Running Dragon of Icespire Peak, the D&D Essentials Kit Adventure

In this video Mike talks about his experiences running three of the quests in the D&D Essentials Kit adventure, Dragon of Icespire Peak. Click "Show More" for more info.
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Liveplay D&D: Dragon of Icespire Peak with Mike and Enrique
• Dragon of Icespire Pea...
• Dragon of Icespire Pea...
Video Contents
00:00 Intro
02:00 One-on-one D&D
02:25 dndduet.com
03:52 Adventure length and short word counts
08:00 The job board
11:27 Too difficult for 1st level characters
13:55 Guidelines for 1st level encounters
16:23 Umbrage Hill
19:55 Dwarven Excavation
20:30 Gnomengarde
27:03 Mountain's Toe Gold Mine
28:11 Cat attack!
35:46 Running hardback adventures one-on-one
38:16 The feeling of one-on-one play
40:24 The character focus of one-on-one play
41:28 Running companion characters
45:25 Sidekicks above level 5
47:25 Scaling combat for one-on-one play
52:25 One-on-one versus Tiamat
54:24 One-on-one versus save-or-suck effects
57:05 Playing D&D one-on-one with nothing but your phone

[@SlyFlourish]

Contents 00:00 Intro 02:00 One-on-one D&D 02:25 dndduet.com 03:52 Adventure length and short word counts 08:00 The job board 11:27 Too difficult for 1st level characters 13:55 Guidelines for 1st level encounters 16:23 Umbrage Hill 19:55 Dwarven Excavation 20:30 Gnomengarde 27:03 Mountain's Toe Gold Mine 28:11 Cat attack! 35:46 Running hardback adventures one-on-one 38:16 The feeling of one-on-one play 40:24 The character focus of one-on-one play 41:28 Running companion characters 45:25 Sidekicks above level 5 47:25 Scaling combat for one-on-one play 52:25 One-on-one versus Tiamat 54:24 One-on-one versus save-or-suck effects 57:05 Playing D&D one-on-one with nothing but your phone

[@isaachaeffner411]

What about giving solo characters legendary actions? Have them follow the same rules for monsters, with different actions costing different amounts. You can get more as you level.

[@R3pt1leGames]

first time GM im going to run this next week for 4 friends whom never played dnd. ty for the advice reading the adventure most seam suicidal. but iwas thinking on describeing enviormental "wepons" to help them think outside the box.

[@quonomonna8126]

I've heard of creative resolutions for the mimic that players come up with that don't involve killing it. Also, I like that the first boss they fight is deadly. I told my players D&D is dangerous and not to take anything for granted and that it's not impossible to get in over their heads. However, I feel there should always be some kind of foreshadowing or telegraphing to the players about the scale of the danger they might be coming up against, or some clue that points to the reality that for this encounter they might want to think creatively. Subtlety is key here because you don't want to give it away, but you want the players to be able to look back and realize they didn't necessarily have to die. That being said, if you just have one player and their sidekick, I don't see how these CR 2 bosses at level 1 are going to be possible. Really appreciate your suggestions there. Switching from ochre jelly to gray ooze is perfect in that scenario. Also, I am a first time DM, so, you did reach your target audience after all!

[@jasonanderson1948]

33:03 you wondered why they have the damage immunity feature. Werewolves can only be killed by silver. I think that's what they were going for with the wererats

[@mnee4922]

I thought I remembered a KZbinr, you I thought, saying you got a code with an Essentials kit for a free or discounted download of Storm Lord's Wrath, Sleeping Dragon's Wake, and Divine Contention. Is that outdated info now? or where the heck do I find this code in my Essentials Kit?

[@ThornHailsnap]

"What are the chances a first-time DM will watch this video?" Literally 50% of the comments: "I'm a first-time DM!"

[@SlyFlourish]

Yay!

[@chipsydanger2040]

Same

[@BooksToAshes]

Yeah I'm one of them lol I've been doing over 30+ hours of research to be a DM in the last few days alone

[@CristiNeagu]

Same.

[@Otes]

I’m about to run my first game with my wife as a new player so I’m gonna run her through some home brew travel and then the essential kit I’m super stoked

[@christophergronhagen]

First time DM here, that has never played D&D before. I just got the Essentials Kit for our group, since none of us have played D&D. I volunteered to DM, so I've been watching lots of "how to DM" videos. I also got the DM's guide, Monster Manual, and of course the Players Handbook. Got a lot of extra time to go through all these books, through this quarantine.

[@F2t0ny]

Never Stop Thinking has a great series about learning to play.

