A (very green) Newbie DM Question

[S'mon]

Thanks for all your replies, guys. But I guess I should clarify something:

The kids -- Mikael, Ricky, and their friend, the potential fourth player -- are veteran D&Ders, and have most recently played 3.5 together (in fact, they were griping about changes from 3.5 to 4), and have been in perhaps a dozen campaigns since their younger teen years.

Don't be afraid to ask them for advice on DMing, their preferences re the sort of game they like, etc.

 

[Quickleaf]

Welcome to ENWorld!

I'd recommend tuning into one of the live broadcasts of D&D games if you haven't already. There's Acquisitions Incorporated (Dungeons & Dragons Roleplaying Game Official Home Page - Article) and Thursday Knights (Thursday Knights on Justin.tv).

And I hear the Dungeon Master's Kit has a good adventure in it, if you're willing to start with a mini module.

The kids -- Mikael, Ricky, and their friend, the potential fourth player -- are veteran D&Ders, and have most recently played 3.5 together (in fact, they were griping about changes from 3.5 to 4), and have been in perhaps a dozen campaigns since their younger teen years. It's Tonya and myself that haven't gamed for almost a decade ... let alone run a campaign, which I've never done before.

Did one play a spellcaster in 3.5 and they're the most vociferous in griping about 4e? Or are they hardcore role-players and think 4e is like a video game? Those are the two most common complaints I've encountered.

Also be aware that I'd you're using the PHB, DMG, and MM "holy trinity", there have been substantive changes, e.g. the PHB has 22 pages of errata and monster design has significantly changed. If you've got some savvy players they may already be aware of this stuff, but keep that in mind.

main problem is that I've no idea what I'm doing as a DM -- from a mechanical perspective, that is. I don't really know how to structure the adventure so that it takes into account player choices,

I guess the tongue-in-cheek answer would be structure it less. Roleplaying Tips for game masters has some solid articles about this sort of thing and much more in their DM articles archive. Another source I highly recommend is Sly Flourish; though Mike's advice tends to be for experienced DMs, he actually has an article about player choices...Providing Real Choices.

Do you have a specific example of what you're talking about? I mean from the adventure you've begun creating?

don't know how to run encounters or what goes on during one from the DM's side -- though the DM Guide gives the basic ideas, it is short on examples

Those are things you'll learn as you go, we all had to, it's part of the learning curve. Best advice I can offer is that most of the time players won't notice when you make a mistake.

Again, any specific questions?

and am sort of gun-shy as to how to manage seasoned players when I myself am not only out of practice as a player, but completely green as a DM.

I've got two tricks for you.

First, recruit the players to make your job easier. Have one be I initiative tracker, someone keep track of treasure, another can help you clear maps/minis, maybe you can appoint a rules lawyer to help you out.

Second, listen to the players during "interlude" moments where they've got a decision to make. Usually seasoned players will theorize about plot secrets, or start devising strategy, or get into inter-party tiffs. Use that as fuel for your evil DM scheming.

So this is more the type of advice I need ... nuts-and-bolts campaign-building and running, with an eye to being adventurer-centric (and not too "narratively" inflexible).

Hmm. My parting words of wisdom are to read up on node-based adventure design and the 3 clue rule over here (links below). It's slightly advanced DM stuff, but you sound up for a challenge.

The Alexandrian - Node-Based Design
The Alexandrian - Misc Creations

 

[chitzk0i]

If you're not sure about how to run encounters, get somebody to help you do a few mock combats. Hand them one or two PCs and you pick out a few monsters of the PCs' level to fight them. Set the monsters and PCs up, follow the step-by-step chart for rolling initiative, and then run through some combat rounds. If the monster powers confuse you, stop and look up the relevant keywords. If you can get someone with 4e experience that you trust to be knowledgeable, then they can help spot your mistakes and give you an idea how they've seen things run.

 

[Rechan]

Do you know what everyone is playing? And the PC's backgrounds?

 

[Spatula]

Firstly, DMing is a skill, and you're going to make mistakes. That's okay!

