How difficult was it to learn to GM games?

[doseyclwn]

I got to admit, I'm a little bit intimidated. Seems like there's a lot to remember, but thought I'd pose the question and see what y'all say.

[computertrucker]

you mean on fantasy grounds or in general?

Back when I ran my last game on fantasy grounds of 4edition DnD which ended about 3.5 maybe 4 years back. I will say We ended up having alot of fun. There is a learning curve to the software and coming back I feel like I am having to relearn alot of it over..

I didnt use any premade adventure modules. I ran my own game, which meant a good amount of prep time that had to go into it. But I got faster with the more I used it.

I think the biggest hurdle after learning the software is Voice client. Its easier to communicate in person. Voice Client people walk over one another from time to time and it can slow things down.

Now as for GMing a game in general terms. Thats a whole other story. Its just something you learn to do over time. You have alot on your shoulders. But remember you're there to have fun. One important note. try not to railroad your players, regardless if they dont go the way of what you had planned. Either be ready to wing it when that happens or get an idea of what they are wanting to do and take a break so you can try to prepare. LOL..Try and smoothly get them back on path.

[doseyclwn]

Sorry. I meant on fantasy grounds.

[Andraax]

Sorry. I meant on fantasy grounds.

Start with the basics. Learn to roll dice and hand out (share) stuff and learn what's where on the character sheets. You can add the fancier stuff after a few sessions, a little at a time.

[ffujita]

If you're already not having difficulties playing a complex character on FG, then GMing isn't much harder. But there *is* a lot more to keep track of. I need a lot more screen real estate (resolution, not inches) to keep everything on top that needs to be kept on top. If you start with everyone at first level, you should pick up the FG stuff as quickly as your players level. But I would get a 4k monitor, or at least 1080p.

[damned]

Push as much back on players as possible. If a player casts a spell you need clarification on - have the player look it up and read it out.
Dont take on too much as GM. learn the Combat Tracker and Encounters and Modifiers. Dont worry about effects yet. Dont worry about the party sheet. Dont worry about XP.
Encourage your players to research the Effects themselves.
As you get comfortable with the CT side of things add in something else.

[computertrucker]

Yes what these people said. Hopefully the new version that's been talked about will be more drag and drop.

As it stands some of the extras take a good bit to learn for us non programmers. Take pars5e for example. Great utility from the looks of it, but learning to use it almost requires you to take a course or class in it.

[Hector Trelane]

I got to admit, I'm a little bit intimidated. Seems like there's a lot to remember, but thought I'd pose the question and see what y'all say.

It's both easier and harder than it looks. Easier in that the tools make it easy to run the basics; harder in that if you want to learn and use every last bit of functionality, that will take awhile and will take more prep (but is a thing of beauty when you've got it down). If you use well-supported paid content, such as the new 5e adventures, a lot of this is done for you.

My strong advice to you is: jump in the deep end of the pool and start swimming. You won't regret it.

[Octavious]

It isn't too hard but it is a lot to remember. I am currently DM my first game of LMoP and it is also the very first game of D&D I have ever played ... ever.... and my very first RPG game too ..I decided to DM because either the game times didn't work or I was never accepted. I did take a few months to learn the rules the best I could and learn the FG program by running a few scenarios by myself. I think the best advice is what a lot of previous people have stated.. and what I would advise too. just do the basics of the game don't worry about the fluff such as effects, keeping track of arrows, food and water, and such like that.. and as Damned stated put a lot back on the players.. to explain what they are doing.. It is a learning curve.. and after each session you will say to yourself .. I should have done this or that..its how you learn.. Also get players who are new to the game.. so every ones in the same boat so to speak.. I just jump in the water and see the alligators last and to tell the truth I'm having a great time. Also you don't have to follow the adventure content to the letter either. EX. I added a few more quests on my own , I added a few colorful NPC characters too. The party was captured and sold into Drow slavery and had to escape and so on..

[Willot]

Way I taught myself was to find old D&D modules and put them on FG (being old you also would have to "convert" them to the new editions). As I cut/Paste the text out of old modules (Puting aside copyright for a momment) and added in monsters I needed. I found myself asking there must be an easier way of doing this? I look on the forums with my question and BINGO! like 15 hits all with the same question.

It is Amazing how much more you will know about FG after creating your first should module! (you will probably scrap the first one later and redo it with thoughts of "Why did I do it like THAT! That was dumb..)


Remeber theres probably been 150 people before you with the same problem and fixed it...

Well met from ME!!!!!!
Willot!

[damned]

It isn't too hard but it is a lot to remember. I am currently DM my first game of LMoP and it is also the very first game of D&D I have ever played ... ever.... and my very first RPG game too ..I decided to DM because either the game times didn't work or I was never accepted. I did take a few months to learn the rules the best I could and learn the FG program by running a few scenarios by myself. I think the best advice is what a lot of previous people have stated.. and what I would advise too. just do the basics of the game don't worry about the fluff such as effects, keeping track of arrows, food and water, and such like that.. and as Damned stated put a lot back on the players.. to explain what they are doing.. It is a learning curve.. and after each session you will say to yourself .. I should have done this or that..its how you learn.. Also get players who are new to the game.. so every ones in the same boat so to speak.. I just jump in the water and see the alligators last and to tell the truth I'm having a great time. Also you don't have to follow the adventure content to the letter either. EX. I added a few more quests on my own , I added a few colorful NPC characters too. The party was captured and sold into Drow slavery and had to escape and so on..

