D&D General What Do You Miss Most About Face-to-Face D&D?

[UngeheuerLich]

I've actually been finding I really enjoy the VTT, if only the map & tokens. If we could combine that with sitting around a table rolling real dice, it would be perfect.

Or, really, just the map but with real minis on it. (Yes, I know there have been some attempts to do exactly this.)

I can imagine using such a tool when being face to face a lot easier than online. I fear that online it shifts the focus too much to a tactical wargame.

 

[Dave Goff]

Red pepper dip!
There was someone who often brought a red pepper dip and we all agreed it was one of the most delicious things, evah! Tried making it, wasn't as good. sigh
More seriously, the casual chat element is easier in person. Online we still do it but there's an element of "Okay Dave, your turn, how're things going?" that seems much less conducive to natural conversation.
Our online game goes great though. We even roll physical dice and don't worry about ti because, as crazy as it sounds, we totally trust each other. It's a good group and we'll do what it takes to keep the game rolling.

 

[Wasteland Knight]

Nothing. Because I wasn’t playing any RPG FtF.

I went 5 years without a sugar gaming session.

I discovered that fir me to e joy a game, I needed to collaborate with interested, invested gamers who all possessed a high level of system mastery.

While I had this group a few times, inevitably relocations would splinter the group.

Now, my group all live in different states. It’s far easier to schedule virtual games.

 

[Bayushi_seikuro]

I miss getting together and seeing people. Online gaming has been alright, but I find a lot of my focus is on making sure I don't talk over other players. When you're around the table, that's some of the fun - the side conversations if they're not distracting others

 

[Blue Orange]

Knowing when you've pissed people off, honestly.

I'm not going to claim I'm autistic because there are people a heck of a lot worse off than me, but I'm not great at the facial-expressions-and-body-language thing. As a new-after-a-long-hiatus gamer it's harder to tell when you're annoying people by the way you play or doing stupid things, and ironically dropping to just voice makes it even harder.

 

[MNblockhead]

Non-game banter. My sessions run fairly long, 8 hours. In-person games have more down-time and you spend that downtime together. Folks are welcome to show up early and hang out a while. When we break for lunch we tend to go pick up food at a nearby fast food place together and eat together.

With video conferences and VTTs, we are much more "productive" and focused on the game, but I miss the non-productive, just hanging out moments before, after, and during breaks.

 

[Stalker0]

So I've been running remote since Covid in March, and just last week start back in person again. So the things I immediately noticed.

1) Body language: Both from myself just being to show off character traits, to being able to judge how engaged (or bored) my players were with certain aspects.

2) Simultaneous conversations. Its funny how much this happens, from group laughter at an event, to two players having a quick sidebar while I continue with the main conversation, there's a smoothness to this that is lost in remote play.

3) General banter. While it still happened remotely there was a "clinicalness" to the game. We got on, we played, we stopped. In game people joke more and talk about various things both before and after the game.

 

[Haffrung]

I'll tell you what I don't miss: the farts (looking at you, Bryce).

 

[jgsugden]

I moved across the country in December. Iwas still playing with my group using a zoom meeting and a camera, but the move to virtual has been good for me, personally. However, I miss the hell out of my friends, I miss using the newly painted minis, and I miss wearing pants while I play. Well, not so much on that last one.

 

[EscherEnigma]

Pizza and seeing peoples expressions.
That said, I transitioned to virtual play years ago because folks moved around, so that's not likely to end soon.