Adventure for Beginners

[NerdHut]

Hello Playground!

I'm at the start of the planning stage of a short D&D 3.5 campaign I'll be running for my family. I've been DMing for friends for the past several months, and in between storylines I'll have a couple free months. In that time, my mother has asked me to run something for the family. But I'm not sure what to do. My mother hasn't played since the 80s, my dad mostly played Boot Hill (mechanically similar to 2nd Ed AD&D, and also in the 80s), and my brother has never played. I'm essentially dealing with three beginners. There are two things I need help with.

1) Should I build the characters for them, or sit down and help them through the process? I'm pretty sure I'll have them at level 2 or 3, figuring it's low enough level to avoid overwhelming them, but enough HP that I don't accidentally one-hit-kill them. If I build the characters for them, I will ask them what kind of things they want their character to do. But I know getting a say in what features you have is also nice. I'm not sure which is better in this case.

2) I CAN'T THINK OF AN ADVENTURE!!! I don't want to plop them in a RP-less dungeon, and right now I've got writer's block. Anyone have adventure ideas or jumping-off points for me?

[finaldooms]

1. Id personally recommend sitting down with them and see what they want to play ( even new player going " i want to smash things" is helpful lol) and then help them work on them if they have questions since its been a while * edit* i just realized i said what you said. ..so to fix this sit down with them ask what they want and offer ideas then let them write it up. .its easier to remember something you did yourself and it makes it feel more personal

2. If doing 3.5 there is an easish beginner module called a dark and stormy knight that you might be intrested in, its for 4 lvl 1 players that starts you off guarding a caravan( RP chance) then taking shelter from a dangerous storm in what turns out to be a small keep
...it has rats goblins wolves spiders and then an undead bugbear for a boss( careful with him though he managed to 1 shot my lvl 3 fighter) ..bit of locked doors and small traps just to get players used to the game

[CharonsHelper]

If you don't mind a Pathfinder module - I'd recommend Rise of the Goblin Guild. It was the first or second module I ran for my nephews, niece, and brother-in-law. It has a good mix of RP, fighting, traps (mostly in-combat, making them more engaging), and a chase scene. (Pathfinder chase scenes are a sort of skill challenge.)

Plus, since most foes are goblins their damage is low, lessening the chances of PC death. (the boss is a hobgoblin)

[Tamorlin]

How about a sandbox? The vault of Larin Karr comes to mind.