The Levitator's Tuesday night victims.

[Double King]

A group of three (soon to be four) of us are playing a very modified version of FR, being DM'd by The Levitator. The DM runs all the rolls and accounting through DM Genie and we players communicate on VOIP and manage our pawns on MT.

The first session was last week. We all agreed to to start at 8pm EST and run through 11pm. Most of us signed on at 7pm in order to check some technical stuff. This campaign is being run on version 1.3b18. At least one of us, me, had to dl the older version of the software.

I'm not a tech person and getting the software to run on my mac was a bit of an issue. The auto-run is missing from the dl version. luckily one of our players is up on line command and Terminal which let me join the group.

Over the course of the next few hours we managed to get through three different combat scenarios and shake out this system for all of us players.

There were a few MT issues that hopefully some of the other players can chime in with particulars in a couple of instances different players would interact with their Tokens for move and it would show up on their side but wouldn't register with the serving computer or other players. This happened with two different players at completely different times. I think they solved this by logging out having the Token released to general control and then reassigning it to them when they returned.

Something else that came up in game play was a simple request that it might be nice to have movement logged somewhere, either as an option for the chat window or another window entirely that could be loaded optionally. I can't remember the specific need but we all thought it would be a good addition at the time. I can see this maybe being helpful with war games too.

Ok so this isn't really a great write up of how much fun the Levitator's system is but you could pm me for the blood and guts. I assumed that you'd want to know more about MT's performance.

Being that this is an older build, some of these issues might already be resolved. Keeping the self extracting files for us mac people would sure be a kindness though.

Happy holidays.

[thelevitator]

Yeah, despite the technical glitches, I was really impressed with how quickly everyone caught on to the myriad of variants and houserules that we use. It got pretty hairy in the last combat and the party nearly lost a couple people, but tactics (and a little luck) prevailed and everyone survived.

I was really happy that despite the fact that it was a new group playing for the first time together and the technical glitches, we still managed 3 encounters in less than a 4 hour session.

We have a couple of new players joining our next session, so it should be even more fun. One of the new players is also one of my tabletop players, so it will be nice to have a cagey veteran on board to help with explaining the system from a player's perspective.

We gamed with our tabletop group yesterday and had 3 instances running; 2 on my laptop and one player's laptop and didn't have a single problem with token control or people getting booted. I believe we did a LAN setup though, so I don't know if that makes a difference or not.

Hopefully the glitches we had were temporary, and now we know how to circumvent them.

I'm really enjoying running an online group, for sure!

[Hawke]

Awesome!

I got DM Genie from one of my players for christmas, any good tips? I'm not sure we'll use it for all the rolls, but at least knowing quickly the stats and using it for monster rolls will be awesome as heck. I'd love some great tips!

[thelevitator]

I would be more than happy to help you get acclimated to it as quickly as possible. It is a little daunting at first, but you'll be surprised at how quickly it will become a part of your game management.

DM Genie works just as well with a group that uses dice at the table, as it has a manual mode. That's how we used it for almost a year before we went diceless.

One of the nicest things about DM Genie to me is the Campaign Manager. Together with the Adventure Creation System that I made with the help of another DM, I have minimal prep time compared to when I didn't have DM Genie.

Feel free to get ahold of me whenever you like with any questions you have about DM Genie. I'll answer every one of them that I can. Those that I can't, I will forward to Azhrei.

[Azhrei]

Wow, you got DM Genie for Christmas!! What a great gift!

This tool is extremely flexible and you'll definitely want to sign up on the forums at dmgenie.com as well as some of the Yahoo! groups (GeniesBottle and GeniesLamp come to mind right away).

If you're interested in some of the things that TheLev is doing with his campaign, I'm sure he can export the scripts he uses so that you can import them.

One important issue: be sure to create a new campaign right away before messing around with the "core" DM Genie setup. The "core" configuration is used as a base for any new campaigns that are created, so it should never be touched (in general). Open the Campaign Manager (from the Window menu) and then select File->Create New Campaign... from the menu.

After that, have fun poking around. And also -- be sure to run through the tutorials available from the Help menu. They will give a you great preview of how easy it can be do DM a game. Don't be put off by how intensely packed the information seems to be on the screen: you'll be an old hand at it in no time!

Welcome to the Community! (Er, the DM Genie Community, that is. )

[dorpond]

Before you wipe the core campaign though, make sure you do the tutorial!

I kicked DMGenie to the curb 3 times because I didn't understand it; the 4th time I did the tutorial and now I don't game without it.

