How to Dungeon Master - for Absolute Beginners (D&D5e)

This "How to Dungeon Master" series is intended to help new DM Get started. In this first episode I will run everyone through a free prewritten adventure that mimics the format of official adventures.
After running this adventure, you should be able to run most prewritten Dungeons and Dragons 5e adventures.
Learn How to Play D&D 5E series:
• How to Play Dungeons a...
Link to the D&D 5E Class Guide playlist:
• Dungeons and Dragons 5...
How to Dungeon Master playlist:
• How to Dungeon Master ...
The mini adventure used in the video can be downloaded from either of these links here:
dontstopthinking.com/wp-conten...
www.dmsguild.com/product/23892...
If you haven't got a player's handbook, you can get the basic rules from the official site here:
dnd.wizards.com/articles/featu...
You can find blank and pregenerated character sheets here
dnd.wizards.com/articles/featu...
Website: dontstopthinking.com
Facebook: / cjleungdst
Twitter: / cjleung_dst
Patreon: www.patreon.com/user?u=4787242
Minds: www.minds.com/CJLeung_DST

[@wizar6712]

I started DMing on a four hour bus ride. All I had back then was a notebook, a pencil, some mates, and a GOOD TIME

[@shelbyhamilton3892]

That sounds so fun lol

[@kendrickrochelanzot2053]

Must have been the best bust ride ever

[@QuinClone]

What about dic3

[@NHDOreBros]

@@QuinClone draw lots or random number gen

[@byteme1601]

i did bootleg dnd with my friends in 5th grade where one would just be like k this happens what do you do and he was the dice

[@fiatmcnuggets4876]

PCs: *Mess with me or taunts me while I'm DMing.* Me: *Opens monster manual to page 286* "Soon my child, soon..."

[@ibreakmirrorswmyface]

I am sad taht I cant check whats on that page xD

[@fnc_]

Pan_keczup :3 Tarasque

[@L0ngsword]

(Flips to that page, sees what it is and reads the description, grins evilly and bookmarks the page) Thank you, sir. This will be most useful.

[@boolaofmt8815]

@@ibreakmirrorswmyface online.anyflip.com/locl/mqbi/mobile/index.html#p=287 Nie ma za co panie keczup

[@ibreakmirrorswmyface]

@@boolaofmt8815 o dziękuję :3

[@theViperNL]

First time we were playing, my little brother was DM as he had played it before. He introduced a bear to us, probably to show us bears can be dangerous. One of my friends was a bard, but he completely did not understand how he did damage or how he did support so he was kinda useless. When we noticed the bear and how high his animal handling was, we figured 1+1 is 2 and he could tame the bear to be more usefull. We started catching fish, birds and collected berry's to have him offer it to the bear. Our DM kept saying to please don't do it. Just when the DM had enough and wanted to let the bear attack us, wouldn't you have it, we rolled a natural 20. He decided to use that to let us escape, while we were crying because we already named the bear and put like an hour in trying to tame him. R.I.P. Peddington who fell in a hunters trap right as he started to attack us.

[@michaelkochalka3251]

This is outrageous! your DM should've gave you the bear! RIP Peddington indeed :c

[@newlegend2402]

Just bs your wizard into having formed a contract to summon Paddington

[@larissadonegan4389]

I’m hoping to become a DM for my family, it’s not much but I’d love to introduce a bear character eventually called Paddington as an homage to your fallen comrade. I vow to be a DM who lets my players have fun with the story

[@MoonlightCircus]

Poor Peddington. I would be THRILLED if my players got this creative.

[@ifind5036]

Loved this ty...im just about to start my first campaign as a new dm, my adventurers are also all new..we start on the 30th of June this month 2024... Your videos are very helpful ty..

[@Xtra_Medium]

A rule my DM recently taught me: Hit points are optional, don't be afraid to run combat on a logical narrative.

[@Dracopol]

I disagree! A game should have hit-points, and XP, similar to a computer or video game. Also, armor should be polished until it gleams, like pinball. Also, roll your dice on a back-board, like in craps tables. Gamers are most comfortable if games remind them of other games. :-)

[@FlyingDominion]

Generally, a rule should be understood well before it is altered or removed. Without hitpoints, how do you reward a player for using a two-handed weapon or dual weilding instead of the safer one-handed weapon and shield? Or for using spells that have higher damage (Fire Bolt) instead of other benefits (Chill Touch, Ray of Frost)?

[@TrickyTrickyFox]

Well, there is a style of game, where stats are not used at all and it all comes down to logical narrative. It's a viable option, though it should be so then from start to the end. Like the "Thrilling intent" series on KZbin, if I reckon correctly. Now, when it comes to stat base game - hitpoint are changeable. You have a boss battle planned with 35 HP and the party reacks havoc on first turn, dealing over thirty damage? GREAT, reward your players by doubling monsters HP up to 75 for instance. That way you can award a lot more EXP and loot for it, while still providing a challenging fight, not just one-shot monster. Kinda like a loot piniata. You have to be consistant, when it comes to "repeated enemies". Nobody is stopping you from changing unique enemies on the fly, if players are doing greatly or poorly.

[@KingAm0]

Yeah, like a villain slitting a captives throat. You don’t roll armor pen or damage. They would just die.

[@Forestxavier20]

the rule I was taught: Lay out a plan, but don't write in detail. Character sheets can be used over and over, so long as you don't have them tied to a specific NPC.

