Playing D&D With Porn Stars: Everything You Need To Know About Constantcon: Week 2

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Everything You Need To Know About Constantcon: Week 2

this is an old Constantcon recruitment/tips/faq post. Everything in it is now contained here.

52 comments:

John Johnson said...: As an aside--if you don't have a webcam/microphone G+ hangouts also have a chat function. I signed up to play in one game and an hour before the game I couldn't find where I'd stashed my mic, so I was worried about not being able to play. No problems, the GM and party rolled with it (Humza's AD&D game), and I typed while they talked.

I actually think good protocol would be to keep the out of character bs in the chat window and the in character stuff using microphones, that way chatting and lame OOC jokes don't interfere with the actual game.; August 3, 2011 at 2:10 AM
Zak Sabbath said...: @john

good luck with maintaining discipline on that; August 3, 2011 at 2:12 AM
Jeremy D said...: I'm not sure if anyone has suggested this yet (I'll admit to not quite having dug through all the related comments), but Maptool may be a solution for the more battlemap/minis/tactical movement oriented groups.

Of course, it would take learning and maintaining a whole 'nother application and is thus probably impractical for most of us looking for pick-ups at 3 am.

Still, though, just in case it interests anyone:

http://www.rptools.net/index.php?page=maptool; August 3, 2011 at 6:25 AM
Ben A. said...: Alright, tuesday august 9, GMT 18:00 and PST 10:00 I will be running a Gamma World (7th ed.) adventure called Punch Dracula. 4 players.

The pitch is that a charismatic, pale, cloaked and mysterious stranger just kidnapped the hottest babes and dudes of your post-apocalyptic village. And now you're mad, because:
A. That charismatic, pale, cloaked and mysterious stranger just kidnapped the hottest babes and dudes.
B. That implies you're not hot enough for him. What gives.

If you want to play: I can be contacted on bennetakkerman (awt) hotmail (dawt) com and can be found on google+ as Bennet Akkerman. Slightly more information at http://obliettesandotyughs.blogspot.com/2011/08/constantcon-2011-gamma-world-punch.html; August 3, 2011 at 7:55 AM
arcadayn said...: I would suggest that you keep all of your recruiting info to gmail. Sine G+ sends you an email with every post on the thread, it gets very mixed up very quickly.; August 3, 2011 at 8:12 AM
arcadayn said...: Dungeon Crawl Classics Free RPG Day Beta Game

When: 11:30am today, 8/3.

Where: email me at arcadayn44 at geemail.

@zak - please feel free to post my full name on the calendar.; August 3, 2011 at 8:16 AM
arcadayn said...: Does it help if DMs put their own games in the google calendar?; August 3, 2011 at 8:32 AM
Ben A. said...: Alright, tuesday august 9, GMT 18:00 and PST 10:00 I will be running a short Gamma World (7th ed.) adventure called Punch Dracula for 4 players.

The pitch is that a charismatic, pale, cloaked and mysterious stranger just kidnapped the hottest babes and dudes of your post-apocalyptic village. And now you're mad, because:
A. That charismatic, pale, cloaked and mysterious stranger just kidnapped the hottest babes and dudes.
B. That implies you're not hot enough for him. What gives.

If you want to play: I can be contacted on bennetakkerman (awt) hotmail (dawt) com and can be found on google+ as Bennet Akkerman. More information on http://obliettesandotyughs.blogspot.com/2011/08/constantcon-2011-gamma-world-punch.html; August 3, 2011 at 9:35 AM
Zak Sabbath said...: @aracadayn

It helps if you put a time zone; August 3, 2011 at 10:36 AM
arcadayn said...: Shit. Sorry.
I was tryin so hard to follow the rules! ;); August 3, 2011 at 4:32 PM
Zak Sabbath said...: @Paul

"do you do gay shit or do you have to be forced" could be a come on or it could be a weird poorly-phrased trolling attempt from a guy who stopped commenting exactly when you started, has the same initials as you, and is known for poorly-phrased trolling attempts. So I assumed it was the latter

If it was the former, I apologize: no, sorry, I don't fuck guys.; August 3, 2011 at 7:11 PM
Capheind said...: I've decided to take another shot at organizing a Tunnels & Trolls 7.5ed game. This time I'll be planning on Friday starting at around 6:30pm Pacific time, 9:30 eastern, and can still be reached either via google+ http://goplus.us/Capheind or via email as Capheind at Gmail.com. Anyone interested should contact me ahead of time for some quick words about character generation.

