bobcatt
Apprentice Douchebag
Patron
An infinite number of monkeys can't be wrong...
Posts: 81
Preferred Game Systems: AD&D 1e, 2e, 5e, Top Secret/S.I., Classic Traveller
Currently Playing: nothing at all :-(
Currently Running: completely stalled doing 5e via Roll20
Favorite Species of Monkey: Barrel of
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Post by bobcatt on Oct 14, 2017 16:52:15 GMT -8
Hello,
Over the Canuck Thanksgiving weekend, I happened to get in touch with some high-school friends who played AD&D 1st/2nd ed (etc.) back in the day. Like so many, we eventually scattered as marriages, jobs, and post-secondary education dictated. Aside from catching up, the topic of how much fun we had with RPGs was broached in each case. One friend's kids currently play D&D 5e, but they won't let him join in. Another one's kids didn't take to the tabletop, preferring online interactions. For the third, the subject of gaming never seemed to come up with his offspring. These dads all expressed an interest in playing a reboot/revival session (mini-campaign?), but the distances between us make even an annual get-together practically impossible.
So, naturally, I spent most of my free time this past week digging in to the Roll20 site, trying to come to grips with this cool virtual tabletop application. Given the amount of support for it within Roll20, I'm pretty sure I could make something work for us in D&D 5e (though not as slick as some examples I was amazed by). My first concern is successfully getting the other three (largely non-technical, middle-aged) guys up to speed with whatever hardware is in their respective homes. I figure I'll have to work through a mic/headphones/account creation with each one separately. My second concern is merely for my sanity. I've only (relatively) recently returned to gaming and am still trying to manage developing content & prep techniques for a local con, yet here I am diving down another rabbit hole. Is this a common thing among GMs now; i.e. starting out on one idea but, before you can complete it, getting drawn into another?
Chris in Canada
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HazelnutMudslide
Supporter
Posts: 129
Preferred Game Systems: L5R, 7th Sea, TriStat, WoD, D&D5e
Currently Playing: Nothing (LFG)
Currently Running: Nothing (LFG)
Favorite Species of Monkey: grease, never know when you'll need one to fix things.
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Post by HazelnutMudslide on Oct 14, 2017 16:56:02 GMT -8
It’s totally a thing
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SirGuido
Supporter
Drizztmas Santa
Ask me about the Drizztmas Exchange!
Posts: 2,127
Preferred Game Systems: L5R, Traveller, Fate Accelerated, Masks
Currently Playing: Nothing.
Currently Running: Nothing.
Favorite Species of Monkey: Anything in a Cage.
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Post by SirGuido on Oct 14, 2017 17:20:11 GMT -8
*nods sagely*
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Post by Kainguru on Oct 15, 2017 6:48:56 GMT -8
starting out on one idea but, before you can complete it, getting drawn into another? That's life's default road map isn't? Aaron
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Post by greatwyrm on Oct 15, 2017 7:27:15 GMT -8
Our regular game group is all college friends from 20 years ago and a few people we picked up from our former WoW guild. We've had a fairly regular online games for several years now.
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Post by chronovore on Oct 19, 2017 15:21:01 GMT -8
It’s totally a thing. I finally got back into RPGs through a friend running them online, which inspired me to do a revival campaign with my college group, and just as things are ramping up there I discovered “blades in the dark.” Yes it’s a thing.
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bobcatt
Apprentice Douchebag
Patron
An infinite number of monkeys can't be wrong...
Posts: 81
Preferred Game Systems: AD&D 1e, 2e, 5e, Top Secret/S.I., Classic Traveller
Currently Playing: nothing at all :-(
Currently Running: completely stalled doing 5e via Roll20
Favorite Species of Monkey: Barrel of
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Post by bobcatt on Oct 19, 2017 16:29:21 GMT -8
...just as things are ramping up there I discovered “blades in the dark.”... <jams index fingers into ears, starts shouting "la la la - I'm not listening to you! - la la la"> (I humbly ask that you not tempt me with yet another very interesting premise; I've only just managed to avoid Deadlands)
A quick poll showed that these three have a preference for (A)D&D, either 2nd or 5th editions. Roll20 appears to support 5e very well. We'll all be comfortable with the tropes and mechanics of this particular take on the fantasy genre. After we've re-acquired our RPG legs, maybe we can try another rule system.
Shockingly, only one of these gents is running a PC with a newer OS than Vista (!) which creates a problem with browser support, which would translate into a poor experience. I've asked the sole Win10 user (who just bought himself a headset/mic) to create a Roll20 account and proceed with the intro tutorial. I can then invite him into my test game environment and give some features a whirl.
