Online BFRPG games?

General topics, including off-topic discussion, goes here.
User avatar
Blorpy
Posts: 97
Joined: Sun Nov 07, 2021 3:17 am
Location: Tsawwassen

Re: Online BFRPG games?

Post by Blorpy »

I run a BFRPG Discord group and I find it works great. I was initially unsure whether online would work for me, but actually not much is lost.

We started with 3 players and have since grown to 6, which is around max capacity for me as a GM. The first three I got just by bugging old friends and then ppl started asking to join.

My tips for using Discord:

1) Install a dice bot. Use it, love it.
2) Post sticky link to BFRPG downloads page.
3) Post some maps as players get them.
4) Get a mic you’re comfortable with.
5) Award xp for people who showed up on time (haven’t had any lates since doing that lol).
6) Bug people you know to play. Even total newbies are fun to play with as long as the GM knows the rules. If they say no, ask again after a few weeks lol.
7) Set people’s Discord nicknames to be their real name, dash, then their character name. Makes life easier.

Other than that it’s pretty straightforward tabletop RPGing. We do theatre of the mind so I can’t comment if you’re needing a battle map (I have a physical chess board sitting on my desk for reference); but aside from that I’d definitely recommend overcoming the learning curve giving Discord a go!

PS - if you need an extra player, I might oblige!
User avatar
Beowulf
Posts: 68
Joined: Sun Aug 29, 2021 1:07 am

Re: Online BFRPG games?

Post by Beowulf »

Nice! Our online BFRPG game has been great. The holidays are tough and a few issues have cropped up with scheduling but Owlbear Rodeo and a Google doc has been very good for us. Down the road I might look at Discord again but right now I can't understand it at all.
GrimlinJoe
Posts: 224
Joined: Mon Jan 27, 2020 3:02 pm

Re: Online BFRPG games?

Post by GrimlinJoe »

Beowulf wrote: Thu Dec 02, 2021 9:51 pm Nice! Our online BFRPG game has been great. The holidays are tough and a few issues have cropped up with scheduling but Owlbear Rodeo and a Google doc has been very good for us. Down the road I might look at Discord again but right now I can't understand it at all.
Would you possibly entertain the thought of a moderator setting up and maintain the discord server for you? Youd be the owner of the server but they'd do the set up and server maintenance. I've done this a few times for other people but not saying it would have to be me.
User avatar
Beowulf
Posts: 68
Joined: Sun Aug 29, 2021 1:07 am

Re: Online BFRPG games?

Post by Beowulf »

GrimlinJoe wrote: Sat Dec 04, 2021 1:28 pm
Beowulf wrote: Thu Dec 02, 2021 9:51 pm Nice! Our online BFRPG game has been great. The holidays are tough and a few issues have cropped up with scheduling but Owlbear Rodeo and a Google doc has been very good for us. Down the road I might look at Discord again but right now I can't understand it at all.
Would you possibly entertain the thought of a moderator setting up and maintain the discord server for you? Youd be the owner of the server but they'd do the set up and server maintenance. I've done this a few times for other people but not saying it would have to be me.
Sure! For that matter, I should get over my laziness and just figure it out. :lol: Seems like a lot of good stuff is done on Discord.
bigjawhite
Posts: 28
Joined: Fri Apr 19, 2013 12:37 am

Re: Online BFRPG games?

Post by bigjawhite »

I use Roll20 for the virtual tabletop: maps and dice rolling. Roll20 is easy to use. It can be as complex as you want it by automating certain features - though it is not necessary.

My groups use Discord for audio.
User avatar
teaman
Posts: 1707
Joined: Mon Aug 15, 2011 3:04 pm
Contact:

Re: Online BFRPG games?

Post by teaman »

Another option is Owlbear Rodeo (free). However, I don't think it allows you to save character sheets, but you could put them on a Google drive or something. We used paper character sheets and roll at your desk for years. Had a great time. We used an online whiteboard Twiddla to put up the map images and tokens.

It can be as simple or complicated as you'd like. If you go the roll20 route, just ease into the features. No need to worry about all the bells and whistles at first.
Teaman is the sole proprietor of Sharp Mountain Games at roll20 and DTRPG

https://marketplace.roll20.net/browse/p ... tain-games
http://drivethrurpg.com/browse/pub/8418 ... tain-Games
User avatar
Beowulf
Posts: 68
Joined: Sun Aug 29, 2021 1:07 am

Re: Online BFRPG games?

Post by Beowulf »

Owlbear Rodeo is pretty great, easy to use and free. We use that plus Google sheets and Google meet for the audio.
Ant McEwan
Posts: 16
Joined: Sun Aug 06, 2017 5:33 pm

Re: Online BFRPG games?

Post by Ant McEwan »

For what it's worth, I run two groups online. One BF and other heavily modified 5e. I use Skype with nothing Roll20-ish involved and don't miss it. I did look at Roll20 and actually tried it but didn't like the learning curve. If I need to share anything visual with the group I just share it using Messenger alongside the Skype.

Edit, in fact the last couple of sessions we've just used Messenger video chat, and that works fine too.

Bit of a luddite, really!
Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Ahrefs [Bot], Google [Bot] and 28 guests