What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

[knightwriter]

I've been asking some questions about how people use their ipad in a different thread, but it got me to thinking about technology in general and how people use it, if at all. I am normally a pencil and paper sort of player/GM and I do most of my planning for campaigns on paper, or I print it out from a word doc and stick it in a folder. I don't have my computer at the table when I play, but, as I mentioned, I just got an ipad and I was wondering how best to incorporate that into my game. I'm experimenting now, so it's possible it might not stay at the game table, who knows.

 

What sort of technology do you use at the game table or in preparation for the game?

[CrosshairCollie]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

I use HeroDesigner for character sheets (hero and villain), and enter game logs and game notes into a text file. No computers or other gizmos at the table, though; not enough room at the table in question.

[red_eagle123]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

Like CrosshairCollie above, I also use HeroDesigner for character sheets. For a time I used my laptop at the table, I'd created a html page that let me track whose turn it was and what segment it was. However the laptop was a bit bigger than I liked, I felt like I was hiding behind the screen too much.

 

I also write up post-game recaps and post them on a wikidot page open to all the players. And they occasionally post player-perspective recaps as well.

 

I've been looking for a good solution like a tablet PC that will let me have present artwork used in the game as well. A tablet PC of some sort may work, as well as I see there's a laptop out there with a flippable screen that looks promising.

[Greywind]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

Wouldn't mind a tablet computer for gaming, but I get tired of being at a table and the only thing you can see are the covers of laptops.

[Kraven Kor]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

Our table is almost entirely using laptops for character sheets and notes, but I haven't used any type of apps for maps, combat tracking, etc. beyond that. I do make Maps using AutoREALM, and I don't print them, but when it comes to combat we draw it out on map board and use minis or tokens to keep track of where everyone is.

[Cancer]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

I do my campaign maps (but not my tactical maps) with Campaign Cartographer, but that isn't something I use at the table ... its on a desktop machine that isn't always near where I'm running.

 

Perhaps strangely, the most common use of technology is the musical background. I've got a couple of playlists defined on a laptop that I plug into the stereo system so I can cue up different music more or less instantly.

[Greywind]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

My copy of CC is pre-Windows.

[Tom Carman]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

I maintain my character sheet in Hero Designer on my laptop. Since the character is a mage with a VPP, the "spellbook" is also open in HD for quick reference and redesign. I also keep Alter Ego's Metacreator program open for the dice roller.

[Kraven Kor]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

I actually have CC 3 I think, bought it about 3 years back, but for the life of me can't use it to make a usable, decent looking map.

 

AutoREALM is certainly less feature-rich and a bit clunky in its own right, but it is the clunky I know, and thus the clunky I use

[Christopher]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

I know some GM's on conventions, who use laptops for good effect. Just load up a die roller and rolling hidden becomes easy. When properly equipped and used, they can replace a gm-screen + written pages. The downside is, that the gm can become to focussed on the screen.

 

On most other games I play, on-place-gizmos usually are impractical for us. We often don't even have the place for our character sheets on the table. Glasses, chips, minatures and co ususally take up the rest. And the glasses are a real treath to electronic devices...

 

Of course, the music collection is always near. Be it a simple CD-Player (yes, they still exist), a MP3-Enabled Player or a Desktop/Laptop plugged into one of the former or good speakers.

And in preparation for a game, not using a computer at some point is unthinkable (for both gm and players).

[Orion]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

Technology I have used:

1. Fridge - keeps the beer and Dr Pepper cold.

2. Telephone on the wall - vital for getting attention of pizza delivery guy.

3. Desktop pc with OpenOffice. Keep all character and villain sheets, campaign writeup, house rules. Bring printouts as needed to session.

4. Wooden table only used when large fight scene requires miniatures to keep it all straight. Otherwise, everyone sits in chairs or on sofa and the action is described.

5. Big hex map (table sized) and markers to roughly draw maps under miniatures. Vinyl map preferred, but laminated paper okay.

 

Low tech can be better - keeps the attention on the storyline, and not the gizmos.

[Christopher]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

The Hex Maps reminds me of one thing, from I group I played with a long time ago.

 

They actually had a table sized transparent sheet (like the one you use for Overhead Projectors) for gaming. They could write on it with fast drying, ereaseable markers. They could make maps of the fly, track lifepoints, draw battle-situations and many more. It also protected the (Glas)table from Cola-Spills and you could place anything on top of it that you needed without any danger to it.

[Roy_The_Ruthles]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

Googledocs. for char sheets, laptop for surfing the web when i'm not on stage

[Darbor]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

We've all been using laptops for a while now. Our GM hosts a blog web site and we enter our notes as blog posts, one per evening of play. One of our players moved away and we have been able to successfully keep her in the game with an extra laptop dedicated to video chat. We see her all the time and we move the camera around to point to one of us or to the mat if we have miniatures out. It works better than I thought it would.

 

Also, our GM uses Hero Designer and those of us that have bought the Hero PDFs keep them on the PC's as well. I own both the books and the PDFs for 6E and while I like the books better, I use the PDFs more.

[The Nexus]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

I really like a netbook for gaming. It's small enough that I can get around it when I need to. PDF's are a gift from God when GM'ing. The search feature is incredible. A fellow poster on here, is also a good friend of mine, kept harping on how awesome Hero Designer was. It took me awhile but I finally gave in and got it, and I have to say, it is probably the best investment I've ever made in my gaming career.

[Christopher]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

One of our players moved away and we have been able to successfully keep her in the game with an extra laptop dedicated to video chat. We see her all the time and we move the camera around to point to one of us or to the mat if we have miniatures out. It works better than I thought it would.

Full Frontal Nerdity

[Zedwimer]

Re: What sort of technology do you use in yiour games?

 

It varies with what game I'm playing, but in the HERO games I've played, we almost always use HD for characters, and I regularly use my iPad or netbook at the game table to look up stuff in my 6E PDF library (no room for physical books in my cramped condo right now, but maybe later when we can move into a bigger house).

 

Lately in several at-the-table and over-the-net games I've played, we've used MapTools for a virtual gameboard and it has worked out really well. There's also a MapTools client for iOS called Mapnakotic (made by the same guys that make Dicenomicon), but I haven't had a chance to try it out yet.