[@propsko2689]

I'm doing the same! I only have the players handbook though, they are so expensive! I understand why though, they're awesome.

[@Wr0ngh0le]

First time DM here as well with very little playing experience, just ran an intro campaign last weekend that I created from scratch and starting this campaign this weekend with the same group. Lots of great resources within the community. Check out Dungeon Dudes for a whole playlist of videos with DM tips.

[@celticdenefew]

@@propsko2689 i just came across this and not sure if you already know this (and it might be good info for others who read your comment). You only really need the players handbook to start, especially if using the Starter or Essentials Kits. The other books are great to have eventually, but don't think you have to buy them all at once. Also if your group uses DnDBeyond and one of you has Master Tier you can all share books. This is a great way to only have to buy one digital copy for the whole group and maybe everyone can pitch in so its cheaper for all.

[@shades6768]

Smart man right here

[@brewchowski6445]

“What are the chances a first time DM is going to watch this video” -I’m a first time DM, and wanted advice before running this campaign. The video is incredibly helpful!

[@orrhousecreative]

Same

[@RyanMcLaughlin1]

Same Same. :)

[@Jeffs40K]

Probably high, because KZbin + Searching a Starter set of DND (currently at over 54K Views)

[@RamonGonzalesIII]

So dude, 26:21 "What are the odds that a first time DM who's never played D&D before is gonna come watch this video?" That is EXACTLY what I am here for. You called it.

[@alserka]

same🤟🏻

[@codapi7441]

same

[@Hizzadore]

Same

[@donc7664]

Same

[@elliestringer3658]

I’m actually a first time dm running this campaign for my cousins and this was REALLY helpful tysm

[@tdq11]

Same!

[@CaptainCanadia_]

Same! Super helpful! Looking forward to running my first campaign.

[@jessicamilne4871]

Same! Popped down to say the same thing when he said “what are the chances a first time DM will actually watch this video.” 😂 I’ve watched a ton of streams, but this will be my first time actually playing. Trying to get some good advice on what modifications the adventure needs so everyone doesn’t die as soon as we start.

[@codyhallman1013]

Same

[@ivanponcedeleon6392]

Lol I kill both my kids on dwarven excavation. I said i made a mistake and redo it. They slashed through 3 of them. I did ignore the slashing immunity lol it worked.

[@GigglingKat]

The other fun aspect of Gnomengarde is that the ENTIRE area is a source of wild magic that is triggered by ANY magic spell cast at Level 1 or higher. The sheer amount of Monty Python-esque shenanigans boggles the mind.

[@tomasrazo1815]

First time playing and being a dm..... Have to say im soooo overwhelmed lol. Tysm for this guide.

[@jasonberg5460]

Getting ready to start this adventure Haven't Dmed in 30 years. This was a great refresh to help me and my 10yo son start our new campaign. Thanks Sly

[@SlyFlourish]

Good luck! You'll be great!

[@eduardocapitan6754]

26:26 - "What are the chances that a first time DM is going to watch this video?" It's me! Doing all the research I can before heading into my first time playing and DMing for me and my two quaranteenmates. Thanks for all the tips.

[@ajstyles5970]

First time DM watching this video. Here’s how Gnomengard went. They decided to kill everyone and convince the insane king to hand over his kingdom ... I honestly don’t know what is going on anymore ... they ordered the Gnomes to have an orgy to build troops ... one of them made a giant spider join in on the orgy ... we only have one experienced player and I can’t control this train wreck

[@melanyebaggins]

The dragon attacks mid-orgy, no one is wearing armour and their weapons are nowhere near them. Weird-asssd campaign over.

[@aaronnunavabizniz199]

Been DMing for 17 years and this still helped out.

[@SlyFlourish]

Glad you like it!

[@stephenchilcoat3808]

Fun idea to help with the Warerat problem. Have a townsperson approach the players at the job board when this quest is selected. This townsperson was a worker at the mine and had just run to town to inform the town Marshall that he saw a co-worker bitten and become a Warerat in the mine. He has come hoping to send the Marshall to solve the problem because he keeps a silver sword. But the Marshall has refused to go because of the reports of the dragon in the area needing his attention. Players must negotiate with the town Marshall or steal the sword if they want it (they should at this point). Then they have the item they need.

[@Kigoli]

Honestly, I think the abbreviated descriptions and shorted adventures just make it easier for a first time DM to jump in. Personally, prepping for a more full book was much harder, as it just required way more reading.