[@joshlegacy1101]

*Start with a pre-written campaign.* Advice I wish I had months ago.

[@yellow_sprouts]

I made my own but they actually really liked it It took me a while and it was a bit messy but it wasn't bad heck I even have the teaser I'll paste it below Gossip stirs around the town about a contest of all classes hosted by a Neighboring Kingdom that seemed to materialize out of thin air You are put in random groups (Aka putting all the characters together) and have to fight your way through tasks and trials if you fail your eliminated if you succeed you get a perk or advantage in the next round the better you do the better perk etc And if your the last group standing you win the choice of any items you want from the kingdoms treasures ranging from exotic pets to One of a kind texts to Gold and Jewels to magical objects But as people get eliminated they go missing all together Will the players rescue the other contestants caught within the palace walls and escape the kingdom Or will they fall victim to the trap due to lack of teamwork and have to find a way to escape from within

[@toodlesyes9687]

HhHmmmmMmmm P U S S Y

[@toodlesyes9687]

jk jk

[@sheiswunderland3398]

@@bonesmagee2559 Then their not your friends. mine liked it and gave me tips how to make it better

[@machixius]

Depending on how lenient your players are it may be ok to make your own setting.

[@aftyalldredge7923]

I ran this game just last week. We all had a blast even when our teifling successfully convinced the cultists he was Moloch their god and the cultists let the party free without a fight.

[@junimoalldredge7051]

Afty Alldredge I played in that game it was so fun I was the healer of the group

[@pluggothesluggo5509]

my friend made me playe as a lvl 1 character and got tpk'd, this was my first time playing, apparently he played it with someone else before and the dude rolled so good he won the game as a level 1 characters

[@sage-mareemandich156]

What level did the players start at? Level 2?

[@lt.spookycarrot1925]

Advice: say your party is slightly more reckless than you imagined and your premade story is coming off the tracks. Don’t be scared to use your Vito powers to put them back in line. Not every action must be rolled for.

[@auraemerald8434]

Would it be wrong for me to try to adapt to their decisions, even if it goes way off rails?

[@-jayme-9090]

@@auraemerald8434 nope!

[@foxyhorse9142]

​@@auraemerald8434 Did yours go and establish a communist dictatorship in an empire that they stole as well?

[@ilbhaley79]

@@auraemerald8434 absolutely not. A big part of the fun is that it’s collective storytelling. You can work in ways to realign the tracks a bit, but the more players feel their actions have weight the more they get involved

[@Sun-Tzu-]

I disagree. That's just lazy storytelling. The DM is just a moderator, the story writing is a collective effort. Having a strict DM that stints freedom and creativity at every turn with ruin the game for everyone.

[@hole-sawbear1500]

I've never played D&D, but I going to jump right into DMing. What could possibly go wrong, right? Lol Edit: wow, ty all for the encouragement. I'm now halfway through the Horde of the Dragon Queen with the same party, they're lvl 7, and i have come to realize why that module is so hated. Though with a whole lot of homebrew side quests and character backstory I've managed to make the caravan journey bareable, and my party even seems to get excited for the journey. We're currently homebrewing our own world as a group, and on the side, I am preparing to start a Star Wars 5e campaign based on the galactic conquest campaign in the OG battlefront 2 game. If anybody is considering giving DMing a chance, just go for it. Its a whole lot of fun.

[@frankcastle1124]

One unwritten rule is to take whats there and make your own game . My D&D game character do not gain hit points every time the level up based on class , all characters gain hit points based on their constitution based on a D8 . So a character with a 15 constitution rolls 15 D8 and adds them up for his total hit points and anytime a characters constitution changes he either gains a D8 or loses a D8 to his hit points . I also did the same thing to monsters with size being a factor in their hit points . A huge dragon might have a constitution of 19 but because he is a huge monsterr he gains 20 extra D8 rolls ( Rolls that high are adveraged so that it becomes easy to generate hit point on the fly ) So when placing that huge dragon you would roll 39 D8 and ad them up . A large character whose height is 7 feet to 10 feet gains a bonus of 2D8 to their hit points

[@donovonpavloff970]

Same haha

[@1laceyt]

You do you but i have found it good to play as a player a few times first to get a feel for your party and what there thinking

[@anerdwhowritesessays9931]

Nothing. That's what I did, and my team loves it. I played it beginning with only a phone, free apps, and the Interner, I've been DMing for 1 year, and JUST got miniatures, and books.

[@corajohnson390]

Same

[@aidia9211]

All my friends in D&D said that I would never be able to be a DM and that it was to complicated for me, I’m going to make it my goal to master the role of a DM so I can prove to them that I’m good enough and I can do it myself

[@joeharvey5556]

Never givecup.. it can be confusing at times with order and rules but you should be good.. if u find u cant be as logical then run a premade campaign with ur own ideas... lol

[@aidia9211]

Joe Harvey thank you so much that’s really kind of you to say that

[@joeharvey5556]

No problem i have some points for u if u want me list them I played longtime and was neverc smart as my friends but i love game and still learning lol Anyone says they have this game down after 1yr is liar..lol Have fun Best rule.. if u hVe a fight roll dice high roll wins.. Look up rule later

[@gamdanyunizar7849]

Make em feel the greatest joy, fear, and wonder, and have fun!

[@aidia9211]

@Falfox One I rlly do lmao, this was 7 months ago and I’m still having some issues.

