WeekEND gaming(3/30/12)- What are YOU playing?

[AyeEmBored]

Originally Posted by EWolfmanD

Yep, we love hearing people's stories here, so feel free to share whenever you want. You also might want to check out AyeEmBored's stories about his DnD game with his family. They're pretty awesome.

D&D!

We've set our main campaign aside for a bit. The family was itchy to try a different type of character, so we've been doing this season of D&D Encounters. I've gotten my hands on a copy of this season's D&D Encounters, took down all the stats and loot, sketched out maps, and I've been running it a week behind the in store version. Going to the closest store that runs it is out of the questions. Driving an hour plus on a school night? Not happening.

The party is at each other's throats. Smurfette's Drow Hexblade Warlock refused to fight the drow that the party met in the third session. Boyfriend's Genasi something or other elemental something mage something is a royal dick. Mrs. is playing a druid with a bear companion which may be the most effective thing in combat lately, and Miss Destructo has built another rogue, this time with nearly no combat abilities.

And we had an honest to goodness PC versus PC fight over loot.

In Encounters, there is a random loot table for the end of each session. I actually like random loot because the players don't know what's coming, so every time the dice are rolled there's anticipation.

Boyfriend's character wants both of the items that come up, a mage tome that gives bonuses against elementals AND an amulet of protect. His argument is... "They both benefit me. Nobody else can use the tome, and I always come close to dying. My character takes them, puts on the amulet, and puts the tome in his backpack."

Ooooh... That wasn't good. Smurfette ended up attacking him (First asking, "Can I do that?") and we had a duel that left boyfriend unconscious. While Smurfette's character was bragging, Miss Destructo rolled a 20... and stole both items out of the backpack.

This party is going to implode. After everything was put away, they were laughing up a storm, saying that it was the most fun they've had playing D&D. They don't care if the Abyssal Plague in Easting gets cured or not. They want LOOT! And if somebody else in the party has it, they won't necessarily end up with it.

This week, chapter 2 begins. I really like something that happens in chapter 3. When we finish this, I think I'll give them the choice of keeping these characters, using the old ones, or rolling another one.

Of course, Boyfriend has started using Mage Hand to drop rocks on people's heads. I know that it isn't supposed to be used in combat, but really. If you can use a mage hand to pick up a 25 pound rock and then drop it on someone's head, wouldn't you?

D&D Aside #1. Characters built with Heroes of the Elemental Chaos seem to be quite powerful. Maybe too powerful. Cool book, though.

Another D&D aside, I'm LOVING my super size, covers the whole table, wet erase battle mat that I picked up. Sure, we use a combination of tiles, tokens, miniatures, and drawing on the mat, but it's SO nice to write up the initiative order on the side of the mat, with status effects, and have one of the players in charge of calling out whose turn it is and if they have any status effects to remember.

[torrefaction]

I really would like to play a PnP game. Are any coggers running anything online?

[AyeEmBored]

Originally Posted by torrefaction

I really would like to play a PnP game. Are any coggers running anything online?

I second that motion!

[Purple Santa]

Originally Posted by AyeEmBored

I second that motion!

I third that. I'd love to see if that could work online.

[muddi900]

Can we do something like 'D&D with friends'?

[EWolfmanD]

Originally Posted by Purple Santa

I third that. I'd love to see if that could work online.

It can definitely work. A group of us had a game going at dndonlinegames.com a while ago. It was pretty nice. The forum had built in commands for rolling dice and things like that.

There was also a different group that had a weekly realtime game going over Skype or something like that, but I prefer a forum based game.

[jpublic]

I'd be in, but I haven't played for ages.

[Purple Santa]

Originally Posted by jpublic

I'd be in, but I haven't played for ages.

Well i'm a total newb so if the group has patience for one, i'd love to do join.

[Karak]

Originally Posted by AyeEmBored

D&D!

We've set our main campaign aside for a bit. The family was itchy to try a different type of character, so we've been doing this season of D&D Encounters. I've gotten my hands on a copy of this season's D&D Encounters, took down all the stats and loot, sketched out maps, and I've been running it a week behind the in store version. Going to the closest store that runs it is out of the questions. Driving an hour plus on a school night? Not happening.