For the Uninitiated Tunnels & Trolls is a classic RPG that has never needed an Old School Renaissance because it never stopped being old school in the first place, not only is each tweak a simple tweak of previous editions (with the exception of some unofficial editions) but many of the older editions are still in print by Buffalo Press. The rules are simple, the vibe is slightly more fairy tale (you can play a leprechaun), and the combat mechanics don't require a Ph.D. in mathematics.

What I'm pitching is a goblin hunt, bring your wetsuit :D. The small township of Hog's Ass is in need of a few greedy buggers to clear out the den of some local goblin looters, what you finds you get to keeps.; August 3, 2011 at 7:47 PM
Jeremy Murphy said...: I could use a Google + invite, and then I'd be into running a game. I do a weekly Maptools/Skype game anyways, so this wouldn't be that different.

Incidentally, Jeremy D, we just had great luck combining Maptools with Hamachi (creates a virtual LAN) - no connectivity or port forwarding issues - just plug and play.; August 3, 2011 at 8:03 PM
Tim said...: Can i suggest you create a public google document based FAQ? At least then you won't have to keep track of when you add new things (its built in), and i won't have to put up with the annoyance of red 20pt or whatever to highlight a topics importance.
In a google document you can ditch the colours, and use document structure, like the heading 'read this first' :).; August 4, 2011 at 3:07 AM
Zak Sabbath said...: @Tim

There's no reason I couldn't put "read this first" in a blog post, too. But I chose red for a reason:

If I make a google document, then people would have to click on it to read it. Which they will never ever do in a million years. Ever. Ever.

Here's what happens here instead:

People see a bunch of stuff I wrote, ignore it and scroll past it so they can post their announcement, then see some of it is red and maybe maybe MAYBE read some smidgen of it because it's red before posting their announcement.

Which is better than nothing.; August 4, 2011 at 3:37 AM
Gazer said...: wow this is awesome, I have been trying to play D&D and other paper and pen rpgs for ages. now all i need is to wait to get a google+ account.

thanks for setting this up; August 4, 2011 at 7:35 AM
Koep said...: Any chance one of you lads could send me a G+ invite? JamesKoepnick at gmail dawt calm; August 4, 2011 at 2:19 PM
Ben A. said...: @Koep, invite sent.

@Wickedmurph, @Gazer, do you still need an invite, I can send you one, if I have your adresses.; August 4, 2011 at 2:46 PM
Gazer said...: thanks its

gazer2424 at gmail dawt calm; August 4, 2011 at 6:02 PM
Ben A. said...: @Gazer: done.; August 5, 2011 at 2:50 AM
James said...: Capheind, if you can send me a google + invite by the time the game starts, I'd be up for playing. I also will need help making a character, though, as I don't have the ruleset. A premade character would be fine, too. I always wanted to give Tunnels and Trolls a whirl. You're game starts at 4:30am here, which is actually the time I am just getting up.

My google plus account is usafa1 at aol dot com.; August 5, 2011 at 2:52 AM
James said...: Zak just added me, so I'm on Google plus now. Thanks, Zak!; August 5, 2011 at 4:01 AM
Tim said...: @Zak
I think you're taking the proposition that a GM will run a 'drive by game' a bit too far. It takes some prep, and having a nice booklet thing about how to do it for handy reference (for players and GM's) is a good thing IMHO; August 5, 2011 at 8:10 AM
Koep said...: @Ben Thanks for the invite man.

@Zak I was trying to look at your calendar on G+ but it was saying you didn't have one. Am I doing something wrong?; August 5, 2011 at 9:30 AM
Zak Sabbath said...: @Tim

I -really- hope this isn't one of those things where someone leaves a comment and then I comment back and then they disappear because I honestly have no idea what you are talking about.

