[unofficial weekender] It's all in the background. Or is it?

[sundancer 42938xp 2]

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First time visitor to OTT? Then please introduce yourself in the New Member Thread and look around in the Project System. Then come back and read on…

https://www.beastsofwar.com/forums/topic/introduce-yourselves-new-member-thread/

https://www.beastsofwar.com/project/

Read all of this before you start as it will save you any trouble later.

First thing you must do is make your “pledge”. It can be anything gaming related, big or small, and you don’t even have to finish it. No, in here, happiness is the road. Have fun doing whatever it is, but it is not a race. Accompany your work with pictures or we might think you are do something sinister and just using us for cover.

You are also presented with a few questions. It is to get the conversation started. Try and keep your answers ‘conversational’, no text speak, and certainly no “basically”. This is how we all get to know each other better. While you are here feel free to tell us a story, show a picture, joke, tales of love or woe, or just add your own little bit. This is the whole point…in here it is just us.

If you have never taken part before we may bark and bite, but we also like a cuddle! It is all done in the best possible taste and it is character building. feel free to give as good as you get.

A few other things to note: NO RELIGION & NO POLITICS! Glasgow pub rules are in effect. If you need to make a better point then it is fine, but don’t take the piss. And always keep it civil. This includes no philosophy, no home computer culture wars.

Play plenty of music to go with your work. Loud and through proper speakers. Write us a playlist of things we might not have heard before.

Now, after all of that there is only one ‘real’ rule in here and it cannot be broken: NO DICKS! (Exceptions may be made for little fighting men with little plastic/resin/metal wieners)

And don’t forget the highlights of the weekend: The Weekender on Friday and XLBS on Sunday. And the little show that is the unofficial Hobby Hangout over at twitch.tv

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Question of the week:

• Music and your hobby. Do you like to listen to music while doing hobby? Just while painting? Only when playing? Or rather have complete silence?

And now back to the show.

[sundancer 42938xp 1]

Pledge: Continue to broch on. And not stare out the window waiting for CGL to deliver. That way lies madness

Answer: “It depends”. While doing painting and building I either have podcasts on (things I do not need to look at necessarily) or music. While gaming usually there is nothing on as me and my mate often do enough talking as is XD Though when playing RPG back in the day we did have a lot of music just in the background.

And speaking of music: DIO!

[pagan8thParticipant 10749xp 1]

Pledge: Be better GM.

For RPG’s I have used thematic stuff… sounds of a rain forest, thunderstorm etc.

When painting and buildings I listen to music if I’m sitting down for a long session.

Occasionally I play solo board games and put music on for that.

[sundancer 42938xp 1]

Pledge: Be better GM.

Did the group complain? Or do you just feel like your underperforming?

[grantinvanman 2170xp 0]

Regular programming resumes – huzzah!

PLEDGE: having cleared out a substantial chunk of unfinished projects, my pledge is to continue with my Battletech prep!

 

MUSIC: I very much enjoy listening to music when doing stuff. Half of my hobby room is guitar space, not that I’m any good, but I love to play and make noise.

 

[limburger 21691xp 1]

I’ve had my day of fun at the “Spellenspektakel” convention.
I think this was the first time actual wargames were being played.

I spoke to the author of “argueing when …”.
The rules are based on the matrix games that are often used in ‘real’ wargaming.
Instead of having statistics it is more like a roleplaying game.
Players describe an event what they want to happen (this may even include stuff the opposing force does!).
This is then summarized in key words which then results in a probability (much like how a DM in a RPG sets the difficulty).
Players roll 3D6 and if they succeed then whatever they described happens …

https://tabletopmatrixwargames689972109.wordpress.com

I played a game of “with hot lead and cold steal” that the author of the book had setup.
The game was a scenario set near Gettysburg in the American civil war.
Rules were fairly easy to grasp. You roll to see how many orders/staff you get on a turn.
You can then use those orders as a bonus to your roll for initiative. So you’re going to have to decide if gaining the initiative is worth not being able to move your troops around.

When activating a group you roll to see if it does as you tell it to, but when you roll a 1 something unique happens.

