D&D 5E A running list of questions from a new player/new DM. Other n00bs please feel free to add in.

[wedgeski]

Welcome to D&D!

I will add another voice to the choir. For your first ever session, all you need is the Starter Set. It is literally designed for you. You get a nice hard copy of the basic rules to share around the table, an excellent first adventure that guides you through the basics (and will last for several four-hour sessions), pre-generated characters and character sheets, dice...the whole deal. In my opinion it's extremely good value.

It *might* be worth printing and/or binding a copy of the Basic Rules PDF as well, so you can have at least one hard copy of the rules for you, and one for the players to share.

You'll know pretty quickly whether D&D is something you and your friends will enjoy. If so, as the DM you should immediately buy at least the Player's Handbook, which contains the full rules of the game, and the Monster Manual, which is going to be a requirement for you to be able to run published adventures such as Hoard of the Dragon Queen, and is just a gorgeous book which will give you tons of inspiration, as well.

I doubt whether the Dungeon Master's Guide is a required purchase for new DM's (despite its name), which is an odd thing to actually write down. The DM's PDF has all the basics (encounter building rules, and so-on) that you'll need to start writing your own adventures. The DMG in this edition is all about options, not fundamentals.

Ideally, all your players should have one each of the PHB as well, but in practice only the most excited players will want to fork out, so you'll probably be sharing one or two PHB's in future sessions.

Otherwise, good luck, have fun, see you on the other side!

 

[painted_klown]

I want to sincerely thank everyone for their input.

Now for my next question(s), I would like to dive into the use of maps and minis.

I see many people getting excited about cool maps.

Are maps needed? If so, do you need a copy for each player? Does the DM use a special version of the map, with treasure, traps, and monster encounters laid out on it (the player map would have these spoilers removed, but otherwise look the same).

What about map size? Can these maps be printed on normal 8.5"x11" sheets, or do they need to be on a grid with one inch squares for scale? Do you need several maps per gaming session? For example, your party walks through the haunted woods (one map for the woods), to get to a cave that is 3 layers deep (a map for each layer of the cave), to discover the boss of that cave in a hidden room off the back wall (another map for the final "boss room"). I hope that makes sense...

Are minis needed to show where the players are in relation to these traps, treasures, and baddies?

I ask this as I see stuff talking about flanking during combat, also spells, various weapons, etc have a range that they work within. Would a map be required for all of this?

If not, then how do you know where your players are standing in relation to objects, other players, NPCs, monsters, etc?

 

[Xenu]

I want to sincerely thank everyone for their input.

Now for my next question(s), I would like to dive into the use of maps and minis.

I see many people getting excited about cool maps.

Are maps needed?

No, but some of the specifics of combat make it very nice to be able to layout where everyone is at in relation to each other for Opportunity Attacks, area effect spells, movement, etc. As a DM you could wing it, but as a player when there are a bunch of monsters in an encounter, it can get confusing on who is where doing what.

If so, do you need a copy for each player? Does the DM use a special version of the map, with treasure, traps, and monster encounters laid out on it (the player map would have these spoilers removed, but otherwise look the same).

The only kinds of maps I hand out are usually props: treasure map of an island, general layout of a city. Players don't typically get their own map.

What about map size? Can these maps be printed on normal 8.5"x11" sheets, or do they need to be on a grid with one inch squares for scale? Do you need several maps per gaming session? For example, your party walks through the haunted woods (one map for the woods), to get to a cave that is 3 layers deep (a map for each layer of the cave), to discover the boss of that cave in a hidden room off the back wall (another map for the final "boss room"). I hope that makes sense...

If you go for the tactical rules route, you could just pick up some dry erase markers and one of these flip mats from Paizo:
http://www.amazon.com/Pathfinder-Fl...qid=1417201077&sr=8-1&keywords=paizo+flip+mat

That's what I use. I normally just describe the areas the players are in, and then cut to the map if an encounter warrants it. Once that happens, I use the dry erase to indicate walls, terrain, obstacles, etc. Beats having to print everything out as a one-use affair.

Are minis needed to show where the players are in relation to these traps, treasures, and baddies?

Helpful, but not necessary. If you go the narrative route, you can simply explain where everyone is at and generalize things. Otherwise, for the tactical approach, you can just use tokens, buttons, pennies, dice, whatever. That said, I'm big into collecting and painting miniatures, so we use minis for players and creatures / non-player characters.