Are you saying the 9 games I played since last wednesday and had fun in--those were not actually fun or good and we shouldn't have played them?

And prep? What? Just because you run a game on-line doesn't mean you didn't prep.

And this thing about a booklet? What? Just because you are playing on-line doesn't mean people don't have books.

Seriously: what are you talking about?; August 5, 2011 at 10:07 AM
Zak Sabbath said...: @koep

The calendar is in the margin of the web page you are looking at right now. It is on this page. It is on the right there and it says "upcoming games on google +" that's the calendar. it has gm names, games and dates--which is all you need.; August 5, 2011 at 10:10 AM
Welcome to Dungeon! said...: @ Zak

I think the red-flagged new text is actually pretty handy. As far as the "drive-by" games, I think at this stage it's reasonable to assume some will be.

As far as prep, in my case I re-familiarized myself with the dungeon but as far as optimizing the game for plus, that was something I did my best to figure out as I go along. After my test runs I've been thinking about setting up game material to suit the plus game format. Open to more thoughts on what seems to work and what doesn't as people try out more games on here.; August 5, 2011 at 1:16 PM
Hartful said...: @Tim. You make suggestions for zak, when he hasnt asked for suggestions has he?. And what he's set up is working, how many G+ games have u been part of Tom? No reason you couldn't make this booklet you think is really necessary, go make it and post a link saying here guys this might help.
My questions are rhetorical.. Sorry this post is not about settin up a game, as thread is suppose to be about that, this just really bugged me.; August 5, 2011 at 1:35 PM
Koep said...: @Zak

Right, got it. I was just curious if your own G+ calendar was somehow linked to this site's calendar.; August 5, 2011 at 2:22 PM
Zak Sabbath said...: @koep

that would be an apocalypse of TMI; August 5, 2011 at 2:40 PM
James said...: If a DM is familiar with a rule set, then he doesn't really need prep. I haven't DMed a live game in awhile (I do PbPs on ENWorld), but I used to be able to run OD&D and 2nd edition AD&D with no prep at all.

I wouldn't want to try the same with a complex rules system like 3.5 or Pathfinder, however.; August 5, 2011 at 6:16 PM
James said...: I'm not sure if it has already been said, but I just discovered something in regards to the calendar. I could not see the calendar of games on the right side of the website until now.

That is because I use Mozilla Firefox with Ghostery privacy add-ons so I can block advertisements and websites that Snoop on my internet browsing habits.

Once I removed Google+1, Google Analytics, and Google Friend Connect from my Ghostery blocked list I was able to view the calendar. FYI, for those having problems.; August 5, 2011 at 6:54 PM
333 said...: Day: Tuesday, 9th of August, 2011

Time: 11:00-14:00 UTC-time
7:00 PM to 10 PM - Perth time
6:00 AM to 9 AM - Chicago time
4:00 AM to 7 AM - Los Angelas time
3:00 PM to 6 PM - Moscow time

System: Classic Unisystem (AFMBE, Witchcraft, Conspiracy X, etc.)

Level: 20 point Attributes, 15 point Qualities, up to -10 in Drawbacks, 35 points in Skills and see notes below for additional setting restrictions and special conditions.

Stuff to bring/notes: I'll be rolling the dice for everyone...unless you guys feel there's a better alternative. Be sure to have a copy of your character sheet on hand.
Page references! I have the corebook for AFMBE, but I'm relatively fine with material from other Classic Unisystem games, assuming it isn't too out-of-place for the game pitch (see below). But having page numbers and book names will help, you if not me!

The pitch is that you're all recently recruited black operatives, who have been memory-wiped somehow by the government of modern day Australia and sent out as "secret police" to perform dirty business, in exchange for granting a request - but all is not as it seems. Before the memory-wipe, you could have been a soldier, an intelligence agent, a criminal, a civillian, whatever - but you don't know now.

