D&D 5E Setting up a Dungeons and Dragons Club at my Local Library

[Jaiken]

100% do Lost Mines.

That is what I will do. Plus there are multiple races and classes that will be available to the group.

The official DnD 5e races, I think around 30.

And 17 classes including five from KibblesTasty:

1. Barbarian
2. Bard
3. Cleric
4. Druid
5. Fighter
6. Monk
7. Occultist (Kibbles tasty homebrew class)
8. Paladin
9. Psionics (Kibbles tasty home brew class)
10. Ranger
11. Rogue
12. Sorcerer
13. Spellsword (Kibbles tasty home brew class)
14. Warden (Kibbles tasty home brew class)
15. Warlock
16. Warlord (Kibbles tasty home brew class)
17. Wizard

 

[Clint_L]

Are you sure you want to go with that many options? And in particular, with additional third party options? For brand new players? I have a lot of experience with beginners, and giving a bunch of additional options tends to be overwhelming - just the ones in the PHB alone mean a ton of choices for them to make, and they have little if any context to help them decide.

I guess I'm wondering what adding those additional species and classes does for a beginner group? There's a strong case to be made for reducing the number of options, IMO (which is why the Phandelver Starter Set does exactly that). What are they getting out of having access to the Occultist, on top of the Wizard, Sorcerer, Cleric, Druid, Bard, and Warlock, for example?

I would focus on just helping them learn the basic game before even thinking about adding 3PP. Quite a few beginners have no context for what "armour class," "hit point," and "saving throw" mean, let alone evaluating 30 different species and 17 different classes (not to mention subclasses)!

You really want to keep that first session as simple as possible, so they can get to the game quickly and learn through playing.

 

[Jaiken]

Are you sure you want to go with that many options? And in particular, with additional third party options? For brand new players? I have a lot of experience with beginners, and giving a bunch of additional options tends to be overwhelming - just the ones in the PHB alone mean a ton of choices for them to make, and they have little if any context to help them decide.

I guess I'm wondering what adding those additional species and classes does for a beginner group? There's a strong case to be made for reducing the number of options, IMO (which is why the Phandelver Starter Set does exactly that). What are they getting out of having access to the Occultist, on top of the Wizard, Sorcerer, Cleric, Druid, Bard, and Warlock, for example?

I would focus on just helping them learn the basic game before even thinking about adding 3PP. Quite a few beginners have no context for what "armour class," "hit point," and "saving throw" mean, let alone evaluating 30 different species and 17 different classes (not to mention subclasses)!

You really want to keep that first session as simple as possible, so they can get to the game quickly and learn through playing.

Good point. Having too many options might overwhelm them. Leaving it to the core classes is ideal. Edit: I might introduce the extra classes later on when introducing multiclassing.

 

[Retreater]

Also a librarian here. First, thanks for offering to run games for the community and promoting your library as an important hub of engagement for your area. Trust me when I say libraries need support now more than ever.
So I've been involved in a variety of D&D programs at libraries. Many have turned out to be folks dropping in for one session to see what it's about. Be prepared to teach the game and don't expect an ongoing campaign with all the rules and options turned on full blast.
I helped set up a D&D club at another library in the region, and it's grown into a massive, regular event. It's in a small town, and they have 20+ regular attendees biweekly. They've gotten into long term campaigns, teens using 3D printers to create their minis, poster printers making battle maps, etc. But it took time to grow into that.
Remember that you're learning just like they're learning. Give it time to grow. Stay away from controversial story arcs - you want to cast a big net and not create negative publicity.
Best of luck.

 

[Jaiken]

Also a librarian here. First, thanks for offering to run games for the community and promoting your library as an important hub of engagement for your area. Trust me when I say libraries need support now more than ever.
So I've been involved in a variety of D&D programs at libraries. Many have turned out to be folks dropping in for one session to see what it's about. Be prepared to teach the game and don't expect an ongoing campaign with all the rules and options turned on full blast.
I helped set up a D&D club at another library in the region, and it's grown into a massive, regular event. It's in a small town, and they have 20+ regular attendees biweekly. They've gotten into long term campaigns, teens using 3D printers to create their minis, poster printers making battle maps, etc. But it took time to grow into that.
Remember that you're learning just like they're learning. Give it time to grow. Stay away from controversial story arcs - you want to cast a big net and not create negative publicity.
Best of luck.

I plan on using the adventure modules under my collection to use for the sessions. Starting with LMoP. Any ones I should avoid running? I also have:
Tales of the Yawning Portal
Dungeon of the Mad Mage
Curse of Strahd

 

[Clint_L]

If you want a really short campaign, the level 1-3 mini-arcs (about three games each) in Explorer's Guide to Wildemount are really good, especially "Frozen Sick" and "Dangerous Designs." I think "Frozen Sick" is free on DnDBEyond, as well.

I like those two, in particular, because they have a bit of simple mystery-solving attached, which allows the players to learn to RP, but with a small cast of NPCs so that there isn't too much pressure on the DM. This is especially good when you are working with new players because you will find that they are taking most of your mental energy, so you don't want to have to put too much thought into keeping track of the world.

My current school campaign rolled "Dangerous Designs" into "Frozen Sick," with a few of my own additions to link the stories, and with adjustments to encounter design to take into account higher levels for the latter arc.

 

[Retreater]

I plan on using the adventure modules under my collection to use for the sessions. Starting with LMoP. Any ones I should avoid running? I also have:
Tales of the Yawning Portal
Dungeon of the Mad Mage
Curse of Strahd

It really depends on the community. I'm in the Bible Belt, so I would avoid anything with demons, devils, or the Hells. For me, if I ran Strahd, I'd really glance over certain subplots (such as the crazed village priest who has his vampire son trapped in the basement or the Vistani tarot readers.)

 

[Jaiken]

It really depends on the community. I'm in the Bible Belt, so I would avoid anything with demons, devils, or the Hells. For me, if I ran Strahd, I'd really glance over certain subplots (such as the crazed village priest who has his vampire son trapped in the basement or the Vistani tarot readers.)

Thanks. I forgot that using tarot cards might disturb some players. [I/spoiler Instead the results of the tarot cards will be predetermined.

 

[Jaiken]

Update: I am now attracting players to my club and one is interested so far. Still waiting on the Library to confirm I am ok playing Dungeons and Dragons at the Library.

I also have 12 sets of spare dice for the club.