The time has come for me to take up the mantle of DM again, at last. I'd like to run an IRC game set in the Jade Stage, and the purpose of this thread is to figure out exactly what to do and whom to do it with.
Here are the things I need:
Players! Ideally, I'd like to have four or five of you fine-quality individuals as players, but I'll open the game to as many of you as I can handle. If you want to play, familiarity with the Jade Stage is not required now, but I will expect you to make use of the resources provided as we go along, in order to become in informed participant. Familiarity with IRC is not required; I'll help you through the basics as we go.
If you're interested, post here, and we'll talk over the details. I won't need a character from you until we decide what kind of game we want to play.
A time slot! We'll decide this for certain once we finalize the roster of players, but we can go ahead and bandy about suggestions now. I'll go ahead and say that Mondays-Thursdays from about 6 PM - 12 AM EST (GMT -5) are probably going to be the only timeslots I can guarantee I'll have open, once my semester begins. We will choose one night a week, about a 3 or 4 hour slot, and meet there regularly. Since we'll essentially be gaming in real-time via chatroom, you'll have to be able to join us at our agreed-upon time in order to participate.
An idea! I have a few half-formed plans. We'll decide together which one to use. Here are a few three-sentence stubs to get the creative juices flowing:
- Battle of Brithen, Part II - Twelve years ago, Formeria added the island of Brithen to its Empire. Now, rebels and insurgents are challenging the Formerian government. You are an elite task force within the Formerian military, sent by the Emperor to quell the violence and restore Brithen to order.
- Locksmiths - You are members of an Entámin cell of the global anti-slavery organization, the Locksmiths. Your task is to disrupt the operations of Ithyrian slavers and free their nonhuman slaves. The government of the United Republics sponsors you secretly and unofficially, but you must act subtly, or risk igniting outright war between the two nations.
- High Crimes in Low Places - Yolek-Ja, the aggregate city: haven to a thousand types of corporate criminals and treacherous thugs. Do you have what it takes to secure a living in this cutthroat iron jungle? Work in the employ of one crimelord against another, expecting intrigue and betrayal as you go.
- The Grand, Spiraling Waltz - The once-grand kingdom of Cardannis is headed for collapse, beset by the threat of bankruptcy, an atrophied military, the predations of hostile tribes, and growing tensions with neighboring nations. You sit on the Vine Circle, advisors to the young Catera queen. Will you be able to lead Cardannis back to its former state of glory, or at least slow its inexorable descent into ruin? Will you be able to seize massive armfuls of power from rival tribes?
- Other Adventures a la carte - I am totally open to suggestions, here. War, politics, crime, exploration-- you name it, and we'll talk.
Maybe I'll add some more options as we brainstorm some more, but that's a fairly varied list, and should be enough to get us started.
Posting interest.
I am currently reading Jade Stage (started late last night) to review it. I'm availible most of the time, though for IRC I would have to start after work so anytime after 6pm on weekdays.
I want in! I've been drooling over your setting for far too long to miss this. I don't really have much experience, but I definitely want in. I don't really know IRC, but I'm sure I can figure it out.
I'll pretty much be willing to play anything, although the battle of Brithen sounds fun. I just really want in.
I cannot choose any one of the ideas you have listed, they all are interesting and I would love to see how they would play out.
Hey LC,
I'm in. Any of those nights, as long as we pick one and stick with it (and as long as I can get to bed at a decent hour ;) ), are fine with me. I particularly like the Battle of Brithen plot, then after that, all of them are of equal interest to me. The Cardannis plot sounds intriguing, but would it mean we would all have to be dwarves? Also, I like exploration adventures, so if we decide on a la carte, the exploration plot gets my vote.
Cheers!
I'll join! I've never actually played IRC before, favouring PbP and PnP... but hey, there's a first for everything.
Just noting that I'm totally jealous of you guys for playing out one of these fascinating campaign hooks in LC's brilliant setting. Unfortunately I won't be able to join because of a lack of free time in general, and the inconvenience of playing between 12 AM and 6 AM (GMT+1) specifically. Have fun all!
:( Túrin
Yeah Turin that is one of the things I like about PbP. It is very internationally friendly.
