Hi, I'm going to be trying to get my sister and a friend of hers into Pathfinder, but I'm not sure if diving into CRB right away is the best plan. How easy is it for people who've never tried to play a table-top RPG to pick up the Beginner's Box? Would a different system work better? Or should I just go for it and explain the rules along the way?
Just start playing and explain the rules along the way imo. That has worked for me.
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I think the beginner box is a great starting place! Good looking maps & miniatures really help in making a good first impression.
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I've taught a lot of people to play RPGs, including multiple versions of D&D. There are a few things I try to do whenever I introduce new players. I'll share them here, for what it's worth.
- Make it fun! If they don't learn the rules very thoroughly, but have fun, they'll pick up the rules later. If they don't have fun, they'll never stick around to learn the rules.
- Use pregenerated characters, fairly simple ones. Beginning players don't have many character preferences, and don't know what all the possibilities are anyway. I like to build about twice as many characters as I'll have players, and let them pick which ones they like best.
- Stick to material in the main rulebook, and keep as many copies around as you can. Most people learn best by hearing, reading, or doing, and multiple routes is even better. By talking about the game, seeing the book, and playing the game, you'll cover all three.
- Make the first game session a stand-alone story. Experienced players are frequently jaded, and wouldn't be interested in a short simple plot. New players are better about that. By adding a little personality to each NPC and enemy, even the simplest plot will be fun. By finishing in a single session, you can leave them itching for more!The Rescue:Scene 1 - "What's that Lassie, Timmy got carried down the well?"
Scene 2 - Fight a few goblins.
Scene 3 - Fight the goblin "Guard Dog" creature.
Scene 4 - Fight a goblin boss.
Scene 5 - Return Timmy to his parents and get a reward.
Thanks for the advice!
@Morain: That's how I learned, and I was planning on doing that, but I'd rather not scare people off with the big weighty tome that is the CRB.
@blackbloodtroll: Music, Brits, Irish, etc. She does like to do different accents and that's how I got her interested in learning to play (that and it gives her a way to hang out with big brother more.) Her friend has some similar interests to me, so I'm hoping that she's in.
@Blueluck: I was planning on running Crypt of the Everflame, and then moving into Masks of the Living God if they liked it. I think I can come up with something off the top of my head though.
I was going to walk them through creating characters, that way I can explain what different things do while they are doing something. I wanted to start with the kind of character they wanted to play and move from there. (And I'm not going to even try to introduce them to the other hardbooks, or any of the splatbooks. That way lies madness.)
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I was going to walk them through creating characters, that way I can explain what different things do while they are doing something. I wanted to start with the kind of character they wanted to play and move from there.
I would completely agree with you if you were introducing existing roleplayers to a new game. People who are brand new to roleplaying have a lot of trouble making characters, the same way that someone who has never driven would have trouble picking out a car, or someone who has never eaten pizza would have trouble picking toppings. One session with pregenerated characters will give them perspective on what all of their character choices mean. Also, since you'd be the GM for the "preview session", it will give you a chance to observe their play styles before you help them make characters.
Don't forget that the first time they sit down with you and a Pathfinder book will constitute their first time experience with roleplaying. The impression made by making characters can frequently be, "Roleplaying is about a 576 page rulebook." The impression made by a fun first session is more likely, "Roleplaying is about Bob the Barbarian & Sally the Sorceress killing goblins and saving the village."
Even if it's just a 1-2 hour intro session, I'm a big proponent of making everyone's first roleplaying experience low-rules, low-commitment, low-stress, and all about having a good time. Lots of people don't start that way. (I started by reading 1st edition AD&D books at the library in grade school, but I was a kid who hung out at the library.) My way isn't the one true way, but it's an easy way to get people hooked for you get them booked.
Wow, that might be the worst pun I've ever made. I apologize for that.
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Wow, that might be the worst pun I've ever made. I apologize for that.
No need, I like puns.
And it's some good advice, so even if I didn't like puns, there's no need to apologize.
I think I may do something off the top of my head. Give them a chance to see what all the game has to offer.