We managed to get a draw, which was more or less caused by the enemy suddenly deciding to charge (they rolled a 1 on their activation which gave the result).

https://www.ospreypublishing.com/us/osprey-blog/2023/with-hot-lead-and-cold-steel-design-diary/

[pagan8thParticipant 10749xp 0]

@sundancer the game is not going well and although the dice are not being kind to the players, my encounters have been unbalanced which is frustrating us all. More importantly… there is too much roll-playing and not enough role-playing.

Side note… had some of my pension fund and tempted to buy something like this to use in the gaming room.

https://www.libertygames.co.uk/store/multi_games_tables/products/7ft-multi-diner/

It’s big enough for our gaming needs, will serve as dining table plus it has air hockey, pool and table tennis…

• This reply was modified 2 weeks, 2 days ago by  pagan8th.

[danlee 22437xp 0]

This week’s pledge is to finish my terrain fest project. Second layer of flock is drying as I type, so should just be a matter of taking final photographs and doing the last project entry.

 

• Music and your hobby. Do you like to listen to music while doing hobby? Just while painting? Only when playing? Or rather have complete silence? – I’m usually watching a youtube video in the background (something I can mostly just listen to, such as the news). It also helps get me into the routine of doing some hobby every day, as I watch the news every week day.

[limburger 21691xp 0]

ah … ye olde ‘roll playing’. It’s kind of what stops me from enjoying rpg’s as I just suck at actual ‘role playing’ so I tend to default to rolling dice.

I think it’s an issue that also is caused by the rules/game system itself.
I find that rules heavy games like D&D tend to make it hard as there’s a rule for ‘everything’ so it is easy to say : ‘roll a die and we will know what happens’.

And it’s something that needs both players and DM to want to do. Lead by example is however easier to say than to do.

It sounds so damn easy when I read those ‘play’ examples in rulebooks where Jimmy the player never ever says “I roll my attack dice and target that enemy npc”. Somehow the players in the books are more creative/inventive. Same applies to the DM that’s running the game.

Maybe that’s why I’d rather play wargames where you don’t have to worry about narrative ?

I may just lack the creative genes required to improvise and do the fun things that the folk in Critical Role seem to do without even having to think. It’s the sort of skill that I wish I could learn, but I don’t have any clue as to how to do it.

 

[sundancer 42938xp 2]

@pagan8th It might be a harsh question but are you still enjoying DM’ing and the company of your players?

If yes then maybe suggest to them to play a one off for a totally different game. As a pallet cleanser.

If no then you might want to have a talk with your group. Everybody at the table should be enjoying the game.

I’m a lousy GM and I know why: I can’t stand it when players go off my planned path XD

Now back to the XLBS.

[pagan8thParticipant 10749xp 0]

“No plan survives first contact with the enemy”… that’s very true with RPGs… although the players are not my enemies.

We have a laugh at the table… but sometimes it just gets frustrating when things go wrong. I’m working on my next campaign (and writing my own rules system) and have recently backed Discworld.

One of the players has a campaign ready to run if things go a bit TPK (last time he ran it ended in TPK… my previous One Ring was a TPK… it’s been a rough year for PC’s).

I tried to be more of an ‘improv GM’ and let them choose a path to adventure, but it seems they prefer me to give them them a plot to follow… so I guess we see how how the game goes tonight.

[limburger 21691xp 0]

oh … on the topic of music while hobbying ?

Yes please.

Silence is something I only ever want when I need to learn stuff.

I don’t mind music while doing hobby. It helps break the silence and it may help me stay focused and in the mood.

It’s funny that in a recent kickstarter update for the game ‘Lords of Las Vegas’ the creators posted seven(!) playlists that were themed for the game and its expansions :

https://open.spotify.com/user/31f7xztfhf2cpkup26g6c4mvvwby?si=b39097d1bfd74767&nd=1&dlsi=d1188db64b194e32

[sundancer 42938xp 1]

Monday morning to you all.

It’s definitely getting colder (and wetter) outside. This weekend I didn’t do any painting or build but worked on some thing for the streams so that counts as hobby doesn’t it?

[danlee 22437xp 4]

This weeks pledge, and my terrain fest project, done: https://www.beastsofwar.com/project/1896810/

 

[avien 2029xp 1]

Pledge: interact with the forum more! Finish my enclosure for the resin printers so I can get models printed. Spent the weekend getting all the extractor ducting in place so nearly there!

I use music to get through my workday, so for hobby it tends to be a podcast or audiobook. Been listening to a lot of lore YouTubers lately as well.

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