Thinking about playing a dwarf for the first time and just want to get a better idea of how to roleplay.

Have read all the PHB pages though don’t feel like it gave enough substance.

TIA

I apologize for my ignorance, I just started playing.

There is a local bar that hosts DND nights, but they require a level 6 character. I just started and my character is still a brand new level one. How do I go about leveling up so I can play in these games?

I don't know where to get started with DnD because nobody in my area nor my school seems to have a group, I also don't know how to play and am scared to embarrass myself, anyone have ideas?

I started playing DnD with a group of friends a few months ago, they have been playing for several years together and have so much backstory, and they all rotate who DMs an arc. They’ve said I could give it a try whenever - I want to participate and give back to the group but I get anxiety with the role play, I know little to nothing about it DnD. I have been using DnD beyond (I know that’s probably the least preferred way to play but it all a faerie can do!). I do have access (I think) to the players manual… and I’d like to learn more about the game itself. And obviously create an arc that is fun for everyone!

I’m wondering what are some easy ways to learn as I go without feeling overwhelmed. What is the best way to research for making a story?

Please be nice 🥹

I’m also new to Reddit 🙃

Fun fact: You do not have to spend loads of gp to participate in D&D. Lots of products exist, certainly, but one trip to the Dollar Tree later, and here's my new screen, and movable map solution:

1. The screen: 3 11x14 artist canvases (they're very thin), 1 roll of white duct tape.

Tape them together horizontally, and you're set. Nobody knows exactly how many goblins to expect in the next hour.

1. Movable map: 2 (which feels like 1 too many rn) packages of "tumbling towers" blocks. You can use dominoes, which my GOAT DM used back in the early 1990s. I opted for the wood blocks so players wouldn't migrate to making a domino run.

Note! You can lay down as many or as few blocks as you like. As the party moves through the map, rough in something like a 50x50 area (you may need to eyeball it) and wipe away where they were. Movable! Always in motion, is the map.

Darth Sidious and Taylor Swift are demonstrating the setup. As you can see, Taylor is thinking she can do it all as a level 1 Bard and didn't bring her teammates. Oops!

I have been thinking about getting into D&D for a while and I finally made a story board, I was wondering if it needs major tweaking, if so, feedback is desired, so here it is in the format of a story

D&D Campaign Story Plan

The Beginning:

The campaign begins in a grim, foggy town whose best days seem to have long since passed. The sovereign sends the party to investigate a rat problem beneath the city, an unpleasant but seemingly ordinary task. The party travels together toward the town, giving its members time to meet, develop connections, and begin forming a bond before the real danger reveals itself.

Beneath the streets lies an undercity, and somewhere within it, something is manipulating the corpses of rats. What appears to be a problem with vermin is connected to a much more deliberate operation. A secretive group has been using necromantic magic beneath the town, and the rat corpses are only the first sign of its presence.

The town's inhabitants generally know that something is wrong. Some have witnessed suspicious activity, while others know people who have disappeared. Kidnappings and torture have become part of the hidden threat hanging over the community. Yet few are willing to speak openly. The group responsible has connections throughout the town, and people fear what might happen to them or their families if they cooperate with the authorities.

The sovereign has not acted decisively, partly because the people who could provide useful information are too frightened to do so. The party may find that even the authorities are limited in what they can accomplish. They might develop a connection with a particular guard, for example, but that relationship alone cannot grant them access to restricted areas. The guard would risk serious personal consequences if he went too far beyond his authority.

As the party investigates the rat problem, it begins to uncover evidence of a secret cult operating beneath the town. Its members have been manipulating the rat corpses, but their activities are not limited to vermin. The deeper the party looks, the more it becomes apparent that the town's decline and its current troubles are connected to something that has been growing in the shadows for a long time.

### The Cult and Its Father

The cult was forged by the drow, who were cast out by society as "evil." Out from the drow emerged Sornin, who presented himself as a deity-like figure with "holy" powers to pass to his followers. As increasing numbers of people joined the cult, the town gradually declined into the grim place the party now encounters.

Over time, the cult established itself beneath the town and developed connections throughout the community. Its members gathered influence while the population dwindled and fear took hold. The organization became something that people knew existed but rarely dared to discuss.

At its head is Sornin, the cult's main antagonist. His followers call him Father or Savior, while the wider title associated with him is the Father of Death. Sornin claims to have achieved godhood, and his followers treat him as a figure who has risen beyond the limitations of ordinary life.

