Running the Table on the Internet – An interview with The Online Dungeon Master

Lots of gamers are integrating technology into what used to be a pencil and paper hobby. Some choose to lament the proliferation of smart phones, tablets, and laptops migrating towards the gaming table, and some embrace it. With programs such as HeroLab, D&D Insider, the Pathfinder Resource Document, and mobile RPG apps, technology in tabletop RPGs is on the rise. Some are even playing traditional RPGs completely online. Having never tried it, I decided to consult the master: The Online Dungeon Master!

SG: Thanks so much for answering some questions about running a tabletop RPG online. You’ve got a great site that offers a lot of tutorials for MapTool users, as well as a really nice glossary of terms for people just getting in to the hobby. A lot of people have had success playing RPGs online through a number of different tools, though starting out can be a bit daunting. With that in mind:

What advice would you give to an aspiring digital DM who wants to start a game online, but doesn’t know where to begin?

ODM: Come to me for advice! I’d probably invite the DM to sit in on a session that I’m running, to give them a chance to see how an online game can work. I’d also suggest keeping it very simple at first; use a virtual tabletop like MapTool or Gametable or OpenRPG as just a shared battle map and dice roller, while keeping track of hit points and doing the attack math on paper. You can start automating that stuff in MapTool (or whatever program you decide to use) later. Keep it as close to the in-person experience as possible at first.

SG: What applications/services are absolutely essential?
ODM: A virtual tabletop program and an audio chat program. Personally I like MapTool for the former and Skype for the latter – they’re both free, and they’ve worked very well for me. There are other options, of course, and some, like the WotC Virtual Table, incorporate both the tabletop and the chat into a single program.

SG: Have you tried gaming in a Google+ hangout? Skype? If both, is one better than the other?
ODM: I’ve never used Google+ hangouts for gaming, though I’ve heard that other people have had success with it. I’ve used Skype for audio since day one for multiple campaigns and have never had any problems with it. If Skype were crapping out on me, I might consider Google+ hangouts, but I’ve heard good things about Ventrilo and Teamspeak, so I might try those first.

SG: Have you tried Wizards online game table? iTabletop?
ODM: I have tried the Wizards of the Coast Virtual Table when it was first in beta (and have written about it on my blog). I know it has advanced since the days when I tried it, and the ability to import your characters and monsters from the D&D Insider tools is really, really convenient. However, I understand that there’s still no image import capability for either maps or character tokens, which makes it pretty useless for me at the moment. I need to be able to use my own maps, and I want a wide selection of images for monsters and PCs. Assuming that changes in the future, I’ll try it again.

I’ve never used iTabletop, but I have used Gametable and OpenRPG.

SG: How do you deal with rolling dice online? Do you make any hidden DM rolls, or use an online roller for all to see?
ODM: I use MapTool’s built-in dice roller via macros. I’ve created a shared set of buttons that anyone can use to roll a d20 or whatever die they like and share the result with everyone in the chat window. I also have a parallel set of buttons that creates a roll whose result is only visible to the DM. Most of my dice rolling is within macros, though, such as for monster or PC attacks (each attack has its own button that rolls the attack and the damage).

When I first started building these macros for monsters, I made it so the output was only visible to the DM. I asked my players what they preferred, and they all preferred to see the results in the open. So, monster die rolls are all visible in my games. Monster hit point changes are not, however – the messages in my macros like “The goblin takes 12 damage and now has 10 hit points,” are visible only to me.

SG: Do players have to tell you where they want to move, or are they able to control their own characters during an encounter?
ODM: All players have control over their own characters. They move them around, click their own buttons for attacks and hit point changes, etc. I’ll occasionally drag their tokens around as well, such as if a monster pushes them or if I’m moving them to a new map, but typically the players do everything for their characters themselves.

SG: Does it take more time as a DM to prepare for a home game or an online game? Why?
ODM: For me, it’s the same either way – but that’s because I use MapTool to run my home games, too! When I first started DMing offline (I did online first), I decided that I could either buy a bunch of monster minis or I could buy a projector. I went with the projector. This way, I use MapTool to project the map onto the table, and the monsters are all represented by MapTool tokens. I own no monster minis, and it’s been a good decision for me.