[@addaptinginthedark]

I'm a new baby DM, running this adventure soon, and love the adjustments. I know my characters are going to want a good story, so I think I'm going to have to write up a fair bit of the adventure to expand it, but I don't mind. Just calling it practice for homebrewing an adventure later. Would love to hear sometime about the later non-job-board quests, how you might make them feel relevant, and if you have any adjustments to make there. We've all watched a lot of D&D liveplay shows, but most have never played (I was introduced to tabletop with 4E, so we're all sort of learning as we go. Videos like this are so helpful

[@damienhocquard2564]

Same, hoping i don't kill the party again! Sly's tips are super useful when planning it all out as a new DM! Good luck

[@Scapemaster00]

15:00 I'm a rookie DM, so I didn't know to make adjustments for level 2s fighting the Jellies. We had 6 players and they actually encountered 2 of them in the first room. Even though it was a tough fight, they were able to work through it with clever tactics and good team play (the Barbarian even split one jelly in two!). Very nail-biting, but it put the fear of running into a room without careful inspection in them; and also made for a very very memorable start to our campaign. The first session the group actually tried to fight the manticore on the hill, and (with a bit of fudging/disabling one of the three multiattacks with a bear trap) they put it down too. Hard initial encounters for low levels, but very very memorable!

[@henleydevelopmentalumni9696]

At 26:31 Mike you wonder if any 1st time DMs will see this before running their games. I am, and watching this and Bob World Builder's guides have been unbelievably helpful. Had 3 sessions so far and the players are loving it. All 20-30s, 1st time players and just having a blast. Thanks for taking the time and care to make these videos.

[@SlyFlourish]

That’s awesome! Hope it helped!

[@henleydevelopmentalumni9696]

@@SlyFlourish Certainly has - I'm really looking forward to running Gnomengarde as an Alien-style quest. They'll be 5 level 2 PCs so I might boost the Mimics movement speed a bit.

[@gilbertbarnett8225]

Also a first-time DM. Having never played as well, I was searching for information on how to better run this adventure and the one from the Starter Kit.

[@matttor5233]

I'm a first time DM next Sunday and I'm watching this video because I've looked for videos like this on how to run this campaign I tweaked it a bit - Mayor is giving the possibility to find Falcon the hunter in the lodge in order to prepare the defenses of the town as he's a retired war hero - I'm also forcing my players to go to find the potion lady and gnomengard for the magic items + giving them the rumor of the dragon slaying sword that they will find later on - I'm also giving cryovain more a role of BBEG to lead to another campaign with dragons and because the lore of one of my character is dragon related I honestly didn't think about lowering HP nor reducing the number of tail spikes of the manticore and the damages Those are very helpful comments and tips thanks a lot !

[@SlyFlourish]

Good luck and welcome behind the DM screen!

[@blueldrrich84]

Thats actually what my wife and I do currently. Its a nice chance to catch up and hang out after a week of work for her and taking care of a toddler for me. We also recently moved to an entirely new state and know basically no one who's into d&d. So one part romance one part necessity lol. Thank you for recommending that duet page, we will definitely check it out man! Also, subscribed and liked 😁👍

[@nimavissar]

Mountain gold I solved by hiding a silvered sword in the shrine. Gnomengard is a great adventure for first timers to practise their role-playing and it has wild fun stuff (the party was laughing so hard with the mechanical crabs). The mimic can be negotiated with the booklet does suggest that option, or we can get a gnome or two to support with spells.

[@nimavissar]

By the way I ran it not as a first time dm but as a dm who hasn't touched a game in over 20 years and never played 5e before, and I ran it for a 10 and a 7 year old who happen to be mine.

[@venaros]

First time DM, planning to run this adventure with some first time players. Glad I found this video for all the awesome tips!

[@braedenaldridge8452]

Omg 2 years late but this totally just got me to be able to run this for my 14 year old son who wants to play. I've never played either and I was totally lost. Thanks so much

[@SlyFlourish]

Awesome!

[@kimjensen4977]

Thank you for the inspiration. I especially like the idea of 1 wererat and a group of bandits.

[@JiixBooks]

This is incredibly helpful I’m a first time DM thank youuu Especially you acknowledging the fact that the monsters are strong for first level players and the Tipps concerning that

[@Khaldryn]

Returning DM. Last run back in 2nd Edition back in late 90's. This information is invaluable to new DMs!

[@SlyFlourish]

Yay!

[@MichaelJolliffe]

First time DM and just made characters with my players and started first session today. They went into it with no hesitations and first monster encounter was an Ochre Jelly. Noticed that it was on the ceiling at the other end of the room and that it’s speed was quite slow. Players defeated it with ranged weapons before it made its way to be within it’s attack range. May have fudged a few things but it did get a hit on the players and took half their hit points. Ended play after that encounter so will be interesting to see how the rest of the dungeon goes, I definitely don’t want to kill anyone off being so new to the game. Thanks for the video, it’s quite a learning curve being new to the game and DM’ing at the same time but having a ton of fun!