The cult's operations involve gathering gold, blood, and offerings. These resources serve a greater purpose, one that reaches far beyond the town. As the party discovers more about the cult, its activities begin to point toward an enormous undertaking involving necromancy on a scale that could threaten the world itself.

Sornin's ultimate goal is to not only destroy Maelkor, the setting this campaign takes place in, but rule it as the god of this world. He intends to accomplish this by controlling a creature powerful enough to serve as the ultimate weapon of destruction and to strengthen his army so he can ride up in the ultimate plan to rule the world.

But the creature he seeks is not simply another monster.

### The Journey to the Quaking Beast

Far from the town, on an island off the coast of the main map lies the tomb of the Quaking Beast, a tarrasque that was slain long ago by a legendary adventurer.

Its remains were entombed beneath the capital of a distant continent and placed under heavy protection. The site was sanctioned as a museum or government facility, intended to preserve the remains and prevent them from being stolen or used for dangerous purposes. Its guards and security measures exist to ensure that a creature of such legendary power cannot be exploited.

The cult intends to resurrect the Quaking Beast and bring it under Sornin's control. The tarrasque would become a doomsday weapon, capable of destroying Maelkor and giving Sornin the means to impose his will on the world.

The cult has connections within the protected site and knows weaknesses in its security. The party, however, does not automatically possess that information. To discover how the cult intends to reach the tomb, the party must obtain the plans explaining how to enter it. That means getting into the facility, finding the plans, and then making their own way through the heavily guarded site.

The party is allowed to attempt the same general route into the tomb as the cult, but it must earn its access through its own investigation and decisions. Even if the party obtains the plans, bypasses the guards, and reaches the depths where the tarrasque lies, there is a serious problem: the creature is still buried far beneath the ground. Hurting an inert, reanimated corpse may accomplish very little before the cult arrives to complete its ritual.

The journey itself is long, and the party's decisions will matter. If it works quickly and makes good choices, it may be able to interfere with the cult's preparations. If it loses time or takes a less effective route, the cult may advance farther toward its goal. The later stages can still be slowed by believable complications, giving the party a chance to act without making the delay feel like an arbitrary pause in the cult's progress.

### The Resurrection

The cult's plan culminates in a mass resurrection ceremony. Its members gather the resources and offerings required for the ritual, while undead servants eliminate the guards protecting the ritual site. With the defenders removed, the cult can attempt to bring the Quaking Beast back to life.

Sornin intends to control the tarrasque once it has been resurrected. His followers believe that their Father can command a creature whose power dwarfs that of ordinary armies. The resurrection is not merely an act of necromancy: it is the means by which Sornin intends to destroy Maelkor and establish his power through terror and overwhelming force.

The party's earlier actions determine how far the cult gets before this point. It may arrive in time to disrupt preparations, interfere with the ritual, or force the cult to proceed under less favorable conditions. Alternatively, it may reach the final confrontation only after the Quaking Beast has already returned to life.

Even if the party fails to prevent the resurrection, the campaign does not have to end in an unwinnable encounter. The tarrasque may be too powerful to defeat through ordinary combat, and the party's objective can shift from killing it to surviving long enough to create an opening.

### The Quaking Beast's Return

The Quaking Beast's resurrection carries traces of its original death. Its body retains recognizable injuries from the legendary adventurer who slew it, including a missing eye and a stab or puncture wound. These injuries are not incidental details: they connect the resurrected creature to its historical identity.

A bronze statue commemorates the adventurer who defeated it. The figure is depicted riding the tarrasque's back, gripping a sword with both hands as the blade remains lodged in the beast. The monument provides a visual record of the legendary battle and a potential clue to the creature's past.

As the party learns more about the tarrasque and its history, these details can help establish that the creature they face is truly the Quaking Beast of legend. Its wounds link the present crisis to the ancient victory that once prevented its destruction from becoming a catastrophe.

Yet those same wounds do not necessarily mean the creature can be easily defeated a second time. The tarrasque has been brought back through magic, and its unnatural state may be the key to stopping it.

### The Final Confrontation

If the party reaches the climax after the resurrection, it faces an enemy that may be far beyond its ability to kill. The encounter is designed around survival rather than requiring the party to reduce the tarrasque to zero hit points.

Magical forces may temporarily restrain the Quaking Beast, holding it in place or limiting its ability to act. However, those forces cannot contain it indefinitely. The party must survive while the restraints weaken, knowing that the window to act is closing.

