Hey all, a couple of friends and I are about to spin up a new adventure and have decided to "play it straight" using an actual DM to put together an adventure and dictate the action. Traditionally we've just rolled up characters and waded into a cave full of baddies to clean house, collecting XP and gold along the way...without a DM. No real cohesive 'plot' to speak of and a complete focus on combat which inevitably led to skill use being nonexistent and a host of other problems.
So, now that we've all decided to attempt to play with a DM I volunteered to take the first crack at running a game. NONE of us has any experience playing in this fashion and I'm feeling pretty overwhelmed. I have so many questions, but I don't haveany idea where to start. Is there some sort of resource available on line that can break the responsibilities of a DM down for me, Barney style? Or does some brave soul(s) feel like being a sounding board for my expansive array of quesions.?
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There are a number of blogs and websites that offer advice in addition to what is contained in the GM Guide (and similar guides for other games). That being said though, your question is pretty broad and could easily be answered in book length; however, I'll try to give you some very basic pointers (in no particular order).
1. Run a published adventure first. Possibly even an adventure path. This will help you decide when to call for skill checks, ability checks, etc. as well as giving you the story, NPCs, encounters, and all that good stuff.
2. Don't be afraid to let your players off the rails of the published material. Improv is key to being a great GM and the last thing any player wants is to be railroaded. However, you should probably try to steer them back on track to an extent if you are not comfortable ad libbing. Just be subtle about it if you can.
3. Relax and have fun. Don't sweat the small stuff and the mistakes. You'll make mistakes. Lots of them probably (lots being a relative term of course). Everyone makes mistakes though, including those of us with 14 years or so of experience. This should actually be the most important tip btw.
4. Start at level 1. You'll have your hands full as it is, no need to make it more complicated by adding in higher levels abilities/spells/powers/etc.
5. Along the same lines, I'd probably restrict it to the Core classes. Again, less for you to get familiar with, will make your first foray that much easier.
6. Don't let the inmates run the asylum. What I mean here is when you have a rules dispute (and you will), if you can't find the answer fairly quickly, make a ruling and announce that its the ruling for the remainder of the session, then go back and look it up (or come here and ask) and let the group know what you found out. The moral of the story is, don't let a rules dispute bog things down in the session.
7. Ask questions. Lots of them. We're here to help and most gamers in the community are only too happy to offer their advice.
8. Congrats on taking up the GM mantle. It can be a lot of fun and when it really pays off, it makes all the hassle worthwhile!
Start small, choose a PFS scenario or smaller module that can be played and completed over 1 to 3 sessions.
Start at low levels. Learn the pace and flow before introducing higher level Player-characters and encounters.
Read the Gamemastering chapter in the Core Rulebook.
I have found that often just a general concept, some NPCs (who don't even necessarily need stats) and a bestiary works for me. Players often come up with ideas you never would have thought of with a little information.
Most campaigns I have run have started with the players achieving a minor task for someone of moderate importance, say a baron's son. The players then either continue working for that individual and his associates or that initial task leads to them finding other things to do while completing that first mission.
I feel pretty comfortable with character creation and that's about it. Knowing when and how to call for skill checks, determining initiative, developing NPCs and integrating them into the adventure, setting up balanced encounters...all of these things and a lot more are almost completely uncharted territory for not just me, but the group as a whole.
I think this adventure will probably be a lengthy one (a few months with games taking place at least biweekly if not more often) and I think the group will probably stick it out with a single PC each (barring unforeseen deaths!)
Is there a particular adventure path you all would recommend that's forgiving to an unseasoned GM such as myself? Also, keep the general advice coming...its much appreciated!
that is my advice
do not do an adventure path at first
or at the least, preface your AP choice with a scenario or module that can help you get rolling without having to dive into something so large
read that scenario front and back, get a feel for it, plan it out
run it
then, use that experience to decide what you can handle next and what you need to work on
Another question: we will all take turns as DM and all of us will create a character. Is it possible for the DM to run a character, assuming I can maintain absolute objectivity?
another reason to run scenarios/modules rather than an AP, if you're going to be frequently switching out GMs
Hey all, a couple of friends and I are about to spin up a new adventure and have decided to "play it straight" using an actual DM to put together an adventure and dictate the action. Traditionally we've just rolled up characters and waded into a cave full of baddies to clean house, collecting XP and gold along the way...without a DM. No real cohesive 'plot' to speak of and a complete focus on combat which inevitably led to skill use being nonexistent and a host of other problems.
So, now that we've all decided to attempt to play with a DM I volunteered to take the first crack at running a game. NONE of us has any experience playing in this fashion and I'm feeling pretty overwhelmed. I have so many questions, but I don't haveany idea where to start. Is there some sort of resource available on line that can break the responsibilities of a DM down for me, Barney style? Or does some brave soul(s) feel like being a sounding board for my expansive array of quesions.?
Don't sweat the small stuff, treat everyone fairly, and err on the side of fun.