[@tharrock337]

I love the "savage mom". So here is a little story from me: We had a DND night at my parents place because my apartment isnt big enough and most of my D&D friends live closer to my hometown anywas so there we are playing. Dad is not getting this DND thing at all and he hates that game because he feels like because of the DM screen I am "hiding" from my players and even though we are all in one room nothing about it is actually social like with them good old board games. He is talking himself into a good old fashioned dad rant after wich I just ask... sooo You wanna play? I tell you nothing you just said is true but it is easier to show you than to tell. Dad will have none of it and is about to get up from the diner table but mom starts laughing and is like "nono you dont get up now, you just spent all diner mouthing off about the game, now you play and we'll see who is right". Dad grumbles a bit and then declares he wont play unless she plays too, so there I am the next evening running a game for my parents. Mom creates an elven ranger (pretty much just inserted herself into the game like most people do with their first charakter) and she is done in like 20 minutes creating her first charakter the Elven Ranger "Alera". Dad takes loneger. Much longer In fact he creates 2 and a half charakters. He says he want's to be gandalf after I told him to think of the followship and just imagine one of these guys. So I introduce him to the wizard. After we are done creating his charakter he realizes there is a whole bunch of depth to the class and asks me to make a real simple charakter for him so I bring out a barbarian. He takes a look and asks "so how do I use magic here" I realize I made a mistake and we create a sorcerer for him. (he is pretty tilted at this point because we took like an hour longer than my mom took and he already thinks he is bad at the game before we even started playing. I tell him it is ok to take some time with charakter creation and there really isnt such a thing as a bad player, just reckless charakters (a lie but hey you do what you can right?) As soon as we start playing though the both of them soon get really well into their charakters. They have some amazing banter between the city boy sharlatan and the ferral wood elf and in the end find a crazy solution to the goblin problem. Mom uses animal language to get a Large eagle to fly high up in the clouds, dad fires a firebolt at a wierd angle to make it seem as if it is coming from the skies. then he uses minor illusion to produce a dragon noise. He rolls a 19 or something on his intimmidation check and the first scouting party of goblins takes off immediately. The rest of them poses no real threat, now that they are unaware of the two and stripped of 3 of their best fighters. So all in all D&D gave us an amazing family evening wich I never would have seen coming.

[@Dracopol]

Decades ago, no one understood this fantasy nonsense, especially not the older generation. It kind of looked like knights and castles but it had all that weird stuff like magic and elves and dwarves and monsters. Even science fiction was not so known, many people were unfamiliar with SF novels and some were PROUD not to know so they wouldn't end up like those nerd kids! But now with THE LORD OF THE RINGS and A GAME OF THRONES people are more familiar with it. It's not the weird fantasy setting that matters. Your parents were reacting to imagining characters making creative decisions in a harsh world where they overcome adversity. For teens, the fun is getting a taste of power and control and making big decisions when in reality they have no control.

[@fruity7886]

It says ‘savage mum’

[@nexelray3207]

tharrock337 Cool!

[@matthewparker1824]

tharrock337 ij

[@grizzlyowlbear3538]

It seems you succeeded your persuasion check.

[@secpendragon9760]

Me and my friends are playing right now, and there's not a book between any of us. We literally are using whatever knowledge we get from the net and making due. And props to our DM, who is doing it from sheer mental power without any campaign books.

[@nonsensical8770]

Sec Pendragon Wizards of The Coast website has the 5th edition base rules for free, and also a separate document for DMs with monster stats and some DM basic information.

[@Jawn15]

Rpg.rem.uz

[@zemorph42]

D&D Beyond is also a good resource.

[@MrTailson1]

I'm doing the same. I even had to search up online for a custom race that my player wanted to play, only to have to create it from scratch later on, and I even had to make up an entirely new class for him to get him introduced into the world of D&D for roleplaying purposes. But I'm willing to go to great lengths to play this, and he's loving all that I'm doing for him so that we both can have fun.

[@TehPompkinHead]

would you consider sharing any of your campaigns??

[@gogogomes7025]

I love how he double crits his R pronunciation every time

[@theyaxicat5677]

So I tried to get my dm badge today and it was sort of fun, despite my lack of knowledge for the most part, we had a dwarf barbarian, Gnome Fighter and two rogues, one a tiefling and the other a dragon born... ALL CHAOTIC NEUTRAL. You can kinda guess what happened... ...Poor Ollie.

[@DontStopThinking]

Well, your players had fun at least. Keep doing it. It will get better.

[@typicalcattv1247]

Sounds fun. But from my personal experience I have to stop my players from all picking chaotic neutral it becomes really difficult to railroad them.

[@andrewmcclellan4978]

Oh no

[@oddluck4216]

DM'ed my first session ever (and played my first game in ~20 years) last night for my nieces and nephews, all of whom are brand-new to playing D&D. We used your Death Pit of Moloch adventure and had a blast! They're definitely hooked (which is great for this geeky uncle). Thanks so much for your guide and the adventure!

[@vanessaw7088]

I am in the same boat as you. My daughter managed to scrounge up 5 friends to play with her and she asked me to DM ( I haven't played in well over 20 years)...I don't remember much, but I think I will go with the Death Pit of Moloch adventure as well and see how they like it. Glad I saw your comment...I feel a little more confident now.