... I have to play GMT, doesn't mean I can't do it.
Edit: Actually it does, if we're doing it over an IM system. Have to count me out. :(
I would love to join up on the endeavor, but I really wouldn't be suited for it. I'm not very good at meeting times at the moment due to work and countless last-minute duties that arise. For what it's worth, though, if I were playing I would definitely be pushing for a seafaring expedition that's trying to determine if there's really anything out there beyond the water. :)
Quote from: Natural 20I don't really know IRC, but I'm sure I can figure it out.
As I said, lack of familiarity with IRC is not a problem. I expect that most people will be IRC newbies, but the learning curve is rather gentle.
Quote from: IshyThe Cardannis plot sounds intriguing, but would it mean we would all have to be dwarves?
extremely[/i] fun for political drama of the backstabbing variety, but that'd be humans-only. Likewise, we could do Imperial politics, which would be more open to diversity (but non-liriss would be severely disadvantaged, due to their
obviously inferior warmblood pedigrees), and Republics politics are not as conducive to hands-on player involvement (because the Senate doesn't get much done, unless you count arguments.)
But again, I'm pretty flexible with ideas at this point in the creative process. If the group consensus is that playing a political game = good, but playing in Cardannis = bad, we'll simply figure out another way to make it happen.
Quote from: TùúûürinUnfortunately I won't be able to join because of a lack of free time in general, and the inconvenience of playing between 12 AM and 6 AM (GMT+1) specifically.
ever[/i] involved a Dutch gentleman and an Austrian genius (remind me to tell you all the story of the Mysteriously Immolated Trolls some time-- a direct product of Austrian ingenuity.)
Anyway, if I could run in early afternoon here, late evening for you, I would, but my schedule simply doesn't make that possible right now. My deepest apologies.
Quote from: Golem011Actually it does, if we're doing it over an IM system.
We're using IRC, which is essentially an IM system. Unlike a PbP game, we'll all meet in a chatroom together and conduct the game that way. The system has its advantages and disadvantages, but one of the tougher parts of it is that everybody needs to be able to meet at the same time, unfortunately.
Well, this is my last post on this thread. :(
Just a warning, in the dead of winter I may be required to miss a game or two, but not too many. basketball games and such. but I should be clear for most of the time.
Everybody misses a game or two. It's no big deal. We usually play anyway, unless multiple people are missing, or something really earthshaking is going to happen. If you miss a game, you'll be given a summary of what happened and/or a chatlog when you return.
Getting Started in IRC - The BasicsFirst, you'll need an IRC client: the program you use to access the IRC networks. You can use any number of IRC clients, but I prefer and recommend mIRC (http://www.mirc.com) for windows users. You can use any client you like, though if you use one other than mIRC, I will be less useful for answering questions.
We do not all have to use the same client to play the same game.Install mIRC or some other client and start it up. You will be asked to enter a couple bits of information (email address, preferred nickname, etc.), and you will be asked to choose a server. Your nickname doesn't matter for now; they are easily changed, and we will be changing them frequently.
The server you want to join is MagicStar. From the Select Server list, click the Add button. You're creating a new list entry for MagicStar. In the dialogue box, fill in the information as follows:
Quote from: MagicStar Server InformationDescription: MagicStar (or however you want to label it.)
IRC Server: irc.magicstar.net
Port(s): 6667
Group: MagicStar
Password: (leave this field blank.)
#lcgame[/b] (channel names always start with #.) Go ahead and join the #lcgame channel.
(You can also join a channel by using the /join command in the chat box. From any channel window on the MagicStar server, typing "/join #lcgame" will open a new chat window in the correct channel. Or if you prefer, you can set your mIRC options to automatically join #lcgame whenever you log on to MagicStar.)
You will probably be the only person in #lcgame when you log on. Take the opportunity to experiment with things.
Chatting:Typing in the input line at the bottom of the page is pretty basic; the Enter key displays what you've typed in the channel window, for everyone in the channel to see. You can also use the up and down arrow keys to go back to things you typed earlier, to input them again (which is useful for complicated dicerolling, and other things.) You can't start any line with a slash (/), because that defines IRC commands.
