![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Roll 20 and Paranoia
Nov. 8th, 2017 08:35 pmMy Blades in the Dark crew had our first session using Roll20 on Friday evening. For those not familiar with the site, it allows tabletop roleplaying online. There's an automated dice generator, a grid square and tools for drawing, a chat function, and video and audio feeds.
We made use of the video feeds, since we agreed we weren't comfortable roleplaying without it. All three of us had acquired cameras for our computers in preparation. It went pretty well. There was a little lag from time to time, but nothing too significant. There was also one memorable moment when Sahaquiel and I stopped being able to see or hear each other... which is funny, since we both had to shut our study doors so we wouldn't get feedback while our mics were on.
We didn't end up using the grid or drawing tools this time. Blades in the Dark is divided up into missions and downtime. Since this session was pure downtime, it only needed us to roleplay. However, we did make use of the automated character sheets. Whoever designed them did a fantastic job. They were great to look at and the macros were super handy.
The session revolved around collecting payment for our previous job--an assassination that had almost gone horribly wrong. We'd sustained a few minor injuries, so another part of the session was about finding a doctor.
We also lined up our mission for the next time. We'll meet in person to conduct that in a couple of weeks.
My Apocalypse World group wasn't able to meet at our usual time this weekend. So, those of us that were able to make it took advantage of the situation to play a one-shot of the new Paranoia. Each player is a clone that lives in Alpha Complex. The place is run by Friend Computer who has all of our best interests at heart. Friend Computer wants us all to be on the lookout for traitors, terrorists, secret society members and people with mutant powers. Happiness is mandatory.
As you may have gathered, it's a fairly over-the-top game with plenty of ridiculousness. It helps that each player starts out with six clones. Each time a clone dies, the next one manifests with its traitor stars wiped clean and its health and moxie restored. My group found this gave us the freedom to do all kinds of nonsense. We had two players in particular that did a wonderful job of embracing the wackiness.
Our party ended up being sent on a mission to save a level of Alpha Complex from a flood of strawberry topping. The highlight for me was the group of pirate LARPers who had no idea what pirates were and who kept confusing starboard with motherboard. They also made the mistake of declaring as the new Pirate King the PC who was being hunted by the rest of the party for being a five-star traitor. It did not end well.
The edition we played was the new, rebooted Paranoia. I'd played the original version just once before and enjoyed it. What I didn't realise was that it was written back in the 80s. The new rules are a little more complex (we barely touched the rules for combat), but seem to do a good job of keeping to the spirit of the original, while updating it to reflect modern technology and mores.
I'm not much a fan of gonzo nonsense, so I don't know how I'd go playing it again. However, it suited the group and I had a lovely time.
We made use of the video feeds, since we agreed we weren't comfortable roleplaying without it. All three of us had acquired cameras for our computers in preparation. It went pretty well. There was a little lag from time to time, but nothing too significant. There was also one memorable moment when Sahaquiel and I stopped being able to see or hear each other... which is funny, since we both had to shut our study doors so we wouldn't get feedback while our mics were on.
We didn't end up using the grid or drawing tools this time. Blades in the Dark is divided up into missions and downtime. Since this session was pure downtime, it only needed us to roleplay. However, we did make use of the automated character sheets. Whoever designed them did a fantastic job. They were great to look at and the macros were super handy.
The session revolved around collecting payment for our previous job--an assassination that had almost gone horribly wrong. We'd sustained a few minor injuries, so another part of the session was about finding a doctor.
We also lined up our mission for the next time. We'll meet in person to conduct that in a couple of weeks.
My Apocalypse World group wasn't able to meet at our usual time this weekend. So, those of us that were able to make it took advantage of the situation to play a one-shot of the new Paranoia. Each player is a clone that lives in Alpha Complex. The place is run by Friend Computer who has all of our best interests at heart. Friend Computer wants us all to be on the lookout for traitors, terrorists, secret society members and people with mutant powers. Happiness is mandatory.
As you may have gathered, it's a fairly over-the-top game with plenty of ridiculousness. It helps that each player starts out with six clones. Each time a clone dies, the next one manifests with its traitor stars wiped clean and its health and moxie restored. My group found this gave us the freedom to do all kinds of nonsense. We had two players in particular that did a wonderful job of embracing the wackiness.
Our party ended up being sent on a mission to save a level of Alpha Complex from a flood of strawberry topping. The highlight for me was the group of pirate LARPers who had no idea what pirates were and who kept confusing starboard with motherboard. They also made the mistake of declaring as the new Pirate King the PC who was being hunted by the rest of the party for being a five-star traitor. It did not end well.
The edition we played was the new, rebooted Paranoia. I'd played the original version just once before and enjoyed it. What I didn't realise was that it was written back in the 80s. The new rules are a little more complex (we barely touched the rules for combat), but seem to do a good job of keeping to the spirit of the original, while updating it to reflect modern technology and mores.
I'm not much a fan of gonzo nonsense, so I don't know how I'd go playing it again. However, it suited the group and I had a lovely time.