[@SpeCiiaLAssAss1N13]

@@vanessaw7088 how long is that session

[@SpeCiiaLAssAss1N13]

@@vanessaw7088 i mean i downloaded it but i think its very short or is it just a beginning to a story you continue

[@vanessaw7088]

@@SpeCiiaLAssAss1N13 it was short, but I managed to add bits and pieces to it to make it a little bit longer. We were able to stretch this out over a total of 9 hours (not in one sitting) which was perfect for them to get a feel of things.

[@SpeCiiaLAssAss1N13]

@@vanessaw7088 yeah i was thinking that because the links is only 10 pages

[@botfly9199]

I'm only watching this cause my friends invited me to play but forgot to tell me that I was dm

[@BleepingRelics]

LOL

[@lucasriddle3431]

That sounds like a pretty jerk move. Especially considering, as you're watching this, you're likely new to DMing/haven't ever DMed before. You shouldn't be forcing people into positions they are inexperienced with like that. Anyway, given this comment was put up a year ago, it's all long-resolved by now. Provided you're still using this google account, you'll be notified nonetheless, so, assuming you remember what happened all those months ago: How did it go?

[@BlakeZeb]

Lucas Riddle We May never know.

[@chesspiece4257]

How did it go?

[@notacaulkhead]

HOW DID IT GO

[@Firestar4041]

"You are not a computer..." . . . we need to make a group AI, similar to how that genie game and chat bot were done; for an RPG game, thus creating an AI that can almost keep up with the average DM . . .

[@lucasriddle3431]

Have you ever heard of AI Dungeon 2? It's not that good, but it's... ok. It's trained in fantasy rpgs, sort of, and pretty fun, sometimes.

[@Kyle-gw6qp]

@@lucasriddle3431 Like everything, it was immediately used for weird sex things. However, since AI Dungeon learns, weird sex things now randomly appear when using it.

[@lucasriddle3431]

@@Kyle-gw6qp I don't know if it learns from all interaction, but I think they might have trained it on random usage at first before realising, for stated reasons, that was a bad idea.

[@garrettelliott5849]

Something I personally think you might want to do near the beginning is give the players some type of fight that they have to talk to defeat. Like a really strong enemy that they will have to talk to and calm down and if you fight it gets stronger. It can teach them you don’t always have to fight when something stops you.

[@sesimie]

I love that you literally show your party adventuring in this and your other guides. My Nieces and Nephews started D&D because i used your vids to get them to understand classes how to play. Thanks so much for this helpful guide!!

[@ItoOttelli]

Hey man, I ran your one-shot with my group and they loved it! We aren't new players but I was new to DMing and the one-shot was still engaging for them. It might have been their banter and the fact that the fighter's player went through about four different sets of dice after getting natural 1s on each of them while we all laughed, but they had a good time and so did I.

[@christiankjaer9286]

RefrainFromSora how long does this one shot take

[@lucasriddle3431]

@@christiankjaer9286 Probably long-irrelevant but, depending on your play speed, likely 2~3 hours?

[@parttimehero8640]

Hi, we just played the adventure yesterday. All of us noobs ( total noop, 0% exp in pen'n'paper ) including me the GM. I happy that after the game all wanted to play an other adventure.So thanks a lot and keep up the graet work!

[@caco116]

Loved that pop team epic reference :D

[@mr.paperbag771]

"Are you annoyed?"

[@fizznyxx]

I used to play D&D around 20yrs ago and we had an amazing DM, 1 session in and I was hooked! Now, after showing a few friends some of your videos I have found myself about to sit in the DM chair to try and earn my DM badge 🤔😖🤔 I would like to thank you for making these videos, they are so informative and well done, Not only have you given me the urge to play again but also to start writing campaigns again too. In 5 days I will be running my own campaign and DMing for the first time and thank you for the time, effort and info you have provided across your channel to help both new and old school players, without this info I would probably fail and have no group to adventure with 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

[@emilecoetzee230]

This is definately going to be useful! still trying to get into DnD. I'll likely end up the DM.

[@Dracopol]

In the old days, TSR spread colourful boxes of "Basic" Dungeons & Dragons, as well as OTHER games with non-fantasy settings, to ordinary bookstores where a little kid in the 'burbs might buy it. They would be the ones to read all or most of it, and entice their little friends to play although there would be a lot of "I don't get it" the first few times. But the next week 5 more kids would go buy 5 more boxes, and so on, and so on... Nowadays there are also official clubs, sometimes in universities and colleges, sometimes game-shops offer space to play in groups although it is board game cafés that have gotten really big nowadays, not RPG clubs. You'll get lots of friendly help there, from people who were once beginners too.

[@naadirbuffy7892]

Remember if you're not enjoying the dm seat the you will probably be better off as a player

[@emilecoetzee230]

Well i won't be massively opposed to it. More like...intimidated.

[@Dracopol]

It's possible to offer short one-off games, 3-4 hours, 10 minutes of explanation about the aims of RPGs and mention rules from the perspective of a pre-generated character sheet. I was getting good at that and the next year these beginners were arguing about spell effects and spinning their pencils over their thumbs like PROS. If running a demo game for people you never met, take a blank sheet of paper, draw a big outline of the table you're using, write GM next to your seat, then each player name on the outside of the table and character name and important stats and notes on the inside of the table. It keeps everyone straight!

[@emilecoetzee230]

I see. Although I do want to be a player first. since my experience = 0. But i'll see what happens. thanks for the advice.