Again, the pitch:
- modern day Australia
- memory-wiped (yes, I know amnesia shouldn't work like that - and it doesn't in my game, so how the government has managed it is a mystery to you, for now)
- black ops, with unoffical government sanction
- you were granted a request in exchange for your "tour of duty" as a deniable asset

What this means for character creation:
- You get a 5-point Contacts Quality for "free". Being government sponsored, even unofficially, means supplies, info and backup - for a price.
- You get a 3-point Secret Drawback for "free". They're called "Secret Police" for a reason.
- You get a 3-point Obligation Drawback for "free". Hey, YOU signed up for this...
- You don't get any Qualities and Drawback that rely on your life before the recruitment - the government has effectively erased your existence, for now. No Adversaries, no Contacts and so on, unless you make them "in the field". You can have Minority, Charisma, Appearance and other such traits, since erasing your identity wouldn't have changed those...you think.
- Your equipment probably has been supplied by the government, so don't bothering with negative or positive Resources levels - and be sure to prepare seperate lists of equipment in advance. These lists are what you REQUISTION from the government in advance of a mission - anything else you either acquire in the field, or buy with whatever money the government supplies you with. Be sure to have equipment lists seperated and customised according to mission type - a mission about assassination should have guns and cleaning kits, an investigation mission requires rubber gloves, notepads and lockpicks, an surveillance mission needs cameras and so on. Again, list book title and page number. The government may deny you access to stuff, if it feels the need. Of course, it may let you buy what you want with the money it supplies you with.
- Again, remember that you're playing an amnesiac - a manufactured amnesiac. You definitely have the skills you developed before, but your Mental/Social Qualities and Drawbacks may have changed in the process of giving you a "fresh start". After all, what defines our personalities more than our memories?
- You are probably an Austrlian citizen and therefore know the English language at a native level.

Contact info:
p_dragon500@hotmail.com
Send your character sheet draft and pre-game questions there!
I'm Michael Keenan, you'll recognise me by my black hair, white skin, glasses, healthy liver.; August 5, 2011 at 8:40 PM
Destrude said...: Ok, so I've got an idea for a Gigacrawler-type game that would be pimpin to run on G+.

The problem? Gigacrawler is "sorta done" and is also "sorta Zak's" as far as I can tell, so I don't know if it's kosher to play in that sandbox yet. Probably yes, but I figured I'd ask first.

Assuming so, I'd be up for running a new World of Darkness game set in the Gigacrawler reality. (I'm most comfortable with nWoD, future games may switch over to Gcrawler mechanics after I get used to this online thing). Say Wednesday Aug 10th, at 10pm EST (2am GMT, 11am Japan time). I'm named Lex Icon on G+, and my profile image is a cup of coffee.

Characters will be standard mortals, any desired Gigacrawler-specific abilities will be handled as merits or just a standard Attribute + Skill roll. Plan is to roll for about 2 hours, but I'll aim to be available a little early to help with character creation. Probably about 1/2 hour before start time.

If you need to get in touch, my email is Kusarigami at Gee-male dots com. Actually, I'd prefer it if you could, so I could iron out any conversions needed to set up your character.

See you all then!; August 5, 2011 at 10:41 PM
Zak Sabbath said...: @Destrude

PLEASE run Gigacrawler. That's what it's there for!!!! It's not "mine", it's everybody's.

I'm in for the Wednesday game, Mandy probably is too (on the same G+ window).; August 6, 2011 at 5:50 PM
Unknown said...: I have to say I am very intrigued by this idea perhaps I will actually ask my friends for a G+ invite now. Though the idea of gaming outside my comfort group is a little scary, perhaps that is something I should try. Thank you for starting this and maybe I will be around some game sometime in the future.; August 6, 2011 at 11:45 PM
Destrude said...: @Lis

Scary? GMing for a setting conceived by a guy who's gonna be in your game is a fair sight scarier, I'd say. It's like if Dave Arneson asked me to run a D&D game for him. So just playing ought not to be to bad by comparison.

