Lost Mine of Phandelver (Beginners Welcome!)

About the adventure

Grand adventure awaits! This isn't the Phandelver you think you know! - 20 years of DM experience - Newbie friendly - Evocative descriptions - Deep NPC characterizations - Complex storylines and scenarios - Gripping ambiance The job is straightforward: escort a wagon of supplies to the city of Phandalin, a journey of a few days. It's honest work for you and your companions, but you quickly find yourselves drawn into adventure when you learn this "straightforward" job has more than a few intriguing wrinkles buried beneath its surface.... In this campaign you'll: - Learn how to play 5th Edition Dungeons and Dragons in a friendly, fun environment from a DM with over 20 years of experience. And if you already have experience playing, that's fine too! - Create and advance a character from level 1 to level 5 through player-led exploration and interaction with a vibrant campaign setting. Your characters and their choices matter and change how events unfold! - Unravel the mysteries of Phandelver and face down competing factions who would abuse its secrets The greatest adventurers of legend started off small, humble, and unknown. Will you follow in their footsteps?

Additional Details

How to prepare

You'll need to download Discord and have some sort of microphone, since we will be doing voice chat over Discord. Webcams are optional. Dice rolling (including my own) will be done in Owlbear Rodeo, a browser-based virtual tabletop. I'll also draw simple maps and diagrams on there to help you envision more complicated areas you may visit in your adventures. I'll send a link to the game which you can use for access. You don't need to own or read any of the books. I'm happy to take things slow and walk everyone through how combat, exploration, etc. work during play. If you'd like to look through a free reference on the game's basics, you can find them here: https://dnd.wizards.com/what-is-dnd/basic-rules

What I provide

A digital tabletop and dice roller in Owlbear Rodeo Immersive sounds and music using Syrinscape 20+ years of DMing experience

Gameplay details

We will be using a theater of the mind style of play for combat encounters which deemphasizes counting squares for exact movement and ranges. It may take some getting used to if you're used to grid-and-minis style play but combat becomes faster, more exciting, and more inventive when your imaginations aren't tethered to what's on a predrawn battlemap. I prefer to resolve events using Rules as Intended over Rules as Written. Precise, in-character descriptions of what, where, and how characters are engaging the setting instead of asking to make a generic Perception (or whatever) roll are encouraged and rewarded!

Content warnings

(none)

Safety tools used

Breaks
Debriefing
Lines and Veils
Open Door
Session 0
Stars and Wishes

How will character creation work

Characters start at level 1 and can be built either in D&D Beyond or using fillable pdf character sheets. We will be using point buy for stat generation to ensure all characters have roughly the same capabilities. If you're completely new or otherwise need help (making a character can get complicated!), I'm happy to help you through the process on Discord before we actually sit down for the session. Any official, non-UA material is ok for use but I'd prefer if more experienced players don't go for hyper-min-max'd builds that overshadow less optimized characters. If you would prefer to use a pregenerated character, I can provide one.

Players can expect

• Find a game to join solo or search for a professional game master for you and your friends/coworkers/family.
• Book your session and wait for the Game Master to approve you.
• If you don't have a blast with your first game, your next game is on us.