Notes for new D&D players

notes-for-new-players.md

Notes for new players

Here's a quick intro to D&D to help you get ready for your first campaign.

The purpose of D&D is to have fun

• D&D is a storytelling and roleplaying game; there is no specific victory condition or loss condition, except those designated by the story.
• D&D has a lot of rules, many of which are common RPG tropes (such as XP, turn based combat, spellcasting, etc) but there is no "right way" to play D&D. Having fun takes precedence over following the rules - the only "wrong way" to play is if any players are having a bad time. As such, some DMs will be more orthodox with the rules while others will be more lenient (but consistent), depending on the preferences of the players.
• Because of the sheer volume of the rules and mechanics, D&D can be overwhelming at first but most people catch on quickly. You don't need to read all of the rules before playing (though skimming some can be helpful) - the DM is expected to help new players get familiar with the rules.
  • Rules are organized into incompatible "editions", analogous to major versions of software - the most recent and popular edition is 5th Edition (5e).

General mechanics: adventure sessions, players, NPCs, and dice rolling

• D&D is played by (typically) 2 to 6 individual players and one Dungeon Master (DM). Players meet with the for DM multi-hour sessions that follow a common story, called a campaign. Each player controls one in-game player character (PC). The Dungeon Master controls all non-player characters (NPCs) and functions as both referee and storyteller. The DM always has final say about how events occur during play, but should not abuse this power.
• Each in-game player character is represented by a document called a character sheet. The character sheet records details about a player character, such as their name, what equipment they are carrying, how good they are at various tasks, etc.
• The core mechanic of D&D is dice rolling. Players and the DM determine the outcome of situations (e.g. fighting an orc, picking a lock, resisting a spell, etc) by rolling a die, adding relevant values from the character sheet, and comparing the result to a value set by the DM to see how the situation played out.
• There are many types of dice used in D&D, the most common being a twenty-sided die. When you see the notation XdY+Z, it means roll X many Y-sided dice and sum the results, then add Z (Z is frequently 0 and not shown). For example, 2d10+2 means roll two 10-sided dice, add the results, then add an additional 2.
• D&D has two modes of play:
  • adventuring, which is open-ended and more narrative focused; time moves fluidly (the DM may say you spend two nights traveling), and situations tend to be resolved with a single die roll.
  • combat, where each player and NPC takes turns in round-robin style deciding what to do; each round represents 6 seconds of in-game time, and situations tend to be more complex.

Forget everything you know about RPGs - think open-endedly

• Popular video game RPGs (like Skyrim, Final Fantasy games, or WoW) are "railroaded" by the software; all possible interactions and events are pre-determined by the game designers and the players have to pick from them. In D&D, the rules do not describe what is allowed or forbidden, only how something happens when it happens; players are allowed to try literally anything they want. While the DM determines the rules and describes the world, the players have ultimate control over the development of their characters and the story.
• "NPC" does not mean one-dimensional. In video game RPGs, you might only have one kind of interaction with an NPC, like a pre-scripted voice line. However, in D&D, the world is as deep as you want it to be. Even if you are dealing with a character who is relatively indistiniguishable from another (like a goblin), they still have the capacity for complex interactions and you are encouraged to try it.
• Similarly, the world is as interactable as you want it to be - you can use it to your advantage! If you're fighting a band of kobolds in a mountain-top sanctuary to Lolth, the Dark Elf Goddess of Spiders, you are welcome to try to hide in the sanctuary and ambush them, push them off the mountain, knock the Spider statues over on top of them, or throw an altar torch into their face to blind them.
• The skills listed on your character sheet - Persuasion, Stealth, etc. are broad categories and should be treated as if I do something and need to figure out how successful I am at it, which of these is it most like? They are not designed to limit you with which of these things should I do - don't worry if you want to do something that doesn't obviously fall into one of the categories. You are heavily encouraged to think about ways to resolve situations and let the DM tell you what checks need to be done. Additionally, you are encouraged to suggest a specific type of check to the DM, e.g. I'd like to stare the shopkeeper in the eyes directly and claim that I am the Scion of Darkness; can make an Intimidation check?.
• Example: suppose you are on a quest to find a magic ring, and when you stop at a local town, you learn that the mayor knows where it is but won't tell anyone for fear that orcs from the nearby forest will steal it. Depending on what kind of character you play, you might have different approaches:
  • A Lawful Good Half-Orc Paladin might cite her Paladin virtues and boldly declare her intent to safeguard the ring from evil, then follow through on it.
  • A Neutral Good Elf Barbarian might charge into the Orcs camp, kill them all singlehandedly, and then return with the orc chieftan's head and ask (but not demand) that the mayor tell him where the ring is afterwards.
  • A Chaotic Good Halfling Ranger might decide on his own to organize a small town militia and surprise attack the Orcs, causing them to flee, and then go to the mayor and assert that he needs the ring.
  • A Lawful Neutral Dwarf Cleric might cite the fact that he is an agent of a diety and threaten dire consequences if the mayor does not comply with the diety's wishes.
  • A True Neutral Gnomish Wizard might strike a deal with the mayor to defuse the orc threat, and then sneak into their camp and cast a spell on the orc leader to make him order the rest of the orcs to leave the lands for good.
  • A Chaotic Neutral Lizardfolk Sorcerer might persuade the mayor to tell her where it is and claim she can use a spell to protect it further, but then steal it for herself and continue on her journey.
  • A Lawful Evil Yuan Ti Warlock might go to the orc tribe and use his dark magic to convince them to follow him (maybe by killing their leader, or convincing the orcs that the warlock is an agent of the orc god Gruumsh), then lead them back to town and threaten to raze and pillage it unless the mayor divulges the location of the ring.
  • A Neutral Evil Tiefling Rogue might break into the mayor's house, kidnap the mayor's spouse, and threaten to murder them unless the mayor tells where it is.
  • A Chaotic Evil Orc Fighter might just assault and torture the mayor until he gives up the location of the ring.

Create and play characters you are interested in, especially if they're atypical

• Players are encouraged to roleplay, be innovative, and step outside of their comfort zone. Use weird voices, adopt strange tics, and think about what your character would do in a situation.
• When you create your character, you are perfectly welcome to create a character you think would be highly effective (sometimes called minmaxing), but you are also encouraged to create interesting characters, especially if they have flaws or uncommon backgrounds. Since you will be roleplaying as this character, they should first and foremost be exciting to you.
• Atypical race, class, background, and attribute combinations can create very interesting characters. A Chaotic Good Elf Rogue with an exceptionally high Dexterity score is archtypical and perfectly valid, but a low-Strength Neutral Evil Elf Barbarian or a Lawful Good Goblin Paladin with little Charisma is also a great idea and can create truly innovative experiences.