My main problem is that I've no idea what I'm doing as a DM -- from a mechanical perspective, that is. I don't really know how to structure the adventure so that it takes into account player choices

There's a lot of different ways to handle this. A good approach IMO is to have a loose outline or structure, and fill in or change the details as the players make decisions. For example, if the player expect to find the evil Baron in his castle, then you can have him be there - or you can put clues there that very clearly tell the players where he is.

Reading published adventures might give you some good ideas as well. Or not, there are some poor adventures out there. People seem to be fond of the adventures that come with with DM Kit and the Monster Vault.

don't know how to run encounters or what goes on during one from the DM's side

Set up the terrain (the DMG talks alot about this I think), place the enemies, roll initiative. The enemies are under your control and have some basic goals - usually "kill the players" and "stay alive". Play them with their goals in mind, as well as their intellect and cleverness.

If the fight looks like it's a done deal, have the remaining foes surrender or run away.

and am sort of gun-shy as to how to manage seasoned players when I myself am not only out of practice as a player, but completely green as a DM.

This is tricky, and it depends on what kind of players they are going to be. Talking about your concerns regarding your lack of experience with them before may be a good idea. Ask them to overlook rules mistakes at the table (and you similarly should not be obsessed with finding the right rule during the middle of playing), or appoint one of them as the rule master that you can query for information. Also ask them to put aside the edition-bashing.

If they get disruptive (arguing with you in the "you can't do that! / that would never happen!" vein), then that's a problem. The game works best when the players trust the GM to be fair, even when their characters face adversity. That's why I recommend talking to them first and asking for their trust.

Hope this helps. Be kind to yourself, and good gaming!

 

[Pentius]

Thanks for all your replies, guys. But I guess I should clarify something:

The kids -- Mikael, Ricky, and their friend, the potential fourth player -- are veteran D&Ders, and have most recently played 3.5 together (in fact, they were griping about changes from 3.5 to 4), and have been in perhaps a dozen campaigns since their younger teen years. It's Tonya and myself that haven't gamed for almost a decade ... let alone run a campaign, which I've never done before.

This could make it easier, as well as harder. Harder because they're griping, but easier because it means they probably don't know the rules either. 3.5 and 4 are different games, mechanically speaking, so their expertise in one isn't necessarily going to highlight your lack of expertise in the other. they'll have a basic understanding of play, but they aren't likely to catch it if you accidentally the goblin's damage modifier wrong, sort of thing.

My main problem is that I've no idea what I'm doing as a DM -- from a mechanical perspective, that is.

Most of the mechanics will be in the player's books, with monster abilities generally in the monster books. So, if you're looking for the nuts and bolts of combat or what-have-you, that is the book to look in.

I don't really know how to structure the adventure so that it takes into account player choices,

Guiding principle: Create situations, not plots. Though players will generally go in the right general direction(helping the villagers fight off the goblins instead of turning around and helping the goblins raid the village), their specific actions can make creating a plot seem forced at times. So set them with situations. That way when they do something unexpected, you will be less unprepared.

don't know how to run encounters or what goes on during one from the DM's side -- though the DM Guide gives the basic ideas, it is short on examples -- and am sort of gun-shy as to how to manage seasoned players when I myself am not only out of practice as a player, but completely green as a DM. So this is more the type of advice I need ... nuts-and-bolts campaign-building and running, with an eye to being adventurer-centric (and not too "narratively" inflexible).

But thanks so far for all the replies ... I didn't expect quite so many so quickly!

I'd suggest the following. Create or find some pre-generated characters and encounters. Have Tonya over(since she's new, too), and run some mock combats. Nothing too rooted in story or situation, just an exercise in finding out what the experience is going to demand from you both. The boys can come if they want, but this is going to be a much more basic exercise than they likely are interested in. Less about discovering the intricacies of rule interaction and more about remembering where the numbers on the sheets are, how many actions you get on a turn, etc.

Also, for rules stuff in general, if you don't know something, don't be afraid to just make a judgement that "seems fair", and then look it up after the game. You can always use the 'official' solution next time.