AiME Newbie DM

[Sloblock]

So after what seems like many years of out D&D campaiging we are now going to try AiME.

We almost started before but real life got in the way and Amother D&D campaign.

I have purchased the players book, LM and the Wildeand adventures and the LM screen for the Eaves of Mirkwood adventure which I intend to start with.

So questions for a AiME newbie

1) do you just level up after each adventure in the fellowship phase?
2) is Eaves the best place to start?
3) any other tips folks can pass over?

Thanks

[ThrorII]

So after what seems like many years of out D&D campaiging we are now going to try AiME.

We almost started before but real life got in the way and Amother D&D campaign.

I have purchased the players book, LM and the Wildeand adventures and the LM screen for the Eaves of Mirkwood adventure which I intend to start with.

So questions for a AiME newbie

1) do you just level up after each adventure in the fellowship phase?
2) is Eaves the best place to start?
3) any other tips folks can pass over?

Thanks

1. Personal choice. Either track XP or use Session Based Advancement from the DMG. Or milestones.
Mirkwood Campaign assumes you are using XP, but its not an issue. I like Session based, but increase it to 1 level per 3 sessions at 9th level.

2. It is a good place to start. That or Wilderland Adventures. You could probably squeeze Eaves in to Wilderland Adventures if you wanted, even.

3. Consider the Gritty Realism rules of the DMG (short rest = 8 hours, long rest = 7 days). It forces the players to take their time, which is important in the Mirkwood Campaign, which takes 30 years.

3a. Make sure your players have an understanding of Corruption. Its not punishment, its consequences.

3b. Take time to build up NPCs, give players a chance to build relationships and get to know them. NPCs and the environment are a big part of this game.

[Sloblock]

thanks for the reply

Will make sure we know how corruption works

[BookBarbarian]

So after what seems like many years of out D&D campaiging we are now going to try AiME.

We almost started before but real life got in the way and Amother D&D campaign.

I have purchased the players book, LM and the Wildeand adventures and the LM screen for the Eaves of Mirkwood adventure which I intend to start with.

So questions for a AiME newbie

1) do you just level up after each adventure in the fellowship phase?
2) is Eaves the best place to start?
3) any other tips folks can pass over?

Thanks

1) for the first and second level ups yes. 5e is laid out so those occur really quickly, but from 3-10 leveling up slows down a bit. From there I would level up every 2-3 adventures.

2) in my opinion, yes. Big time. Eaves is really well set up as an introduction to the game including a simplified Journey Phase, and Audience, that really help you get your feet wet. From there I transitioned into Wilderland Adventures pretty easily.

3a) I really like the Alternate Warden and Scholar rules that came with Eaves of Mirkwood. I think they take a few things that were a little out of balance, and tweak them well. Still the game works fine without them so it's entirely up to you.

3b) When running Eaves I forgot that my party's Arrival Roll should have given them
Advantage on Checks, which would have influenced the Audience at Rowanhold. We still had fun, but I wish I hadn't forgotten that.

Which brings me to:

3c) Don't sweat mistakes too much. everybody makes them. Players and DMs alike. Just learn from your mistakes as you go.

[Majestic]

The advice has been so spot-on I can't really add much. I too have gone to session-based leveling (usually every two sessions, but three for the really high-level folks), but then we play longer sessions than many.