Let me address a few issues that have popped up here:
First...
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I could project it on a plastic sheet or whiteboard and use markers (as I do now). I think the main issue would be that the markers would be invisible in the dark areas of the map - unless the ambient light is strong enough to see them.
Steel_Wind, do you think that could work?
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Projecting on a whiteboard certainly would work well. We have experimented with projection surfaces, trying a white piece of foamcore, a white blind and our biege Battlemat.
It's a function of the brightness of your projector and ambient lighting in the room. We prefer to use a surface with a 1" grid on it already as that makes use in game easy. More white reflective the surface = higher gain.
In term of being able to use markers - I don't see why not. You might want to play with the color of the ink - but it will work in most cases.
Might I suggest you are missing the obvious though? If you are using NWN, why not simply use the creature models in the game? You will have a ready made supply of hundreds of creatures, limitless PC races and you will never,
ever run out. There is nothing more you will need to buy.
Admittedly, you can't use something like Tabletop Mapper with NWN digital minis, but if cost of miniatures is your concern, an all digital solution is possible.
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Hm..! I don't know if my crappy laptop does that. I'll try. Even without the projector, I could use my TV to display images, maps, or charts. That would be pretty useful too!
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If you have a SVGA TV-Out port on your laptop - I am pretty much CERTAIN you can extend your desktop to it under Win XP. It's a standard approach of the chipset makers now.
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This is very cool. One step closer to ultimate cool would be to be able to project from underneath onto some kind of rear projection surface so that arms, miniatures, and other objects don't get in the way of the light.
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This was a concern of ours initially too. We thought of trying this as a rear projection setup. There are some technical concerns though with this approach.
The biggest issue is throw distance of your projector. Generally speaking, the shorter the distance between the projector and the projection surface, the smaller the image that is being displayed. Results vary highly from projector model to model though.
So putting it directly on the floor underneath your surface and projecting up is likely with most projectors to make an inadequate sized image (but see below)
You can skin this cat another way though. You can install a mirror at an angle below your table and then put the projector a ways off on a stool or some such, so you are increasing your throw distance. This is an approach that another group uses. Here is his set up:
The big problem is the big ass mirror under the table, which restricts movement around the table and potentially poses a serious danger to stray feet.
You also have light loss on the mirror and the projection surface. This group uses simple paper to reflect the image. A piece of buffed Lexan would probably work better and result in less light loss.
Still - depending on your gaming setup, it can be cool. Here is a more typical use of their table during play:
I prefer our own setup as it provides for a more intimate central table. The miniatures do not interefere with projection at all by the way - and hands over the table is something we don't even notice during play - so this is really not a concern. I admit I had the same worry initially - but it has proved to be no concern at all during actual use.
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If anyone else is going to do this, this $699 cell phone (large cell phone) sized projector would be a lot easier to mount. I don't know the specs on this projector and how well it would work in a set up like in this thread. Heck, I don't know much about projectors period, but they are cool.
Nice set up btw!
http://www.techworthy.com/Blog/Mits...jector-8482.htm |
OK. Now THIS has serious possibilities.
Let me explain what the main issues are here with projectors being used for this purpose. You care about the following elements of a projector:
1 - Brightness of image:. You want a minimum of 1200 ANSI lumens. Without it - you will be gaming in very low ambient light, too low really. You will note that in all the reviews the ANSI lumens is not noted for this unit. That suggests to me that this is a dim unit, relatively speaking.
2 - Minimum Throw Distance: The bigger the image with the smaller the throw distance, the better (in general). You can have your picture too big though, which will start to make the image visibly pixellated. Generally speaking, that's a nice problem to be able to have though as the real problem is an image which is too small. If this projector can do 40" at a distance of three feet - it would be VERY possible to use it directly under the table. Or put it over the table if you prefer - either way - very nice.
3- Bulb life: Most modern DLP projectors (this is different from an LCD projector, although analogous) have sophisticated bulbs in them which include aligned optics in the halogen bulb. They are complicated lil gadgets - damnably bright - and VERY expensive to replace. Cost is about $300-$400 to replace a bulb, depending on the unit. Yup. That much. Bulb life is about 2000 hours on most units, 3,000 hours on the newer models.
In the unit above, the lighting is said to be provided by LED's not a halogen bulb. This is an extremely stable light source so bulb life is practically "forever". That's very cool. However, using LED's as a light source is very limited by their brightness.
I would be flabbergast if you can get 1200 ANSI out of an LED lit DLP projector. If anyone can track down the brightness of this unit to report back - I want to know about it. If it is rated at 1200 or over - I'll buy one just to use at home and as a back up projector.
4 - Size of the Unit: Our Optoma EZpro 750 projector is about the size of a clock radio ca. 1980. It is very light. The newer the DLP, the smaller they seem to be getting.
Compare that to an old LCD projector. Those things were monsters. Here is a pic of the one Jans Carton's group uses:
His LCD is also old and relatively dim at about 800 ANSI. They use special lighting in the basement room their projector is located in (you can see the LED light strips) as a result.
A small DLP can be lugged around and placed over a living room or kitchen table with no problem and you can use an indirect support method like our pole. For an older LCD projector like Jans, that puppy needs to be bolted down and its not going anywhere.
My guess is that most wives are not going to put up with one of those over the dining room table
5 - Resolution of Image: You want a minimum of 800x600 and if it scales up to 1024x768 or higher, so much the better. This pocket projector appears to be adequate if a little fuzzy at 800x600. It's one of those things you have to see "live in concert" to get a feel for - but it sounds ok.
I will make some more inquiries into the Mitsubishi PocketProjector, as its size, portability, bulb life, minimum throw and resolution all appear to be IDEAL for a gaming application. Moreoever, its cost, brand new at MSRP, ROCKS. The real issue - and the one that concerns me most - is brightness of the image.
If the company is not touting its ANSI Lumens brightness, you can expect that it is not very good. How bad is the real issue. But if it's 1200 or higher - this would appear to be an AWESOME unit.
Nice thing is - the tech only gets better folks. If this one is not bright enough for your purpose - just wait a bit - they'll get brighter.
Lastly, the technology behind the DLP projector is what is making all these devices so cheap. They are stealing the market from LCD projectors now and as the quality increases, my expectation is there won't BE an LCD projector market in a few years. It will all move to DLP.
And yes, we are starting a website for projection Gaming table purposes at DLA next month. Who knows what else a group of 30 software developers and 3d artists might have up their sleeve for this sort of thing?
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