[@MontanaBonsai]

Im running it this weekend. And this is so helpful!!!! Gracias Hermano.

[@jeppeborggaardjrgensen8208]

I pretty much ONLY play D&D as a duet, me as the DM and my wife as the player. We went through this adventure, and are currently working our way through "Rime of the frostmaiden" - pretty much what i do, is that i divide the monster health / dmg by 2 (sometimes 3, depending on monster) - that seems to balance 80% of it. I also adjust the number of monsters usually by halving it as well. I also make sure she has either a sidekick or a beast companion depending on her choices, so she has some backup in combat and she also uses it in clever ways to solve various puzzles. Works great for us, and i don't do anything else than those adjustments and then just play the adventue as written :)

[@awes0mechr1s]

I've run 2 dreamscape sessions before with my current group of players when my DM decided she wanted a break and wanted to be a PC but it was all set in her homebrew and she wrote everything out and guided me through it. I'll be starting a Dragon of Icespire in a few weeks with some guys from work who are brand new players. I can't tell you how much this video helps. You've given me some great ideas to make sure I don't accidentally do a party wipe or something with not realizing how some of these monsters can be pretty deadly for lvl 1 players. Thank you so much

[@leonielson7138]

35:46 Sorry, you mentioned Descent Into Avernus, and I've been thinking: It's possible to play a mega-campaign, starting with Descent Into Avernus - just remember to push the players into making a deal with Tiamat, which will allow her to influence the prime material plane. In the gap between Horde of the Dragon Queen and Rise of Tiamat, run Curse of Strahd, and follow RoT with Princes of the Apocalypse. At the end of that adventure, drop the players onto the World Engine and have them teleported someplace the Drow can overpower them (you could also hard-reset them to level 1, so that they can't recover their equipment during the breakout). In the gap between the first and second halves of Out of the Abyss, run Storm King's Thunder, and during the second half of OotA have Orcus summon Acererak to fight by his side. With Acererak working in the background, run the quartet (Dragon of Icespire Peak, Storm Lord's Wrath, Sleeping Dragon's Wake, and Divine Contention) before having the party of established adventurers summoned to Chult to deal with the Tomb of Annihilation. You could also mix in Lost Mine of Phandelver into Dragon of Icespire Peak. Weakened by their encounter with the Deathmonger, they move to Waterdeep and end up getting involved in the shenanigans that are the Dragon Heist before being roped into exploring the Dungeon of the Mad Mage. Combined, that's 16 Campaigns, with 2 resets (at the start of Out of the Abyss and after Tomb of Annihilation), or you could run these campaigns as a meta-narrative involving different heroes, with references to the other parties thrown in at different points. Another option would be to run Wd:DH and Wd:DotMM before ToA, with the party's reason for exploring Undermountain being that Halaster might have information of the Deathmonger, and then they go to Chult, followed up by them retiring to Phandelver (LMoP). 1) Descent Into Avernus 2) Horde Of The Dragon Queen 3) Curse of Strahd 4) Rise Of Tiamat 5) Princes Of The Apocalypse 6) Out Of The Abyss (1/2) 7) Storm King's Thunder 8) Out Of The Abyss (2/2) 9) Dragon of Icespire Peak, and/or 10) Lost Mine of Phandelver 11) Storm Lord's Wrath 12) Sleeping Dragon's Wake 13) Divine Contention 14) Tomb Of Annihilation 15) Waterdeep: Dragon Heist 16) Waterdeep: Dungeon Of The Mad Mage or 10) Storm Lord's Wrath 11) Sleeping Dragon's Wake 12) Divine Contention 13) Waterdeep: Dragon Heist 14) Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage 15) Tomb of Annihilation 16) Lost Mine of Phandelver Just had to get that out of my head.

[@vorobuchek60]

First time dm running this with a few friends. All of us are pretty new so this is all super helpful! Thank you.

[@jimrowe2751]

Thank you for this content. I am setting up a first timers game and will be stepping into the DM role. (This is also my first D&D experience) I feel your suggestions and tips will make getting started a much more pleasurable experience for everyone. Thank you again and looking forward to more content.

[@ChrisMartin-vl1uy]

First time DM (never been a player), appreciate you making this video so I can get the hang of this (after my epic failure jumping straight into this with no background)

[@SlyFlourish]

Welcome to the hobby!

