Scratch paper?


Pathfinder First Edition General Discussion


Do you use scratch paper or just write everything on a computer?


Paper gets used a lot for quick maps or anything else I'll need to hand around, the tablet for notes, especially those the players shouldn't see.


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I usually use paper first.

Part of it is habit (I started gaming before laptops were a thing), but it's mostly because I personally find it easier to switch between multiple hardcopy books than multiple file windows on a single screen.


I'll start on paper, maybe double up important stuff on a note file.


All my character sheets are handmate on paper, so are all my campaign notes, when there are any.


When I started GMing, and building my world, my home computer had 64K of RAM and no hardrive. Everything is paper, stacks loose pages and scribbled notebooks.


I do a fair bit of computer/tablet fondling when I run games to present maps, handouts and pictures (I am remote, webcasting to a group of players sitting in the same room). A couple of my players update google documents during play for party loot, notes, etc. It is easier for them to do it that way than to keep stacks of paper notes handy.

On the GM note taking/making side of things I use a Rocketbook Everlast notebook. It uses erasable Pilot FriXion pens, has a quick-scan smartphone/tablet app (should something I randomly doodle need to be saved or sent to the group), and you can wipe the pages clean when the book is full. I find that it's a cool mid-step between scratch paper and constantly using tech, for me.


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Paper. The only thing I use the computer for is looking up rules for things quickly. I can usually do it before anyone gets their books ready. I have notebooks of adventures going back over 20 years.


Paper for most mapping, quick notes, battle-stats (HP, initiative order, number of rounds for something so I can cross them off.)

Comp for looking up rules, storing the rail-roady parts of a session etc.

I actually design most of my sessions in Notepad++ and save all the files to a cloud-service (used to be Dropbox, now Sync) and that way I can write on those notes from anywhere, then pull them up on the laptop. Normally these are:
* Interesting encounters / DCs etc
* custom critters stats and rules
* some canned dialog from important NPCs and possible plot hooks
* canned terrain DCs, chases, etc for non-combat adjudication on the fly easier

So while all of that is computer; for those of you who work on mulitple PCs; it's a very convenient way of designing sessions


OneNote for my campaign note with Herolab files for my encounters. I also use Herolab Combat console for initiative tracking.

Each of my players have access in my OneNote and I have a GM section that is lock by password. They use it to keep track of intel, the common treasure and also what items they let at the base. Some of them opened tab for their character and post art showint the PC. They also have a memorial section for dead PC. When they find a map I copy it from the GM section to the map section.

With the cloud, I can work on my game evrywhere.

So, paper doesn't show at the table anymore...


Between games, I update computer files. I print out needed updates.

During the game, it is all paper and post-it notes, except for spells. I have those on my tablet as a mini web site with the home page the spellbook and each spell linked to a page with the spell.

/cevah


Notes on paper, and at my most organized point Index cards often with basic info already on them then updated with notes from 'on the fly' But I'm an old fart, a desk top computer, never mind a laptop or notepad, was a thing of the future when I started gaming. Heck Pong didn't exist until I had been around a while :P


Paper. A great way to track hit points and conditions.

However I could not do that when GMing. There was just too much stuff to juggle.

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