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Don't forget that the first time they sit down with you and a Pathfinder book will constitute their first time experience with roleplaying. The impression made by making characters can frequently be, "Roleplaying is about a 576 page rulebook." The impression made by a fun first session is more likely, "Roleplaying is about Bob the Barbarian & Sally the Sorceress killing goblins and saving the village."
Even if it's just a 1-2 hour intro session, I'm a big proponent of making everyone's first roleplaying experience low-rules, low-commitment, low-stress, and all about having a good time.
^ This, this, a thousand times this.
Most of what i have to say about this is already said, so just a small thing.
If you are making characters for them you could always ask what they would like to be. If they have no idea, you make up a bunch if they have an idea (like, someone who casts spells, or I want a bow) you can make characters in that general direction.
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I agree with Little Skylark, you should really gather some information before handing them pregenerated PCs. On the other hand, you could build about five or six PCs and then let them choose which one they prefer, but you'd end up wasting a lot of time on the ones that won't be used and might even skip the kind of class they want to play (when you talked about your players' interests I immediately thought about a bard or similar class with good roleplaying options).
Although I find the beginner box a great start, playing through an adventure YOU wrote will make them trust (and appreciate) your role as a GM way more than being just the "referee". My suggestion for a first time adventure is: 50% talking, 50% fighting; only two or three combat encounters (the first should be a warmup, while the others could include an interesting location, or a puzzle), and some interesting NPCs (not more than three, I'd say). As has already been said, just throw them into the setting with a brief introduction and make them talk to people: a skill check or two could be great to introduce them to the d20 concept... and then you can plan a little combat because well, kicking ass is always nice for a first timer. No need to explain difficult rules ahead of time!
(by the way, first post here. Happy to join the community, folks!)
I agree with Little Skylark, you should really gather some information before handing them pregenerated PCs. On the other hand, you could build about five or six PCs and then let them choose which one they prefer, but you'd end up wasting a lot of time on the ones that won't be used. . .
I usually make a bunch of characters and let people choose among them, but it only takes me a couple minutes to make a first level character, so I don't really worry about the time wasted.
50% talking, 50% fighting; only two or three combat encounters. . . some interesting NPCs (not more than three, I'd say). . . a couple skill checks. . .
Great outline!
(by the way, first post here. Happy to join the community, folks!)
Welcome!
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Thanks for all of the advice. I'm getting the beginner's box and will hopefully have it in time to bone up on it for a session next weekend.
Now I just need to work one my goblin voice. :)
You need to quickly figure out (or take a good guess) what types of players these people are probably going to become (see the GameMastery Guide for player types) and cater to those interests. For example, if your girlfriend is huge into shows like Game of Thrones but gets bored when you watch The Avengers, maybe she prefers suspenseful drama to big-budget action. Plan your campaign accordingly.
Find out who their favorite characters in various TV Shows and Movies are and pick Core Classes that come close to them. For example, if your little brother loves Jack Sparrow, you might want to point him towards the Rogue class.
Pull out the Advanced Race Guide and let them look at the pictures of each of the races. Make them go all the way through the book and pick three or four favorites, then had them read a little bit about those races (or describe them if reading is too tedious for them; yes, this type of beginning player exists). Be aware that many new players go for the human, elf, and half-elf because they're the most familiar; new players are usually more comfortable with the familiar.
Grab the background generator from Ultimate Campaign and walk your players through it to help them come up with a background. Believe it or not, but it is quite good. Make sure your players like what they've rolled; if they don't let them reroll. The idea is to help them come up with a character that they like and identify with.
Once you have characters generated (this will take at least one session, maybe more, on its own) its time to get them hooked. I'm sorry to say this, but you need to grab their attention and keep it in the first 10 minutes of gameplay, so don't waste your time. The reason you went through character generation with the new players was to help get a feel for what they might like; if your girlfriend gets excited about rolling a background that implies political intrigue, then you might want to consider something dramatic right from the get-go like the execution of a beloved and benevolent king. Regardless of what people say, it is easier to get people hooked to RPGs with a sound story; capitalize on the aspects of RPGs that make them different from computerized games; imagination and limitless interactivity with the world.
Hope that helps.