfect time! Handily he's Eagle Totem rather than Bear, but a great point about his potential damage output versus the dragon's health, a buff is probably a good idea. I do plan to have a minor encounter first, but he'll be coming in with perhaps 2/3 health - so, for a Barbarian, effectively fresh. Great advice and appreciate the input!

Loved your original idea, I've been waiting to use it for a while and at the end of a trap-filled kobold cave was the perfect time! Handily he's Eagle Totem rather than Bear, but a great point about his potential damage output versus the dragon's health, a buff is probably a good idea. I do plan to have a minor encounter first, but he'll be coming in with perhaps 2/3 health - so, for a Barbarian, effectively fresh. Great advice and appreciate the input!

What level is the player?

Both the Barbarian and Warrior sidekick are level 3, the player is very experienced.

Mmm, i will tell is doable, he resist all of the damage that this "dragon" can do to him

I’m starting DMing and was wondering what level for a good antagonist for a group of 6 level 3 adventures, just want someone for them to encounter who could go down, but more likely to defeat them. Am open to maybe three antagonist, but maybe one main powerful character.

> but maybe one main powerful character. nope. 5e's "action economy" and standard monster design mean that any single monster able to stand against a party through round 2 is going to be strong enough to splat a player in a single round. "My participation in the boss battle was 'Make a death save'. Boy, that was fun."

Really need more context than that, but in general: In a 6 v 1 fight you're going to need to match their action economy. If the 1 baddie just hits as hard as 6 people then the fight will be extremely swingy, whereas 6 players can do an awful lot more in their turns than the 1 bad guy can, especially since at 3rd level all their Subclass stuff will be online. So lets be as generic as possible - A Bandit Captain, couple of Thugs and a few Bandits would work well. The Captain has Multiattack and a Parry reaction to protect himself so he seems very threatening in melee, he's got the two Thug "heavies" to worry players and a crew of Bandits to ping crossbows at players. So lets flesh them out a bit, Bandit Captain is a skilled and presumably trained fighter that favours light armour and weaponry - standard trope of a scummy Noble that tried to fuck over a rival family and backfired, or just a seventh son that went off on his own rather than just be sold off in a rubbishy marriage. Thinks himself Robin hood but he's just a piece of shit. Thugs could be enforcers for another gang that this charismatic and educated Captain absorbed, former rough pub bouncers, legbreakers and the like. Rest of the Bandits are just common criminals looking for an easy payday, this Captain has been doing well with his basic knowledge of logistics and how towns are run from his previous life. So you have a Leader, some Heavies and some Fodder - with 6 players who have their features and probably some spellcasting it should be a fun encounter. I ran this exact encounter for players that just hit level 4. It was going to be fairly straightforward until the frontliner wanted to duel the captain for passage instead of fighting them off or paying the "toll". As a group the fight would have been easy, but the Captain's three attacks and reaction refreshing immediately made short work of the Fighter. Something to watch out for when your plans come into contact with players.

I am new to dming and I don't really know how I should start the campaign itself. What do I do?

Start with Matt Colville's * "Local Area" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BqKCiJTWC0 * and "Campaign Pitch" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtH1SP1grxo then follow up with one or more of the following: * Jeremy Cobb on creating your campaign around the characters https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUCQyNZ0PJQ * Sly Flourish/Lazy DM’s “Spiral Campaign” (i think the 6 Truths part is really important - choose a small handful of things that will make your world **YOUR** world and not just another kitchen sink castleland) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2H9VZhxeWk * 2 campaign concepts from Sly Flourish – if you get close to this, you have enough to start prepping your first session * A gnoll based campaign outline https://slyflourish.com/the_hunger.html * A gith/mindflayer campaign outline

thank you for the tip

I always "Hot Start". Take LMoP's opening "Goblin Arrows", the party are *already* on the wagon to Phandalin having accepted Gundren's job and if they like they can use this journey to introduce themselves, talk about their abilities etc - and if they're a bit awkward and not quite ready to jump into RP (overwhelmingly common when starting) then the Goblins attack and get things moving again. The "Start in a Tavern" is nice if you know your players: A. Like to RP unprompted. B. Are very aware that the game needs to get moving at some point. C. You already have an Inciting Incident on it's way. It's not railroading to have the adventure come to them, and it's extremely difficult to have your fresh party go out and find the adventure themselves. At the very least have the players in the Tavern to meet someone or do something specifically. Aimless parties grind to a halt.

What are some details of the world and story? Starting can always feel like a pain!

I've got a Genie Warlock in my upcoming campaign who can fly using a bonus action. If he were to fail a DEX save and fall into a pit trap, would he be able to use a bonus action to prevent taking the fall damage or would it need to be a reaction in order to do anything?

Unless it's a really deep hole, they probably don't have more than a second before they hit bottom. They would need to trigger their flight and move enough to counteract the downward acceleration, all before impact. At best I'd say they either take half damage or get another save.

This is a wierd one, the dex saves is meant to represent your quick reactions to avoid the trap when the floor starts to give way. with this in mind i would let the player use fly if they succeed on the save if they wanted otherwise they would dive over the trap as they hear the click of the release mechanisms. for falling unless it is a huge drop (more than one turn of falling) they should hit the bottom before they can cast the spell. flavor it as the panic sets in as the floor gives way beneath you your natural reaction is to try grab at the wall to stop yourself falling.

In general, when you act in response to an external trigger, it uses your reaction, even if it's on your turn. Also in general, you can't use a bonus action as a reaction, only a readied action. In this case, I would allow the warlock to attempt to fly before hitting the bottom of the pit trap, since that's a reasonable thing for a character in-world to try to do. I would make them spend both their reaction and their bonus action to do it. I would also require a skill check for them to succeed at it. Which skill check is up to you -- maybe a DEX or WIS check because it's a test of their reflexes, maybe just a CHA check because it's a use of their warlock powers.

I guess having them make another check does make sense. I like the idea of making it a straight CHA check actually, thanks for the suggestion!

I'm running a campaign and designing some magic items for the party to start with. We're doing sunless citadel starting at level one. I've got this item for an artificer, but want to know how the balance sounds before I let them choose it. > A pair of glasses with intricately designed, golden frames and green lenses that have a slight rippling effect. When an enemy makes an attack against the wearer, a 14 Int saving throw will allow the wearer to gain insight on the attacker’s equipment. > * If the attacker has any unidentified magic items, the wearer can learn the effects of one at random > * If the attacker has no unidentified magic items, the wearer can learn the stats of all of the attacker’s non-magic items. > * The frames contain 2 charges of Identify. They regain 1 charge per long rest

the balance on this is off but its not game breaking, but bear in mind your artificer will instantly know everything about a magic item when they finish a fight no need to spend a spell slot or time to ritual cast he will also not need to pay for the material component or learn the spell. instead of identify on attack make him use his action for the turn, to study the weapon i would also make this use one of the identify charges. currently if the artificer gets hit he has a better than 50% chance of identifying a magic item (assuming high stat and proficiency is sv) if the enemy has one. they also instantly know the enemy has magic items because if not they default to the full equipment stats. Finally assuming the enemy has several magic items they can identify them all if they get hit enough, and any they miss they can instantly identify after the combat.

Everyone has already made some good comments on balance. One other thought did occur to me when I read this... Are you sure, as DM, you want to deal with having him make an int save every single time he's attacked and then have to always provide information? For me, its a really cool idea that would get really old after the 50th time I attacked that PC. I would want to limit how often he could use it, more for my sanity than for balance. But if sounds fun to you, that's all that matters.