"Questions about getting started with D&D...in 2017" Topic

I know this is a miniatures site, but I'm hoping someone has some advice for me…a very long-time historical gamer…on getting started with D&D.

I read a New Yorker article recently about the sociological values of introducing kids and D&D, and I'd like to introduce my young ones (6, 7, & 8 years old) to it…obviously in a kid-friendly way. I haven't played it since it was a little white box and three small pamphlets.

Does anyone have some suggestions as to what I would need to get started? Looking at the Warstore's website, for example, I see a cheap starter set, tons of different guide books, a DM's reference book, etc, etc…for young kids, where do I begin?

Any advice is appreciated!

Try the starter. 5th edition streamlines some choices for players.

White Box + Greyhawk is still the easiest way to go!

I used to GM a game shop, and these are the two games I would recommend to folks who were interested in starting D&D:

Grew up playing Basic D&D and want to teach your kids w/o having to go on eBay to track down OOP stuff? Get Basic Fantasy Roleplaying Game. It's the open source version of D&D Basic/Expert/Companion rules from the 80's in inexpensive print on demand format. This includes full rules for character creation, spells, monsters, treasure, everything. Perfect for beginners, great for a nostalgia trip:

link

Grab this adventure pack too, which is a mini campaign complete with home town and local adventuring locations:

link

If you want the newest iteration of D&D (which has done away with all the number crunching and rigamarole of the previous editions), and you want it cheap and with a mini campaign that teaches you basic dungeoneering, NPC encounters, and wilderness adventuring in stages, get the new Starter Set. Keep in mind it has premade characters only, and no rules for creating characters or doing much of anything beyond what's in the included campaign. But it's flashy looking:

link

You can't go wrong with either one really.

Take a look at this video.

YouTube link

You can start out in D&D 5th for free.

Mark

Can also try

meleewizards.com/rules.html

Melee and Wizard – Dark City games have some nice product to support

I started with D&D and shifted to melee and wizard – simple system that does not typically get dragged down with as much record keeping

I'll probably be branded an heretic for this, but all
you need is YOUR imagination and the kids !

I volunteered long time ago (after I developed a D&D
game and ran it for a while at the local club) and
setting up D&D-type scenarios for kids 7-10 years old
was a staple of afterschool activities at the Rec Center
where I was.

Quest for the (fill in the blank); rescuing the (ditto);
etc etc.

Unless you want to mainstream the kids on D&D (as
differentiated from ROLE PLAYING), there's no reason
to make an investment UNTIL you know the kids will be
interested and stick with it.

Basic rule of thumb I was told: a kid's attention span
up to maybe 11-12 is their age in minutes. That doesn't
mean they can't pay attention longer than that, but that
you have to keep their attention by moving along and
by introducing new things every little while

Thanks, Scott…for just under $13 USD I was able to use my amazon prime account and get the basic set you mention.

I realized my kids might enjoy this role-playing aspect when I was running a Congo game with them. They didn't really like rolling dice for the shooting at the natives, but when it was time to roll dice for going in dangerous terrain and to see if they ran into a cheetah, or a swarm of tse tse flies, or monkeys threw poo a them, they loved it. They even quit worrying about the natives and just ran into all the dangerous terrain they could.

My plan is to use the D&D books as my basis for mechanics, and use some artistic license with the adventures. For instance, instead of rolling up a scary monster, we might make it a more tame monster, or a herd of unicorns…I'll gauge their likes and dislikes and adjust the games/adventures accordingly.

So, no, Ed, you're not a heretic; I'll be using my imagination, with their input…I'll just have a crutch in the rule books because at my age and theirs, I just get worn out sometimes and need some stimulation myself!

Looking forward to this…I was blessed with all girls, so I'm determined to find something to get them into gaming!

Thanks for all the good words of advice!
Rob in VA

For the last three years I've led an Intro to D&D program for teens at the local library (I'm one of the librarians in the teen department). The first year I used the Dungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia, which is the BEMCI system, also known as "Basic" D&D or Mentzer D&D (for the original editor). The second year I combined it with elements of 5e, and now I solely use 5e because that's what we have in the Teen Room (in abundance, thanks to the generosity of TMPer Moonbeast!) and that's what the teens want to play and what they see in stores.
So if you were introducing teens to D&D, I would say go with 5th edition. They're gonna wind up playing it anyway, once you're not the DM.

However, you're not introducing teens, you're introducing young children.
Honestly, I think D&D is too involved and too intricate for children of the ages you mention.
What I would recommend is a very simple dungeon crawl or storytelling game with limited choice options for the kids. Heroquest (OOP) comes to mind, or even simpler, but without the "winning" concept for the Overlord/DM. Instead, play to advance the story and let the kids be heroes.