I ask this as I see stuff talking about flanking during combat, also spells, various weapons, etc have a range that they work within. Would a map be required for all of this?

If not, then how do you know where your players are standing in relation to objects, other players, NPCs, monsters, etc?

You could do this in a generalized way. Make up a few ranges: near, medium, far. Then, when the encounter starts up, simply describe the scene in those generalized terms. This is a fuzzy approach, and takes a bit more effort on the DM to adjudicate things. Example:

Player:"Is the orc with the crossbow near enough for me to close with a single move, or do I need to dash?"
DM: "Well, he's about a medium range away, so you can cover the distance but only have time to pull out your sword before it's his turn again."

Some people are fine with generalizations. Others like to be specific.

When we use minis, I'm still a bit generalized. I'm not overly concerned about exact movement. If a player is within 5' of a monster after doing his move, I'll err on the side of fun and let him close the remaining distance if he wants to engage in melee combat. We also don't worry too much about diagonals costing extra when calculating movement.

 

[Nemio]

Hello there, fellow new DM here.
I played the first part of the Starter Set a few months ago with a group of 5 players new to D&D.
We spent about 5 hours playing and reached the end of the Cragmaw Hideout.

I can tell you right away that maps are not needed.
In the previous 4th edition of D&D there was a bigger focus on them because of the battle tactics.

In this edition they seem to use Theatre of The Mind (ToTM) as a default.
You just describe the surrounding and relative positions of everyone.

In my playthrough we played the first Ambush part in ToTM and it went pretty well.
I think it helps in keeping the flow going.
You do have to repeat alot to make sure everyone is on the same page.

For the rest of the adventure I downloaded some maps from the artists website.
http://mikeschley.zenfolio.com/p856083253

Wotc has given Mike Schley permission to sell them seperately.
He sells them for a bit more than a dollar per piece and announced that he really needs this to make a living.
It's a great way to support a great artist.

You can download the DM version of a map (same as in the Starter Set DM booklet) and a spoiler-free player version.

I downloaded the Phandalin map in case my players went there first (they didn't), the player version of the North Sword Coast and the player version of the Cragmaw Hideout.

I printed all maps on A3 paper and with the Hideout map I cut out every room and hallway.
While they explored the cave I put the pieces on the table.
We didn't play with mini's or count squares, the map was there just to give everyone a better idea what they already explored.

Some players indicated that having some mini's might make it more fun visually so I might purchase some.

I hope your first version is as fun as ours was!
If you have any questions then feel free to ask or PM.

 

[Sword of Spirit]

In case it wasn't completely clear: the PHB is entirely optional. All of the rules needed to play the game are included in the Player's Basic pdf. If a player wants to play a Champion Fighter or Thief Rogue using one of the races and backgrounds in the Basic pdf, and doesn't intend to use feats, they get literally nothing out of the PHB (other than art). All of the rules are there.

If you want additional character options, that is what the PHB is for. More races, classes, subclasses, and spells, plus the addition of feats and multiclassing (and art!)--but no new rules or procedures. I'd definitely recommend the PHB for each player, but it is 100% optional.

 

[Mishihari Lord]

I have 23 sets of dice (I have a problem...) but what having lots of dice means is that my combat turn goes so much faster!!

It drives me nuts as a DM to move to someone's turn and find they haven't done anything mechanical yet. What do you do? I attack. Roll a d20 (roll). You have advantage, roll again. (roll). You hit. Roll damage. (Let's say it's a rogue with 5d6 sneak attack). (Roll once, roll twice, roll again, and again, and again).

GAH!!! No!!! If you can, roll all the attack dice and all the damage dice including possible critical hits at once and do it before I get to your turn. If you don't actually get to attack, who cares! Rolling dice is fun. In my example, that means 2 d20 and 10d6 making sure that the 5 for the regular damage are distinguishable from the other 5. If you don't have that many, just roll the first five.

This way, the DM gets to your turn and you say, "I hit AC XX and if that hits I do YY damage" Move right on to the next player...

This wouldn't work at all with my group. We had one player who use to do things like rolling his die over and over (just for fun, he said) then when he got a good one he would say that was his attack roll. There's too many ways to play games with it, so we just went with roll on your turn when you announce your action. For the same reason, and for reasons of simplicity, I wouldn't recommend this to a new group either,

 

[guachi]

Make them roll in a dice cup or any kind of cup they can't see. Leave the cup upturned until their turn to reveal their roll. If they don't have the roll ready on their turn, their character does nothing. If players realize the DM isn't fooling around, they will shape up and stop cheating fairly quickly.

