New DM, New Player

[Ghouphball]

So I’ve dmed a few (like 3) oneshots for some players, and thats the extent of my dming experience. I decided to take on a longer form campaign because I missed playing dnd, and dammit I have to learn somehow. So far my world building is going great, but my players are struggling a bit. They have character sheets, but are struggling to get into the roleplay and to find their characters motivation. One of thhem is a drama student and we worked really well on their backstory. One is a dude who likes having stupid fun in dnd which i encourage every opportunity, but he has very little backstory and Im still unaware as to why he even started journeying. The third has characters they are attatched to but otherwise gave me free reign over his backstory, though ive made sure to work with him.
The point is, does anyone have any idea on ways I could help my players discover their character motivation and get them more invested? I have a plan for the first proper arc and right now its a bit of session zero’s to get them an idea on how to play. Should I just leave it be and let them figure it out, or should i encourage them more? Should I set aside one on one time to talk more about them or should I let them chill? Thanks!

 

[Fenris-77]

A core question is to figure out why the character in question risks their life in pursuit of treasure and glory rather than doing something, well, normal and safe. That answer goes a long way.

 

[J.Quondam]

It can be hard to motivate players to RP if they're not familiar with it, so personally I wouldn't worry too terribly much about it yet. Your players will likely settle in to whatever level of characterization they're comfortable with. And honestly, while some players want a deep dive into character, others just want to beat up monsters; both are fine (and it's probably a good idea if the DM is ready to work with both approaches).

You can get a fair bit of mileage out of minimal character descriptions (eg, the Ideals, Bonds, Flaws and Personality Traits in the 5e PHB). For those who need a little RP guidance, a few bullet points like that can be a HUGE help, especially early on in the game, until your players get their sea legs. And as you play, try to present a handful of NPCs (allies, rivals, and/or arch-enemies). DM can leverage those into "bonds" that suggest motivation for PCs. Hopefully, the character motivations just sort of build themselves with play.

 

[Benjamin Olson]

I wouldn't worry about it. Personally I usually don't really figure out my character motivations or the details of their background anymore until we're a few sessions in and I've gotten a taste for how I actually play them, how they interact with the other characters, and what the campaign is like in tone, content, and priorities.

My advice to you as DM would be to keep the opening arc fairly simple and straightforward while people figure out their characters, and just try to put them in a variety of typical D&D situations (ie: make sure they have several flavors each of combat, exploration, and social) and save your more creative ideas, or trying to build things around the characters, for later in the campaign.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

One thing I find can help is giving them a prompt. It can be something like "you've been travelling in the mountains all day and at camp you are exhausted. What do you complain about to everyone else when you sit down to eat?"

Giving them all inspiration for their answers will help encourage them. My general theory of inspiration is that it's a great tool for nudging players towards what you want to see in your game.

But ultimately, don't stress too much about it. Players take time to gel, and people play D&D for different reasons. As long as they're all (and you are) having fun, the rest is gravy.

 

[Umbran]

As J.Quondam above notes - If you are playing 5e, then look to the PHB, Chapter 4.

Along with every character Background, there's suggested Personality Traits, Ideals, Bonds, and Flaws. Have the players pick them. If they don't like the ones there, have them make one up. Write them down. Actually use them to give out Inspiration. There's a thing on the sheet they chose to represent themselves, that you and they can appeal to. ("Hey, John, your Rogue has a thing for doing charity. And here's an orphanage that's about to be closed. Maybe you want to do something about it?")

With a little practice, after a while, they won't need to look at them to decide what they want to do.

 

[nedjer]

Presenting urgency within the gameplay can encourage players to develop roles they connect to. Caught in a siege, marooned, revolution, asteroid strike, . . . there are lots of ways to react/ roles to adopt from a wide range of options and they have to react beyond simply firing off the skills on their PC sheet.

 

[aramis erak]

So I’ve dmed a few (like 3) oneshots for some players, and thats the extent of my dming experience. I decided to take on a longer form campaign because I missed playing dnd, and dammit I have to learn somehow. So far my world building is going great, but my players are struggling a bit. They have character sheets, but are struggling to get into the roleplay and to find their characters motivation. One of thhem is a drama student and we worked really well on their backstory. One is a dude who likes having stupid fun in dnd which i encourage every opportunity, but he has very little backstory and Im still unaware as to why he even started journeying. The third has characters they are attatched to but otherwise gave me free reign over his backstory, though ive made sure to work with him.
The point is, does anyone have any idea on ways I could help my players discover their character motivation and get them more invested? I have a plan for the first proper arc and right now its a bit of session zero’s to get them an idea on how to play. Should I just leave it be and let them figure it out, or should i encourage them more? Should I set aside one on one time to talk more about them or should I let them chill? Thanks!

That they need motivations and backstory is a fallacy.

Don't force it; you'll only drive them off by damanding narrative elements that they don't care about.