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[DnD] DMing and playing for the first time

Catastrophe_XXVICatastrophe_XXVI Registered User regular
edited July 2010 in Critical Failures
Hello All,

-Please let me know if I should be posting this somewhere else or if there is a forum already devoted to this. My apologies if I'm in the wrong place.-

I'm planning on hosting my very first game and I'm looking for advice. It will be 4E. Basically, I've played a couple of times but feel having a group of friends rather than random people at the local store feels more comfortable. I'm going to DM because no one else I know will.

I tend to like the podcasts of PA or Critical Hit and when people get together it's usually a good time. I'm looking for advice and guidance for a new DM. I feel like I have the basic understanding and rules down.

My Plan:

I'm taking a real cheap way out and doing a campaign based on the first act from Diablo II. It's something I'm familiar with and the monsters never really get out of hand or overly complicated. There's also a good enough story with a reason for playing. Half of my players will have never played D&D so I'm going to be a little more focused on the combat than skill challenges. (But there are a few I can do)

My first question is about encounters. Is there a rule of thumb for monsters to players ratio? If I have 4 players what would be to few that it's really easy and what would be outrageous? My first combat scenario would be clearing out a simple cave system of simple goblins with a few shaman goblins to break it up and add a challenge.

I know about minions at that they can hit hard but also die as long as you hit thim. I don't think I would use them until the second "quest" in this story. This is when they have to go to a graveyard to kill a "boss" that has a lot of undead minions around her.

PSN ID: Catastrophe_xxvi
3DS FC: 5086-1134-6451
Shiny Code: 3837
Catastrophe_XXVI on

Posts

  • ChanusChanus Harbinger of the Spicy Rooster Apocalypse The Flames of a Thousand Collapsed StarsRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    There are general rules (guidelines, really) in the Dungeon Master's Guide about how to set up and scale encounters.

    Being at work and not having my books with me, I can't recall details off the top of my head.

    Chanus on
    Allegedly a voice of reason.
  • FaranguFarangu I am a beardy man With a beardy planRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    If this is your first time DM'ing, don't feel bad about using a pre-made adventure. It's got all the encounters balanced out, you're doing less scrambling when one of the players does something you wouldn't expect, and they'll never need to know that you didn't make it.

    If you're dead set on balancing encounters yourself, then you need the DMG. It has a table that lists how much XP an easy, medium and difficult fight at each level should be, so you can allocate that xp between the monsters you want them to fight.

    Farangu on
  • Catastrophe_XXVICatastrophe_XXVI Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I should note that I'm also at work but plan on getting a DM guide and some of the other materials.

    I guess I should focus this on more of other people's experiances and if anyone else has been in my place before. I'd love to know what worked for people and didn't work. If anyone would be willing to help put scenarios together or help with the campaign, that can take place somewhere else.

    Catastrophe_XXVI on
    PSN ID: Catastrophe_xxvi
    3DS FC: 5086-1134-6451
    Shiny Code: 3837
  • ChanusChanus Harbinger of the Spicy Rooster Apocalypse The Flames of a Thousand Collapsed StarsRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Focus on fun. If a rule doesn't sound right, bend it. If it's unclear, do what seems right.

    I think a lot of things will make more sense once you have the DM's Guide in your hands.

    Chanus on
    Allegedly a voice of reason.
  • Catastrophe_XXVICatastrophe_XXVI Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    OK, I had a second question.

    Miniatures. I love them. I want every character and monster on my map to be one.

    What is the best way to buy miniatures. They seem expensive and I can't just find where I can grab 5 goblins, 5 orcs, 5 skeletons.

    Catastrophe_XXVI on
    PSN ID: Catastrophe_xxvi
    3DS FC: 5086-1134-6451
    Shiny Code: 3837
  • ChanusChanus Harbinger of the Spicy Rooster Apocalypse The Flames of a Thousand Collapsed StarsRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I'm trying to figure that one out as well... it's looking like I'm going to be spending ~$100 to get just the basics :?

    Chanus on
    Allegedly a voice of reason.
  • SipexSipex Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    OK, I had a second question.

    Miniatures. I love them. I want every character and monster on my map to be one.

    What is the best way to buy miniatures. They seem expensive and I can't just find where I can grab 5 goblins, 5 orcs, 5 skeletons.

    Find a game shop in your area that sells them seperately, I've got a place nearby that sells goblins (4th edition ones) at $0.50 apiece for example. But you can also use 3rd edition and 3.5 ones.

    Also, on balancing, your party will have a EXP budget depending on the number of characters and their level. For example, 4 level 1 characters would have an EXP budget of 400 xp. Therefore, as long as your encounter is around 400xp it'll be balanced. I recommend going a bit higher (bumping the xp cap up about 30%) once your players get more experienced with some low encounters mixed in later. You'll get the feel for it.

    Sipex on
  • Catastrophe_XXVICatastrophe_XXVI Registered User regular
    edited July 2010
    Thanks for the help, I got another question.

    What are the size of the tiles or grid for D&D. I've been playing with excel and it's an awesome tool if you can just shade cells for walls etc. I just need to know what the size of each square needs to be. I thought it was about 1"x 1". But that seems a little big.

    Catastrophe_XXVI on
    PSN ID: Catastrophe_xxvi
    3DS FC: 5086-1134-6451
    Shiny Code: 3837
  • ChanusChanus Harbinger of the Spicy Rooster Apocalypse The Flames of a Thousand Collapsed StarsRegistered User regular
    edited July 2010
    I think 1" square is the right correct size.

    Chanus on
    Allegedly a voice of reason.
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