[@nubs47]

This really helped, I was nervous about dming bc I had to write a completely new campaign in one day and was quiet stressed about my performance but now I'm a lot more confident in my ability to go with the flow in today's session :)))

[@poisonmist13]

A relative bought me the Rick and Morty D&D pack, so I’m going to attempt to DM a game with no experience and players that probably won’t help. But I must admit I find the wording on the Rick and Morty manual pretty helpful. It recommends that if your players are trying to do something you don’t want them to do just pick their worst skill and ask for a skill check. “So Morty’s trying to swim somewhere dumb. Ask for an intelligence check. You can’t swim if you don’t remember how. If they persist ask for a dexterity check, because you can’t swim if you don’t have enough blood flow to your joints.”

[@Kirikirikiru]

poisonmist13 “can’t swim if they don’t remember how” r/technicallythetruth

[@zstrebler1234]

That's horrible advice

[@poisonmist13]

Zippy Silver Thats Rick advice so by the definition it’s kinda terrible. But there’s a time and place for everything. Like annoying your brother hehe

[@offlinedreams4020]

@@poisonmist13 Rick is proud of you.

[@poisonmist13]

@@offlinedreams4020 Well Rick would be proud of my brother too. Because during the campaign I was DMing for he got drunk and got himself killed. It was an actual drunk-adventuring accident.

[@frogshehe9384]

Love how the whole time the wizard is just so nonchalant.

[@kellywhy7814]

My 1st time DM'ing was a campaign I completely made myself. I had been a player in several other games and had so many ideas. It was so much fun, my players wanted a part two but I liked where it ended. Being able to create my own story and world was the entire appeal for DM'ing for me!

[@leodouskyron5671]

Nice video and I will give one of the best three great pieces of advice for new players and dms. 1) have an extra set of dice 🎲 and put them on a small piece of paper with each marked d4 up to d20 (extra good dm points if you put the 2 dice down for a d100). Mark the ranges for each die and even set them on the highest value. Let them be used as communal dice and an example. 2) First combat.. do not panic. Use a sheet of paper and determine your imitative order. Knowing they are next to go clears the mind and so make sure everyone knows the order and can see it. AlsoYou be surprised how many dms freak when they almost kill a player. It is highly unlikely but let the first or even later cultist fight to the knock out on the players. He players are going to feel lucky but when they hear that they want them alive for the ceremony (or what ever reason) they will fight harder. If your first fight with the players is a total party kill (TPK) in this first session remember that that give you a chance for h to be tied up and there stuff being put just inside the next room (rogue time) and they wake up full power ready to go again. In short first season is all about the fun. 3) The first time that someone attempts role plating no matter how cheesy or bad the attempt for them the first role play reward. Call it that and use the inspiration rule. In the first couple of games give it as a learning the rules thing for everyone. Then tell them about inspiration rule when they start thinking this is cool. Gets them the idea to role play and not just roll play.

[@alonkendler2008]

I'm so excited for this series! thank you and good luck!

[@goodie9911]

Thank you so much for making this video because i really needed an adventure for my players and some tips!!

[@GregMossage]

Thanks so much for your work on these videos CJ. Your channel is such s great place for new players and DM’s to land and learn.

[@yusefdoesthings7669]

Thank you So much! i'll now be running this adventure for my group of roleplayers new to Dnd! Thanks so much Cj!

[@evileeveepackattack6293]

This prewritten campaign was awesome, I played it and loved the battles and the narrative. You did very well with teaching this thx.

[@fistwizard2552]

Starting my first ever campaign in a few days and this helps a lot! Thank you so much! (I rewatch these videos compulsively because I often forget things)

[@edmundwalker4482]

I recommend this series for anyone looking to start being a GM. I ran this session for my 1st time as DM with 4 1st time players and they had an absolute blast. I made a few tweaks to have more player relevant things to interact with (such as some rats). It ended up playing out completely differently (and much ruder) than intended but everyone had a great and memorable time which is the most important thing!

[@DarthBenjyMan]

Thanks a lot! I've been DM'ing for about 2 months, so i'm still a bit new to it. Definitely will check the rest of this series as it release.

[@DontHaveSexWithSam]

I LOVE this adventure! perfect way for me to explore DM'ing!!! Thank you

[@NachoBran_CandyCabbage]

You know what, why not? I'll pick up the dm badge and try to get a group together. Though I should probably get a copy of the dungeon master's guide first. Also the monster manual and an adventure module and... maybe after this series is done.

[@Dracopol]

Once a player "gets" the idea of tabletop RPGs, they may find great enjoyment in writing up an original story, have the players' characters twist around and struggle in it, and sometimes the players alter the course of events so the story doesn't go as you planned and you have to think on your feet and improvise new things. This is the DM's brand of fun; their role is not boring!

[@NachoBran_CandyCabbage]

Dracopol I will defenitely try to homebrew something up with a group willing to go with it, but I think doing a shorter pre-written adventure could only benefit my skills going into it. Also. The 'how to homebrew' vid of this series hasn't come out yet :)

[@Lacko545]

You literally don't need any of those. Especially the Dungeon Master's Guide is not necessary at all. If you want to play D&D 5e, then the Player's Handbook is more than plenty to start. There are also freely available materials online, like basic rules for D&D which are available on the official pages you can print them out and they contain all you need to play, even a bunch of monsters. You can check out d20srd.org for more free material. You also don't need pre-written adventures, you don't need to write a complex novel to run an adventure, especially with new players and as a new GM you won't be able to use a big adventure module, you need to start simple. Just throw your players in a simple village, give them a simple plot hook like "the blacksmith's daughter has been kidnapped by kobolds" and get them to a dungeon ASAP. Draw out a small dungeon on paper, add some traps, some enemies and a boss at the end. That's 30 minutes of prep-work and I guarantee you and your friends will have fun if they never played RPGs before.

