[OOC] The Tangled Vine Tavern

[TeufelHeunden]

The Tangled Vine Tavern




Illustration © by Michael Dashow be sure to check out his website, located here: http://www.michaeldashow.com/

Tired of fighting off mobs of trolls out in the wilderness, then step inside.

Welcome to The Tangled Vine Tavern, a resting place where you can relax and chat with other new gamers, as well as veteran gamer’s that sometimes drop in. No matter what stage you've reached in the (New Player Solo Game) NPSG, you're welcome to drop by - just say hello, sprawl out somewhere comfortable, and have fun!

Silliness is welcome and chatter is encouraged, but respect of others is demanded (please keep your chatter within site rules including keeping it PG-13). Come here to relax a bit while you adjust to the site. Just remember to check in on your game once in a while! Also feel free to talk to each other about what you discover about the site; we do however want to remind you that what happens in your NPSG stays there so that you don’t spoil the game for others that may be going through it behind you.

• If you would like some advice on how to create a basic character, and general posting tips, please check out The Wandering Bard.
• If you would like specific examples of character creation, please click Here.
• If it's been a few hours or a few days and you're antsy about your game status, remember this is Play by Post (PbP). Things don’t move as quickly as real life table top games. Give it a little bit of time and feel free to look around the site. If you are uncomfortable with the pace of your game then discuss adjusting the pace with your DM.
• Confused about the different badges? Want to know the site rules? Lost about where you should post a question? The Site Rules and Help in the top bar can answer most of your questions or look around for the appropriate thread and post your question there.
  
  Also, here are some helpful threads where you can ask the questions.
  Questions and Site Discussions (General questions and bug reporting)
  Gaming Advice (Player Support and DM/GM Advice)
  
  These links are just some of the places where you can find information on playing games here. But there are many more threads throughout the site covering a wealth of topics form RPG specific to world events. Just remember to keep your discussions in these threads to a PG-13 rating and that this doesn't apply to in-game politics or religion, just real world politics and religion in the general forumsReal World Political and Religious topics are not allowed.
• Found your balance and want to look for a second game while you finish your NPSG? You can search the Advertisement thread for new games that are looking for players. Please read the sticky’s there before posting!
• Did you know this site offers a cool online magazine? Explosive Runes Each issue is chock full of illustrations and writings from numerous DNDOG/RPGX posters!
• If you feel that you have learned all you can and would not like to continue your game to the end and becomne a NPSG graduate, you can do that but please be courteous and discuss it with your DM or GM so they are not waiting around for a post from you.

First time here and looking for a New Player Solo Game (NPSG) First time here and looking for a New Player Solo Game (NPSG) Welcome to the new gamers area. This is an area for people who are new to the site and the idea of play by post (PbP)! We want to give you a chance to learn the ropes by playing in an instructional solo game, so open the gates and unleash your imagination to follow the path of adventure!! The Staff here at RPG Crossing would like to help new site members who join the site but never seem to join in a game for one reason or another. We would like to invite you right from the start to consider taking part in a game designed just for you! You and a GM will play through a simple one on one game to help you learn to create a basic character, roll dice, learn how PbP works and to have fun! Please consider giving us a try by playing a game and learning more about how the site works and how much fun it can be! Post here for a 3.5e game and we will get you started as soon as possible! Post here for a Pathfinder game and we will get you started as soon as possible! Post here for a 4e game and we will get you started as soon as possible! Post here for a 5e game and we will get you started as soon as possible! Post here for a 13th Age game and we will get you started as soon as possible! Post here for a Call of Cthulhu game and will get you started with a game as soon as possible! Post here for a Traveller game and we will get you started with a game as soon as possible! If you are a Community Supporter (CS), post here and we will get you started as soon as possible!

General Play-By-Post Forum Tip General Play-By-Post Forum Tip about interacting with others You basically have ONE form of communication available to you in a forum PbP game, and that is written text. 99% of the members of the forum don't know you in real life, so they have no idea if you have a jovial personality, a serious personality, or a sarcastic one; they don't know if you're laughing when you type something or fuming smoke out your ears. The only point of reference they have is the words you write. So choose them wisely. It is also good to remember that a player in one game is a lurker in every other game. And a lurker in your current game is a potential player/GM in the next. So a snarky comment about someone (or a group of people) might seem funny at the time, but it also creates an impression of YOU as a Player/GM that carries over to other games in which you might participate or lead. Again, choose your words wisely. Finally, always remember to be respectful of the other members of the forum.

Pay attention to some that have been playing PbP for a while Pay attention to some that have been playing PbP for a while Getting used to and learning to play RPG’s via PbP can prove challenging, even for a veteran table top player. One of the ways to learn the tricks of the trade is to read some games that are proven successful in both length and quality of play. Doing this can help you to get a sense of what a good game is played like and you can see how different posting styles play out and match yours. The majority of the games on this site are magnificent. In plot or characters or gameplay... any number and combination of things. But there are some that stand above the rest. Some that are nearly legendary. Which are these, you ask? Well, that's what the members get to decide annually! The RPG Crossing Hall of Fame

[zevonian]

Greetings and Salutations to all Past, Present, and Future players!

To get this thread moving, I offer words to each of you.

For our graduates: Thank you once again for taking the time to finish your games. Whether it was the first character sheet you ever made or the hundredth, all of you putting those characters into use is most appreciated.

For our current players: If you find yourself in the Games Seeking Players thread, and a game catches you eye, go ahead and apply! You need not have finished your solo game to get into quality group play on site.

