First time CK looking for advice
- Dorf the Dwarf
- Mist Elf
- Posts: 28
- Joined: Sun Oct 13, 2019 7:44 pm
First time CK looking for advice
Hello, fellow C&C fans. I hope you and your loved ones are in good health in good spirit. After years of roleplaying I decided to try my hand as a game master and because I have class as a Castle Keeper. I intend to use discord and Roll20 and The Rising Knight module. I am looking for advice and tips. Thank you in advance. Stay safe and remember: this too will pass.
Re: First time CK looking for advice
[edit]
Moved from Keeper's Advice.
Moved from Keeper's Advice.
Re: First time CK looking for advice
Welcome to the world or C&C DMing!
the Monday Night group I'm in uses discord all the time and roll 20 (sometimes map tools) for half the games
So here is what I can advice from it
From personal experience, since you are using discord & roll 20 - be ready for com issues if you have someone that has spotty internet. I live in the hinterlands of Oklahoma and my internet tends to be an issues. So be ready to work around bad coms etc.
Also, roll 20 HATES me. it is a running, but sad, joke about my roll 20 (and maptools) luck - there have been nights I never roll above a 5 and get 3 1s in 5 rolls. Now I'm an ole experienced gamer and can laugh off this level of bad luck, night after night after night, but a new player may get frustrated with it.
Now, when I run for the Monday night games, I use theater of the mind (though I will start using limited visuals and maps) and it does work well at least for me and my group, so don't be tied to a specific techno tool, there are other options out there.
As for GMing in general - be flexible. Have your plans and ideas and general guide of what the players will do, but do not be surprised if the group takes a L turn when you expected them to go right, miss a clue that you left for them to follow, or pick up on a minor bit of background feel info and take it is the critical secret hint they need.
Don't get vapor locked trying to think about everything the party can do, but don't be brutally ridged to your plan either. Flex with it and modify as needed
One thing I do is take an 'All roads lead to Rome' mindset. That and make my plot hooks and clues more fluid. If they miss something at A then they will see something like it at C, if they forget about something important at B then they will find something at D that reminds them. Then it doesn't matter if they go down X Y or Z because they each end up at the same location (they may be longer of shorter paths, but the high road and the low road still get you to Dublin town).
Lastly, have fun and make sure your players are having fun too.
the Monday Night group I'm in uses discord all the time and roll 20 (sometimes map tools) for half the games
So here is what I can advice from it
From personal experience, since you are using discord & roll 20 - be ready for com issues if you have someone that has spotty internet. I live in the hinterlands of Oklahoma and my internet tends to be an issues. So be ready to work around bad coms etc.
Also, roll 20 HATES me. it is a running, but sad, joke about my roll 20 (and maptools) luck - there have been nights I never roll above a 5 and get 3 1s in 5 rolls. Now I'm an ole experienced gamer and can laugh off this level of bad luck, night after night after night, but a new player may get frustrated with it.
Now, when I run for the Monday night games, I use theater of the mind (though I will start using limited visuals and maps) and it does work well at least for me and my group, so don't be tied to a specific techno tool, there are other options out there.
As for GMing in general - be flexible. Have your plans and ideas and general guide of what the players will do, but do not be surprised if the group takes a L turn when you expected them to go right, miss a clue that you left for them to follow, or pick up on a minor bit of background feel info and take it is the critical secret hint they need.
Don't get vapor locked trying to think about everything the party can do, but don't be brutally ridged to your plan either. Flex with it and modify as needed
One thing I do is take an 'All roads lead to Rome' mindset. That and make my plot hooks and clues more fluid. If they miss something at A then they will see something like it at C, if they forget about something important at B then they will find something at D that reminds them. Then it doesn't matter if they go down X Y or Z because they each end up at the same location (they may be longer of shorter paths, but the high road and the low road still get you to Dublin town).
Lastly, have fun and make sure your players are having fun too.
"And so I am become a knight of the Kingdom of Dreams and Shadows!" - Mark Twain
Forgive all spelling errors.
Knight Errant & Humble C&C Society Contributor
C&C Society
Forgive all spelling errors.
Knight Errant & Humble C&C Society Contributor
C&C Society
Re: First time CK looking for advice
Emphasis mine.Lurker wrote: ↑Fri Feb 19, 2021 3:04 pm<snip>
Also, roll 20 HATES me. it is a running, but sad, joke about my roll 20 (and maptools) luck - there have been nights I never roll above a 5 and get 3 1s in 5 rolls. Now I'm an ole experienced gamer and can laugh off this level of bad luck, night after night after night, but a new player may get frustrated with it.
<snip>
You, too?
My C&C DM allows the choice of using the the Roll20 die roller or players can use physical dice during the online games. We're all friends who have known each other for 15+ years so the honor system is definitely in play. Sometimes, to everyone's amusement, my physical dice perform worse than the Roll20 system!
Imaginatio est Vita
Grand Knight Commander
Grand Knight Commander
Re: First time CK looking for advice
Welcome to CnC, lucky for you the boards seem to have a bit of a resurgence... I was DnD in the 70s to the early 90s then tinkered with it and gave up at 3.5.... with that back ground I like the use of mini's at the table and people all around... but as you so well point out, many of us are distance gaming due to Covid or there is just no one around...
Discord is OK, but I find Zoom to be more stable, but someone should buy a seat at it and let them host, not sure the cost, but I'm looking into that now... a laptop or your cell phone should work for the chatting with faces.
Others have run Fantasy Grounds with me playing it, its OK, makes things go faster, but to me, I still prefer real dice at the table and my mini's (all of which I have known longer than my children)... No experience with D20.
I use a second lap top for table/board overview and my cell phone for close ups, and a second lap top to chat and see faces... so I end up logging into the chat (discord or Zoom) three times and the folks can see it all... I have to move things around more, but not much different than around a table.
Just played two games yesterday in this manner, I have not done 8 hours of gaming in a long time...
Discord is OK, but I find Zoom to be more stable, but someone should buy a seat at it and let them host, not sure the cost, but I'm looking into that now... a laptop or your cell phone should work for the chatting with faces.
Others have run Fantasy Grounds with me playing it, its OK, makes things go faster, but to me, I still prefer real dice at the table and my mini's (all of which I have known longer than my children)... No experience with D20.
I use a second lap top for table/board overview and my cell phone for close ups, and a second lap top to chat and see faces... so I end up logging into the chat (discord or Zoom) three times and the folks can see it all... I have to move things around more, but not much different than around a table.
Just played two games yesterday in this manner, I have not done 8 hours of gaming in a long time...
Wow, Another Natural One! You guys are a sink hole for luck. Stay away from my dice.
Re: First time CK looking for advice
Wow, same background and preference as I. Except I lost my mini's in a move. Loved those highly detailed Ral Partha mini's. That quality doesn't exist anymore.