[D&D 3.5 Discussion] First-time DM in need of some assistance.

Badwick Gauge

My High School requires every senior to present a culminating project to several teachers before being able to graduate. This project includes a written essay, 20 hours of research, and a product or performance of what was learned.
Naturally, I wanted to do something that included my passions of the dramatic arts, math, logic, and BSing my way out of situations, thus a lightbulb appeared above my head in 3rd period English class. "Why don't I just DM a game of D&D?"
I got a party together and told them I even have a musty, faux wood-paneled basement to play in. After talking to some veteran D&D players at my local game shop, I was swayed from attempting a game of 4th edition to the 3.5 rules I had already become acquainted with.
Problem is, I don't have access to all the necessary resources, I don't have a plethora of remaining funds, the books I have are borrowed (Plenty for a game, though), and it's been a while since I've played 3.5.

My essential questions are:

1. Should I spring for dungeon tiles or makeshift it myself?
2. Is a party of 6 too big?
3. Should I create my own campaign or use a book for it?
4. Are there any cheaper alternatives to a DM screen?
5. What else should I prepare for?
6. Why has no one else checked out "Master of the Game" by Gary Gygax (Printed in 1989) from my school library for 4 years?

Terrendos

Umm... just out of curiousity, who are you running this for? If it's people new to PnP games then I'd recommend going back to 4e. It's a lot easier to pick up and play. I recently ran a few encounters in KotS for a group of friends, one of whom was completely new to RPGs, and by the end of the second encounter he had a pretty firm grasp on the basics, which I thought was great for just a couple hours of play without any pre-game reading or anything.

Badwick Gauge

I'm running this with 2 people who've played before, 3 people who have a firm grasp of the basic concepts, and 1 person who's entirely RPG-ignorant.

Hahnsoo1

I'd personally just use dry erase boards and markers for your in-game cartography, but since this is for a Senior Project, and you have to have something to show for it other than a bunch of smeared marker drawings, why don't you go all out and construct some nice looking foam dungeon tiles? Get some craft foam and cut out the walls and structures that you need. Do a quick gray spraypaint job and use black markers to add definition.

A party of 6 definitely isn't too big (in fact, it allows you far more wiggle room on planning the encounters due to sheer numbers). Don't sweat using 4e over 3.5e, 3.5e is more than adequate for rules purposes, especially since you have an experienced party.

Go without a screen. Do all rolls completely open. Especially since this is a "project" game. Or if you need one, make an elaborate one. Be creative... make a DM screen that's also a makeshift diorama. Or one made out of recycled junk in your house.

Heck, you can even do a "land of toys" thing, where you take various toys around the house and use them as miniatures for the encounters. Be as visually expressive as possible. Take lots of pictures, video tape the session, and bring in a "final battle scene" to display as your project. The "land of toys" idea has merit in that it draws people who aren't necessarily fans of DnD into the game ("OMG, you used a Care Bear for the Owlbear??"... that sort of thing).

Badwick Gauge

Thanks, I'll definitely take some notes from what you've said. I'd already considered using toys (or rather, "Action Figures" in an attempt to keep some masculinity.) being that I've never thrown any out and that's all I got for christmas and all I spent my money on as a child. My only concern there is that we'll have 4 versions of Batman on the map and it'll get confusing, haha.

For dungeon tiles I had originally thought about using some over-turned computer monitors with photoshop running, but old-school monitors are too clunky and huge, and there's no way I'm risking my LCD monitor for a game of D&D. (It's my baby, I named it and everything.)
I'll definitely take a run by the crafts store sometime and check out some options there, instead.