Hello everyone. I'm looking for some ideas on how to play more DnD/etc, but there is a rambling intro full of info first. Sorry for the long post.
My wife and I recently decided we want to play DnD, and subsequently fell in with a local PRPG group (closing in on 6 months of playing now). We love the game we are in and are becoming good friends with our DM and the other players. We're getting to a point where we'd like to play a bit more, but have scheduling problems. Sunday is pretty much tied up with our current game, and there is no way I could block out enough play time to make a weeknight worth it. There are a few groups around, but I'm not sure that we can commit to a second group of players, and I would feel like a schmuck just floating in and out. I have heard of a few other options, but don't really understand all the details:
1) Living DnD/Pathfinder Society: What's the point and what's the difference. If I'm able to find one of these around does it suit on-again/off-again availability?
2) Play-by-Post: What are the typical expectations here? Constant board monitoring, 1hr/night, etc. I don't consider myself to be a munchkin, but I do have a hard time letting go of the math sometimes. Will the format cause me issues?
3) Play by chat: I seem to remember hearing that there are gameplay chat rooms, or possibly an online client that fully simulates the game table. What's up here, and how do these folks connect?
Thank you in advance for taking the time to read, and for any help you can give.
Mac
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Hello everyone. I'm looking for some ideas on how to play more DnD/etc, but there is a rambling intro full of info first. Sorry for the long post.
My wife and I recently decided we want to play DnD, and subsequently fell in with a local PRPG group (closing in on 6 months of playing now). We love the game we are in and are becoming good friends with our DM and the other players. We're getting to a point where we'd like to play a bit more, but have scheduling problems. Sunday is pretty much tied up with our current game, and there is no way I could block out enough play time to make a weeknight worth it. There are a few groups around, but I'm not sure that we can commit to a second group of players, and I would feel like a schmuck just floating in and out. I have heard of a few other options, but don't really understand all the details:
1) Living DnD/Pathfinder Society: What's the point and what's the difference. If I'm able to find one of these around does it suit on-again/off-again availability?
2) Play-by-Post: What are the typical expectations here? Constant board monitoring, 1hr/night, etc. I don't consider myself to be a munchkin, but I do have a hard time letting go of the math sometimes. Will the format cause me issues?
3) Play by chat: I seem to remember hearing that there are gameplay chat rooms, or possibly an online client that fully simulates the game table. What's up here, and how do these folks connect?Thank you in advance for taking the time to read, and for any help you can give.
Mac
Can only answer about 1, but as Pathfinder Society is designed for convention play, haphazard on-again/off-again groups are what it works best for. Your party can change depending on who you've got with you. My group of players, since broken up owing to a new addition to the family of two of the group, rotated DMing so no-one had to do all the GMing and thus have their character lose experience and prestige points by not getting to play. All the scenarios are meant to be played in about 4 hours which is doable on a weeknight as long as you start early. Or you can play once a month, just at conventions, or however you want to do it. You should have four players if you want it to be official and register the results, but a lot of people don't bother and just use the scenarios.
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2) Play-by-Post: What are the typical expectations here? Constant board monitoring, 1hr/night, etc. I don't consider myself to be a munchkin, but I do have a hard time letting go of the math sometimes. Will the format cause me issues?
I play in two and run 1 pbp on these boards. I check the boards frequently through my working day (I'm a network admin, so I get to play on any websites I like...I make the firewall/proxy rules :) ) I also tend to browse an hour or so after work, and at weekends.
That said, I find I post a *lot* more than my players in the game I run (obviously!) and quite a bit more on average than the other players in the games I'm in....
Most pbps request at least one *check* of the game per day (less at weekends) and obviously a post if possible/relevant....During combat I find myself wanting the others in the game to post more often....but I'm impatient that way......
So depending on how many games, between 10mins and 1 hour per night....but an hour max I'd say.
As for the maths thing, pbps are fantastic for that, most people use a roller like invisible castle so you can see what was added to the roll and work it all out, in your own time....Also, the ability to think about and frame your post makes it so much easier to play "in character".
Just my tuppny worth....
Thank you both. Your info has helped. There aren't any Society games near me, but I haven't checked out any of the Living stuff yet. I've decided to give PbP a shot, so I'll be poking around on that board. If anybody else has other suggestions, I'd love to hear those as well.