My First Time DMing

I feel like this is an important story to start on, as I know there are a lot of people who are interested in DMing, but just don't know how to get a group together.

I always knew that I'd DM, I practiced with some of my friends first. That session only really amounted to me flirting with one friend as an NPC (Non Player Character/ DM played Character) while the others watched (needless to say it was an enjoyable evening for all).

My first real campaign was at my local game store (a Good Games).

I happened to go to the store in the hopes of playing Magic the Gathering (yes, I play MTG sometimes).

The guy who I ended up playing had to cut a game short as his D&D group was starting. I asked if I could join, that is possibly a story for another day. However I am still really good friends with the guy who introduced me to that group.

This group fell through and disbanded once the DM couldn't do the regular time slot anymore. An unfortunate, but all too common occurrence.

I did try another group, but that had the same issue. I felt like I was a curse, two for two groups disbanded. So I offered to DM.

I had a few shaky sessions as I directed the story, but soon found my niche.

Let me first state that every DM is different, and my way is in now way the absolute right way to DM. It just works for me.

I had a basic idea: the seven deadly sins.

That was more or less it. Everything else I thought of on the spot.

Encounters were easy. I just flicked through the Monster Manual, picked a creature that suited, if it was too powerful I adjusted it as required (either health, armor, or attack I could easily change this even half way through the battle).

Total Party Kills (TPKs) are too easy. I found that it was more fun for me to force characterization through events and situations. This yielded interesting results, which I may talk more about in further posts. Let's just say I had characters retired due to mental traumas.

I have supported many of my players who thought to become DMs, and they have all been successful once they found their own ways (I love it when I can see the little influences I left on them though!)

I would like to talk a lot about my experiences both playing and DMing here, in the hopes that I can inspire others to play, create, learn and expand their own fantasies.

The picture below is a friend's representation of a TPK. A poor party being chased down by the dreaded Torrasque (This is one of the most physically powerful and feared monsters in D&D).

Ta-ta.