Welcome & Out of character (OOC)

Welcome to Waterdeep. This thread is for out-of-character (OOC) discussions

I'm excited to get started in this game. Very much looking forward to playing with everyone.

I have a bunch of TinyD6 rulesets from a bundle a while back, but I've yet to play any. I don't suppose the exact version of the rules is important, but are we using Tiny Dungeon 2e? Because I have that.

Nope. We are using these rules (link). =) They are very similar, mind you, but there are a few changes. For example, the "GM never rolls" rule and the social conflicts with Willpower (WP).

Character generation rules are available here (link)

Thanks for that. I must admit to being a bit rusty on my Forgotten Realms lore, so I'm off to read up on the wiki and I should have a character idea soonish.

I will try to follow your convention. I have a couple of idiosyncrasies of my own, if that is alright with you. First, when I am specifically trying to keep my voice down (whisper, sotto voice, talking under my breath, etc.) I will use cabin font. Second, if I want to link an action to a particular roll, I will often put it in another color. As I usually use blue, but you want that for people, I will use fuchsia going forward. For example
Last, I am expressely asking for your (and everyone's) constructive criticism on my RP. In particular yours, htech, especially as how it fits in with your vision. We will all have the most fun if we all get out of this adventure what we expect (or more…😈😈😈)

Okay! =)

Welcome everyone. Just want to let you all know I choose to have a PC who don't consider himself an adventurer but will be thrilled to join anyone who does. He has ton of motivation and reasons to join party doing any of the jobs listed in Adventure hooks thread. He wouldn't even want a share in the rewards.
So once you pick an adventure/quest you like I believe we shouldn't have problem as players to figure out how my PC join you. Seriously, all of the quest do talk to me.

Hi everyone, sorry I’m slow. I’m excited to be here and will try and catch up quick!

So, this game will actually play as multiple (related) games. To separate the groups, I will use multiple sub-forums while the adventure is running and then I will move the finished thread to a place where everybody in our game can read, if they want.

Can someone check if they are able to see the Masked Soirée sub-forum and the threads and posts inside it? For now you should not be able to =)

I like Avraham's suggestion to use different font for whisper that not every PC could hear.
I know some players prefer to do an actual whisper instead and deny other players to lear the part of the story their PCs are not expected to know.

Question: do we have any policy, or is it up to player to decide if he want players to know what their PCs not supposed to know and trust players to role-play their PCs appropriately. Or we want to make sure players don't know the part of the story?

Great question! For the Tiny Tavern thread and the shared world, we’ll leave it up to players to decide on a case-by-case basis. That said, there's a general preference for keeping things public so everyone can enjoy and build off each other's stories, even if their characters wouldn't know certain details. I trust everyone to role-play accordingly.

During actual adventures, however, I’ll be using sub-forums that are only visible to the group participating in that storyline. This will let us focus on our own adventures and prevent spamming between separate groups. For example, I’ve already created a private sub-forum for The Masked Soirée. Can you check and confirm that you can’t see it yet? Smiley is already there. =)

After the adventure ends, I will move the thread to a public sub-forum and everyone will be able to read it, if they want.

Again, players can still choose to share or keep things private as they see fit, but because the sub-forum with specific adventures usually involve smaller groups, it's less likely you'll need hidden notes.

I usually use the following conventions, subject to GM approval.

I use the cabin font when I’m speaking common and may be overheard. I leave it up to the DM to decide if NPC’s have heard.

If I’m deliberately trying to keep something from PCs, or my character is speaking in a non standard tongue (elvish, theives cant), I will post something in main and post my true meaning to the intended recipient in a note. This way, others can see that something happened, but the GM decides whether or not any other player is informed, since the GM can see all note and private boxes. For that matter, if the GM uses a private box instead of a note, I will have no idea of any other PC knows. Which I find rather delicious.

I also will use private boxes for anything I would have told the GM privately in person or handed a note at a table.

@htech, if any of this doesn’t sit right with you, please let me know!

I was trying to figure out how Language works.
Briar is Wild Sorcerers of the Sword Coast heritage but made his Race Half-Elf.

Would Briar be able to understand Elvish?
Is there a trait or rule for how many languages our character would know?

For now, there are no rules for languages. I will trust the players to use common sense and choose the languages their PCs know and how many of them.