[@TrickyTrickyFox]

Nah, play it simple - it will be: 1. Easier for you to run - you don't have to think about too many places, npc etc. 2. Easier for your players to get invested - the easier it starts, the more time party has to emerge itself into the world. 3. Easier to understand the goal of the party. This one is tricky, because you can always run session 0 to understand, what your party awaits from the game (good, evil, mercenaries, heroes, vampire hunters, witchers, dwarves of moria etc). And then comes session 1 - and party goes the opposite way. I only had like... 1 game so far, where we stayed to original motive and that was a one-shot game to learn pathfinders mechanics. As soon as you go to free roaming - done, any preparation about players "WHAT WE WANT" is pointless. Because what we want =/= what we do, and you will learn it sooner or later :D For the first several sessions (1-5) - just go on "here is a quest, you complete it, you turn it in, get reward". As they are doing this, they are: 1. Getting EXP 2. Getting gold and items 3. Getting to know NPC's, who can give them quests (tavern owner, mercenary captain, guild contact and so on - your options are limitless in this regard) 4. Getting to travel and know the world (location X for mission X, connected to NPC X because of something X happened prior to this mission - is a nice way to go for "show don't tell" kind of story telling) 5. Establishing themselves (again, this is the part, where you see, how your players interact - good, neutral or evil decidions and perticular play style of this party, while also allowing your players to have it simple and learn to fight alongside each other; life long friends struggle to find chemistry with new characters, and you should give them some time for it) As you move through 1-5 sessions - you can start spicing stuff up by giving more than one missions or more than one objectives. This way, you can provide: 1. Choice of actions - you are saving players from themselves. Not giving options - feels like handholding, giving full freedom of choice - feels boring and uninspired. To stick in the middle of that - just go for "quest 1 or quest 2, extra objectives on both". They will take the one with more loot, obvs, but that is a tool you can actually use to handhold, while giving choice and making everyone happy. 2. New NPCs. As your party progresses through first sessions, NPCs will start to be familliar with your party. Don't be afraid to show that by smiling as you meet them or giving information more openly from now on. If it's someone, who has access to a lot of info (guild contact, for instance, or a forest shaman whynot) - you can use it to refer to something from players backstory (like, it's great to work with house of X or a revelation from shaman, as from the day you were born in X, you were destened for...). Again, it makes the world feel alive. Got carried away :D. Running a game is fun =) Give it a shot =)

[@eugenecaudill5361]

I started with a module and just didn't like it I felt a lot more comfortable with my own Homebrew because it was easier to improv in a world I built and lore I created. That's just me thougj

[@caitlincaffry4346]

This one video has helped me more than most articles out there! THANK YOU! I have also read the DM guide but that only helped me a little and confused me a lot so this was a really good video!

[@GuTcHeCk92]

Thank you so much for this! I really want to start running my own games and I feel like you will be the reason DnD will gain more DMs. This vid has given me a boost of confidence and I love how you break things down. Can't wait to watch the next vids in the series.

[@KushWizard_BO-085]

Oh my god! Finally a video that is actually for newcomers! It gives details! It's nice to have someone take the time to sit down and explain how dming is done! Thanks man!

[@padmanabaraorudrresh4913]

@ 1.21 I rolled a natural 20 ; I have been waiting for this series for a long time and there it is finally.

[@ragnarfreyr]

This is the best and most practical video on being a Dungeon Master I've watched yet. Great job and thanks!

[@jenniferstottlar895]

This mini adventure is exactly what I was looking for as a new DM. All your videos are extremely helpful. Thank you!

[@lantopia2161]

2019. May 4th. And this is still the most helpful thing ever. Helps with being a DM and just playing in general.

[@Grothmir]

As a new DM and new to D&D this is really help full please keep this series going.

[@wiiplayers19]

As a DM of a year and a half, this is a video I wish I had back then! Fantastic job explaining the basics here! And I’m really stoked at all the awesome D&D stories I’m seeing here in the comments! Can’t wait to see the next video (because it’s always good to be learning new things. Especially as a Dungeon Master).

[@zachary5664]

I've never seen one of your videos before, but these are some of the highest quality, most meticulous explaination and visual representation that I've seen so far.

[@SpaceGuy1358]

a little tip for newer dms if you have extra dice (that no one is using) you can use the dice as miniatures

[@douglanglois456]

[very mild spoiler for Lost Mine of Phandalver] Talking of messing with the DM... I just got my family into DnD, and started DMing for the first time. We're running the Phandalver campaign from the starter kit. In the cave with the wolves, their mage used prestidigitation to make a rock smell like fresh killed cow! So first time DMing, I'm left trying to figure out how to test if a hungry wolf is fooled by a beefy rock. I went with perception, and initially the wolves were fooled, but only licked at the rock for one turn before failing the next test (I had already decided to drop the DC by 1 each round), realizing they were getting nothing and turning back to the party. Narratively, it worked out really nicely. Then the same damn mage (my wife, naturally), then decides to use prestidigitation to make the wolves own faces smell like peanut butter (?) to try to get them to attack one another. I upped the difficulty on that test, and the wolves cocked their heads to one side for a brief moment in confusion, then got on with the business of yanking at their chains to get at the party.