[@rubymasta]

First of all: love everything you do sly! Second: regarding the mimic encounter difficulty. 24:31 There are tanks in G6. THERE ARE GODDAMN TANKS in G6. Jesus Christ man, two PCs can use tanks to hold the mimic down 🤩

[@inigofernandez21]

Haha I just had to come and write cause I'm a first time playing dnd and I'm supposed to be the dm for a equally noob team that's why I got the essential kit... Thanks for your video and I'll definitely watch the rest of your videos about this adventure!

[@realplank]

Brand new DM so thank you so much for this video!

[@Giantstomp]

I ran this for a stream and placed it in Greyhawk. I had a rival adventuring party in the town that would pick adventures off the board too. So the party had to decided what they really wanted to do in case the other group would do them. The party also had a bet with the rival adventuring party to see who would become the towns favorite. (Needless to say they lost the bet)

[@Bachlaham]

I’ve been running this as my first adventure for my sister initially. I liked that it’s not overwhelming with text and even tells you how to modify it for various sizes of groups. I also like that so far each adventure was roughly one session (3-4 hours) and since the players return to town after almost every adventure, it was super easy to add a second player and later a new character after one died. They never died against the written encounters (well the ochre jellies against a Druid and fighter sidekick were an issue where I had to fudge a bit). But I would add a random encounter either before or after the adventure and one of those killed one party member due to extremely bad rolls.

[@SlyFlourish]

Yep! The design is fantastic.

[@Turtlpwr]

First time dm, love your guides and advice, really appreciate all the effort you put into this. Super helpful!

[@SlyFlourish]

Thank you!

[@lukebidulka7542]

I'm a first time DM getting ready to start up a run of Icespire with some friends and found this super useful! Thanks for the tips on scaling and how to adapt things, It's intimidating to find the actual practical tips for running things so I'm really grateful for this video.

[@pow3rstrik3]

Running this for my GF tommorow, thanks for the help!

[@antaine1916]

Prior to Mountain's Toe, I gave my players the opportunity to get their existing weapons silver-plated without telling them there would be wererats (although they were new players, so I did explain that some creatures can only be hurt by silver or magical weapons). I just put it on the list of items from the weapon shop between adventures (silver plating on existing weapon -- 100gp)

[@willburton6622]

Thanks for the video - just started following your channel. I'm back playing D&D after a break of around 35 years! Your content is great, and based on what I've seen I have just purchased The Lazy DM's Workbook.

[@Locopitts]

First time DM here watching your videos on this quest after buying the essentials kit to play with my 7 and 11 yr old kids and feeling like I needed more information than what was in the guide book. Thanks for all the helpful info :)

[@noemibardoczy2761]

Thanks very much for these advices! I guess I am one of those first time DMs who never played DnD before, who found your video :D

[@mrpayment9598]

I will be doing this for my very first DM as well as the very first time I have ever played D&D. Thanks for the tips n tricks hopefully this will be the start of a great relationship of storytelling and adventure with my boys.

[@emmetocuana7193]

"What are the odds that a first time DM would watch this video" - right here my guy 😅

[@ErSiMi]

I’m a first time DM, although I’ve played D&D for 2 years. I have already had our party run through Umbrage Hill, Dwarven Excavation and Tower of Storms...I’m glad to have come across this video to shed some insight on how to run these encounters. Thanks.

[@SlyFlourish]

Glad it helped!

[@vinc3charming205]

First time DM running this! Definitely helpful to watch this and the one on one series first.

[@cassmi8783]

Fantastic! I’ve been aching for some tips on running DoIP.

[@hankdean15]

This is my first time as a DM and found this video and I'm glad I did! This video has helped me out a lot.

[@SlyFlourish]

I'm so glad!

[@eliontheinternet3298]

I’ve played D&D but never DM’d before. I assumed that since this was the essentials kit I could get by on some bare minimum preparation and just follow what was in the book. Boy was I wrong!! Thanks for making this video, the bit about how to adjust the first two quests was particularly helpful. My group chose Gnomengarde first and I ran it as written; had to halve the health of the mimic when half of the party was down and I realized they had no chance. They scraped by and I’m going to implement your changes for whatever quest they choose next. Thanks!

[@brianpoints486]

First time DM here! Lots of good tips and information. Really appreciate it!

[@matthewwerner8296]

I'm a first time DM watching this before my first run! Thanks for this resource! Super helpful.

[@SlyFlourish]

Glad it helped!