 

[Dausuul]

Are maps needed? If so, do you need a copy for each player? Does the DM use a special version of the map, with treasure, traps, and monster encounters laid out on it (the player map would have these spoilers removed, but otherwise look the same).

The DM usually has a map with encounters, secret doors, and so forth marked out on it. The players don't get to see it. In old-school play, the DM would verbally describe the rooms and corridors as the party entered them, and a player would draw a map based on the DM's descriptions. This typically led to a map of questionable accuracy, since the DM often failed to describe things clearly and the mapping player often made mistakes. That was part of the fun.

If you don't feel like dealing with that, you can draw a map for the players as they go. Or you can just describe what they see and leave it up to them if they want to draw a map or not. You can also provide the players with a map, using some in-game explanation; in fact, finding a map to a lost treasure can be what inspires the PCs to go on the adventure in the first place. Of course, the map they find isn't necessarily accurate or complete... heh.

What about map size? Can these maps be printed on normal 8.5"x11" sheets, or do they need to be on a grid with one inch squares for scale? Do you need several maps per gaming session? For example, your party walks through the haunted woods (one map for the woods), to get to a cave that is 3 layers deep (a map for each layer of the cave), to discover the boss of that cave in a hidden room off the back wall (another map for the final "boss room"). I hope that makes sense...

So far, what I've been describing are what I call "exploration maps." Battle maps and exploration maps are two different things, and you can use one, both, or neither as you prefer.

An exploration map is a map of the whole dungeon, encompassing multiple rooms and corridors, which the DM uses to keep track of where the PCs are. It's typically drawn on an 8.5" x 11" sheet of paper. In days of yore, graph paper with a small grid was customary for drawing exploration maps, with one square equal to 5 or 10 feet, depending on how big the dungeon was. Today, you can still use graph paper, or you could download or create a map on your computer and print it out. Or you could get it as a PDF and use a tablet.

The battle map is sketched out by the DM when combat starts, fully visible to the players. It's a blow-up of the room where the encounter is taking place. Most people use gridded vinyl mats with markers ("battlemats"), but you can also use a whiteboard or a big piece of paper. The usual convention, which you can follow or not as you like, is that 1 inch equals 5 feet. Players place minis or tokens on the battle map to represent their PCs, and the DM puts out minis or tokens for the monsters. These get moved around as combat proceeds. Once the fight is over and the PCs move on to another room, erase the battle map. You'll draw another one when the next fight starts.

If you're going to be doing a lot of dungeon crawling--that is, adventures where the PCs spend most of their time in underground mazes battling monsters and finding treasure--it's a good idea to have an exploration map. (Published adventures almost always come with exploration maps included.) Whether you want to use a battle map or not is entirely up to you. Playing with a battle map means everyone will have a clearer idea of where things are and what's going on, but it slows down combat. Playing without a battle map (known as "theater of the mind") can result in faster, more exciting play, but it requires good communication and trust between the players and the DM. You also have the option to switch between the two, using theater of the mind for minor skirmishes and a full-blown battle map for the big boss fights.

Are minis needed to show where the players are in relation to these traps, treasures, and baddies?

Minis are not normally used during exploration; the DM just keeps track of which room the party's in. Minis are for use on battle maps.

 

[TarionzCousin]

I downloaded the Phandalin map in case my players went there first (they didn't)....

You will quickly learn, if you haven't already, that players regularly (often?) go in a different direction than the DM expects. Be aware that you will at some point be DM'ing off the top of your head--making stuff up because nothing is prepared. This is normal.

Players are inherently unpredictable.

Dealing with Spontaneous Player Unpredictability is a skill that gets better with time. It takes practice, so don't be afraid to take risks or make mistakes; part of the fun of RPG's is on-the-spot creativity.

 

[painted_klown]

WOW! A lot of great information here all. I cannot thank you enough for the help!

I think I am going to try to run without maps or minis and see how everyone responds to it. I think we will be fine, especially running the starter box. When we move on from there, I am thinking I like the idea of a single adventure map for the PCs to share, and an erasable battle mat for combat (if we feel we need them).

I am excited, and curious, to see how we will work everything out, and what the groups play style will be.