On the rare occasions when I’ve prepped a game the traditional way (dry-erase mat, minis), it takes me less explicit prep time before the game because I’m not drawing the maps or building the monsters in advance as I do in MapTool, but more time at the table (both drawing the maps and rolling physical dice and doing math for the monsters). It’s a much better experience for me to do it with MapTool and the projector. Plus, it makes it easy for me to run the same game both online and in-person.

SG: What are the best sites to find potential online players for a game you want to run?
ODM: My own long-running MapTool game started on EN World (the original thread can still be found right here). I’ve gone back to that same well when I’ve needed to recruit new players for my game (though I’ve also had luck just using my own blog for that purpose). The EN World Gamers Seeking Gamers forum has people looking for online games quite frequently; that’s where I’d start. I personally haven’t used any other sites for this purpose so far.

SG: What is the best/worst experiences you’ve had running an online game?
ODM: The worst experience came in the very first session I ran for what became my long-running Friday night group. That thread on EN World led to me running a one-shot Living Forgotten Realms game for eight players, which I knew I didn’t want to keep doing (eight is too many for me). Five of the eight players became long-term folks in my game, but one guy was really annoying. He came across as a know-it-all with a tweaked-out character, and he basically played his girlfriend’s character for her. He made some really inappropriate comments during the session that frankly offended me (things like having his character try some sexually explicit things with a female NPC – not appropriate for a group you’ve just met). Fortunately, that was the first and LAST time I gamed with that particular person.

The best experience has come from my long-running group. We’ve been going for a year and a half now, with no signs of stopping. My players are just such awesome people, and I consider them friends. Three of them have been with the game since the very beginning, and no one has flaked out or anything like that. When I had some personal issues and had to take more than a month off from the game, they were terrifically understanding. All we’ve ever done together was play Dungeons and Dragons, but I still feel like I’ve made great friends.
 
SG: What is the future of online tabletop gaming? Promising developments?
ODM: That’s a good question. I know that different folks keep bringing out new virtual tabletop programs, and I demoed a few of them at GenCon 2011. Many of them are quite pretty and feature lots of bells and whistles. Honestly, I don’t personally need that, but I know that some folks love it.

I think that the WotC Virtual Table is the one that has the potential to be game changing. WotC has done a good job with Magic Online in creating pick-up games on demand. I think that’s a big part of what they want to accomplish with the Virtual Table; an opportunity to drop in for a game of D&D, even if it’s with strangers, whenever you have a few free hours. Now, I think that would create a very different type of RPG experience that a lot of players might not enjoy, but it has the potential to be a big deal.

SG: Any parting advice or tips you wish you knew when you first started gaming using online tools?
ODM: I wish I had known about MapTool first – it’s an amazing program! But my main advice is to keep in mind that, even if you’re using software to play, this is still a ROLE PLAYING game. You’ve got to role play online every bit as much as you would in-person. Talk in-character. Have monsters make decisions based on putting yourself in their shoes. Bring the world to life. It’s different over Skype, in that you lack eye contact and body language, but it’s worth doing.

SG: Thanks again for your time!
ODM: My pleasure!

Balancing Epic Scales

Last night was another Scales of War session. We’re wrapping up the penultimate module, and while we started at level 10, getting to level 28 has taken more than 2 years of pretty regular gaming. Monte’s recent article and the Weem’s recent post were perfectly timed, as I had them fresh on the brain while playing last night.

As I’ve mentioned here before, playing Epic 4e takes not only an Epic GM, but Epic players who know their PCs cold. Most of our character sheets are somewhere in the range of 10-14 pages, and we don’t even currently have a wizard in the party. That spell book eats paper like no other type of character. There are a number of challenges when playing at high levels for both the DM and PCs.

One of the main ones is encounter balance. It is extremely hard to challenge a well-built epic party. At the beginning of the session last night, we had to figure out if we had just completed an extended rest last session, because several of the party members weren’t down any surges, and weren’t hurt. Not a scratch. Turns out we had been through at least one fight, as some of the guys had used surges, but with the ability to slough off even the most debilitating effects and defenses in the mid to high 40s (my warlord has a fortitude of 53), its very difficult to challenge the party. In the module we are currently playing we encountered an ancient black dragon… as a wandering monster. In a regular game that would be the ultimate encounter and any of the party would be lucky to survive. Using party synergies and team work developed over the last few years of play, we spanked him like a misbehaving wyrmling.

