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View Full Version : DM Help New DM, First time DMing pathfinder, Entire new Party



Iamacup
2015-09-20, 10:37 PM
Hi all,

As you have guessed from the title, I am a new DM, I have played 2nd Ed for quite a few years, had a break for a few years and now a (pathfinder) group is starting up in my friendship circle. I have volunteered to DM the first encounter as I have the most playing experience. After this we will round robin the DMing so everyone can have a turn.

I have built up an encounter in my mind, for our initial party meeting, however I am having my doubts about running it, as I don't have much DMing experience, and no one has played pathfinder before. Do I go with my own encounter and risk a poor introduction, or should I use a pre made AP, if so which one is a good hook to get a party synced together early?

I have also put some questions specific to the encounter in the spoiler.

The initial encounter will include the party all stopping in a small border town between Cheliax and Andoran, near the coast on the Andoran side, although they are all travelling individually in the same direction they will not know each other, some may have randomly met on the road. I will dice roll arrival times into the tavern. They will file into the pub as it's the only place to lodge for the evening (at their dice rolled time), each character has developed their own reasons for travelling.

Give them enough time to get drinks/food and arrange themselves in the tavern. Some may also want to go to the rooms provided to them.
During the evening a group of Cheliax soldiers will file in, with soldiers covering the other exits to the tavern. I am thinking maybe ten-fifteen soldiers in total. The local law will be away dealing with bandits/mission of mercy type affair. So this is an opportunity for a squad to up their own wages. The Cheliax soldiers, led by a surly corporal will attempt to collect taxes from the local Andorans.
The party will have to also pay the taxes levee or be "arrested"
So three choices for the development here, Fight in the tavern, diplomacy their way out, or be arrested.

What I am struggling with is the hook to make them all work together. A fight means they will have to work together to beat the soldiers. Diplomacy means they could talk their way out of it and have no real tie together. Being arrested means they would be forced together.

Do I remove the diplomacy option, or make it too hard to achieve?
Where would you guys take it from here:
fight to destroy a corrupt gang?
Defend the town against an onslaught until the garrison returns?

Does this sound like a good first encounter?

So many questions..




I don't really know what this party is going to enjoy in an RPG, so I wanted to try and include a bit of everything, also bearing in mind we are going to take a long time to do anything. So I want our first session to have a sense of achievement around it.

Sorry if this seems disjointed, writing quickly on my lunch break. Hopefully it makes sense and there is some thorough feedback.

Darth Ultron
2015-09-20, 11:03 PM
It is not a bad encounter....provided all the characters are good and social. They also need to be the out spoken type of good person who not only stands up to oppose what is wrong, but also selflessly defend the innocent, the helpless, the powerless..in a world of evil that operates above the law.

So if your characters are not super good, you might have to modify things a bit. For examples, most character will jump super high at the chance to ''capture a character and turn them in for a reward''.

This opening does leave a bit of an opening for players to go ''crazy solo'' and ''escape'' from the encounter/game. Lots of players will oddly take this option of running from the encounter/game. They will think it is so great to escape and then do nothing.

So you might want to target the Pc's a bit more with say an ''adventurer tax'' or even the Ye Old ''we want to take you adventurer's over to the Tower of Sorrow and just ask you some questions...." Mistaken identity also works...where the NPC thinks a PC is a wanted criminal or such.

Very few players will ever want to role play being captured. They will go super crazy to avoid it. So you might want to avoid that extreme reaction.

Iamacup
2015-09-20, 11:07 PM
I can count on at least two of the party to stand up for the rights of the little man.
I like an adventurer tax too. That draws them in specifically.
As they are an adult party, I was thinking if they don't bite and everyone pays, the soldiers can settle in and get on with some old school tavern maid harassment type behaviour, that will rattle a few cages and provoke a reaction.

Geddy2112
2015-09-21, 09:14 AM
I second that most PC's will not see capture as an option. Most will do anything to avoid it, even if it means certain death.