For me, it makes sense if Briar is able to understand Elvish =)

Question on money and pricing. My PC start with a GP, which is based on other thread enough to survive one single day with a Modest lifestyle. Our first mission is within 2 days, so should I role-play my PC being Poor if not worse ? Should I role-play my PC to be terrified to 5 gp in debt ?

P.S. I was used to 5e where even urich starts game with 10gp plus standard class gear that is usually about a hundred gold worth. Trying to understand how to adjust my PC attitude to money in this settings.

Sorry. Everybody starts with your first tenday of a Comfortable Lifestyle already paid for. I'll be adjusting the character generation thread to make this clear. You need money, a job, a quest, or a job, yes, but not right now.

OK. Got it.

I made a wrong statement in game that earning even a single GP would be nice for my PC. Will assume that was a joke.

Hey everyone, just a quick heads-up — I’ve come down with a virus and won’t be able to post for a day or two while I rest and recover. Thanks for your patience!

Get well soon. We’ll see you when you recover!

hope it's a quick recovery, take care.

No worries here. Take care and feel better.

Sleep. Drink plenty of fluids. Like whiskey!

Does a successful Test in a language once mean you don't have to test for it ever again?

IE.
I know Elvish. I succeed in a test to know Sylvian.
I now know Sylvian for all future roleplays.

Nope. It's specific to that situation. You'll have to roll for Sylvan again. You pass a Test to understand just the gist of that specific phrase/words/runes, not to learn a new language.

Thanks for the feedback, I've improved the text now to make it clearer. =)

I'll soon add some Polyglot Trait or something like this for a permanent boost and/or Advantage in known languages. =)

(Asking clarify questions to help)

You are in a Sylvian speaking village.
You talk to the guard and your roll passes to know Sylvian.
You walk pass The guard and talk to the shopkeep. Do you roll again?
If I talk to the guard hours later do I need to roll again?
If you are in this village for a few days do you roll once per day or once per conversation?


I am guessing this is all based on your opinion at the time and whatever is needed to keep the game simple and not drowning in rolls.
I am completely ok with that. Just clarifying questions to ease my mind.

I did a quick edit of my character Zyra Emberfang to track languages...

Great questions — I really appreciate you checking in to get clarity.

The short answer is: it depends on the situation. What really matters isn't what you're doing (like speaking Sylvan), but why you're doing it — and whether there's uncertainty, risk, or an interesting consequence tied to the outcome.

You don’t roll just to "understand Sylvan." You roll because you’re trying to do something interesting or uncertain — like convincing a guard to let you through a restricted gate, or eavesdropping on a tense conversation in a language you only half-understand. In those cases, language becomes part of the obstacle that might complicate your success or raise the stakes. It’s not the language itself that’s risky — it’s the situation.

So, if you’ve already rolled once to get the gist of Sylvan and you're just chatting with the shopkeeper later, you likely wouldn’t roll again. But if hours later you’re interrogating a suspect in Sylvan and you need precise meaning under pressure, I might call for a new roll — or maybe give you Disadvantage if it’s a tricky dialect, or Advantage if you’ve already been immersed for a while and the stakes are lower.

The goal is not to bog things down with unnecessary rolls. The dice hit the table when the outcome matters, and both success and failure would push the story forward in an interesting way.

So don’t worry too much about how many times to roll for a language — just focus on what your character is trying to do, and we’ll handle when a Test is needed. I'm always happy to explain why a roll is (or isn’t) called for in the moment.

Hope that helps!

Looks great!

That was my assumption also.
Just wanted to make sure.
We are Perfect! No problems whatsoever!

I think individual threads have become hidden. At the very least, I can't find mine.

Gamersplane.com just updated, so access controls changed. I think I fixed it now. =)

If you're seeing some of our sub-forums as unread (even though you read them) please go back to the game page and click "Mark Forum as read", just below the threads

This should fix it for our game. There is a bug in Gamersplane.com that should be fixed soon.

We have finished our first adventure! A Hot Opportunity is available here.

There is something I would like to address before moving forward.

In my experience, games do well when characters and players are pulling for each other to succeed. It doesn't mean we have to agree with one another at all times. But in general, we don't actively work to hinder one another's goals. We discuss issues in game or through our OOC threads. Sometimes all it takes is to talk it out.

I've had great games fall apart rapidly because everyone held different goals and refused to work together. I wish to avoid the conflicts that ended those games.