A lot of great ways to counter this and make it challenging using 4e mechanics are detailed in Sly Flourish’s Running Epic Tier D&D Games. One of the best points in there, and one used to great effect in the last fight of the evening, is that big enemies should have auras of vulnerability. Some of the minions were only  doing 10 damage a hit, which at epic level is next to nothing, but then when we stepped up to the big bad, and were vulnerable 25 fire, suddenly the minions were doing 35 a hit; Not insignificant, even at level 28.

We are approaching the ultimate battle with Tiamat herself. It looks to be the very epitome of epic play for 4e. Of course, once we defeat her (and we *will* defeat her), won’t the balance of good and evil be thrown out of wack and cause a dragonlance-like cataclysm? We’ll see.

In the end though, I think I was hoping for something more. Sure, we’re rolling a big pile of dice for any major attack, and my head-math skills have improved appreciably because of it, but shouldn’t our near god-like heroes be something more than just bigger numbers? We’ve got enough feats to allow us to break every rule in the book (Flanking? No I don’t grant combat advantage. Oh he’s got cover? Great! I’m more accurate if they have cover than not.) So why have those puny ‘mortal’ rules at all? I think the Weem has got the right idea. If you stick with it long enough, your hero should ascend to the heights of a pantheon, and when he does, a lot more than the size of the numbers should change.

Zombie Dice – Review

Sometimes you just want to roll some dice. And eat brains. Wait, what? Zombie Dice is one of those rare games that is cheap, easy, fun, portable and plays fast. It’s great to throw in your backpack you’re taking to Humungo-Con or whatever your big convention of choice may be. You can play it while you’re waiting in line to get in to some panel with Wil Wheaton or some such. It’s made by Steve Jackson Games of Munchkin fame, and at an MSRP of $13.13, it won’t break the bank.

The game is fairly simple. Instead of the typical “survive the zombie apocalypse” scenario, Zombie Dice makes you the zombie. You roll three dice at a time, randomly selected from the dice cup. The dice have three different images on them: Brains (Yum!), Footprints (The humans escaped!), and Shotgun Blasts (Ow! Avoid these).

If you roll a brain, set that die aside. Each brain represents one point. If you roll footprints you reroll that die next round. If you roll a shotgun blast, set that aside as well. If you roll three shotgun blasts, you lose the points you’ve accumulated from that round and pass the dice cup to the next player. You can choose to stop rolling at any time. I think officially, the first to 13 wins, but you can set whatever number you want.

The twist is that not all the dice are created equal. The dice come in three different colors, representing threat level. Green dice only have one shotgun blast, two footprints and three brains. Yellow dice have two of each. Red dice have three shotgun blasts, two footprints and one brain. Knowing this can influence your decision to continue rolling, or pass the cup and bank the brains you’ve already collected.

I personally have never been able to go one complete round and get brains on all dice before rolling 3 shotguns. It seems to me if you are able to make it, you should win outright. That’s just a Skyland Games house-rule, though. Zombie Dice is great fun! Give it a try if you want to play something light and easy! Still not convinced? Try the free iPhone App. It’s the same mechanics, but only one player. Steve Jackson Games also offers a .99 cent version that allows multiplayer and some other features.

Descent – Deep Dungeon Delves

Descent: Journeys in the Dark is a great way to get your dungeon delving fix. Works great for nights when you’re missing a player from your regular RPG group, or just want to try something a bit different. Descent has the typical RPG setup of a game master or ‘Overlord’ and a group of player characters or ‘Heroes’. The Overlord controls all the traps and monsters in the dungeon, the Heroes control their characters and try and complete the objectives and gather tons of loot. Unlike D&D or other traditional RPGs, the Overlord actually is out to get you. If the Overlord kills enough Heroes, he wins.