[@O4C209]

I started a one on one campaign a month ago. I came here for some info on Dragon of Icespire Peak because I intended to use one or more of the missions within the campaign. There was a ton of great info in here and I hope you are putting out something aimed at one on one play.

[@dylanhobby1431]

I’m going to DM this for some of my friends I glad I watched this so I know to scale down the combat a tad thanks for the help

[@dylanhobby1431]

Just wanted to post an update...I ran this for some friends last week..it was my first time DM’ing! It went really well...other than the party getting sidetracked talking to NPCs No player deaths but I will say that the orcs at the end of Dearborn excavation nearly killed my fighter after I had already scaled down the number of orca Also I did change the jellies to skeletons and that went great

[@TeaDrinker3000]

Running my very first game as DM a week from now, thanks for this!!

[@SlyFlourish]

Good luck!!

[@TheArvinM]

I've just found this video as I'm about to start this adventure. Thanks for the heads up on Ochre Jellies in Dwarven Excavation and weapons Mountain's Toe! I might end up putting that dwarven magic whetstone in the excavation actually. I remember there's a couple of rooms in there that are just empty.

[@melanyebaggins]

I'm a first time DM, but I also play. I'm running this with immediate family and so scheduling issues are minimized. There's a lot I like about this campaign, but there's a lot I don't. I just changed what I didn't like or thought was dumb or overpowered to suit my players strengths and abilities. One of my players is nine, so my focus is making sure he has fun, and I'll change the dungeons as needed to make sure he has a great time. Icespire has a great framework to build on, and I appreciate that the overarching story is done for me, but the details are up to me, and that's the real strength of this kit.

[@SlyFlourish]

That's how we do it!

[@TheMaverickash]

First time DM here, thank you for the video I am gonna run this adventure in a weeks time. You are a great help.

[@SlyFlourish]

Good luck and welcome to the hobby!

[@Nateswift2010]

Sly, I'm a fan. Thank you. I stumbled across this video today and love it. Thank you for your efforts. Not that anyone cares but i'm an old school player from the Ancient Clan of Gygax!! I have been out of the DM game for over 3 decades and have been spending the last couple weeks getting up to speed on re-learning what I've forgotten, learning 5e rules, and learning to use Fantasy Grounds Unity. I've honestly been a little obsessive and should consider some sleep. Anyway I am preparing to run my grown boys through Dragons of Icespire and love your advice/ input. So thank you. I can't wait to watch more!!

[@quonomonna8126]

I went over the Dragon of Icespire peak module and it looks super easy to get started and run with minimal preparation

[@trapbuilder2283]

I just did Dwarven Excavation yesterday with 2 level 2 characters. I had to nerf the shit out of the jellies for them to survive. I removed the acid damage and lowered one of their HP by half and lowered the range of their blind sense and they still nearly wiped the party of 2 noobs. To be fair, it was a warlock and sorcerer (they don't understand team composition yet), but that was nearly a team wipe in a level 1 quest, with level 2 characters.

[@Aconspiracyofravens1]

wow then the one lvl one pc got really lucky then cause he cleared it.

[@user-ze3rd8vq7p]

I'm running this adventure as my first time DMing and this video has been super helpful!

[@mattraino3274]

I am in the first third of the icespire with my group of two players (and dm running a third player) - this series has proven to be invaluable and a LOT of fun [Bing- let me do the talking]. I’d love to see the other intro module run.

[@SlyFlourish]

So glad you like it!

[@sylviebizadvisor]

I am glad you created this video. Last night my group was supposed to play, but we only had two players available. I was not sure how to play with less players so your advice on one on one play and running companions is very helpful. I'll go check out the unearthed arcana for sidekicks.

[@Godzilla_97]

I’m a first time DM and this will be my friends first game ever . So I just wanted to thank you for the video helped me a ton

[@SlyFlourish]

Glad it helped!

[@steves7271]

1st time DM here and I'm thankful I'm watching before we start! Thank you 👍

[@SlyFlourish]

Glad you find it useful!

[@steves7271]

@@SlyFlourish thanks so much for all your work and advice. We're all 1st timers here so your channel has been a huge help in getting us started. I've managed to get off to a good start as DM and I've kept it manageable for my 9 year old son. He cant stop talking DnD now! He loves the role play and because he's still young, he hasn't developed that shy recluse teenage phase so he just throws himself into character! Love it!

[@rcschmidt668]

This was a fun first campaign. Great advice on sidekicks. That is how we run mercenaries. [Spoilers] For Gnomengarde, the party could use the crazed gnome’s invention to help slay the boss, or some gnomes could provide ranged support if the party needs it. On the way to the gold mine, the orcs were frozen by the dragon before we met them… There were guards at the entry to the mine, and after we were surprised by their nature, went back to town and had silver melted onto our weapons. Also, the miner had a map, so our rogue locked doors to keep us from being surrounded.