Still totally jazzed about the game though. My brain swells with ideas even now.; August 6, 2011 at 11:53 PM
Destrude said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; August 7, 2011 at 12:44 AM
James said...: I'm planning to run Weird adventures from TSR. Expect me to run the following:

1.) B1: In Search of Adventure, Labyrinth Lord
2.) B4: The Lost City, Labyrinth Lord
3.) X2: Castle Amber, Labyrinth Lord
4.) S2: White Plume Mountain, OZRIC
5.) S3: Expedition to Barrier Peaks, OZRIC

I really want to run B4 first, but I think I'll get my feet wet with B1. If anyone is interested, e-mail me at usafa1 at aol dot com or message me on Google +. On Google + I'm James Quigley, with the profile pic of Gary Gygax and the model sitting at a gaming table. If there is immediate interest, I can cram and start the game this Friday afternoon. If the response is slower, I'll shoot for next Friday instead.

I am looking at running B1: In Search of Adventure on a Friday with Labyrinth Lord rules, 1pm Eastern, 10am Pacific.; August 7, 2011 at 8:20 AM
James said...: Zak,

Looking at the calendar, let's change my game date to August 11th, but keep the other details the same. That way I deconflict with Roger Burgess' game and also fill the empty void that is the 11th.

Moving it will ensure one day of gaming each day until the weekend. Pretty sweet.; August 7, 2011 at 11:23 AM
Unknown said...: A little short notice, but I'll see if I get any takers.

I'll be running The Vats of Mazarin, my new megadungeon, at Tuesday July 9th 10:00PM Eastern Time/1:PM For anyone in Tokyo, Japan.

The setting, at least for the first level, is an abandoned wizard's laboratory long since abandoned, abandon again by newer inhabitants, now occupied by denizens of the creepy crawly and axe-wielding varieties.

Anyone interested should roll up a 1st level B/X character (Labrynth Lord is OK too, so long as you note that clerics have no spells at 1st level) and contact me at tombowings (at) gmail (dot) com.; August 7, 2011 at 12:36 PM
Unknown said...: Whoops. I mean August 9th.; August 7, 2011 at 1:54 PM
arcadayn said...: Damn! James beat me to the punch! I am also going to be starting a series of classic TSR modules. I'm not 100% sure which system I'll be using, but it will be some form of pre '82 D&D.

I am planning on starting with the C series. I think the Competition series will be perfect for G+ play. At this time, I don't plan on using the scoring system, though this may change. However, I will be using the pre-gen characters from the modules.

Dice will start rolling at 11:00am CST on Friday, 8/12. Email my gmail at arcadayn44 if you're interested.; August 8, 2011 at 2:42 PM
James said...: I'm going to avoid running the C series, but I'd be interested in playing in them! Plenty of modules to choose from.; August 9, 2011 at 7:55 AM
arcadayn said...: @James - I was just being a little silly. There is a ton of great old school stuff to introduce to the youngins. There's plenty of room for you on Fri if you'd like to join in!; August 9, 2011 at 12:18 PM
Zak Sabbath said...: Calithena of Fight on! and asked me to put it on the calendar announced a game, details here:

http://odd74.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&thread=6125; August 9, 2011 at 5:27 PM
Tedankhamen said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; August 9, 2011 at 8:00 PM
Tedankhamen said...: Hmmmm, I don't see the calendar.
I either want to play or DM some Stormbringer 1e.
Any advice anyone??; August 9, 2011 at 8:01 PM
Zak Sabbath said...: @ted

hit "reload" a lot, the calendar should appear.; August 9, 2011 at 8:03 PM
Tedankhamen said...: No dice.
I'll readjust my settings and try again.; August 9, 2011 at 8:14 PM
Zak Sabbath said...: try this:

https://www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=zaksmithlovessocialdistortion%40gmail.com&ctz=America/Toronto&pvttk=82544aaf8f9c6d3e0021c55fb94b84b2; August 9, 2011 at 8:43 PM
Zak Sabbath said...: This week's thread is now closed, post new games you're starting up in the new weekly Constantcon thread here:

http://dndwithpornstars.blogspot.com/2011/08/constantcon-week-3-is-in-effect.html; August 9, 2011 at 9:11 PM

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