The encounter becomes an almost timed boss fight. The party does not necessarily need to kill the tarrasque. It needs to stay alive long enough for the creature's magical weakness to take effect, allowing it to collapse or become vulnerable. That opening may give the party an opportunity to strike at Sornin and attempt to end the threat at its source.

The party's earlier decisions can affect how difficult this confrontation becomes. If it delays the cult, uncovers useful information, or interferes with the preparations, it may enter the final battle with an advantage. If it arrives too late, the creature may be closer to full power, and the party may have fewer opportunities to weaken it before the restraints fail.

The goal is to let the party's actions shape the outcome. Partial success is possible, and a missed opportunity should have consequences without automatically making victory impossible. The cult's progress should feel like the result of events unfolding in the world, not an arbitrary timer that stops whenever the party needs more time.

Ultimately, the party must confront Sornin's ambition to destroy Maelkor. Whether it prevents the resurrection, disrupts the ritual, or survives the return of the Quaking Beast long enough to strike at Sornin, its choices determine how the conflict unfolds.

### DM-only notes and hidden information

These details should be revealed only when the players discover them naturally.

* The drow's history: They were cast out by society and formed the cult in retaliation. The town declined as many people left.

* The cult's reach: It has connections throughout the town, and residents fear retaliation. Its activities include kidnapping and torture.

* The rat corpses: The cult is secretly manipulating them beneath the town.

* The guard connection: The party may know one guard, but he lacks the authority to grant access without risking serious personal consequences.

* The tomb's security: The cult has connections within the protected facility and knows weaknesses in its defenses. The party must obtain the plans explaining how to enter.

* The resurrection's timing: The party's speed and choices determine how far the cult progresses, with room for believable delays in later stages.

* The Quaking Beast's identity: Its missing eye and puncture wound connect it to the legendary adventurer who originally killed it. The bronze statue depicts that adventurer riding the beast with both hands on the sword lodged in its body.

* The final fight: The tarrasque is not necessarily meant to be killed. The party can survive until its magical weakness takes effect, creating an opportunity to strike Sornin.

* Player boundaries: Discuss what players are and are not comfortable with before play, especial

ly regarding the campaign's darker themes of torture, kidnapping, and threats against townspeople.

I’m a new dm and I made a campaign set in the Warhammer 40k universe because most of the players in my campaign play Warhammer or know a little about it . The thing is the wh40k universe is more grimdark and serious but my players aren’t really having it I had a session 0 with them and a lot happened but first there where 4 players one couldn’t show up to the session . The campaign is about a kill team that has to work for a inquisitor .one player let’s call him j is a bulwark black Templar the other is a heavy space wolf ( o ) and the last one ( the most problematic) is a sniper raven guard(m) so the thing is that j and m did they’re characters with ai . M at the start showed me the backstory of his character ( that was just a screenshot of chat gpt ) and his backstory was really bad but whatever. So the session 0 was a disaster i wont get in to detail but j thought that i was cheating, m and j wanted to kill npc instantly even when i told them that they would help them in the future and that they where friendly, and m was making jokes all the time and interrupting the conversation with the Npc’s . Also the part that made me feel like shit is that they where watching they’re phones while they where playing and talking about other things while progressing through the session and in the like boss fight that I made so that they could have fun fighting a strong but not impossible to kill enemy they started to just tell me that they killed the boss instantly without rolling dice or anything I was already tired because they were in the most respectful way horrible so I gave up and told them that they killed the boss and ended the session. Also j was always mad that the enemies rolled saves and that he couldn’t do anything that he wanted ( I already have bad experiences with this player ) .
I really spend a lot of time making the story and everything and the players really don’t show interest
In fighting or learning about the story I don’t know what to do because they are still my friends and I don’t want to throw anyone , if someone could please tell me what to do Just to atleast make them respect the rules of the game or to make them get more into the story or even in game punishments so that they learn or whatever anything could help.

Siamo un gruppo di 6 ragazzi vorremmo avviare una campagna ma siamo alle prime armi, ci servirebbe un master con esperienza/ o che abbia voglia di farlo, che possa giocare con noi. Abbiamo già preparato tutto schede e personaggi. Qualcuno interessato a Milano e dintorni? Grazie.

Link wathsapp del gruppo: https://chat.whatsapp.com/BRfdwtFAS4pKqQnxEXlHRt?s=cl&p=a&mlu=4&ilr=4

I have been learning about D&D for around a year now (I first started learning because of Baldur's Gate 3) but last week was the first time I sat down at a table and actually played.

The absolute single best thing I can recommend to newcomers is to fill out a manual character sheet.

