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First Time GM Advice
https://www.libraryofhiabuor.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=337
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Author:  Acoma [ Wed Mar 07, 2018 8:06 pm ]
Post subject:  First Time GM Advice

I've finally managed to set up a game with 4 friends, starting next Friday :D
However, none of them have played before, and I haven't GM'd properly in quite a while. I'm planning to spend the first session (1.5 - 2 hrs) rolling characters and playing the typical 'you are attacked by bandits in a forest' to familiarise them with the system. I'm then planning to play through 'The Darkness Before Dawn', but am a bit stuck after that. Do you know of any good published scenarios/tips on writing my own?

Any general tips for (basically) a first time GM?

Thanks :)

Author:  Starkad [ Wed Mar 07, 2018 8:13 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: First Time GM Advice

Quote:
Do you know of any good published scenarios/tips on writing my own?

Have you read "The King Under The Forest"? It's the scenario in the old Dragon Warriors Book 1. It's a fairly simple dungeon (always good for new role-players), with some nice ideas for the lead up to it.
From there, you have the adventures in Book 2; "A Shadow on the Mist" and "Hunters Moon" which should see you through a couple of sessions.

Quote:
Any general tips for (basically) a first time GM?

Are your players new to role-playing? If so, find out what they expect and see if it matches what you can run. If they have fun, you will too.
If they're "veteran" players, don't let them bully / overawe you - you're the GM, so stick to your guns.
Make sure you know the rules. ;)

Don't try to do too much in the first session. Have a couple of fights (so you learn the rules), a reason for said fights... To be fair, the "Darkness Before Dawn" scenario is a good one to start. Try not to kill the players' characters, but if they do something really stupid, don't be afraid to do so either.

Have some drinks and nibbles handy. ;)

Author:  Acoma [ Wed Mar 07, 2018 8:15 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: First Time GM Advice

Thanks :)

Author:  Cobwebbed Dragon [ Wed Mar 07, 2018 8:21 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: First Time GM Advice

One thing that can quickly break the immersion and narrative is having to stop to check the rules - feel free to help yourself to the quick reference guides from the Forest - there's one for every profession to give to the players and a three-page GM screen with helpful formulae and tables:

http://www.cobwebbedforest.co.uk/downloads/

If you want to familiarise your players with the basic rules, I've also started publishing tutorials on http://www.dragonwarriors.uk/

The more preparation you can do, the better - read through the adventure enough times to make sure you know how it will develop in response to your players' actions. Again, the less you have to read through text, the smoother the session will feel for everyone and the more comfortable you will feel improvising additional scenes when the adventurers inevitably go off piste!

Author:  Acoma [ Wed Mar 07, 2018 8:25 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: First Time GM Advice

I've been studying the rulebook pretty excessively for rules memorisation purposes, but the Profession Reference sheets are useful. Thanks as ever for the Forest :)

Author:  WodenKrait [ Wed Mar 07, 2018 9:41 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: First Time GM Advice

When in doubt, wing it, but do it with utter confidence. Players are like feral dogs. If they sense weakness, they'll go for you.

:P

Cheers,

-Kyle

Author:  Damian May [ Wed Mar 07, 2018 9:57 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: First Time GM Advice

The Millers Tale and The Knights Tale are not bad and theres a bunch of fan made adventures on the wiki and on Hiabour ( I recommend Shauns series, I've played through them at conventions and they're pretty good)

Author:  Kharille [ Thu Mar 08, 2018 2:01 am ]
Post subject:  Re: First Time GM Advice

I think the first thing the players will enjoy is the fighting and the looting. I remember playing some premade games which seemed to have magic loot everywhere. If I recall Elven Crystals were like that. I got to tell you though, some players will get upset over loot/monopoly money. Perhaps an initial game might have some treasured items and each person can feel proud of their hardware.

Author:  Acoma [ Thu Mar 08, 2018 7:28 am ]
Post subject:  Re: First Time GM Advice

Half of them thought it was D&D we're playing, and one of them is a D&D fanatic, so I'm going to have to balance the realism of DW with the combat-heavy, high fantasy system of D&D. Should be fun though :)

Author:  Cobwebbed Dragon [ Thu Mar 08, 2018 12:57 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: First Time GM Advice

Damian May wrote:
The Millers Tale and The Knights Tale are not bad and theres a bunch of fan made adventures on the wiki and on Hiabour ( I recommend Shauns series, I've played through them at conventions and they're pretty good)

For a comprehensive list of where to find free Dragon Warriors adventures online (including Shaun's convention series), I've compiled all the fan-written archives in this part of the Forest:
http://www.cobwebbedforest.co.uk/librar ... ntures.php

And don't forget all the adventures that Dave Morris has made available over the years (on his own blog and elsewhere):
http://www.cobwebbedforest.co.uk/librar ... ntures.php

There is bound to be something on one of those lists that will suit your players' sensibilities.

I hope the game goes well!

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