Whilst coming to the realisation that sometimes you ave to DM to get the game you want when you want can be a sucky process.... it does have some advantages:
1. You run the game at the time that suits YOU
2. You run the style of game you want to
3. You get to act in every scene
4. You can play the most outrageous character one moment, the sneakest the next and the dumbest a moment later
5. If you can build up a longer term group - which can take a long time - there is always some attrition along the way - start dropping hints that one of them might like to run a one shot or short adventure in the future... and slowly convert them all to GMs :)

[Hector Trelane]

Whilst coming to the realisation that sometimes you ave to DM to get the game you want when you want can be a sucky process.... it does have some advantages:
1. You run the game at the time that suits YOU
2. You run the style of game you want to
3. You get to act in every scene
4. You can play the most outrageous character one moment, the sneakest the next and the dumbest a moment later
5. If you can build up a longer term group - which can take a long time - there is always some attrition along the way - start dropping hints that one of them might like to run a one shot or short adventure in the future... and slowly convert them all to GMs :)

Some very good points, here.

On point 5, it turns out that the golden asset of all gaming assets is a good player group, doesn't it? And that's why VTT's are invaluable too, for those of us no longer in high school or college. Also, according to game designers such as Robin Laws and Kenneth Hite, a player group and its preferred style sets the table for the type of gaming experience both that you'll enjoy and that you'll actually get (two different things). Game rules only provide a fraction of the whole experience.

We should have a dating website-style compatibility matching service. "Eastern timezone, likes narrative games, dislikes min/maxing, but still enjoys bashing kobolds." "Me too! And I'm an Ares! We're a match made in heaven."

[damned]

Some very good points, here.

On point 5, it turns out that the golden asset of all gaming assets is a good player group, doesn't it? And that's why VTT's are invaluable too, for those of us no longer in high school or college. Also, according to game designers such as Robin Laws and Kenneth Hite, a player group and its preferred style sets the table for the type of gaming experience both that you'll enjoy and that you'll actually get (two different things). Game rules only provide a fraction of the whole experience.

We should have a dating website-style compatibility matching service. "Eastern timezone, likes narrative games, dislikes min/maxing, but still enjoys bashing kobolds." "Me too! And I'm an Ares! We're a match made in heaven."

Hehehehe - yes a good group makes it all work and a good group takes time most of the time.
One thing I like about VTTs is that I dont have to smell you all around my table so Ill pass on the dating service :)

[Hecklerus Prime]

I started playing D&D over a decade ago with only a handful of sessions as a player before I became my group's DM (lasting to this day). And I had more experience than any of my players! This was all well before FG, but I think some of what I did still applies. These are some of the steps that I took that I think will make the most impact.

Read the PHB and DMG several times. While you can push rule lookups onto Player's, it's best to know the rules yourself.
Allow table discussion of rules interpretation. The group is more than a just a DM, so everyone should be able to voice their ideas. The power of the DM is not to make all decisions, but to make sure all decisions are made in a timely manner. If a question pops up, hear everyone out but don't be afraid to say, "Ok, this is taking us away from the game. For now, we'll do [X] and look up the actual rule before next session," even if [X] is completely wrong.
MAKE SURE [X] FAVORS THE PLAYERS!! When a rule issue arises, always always always err on the side of the players. If they die the game ends; if your monster dies the game keeps a rollin'. It'll also keep your players from getting all angsty at you.
Ensure that you look that rule up before next session! Keep a running list of "To Do Before Next Session" and mark with the rule in question and why it was questioned. At the start of the next game, review your findings. If there are a lot of rules, ask players to look up a few. But as a DM, looking them up yourself will help with Point 1, above.
In your free time, try to run through the session by yourself. This will help you anticipate player actions, get a feel for how a specific encounter should/may flow, and potentially ask yourself questions before the players do and research beforehand.
Consider starting at 4th level, especially if you're making your own dungeon. Yes, the players get a dump of abilities they might not understand. But the trade off is they'll have more HP and more staying power in combat. So if you accidentally make a way-to-dangerous encounter, they'll likely have two or three rounds to decide it's time to run away. At 1st level, they might not make it to their first turn.

Know that you will miss things. You will forget things. You will likely kill the entire party without realizing you're doing it. This is all OK. Just be cool, have fun, and don't be afraid to reboot the entire session if stuff gets way too out of control. As you and your group grow to have more understanding of the rules, these accidental things will happen less. But until then, don't let ignorance of a rule (or twenty) mean that the group loses their characters.

