First-time DM questions (new to D&D)

[huskythegeek]

Hello all!

My friends and I recently decided to take the plunge and learn D&D together. We currently own the 4th edition core rulebooks and each of us are making our way through them gradually.

I have taken on the task of being the DM even though I've never played a game of D&D in my life. I feel pretty confident though and I've almost completely read the DM Guide. However, I have a few questions that may seem hilarious to you guys, so please bear with me. I might have accidentally skimmed through the answers to these questions, so please don't be too hard on me.

1. I'm a little confused when it comes to the skills. Can EVERY PC make a perception check whenever they want to if they are untrained in perception? Say the party is taking an extended rest in a forest, and each of them is taking turns on guard duty. Can a PC make a perception check while on guard duty if they are untrained? Also, if this is possible, can the same be done with every skill (history, arcana, streetwise, etc), or is perception an exception?

2. My friends have almost completed their character sheets and backgrounds and we intend to buy some more of the necessary equipment soon. What should we make sure to pick up with a budget of say $80-$100 dollars? What are some of the essentials we NEED to have and what are some extra things you would suggest?

3. On average, how many combat encounters are in a given dungeon? Can the PCs take rests while inside a dungeon?

4. I may not have reached this section yet in the DM guide, but I will go ahead and ask anyways. What happens to monster equipment/weapons once they are defeated by the PCs? Can PCs simply raid the bodies?

5. Feel free to give me any additional advice for a first-time DM/first-time PCs.

Thanks in advance!

 

[surfarcher]

G'day husky and welcome to the DM club!

My answers to your questions, others are welcome to put in their 2cp worth.


1. PCs can make a skill check with any of the skills whenever they want. Being trained isn't necessary. The check won't necessarily turn up anything of interest tho. Tip: Don't respond to their check with soemthing like "there's nothing there", instead something like "you don't notice anything".


2. If you guys are going to spend more money here's what I suggest. By the Dungeon Master's Guide 2 and a DDI subscription for the DM. That gives you, as DM, access to the Monster Builder and the Character Builder. In other words all the monsters there are and a toolkit for characetr building with everything in all the various player's books! I reckon some of your players might want to get DDI for a month just so they can get their hands on the Character Builder.

With DDI you also get Dragon magazine and Dungeon magazine.


3. Well it really depends really. Are you building it yourself or going to run an existing adventure? Anywhere from three to eight is normal, I think.


4. They sure can! But a lot of the gear is worse than what the PCs have. Some of it is nice tho. It's always good to check the bodies, there may be clues on them!


5. A few thoughts...
(a) There are some great posts on here to read.
(b) If you can find a copy of Dungeon Master 4th Edition for Dummies to read or buy you'll probably be very glad you did.
(c) Feel free to post for advice on here leading up to the first game and after it. Folks on here are very helpful.


Cheers!

 

[huskythegeek]

Thanks for the advice!

Just to clarify, I am attempting to build the first adventure myself.

 

[On Puget Sound]

re your rests question -
the game assumes a 5 minute rest between encounters, in fact one definition of an encounter is " the stuff that happens between two short rests". This recharges encounter powers and lets the heroes spend surges to recover hit points (yes, healers can use their healing powers during rests to make those surges more efficient).

There may, rarely, be times when a 5 minute rest is not possible, such as when the monsters grab a team member and run away. You'll need to give chase right away to rescue them. These "chained encounters" should be designed carefully, though.



Extended rests are up to the DM. Players will probably need one after 2 to 5 encounters, but whether they can get one depends on where they are and on what time pressure is present. Often resting will have consequences - if you raid a bandit camp, then retreat to sleep for a night, the bandits will either fortify and set traps, or move away, before you come back.

I agree, the first thing you should buy is a ddi subscription. One subscription lets you download and update the character builder up to 5 times per month, so your group can have it on several computers.

The second thing you want is a big playing mat, with 1 inch squares, suitable for wet-erase pens.

Third, pipe cleaners in assorted colors. Cut them into 2-3 inch lengths and form them into colored rings. Drop the rings on figures to show status - bloodied, dazed, marked, etc. By twisting 2 colors together you can make dozens of different markers.

 

[samursus]

Welcome to the boards and the game!! I would echo those who suggest the Dungeon Masters Guide 2, its a wealth of great information to help your game run smoother.

As far as additional books... it kind of depends. DDI is your most cost-effective way to access all the "crunch" put out so far.

Many of the locations books are great for reading and mining inspiration: Underdark, Open Grave, Astral Plane etc. The crunch for these books is in the DDI, but much of the "fluff" isn't.

And spend much as much time as you can browsing this board. There are many great DM's and players on here who regularly share their brilliant ideas and thoughts.

A few posters that I usually take notice of are Weem, Stalker0, Piratecats & Rels campaign threads. I am sure there are plenty of others I have forgotten to mention.

 

[Taed]

Just to clarify, I am attempting to build the first adventure myself.