Run the tutorial! It is worth it!

[trevor]

I assumed that you'd want to know more about MT's performance.

Actually, I like to hear about both equally Bring on the blood, guts, and details, and screenshots are icing on the cake !

[Azhrei]

DoubleKing, I responded in another thread about an interim solution for running MapTool with a double-click, but I'll summarize here: rename the Launch MapTool.sh file so that it ends in .command, then double-click it to start the tool. It will open Terminal and run the program. The memory size will be set inside the script, so to change the memory configuration will require editing the file. TheLev is using a 1GB configuration for the server, so the clients should really use 1GB or more as well. (If the server can handle all of the maps in 1GB, surely the client can as well!)

I will eventually have a GUI that prompts for the memory size, but it won't be ready for tonight's session... Maybe the next one...

[Double King]

Brilliant Az. I'll be up and around post 7est tonight just to make certain i'm not "part of the problem" this session. I'd been looking for that other thread where i was wheedling you but couldn't remember the title of it.

[Double King]

Session 2: where we presumably save Newfort.

"So much blood and so very little gold. I would sell my heart if i thought i could buy my way out of this hellish region." - from the journals of Pip Helix.



"Why are all the Orcs named 'James'?" - session outtake

We picked up where we left off from evening 1. At a small rural farm home left in tatters after wandering Orcs had made their folly there. Arcwood, Javergen and I .... I mean, Pip... hear rustling in the woods. Three men come running out from the tree line, pursued by more hordes of Orcs. We manage to rally these new friends and together we beat back the heathen mob. With magic a few are felled into a most lethal slumber. The rest are brought down by bow and blunder. Three of the orcs flee for the hills but vengeance is swift and the cunning of Elven archery is a fine rebuttal.

A day in rain makes everyone miserable. We slowly march to Newfort. The town is set upon by all sorts of refugees hoping to steal away behind the fortified walls and live another day. With cunning and guile, Pip Helix talks his way past the centurions and secures warm lodging and an immediate audience with the town's nobles.

Quickly, new friend Krug and Arcwood make haste to sell their Orcish booty to an impoverished/war torn town. The townsmen cry famine but need the weapons so greatly that they pay. and pay. and pay dearly for the weapons and armor.

An audience with the town elders produces a meager offering to the heroes: horses for most, and stationery for Eric Denton. Told of their impending doom against the Orcs, our party is sent to a neighboring village for reinforcements.

A day's ride from Newfort finds us ambushed by larger, more fell creatures still. The stumbling and inept Orogs are massive but no match for Pip and his companions. Heavy damage is wrought again upon our fellow Javirgen. The party employs multiple tactics of magic, flanking, speed, height, cover and meat shield. Soon, this too was over. A few more bolts lost into brackish blood and Pip may rest again. Tomorrow this group will reach the safety of city walls and then what will we make of ourselves? What of Newfort?

By the way, Trevor and Co... we are happy to report that we had a twice as large group still running 1.3b18 and absolutely no technical problems. Go figure.

[thelevitator]

What an awesome account of last night's game! I had a blast last night! We added 2 players, had no technical glitches (well, except for Bo's battle with his new TV ), and played a long and eventful session!

I want to thank all of my players for being so patient last night. We had planned on starting around 6 to get everyone linked to MT and create the new characters. I had an appt. to deliver my RV to get it serviced as we are taking it to Reno for Jen to live in during our relocation process. I was keeping the fuel level low because our gas gauge is broken and in order to fix it, they need to drop the gas tank. Well, we almost made,it, but ran out of gas just a couple miles from the RV service center. After a fun little adventure of obtaining a gas can and getting gas for the RV, I got home a little late. Everyone was great about the 45 minute delay and I really appreciate it.

Once we got everyone created and equipped, things really started clicking. About halfway through the session though, I realized that I need to run this game with a dual monitor setup, as I was flipping through screens like a ferret on a double espresso trying to keep up with these guys.

I am so impressed with how quickly everyone is catching on to our system and how creative everyone is as a group in their tactics. I was very nervous about starting an online group, but I am very glad that I did.

Now that the group has grown, I can get really creative in finding ways to kill....I mean...challenge them!

I have to say that I've been surprised at some of the horror stories about some of the DM's my players have experienced in the past. It's starting to make me think that I'm going too soft on 'em!

Thanks again SR players for a really fun night!

[mrobviousjosh]

Now that the group has grown, I can get really creative in finding ways to kill....I mean...challenge them!