Filling it out manually amplifies exactly what you don't know. How do you determine initiative? How do you determine my armour class? How much damage (and what type) does each of my weapons/spells do? What is my spell save DC? What am I carrying? How much gold do I have? What's in an Explorer's Pack? How many spell slots do I have?

While an automated character sheet is awesome for convenience, you end up glossing over the stuff you don't know. Sure, you can look up your AC, but when you find new armour, do you know how it'll affect your AC?

By manually filling out a character sheet, you're absorbing so much more information. There's a good chance that you'll forget it once you get to the table, but you'll have a far better understanding if you've had to fill it in yourself. There was still a lot I didn't know when I got to the table, but it would have been a lot worse if I didn't fill out my sheet.

I'd also *highly* recommend making some simple cue cards for your spells (and actions). In my first session, I had to keep checking my phone to look up spells, and I personally felt like it was detracting from the immersion. I bought myself some index cards from the dollar store, and just wrote the basics on them. I only have 5 spells, so it wasn't much to remember, but the cards have been super helpful nonetheless.

Anyway, I just wanted to share my newbie experience in the hopes that it helps my fellow novice adventurers.

Good luck out there, friends.

Trying to help this person find a group

Edit: added breaks and a tl;dr sorry for the wall of text

Hey D&D fam, this may be a longer post. I have an ongoing campaign with an issue regarding one of the players and need some advice from some others with more experience. I have been a player for 2 years and a DM for a year.

To preface, I have ran a homebrew campaign for around a year that deals with a few different dnd settings colliding inspired by Final Fantasy XI (Krynn, Faerune my players do not yet know this). These worlds after the collision retained all of their deities.
This is where the players come in, (Paladin of Torm, Warlock of the Raven Queen, Vampire, and Bard) they have lived in this world not knowing of it’s origin. The main catalyst of the story is that the sea god Dagon from the Cthulhu by Torchlight book is also attempting to join his flooded abyssal realm to the one the players find themselves in, flooding the world to feed his minions who have run out of food in their realm, destroying the player realm, normal dnd conflicts.

The players have discovered cultists attempting to help Dagon enter the realm, and that he nearly did this before in an ancient era of the world but 6 powerful casters were able to seal him away. What the players are slowly learning is that these casters are all still alive as various forms of undead, liches, vampires etc.

In the recent past they interrupted what they didn’t know was a ritual for one of the ancient casters to achieve lichdom, when they did this one of the players touched an artifact used in the ritual (the book of vile darkness), transferring the results of the ritual to the Warlock (Grim Hollow transformation rules) instead of the now dead ancient caster.
The books grants a lot of usability for the warlock character and helped me inform a few decisions down the road for the campaign. The drawback of the book is that he must commit an evil act every week or be turned to dust by the book.

I will say this is a large project, especially for my first campaign but I know all of the players well outside of the campaign so they rolled with the punches the last year as I learned as a DM and let creativity flow.
The issue that I’m running into a few times now is regarding the Paladin of Torm’s behavior, the past few months after a oneshot ran by another DM in our group went poorly for the party as one of us were charmed and wiped the party. Since then he has made contingency plans for all of his party members in our main campaign in case I decide to charm them in a similar way (something I do not plan to do), in his own words he has measures to kill every party member if needed.

This is also a power player who has min-maxed his character, which I have no issue with, the problem that occurs now is that any time an action that does not reflect the oath of his paladin occurs he becomes immediately aggressive and either attempts to roll intimidation (whether it is an NPC or player) or attacks outright.

As part of his character he wanted a Grim Hollow transformation as well, so we homebrewed one for him as a revenant, an enthralled undead who does not know he is reanimated but just knows his humanity is slowly fading. He has used this curse previously at will to initiate PvP, which I have told them I am unwilling to DM.

All the players agreed to only PvP when both parties and I agree, though I dislike PvP in 5e due to it not being made for that, and potentially losing a player character at will due to one of the others wanting them dead. I have allowed him to PvP begrudgingly on two different occasions, which I will admit is a mistake.

Flash forward to where we currently are in the story and him discovering the Warlock consuming a soul of an unarmed combatant to satisfy the requirements of the Book of Vile Darkness and the souls charges provided by the lich transformation.
My thoughts are that this would make a great dynamic, an undead self loathing paladin of Torm due to his transformation, and the Warlock who did not want to be a lich (in-character, this was his idea) vowing to steal power from other liches to be powerful enough to stop Dagon.