You can do this sort of thing with any edition of D&D, but you're going to have to simplify it greatly.

1.) Follow the 5e concept and use the d20 for almost everything, except damage. Tell the kids what numbers they need to roll, but you handle EVERYTHING else.
2.) Keep the damage range simple and the weapon choice simple.
3.) Maybe create spell cards for the wizard characters; they play the card to cast the spell, then have to "study" to get it back.
4.) Roleplaying is probably going to be very basic. They'll mostly play as themselves, though one might decide that no, her character is very brave like Wonder Woman, and wouldn't run from the skeletons even if everyone else does, and so forth.
5.) Create your own dungeons/stories, and keep them familiar and simple. I wouldn't use any of the pre-made stuff, old or new. For one, most are too complex in nature for young kids to make sense of, and for another, the kids should discover them on their own (when they're ready).
6.) Know the kids. Are they ready for pretend death? Or is it best if they (or the monsters) are simply "defeated?"
7.) Time is key. Ed's correct: You're not going to get a kid to play out an extended adventure over several hours. Your best bet is to make each playing session involve only a few encounters, with a very quick resolution.
8.) Also, don't bother with mapping. Just keep the dungeon simple, with only a handful of rooms off a single corridor.

Somebody on here has been doing very mild wilderness/dungeon crawl adventures with kids, with the characters being kids themselves. I can't recall who, but look around a bit on the Blog and Fantasy RPG boards. Or maybe the TMPer will sing out here! (Hint, hint, whoever you are!)
Honestly, for this age you might want to go with a boardgame like DUNGEON! instead.

If you want to play the current version of D&D (which is very good), then you can either download the Basic rules for free from the WotC website, or you can pick up the excellent Starter Set for around $20. USD The starter set includes a streamlined set of the Basic rules and pre-made characters, and an excellent adventure that will keep them busy for some time. This is probably the best way to start D&D since the old Holmes or Mentzer Basic D&D sets.

However, another great option for kids of that age is a Basic D&D "clone" called "Beyond the Wall".

flatlandgames.com/btw

The rules are somewhat tweaked version of simple Basic D&D, easily recognizable and playable. The really unique thing about the system is character and adventure creation. Each class has its own character creation pamphlet, which runs the player through a series of questions about the character's history and motivations, each of which both links to the other players and to the village where they grew up and/or met. It's a great way to get any group started, but especially kids, and to reinforce the group bonds. The adventures are likewise narrative focused – very easy to change and prep during play.

Cheers,

Christopher

My own advice is skip straight to Call of Cthulhu, or Starfinder. MUCH better games, albeit beholden to D&D, and I speak as one of the first 100 or so people to buy the core D&D rulebooks in the UK [INCLUDING "Chainmail"]. Split-move and fire!

I'd suggest just reading the first three Rulebooks for 3.5 or Pathfinder: Player's Handbook 1, Dungeon Master's Guide and Monster Manual 1. Find some low CR Monsters in the Manual: Rats, Wolves, Kobolds, Goblins, Orcs, Hobgoblins, Lizardmen, and Maybe some Gnolls and Bugbears. Then build some small adventure, maybe rescuing a merchant's daughter from a Bugbear Bandit. Put in a couple traps, a locked door or two, a coerce-able goon/guard, and room full of Skeletons and you're good.

Just don't have anyone do any Grappling. That's where things get complicated.

I'm a GURPS man myself. For D&D I saw a new version of the basic set at the local store so that would be a good place to start. My group and I started with The Keep on the Borderlands way back in the early eighties or late seventies.

5th Edition was very kid friendly for my kids. We did however leave out Feats and it played just fine that way.

I'd also suggest having the bad guys run away sometimes rather than running every battle out to the bitter end. Try to avoid real "grindy" battles with the young uns. Oh and lots of humor, "monkeys throwing poo" is exactly what your looking for there!

You might want to check with your friendly neighborhood game store. Wizards of the Coast sponsor store run versions of D&D. It's called the Dungeon Delve. It's 5th edition. The groups traditionally teach you the basics of how to play. To start they recommend that you bring your basic D&D dice set and a couple of pencils. You can create your own character or go with a pre-generated one. There's a lot of fun to be had.It's an international organization and the adventures are run in a series.

Another good resource is gnomestew.com .It is a free website with weekly articles on running rpg's. It is written by a group of rpg creators. They promote the popular current rpg style, storytelling and ease of play over rules heavy rpg's. Give it a try.

Game On !

@HUBcommish: Thanks for posting the links to the Basic Fantasy RPG. It looks a lot like Dungeons & Dragons with a more streamlined combat system. Can't beat the price.