The party is at each other's throats. Smurfette's Drow Hexblade Warlock refused to fight the drow that the party met in the third session. Boyfriend's Genasi something or other elemental something mage something is a royal dick. Mrs. is playing a druid with a bear companion which may be the most effective thing in combat lately, and Miss Destructo has built another rogue, this time with nearly no combat abilities.

And we had an honest to goodness PC versus PC fight over loot.

In Encounters, there is a random loot table for the end of each session. I actually like random loot because the players don't know what's coming, so every time the dice are rolled there's anticipation.

Boyfriend's character wants both of the items that come up, a mage tome that gives bonuses against elementals AND an amulet of protect. His argument is... "They both benefit me. Nobody else can use the tome, and I always come close to dying. My character takes them, puts on the amulet, and puts the tome in his backpack."

Ooooh... That wasn't good. Smurfette ended up attacking him (First asking, "Can I do that?") and we had a duel that left boyfriend unconscious. While Smurfette's character was bragging, Miss Destructo rolled a 20... and stole both items out of the backpack.

This party is going to implode. After everything was put away, they were laughing up a storm, saying that it was the most fun they've had playing D&D. They don't care if the Abyssal Plague in Easting gets cured or not. They want LOOT! And if somebody else in the party has it, they won't necessarily end up with it.

This week, chapter 2 begins. I really like something that happens in chapter 3. When we finish this, I think I'll give them the choice of keeping these characters, using the old ones, or rolling another one.

Of course, Boyfriend has started using Mage Hand to drop rocks on people's heads. I know that it isn't supposed to be used in combat, but really. If you can use a mage hand to pick up a 25 pound rock and then drop it on someone's head, wouldn't you?

D&D Aside #1. Characters built with Heroes of the Elemental Chaos seem to be quite powerful. Maybe too powerful. Cool book, though.

Another D&D aside, I'm LOVING my super size, covers the whole table, wet erase battle mat that I picked up. Sure, we use a combination of tiles, tokens, miniatures, and drawing on the mat, but it's SO nice to write up the initiative order on the side of the mat, with status effects, and have one of the players in charge of calling out whose turn it is and if they have any status effects to remember.

THAT WAS NOT an invitation to post a story.

Jeez
Ok joking it obviously was.

[Karak]

I guess if DND stories are in vogue now.

This Friday, Ronin and our lan group is coming over to start our new game. I spent the last 9 months creating it, the game, and some of the rules from scratch. Last count I have 714 pages of back history, characters, and information on it.


Centered on super fast rules, using a deck of cards rule system, versus dice. Fast, easy, and utterly fantastic for roleplaying especially when you want many outcomes done in a row quickly.

Basically the rules allow for people to have 10 rolls showing in front of them in a battle(playing cards face down or up depending on the circumstance), allowing for the narrative to take precedence over dice(bonuses/penalties are applied as the story alters) and return roleplaying to the rollplaying that so frequently seems to creep into games.

Laid out like this in front of players.
X X X X X X X X X

It can be less than 10 and many times is, but for battles 10 made the fights epically fast and since we dont discuss tactics during battles(unless a player screams to another) it keeps the tension wicked high and the action super fast. Works even better for things like subterfuge and times when you don't want a player to know if he passed or failed on something.

It has been a success in past games. So much so that the players refuse to use dice systems now completely. I am surprised even my old rules heavy grognards have embraced it. I can't see ever going back to dice based systems again. Especially as you can use the cards instead of them if your rules systems uses anything based on d10 or d100.

The cool thing for us is, for the last 9 months I have been using the Obsidian Portal website for the game, pushing the players to add their own NPC's, special places, items of interest and so forth but still keeping their information somewhat close to my chest with little in the ways of rules being shown. Obsidian Portal is the shit man. Love it as websites go for hosting DND content.
Self publication, many users all altering the same document, privacy GM settings, unlimited pic uploads with the 5 dollar a month membership, your own private forums, and a ton of other features.

Now we have a game, player buyin and interest in the world and a story arc that goes for the last 900 years that they got to create and mold and decide. Excited to finally get back into roleplaying.