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With the release of the new starter adventure, Dragons of Stormwreck Isle, there’s no better time to learn to play Dungeons & Dragons. This book takes you and your party on a heroic journey where you will face off against monsters, explore ancient ruins, and save the day!
To help make your adventure experience all the better, this article provides Dungeon Master tips for running Dragons of Stormwreck Isle and contains lessons you can take with you when you move on to your next adventures!
Warning to players! This article is meant as a DM supplement to the Dragons of Stormwreck Isle adventure and contains spoilers. For an optimal play experience, it’s best to stop reading now and let your DM surprise you!
Run a Session Zero
- Hard and soft limits on subject matter
- Schedule and session length
- Changes to game rules
- Expectations for player characters (no stealing from each other, no PvP, etc.)
If your players are new to D&D, session zero is also a good time to describe how the game works. Players can also use this time to choose their characters from the pregenerated options and walk through their character sheets as a group.
One thing in particular that I want to highlight for new DMs is that it’s alright to provide hard do’s and don’ts for your players. When presented with the unlimited options and freedom of D&D, it’s natural for players to want to test the world’s boundaries. Unfortunately, this can sometimes lead to actions that take away from the game’s experience, such as unprovoked attacking of NPCs, stealing, and other disruptive behaviors.
As a DM, I always tell my players that a willingness to complete the quest is essential in every character. You can play an evil-aligned wizard or a goofy but battle-hardened fighter. As long as they have the motivation to get along with the party and work together to ultimately set out and fulfill the objective, it’s good with me.
Your Table’s First Combat
If you have time after setting expectations and getting characters figured out, you could also decide to run the first encounter, “Drowned Sailors.” For more tips on how to run this encounter, check out the video below:
If this is your and your player’s first time playing D&D, it might be worth it to describe the encounter in a way so that players don’t decide to run away immediately. Fighting the zombies will enable players to gauge how powerful they are compared to other threats in the world, and it allows you to walk through the all-important combat mechanics.
Don’t worry if you feel as though you’re bumbling through this first encounter. Combat is the most rule-heavy part of D&D, so there’s a lot to remember. The more you run these fight scenes, the easier it’ll get!
Make Combat Easier
D&D Beyond’s encounter builder and combat tracker helps keep track of initiative order, hit points, and monster stat blocks. Plus, you can roll attacks and damage straight from the combat tracker and have it do the math for you! All you need to use this helpful tool is a D&D Beyond account!
Manage the Party’s Motivation
After your players have confronted the zombies, they will be drawn to the safety of the cloister, Dragon’s Rest. Here, the party will meet Runara and the other residents of the temple. After your party has situated themselves, it’ll be time to provide the players with their quests and let them choose which to follow first.
The two quests each have NPCs that are invested in their outcome. Tarak wants to reunite with the myconids in the sea caves, and Varnoth and Rix have witnessed some shipwrecks off the coast. But, if players are struggling to figure out what exactly they’re supposed to do on Stormwreck Isle, here are some ideas to help them along:
- Heroes are needed. When the party talks to Runara, she could reveal that something is amiss on the island and she needs the help of brave adventurers. The reward of this quest could be her offering some wisdom to characters seeking her advice, like the cleric, fighter, or paladin, providing access to the observatory for the wizard, or promising gold to the rogue.
- Marooned. An interesting adventure twist could have the party wash up on Stormwreck Isle’s shores after a storm capsized their boat. Being the only wreck in recent memory that didn’t result in zombies invading the island would certainly make the party of interest to Runara. This interest could offer more encouragement for the party to cooperate with the residents of Dragon’s Rest, who offer passage back to the mainland in exchange for help with the island’s conflicts.
Exploring the Isle
The module provides a couple of suggestions for optional encounters as the party explores the island. To give your players agency and make it feel like their decisions matter in the world, you could warn them of these possible encounters ahead of time and allow them to choose their path accordingly.
Instead of using the approach options at the beginning of each chapter, Runara could tell the party that there are three paths around the island. One takes them by hot springs with unusual waters, the other through the territory of a transplanted owlbear, and the last has seen activity from a clan of renegade kobolds. If players decide to travel by water, there could be a chance of encountering more zombies (until Aleitha’s talisman has been dealt with) or maybe even a killer giant octopus. Be careful using the owlbear encounter on 1st- and 2nd-level parties, as it will be pretty challenging and may result in character death.
When the players make their choice of which path they would like to take, consider making them roll a DC 10 Wisdom (Survival) or Dexterity (Stealth) group check to avoid the hazards associated with each route. If more than half the party succeeds, they avoid the encounter or get a drop on the enemy if they so choose.
Beyond allowing the players to make meaningful decisions, using these chance encounters can also help the isle feel more alive. For example, what happens when the kobold renegades are dealt with? Maybe the owlbear decides to expand its territory. Likewise, what happens when the fume drakes have been defeated? Perhaps the kobolds occupy the springs and gorge themselves on mushrooms.
Prepare for Distractions
The best-laid plans of Dungeon Masters often go awry. What happens when the players decide to move in with the myconids family, venture into one of the island’s steam shafts, or spend their time hunting shipwrecked zombies?
Beyond rolling with the punches, improvising as much as you can, and throwing a random encounter at the party when you’ve run out of ideas and need to pad the session length until you have time to prep more, here are some options to get your party back on track:
- Expired healing potions. If the party doesn’t seem particularly interested in dealing with the issues facing the myconids, you could consider having Tarak run out of healing potions. If you want to put even more pressure on the party, you could have their potions of healing go bad as the blight from the mushrooms spreads.
- Zombie respawner. If the party neglects the quest to the Compass Rose, you could always have wave after wave of shipwrecked zombies attempt to invade Dragon’s Rest. Instead of making this a daily occurrence, you could roll a d6 to determine whether or not zombies will attack. On the first day, if a 1 is rolled, zombies attack. If any other number comes up, the next time a check is rolled, a 1 or 2 results in a zombie attack. The chance of a zombie attack increases each day until a zombie invasion is rolled, after which the roll resets to 1.
- Sparkrender’s nefarious plan. If the party takes more than a few days to deal with the first two quests, they could have a premonition of what is to come. Perhaps, while sleeping at Dragon’s Rest, they all share a dream of a scorched Stormwreck Isle. Runara, who also saw the dream, could use this opportunity to hint at what awaits them at the observatory.
Where Will You Adventure Next?
D&D Beyond is the official digital toolset for Dungeons & Dragons and is meant to streamline your game so you can focus on the fun! We offer tools like the encounter builder (with a built-in combat tracker) and digital character sheets that you can roll on and that automatically tally your results—all at no cost! If you’re just starting out on your adventures or are looking to level up your D&D games, D&D Beyond is here to help. Create your account and get playing!
Mike Bernier (@arcane_eye) is the founder of Arcane Eye, a site focused on providing useful tips and tricks to all those involved in the world of D&D. Outside of writing for Arcane Eye, Mike spends most of his time playing games, hiking with his girlfriend, and tending the veritable jungle of houseplants that have invaded his house.
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