If everyone agrees. I'm good with seeing what comes next as a group. If not, it might be best to find others that will better accommodate that playstyle.

There are multiple stories being played out simultaneously in this edition of Waterdeep. Perhaps playing with a different group of people whose styles are more amenable to yours would help.

For sure! It sometimes feels smaller here when the other games are hidden away for a time. But there's a ton of us running around. Just saying something I view as important to me and might be a problem for some that view things differently.

I generally have no issue with most people. But every so often, you find playstyles and preferences that just don't work well together. It's unfortunate, but inevitable. We all want different things from games.

I'm wondering if I should split this game into separate ones. When I started, I thought a single game would give me some "economy of scale." It's certainly easier to share rules and maps, but this could be better achieved using World Anvil, wikis, or similar tools. And a single large group of players has even brought some extra challenges to keeping things flowing. What do you think and prefer? What is your experience with similar "mega-games"?

PS: The questions above are for all players.

I love the idea of an open world and groups forming and dissolving when the stories need it. From a player perspective it gives you variety. From a DM's perspective there are challenges with logistics timelines and timing of accomplishing a thread that allows that flexibility.

I've never played in a mega game before, but I am drawing my opinion from a series and a set of modules called "thieves world". Separate stories tied together by the setting. So each party between adventures gets a narrative on what happened to the world around them. i.e. a favorite merchant has closed shop, or a ship in harbor was robbed and now the city guards are over active making it harder for nefarious adventurers have to work a little harder or lay low for a while...

This might still give you opportunities to bring smaller groups together for a larger "hook". i.e. the city has been taken by raiders, so the groups communicate and coordinate without actually merging threads.

I honestly don't know which path would make the most sense for the DM but which ever you decide htech, I'm in.

Each mega game I been playing here on GP ended too soon with DM burnout. I say @htech you do what's easier for you.

Closest I've seen was a living campaign played at conventions. The basic idea is appealing. Your actions matter, and they effect the area others are playing in as well. For example, it's possible the smithy would be different had things come to blows and we lost one or both NPCs. Instead, there's possibly even more stock, and carrying a mysteriously historic makers mark. It might be a minor detail, but it's a cool one.

But to run a ton of games that flow at different times and paces? That's hard to pull off. I'd understand wanting to seperate them off to handle perhaps higher rate games on their own. Would it be easier to run fully seperated games? If you wanted to combine groups down the line, would those then be their own game too? I can't say what the best approach is. Most games I play are a set group from the start.

I'm with GreyWord, do what works best for you. We will adapt and enjoy.

Thank you all for your thoughtful input and encouragement — I really appreciate it.

After considering your feedback and my own experience running this so far, I’m inclined to move forward with splitting the game into multiple separate games here on Gamersplane. The idea would be to keep sharing the same world, rules, setting, maps, rumors, and key NPCs across all games — but without requiring or assuming direct interactions between parties and players.

This setup should make it easier to manage logistics, especially when it comes to pacing, recruitment, canceling, wrapping up or launching new focused games. It also encourages the use of shorter, one-shot style adventures that still contribute to the continuity of the broader world and timeline. Players could carry forward their characters, or join new games depending on their interests and availability.
I guess so =) Of course, recruitment for new games will prioritize current and continuing players, but the flexibility of changing participants should help keep things sustainable and enjoyable for everyone involved.

I’ll wait a few more days to give the rest of the group a chance to weigh in. If nothing major changes, I’ll go ahead with this plan, create new games for the Masked Soirée and any solo games already running, then, in August, after my vacations, think about opening up new games and recruitment threads.

Thanks again for being part of this world!

I am fully of the opinion that you do whatever is easiest for you. As players, we can adapt and learn.
Do what makes sense, and we will ride through and figure it out.

I concur with my fellow players. While I like the idea of being part of a larger ecosystem, I am much more invested in the DM gaining enjoyment and satisfaction from the game. You are tge lynchpin around which we orbit, htech, and without you this collapses. Whatever makes your participation more enjoyable and fuels your creative juices.


Personally, I am having a blast even though Ive barely "interfaced" with my game partners. You’ve been doing a good job keeping us hooked into the major story, and this is just supposed to be a mini adventure. So you need to do whatever gives you the motivation to continue.

As an aside, I for one am always open to OOC comments from the DM as to how to tailor my participation to enhance the experience of DM/other players.