of Dice and Dragons

With so many GMs and players having laptops at the table it becomes an item for discussion, do you roll dice on the table or point and click on the computer?

There are definite advantages for using the computer at the table. For starters you don’t have to worry about dice falling on the floor (unless of course that’s where you’re playing), that “cocked” die that no one’s really sure it if a 20 or not, or the odd player that forgets their dice (I don’t think anyone would forget their laptop!). It’s also great for GMs as they can roll in secret and there’s no telltale sound of dice hitting the table as well as handle hundreds of dice rolls quickly and efficiently.

Of course, for every pro there is a con and computer dice rolling is no exception. There are many dice rollers out there and some of us are even crafty enough to program our own, which in some groups begs the question, is it really random enough? When someone at the table clicks and for the sixth consecutive time a 20 comes up you start to question things but when it happens on a die that anyone can lean over and check no one thinks about it twice. There’s also the concern that someone could just sit there and continuously click away until they get a result they’re happy with, leave it on the screen and use it for their next roll (luckily there aren’t too many of these players around).

For some though there is nothing quite like the feel of dice in their hand and that familiar sound of dice rolling on the table. Whether it’s a brand new set for the first time gamer or, as in my case, any one of the many crystal dice I have that have been rolled for years it’s the one thing that all of us that have played role-playing games have had a chance to share and will continue to share no matter how modernized the game becomes.

So which do you prefer, dice or computer? Do you prefer one over the other all the time or is it different depending on whether you’re the GM or a player? Do you mandate that your players use dice or does it not matter to you?

For me, I’ve been a dice roller for years and will continue to be so when I’m a player but I’m toying with the idea of using the computer when I GM next especially since more and more of my notes and campaign material is already on it. As for my players when I GM, it doesn’t really matter to me, of course my group is a bit ‘old school’ and prefers the feel, sound, and randomness of the dice.

So do you roll or click?

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A quick post to let everyone know of a few changes I’ve made today.

First, I’ve lifted the restriction that only registered and logged in users can leave comments. For some I know this isn’t an issue but after giving it some thought over the last six months or so I’ve determined that by lifting this restriction more of you who are reading will be inclined to post a comment or two.

Which brings me to item #2 - you can now request an email when a response is posted your comment. I know I’ve sometimes forgotten about a comment I’ve made elsewhere and figured I’m not the only one - hopefully you’ll find this useful.

Finally, I’ve upgraded to the latest version of Wordpress (2.2.1) so please let me know if you find something that doesn’t appear to be working so seems strange so I can address it.

May your dice roll well.

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While attempting to catch up on all my email and news feeds I came across an announcement about a new social networking site for the RPG community, RPGSpaces.

It’s still very new but looks promising, here’s the official press release:

RPGSpaces is a social network for roleplayers. Join roleplaying campaigns, create your own campaigns, network with other players and game masters, blog, and create your own communities.

* Play by post, play by chat, or keep a community for pen and paper, MUDs and MMOs
* Join roleplaying campaigns in any number of genres and systems or create your own
* Promote your own game or roleplaying website
* Find roleplayers online or in your community that play in your genre or system
* Buy and sell games or services or get advice and recommendations

May your dice roll well.

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Over the weekend Johnn Four posted the latest two issues of the Role-playing Tips E-zine Supernatural Weather, Part 1 & 2

The two issues combined are a great read, especially for those of us that like to do world-building. They start out with some interesting supernatural weather effects gathered from a discussion on the gmmastery discussion list and then follow up with some tips on how to go about designing your own.

You’ll also want to check out the reader tips as well, included are some tips on Excel, rules lawyers and even sticky notes!

Issue #361 - Supernatural Weather, Part 1
Contents:
–> A Brief Word From Johnn

–> This Week’s Tips:
1. 39 Supernatural Weather Event Ideas
2. Start With A Concept
3. Design For All Six Senses
4. Give Supernatural Weather A Fixable Cause
5. Design Pre-Event Anticipation

–> Readers’ Tips Of The Week:
1. Let Players Change Your World
2. NPC Personality Matrix Tool on the Web
3. Advanced Excel Sheet Examples
4. Treat NPCs Like Heroes From A Different Angle

You can read Issue #361 online here.

Issue #362 - Supernatural Weather, Part 2
Contents:
–> A Brief Word From Johnn

–> This Week’s Tips:
1. Design Weather Effects
2. Make Weather A Plot Element
3. World Building With Supernatural Weather
4. Give Your Villain Special Weather
5. Avoid Apparent GM Agenda
6. Use Weather During Wilderness Treks

–> Readers’ Tips Of The Week:
1. No Plot? No Problem!
2. Metagaming Tips To Create Paranoia
3. Use Post-Its To Prepare Published Adventures
4. Sample Tracking Spreadsheets
5. Two Types Of Rules Lawyers: De Facto And De Jure

Issue #362 can be read online here.

If you don’t already subscribe I would recommend it, you can do that here.

May your dice roll well.

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The June update to the D&D 3.5 FAQ has been posted to the Wizards’ website.

I took a quick look and the largest group of additions deals with summon monsters - so if you have a spell caster in your game that likes to do that I’d suggest grabbing a copy.

May your dice roll well.

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