There are two ways to play Descent: as a one-shot or a campaign. If you play it as a one shot your characters will get pretty powerful and find better loot as the game progresses, but once you’re done with that scenario you can’t bring your character and all his awesome stuff to the next adventure. If you play the campaign version, character progression takes a bit longer, but you can watch your hero go from a n00b to an epic champion.

The game itself comes with tons of figures, tokens, cards, chambers, doors and halls, One complaint that some may have is the learning curve on this game is a bit steep, and not really for the casual boardgamer. The setup is elaborate, and the rules very detailed. It may take a few times playing before everyone at the table is completely familiar with all the rules. With twenty heroes and plenty of scenarios to choose from, Descent has a very high replay value. If you just can’t get enough, several expansions have been released with new monsters, map tiles, and items.

I’ve only gotten a chance to play it once, but the whole table had a good time. I would recommend it for RPG fans who want the classic delve experience, with a twist.

Quelf – Boardgame Week

Continuing our board game week on Skyland Games, I present a party game of a different sort: Quelf. This is one of the wackiest games I’ve ever played, and is always different every time you play it. It can be played with as few as three, but is much better with about five to eight people. Players take turns rolling a die to move their character along the board, landing on different colored squares on their turn. The player must then draw the corresponding colored card for the square that they land on. Each different color is its own category, and the categories vary wildly.

Some cards are timed, some are classified (meaning you can’t allow other players to know what the card says), all of them are pretty crazy. If you fail to perform the action or don’t know the answer to the question on the card you have to pay the penalty, which is a number of spaces you must move your character backwards on the board.

Roolz cards are a rule you have to follow until you draw a new one. Some are global rules that affect everyone, some affect only the player who drew it. For example: “Whenever an opponent rolls a ’4′, you must film the rest of their turn with an invisible movie camera, describing the action as if you were making a documentary.” Or: “If a phone or a doorbell rings, all players must immediately stand up and say, “Pizza Party!” The last player to do this pays the penalty.”

Quizzle cards are pretty much just trivia questions, but most of them are a little bit twisted. Such as: “Q: Johnny’s mother had three children, the first was named April, the second was named May. What was the third child’s name? A: Johnny.” Or: “Q: If, having only one match on a freezing winter day, you entered a room which contained a lamp, a kerosene heater, and a wood burning stove, which should you light first? A: The match.”

Stuntz and Showbiz cards have you get up and do something physical. For instance: “Get some ice (at least 5 cubes). Put the ice down your pants. Now start rolling the die. Keep rolling until you roll a ’6′.” Or: ” This card is classified! Stand up, flap your arms, and hop up and down while saying the word ‘chicken’ exactly 13 times. When done, starting with the player on your left and proceeding around the table, ask your opponents to each make one guess how many times you said ‘chicken’. All opponents that guess correctly may move ahead one space. Reveal this card once you’ve completed it.”

I think the most challenging type of card is Scatterbrainz. The person who draws the card gets to choose between two categories presented on it. Everyone goes around the table giving an answer that fits the category. The first one to repeat one that has been already been said, or can’t think of a valid answer must pay the penalty. Example: “Words that begin with the letter ‘Z’ or Words that have more than 5 syllables.” The last space on the board is a Scatterbrainz space, and in order to win, the person who landed on it must provide two answers to the question each time it comes back around to them. It’s a pretty tough game to win.

I think this game definitely benefits from consuming some adult beverages both before and during play. Inhibitions need to be fairly low to truly enjoy Quelf, whether you require some assistance in getting there is entirely up to the individual. I’ve played this with both close friends and people I had just met, and every time it has certainly been memorable. Give it a try the next time you want to have a game night to remember!

Wits & Wagers – Review

In our second installment of board game week here on Skyland Games we’ll take a look at one of my favorite games of all time: Wits & Wagers. This game is a fun combination of strategy and estimation. It can be played with a few as 3 people, but it’s really better with 6 or 7. Game play is easy to learn and can be a great party game, either with teams or just onlookers offering their educated (or not!) guesses.

Here is how you play: A question is read with a numerical answer. Usually something so obscure that very few people would know the correct number. (In what year was the channel VH1 launched? In 2004, how many SUVs were sold in the US?) Players write down their guess on a whiteboard of the color that corresponds with their wager chips. Guesses are arranged on the board with the median guess in the middle, higher and lower guesses towards the edges. The further outlying the guess is from the middle, the more it pays out if that is the correct answer.