Lastly, all of our dungeons until a year ago were hand-crafted by me. Those early dungeons were extremely simple and (by our standards now) supremely boring. At the time, though, they were a blast! This is because everything was new to us and we didn't know any better. Kobolds, orcs, and goblins were all we needed. The dragons came later. I have an issue with pre-gen stuff in that it assumes your players are in the know. But if they're not, an encounter that WotC thinks is moderately difficult can become extremely challenging if the players don't approach it correctly. Consider the first section of the Hoard of the Dragon Queen module. At 1st level, the players fight at least six encounter scenarios (some of them pretty difficult) with no more than a short rest between them! Inexperienced players will likely burn through all their spells and baubles right away, ineffectively apply health management, and use poor strategy. This can easily become a TPK right away.

My early stuff had no tricks, traps, or other dastardly setups because I hadn't reached the point where I knew to devise those. Every situation was pretty straightforward, my monster selections were simple, and my own strategy was lacking. This made our own ignorance the biggest challenge. We had us right where we wanted us. As we learned more about the game, my dungeons and their characters became more complex, effective, and challenging. You don't learn to ride a bike by hopping on an 18 speed street bike. You get on the ultra tiny bike with training wheels and circle the driveway for a while. Pre-gen modules can be some pretty advanced bikes. So make your own stuff and don't be afraid to strap on the trainers.

[JohnD]

Run the story not the ruleset.

[doseyclwn]

I feel like I wasn't clear in my original post. I am not new to GM'ing games. I know how to GM. What I am not 100% certain about is how to use the software, all the features, etc . . .

[dulux-oz]

If what you're after is learning how to use the software effectively, then I would recommend you check out the various tutorial Videos available from the FG Wiki (and yes, i also mean mine, also available from the links in my sig, below)

That is, if you haven't ready :)

Cheers

[JohnD]

Don't think you have to know all the ins/outs of FG from the start of your first game session. Learn as you go and try to add one new bit of knowledge every couple of games.

[Black Hammer]

Decide which features your game needs, then learn how to use those. If you're like me, there are features in FG that don't really fit your style as DM. Just like you would use house rules in a home game, feel free to ignore things.

For example, FG has a pretty nice system for splitting up encounter XP. I never award XP on a per encounter basis, so it wasn't really on my priority list.

[dmkevin]

I just started dm'ing about two months ago now i think. Just start off keeping everything simple. Don't try to do anything that strictly is not necessary.

[Ken L]

FG has a very high learning curve in my opinion. It's not as easy to run 'off the cuff' games.

[DMZeff]

I've been a DM for a very long time and I'm always improving. I am all about the roleplaying. I imagine that I'm going to one day be the old grandpa that tells amazing impromptu stories to the grand kids.

Conversely if you run a hack and slash you can learn to do that pretty quickly since is mostly mechanics.

So it depends what you want to be the DM of.

[damned]

FG has a very high learning curve in my opinion. It's not as easy to run 'off the cuff' games.

I agree with the first part and disagree with the second. The Dungeon World sessions I run are 100% adlib and the game evolves as we play. The only prep I have is the pre-gen characters.

[doseyclwn]

It doesn't seem to be as intuitive as I hoped it would be. I mean, once I learn how something works, it's not difficult, but it's not intuitive

[damned]

It doesn't seem to be as intuitive as I hoped it would be. I mean, once I learn how something works, it's not difficult, but it's not intuitive

Are you struggling with anything in particular? One of the challenges of building FG with a standard modern desktop application UI is that you dont use it like you use most other applications. There are certainly little things that could be improved from a user perspective like renaming tabs with a right click instead of typing stuff in the chat window and dragging it but most of the big functions are pretty efficient in my opinion.

[lawrences]

I also find it very difficult

[Black Hammer]

Are you struggling with anything in particular? One of the challenges of building FG with a standard modern desktop application UI is that you dont use it like you use most other applications. There are certainly little things that could be improved from a user perspective like renaming tabs with a right click instead of typing stuff in the chat window and dragging it but most of the big functions are pretty efficient in my opinion.

FG is rather nonintuitive. Trying to create a custom background or decal should not require a guide and lots of file shifting. Meanwhile, there are big buttons for changing your dice color or a day/night tint. You seem limited to a single chat window, which means dice rolls flood out chat and vice versa.

FG is relatively easy to use once you know how, but the learning curve is pretty steep if you're trying anything outside of established systems or even most house rules. Things are either super easy (here, download this and check the module button) or else require significant effort (download a tool to unpack this file, locate this, swap it with that, go to this line in a .ini document and change it, etc).

[doseyclwn]

Are you struggling with anything in particular? One of the challenges of building FG with a standard modern desktop application UI is that you dont use it like you use most other applications. There are certainly little things that could be improved from a user perspective like renaming tabs with a right click instead of typing stuff in the chat window and dragging it but most of the big functions are pretty efficient in my opinion.

Just some stuff. It would be nice if there was a user manual that explained everything instead of having to search through youtube videos. Don't get me wrong; I love FG so far and am glad it's here, I just wish it was easier to learn.

[Trenloe]

It would be nice if there was a user manual that explained everything instead of having to search through youtube videos.
Wiki -> User Guides. https://www.fantasygrounds.com/wiki/index.php/User_Guides