[@tatooedmonk]

Thanks for this vid, CJ. I'm looking to DM for the first time soon and your tips explained DMing in a simple way that I could digest easily

[@oestroideacoleoptera3049]

So useful!!! Im a new dm and I'm going to use your prewritten adventure as a test session with my players!!! Thanks for this!

[@rozzberries]

I used your guide to teach me how to play. Now I’m using this one to teach me how to DM. Very valuable info!!

[@stefanbatory2564]

I was waiting for this video, and I am not disappointed 😃

[@Snowblaze_]

Wow dude! This is the best DM guide I’ve seen so far! Amazing!

[@cloudultimaweapn1813]

I appreciate the simplicity of your videos, as a new player its nice to get some absolute basics that are often missed in other videos

[@ethanbentley7057]

Great video as always. I’ll hopefully start dming soon

[@RiverOfHope777]

Thank you for the tutorial series! I'm going to be playing as DM with some of my friends, for some will be their first time playing the game. At the end of the month we meet up, and I'm sure this course will get me through the basics i need as host.

[@NathenxBrewer]

Came here to say that your videos are wonderful for first-timers. I send your playlist to new players and I have recently watched your DM videos. I love how concise they are, and the animation makes things easier to understand! Thank you!

[@gamerchef6719]

I recommended your how to play series to my friends after watching it myself. I am running my first game as a DM right now and love that this series is happening. Great work!

[@kokokr5134]

Just played this one shot with a bunch of newbies (I for myself a DM newbie). We hat so much fun. So thanks for your work man! I appreciate this a lot. :)

[@DarrenPersad]

There’s a lot of great beginner’s advise here! I’ve been playing a few longer-term campaigns for a while but have zero experience actually DM-ing, myself. Even with preexisting knowledge of D&D, this is really helping me set the tone and expectations for my players as we dive into a new experience with me at the helm. Super stoked to get started. Awesome video!

[@eriklindstrom1702]

This video was very awesome and made me feel like I can finally try my hand as DM. I have been subscribed for not too long but have been watching all your videos and loving them. Thank you for your great content and keep it up! And thank you for including a link to your homebrew dungeon, I fully plan on using it to run my first game!

[@Karighan]

Thank you so much for these guides; I'm running my first 5e campaign(I'm an old 3.5 player!), and this was a wonderful help!

[@rawe1313]

Iv'e been waiting for this one!

[@adityarao2827]

GOD DAMN MAGIC MISSLE

[@leapatata453]

Thank you for making a dm series CJ!!!! I already know how to dm... but not to well... Im looking forward on what you have to say about dming, ALL the info you give I REALLY cherish and are helpful. Some times Im not excited for a dnd session,and if Im not, I just watch one of your videos!!! You really helped me with dnd AND AM very thankful for it!!!

[@ramistat]

YASSSS! Looking forward to the rest of the series! Thanks, CJ!

[@aethon0563]

CJ, you're the best, man.

[@KatySwan79]

I’m watching this video cause tomorrow me and 4 friends are going to play D&D (it’s everyone’s first time playing) and I’m both scared and exited, and I think this video will help me a lot. I will come back when we’re done to tell you how it went

[@snorch612]

Howd it go?

[@LordCrisp]

Seen a good amount of D&D content the last year or so... but first time finding yours... best DM introduction/guide I've seen so far

[@trebory6]

Honestly, I like this video so much I think it's the first one I consciously watched all the ads on in hopes that you get the full benefit of that. Thanks!

[@navdhillon7912]

You are doing a great job. Thanks

[@christopherauvenshine2092]

I’ve never been a DM but it always seemed like Chess pieces would make great game pieces.

[@vhoward29]

Christopher Auvenshine I literally just gathered chess pieces to use for my first time as DM or playing in general.

[@danieldosso2455]

Loved your previous series and am pretty excited to see where this series goes!

[@benjaminedenfield3368]

Awesome video! Thank you sir! I have just started a small D&D group with the wife, brother in law, and friends. I have not played since AD&D so there have been some changes, lol. You videos have really helped us get into the new edition. I played in a local Epic League event the other day. It was awesome to see the four tears working in concert to stop the undead scourge!

[@banban8481]

My first experience as Dungeon Master is a mess but our group have fun. And for my first session, I just narrated a side quest from skyrim. (My friends are not a big video gamers).

[@brettbarnes9406]

It's like being taught in the best possible way... by Count Choc-ula. Double experience points!

[@lawsalor]

This is so helpful. Like I've played dnd before but I want to try my hand at DMing and just walking through the module you have and showing what information that character knows makes a big difference! Thanks!!

[@jinniu]

You hit a lot of the core key points to being a DM, excellent video, again. Good refresher for me, I haven't been a DM for a while now so need a reminder.

