I know how that can be, oh, somewhat repetitive? And I try and at least put them in the right area. No need for my first post to get site moderators mad at me, right? Heh. So, I'd like to say that I have read, like, two dozens other threads of this variety in order to try and get a sense of things and answer my questions without having to resort to this. However, I nonetheless feel like making a topic is a good way of getting what ya need. Nonetheless, I will continue reading other topics and the general site, so, please, don't slay me for the topic xD
Hello folks. I'm relatively new to Pathfinder as a whole, but really, really, really into it, and have loved every minute of the system. I've really been impressed with what it's done with 3.5 and cleaned up a lot of the excess rules and what-not. I try to play as much as I can, but I've still found my currently weekly amount unsatisfactorily.
So, I came to the conclusion- I could look for more gaming online. And I figured going to the official site would be a good place to start :D I've already noticed a distinct difference in how the Society does things, and it has left me mildly intimidated, hence my cautious approach with this thread. So, I figured I'd start by spelling it what I'm looking for, and see if you guys think the Pathfinder society is a good place to look for it at ^.^
I'm a lazy college student with more time than he should have. I'm a nerd. Heavy nerd, in fact. I'm even the president of my college's table top gaming club (But hey, I'm sure half the people reading this have more prestigious nerd ranking than that!), but I'm still green in the area of RPing somewhat, if enthusiastic. And I was thinking, I'd really enjoy looking for an online campaign. It'd be nice to, say, on the weekends, stay in home away from the Wisconsin icy weather and play Pathfinder. I'm experienced with a variety of forum RPs, but I've never done skype style sessions, although I'm open to them. Given my lack of a car, I'm not looking for an offline group, although in the future I might. I've never done any sort of organized play before, and am used to house rules, although I'm very much adaptable.
I ramble. At any rate, I'd like to find an online group to join, and I'd like to know any essential things I should read or rules I should know...Or, really, in general, what I should do now that I've registered with a number and all that. Thanks for the time of anybody reading this, I hope I haven't posted in the wrong place or elicit too many signs of frustration.
Oh. And I'm reading the faq of course.
I'm not sure how to go about navigating it, or really what I should be looking for. The forum, that is. I understand how the titling works, but a good deal of the "Vtt"s are unfamiliar to me.
|
Read the Guide to Pathfinder Society Organised Play, in particular pages 4-12.
As far as VTTs go, Roll20.net with the voice/video coming through Google Hangouts is probably the easiest to start with; look for '[Roll20 / G+]' (or similar) in the subject line.
Look for scenarios that are suitable for 1st-level characters; they'll have a tier listed like '(1-2)' or '(1-5)'. As long as the lower end of the range is 1, you're good.
|
Mekura, something you might think about.
pathfinder only publishes ~30 scenarios a year. Each one you can play once, and GM once.
If you play 4 times a week, you will have played everything out there within a year, and after two years, you will have played and GMed everything. At that point you will only be able to play and GM games for credit on average once a week.
If you play 3 per week, you will have played every scenario out there in a year, and in another 2 year you will have pklayed *and* GMed everything, and will only be able to GM or play about once a week.
All this assumes that you are a scheduling genius and can always find a game to play that you haven't played. In practice, the sweet spot for continued long term play is closer to 2 games a week (assuming you want to be doing this for the next 10 years or so.)
If you want more gaming, you can always find a non PFS home game on the side.
Welcome Mekura,
The advantage to PFS is that any number of people can drop in at a given time. The scenarios do not assume you have the same people showing up week to week. They also last 4-5 hours. Many of the rules have been simplified (specifically XP and splitting the spoils) that cuts down character discrepancy (IMHO).
The advantage is you can pick up games whenever, and maybe meet a regular group of folks to eventually start a campaign with. The disadvantage is that it is not a campaign. Those could be reversed depending your style of play.
Virtual Table Top for PFS are under the Grand Lodge Online Play forums. Recruitment threads usually list "recruitment, which VTT format and the game system. That would be the place to start. Good luck :)
I also agree that Roll20 is the easiest VTT to start with. It's free, you don't have to download anything, and there are some really good tutorial videos on their website.
Another VTT I use as a player is Fantasy Grounds.
You have to download the program and in order to be able to play in any Fantasy Grounds games, you need to buy a liscence (but don't worry, the player liscence is only about 24 $ with no maximum duration).
On the bright side, this VTT uses complete character sheets, you can apply effects on characters for any temporary bonuses/penalties so the program does the math for you, and you make any rolls by just clicking.
I don't know anything about other VTTs, but I'm sure, there are a lot of people around who can tell you more about other VTTs.
|
Assuming you have:
- read the character creation bit in the Guide to Organized play and built your PC accordingly
- used only books you own
- checked what is allowed/banned in Additional Resources
then you are golden for PFS online play.
You will need a digital version of your PC, and digital scans of your chronicles.
The paizo online play forums and the "Pathfinder Society Online Collective" are the two main sources of online PFS games. Signup varies by GM: sometimes signup is in thread, sometimes by email, and sometimes by Warhorn.
However finding an online campaign (non-PFS) is much harder as there aren't many of those around.