Hello everyone. I'm new to Pathfinder. I'm not new to D&D 3.5 rules, pen and paper, or to GMing a game. I am, however, an inexperienced GM and the last time I GM'ed was for a VTM campaign probably five years ago.
All that being said, I was looking to get back into gaming and after seeing what the new version of the "oldest" RPG had to offer, decided Pathfinder was a much better choice. I bought the core rulebook, the bestiary, and I bought PDF's of both the Guide to the Inner Sea and the Advanced Player's Guide (one of my players really wanted to be a witch after seeing it on the PRD page).
My questions and concerns really revolve around running the adventure once it has begun. I have ideas for quests, missions, scenarios, and encounters, but none of that matters if my players run off and do something I haven't anticipated.
And the core rulebook has guidelines for loot, magic items, NPC's, and so on, but it really doesn't explain how to go about putting all these things together into a cohesive campaign, other than making sure the loot doesn't exceed the wealth per level, and the CR is approximately equal to the APL.
I've done a /ton/ of research these past few weeks on GMing general and have practically read the core rulebook front to back. I have an idea of which pitfalls to avoid and have an idea of how to manage my table and my players in order to keep everyone happy.
I guess, what I'm really looking for, how on the fly should I get? How many NPCs should I have? How many of my encounters and plans will be thwarted by my players doing something I didn't expect, even if I plan for it?
What do you like to do when you need an NPC or monster on the fly? How do you keep track of your players' spells? How do you know when you've given your players too much (or not enough) loot?
And how do I prevent my players from dying because they all chose caster classes? Have I already given them too much choice?
These are the types of questions I need answered, as well as any of the other the little tricks you have discovered on your own that made GMing that much easier.
I really appreciate anything anyone has to offer. I'm really excited to be running this game for my friends and want it to be as awesome as possible. Thank you in advance.
el cuervo
Just gonna bump this once and add on to my original question -- am I losing out by making my own adventures that take place in the Inner Sea? I know the whole point of this is to craft your own adventures, to be creative, and to have fun.
Would I be better off writing my own completely custom adventures for the Inner Sea or would I be best served starting with some of the pre-made adventures? I've downloaded a couple of the free ones, just to get the idea of how an adventure is written and how it might flow. I feel like buying in to an adventure path right now is a big commitment for a new group of players.
Again, any help on this issue or any of the concerns raised above is truly appreciated. Thank you all again.
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My only GMing experience has been through Pathfinder Society (Well, and the Star Wars Edge of Empire Beginner Box). I've only been playing since March, and GMing since June or July sometime.
Knowing how much work goes into prepping a pre-written PFS scenario or module and imagining how much more work would be involved in creating a fully original campaign, I think I'd urge you to start with some pre-written modules.
I haven't tried it yet, but Dragon's Demand looks really nice, it'll take your players from 1-7 I believe, and is a double-long module.
This will give you and your players experience with buying and selling loot, and encountering traps and monsters. You'll spend lots of time reading up on the various monsters, the lore of the module and the NPCs within, and you can always make some changes if you want to and customize it as you go on.
Ah, thank you both so much for your responses. I downloaded the free 'Master of the Fallen Fortress' module, which looks like it will work to get my players introduced to the game and setting fairly well ( I'm looking to do an Absalom-centric campaign). It also isn't too long a module, it would seem, so it might allow for some free-form adventuring towards the end of our first session. It was also a great way for me to see how professional module writers design their adventures, and will surely come in handy for future adventure writing. Looking forward to this weekend even more now!
My questions and concerns really revolve around running the adventure once it has begun. I have ideas for quests, missions, scenarios, and encounters, but none of that matters if my players run off and do something I haven't anticipated.And the core rulebook has guidelines for loot, magic items, NPC's, and so on, but it really doesn't explain how to go about putting all these things together into a cohesive campaign, other than making sure the loot doesn't exceed the wealth per level, and the CR is approximately equal to the APL.
First off, I strongly recommend picking up the Gamemastery Guide. It is probably the resource best able to help you in your situation. The core rules offers limited advice but it doesnt really tell you how to put together a campaign, the Gamemastery guide does that and offers lots of advice useful to new GMs.
I've done a /ton/ of research these past few weeks on GMing general and have practically read the core rulebook front to back. I have an idea of which pitfalls to avoid and have an idea of how to manage my table and my players in order to keep everyone happy.I guess, what I'm really looking for, how on the fly should I get? How many NPCs should I have? How many of my encounters and plans will be thwarted by my players doing something I didn't expect, even if I plan for it?
There is no set answer to any of these questions. Its kind of a sliding scale. Some groups like tightly controlled 'Railroad' stories, that involve detailed plot twists with the players acting in the GM's story but not directing it. Other groups like open world games where they players make the story by what they persue. You will have to work that out in time with your group when creating your own adventure. It isnt something someone can tell you is better one way or another.
One thing I will say, never think of your players as thwarting your plans. That way madness and hostility lie. Your players will always think of things you wont. Your players will always not think of things you think are obvious. Its just a matter of a group of human beings working on similar things, we all think a little differently, we all have different experiences to draw from. We dont alway reach the same solutions or conclusions. So you have to be willing to accept your players doing something unexpected that might derail your plans. But dont worry in time you will learn to nudge them back on track in time. Its just a skill that comes with experience.
What do you like to do when you need an NPC or monster on the fly?
I use resources like the bestiary or the npc codex, or tome of horrors (3rd party monster book). I can usually get whatever I need from there. The pathfinder prd is a great tool for this if you have a laptop or a tablet at the table, as its searchable and quick to load. Suddenly need a town guard for a fight you didnt expect, use the npc codex or the npcs listed in the game mastery guide.