[@tommyrutherford1642]

This is extremely helpful for a first time dm, I am just starting as a dm, have played several times now as Paladin, Wizard, Ranger and Rogue. The DM part of dnd always seemed daunting but videos like this have helped my confidence 👍

[@meph82]

Per your comment at around 26 min: I'm a first-time DM watching your video to run my first campaign for the group, so thanks for this!

[@SlyFlourish]

Welcome to the hobby!

[@njcomaz3487]

I'm a 1st time DM and find this very helpful, I'm running this campaign now and will definitely keep all this in mind. My party already ran through the 1st 3 adventures and I felt so sorry for them. One died at dwarven excavation and created another character and almost died at gnomagard with the mimic. I wish I could have seen this before I started this. Thank you.

[@ambrose7196]

This was very helpful

[@matthaeusprime6343]

My 3 girls (ages, 10, 8, 8) didn't have too much trouble with the manticore. I gave them a healer side kick who only had to heal one of them. But take into consideration that the DM will roll low on at least one of the attacks of the manticore. I had one round where it missed on all three attacks. But that was just my experience. Tonight they are off to Gnomengarde, we'll see what happens then. I like the video btw, lots of useful information.

[@SlyFlourish]

Glad you like the videos! Your game sounds like a lot of fun!

[@Turtlpwr]

First time dm and your videos have been incredibly helpful. Also, the lazydm prep manual is fantastic!

[@SlyFlourish]

Thank you!

[@craven1927]

9:45 just a note: the quests don't "go away" they just don't count towards your progress anymore. It uses the Milestone method of leveling your characters so the 1st two starting quests you choose will each level your character up upon completion, but the third quest doesn't just disappear after. Players can still do that quest if they want to, it just won't count towards their progress for leveling up. They'll have to start completing the next set of quests to trigger the milestone that will level them up. So there's no need to take that quest option away from them if they really wanted to play it. The same can be said for those side quests, none of them technically count towards leveling up, but they can still choose to do them. Also, I did the same thing with the Manticore for our game, I gave it half HP and only a few tail spikes left with visible wounds, and asking for healing or food (I always thought a Manticore wouldn't have any need for gold in this situation). My players ended up offering to heal it and gave him some of their rations, so combat was avoided, but I also had a few ideas planned out just in case things went south. For the ocher jelly, all three characters just happened to have piercing weapons for their melee weapons, but one of our players (a newbie I might add) did have the smarts to fire a test shot with his bow from a distance, after I had used the dwarfs to warn them about the jelly saying that he "tried to slice it with my axe but the damn thing just split in two!"

[@rolandstone4189]

Glad I found this - funny you asked what are the odds a first time DM are. I am, I just bought the set and am preparing to run, and finding this very helpful.

[@psycomutt]

Two years later and I'm a first time DM who's running this module. If all goes well I'll get a whole campaign.

[@SlyFlourish]

Awesome! Good luck!

[@charlesjahnke8782]

First time DM and your video is the first I stumbled upon. Thanks for the tips we are all new so I know they will want to fight everything 😂

[@EZEPANDAMX]

My first time DMing ever last saturday, I had a bard a wizard a barbarian and a ranger , go to the excavation. They made ton of noise at the entrance of the canyon so I had them fight some giant spiders, then they rested and fought 2 ochre jellies , they defeated them but I definitely had to forego the slashing immunity , but I still let them split when taking damage

[@ScottyWings]

Running my first campaign this weekend and I am so out of my depth this is so helpful thankyou!

[@SlyFlourish]

Good luck!!

[@PercDirector]

July 2020, New DM here to learn! Thanks so much for your work. Subbed.

[@johncampos2665]

I’m here before I play it I’ve only DMed the starter pack but this video will help a lot

[@TheBlazegeo]

First time dm, usually was a player, this feels like the best adventure to start with. Thanks for the help!

[@SlyFlourish]

Glad it helped!

