My friends and I want to start a campaign. We don’t know the ruling for the game. We are waiting for our official book to come in so we can start our first session. Can anyone explain in a simplistic manner the rules for D&D? Classes and Races we will review ourselves. Just want to know the basics.
The basics of all role playing games are the same. A player wants to accomplish something in the game and there will be a resolution mechanic in the game system to determine the outcome. For D&D it’s usually roll a d20 die, as some modifier, and try to beat some difficulty number.
D&D 5E has a lot of rules and it can lead you to asking for a roll or looking up a rule for everything. Just remember, rolling is for when the outcome of an action is uncertain or has some consequences, and it’s better to just make something up to get past the question you have in the moment and look up the rule later.
It might be easier for you to start with a simpler system with lighter rules. Something like Carin, which has the added benefit of being free!
Good luck, have fun, and don’t sweat about getting everything correct the first time!