The encounter is a good encounter- a band of soldiers passing through an inn and running a shakedown when there is no law is a perfectly plausible and setting appropriate thing. This encounter has multiple solutions-in addition to the three you have listed, the players could enlist(and join in the shakedown), run, set the place ablaze, hide in the cellar, pay, then steal the gold back, etc.

However, it requires the party to be more or less "gelled" together. The encounter can easily encourage an "every man for themselves" scenario where one player runs, another tries to hide, another tries to use diplomacy, which is ruined when another player just starts fighting, etc. The party needs a formative encounter and setting to get them together where they more or less have no choice. I would keep this encounter ready for either later in session 1, or for a second or third session.

A good simple hook is the "I need you to deliver this" and escort the wagon from point A to point B. The contents could be irrelevant, or perhaps another plot hook. Maybe you go to a mysterious gnome enclave, or it could be as simple as deliver a keg of beer to Bob's tavern in the next town. The road is dangerous because X, Y, or Z attacks travelers/has been sighted/ what have you. The party should have multiple routes they can decide, some being more dangerous, or some taking longer but avoiding the danger. A good ambush by raiders forces the party to work together-they will be surrounded by enemies trying to kill them and take their stuff, in unfamiliar lands. Make it a situation where they would be outnumbered and outgunned alone, so they have to work together. At the end of this they will almost certainly be a team.

King of Casuals
2015-09-21, 10:21 AM
It is not a bad encounter....provided all the characters are good and social. They also need to be the out spoken type of good person who not only stands up to oppose what is wrong, but also selflessly defend the innocent, the helpless, the powerless..in a world of evil that operates above the law.


Not neccesarily. Ive been a player in pathfinder for about 5 years and a DM for about 1, and in my experience no one (especially PCs) enjoys having their money taken. The players dont need to be good-aligned to to try and fight off a group of corrupt guards who are trying to steal from them, even most evil characters would have a swift and bloody response to such a situation.

As for a reason that they would fight together that might extend into the companionship required to form an adventuring party; the PCs have class levels. In most situations, anyone with class levels has at least basic combat experience and ability, and assuming they have a common cause, such as being robbed by a bunch of guards, they will work together.

Finally, diplomacy should always be an option. In my experience of being a PC and a DM, players HATE having options denied to them. If they want to use diplomacy, or stealth, or magical persuasion or something like that, let them.

Iamacup
2015-09-21, 09:29 PM
This encounter has multiple solutions-in addition to the three you have listed, the players could enlist(and join in the shakedown), run, set the place ablaze, hide in the cellar, pay, then steal the gold back, etc.

A good simple hook is the "I need you to deliver this" and escort the wagon from point A to point B. The contents could be irrelevant, or perhaps another plot hook. Maybe you go to a mysterious gnome enclave, or it could be as simple as deliver a keg of beer to Bob's tavern in the next town. The road is dangerous because X, Y, or Z attacks travelers/has been sighted/ what have you. The party should have multiple routes they can decide, some being more dangerous, or some taking longer but avoiding the danger. A good ambush by raiders forces the party to work together-they will be surrounded by enemies trying to kill them and take their stuff, in unfamiliar lands. Make it a situation where they would be outnumbered and outgunned alone, so they have to work together. At the end of this they will almost certainly be a team.

I don't think the party here will join in the shakedown, it's possible but not likely. I was thinking of literally backing them into a corner, so they were separated from the peasants, giving them the choice to work together or basically pay up.

However the idea of giving them an initial motive to join forces would be much better, a common goal that would ensure that the party would band together to protect and secure the delivery of X, Y, and/or Z. Money is a great motivator, gives me the chance to set up a secret meeting and have a bit of stealth and secrecy involved too.

I think I will make that a prior story point to this encounter, enlist them as they are all travelling by chance, in the same direction, to escort a person, package or delivery. then the shakedown can be at the middle stop or destination point. It gives them a few options to play it out. Maybe even a few encounters along the way, some they can talk out of and some they have to fight through.

I really want to try and bring in a few options for them, it's as much for me to see how they want to manage situations and play the game.

Sound advice, thanks everyone!!