Need Advice, New DM. HotDq

[Raloc]

It might also be useful to give the OP tips on running an FR campaign in general. A lot of new DMs might find FR a bit intimidating for all the reasons that it can be a challenge to run - namely the huge amount of high powered NPCs and organizations. And while an easy way to get around that is to largely ignore them or say they are always busy with other things, get back to saving the world you PCs, there are better ways.

For my part (dunno about 5e) I used to up the PC power level slightly (as well as tune enemies up a tiny amount to match the FR style, namely recurring villains), and also try and get the party to weave their character backgrounds and motivations into the setting in a way that allows for contact and cooperation with some of the iconic NPCs and organizations of the Realms. In one campaign of evil PCs (which went fine, no in-fighting) two of the players made Thayan cousins, one a wizard and one a fighter.


I'm sure everyone has their own approach to these things though, and they might all be helpful to lay out a bit.

 

[jayoungr]

I just knew somebody was going to say HotDQ wasn't worth running. The module has a bad reputation here on the forums, but I think it's fairer to say that it's just not for some groups. Others (mine, for instance) have had a blast with it.

That said, Lost Mine of Phandelver (the Starter Set adventure) is a great introduction to D&D 5E and won't take too long to run through; you might want to consider running that first. There's even an easy transition point from LMoP to HotDQ around chapter 5, if your players want to keep the same PCs.

As for the opening sequence of HotDQ, the important things IMO are (1) to know whether your group is likely to need encouragement to go into a dangerous situation, and (2) to be sure to give them those stealth rolls with advantage in order to avoid being noticed. That will cut down greatly on the number of fights they have to have. I also let my group level up halfway through the night so that they could refresh their resources and become a bit less squishy, but looking back on it, I think I wouldn't do that another time. At least not for my group.

Again, see the "enhancing" thread I linked above for more suggestions and links to blogs. Good luck with the module!

 

[pukunui]

I'm about to start running the module hoard of the dragon queen and really need lore on sword coast in order to run the game smoothly. Any resources would be of help! Also realistically speaking, how long should i give myself to learn the lore needed in order to run that specific module? Any advice or resources you guys want to share with me would be greatly appreciated.

When are you actually going to start playing? I ask because the Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide - which is, in part, an updated FR campaign guide - will be coming out in a month.

That being said, you don't really *need* a whole lot of lore until you get to Episode 4, so even if you start playing in the next few days, you might find that you won't get to that chapter until the SCAG has come out. I myself am eagerly awaiting that book's release. I've found the old 2e Forgotten Realms Adventures and Volo's Guide to the Sword Coast books to be of great use in the meantime. I've also been making great use of the campaign guide that comes with the Murder in Baldur's Gate adventure.


I'd also just like to toot my own horn a little bit and point you in the direction of my two Tyranny of Dragons threads:

A Hoard To Remember: Tyranny of Dragons campaign log documents my group's experiences playing through the campaign (we're only up to Episode 4 ourselves).

My Tyranny of Dragons details all the additions, changes, and other tweaks I've made to the campaign as we've gone along.

I hope you find them of some use!