Setting up a gaming webserver

NYC News · Jun 19, 2010

Our gaming group of 12 years has scattered hither and yon, making getting together for pen-and-paper gaming an exercise in logistics as people would be coming from 100 miles around, literally.

So, I'm thinking of setting up a server that will allow us to continue to game together.

Any recommendations for open-source webserver software to allow us to interact, see maps and do all the usual gaming stuff?

Thanks!

cdrcjsn · Jun 19, 2010

Skype or Ventrillo will let you talk to one another.

Google docs can be modified by everyone you share the doc with.

Lots of people still use AIM to play.

Magi_Trelian · Jun 20, 2010

Great ideas! I hadn't thought of Skype for gaming.

AIM chatrooms used to have a dice roller but the last time I checked for it was several versions ago, so don't quote me on the current version having it.

Yahoo groups are good for background stuff for gaming. You can send e-mails, share documents, and restrict access to those in your own group.

IronWolf · Jun 20, 2010

Maptools and Ventrilo is an excellent combination.

Maptools gives you a battle map to work with and for basic battle map use is pretty easy to learn to use. You can import maps, create your own maps, etc. Each player connects to the server instance and then controls their token to move about on the map. The GM can drop the critter tokens on the map and everyone can easily see what is happening on this virtual table top.

I've used both Skype and Ventrilo with a preference for Ventrilo. The biggest reason is I can push the network load of Ventrilo to some other location and not have to have the voice and such compete with my bandwidth. I also like the push-to-talk portion of Ventrilo, which Skype does not have, though it does have a keyboard command to mute the mic.

But with this setup it is really just one step short of being all together in the same place.

Good luck!

NYC News · Jun 27, 2010

IronWolf said:
Maptools and Ventrilo is an excellent combination.

I ended up with MapTools for the battle mat, and using AutoRealm for the map drawings to drop into the whole mess.

I'll have to look at Ventrilo to see if it's the VoIP solution, but damn. This stuff just works.

Thanks all!

Magi_Brigid · Jul 4, 2010

I think that Skype might be the better bet for a more organic feel. It's got an always on voice pickup by default, which makes it more like you're in a room together.

AIM chat rooms DO still have a dice roller in them; we're currently using it for a Shadowrun game.

IronWolf · Jul 5, 2010

Magi_Brigid said:
I think that Skype might be the better bet for a more organic feel. It's got an always on voice pickup by default, which makes it more like you're in a room together.

Yeah, Skype can work - I've played some games over it.

I lean towards Ventrilo for a couple of reasons though.

It has a push to talk option, which works well if I am playing while the kids are up to make sure their background noise does not interfere with the game.
I can run a ventrilo server on my hosted server, which means I can offload a lot of the bandwidth for voice off to a connection other than my own.

So those are the two big reasons I lean towards Ventrilo. Skype certainly works. It doesn't have a push-to-talk option but it does have a two-key shortcut to mute and unmute the mic.

Magi_Brigid · Jul 7, 2010

IronWolf said:
Yeah, Skype can work - I've played some games over it.

I lean towards Ventrilo for a couple of reasons though.

It has a push to talk option, which works well if I am playing while the kids are up to make sure their background noise does not interfere with the game.

I can run a ventrilo server on my hosted server, which means I can offload a lot of the bandwidth for voice off to a connection other than my own.

So those are the two big reasons I lean towards Ventrilo. Skype certainly works. It doesn't have a push-to-talk option but it does have a two-key shortcut to mute and unmute the mic.

Ahhh, see, if you can host a vent server yourself, that mitigates the cost of renting one. Kudos!

Sienna_Rose · Jul 18, 2010

Sounds like you're all set, but, for tracking games, there's also Epic Words - it has places for character pages and a wiki to have things linked (so, for example, someone reading and an NPC is mentioned, and the person wonders "Who's that?" there's a link...)

Epic Words - a home for your RPG - Role-playing Game Blogs and Wikis