Here comes the strategy: Players are given two wager markers to place on a guess, but you don’t have to bet on your guess. If you know the answer you could write it, then place all your money on your card, but if it’s the median answer the payout is low. If the question is about a topic about which you have no knowledge, you can place one bet on one guess, another on a different guess. If you get really wily, if you know the answer you could put something very wrong on your card, to try and get the right answer towards one of the better payouts towards the edge of the board. If you play it straight, you’ll probably lose. It doesn’t matter how many questions you get right, but how many chips you get from betting big!

If you’re looking for a great party game, this is it. It comes with 700 questions, but if you run out of those there is an expansion pack has 700 more! It plays fast and is a lot of fun.

Board Game Kickstarter Roundup

It’s board game week on Skyland Games. We’ll be dusting off some old favorites from the game closet, and maybe looking at some newer games. First up, games that don’t exist yet. Kickstarter and other crowd-funding sites have revolutionized the gaming industry; both video and board. The recent smash success of Double Fine Adventure has brought another round of stories about how kickstarter is breaking down the barriers between those with the ideas, and customers who want their products. Since board games and video games are sort of lumped together on kickstarter, a lot of indie games are gaining a “halo effect” of backers from some of the bigger projects.

First up, Agents of Smersh. If you’ve ever played Top Secret, or if you’re a fan of the Bond films or probably more appropriately Archer, this board game will be right up your alley. Featuring cooperative gameplay and 1500 written encounters, players become secret spies and work together to defeat SMERSH with plenty of spy gadgets and a little bit of gambling. With so much work going in to the content of this game, it looks as though it would have a lot of variety and replay value. If you’re a fan of the cold-war era 70s spy genre, this is the game for you! $50 will get you a copy of the game.

Next, JammerUp! JammerUp is a roller derby board game. I’ve gone to several derby bouts featuring our home town Blue Ridge Rollergirls, and while the live action can be frenetic and look chaotic, a lot of the game is strategy and positioning, so I could see how it could make a really fun board game. At $80 they include little pewter derby minis which would be pretty cool if painted up with team colors. $25 will get you the basic game. With all the derby teams sprouting up across the country, I would be surprised if this didn’t reach its goal. Even if you aren’t familiar with roller derby, the mechanics behind derby and likely the board game version, would make for a fun game night.

Finally, Police Precinct; a cooperative game in which players work together to solve a murder. Players must deal with other emergencies and street criminals that complicates the investigation. One of the players plays a corrupt cop to add another wrinkle to gameplay. If the players playing the good cops convict the murderer before any “fail conditions” are met, they win! Looks like a fun twist on the classic game Clue. They just brought on the same artist from Agents of Smersh, so the art should be of similar caliber. $45 will get you a copy of the game.

Hope you enjoyed these kickstarters. They all look like promising games that are worthy of your support. Tomorrow we’ll be doing a retro-review of one of our favorite games.

Munchkin – Review

If you’re fortunate enough to have a regular weekly game night, there will be the occasional schedule conflict or illness that prevents someone in the group from attending. Do you cancel, play their character for them, or try something completely different?

Munchkin is the perfect light-hearted diversion for those who want a humorous, satirical look at the traditional dungeon crawl. Unlike D&D, munchkin is competitive in which players have the option to help each other out, but the ultimate goal is to be the first player to reach 10th level.

You gain levels by defeating monsters. Combat couldn’t be easier. Your hero can only defeat monsters that are less than your hero’s current level plus any equipment bonuses you may have picked up. There are items like swords and armor that give you bonuses all the time, and consumables like magic missile that give you a one-time bonus. If your number is higher than the monster’s level, you win and get to draw treasure cards and advance one level. Other cards curse players and cause some kind of restriction, or reduce their level.

Classes and races are randomly drawn as the game progresses. Each player starts out as a human with no class (nyuk, nyuk). The classes and races have different advantages, and some of the equipment can only be used by a certain race or class.