I got my start by running the Master of the Fallen Fortress. After my group finished with that, I went straight into a campaign of my own making. I also threw in a few hooks during the module to get them interested. They really seem to be enjoying it for now. The one thing that I somewhat regret is letting them use any books they had access to (with the game being in a gaming store, that means all of them). I too advise that you start with just the core races/classes.
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I whole heartedly recommend you begin with a published adventure but I would recommend against the investment of an adventure path right off the start. Maybe the money is not an issue for you but do you really want to.make that level of commitment right out of the gate? Even if you choose not to buy any after the first, you already spoiled the path with just the first ok. Adults are notorious for not being able to stick with the same group for a.long time. Adventure paths take a very long time, months, even years for some groups to get through. I say hold off onan AP unroll you have a group you trust to stick together for a long haul.Untill then, just try some of the short 32 page pre written adventures, try to pick one that was specifically written for PF, hold off on the old 3.5 ruleset adventures infill you feel ok with having to convert material. Converting is not hard but why bother weigh it when youvare just getting started. I know Paizo offers several free adventures from Free RPG day, and those are free all year long as a PDF. Master of the Fallen Fortress us both free and an intro. Last year they did a 5th level free adventure named something like Dawn of the Scarlet Sun or something like that.
Also bear in mind that pre written adventures are often very easy combat wise on the PCs. Writing hard fights that regularly cause deaths would lead many people to quitting the game. Knowing that, do not get discouraged if you do not feel the players are being challenged. Instead, suck it up when the PCs trounce all over the bad guys. At least until they are third level. he same way, you should throw back in a little fish unless you are starving, let them shine level 1 & 2. Then, if you feel they need a bit more challenge, you can adjust the encounters. Stuff like using NPCs at 75% hp, and/or with a slightly better suite of or go a long way. Swapping out near worthless feats on them is another nice way. Or add one more level to them.
Also, try to get in on a regular game, one or two games if Pathfinder Society might be the key. Nit every game goes perfect but even one game could be useful. Or you could try finding an actual play session on you tube or a podcast.
I feel pretty comfortable with character creation and that's about it. Knowing when and how to call for skill checks, determining initiative, developing NPCs and integrating them into the adventure, setting up balanced encounters...all of these things and a lot more are almost completely uncharted territory for not just me, but the group as a whole.
I think this adventure will probably be a lengthy one (a few months with games taking place at least biweekly if not more often) and I think the group will probably stick it out with a single PC each (barring unforeseen deaths!)
Is there a particular adventure path you all would recommend that's forgiving to an unseasoned GM such as myself? Also, keep the general advice coming...its much appreciated!
At the very least, you should probably pick up a copy of the Core Rulebook if you don't already have it. That will answer things like initiative and skill checks (to an extent). It will also give you the basics of how to run encounters, though without the bestiary actually creating encounters will be a little more difficult still.
Starting with an individual module may not be a bad idea for the reasons stated above. You can also look at PFS modules or just pick up the first book of one of the adventure paths. Personally, I think it might be easier to start with just a single module (like a PFS one) because you will not have to worry about hanging plot threads and the like. PFS modules should also give you a nice mix of combat and a little skill/roleplay interaction though obviously this varies from mod to mod.
Regardless of what module/adventure you go with,the first step will be to read the entire module. Next, read it again. Then, before your first session (and each session thereafter) read it yet again. The idea is to familiarize yourself with it as much as possible so that you can be ready to answer their questions, and more importantly, so that you know what's coming up. This is also another good reason to start with just a regular, individual module rather than an entire path since you'll have less to read/familiarize yourself with. Finally, individual modules are usually short enough that you'll be able to still pick up and start an adventure path after a few sessions if you're starting to feel comfortable in the DM's chair.
As for running your own PC while you DM, I would not do it. You have enough on your plate already that adding another complication won't really help. I am of the opinion that its certainly possible for a DM to run their own PC (a DMPC) without causing problems, but it takes a lot of effort on the part of the DM to do so. It just creates too many problems the vast majority of the time to make it worthwhile, especially, if you are a new GM.
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I know pacing is a big key in keeping the story moving along and in keeping the players from being bored, but don't be afraid to slow the players down so that you be more descriptive of the scene (or in some cases figuring out where that door is going to lead them).
I would also recommend running a pre-built scenarios/modules to get your feet wet. Good luck!!!!
I know pacing is a big key in keeping the story moving along and in keeping the players from being bored, but don't be afraid to slow the players down so that you be more descriptive of the scene (or in some cases figuring out where that door is going to lead them).
I would also recommend running a pre-built scenarios/modules to get your feet wet. Good luck!!!!
This is also excellent advice. While we generally like to keep things moving at a logical pace (which does obvious change as the session progresses) its also important to get it right. I recently ran an adventure for my group where I was using a published adventure which really stressed the importance of the party pressing through in a hurry and not taking any major delays. The module implied that a notable delay on the part of the party would result in VERY BAD THINGS, but did not specify what those bad things were. Needless to say, the party came up with a way to cause a delay that could not be easily dissuaded. I then had to take a moment to figure out what the exact consequences were.