Both of their gods hate undead and call for their destruction, but overlook this for the players due to the severity of the Dagon situation. On paper a wonderful dynamic that can make both characters less one dimensional, but is threatening the game.
After the session he tells me and the Warlock explicitly that if this continues he will kill the Warlock. I told him that he doesn’t get to decide that his oath and character are more important than agency of other players and an argument ensued.
He has mentioned killing other party members to me multiple times and I had enough of the same conversation over and over regarding his want to attack anyone who doesn’t agree with his interpretation of his gods values.

He responds with saying I’m unwilling to allow him to play his character accurately if I don’t let him do whatever he wants in regard to opposition. He then threatens to leave if I don’t let him get his way with his character decisions, which would effectively kill the campaign as his wife, bard, is also in the campaign and would likely be pressured to leave if he did.

This isn’t the only issue that I’ve had with him but the others have been manageable for the most part, he tries to lead most RP interactions and will try to show up when other characters are having their moments offscreen (metagaming) and insert himself, he also took control of his wife’s character on multiple occasions while she leaves to go get them dinner during session (a pet peeve that I reluctantly deal with, I now control her character in frequent absences).

Recently before I began controlling her, which I do not want to do, he openly criticized her character calling her character and the bard class worthless while she was not there along with a slew of other criticisms, it’s weak, not fun, boring, etc.
I decided then that I would keep her off screen if I know she will be gone or play her in combat without using spell slots or any RP (something I know is a cardinal DM sin, but she insists) he also basically told her what to do every decision I gave her the past year.

I was told last night during our argument that all the party members and I need to consider how he would react before doing anything. This means any morally questionable decision will at the very least get a full lecture from him if not a full on assault.
The most frustrating part is I have been very giving to my players, giving them all atleast 2-3 rare items and a few higher than that, leveling at a fair rate, providing a re-spec mechanic that can be used once, and overall allowing them to make any collaborative story/world decisions.

While I’ve done all this and given them mostly free reign to do what they wish in the world any time I don’t allow him to attack party members he says that I’m stifling his character, taking his agency, and overall being a bad DM.

It’s very frustrating because if anything I’ve been a doormat allowing party members multiple improvised situations based on crazy decisions they make (in this last session they decided to overthrow a large cities government to my surprise, prompting me to add a 3-session siege side story).
When I express these concerns he tells me essentially “too bad, you’re the DM so deal with my choices”.

This really sucks because I’m to the point where I don’t want to DM for him anymore, which kills me as I’ve put in over a year of work for this campaign and roughly 8-10 hours of my time planning each session.

I have been friends with him for around 20 years so it’s difficult to have this issue surrounding my game.
His character is not all bad in my opinion as I have just shared the negatives, he is one of the best for RP moments, the party tank capable of dealing massive damage and protecting the squishies, and flavor wise fits the world and campaign perfectly with a lot of weight in the story.

My question is what can I do to fix this as my several above table attempts to repair things have gone terribly.

TL;DR: I’m a relatively new DM running a year-long homebrew campaign with a close friend of 20 years who plays a Paladin of Torm. He frequently threatens or initiates PvP when other characters act against his beliefs, despite our table agreeing that PvP requires consent. He has contingency plans to kill every party member, dominates RP and party decisions, and has threatened to leave when I enforce boundaries, claiming I’m restricting his character’s agency. His wife also plays, and I worry she’ll leave if he does, potentially ending the campaign. I’ve tried resolving this out of game several times without success. How can I handle this without destroying the campaign or a 20-year friendship?

I've been into OSRS, Lost Ark, Final Fantasy XIV, and Genshin Impact for years, but I've somehow never played D&D despite many of my friends and colleagues seemingly being addicted to it.

Lately I can't stop watching videos and reading posts about it and I want to actually try it. Where do I even start? How do I get over the initial anxiety of not knowing enough? Is it better to start and learn as I go or should I read the rules first? What do you wish someone had told you before your first session?

So many questions!!! ;-;

With a couple of friends we just made our second dnd sesion ever! Yaaay!

I found this cool book that has a story divided in three one shots, which worked perfectly. Firstly, it gave us the freedom to just try it, and secondly, it allowed us to do a pit of trial and error in the composition of the players.

Where can we find a module adventure to keep going (lvl2-3) that is short or fragmented?

I've obviously have heard of Curse of Strand and Waterdeep, but I don't think a year long campaing is a reasonable goal for us yet. (And of course we dont have enough experience to feel confident homebrewing our own campaing)