The game has been around for over a decade now, and has tons of expansions of both the core game, as well as different genres. They’re all compatible with each other and can make some truly hilarious combinations. If you’ve never played and want to give it a try, I’d recommend the original. It’s a classic!

The Three Pillars – DnDnext

This article is inspired by a very cool article by Shawn Merwin over at Critical Hits. He reflects on his experience at DDXP and how the DnDnext design team is focused on the three pillars of the game: combat, roleplaying, and exploration. He goes on to say what he misses most about earlier editions is the exploration in many senses of the word.

It reminded me of our recent old school mod conversion, and how that seemed to recapture a lot of magic from the earlier editions, albeit using 4e tactics for when combat breaks out. Maybe we’re secret DnDnext prophets, or maybe we just missed some element from earlier editions too, but giving an old school feel to new mechanics looks like what 5e will be.

Our exploration of the Lost City is currently on hiatus, but the two sessions we had harkened back to earlier editions. The rogue-like character is checking every door for traps, the wizard hangs back to hurl explosions of magic at foes, the valiant fighters take the brunt of the attacks from the opposition. In between combats, the DM describes the environment, and the characters interact with the environment and each other, and not every encounter ends up in a fight. If you’re eagerly awaiting the invitation to the public beta and need something to tide you over, try converting an old module to 4e. It’s easier than you might think, and can lead to an awesome synergy of editions. If you’ve got some old modules on the shelf you can use those, or try some from Dragonsfoot.

The balance between the three pillars is largely an agreement between players and the DM. I am not one of those who gets all misty-eyed about playing for 4 hours and not rolling a single die. When I play, I’m there to roll dice, and usually put the hurt on some bad guys. That being said I really enjoy the exploration side, and coming up with creative solutions to problems presented in the adventure. I personally struggle with doing voices for NPCs and improving interesting interactions outside of box text. On the other side of the screen I enjoy some social encounters, but I lean heavily on the other two pillars. Other members of the groups that I roll with probably feel differently, and have their own preferences in regards to the pillars.

How do you balance the pillars in your game? Heavy on the RP? All combat all the time? Let us know in the comments.

The Role of Rolls – Skills Numerical and Non

There is a bit of a philosophical debate going on about DnDnext. Many players who were introduced to Dungeons & Dragons through 3rd or 4th edition have a different view of skills then those who grew up with earlier editions. In WotC’s quest to unify D&D under one big tent, the community must confront balancing player skill vs. PC skill.

The 4e mechanic of skill challenges may have exacerbated the situation. Skill challenges tried to quantify roleplaying challenges and reward making character building choices sometimes at the expense of actual roleplaying. This commonly occurs during a skill challenge when a player says something along the lines of, “I’m rolling diplomacy… I got a 19.” This makes the “old guard” cringe.

Ideally, you would come up with a convincing argument, and speak in character to the GM. Something like, “We are honored to be in your presence your majesty. Forgive our intrusion m’lord, but we come bearing urgent news. Your enemies gather on the border and are threatening war!” In the old days, the DM would evaluate how you presented yourself and make a judgement on the spot as to how the NPC would react. This requires some serious improv skills on both the player and the GMs part.

Some people just aren’t into this style of play, while others live for it. How does DnDnext plan on bridging this gap between a PC’s role in the party and what they “should” be good at, and rewarding player ingenuity for creative solutions outside the numbers?

I would propose I hybrid approach, and would be surprised if this wasn’t too far off the mark. (If I get a cease and desist from WotC, I’ll know I’m *really* close!) What I would do is have skills similar to that of 3e and 4e, but reward significant bonuses for creative role-playing. If you just roll a die, maybe you get that score, maybe there is a penalty for not role-playing, but if you describe what your character is doing in detail (for physical skills) or make a convincing speech/bluff/argument (for social skills) the DM would have the option of lowering the DC or providing a bonus to the check, anywhere from +2 to +10, if it is incredible. That provides a mechanical reward for out-of-the-box, off-the-character-sheet thinking. A roll would still be required, and a 1 would auto-fail, and a 20 would always succeed (you’ve always got at least a chance, no matter how improbable), I think this system could lead to a really great experience and encourage some really awesome role-playing. What’s more essential to ALL the editions than that!?