I'm a little neophytic in terms of role-playing experience and was wondering how to get into an online game. But how exactly does this work? I've been to a few sites but they looked somewhat arcane and confused. My questions are this. Is online D&D just like table-top, with typing replacing actual speech? Are there any special programs I need or may need? How does one get into an actual game? Is it difficult? I consider myself a fairly adaptable player, not looking for anything in particular as long as its d20 and preferably fantasy.
Can someone explain Online D&D to me?
- Thread starter Rahkan
- Start date
Reprisal
First Post
PBEM, PBP and mIRC!
Oh my!
... ... Okay, that was lame, but still, I believe there are several ways to play a traditional RPG online: (I'm going to exclude Massive Multiplayer RPGs, and CRPGs.)
1) mIRC - (Chatroom Roleplaying) Generally an event online where the DM and the Players get together around a fictional table and play out a campaign online in realtime. They tend to use dicerollers to help solve the problems of combat. Of all the different types of online play, this is the one most similar to sitting around the table, and perhaps the easiest to understand.
2) Play By E-Mail - (E-Mail RPing) PBEM is perhaps the style of online play that I understand the least, so I will be quick. The DM and Players are aware of each other's e-mail addresses and play their games through this medium. I would believe that the DM receives all of the material written by the players, and acts as a central hub which sifts through all the information, refines it for each player, and sends it to them. I would think that there's less mechanics involved in this type of style, as it's hard to get some dice-rolling going over such a long period of time.
3) Play By Post - (Message Board RPing) PBP can be summed up in a link to the In Character Forum. The DM starts a single thread, or many threads, and runs the game much in the way that they would an e-mail game. The advantage with a Message board game is the centricity of the game itself. The game is always there, and PBP seems to act as a medium between the real-time of mIRC play, and the detail level of E-Mail play. Of all the different kinds of game, I think I like this style the best for its collection of advantages.
Personally, I think that I would enjoy running or playing in a PBP game, though I doubt I'd have the time to do so...
Still, online play seems to be something of a threshold for good gamers. To commit to a game, you know that the players are willing to put the time in on the game itself. Also, the degree of focus on the game is also a great benefit. When someone posts to a game, they aren't hampered by real-time distractions like other players quoting inconsequential stuff from The Simpsons or ( 
) some online comic you've never heard of...
It's a neat experience, and I've had the privilege of playing in something of a Macro-RPG where we take on the roles of leaders of nations. In essence, we play both our characters, and our nations. It was fun! I'd recommend online play to anyone interested in some focused gaming with enthusiastic players.
Oh my!
... ... Okay, that was lame, but still, I believe there are several ways to play a traditional RPG online: (I'm going to exclude Massive Multiplayer RPGs, and CRPGs.)
1) mIRC - (Chatroom Roleplaying) Generally an event online where the DM and the Players get together around a fictional table and play out a campaign online in realtime. They tend to use dicerollers to help solve the problems of combat. Of all the different types of online play, this is the one most similar to sitting around the table, and perhaps the easiest to understand.
2) Play By E-Mail - (E-Mail RPing) PBEM is perhaps the style of online play that I understand the least, so I will be quick. The DM and Players are aware of each other's e-mail addresses and play their games through this medium. I would believe that the DM receives all of the material written by the players, and acts as a central hub which sifts through all the information, refines it for each player, and sends it to them. I would think that there's less mechanics involved in this type of style, as it's hard to get some dice-rolling going over such a long period of time.
3) Play By Post - (Message Board RPing) PBP can be summed up in a link to the In Character Forum. The DM starts a single thread, or many threads, and runs the game much in the way that they would an e-mail game. The advantage with a Message board game is the centricity of the game itself. The game is always there, and PBP seems to act as a medium between the real-time of mIRC play, and the detail level of E-Mail play. Of all the different kinds of game, I think I like this style the best for its collection of advantages.
Personally, I think that I would enjoy running or playing in a PBP game, though I doubt I'd have the time to do so...
Still, online play seems to be something of a threshold for good gamers. To commit to a game, you know that the players are willing to put the time in on the game itself. Also, the degree of focus on the game is also a great benefit. When someone posts to a game, they aren't hampered by real-time distractions like other players quoting inconsequential stuff from The Simpsons or ( ) some online comic you've never heard of...It's a neat experience, and I've had the privilege of playing in something of a Macro-RPG where we take on the roles of leaders of nations. In essence, we play both our characters, and our nations. It was fun! I'd recommend online play to anyone interested in some focused gaming with enthusiastic players.
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Moulin Rogue
First Post
Rahkan said:
In my experience (and I guess all future ones until all participants have built-in voice phones) it is all typed, yes, with a "dicebot" to handle rolling. The typing makes the games quite slow.
I used IRC (Internet Relay Chat). There are others out there with features like maps for combat and so on.
One place you could try is "Gamers Seeking Gamers" right here on this board (it's under "Bits n Pieces").
Sometimes it gets very confusing when you get four people typing at once, some typing faster than others and responding to questions at a different rate. I would say it works best with small groups and very simple (or no) combat to keep things from bogging down. Two advantages: you can log the chat and have a perfect account of each session (extremely helpful when a player misses a session and wants to know what happened), and it's easy for the DM and PCs to exchange private notes among each other without other PCs knowing anything is going on.
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Aeolius
Adventurer
My undersea adventure, "Beneath the Pinnacles of Azor'alq" (BPAA), is a 3e D&D World of Greyhawk message-based game (Play-by-Post) set beneath the surface of the Dramidj Ocean. The campaign, which uses the "core rules of 3e, select supplements from 2e, and the heart of 1e", is designed for those interested in participating in a work of coauthored interactive fiction.