I recommend that you do not do so as a first-time DM. At least pick something short just to get you all used to the flow of things. For example, there are some short free downloads on the Wizards site, such as "Kyber's Harvest". You could also just run through some of the encounters (not the entire adventure) of "Keep on the Shadowfell", which is also a free download. There's also a few in the back of the Dungeon Masters Guide. For example, you could have them run into a kobold road ambush (from Keep on the Shadowfell) on the way to the adventure that you want them to go to.

It will give you a feel for what needs to be prepared, what your players will do, and how to design a combat.

 

[jimmifett]

4) When looting corpses, keep in mind that the equipment monsters where is junk by the time they are killed. If you play an MMO, it would be considered a 'grey' item if you attempted to sell it, but you could use it yourself without penalties. Need more ranged ammo? loot the corpse. Hey look, some mundane chain armor! Defender/pally need javelins, there you go.

If your players decide they want to sell the looted mundane equipment, if you allow a merchant to buy it at all ("bah, what is this junk you've brought me? worthless!") i'd allow selling at 20% of buy price, or less.

If they try to milk this, loading up on everything not nailed down to bring back to town and sell, make them aware of heavy weight penalties. Only use this if they are trying to abuse.

I'd think after 1 trip back to town taking 3 times as along due to encumberance, not to mention the penalties that occur in the convenient ambush on the way back, i'd then hit them with a skill challenge/streetwise to find someone wanting to buy 'scrap', and top it off with dirt cheap buy prices. The players should find the time spent hauling around and selling mundane equipment unrewarding and get back to heroic adventuring and aquiring magical phat l00t.

 

[UngainlyTitan]

Hello all!

My friends and I recently decided to take the plunge and learn D&D together. We currently own the 4th edition core rulebooks and each of us are making our way through them gradually.

I have taken on the task of being the DM even though I've never played a game of D&D in my life. I feel pretty confident though and I've almost completely read the DM Guide. However, I have a few questions that may seem hilarious to you guys, so please bear with me. I might have accidentally skimmed through the answers to these questions, so please don't be too hard on me.

1. I'm a little confused when it comes to the skills. Can EVERY PC make a perception check whenever they want to if they are untrained in perception? Say the party is taking an extended rest in a forest, and each of them is taking turns on guard duty. Can a PC make a perception check while on guard duty if they are untrained? Also, if this is possible, can the same be done with every skill (history, arcana, streetwise, etc), or is perception an exception?

Yes, but feel free to rule that somethings that are not ordinary require training to use the skill.

2. My friends have almost completed their character sheets and backgrounds and we intend to buy some more of the necessary equipment soon. What should we make sure to pick up with a budget of say $80-$100 dollars? What are some of the essentials we NEED to have and what are some extra things you would suggest?

Battlemat (I use Paizo flipmats) pens and tokens or minis

3. On average, how many combat encounters are in a given dungeon? Can the PCs take rests while inside a dungeon?

As many as makes sense. Feel free to have empty rooms. If you have a lot of encounters then the party will need an extended rest before they can clear it out completely. Then you have to consider can they rest safely in the dungeon or do they need to retreat to a safer location and if the latter what do the dungeon dwellers do about their incursion.

4. I may not have reached this section yet in the DM guide, but I will go ahead and ask anyways. What happens to monster equipment/weapons once they are defeated by the PCs? Can PCs simply raid the bodies?

They can but 4e separates monster treasure with the stats. So the orc chieftan can have a +5 singing and dancing longssword but it will not be reflected in his stats but is available in his loot.

5. Feel free to give me any additional advice for a first-time DM/first-time PCs.
Thanks in advance!

The PCs will never do what you eexpect, be prepared for that.

Keep the game flowing, tell them that upfront. In session you make your best judgement as to a ruling and they can all lookit up afterward and trashout the right ruling later.

 

[MatthewJHanson]

For Question 1, there are a few uses of skills that you need to be trained for. Acrobatics to reduce falling damage is the one that comes up most in my experience. This is the exception though, most of the time characters can use a skill untrained.

Also: Welcome to the Game!

And: Welcome to the Boards!

 

[bert1000]

3. On average, how many combat encounters are in a given dungeon? Can the PCs take rests while inside a dungeon?

This depends on the story purpose of the dungeon, your play style, etc. But I would recommend starting with no more than 3 combat encounters per location.

Why?

1) 4e combats can take a long time (45min-1hr+), especially when learning the rules and powers. Limiting the combat encounters at one location gives you some natural time for "something else" (e.g., general role playing, skill challenges, plot advancement, travel, etc.) between combat. Also, think of "dungeon" as any discrete location important to the PCs (e.g., city neighborhood, mansion, forest, valley, etc.).

2) Varying locations makes it easier to change up the types of monsters you throw at the PCs to keep things interesting

3) It will be easier for you to learn from your mistakes (and you will make mistakes in the beginning!) and incorporate that feedback into your next encounter


I would take the advice of an earlier poster and get a DDI subscription. In Dungeon Magazine (which you'll get with the sub.), you will find "Chaos Scar" adventures, which are very short (3 combat encounter?) scenarios already fleshed out for you. Find a few you like and run through those. You can link them together with your own overarching plot.