I have to DM for my brother and his friends

[Frostwolfeh]

Any advice for helping me start a campaign? I was thinking having them have met up at an adventuring guild which would be in every major city and large towns. But idk what to do from there. Campaign is in 3.5.

[Chaosvii7]

A similar topic (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?355676-More-than-I-can-chew) was raised recently, which is related to your query about help starting a campaign up. Feel free to use this to jump-start your campaign in a similar manner. It doesn't sound like you need special or particular help with anything, so this should be standardized enough to help you out.

[Fire Juggler]

I'm DMing for the first time for my girlfriend and her friends. One used to play in a few long campaigns, but hasn't played before. The others are interested at least enough to make characters so far.

I'm throwing them into a very easy combat encounter. Gibberlings from the Faerun books. Goblins look elite next to this wimpy horde. They have a few special effects that can hinder the PCs such as getting bonuses to attack when a fellow Gibberling is grappling an opponent, but they if you space out the horde a bit and throw in a few ranged attackers, it could be a very easy battle that feels rewarding in terms of blood and glory if that's what you are looking for. Later on, I will introduce traps that could prove fatal and keep them on their toes.

I like the adventuring guild idea myself. It makes it easy to access rest, resources, and safe-havens if they get in to over their heads, like poking a bear that shouldn't have. Let them know that there are things more powerful than them out there, try to avoid actually killing them in these situations. Stage a daring escape from a fatal situation. If their actions have consequences they will realize that they have to become more powerful to defeat the many great foes they have collected. Weaving story together is important if you want people to fall in love with the game. My first game was overcrowded with a huge battle scene and way to many people. The next time I made it to that campaign my character was three levels behind and I pretty much tried to have the most comical death I could so I could make a new character. Nobody wants that experience and most may have given up. I"m obsessed with D&D now.

Also, let them together as a group decide what long term goal they want to accomplish, be that bringing peace to the realm or enslaving every living being they see around them. Let them do what they want to do, that alone will provide the encounters for you if you are free handing it. There are several books and things from which you can draw a ready made adventure, which is not a bad route if it's your first time DMing.

[Bloodgruve]

Eberron may be a good place for your campaign. Wayfarers Guild is the strait up adventurering guild. Basically start them off with some small quests, go find this relic, go acquire that piece of information, collect a bounty, trap an exotic animal for a collector, etc... Eberron is fleshed out well but open ended enough to adventure indefinitely. Tons of factions, open and secret faction wars, more then enough antagonists and an alarming number of ways the world could end. It gives you a great open framework to build on if you like the mage-punk setting. Lotsa low level magic, limited higher level magic.

My favorite way to start a campaign is 'Roll for Intiative!' Start um in a combat, no awkward 'You see another adventurer in a tavern' beginnings, they start with a common goal of not dieing ;)

GL
Blood