[@juliaborsos1418]

I'm a new DM watching this before starting the Essentials campaign and finding it very helpful :)

[@jadenpaber1952]

first time DM here who is goin to play this with my niece and nephew :) and your tips are great

[@Standby_JRB]

26:20 thats legit me lol never played before and this set is my intro... also i volunteered to dm cause all my friends are new too

[@ivanponcedeleon6392]

Jon B bro same here. I always wanted to play but never had any friends who liked it. Now I have my kids and after a week of running around setting up the kids characters. Wiped em in one hit by jelly’s. That wasn’t fun. They came back an the luck of the dice... they kill 3 of them w/o any hp loss. Lol

[@conundrum3103]

I'm going to be running this campaign with a few of my friends and the tips were really helpful. I'm dying to see how the Alien idea will turn out in Gnomengarde

[@sweetarrd8836]

Gonna run session zero next week as a first-time DM and DND player. thx for the tips, subscribed now

[@dachadMWO]

I'm running this module now with a group of 4 and i'd watch several videos that explained the same thing - the characters will be WAY outclassed in the first 3 quests. I decided to add a slightly easier one shot quest \ campaign hook to boost them up to level 2. That gave them just enough to be able to fight off some of the earlier mobs without scaling the quests down later on. I had hooked the players in by pairs on small quests that tied them into getting to Phandelver.

[@l149xgm]

Hey just found your bid am a first time Dm running this as my intro adventure and my god this was helpful. Having no background knowledge on how to run an adventure sucks a little bit this has cleared a lot of things up for me and I hope will make a much better experience for my players :)

[@Frittefrizz2935]

I am totally new 2 the game , and will soon start this for my first experience playing D&D . I will play dm , this video help a lot for me feeling I will make a good run .

[@SlyFlourish]

outdoor family with a few tweaks, it can be a great adventure.

[@erupendragon7376]

First time DM here about to run this with strangers. Thanks.

[@keydelllorenzana8143]

I am a first time DM running a combination of Phandelver and Icespire. I am new to the game completely only starting to learn for about a month but I think most people now days will come to you tube for advice so thank you. Your video is very informative.

[@pranksterdp]

First time playing and first time DM here. As I see from the comments, chances are not so slim :) Great advises, thank you! I almost killed my players as I didn't knew that I can lower the monster's stats. They choose directly to attack the Manticore, good that we stopped the campaign just before the fight, so I had the chance to see this video :D

[@SlyFlourish]

Glad its helpful!

[@craven1927]

First time DM here. We've ran the first three quests from this set so far. I'm glad I read ahead in the book because the Mountain Toe quest is a huge problem for new players with that damage immunity. I don't understand why "were" creatures are completely immune but vampires only have resistance, it makes NO SENSE to me. I would have less problems with it if they had dropped what you need before hand, but the primary quests don't give the players anything that they can use against the wererats. There's no magical weapon drops, no mention of silvered weapons, there's nothing to even hint at what they might need before they get there. I think there's ONE side quest you can try to send them on that could yield a magic weapon drop, but if your players don't have any of that they are screwed if negotiations go south. My plan for our encounter is to make the wererats resistant to nonmagical weapons instead of straight up immune, and silvered and magical weapons do full damage. This way it keeps with the theme but still gives the players a chance to actually do damage.

[@jayrobinson2096]

First time DM. This video has been insanely helpful.

[@cojoMan]

as lots of DM/players out there, I struggles with scheduling constraints, and had the worst time trying to do any of the mentioned adventures, or move past the first 2-3 sessions in with any of my groups. In the 2-3years since I started playing DnD. So now I am running - and am 75% into - LMoP with my spouse. We play 2-3h a week, whenever time allows, usually Saturday's morning coffee starter. Sure, some sessions where just shopping episodes, or optimizing/leveling this and that, but most where roleplaying, exploring or fighting. Session 0 I made her do 4 different characters, with the purpose of the exercise, so she'd know how to make one from scratch, and the intent being she'd run one, and me the rest mostly. But instead she ran all 4 of them, with a bit of help from me, and now it seems more balanced than I would have thought - instead of toning down, or halving the amount of enemies from LMoP - I'm running them as they are - and suddenly we're both playing on a level field. The compromise is that for now I am allowing a certain level of metagaming, as when I'm asking "who is talking" she reaches for the high charisma character. But all and all, great fun, much easier to manage, learned a lot as a DM and she as a player, without any social anxiety or peer pressure, in our own pace. We're slowly making our way to add a few more people to our group, and for those I plan to run DIP, and that's why I'm here. Other things worth mentioning - whenever she fights off a significant enemy(ies) - instead of giving her the normal loot - I make her roll on the treasure horde table, and she gets a bit more that she should at lower levels. But getting her excited and into it is worth the hassle of me re-balancing the fights. I think making sure a player is confident enough to take risks with these kind of rewards is worth the trouble of having an unbalanced campaign in the first run.

[@nascar014]

Hey, I'm a first time DM. Last week was my first ever game. My daughter loved it so I'm DM now. This video was super helpful. Thanks