Learning to run a game

What is possibly the best way to run a game if I have never done so?  I would prefer to keep things on the free side is possible regarding tokens maps etc. just as an fyi

Best possible way is just to create your game with the system you chosen, recruit some players, and go for it. It was how many of us started in the hobby long time ago (early 80's for me) since we had no one to teach us. Now personally I would say the following: I would recommend you take a look at our  Tutorial for roll20 since that will give you the basics of how roll20 works. Next I would say to create a game and just play with it. Learn the in and outs of the game room. Like how to use the  journals (handouts and sheets). After that I would say play with the  art assets (the search box and your art manager) so you can learn how to drop and drag stuff along with tagging your assets. Those are the top three I would recommend you starting with then when you have a question or need help, post in the  specific use forum your request.

If you have any questions on how to get some macros going to make things fairly smooth, feel free to pm me since I'm working on macros that are mostly aimed towards fellow non-pro users (but also making them useful to pro-users). As of right now, I'm working on something to reduce the amount of time inside character sheets after they're already made. If you want to make your own, I suggest hopping over to  Macros Wiki and reading up on them. I'm a Pathfinder user, but I'm pretty confident that I could modify my macros to fit your needs, regardless of your system. I'd just need to be able to see the character sheets. I'd even guide you on how to use the macros and edit them as the need arises.  As for recruiting people, I suggest mostly new players with some veterans mixed in. And I agree with Pat. Poke around in the tutorial, mess around in  game (outside of sessions),  and just explore the R20 interface. My profile says I have over 200hrs of playtime, and I guarantee that around 3/4 or so of it is just from making/testing macros, learning what I can and can't do, and just learning R20 overall. And if you have any questions relating to R20, just ask. You'll get help within a day (usually within a couple hours). The R20 community is a friendly and inviting one and does it's best to help out anyone that asks.

If you want to dive right in with very little set up time and aren't fussed about which system you want to use there are also a couple of completely free modules available when starting your game: <a href="https://marketplace.roll20.net/browse/module/1/a0-" rel="nofollow">https://marketplace.roll20.net/browse/module/1/a0-</a>... <a href="https://marketplace.roll20.net/browse/module/18/th" rel="nofollow">https://marketplace.roll20.net/browse/module/18/th</a>... To know which ones are free or not, when starting the game and looking at the modules options on the right of the screen, if you hover over them the free ones will have a tick as opposed to a shopping cart.

I STRONGLY recommend at least going pro. The dynamic lighting is really easy to set up and is an awesome feature. It is only $4.99 per month. If your players would like to have this feature available, suggest that they gift it to you. My players and I take turns paying for it.&nbsp; I also agree with Ziechael. Playing modules is the best way to get familiar with a system. A few things I use as a guide after DMing for about 20 years... 1. Have fun. This should supersede anything else. This includes the you as the DM. If you are not having fun, then chances are your players will pick up on that and not have as much fun. 2. Simulate. Remember that you are never playing against the group. Likewise you are not there to help the group succeed. The experience will be more enjoyable if the players know that you are running a fair game and that any rewards they have received were earned by their cooperative efforts. 3. Be consistent. Be sure to be clear on which rules (if any) that you will be altering in the system you are using. There is nothing more frustrating for a player than being surprised by a rule that suddenly renders one of their abilities less useful than normal. It is best to trust that the system you are using was tested and written the way it is for a reason. This way both you and the players are referencing the same guide. Any rules alterations are best to be discussed with the players before implemented. 4. Delegate. Take some of the pressure off of yourself (especially as a new DM) by having your players help keep the game moving. Have the group assign a party leader who will be responsible for keeping the party moving through the story. I also like to assign a player as DM assistant. This player helps to look up rules so you can keep combats moving. A treasurer keeps track of all of the treasure that the party finds and makes sure it is divided up. We also have a historian that keeps track of important information the party discovers along the way and even keeps a journal detailing the partie's adventures. These additional roles help keep the group organized and get the players more involved in what is going on.

Mark S. said: I STRONGLY recommend at least going pro . The dynamic lighting is really easy to set up and is an awesome feature. It is only $4.99 per month. If your players would like to have this feature available, suggest that they gift it to you. My players and I take turns paying for it.&nbsp; I also agree with Ziechael . Playing modules is the best way to get familiar with a system. A few things I use as a guide after DMing for about 20 years... Plus gives Dynamic Lighting and is priced at $4.99/month, however if you are seriously interested in DMing then a&nbsp; Pro subscription really opens the door to all sorts of amazing possibilities ;) The second bolded bit was just to highlight that someone agrees with me... in writing! No going back on that now =P

In case you want to make your own maps, I made&nbsp; a few tutorials . I definitely recommend getting the pro subscription for the lighting, scripts and storage capacity. For less than the price of a movie, I get over 16 hours of fun each month.

Pat S. said: Best possible way is just to create your game with the system you chosen, recruit some players, and go for it. It was how many of us started in the hobby long time ago (early 80's for me) since we had no one to teach us. Now personally I would say the following: I would recommend you take a look at our&nbsp; Tutorial for roll20 since that will give you the basics of how roll20 works. Next I would say to create a game and just play with it. Learn the in and outs of the game room. Like how to use the&nbsp; journals (handouts and sheets). After that I would say play with the&nbsp; art assets (the search box and your art manager) so you can learn how to drop and drag stuff along with tagging your assets. Those are the top three I would recommend you starting with then when you have a question or need help, post in the&nbsp; specific use forum your request. I jumped in head first after checking out the tutorial. I bought a few basic assets and went pro almost immediately. Obviously the DMG and PHB (in the case of D&D) your best friend. I started off using text only, but later incorporated voice to assist; it made games go by much faster. There are some great scripts and custom sheets out there, and going Pro makes it all possible. I started last July, finished my first level 1 to 16 game in April and went right into another, running Strahd from the book directly while prepping another game set in Zendikar. If you ever have any questions, shoot me a PM and I'd be more that glad to assist.