Tabletop

[Cyrian]

So with alot of talk lately centering on D&D and Pathfinder, I was wondering if anyone knew of any or played in any fairly regular online games over Skype or Mumble perhaps.   Anyone know of anything?   I haven't played in a long time and am really looking to get back into it.

[Namae Nai]

That's a good question! I like 3.5 D&D and Pathfinder, but I don't know anyone doing them online. Roll20 should make it possible..?

[Jezerai]

We've tried a couple of times to get a D&D group going here, but it has never really held together long enough to take off.

[PinkRose]

That's because some people Min-Max to the Max!!
But seriously, I haven't played online in about a year.
It does work. I ran a successful campaign from levels 1 - 15 using MapTool for 3+ years.
Unless you can get something going here, (I'll be busy for awhile) I suggest looking at the official forums.
http://community.wizards.com/forums/102561
They have some pick up-games posted there and then you can maybe find a more stable group.
As an online beginner, I highly recommend Roll20.net
It has it's own voice, and whiteboard, and maps and tokens, and you can save stuff between sessions.
Also, I have to add, that D&D 5th Edition will be releasing this summer. So keep looking for that.
And finally, if you want to do it the old-fashioned way, many Local Game Stores have what D&D calls Encounters every Wednesday night. You play basically 1-2 hours in an ongoing campaign, where there is no pressure to show up, so groups are different each week.
It's a great way to get your feet wet without any real commitment.

*insert Alirrin's plug for Pathfinder Society here*

[Sroth]

It's nice there are many ways to get into these games using play programs and forums... but I'd really only want to play something like D&D and Pathfinder with friends >_>

[PinkRose]

But they can't become your friends until you meet them.
THink of all of them as friends you haven't met yer.
Schrodinger's Friends?

[Namae Nai]

...you mean friends that you place in a box with a 50% chance of it killing them, so they persist as being both alive and dead sort of Schrödinger friends? 

I think you want virtual friends instead; friends that are created in an oppositely charged pair and exist for a brief time before contacting and annihilating each other. Errr.. wait, that doesn't work either.   

How about taking Pollyanna friends. "Strangers are just friends you haven't met yet!" 

[Sroth]

But they can't become your friends until you meet them.
THink of all of them as friends you haven't met yer.
Schrodinger's Friends?

But none of that helps you play with friends you already have 

[GuidingOlive]

I actually run a campaign on roll20. Although, my group is more into roll play than role play.

[PinkRose]

Stop being Grumpy, Sroth, and go play with your new friend, GuidingOlive.

[Cyrian]

Thanks for all the ideas.  For some reason I'd never heard of roll20 before this, so I fail internetz.  Hope everyone is keeping well, I gotta go find me a game to sit in.

[Catri]

I'm in an online game every Friday night led by KatarnCOmmando/Seleur. We alternate between Battletech and Star Wars d20. We also started up a Pathfinder game on Wednesdays. Right now the group is small so we would welcome a few more players.

[Menemas]

What's your timeframe on Wednesdays, Catri?

[Catri]

We start usually between 8:30 pm and 9 PM EST (depending on when I get home from my Wednesday night class.....which let out uncharacteristically early tonight) and play until somewhere between 12 am and 1 am EST.

The game is a modified universe blending ancient earth civilizations with classic Pathfinder races.

[Silverwulfe]

I'm honestly surprised there hasn't been more Pathfinder Society games online.  It's mostly easy enough to do if someone had the inclination.  The points still add up for level progression.

I also like Obsidian Portal for online gaming resources, though I'm not super keen on all of the character templates.  Mostly I use Hero Lab to generate my character sheets for Pathfinder anyway.  And as I'm in a dedicated Saturday night group (offline) I haven't tried to pursue this in any meaningful manner.

Getting past Min/Max and into character development is a must in my book and it is hard to translate that online (or else I haven't met the right people yet).  There's always hope...

[PinkRose]

I found the same thing, Silverwulfe.
Online doesnt lend to body language and in-jokes. And at the table you can have side conversations and talk over each other.
I made it work for almost 3 years. But it was a challenge sometimes.