For those waiting in the wings: Here's something to play around with if/when you find yourself in the Dice Roller Thread to test out mechanics. See the list of tools above where you type out your replies? B I U and so on? Yes, that line. See the six sided die with the red plus on it? You can use that tool to label dice. And also you can roll multiple dice with the same coding.

Dice sample rolls for attack and damage:

d20+2	(6)+2			Total = 8
d6+2	(1)+2			Total = 3

Note: Once you've got 4 posts courtesy of the Dice Roller or other Threads, it will take an hour or so before that yellow color in your username changes.


2021 update- If you are looking for solo game play other than, or in addition to the NPSG, check out
The Solo Bazaar.

Enjoy all your games on site, folks.

- zev

[Broforcepower]

Hello fellow newbies and revered veterans What system did you use for your first pbp game? I'm currently on the waiting list for the 3.5ed solo game, because its the only one I've played.

[TeufelHeunden]

Howdy and well met Broforcepower. When I joined the eons ago the NPSG didn't exist. Instead we had to fight our way through hordes of Orcs up and down Mt Evil several times a day with nothing but a rusty +1 dagger that we were thankful to have but weren't even proficient in.

Glad you found the Tavern, I hope you are finding your way around the rest of the site.

[Broforcepower]

Well met indeed, I feel spoiled with this solo game concept haha. However I sure am glad it's here. I'm mostly lurking around at the moment reading some other games, most are very well done. I think I'll apply to a game sometime soon.

Would you happen to know if there is thread on the difference between the more popular game systems( dnd3.5, 4 and pathfinder) or perhaps you could give me your opinion on the main differences?

[Hextor]

There are many threads discussing the merits. Most are along the lines of who thinks which is better.

3.5 and Pathfinder use the same mechanics. They use separate settings however, but most 3.5 core classes are usable in Pathfinder. The main difference would be flavor. If you have played Dungeons and Dragons before, I would suggest looking at both settings.

4e is quite different. The mechanics are separate from above, as well as all the class options and the features of the classes. I am unable to relate more, as I have not played the system.

[Broforcepower]

Thank you very much kind sir I guess Ill put my name on the waiting list for the pathfinder solo game list and just go with which ever one is free first.

[TeufelHeunden]

Glad you were able to find your answer Broforcepower. I have to agree with Hextor that PF is similar enough to 3.5e that if you know 3.5e you should be able to easily pick up pathfinder and run. 4e is a different beast in and of itself, but again if you have experience and are willing to read a bit then 4e should be easy to pick up, I think it is a matter of preference though.

Both here and in RL Tabletop I am involved in mostly 3.5e and PF games with some 4e games.

[zevonian]

@Broforcepower: Be aware that you should only apply to 1 game.
If you are on one thread already, but wish to change to another, apply to the second thread (your new choice), then edit your first app to say you don't want it anymore. Thanks.

And I agree that if you can get the hang of 3.5, then PF will be no problem, and vice versa.

Edited to add: If you have the time, go through the different Forums on site, you'll find a thread or two about the differences between 3.5 and 4e, and various people's preferences.

[Broforcepower]

@TeufelHeunden thank you very much for your input!

@zenonian Thanks, I wasn't sure about that so I sent hvg3akaek a PM to ask. I think I'll stick with 3.5ed, seeing as I've just been roped into DMing a 3.5 campaign IRL. We just cant find a DM in montreal, and I have the most experiance in the group (a grand total of 4 games lol)

[Hextor]

Forming table groups is difficult. Interest and (more so) schedules are hard to mesh.

I wish you the best of luck in your tabletop group and look forward to your contributions on the site. Your NPSG request will be processed in turn, which ever system you ultimately decide on.
Happy gaming!

[zevonian]

@Broforce: There's a section of this site you might want to look for where site members ask for Tabletop games in their region.
Perhaps if you post to say you're looking in Montreal, you might get a response.

[RainbowMagicPen]

Since it seems to be the topic of discussion, what is Pathfinder? I understand it's a tabletop RPG mechanics system similar to 3.5e, but where does it come from and if 3.4e exists why make another?

For that matter what is it about the DnD community that it always has to be 3.5e or 4e, what is wrong with just numbers?

Apologies if these are really really obvious questions, I'm rather new to the id ea of a DnD community so nothing is really obvious to me.

[TeufelHeunden]

The 3.5e and 4e that you see so much of are version numbers of the D&D system. Without going deep into history, basically there was a version 3 (or Third Edition). 3.5e is an offshoot of that so it doesn't have a whole number associated with it. It is different enough from 3e that it is designated 3.5e but not a complete re-write. It is very easy to take things in 3e and with some minor modifications to how the stats incorporate them into 3.5e. 4e is so drastically different that it is designated with a new whole number (Fourth Edition).

The Dungeons and Dragons systems 3e, 3.5e, 4e (and yes there are others from before that and there is even a 5e in Beta testing right now) are currently owned and distributed by Wizards of the Coast (WoTC). Pathfinder is another system that is very similar to 3.5e, but again it is different and is owned and distributed by Piazo, a different company than WoTC. Some people jokingly call Pathfinder "3.75" because it has many similarities to 3.5e and came out after 3.5e

Does that answer your question?

[RainbowMagicPen]

Yeah that makes sense, I thought it was probably something along the lines of being in production by a different company, so obviously they can't use the naming scheme. Thank you for the explanation, I'd seen it a lot in my past few days of looking for pbp websites and hadn't the fuzziest what it was. My familiarity is pretty limited to just 3.5e.