Don't think I haven't already planned my next character. Seriously, I really have, lol.

I have to say that I've been surprised at some of the horror stories about some of the DM's my players have experienced in the past. It's starting to make me think that I'm going too soft on 'em!

It's gotten me used to "tough love" because of other DMs. Believe it or not, I've actually become MUCH more attentive to details because of it (my surroundings/enemies- some were DM custom creations, my actions, and the actions of other PCs and NPCs). I can't wait to get into a fight we can't win, lol. I thought the second fight might have fit the bill but I quickly saw that wasn't the case (even though I almost died).

Thanks again SR players for a really fun night!

It was fun for us too! I can't wait for next week. Also, don't worry about staying up late, even when I go back to law school I tend not to go to bed until early in the morning. Afternoon classes are awesome. XD

[trevor]

The rest are brought down by bow and blunder.

Sounds like my kind of rolling

Thanks for the great write-up, I really enjoy reading them, and the screeny is awesome

[Double King]

Session 3: The Road to Sundabar

"Thrown away by the elves that borne me and chased across the plains by orc. I travel with curs, killers and craven. Every family is the same: Some clean their blades in the evening with dreams of elysian fields; some sit awake under dismal clouds and yawing bowers waiting for the water to rise and lick away our sins." - from the journals of Pip Helix.

It was a hazy day en route to Sundabar, from Newfort by way of the main road. It was warm and sticky with a sort of hanging in the air. As the sun went down and its red eye winked into a distant sky, coarse calls burned in the woods. A cry of warning from a fleeing orc. These hills were lousy with them. Our group crashed into the lush woods. More comfortable in the stirrups and a bit brash from our recent success. A quick bow shot lodges a bolt into the singsong guardian but not before the orc encampment unleashes and hell is summoned forth to meet us on the flats of the Silver Marches.

The battle is tiring and everyone sees their own blood before the orcs and orogs are laid to rest. Pip's first shot laid true in a fallen orc's back but he would over-flank the camp and be lost in the woods for the beginning of the battle in true [too much topology added to that Steel Rat's map i blame.] Our gallant rogue returns through the thicket to join the end of the battle. Spurring his horse around, Pip loosens another block from his crossbow to down the last fleeing orc. The warhorse rears up and performs the final coup de grace - its hooves crashing down through the brittle remnants of an orcish rib cage. A final cry pumps out like a broken bagpipe in the hands of a dilettante and then there is quiet again on the main road. You can clean the blood off the horse's hooves but you can never remove the sense of satisfaction from its eyes.

Either Kruug or Arcwood revives one of the downed orcs with the intention of interrogation. It bristles and defiantly demands its orc death. An orcish death? Certainly that will come my fine friend but nobody said anything of a dignified death. Eric Denton fishes out his pound of soap with which to pretty up the orc as a warning to others that would interfere with our business. Now where did we place the battle lipstick?



The final day to Sundabar is clear in the sky and the hills are lined in verdant green. Around noon, a burning caravan ruined our final mile to the broken city beyond the veil. A small grouping of orcs led by cunning of orogs pulled a heavy laiden cart off the road. They'd littered the road with the remains of the merchants and guardsmen that had so recently decorated the carts.

With surprise on our side, the group of us ambush the orcs from the rear. Quickly the rear guard fall. Yet as soon as they're downed, luminous in their half-plate, three thick and hardened orog turn down the mountain with axes in motion. The confusion of battle wraps itself around this little valley. The orogs prove to be too great for most of us and the battle begins on the wrong foot. Pip drives his stallion through the back of one of these tanks sending it hard into the dirt. As his horse pivots to go again, instead quickly Arkwood, our elven cleric, steps in to grapple the monster. Frustrated, the orog wrestles with the elf... like a sneeze that never comes. Within a matter of moments, Pip, Arkwood and these lethal stallions have dug their way through this tin can. In the end, Arkwood drops the thing like so many pieces of orog disguised in metal slag. To the west and further north, Denton, Kruug and Javirgen have managed to tell similar stories.

Again we set for Sundabar and whatever tries us there.



...

the technical stuff. many more problems again tonight. all of it seems to be around voip connections. two of our group had different problems with getting dropped or bad connections. am i the only one that likes skype? happy gaming. Btw, Steel Rat, we all loved the maps.

[Hawke]

I like how you handled the trees and the VBL. Often times I geet too crazy and end up treating the tree lines incorrectly as if they were solid walls. It looks like the desired effect is both realistic and looks good.

Sounds like fun!