[@ramgladore]

I just got done DMing this campaign for my family. I did take a few liberties with the module to accommodate my group. There was six of us and three of them were level 2 though so I added extra bad guys and redrew the map on a table mat to make it larger. I changed the large stone statue to resemble and owl like the Moloch from the Bohemian grove. We saved the man under the wagon, picked the locked door and used stealth to proceed thru both doors. We caught the guards by surprise and my sister ended up using a sleep spell on the first group of cultists. All of them went to sleep except for one who ran away to alert the cult leader and locked the door behind him. My second oldest nephew opened the chest that said do not touch and got poison damage. One of the two rogues in the party just simply tried taking the 20GP until me and another character protested. We all agreed to leave the treasure in the chest and then return to divvy up the loot after we made sure we were safe. We looted the scimitars and robes off the sleeping cultists and then tied them up. We convinced the goblins that we were cultists (success on deception) and forced them to surrender the treasures they had hidden in the trash pile and then told them to stand by. We did not need to fight them. I made it so that the cultist who ran was punished for his cowardice (he only saw two people in our group) and put him on the sacrificial table with him begging for mercy swearing he will serve Moloch. The cult leader said "Indeed you shall serve Moloch, in death as you had in life!" The former cultist was not aware his organs were already removed and placed into canopic jars while his body is being stuffed with the green slime while his sense of individualism was ebbing away. After my sister was able to make the second group of cultists sleep. The cult leader pulled the lever to open the gate and offered us a chance to leave and to take the treasure with us as well as his ceremonial vestments as proof that "we killed him" to show to Rolan Tress (success sav throw against deception). We rejected his offer and he activated his zombies including the new zombie he just made. We killed the cultist but then Moloch spoke to us thru his statue. The ground shook and the eyes on the statue glowed red. Moloch vowed we will all die for our desecration of his shrine. Moloch revived the cult leader as a zombie. We killed the cult leader again twice. My oldest nephew had used the alchemists fire on the amulet which was still glowing with necromantic power. We figured it was the thing commanding the zombies. We figured that we can outrun the zombies and that they would disintegrate eventually anyway. We took the treasure and Olly Coppersmith along with the cult leader's vestments and left the cave while giving Moloch the finger who was absolutely livid. We mocked Moloch saying that alchemist's fire will destroy the amulet for us. The rogue who tried to loot steal the chest decided to leave first and took damage from the trap and that's how this campaign ended.

[@naadirbuffy7892]

Going to run this module soon

[@DaiKam84]

I was just thinking of doing my first DM session with new coming players! I can't wait for your next video!

[@brettbarnes9406]

Thank you so much. me and the kids bought the starter set with zero experience. I read the starters book but your videos were so incredibly helpful. i'm subscribing as a thank you. thank you!

[@asiriusmedaius3429]

Just started DM'ing for a group about two months ago, so I cannot wait to see your next DM videos (especially the design elements in the "theoretical" section). Keep up the good work CJ, and I cannot wait to see the rest of your DM videos! (P.S.: If I am having a complete blast being a DM instead of a player in D&D [because I love to play as monsters more than the characters], does that mean I'm on the right track?)

[@gabrielloonsfoot5780]

this is my first time being a dm i worked day and night on the campaign and my sister and step dad were going to play and when i was just about done with the campaign my sister dropped out and i had to change everything

[@ihateallmikes1083]

hey CJ, I just wanted to thank you for making this series, it really helped me out when I first started out DMing as I didn't own any of the books and had barely played it prior to starting the campaign.

[@joseangelmedinacornejo6362]

I missed this "How to..." videos. This one is great CJ, good job pulling it together and thanks from a novice DM. Special thanks for the adventure module, I have been creating my own content for the first adventure with my friends, I did the worldbuilding and the campaing setting, also the villian its motivation and plan, but I was having hard time with the specifics and applying the game mechanics. It turns out this module works perfectly for what I had planned, just changing little details like instead of cultist waking up zombies, they'll be thieves preparing something mischivous.

[@largefella4341]

Do homebrewing/worldbuilding next, plz. That is where I need some help.

[@rarrmonkey]

I have ordered a chess board for my first game, I'm going to cut out simple shapes (ie square, triangle, int/ext curves) and tac to the board to mark boundaries. I'll use white King(Bard), Queen(Wizard), Bishop(Cleric), Knight(Rogue) and Rook(Fighter) for Player Characters and black pieces to represent monsters.

[@pheux1947]

Love this video, thanks, I'll be running a campaign with some friends and we all have zero experience, you are very clear and detailed in your instructions, also your tip seems to be very useful. Thanks thanks thanks

[@NugsForPugs]

Thank you for this video, I'm dming for the first time tomorrow with curse of straud and this video definitely made me rethink my approach, thank you so much!

[@user-lv6vu9fs4e]

i will be a really ♂dungeon master♂?

[@Picksol]

Being sick is amazing for a dm, I can do a ton more voices

[@legladiateur9070]

You're the best KZbinr/person/reference to start playing D&D ... thanks a lot it really helps !!!

[@johntheodore8047]

Just a beginner here and wanted to get into D&D along with my friends who are also beginners. I thank you for the content since they're informative and very fun to watch. Thank you!

[@BriBrando]

I used to be really confused on how to dm, so I just winged it, and I remember that my two friends who wanted to play (you don't need a group to have fun!) somehow seduced a boss, and I just went along with it, they did technically defeat the boss, but now it's their ally. I'm not looking for anyone to argue about how I dm'd, just talking about a fun experience I had.

[@NinaFelwitch]

I just got my DnD5 Starter Set last week :D

[@RaaW350z]

Thank you for this video, I’m DMing for the first time. I had to search for this needed help

[@jeyolikemayo]

This video is greatly helpful! I ran this game with my friends, which btw, none of us have any experience with the game, and by the end of it, they were in control of a small zombie army. It was just so much fun. Thanks.