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Message: <blockquote data-quote="reveal" data-source="post: 401351" data-attributes="member: 1236">I have seen a lot of posts on here regarding advice on being a new DM.  I thought, why not come up with some sort of definitive list of what to do and what not to do?  With all the years (decades) of experience DMing there is on this board, let's make it an easier place for newbie DMs to get some good, solid, advice on making their game extremely enjoyable. Feel free to add your own advice or stories to show a point.  I'll start off with a few.1) Know the rules.2) Know the rules well.3) Know your players.  In my campaign, we were about to start a tough module that combined mystery and intrigue.  I knew my players and I knew that they were easily frustrated and would start to feel like the DM was "out to get them" if they didn't understand what was going on, even if they weren't meant to at a certain point.  So, before we started the module, I sat them down and let them know that I was not "out to get them" and that I would not try to screw them over.  If they used their minds and just went along with it, everyone would be ok in the end.  And so, as we are in the middle of the module, it has been fantastic and, while the PCs don't get everything that is going on, they are not frustrated and are having an extremely good time.4) To go along with point 3, communicate with your players.  Be willing to give/get advice.5) Be prepared.  No player likes to sit there while the DM looks up a spell or a monster for 5 minutes.</blockquote>

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