Emotes:Use the command "/me" to use emotes. For example, if I type: "/me organizes the stuff on his desk into neat stacks of books and papers.", the chat window will display:
Quote* LuminousCrayon organizes the stuff on his desk into neat stacks of books and papers.
Changing your nickname![/b]
This is very easy. Type "/nick Somename" to change your nickname; whatever you type after /nick becomes your new nickname. Note that you can't use spaces in a nickname, but you
can use underscores; "Luminous Crayon" doesn't work, but "Luminous_Crayon" works fine.
It's worthwhile to have at least two nicknames that you frequently use: one general one, and one for each character you play. So if your character's name is Enton, for example, you'll change your nick to Enton at the start of each session, to signify that you're in-character.
Register your nicknames!This is really easy, and it prevents people from usurping your nicknames, or from impersonating you. Once you've changed your nickname to something you're happy with, type "/ns register [password]" to claim that name for your own.
Whenever you log back in with that nickname, the server window will say, "Hey you! That's a registered nickname! What's the password?" This is where you type "/ns identify [password]", to prove that it's really you.
Might as well go ahead and register something, just to get the hang of it. I registered LuminousCrayon just now, so you can't have that one. :)
Rolling dice!This is easy to do, but the command is complex. We'll use /roll to roll dice. The command has four parts:
Quote/roll xdy+z #lcgame (description)
/roll 1d20+5 #lcgame Hey guys, this is my spot check.[/quote]-RPGServ:#lcgame- (Roll for LuminousCrayon [1d20+5]: 23) Hey guys, this is my spot check.[/quote]
Looks like a natural 18; not bad.
Practice rolling a few times, to get the hang of it.
I know this looks like a huge amount of stuff, but it's easier to get the hang of if you try it a little. If you're interested, we can arrange to hang out in #lcgame sometime so I can walk you through some things.
I'm definitely going to try and drop in during a few sessions and have a looksie. :)
I'm fine with that, as long as you don't heckle my players. :)
i'm currently looking over the setting, and would love to be in on this ( i've wanted to play in a pbp again since the last one i was in got cancelled).
I may have some trouble working it into my schedule, but let me know if there's still room for me, and i'll see what i can do.
Brent, count me in. I like the Locksmiths idea, and also the Grand, Spiraling Waltz. I can pretty much only guarantee, of your guaranteed time slots, Monday evenings.
Installed and ready to go. Registered nickname:
Ishmayl
Clever, huh?
How did you ever come up with that name for IRC? :P
I'm just good like that...
As for the ideas the first four in the first post are listed in order of my preference.
So far for interest it looks like we have:
Ishmayl
TheUrbanMonkey
Poseidon
Natural 20
Not sure whether this game got stalled or anything (no action in it's set up for a few days), but i would like to be added to that list of people who are interested.
I'm currently partway through reading the setting and it looks awesome.
so, lemme know if this is still in the works if you could.
all of the campaign ideas look great, but i am especially interested in the Locksmith's group, or High crime in low places.
Quote from: supadupamanNot sure whether this game got stalled or anything (no action in it's set up for a few days)... so, lemme know if this is still in the works if you could.
This is definitely still in the works. It's just shaping up slowly. Within the next couple of weeks, I'll be moving into a new apartment and starting grad school, and I want to wait until I'm settled in before starting the game, to make it less likely to have to change the game's schedule around later.
In the meantime, I recommend that all interested players just browse the setting a little bit each day. I'll try to post updates as often as I can, to make this more worthwhile. Just try to get a feel for the general ambience, envision what sort of character you might like to play, or what sort of game you might like to participate in, or what sort of things you might like to see. This will make the rest of the process go much more smoothly once we really get rolling.
Remember that the list of possible scenarios I posted is
not an exhaustive list. If you get a cool idea while browsing the setting, post about it, and maybe we can form it into a campaign.
I also recommend that all interested players take a half hour or so to familiarize themselves with IRC before we start. I don't anticipate problems with our technology, but you never know.
Looks like we have five players: Poseidotune, Crit, Ishy, Supadupaman, and Urban Monkey. That looks like a good group; I'm going to arbitrarily set the limit at five for my own sanity's sake.