<update>Two of the three players have connected to the game to allow assignment of characters!</update>
I have scratch notes for a couple of short adventures, but no maps drawn up yet. I should probably just run the Starter Set adventure first :-)
Chris in Canada
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Post by Probie Tim on Oct 23, 2017 10:36:52 GMT -8
I have no idea what you're talking about. I don't at all completely personify that very idea in every way, shape, and form.
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viscounteric
Initiate Douchebag
A child's projectile vomit is a SAN check, no matter what
Posts: 23
Preferred Game Systems: Call of Cthulhu, Hackmaster, My Little Pony, Savage Worlds, Spirit of '77
Currently Playing: D&D 5e
Currently Running: BECMI D&D, Risus, My Little Pony, Call of Cthulhu, Savage Worlds
Favorite Species of Monkey: Risus
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Post by viscounteric on Oct 23, 2017 20:00:57 GMT -8
We've largely eschewed the distance and logistics of face-to-face gaming in favor of short, but consistent Monday night sessions. The only significant fault I have with the group is that the vast majority are Eagles fans, so the MNF game tonight left two of us online chatting about the kids and holiday party planning.
We found Roll20 to be cumbersome for die rolls, and the antique hardware of some players has forced us to use Roll20 for character sheets and maps, and rely on Skype for chat functionality.
Just like in tabletop games, just getting together is the hardest part, so (a) take advantage of the time you have and (b) have a back-up game/GM available if a quorum can't be met. Sure, it might be 5e game, but if the GM can't make it, or a key character is a no-show, we revert to something simple, like Risus, to fill the two hours.
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bobcatt
Apprentice Douchebag
Patron
An infinite number of monkeys can't be wrong...
Posts: 81
Preferred Game Systems: AD&D 1e, 2e, 5e, Top Secret/S.I., Classic Traveller
Currently Playing: nothing at all :-(
Currently Running: completely stalled doing 5e via Roll20
Favorite Species of Monkey: Barrel of
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Post by bobcatt on Oct 24, 2017 14:24:19 GMT -8
Hi viscounteric
Good feedback. Thank you. One die-hard sports fan in the group _may_ be a bit of trouble to watch out for; I hadn't thought of that (I am a sports heathen - I only like snooker and darts). Surely, though, that's why PVRs were invented?
The 3D dice will be an issue on some of our computers, no doubt. But simple token and character sheet macros which output to the Sidebar chat thread have worked OK in individual's tests.
Given that we are in different time zones and working different shifts, a schedule may be the hardest aspect of all. That's just another hurdle to vault once we verify that audio works. Hoping everyone has enough horsepower to run within Roll20 without having to use Skype or Discord, but I'm preparing for the possibility.
best regards,
Chris in Canada
[edit] This is going to turn into a Roll20/VTT discussion so I'm starting a new thread here. [edit]
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Post by SledgehammerMonk on Oct 27, 2017 9:31:58 GMT -8
I feel like I have some advice when it comes to handling sports fans who love to game, since I am a sports fan. Since my groups typically play on Saturday and Sundays, my pull to game and watch sports comes into conflict. The biggest thing I can offer when it comes to scheduling games with sports fans is making the schedule consistent, for example we will be rolling dice every Sunday from 5:00-8:00 or every other Monday from 7:00-10:00. If a consistent schedule is established then they will have more time to plan around those days (just like everything else!). I mean one of the nice things about sports is that they have a consistent schedule when they play (time and days). So when it comes to me a consistent schedule of when I know we as a group are playing is valuable because I can block out that time and look to see if it is conflicting with any games I want to watch. I always try to put rolling dice ahead of the sports games but on occasions I will tell the group in advance or that day that I might be an hour or so late. However, there are some sports games that I am compelled to watch, mainly rivalry games (Cowboys vs Eagle games, Texas vs Oklahoma). When those come up I again typically tell my group that I cant make that week. Basically its all about communication and understanding that people have other hobbies outside of this glorious hobby. If you are willing to work with them on balancing the two schedules, have a consistent gaming schedule and just keep communicating regarding sport games they really want watch, then I think it should work out.
Of course, this has been my experience and since I am the only real sports fan in my group its a little different than balancing multiple players or a majority of the group that are sports fans.
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Post by jazzisblues on Nov 10, 2017 14:51:46 GMT -8
I dunno what you're ... wait have to do a thing ... talking ... oh wait one more thing for another thing ... about ... because I'm trying to write a game plan game sessions for multiple campaigns, all in the same brain space ... no wonder nothing of any worth ever comes out of there.
JiB
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