In the campaign, I post a new "Chapter" once a week. During the week, the players respond to events in the Chapter, to NPCs, and to one another. I will add updates as time permits. The next week, I post a new Chapter. While this method of game play requires a degree of patience and the occasional spell-checker, I have found it one of the best options for those with hectic schedules.
At least that's how I do it
In the campaign, I post a new "Chapter" once a week. During the week, the players respond to events in the Chapter, to NPCs, and to one another. I will add updates as time permits. The next week, I post a new Chapter. While this method of game play requires a degree of patience and the occasional spell-checker, I have found it one of the best options for those with hectic schedules.
At least that's how I do it
Psychotic Dreamer
First Post
I have run and played in many games over IRC and I have found it to be quite enjoyable, but not nearly as fun as in person play. I engage in online games currently because I don't live near enough any other players.
I have been involved in both high combat and games with almost no combat. Combat can get a bit slow, but there is software that can be used to assist with this.
I have been involved in both high combat and games with almost no combat. Combat can get a bit slow, but there is software that can be used to assist with this.
CrusaderX
First Post
Also, don't forget about Neverwinter Nights !
Malin Genie
First Post
Reprisal gave an excellent summary.
I have just started running a 'hybrid' game (a 3E conversion of Keep on the Borderlands.)
It is mostly PBP: character actions/dialogue and my updates are posted to a Yahoo Group, but if a character does something 'aside' (out of knowledge of the other characters) I have a 'DM email address' and so also have the capacity to interact individually with them.
The 'die rolls' problem is solved by me making all die rolls. I know I won't cheat ^_^ but more importantly it saves time, as I incorporate the results of the die rolls into my update post.
From my previous (limited) experience of PBEM/PBP it does work better for roleplaying than combat (which can bog down.)
If you are interested in 'watching' drop me an email (kotb_dm@hotmail.com) and I'll sign you up to the YahooGroup. That way you can see what it's like in practise.
OTOH if you want to see what 'chat-style' games are like, my suggestion is to try the Crossroads Online Yahoo Group (or other online gaming group.) They have regular games, and I'm sure they'd welcome someone to participate or even just sit in on a game.
I have just started running a 'hybrid' game (a 3E conversion of Keep on the Borderlands.)
It is mostly PBP: character actions/dialogue and my updates are posted to a Yahoo Group, but if a character does something 'aside' (out of knowledge of the other characters) I have a 'DM email address' and so also have the capacity to interact individually with them.
The 'die rolls' problem is solved by me making all die rolls. I know I won't cheat ^_^ but more importantly it saves time, as I incorporate the results of the die rolls into my update post.
From my previous (limited) experience of PBEM/PBP it does work better for roleplaying than combat (which can bog down.)
If you are interested in 'watching' drop me an email (kotb_dm@hotmail.com) and I'll sign you up to the YahooGroup. That way you can see what it's like in practise.
OTOH if you want to see what 'chat-style' games are like, my suggestion is to try the Crossroads Online Yahoo Group (or other online gaming group.) They have regular games, and I'm sure they'd welcome someone to participate or even just sit in on a game.
There are other places, too, but you need to be careful where you go.
There are things called MUCKS and MUDs. You need to download a client, and email them for a character.
I run and play in two games online on this format. There's a roll combat (Roll 1d20+4 to get 18, or other random rolls). These are like really better then chat rooms, and they're faster. In some cases, in the rare cases, there are a lot of Good RPers there; the majority of people I game with are more RP intensive.
Of course, be aware also that, when you're gaming in a text enviorment, the Gametime will be smaller; gaming online takes a little longer, because you need to wait on responses, etc.
I'll get the URL for the MUCK I game on, but right now, this is the webpage for my game: http://inizii.merkava.org/
There are things called MUCKS and MUDs. You need to download a client, and email them for a character.
I run and play in two games online on this format. There's a roll combat (Roll 1d20+4 to get 18, or other random rolls). These are like really better then chat rooms, and they're faster. In some cases, in the rare cases, there are a lot of Good RPers there; the majority of people I game with are more RP intensive.
Of course, be aware also that, when you're gaming in a text enviorment, the Gametime will be smaller; gaming online takes a little longer, because you need to wait on responses, etc.
I'll get the URL for the MUCK I game on, but right now, this is the webpage for my game: http://inizii.merkava.org/
Buttercup
Princess of Florin
The biggest problems with message board play are: it takes forever, and it eats a great deal of your life.
If you get involved with a group of good role players, don't be surprised if 20 or more pages of text are generated each day. If you have a job where you can do this, lucky you. If you don't, then you need to be very clear up front just exactly how many hours a week you will be able to devote to the game.
My online players took 3 months of real time to advance to level 2. On the other hand, I played in a more combat intensive game, and we advanced more quickly.
Message board gaming, at its best, is really like an interactive novel.
You can probably find DMs looking for players here: Valhalla
If you get involved with a group of good role players, don't be surprised if 20 or more pages of text are generated each day. If you have a job where you can do this, lucky you. If you don't, then you need to be very clear up front just exactly how many hours a week you will be able to devote to the game.
My online players took 3 months of real time to advance to level 2. On the other hand, I played in a more combat intensive game, and we advanced more quickly.
Message board gaming, at its best, is really like an interactive novel.
You can probably find DMs looking for players here: Valhalla
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