If you are reading this and you aren't one of those five people, feel free to express interest anyway. You never know when someone is going to have to bow out due to schedule incompatibility or other real-life conflicts, leaving a space for you to step in.
In terms of scheduling, can we try and tentatively pencil in Monday night? Is there anyone who knows that Monday night will be a problem?
i do not currently know if monday nights will be a problem, but my course schedule should be getting worked out soon, and i can tell you then.
Quote from: supadupamani do not currently know if monday nights will be a problem, but my course schedule should be getting worked out soon, and i can tell you then.
Same for me
Monday evenings are great with me, LC.
Monday nights (after 6 or so) are fine for me.
as mentioned earlier, Mondays are perfect for me.
Have you given any thought to which rough story will be being used?
If so, should we think of what character we may want to play, or are you still preparing and there are expected to be delays before this is begun?
Dwarven Face FTW yo!
It's times like this that I resent being an Australian.
No Jade Stage for me...
Quote from: Crit says:I'll pretty much be willing to play anything, although the battle of Brithen sounds fun. I just really want in.
I particularly like the Battle of Brithen plot, then after that, all of them are of equal interest to me. The Cardannis plot sounds intriguing, but would it mean we would all have to be dwarves? Also, I like exploration adventures, so if we decide on a la carte, the exploration plot gets my vote.[/quote]all of the campaign ideas look great, but i am especially interested in the Locksmith's group, or High crime in low places.[/quote]If so, should we think of what character we may want to play, or are you still preparing and there are expected to be delays before this is begun?
Dwarven Face FTW yo![/quote]4th level characters, 28 point buy for ability scores.[/b] This is set up so that anyone who wants to try one of the spellcasting PrCs can do so.
That ought to be enough to get you started, although we should be able to talk in greater detail about character creation when we decide for certain on one of those games. I'm also reserving the right to say, "that particular character idea simply will not work here, try something else," although I do not expect I will have to do this.
Bear in mind that I encourage players to create
characters in the literary sense, not just the gaming sense. Stats and mechanics are all well and good, but background, personality, motivation, et cetera are also important.
You do not have to write me a novel. But if you come up with a "character" that is merely a collection of stats designed for optimal skull-crushing carnage, you will probably not get very much out of the game.
You do not have to use alignment. Honestly, I prefer you not to, but some people find it helpful, I suppose. If you do choose to use alignment for your character, I will never ever ask you for it, or care what it is, or use it in any way whatsoever. I'd rather have characters with personalities and convictions as their guiding stars than with alignments.
One more thing:
DO NOT post your character in this thread, or any other. Just PM that information to me for the time being. Mmkay? Good.
Cool. I have some ideas of what i want to do for my character's background/motivation stuff. I'll try to put it down on paper and send it to you in a bit.
Where in the world (i.e. country/city/wherever) are we starting?
Quote from: supadupamanCool. I have some ideas of what i want to do for my character's background/motivation stuff. I'll try to put it down on paper and send it to you in a bit.
Where in the world (i.e. country/city/wherever) are we starting?[/quote]Depends on what game we use. If we end up doing the Battle of Brithen scenario, you will be assigned to an elite Formerian military unit: this means your characters can come from anywhere in Imperial lands (quite a large area!), and should probably have some sort of military background, or some other skill that would make them valuable to an elite Formerian military unit. You've been chosen for this job because somehow, you've managed to impress someone important, so your background should reflect that you've done something impressive (although an impressive bribe, or an impressively influential relative, et cetera, are not out of the question.)
Quote from: Salacious AngelIt's times like this that I resent being an Australian.
No Jade Stage for me...
It is at this point that I feel I should mention that some of my all-time best gaming experiences were shared over IRC with people on opposite sides of the world.
I'm on America's east coast; one of my regular (and favorite :cloud9: ) gaming cohorts is in the Netherlands. I've been (briefly) in IRC games that involved Americans, Europeans, and and Australian at the same time; the Europeans played until 1 AM, and the Australian got up at 3:30 AM (this being a Sunday) so he could join the game. Not that it was particularly easy or pleasant for all involved (I certainly wouldn't want to wake up at 3:30 on a weekend morning), but we made it work.