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Rocket your D&D 5E and Level Up: Advanced 5E games into space! Alpha Star Magazine Is Launching... Right Now!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Quickleaf" data-source="post: 4765006" data-attributes="member: 20323">Way to pick up the DM banner! <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" /> It's a wise decision to start slow and will help you get a better read on what the group likes. And it's great you're thinking about a campaign already - I've found the more into the game I am the more it draws the other players in and the more fun everyone has.So you asked a ton of great questions. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f642.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":)" title="Smile    :)"  data-smilie="1"data-shortname=":)" />I am on the excessive preparation end of the scale, so this is what works for me, not necessarily what I recommend for you and your group. Take what works for you and leave the rest.I've also attached a couple pdfs of campaign planning I've been doing for a campaign that's going to begin in August (yes I'm a bit OCPD planning 6 months in advance for a D&D campaign).Preparation improves improvisationThe clearer you are on how events progress, what major NPCs want to accomplish, the history of the setting, even how your encounter scripts look - the clearer you are the easier it will be to improvise because you'll know how to respond to the unexpected in a way that doesn't break from the storyline but enhances it.Likewise, have all the maps & minis & dice you need, read the adventure beforehand, have a list of NPC names, etc. This will not only speed up gameplay, but make improvising more enjoyable for you.Start with a bangI let the players decide how (or if) their characters know each other, then start with an exciting scene that lets the players test drive their PCs' abilities and sets the tone for the rest of the campaign. For me, the first adventure is critical because it's where the theme of your campaign is created and "unspoken promises" are made. If the nation is oppressed by a tyrant, you're making the unspoken promise with the players that their characters will play a critical role in weakening or overthrowing the tyrant.Remember act 2A lot of D&D games forget that the second act of a story is meant to develop the characters. In many D&D games this is filled with meaningless decisions (left or right door), and lots of fighting and traps. Fighting and traps are great, just give them meaning - why is it important they finish this quest? what other side quests are they interested in pursuing? do any of the characters (PCs/NPCs) change because of this encounter? what does the overland journey tell us about what makes the PCs tick? Make a meaningful and fun second act and the players will love watching their characters shine.Never confuse illusion of choice with real choiceThis one is more complex. While I do plan every adventure in advance, there's lots of choices the PCs can make within each adventure that will change the campaign. I determine the plot (mostly), and the players determine how their PCs navigate it. The PCs (usually) can't alter the order of the adventures they'll face, but they can change the parameters of an adventure, for example whether they infiltrate a prison using stealth, guile, force, or some combination.Anyhow, that's some of my advice. Listen to what other folks have to say and see what works for you.</blockquote>

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