How do you keep track of your players' spells?
I dont, they do that, but I do make note of their capabilities and plan accordingly. Spells are a very flexible tool and they can easily throw off encounters if I dont prepare for what the casters can do.
How do you know when you've given your players too much (or not enough) loot?
I personally dont use the wealth system from the core rules anymore as I really dislike it, so in my game its not an issue. Wealth doesnt line up with power like it does in the normal game, so I cant really give you a good answer here, other then not to worry too much about it, just keep an eye on how your characters are doing. If someone starts to struggle, throw in an extra item or two in the loot that will help them, or cut back if they are shining over the rest of the party.
And how do I prevent my players from dying because they all chose caster classes? Have I already given them too much choice?
Well first of all, talk to your players about building a well rounded party. Without one its a problem. That said there are options. Some people say let the chips fall where they may, they made the choice, let them deal with it. I use hero points (from the advanced players guide), or something very much like it. A system like that can help accidental deaths as you can spend hero points to stop yourself from dying.
Would I be better off writing my own completely custom adventures for the Inner Sea or would I be best served starting with some of the pre-made adventures? I've downloaded a couple of the free ones, just to get the idea of how an adventure is written and how it might flow. I feel like buying in to an adventure path right now is a big commitment for a new group of players.
As a new gm, I'd recommend you grab a module and start with that. Get used to the motions of running a game. Something like the dragons demand would be a great starting point for a new group. Run through that, and once you've finished, you can move on to your own thing with a little bit of knowledge under your belt, or if you end up liking it you can buy more modules or an adventure path and go that way. Either way, one module is a much smaller investment then an adventure path to start.
I might even skip the GMG in favor of an adventure path. Probably the Rise of the Runelords Anniversary Edition.
If you really want to learn how a whole campaign hangs together, and how to include enough of each variable so as to facilitate class balance, you should run an adventure path. Any homebrew campaign you write after that will be wonderfully informed by the experience.
The GMG is a good book, but if I had to pick one hardcover that is like a crash course in GMing a solid campaign, well — APs show, the GMG tells.
Ahhh! In the pursuit of knowledge and assistance, though it is all very much appreciated, I fear now that I have other difficult choices to make. Do I go with a published AP such as Rise of the Runelords, a shorter module such as Dragon's Demand, or even a short (free) level 1 module to get us going then take it from there? Keep in mind I've already spent about $150 in preparation for this game... an Adventure Path would put me close to $200, while a smaller module might only cost me $20 for the PDF (no more hardcovers for a while, says my girlfriend :P).
I need to think about what I can do. I feel overwhelmed with the sheer amount of options available for adventures, modules, and the like.
Ahhh! In the pursuit of knowledge and assistance, though it is all very much appreciated, I fear now that I have other difficult choices to make. Do I go with a published AP such as Rise of the Runelords, a shorter module such as Dragon's Demand, or even a short (free) level 1 module to get us going then take it from there? Keep in mind I've already spent about $150 in preparation for this game... an Adventure Path would put me close to $200, while a smaller module might only cost me $20 for the PDF (no more hardcovers for a while, says my girlfriend :P).
I need to think about what I can do. I feel overwhelmed with the sheer amount of options available for adventures, modules, and the like.
It can be a pricey hobby. You might ask the people you intend to play with to chip in. Assuming there are 4-5 of them if they all chip in $20 (less the the cost of most ways you can get just one evening's entertainment let alone dozens) you can get the rise of the runelords anniversary edition hardcover (60 dollars and cheaper at some locations like amazon), and the pawn set(20 dollars, also cheaper on amazon) for the adventure path for instance. If they all chip in 5-10 dollars you can get dragons demand. The key thing is, though many GM's do this, to share the costs within the group. The GM generally spends the most money, but theres no reason the players cant chip in.
Dragon's Demand would be alright, it looks pretty cool.
What you would get from an AP that you wouldn't get from a module is to see how levels 8th-16th play very differently from the first seven levels.
Now, if you're not especially interested in the mid-high levels, and you would end a campaign around 7th anyway, then Dragon's Demand may be exactly what you need.
Or, if you just wanna take my word for it that the game changes significantly as you get up in levels, then by all means, forge your own path.
ROTRLAE is that rarest of creatures; a full campaign, and a popular one at that, which many other GMs have run through and so they can be consulted for advice. The Runelords community was more than half of the campaign's value when I was running it.
Again, thank you all for the input. You've been tremendously helpful. I understand the game changes substantially once you get to the higher levels, and this does have an impact on my choice.
I have one player who is guaranteed to be in on this game for the very long term but I have two other players who I am not sure about their long term excitement levels. They're both experienced in tabletop games and with 3.5, however I'm not sure they've ever actually played with rules beyond building a character and rolling dice -- that is to say, I don't think they've ever played campaigns or adventures where CR, loot, party level, and other things of this nature were taken into account. I want to run a "real" adventure, with balanced encounters and loot, and so that I can introduce them to all the systems they've ignored in the past.
In addition to this, I only have three players and they chose to play as a cleric, a sorceror, and a witch, which leaves me with a rather unbalanced party for a long adventure -- a long adventure which, I assume, depends upon having a balanced party with 4 - 5 members.
I guess at this point I'm just thinking out loud since you all have provided me with plenty of options. I just can't help but feel like if I choose one thing I'm barred from any other because I'm concerned my players won't be interested enough in the long run. This is especially a problem if I drop some big bucks on a full-fledged campaign such as ROTRL.