Gaming Commitment and Experience

[hedgeknight]

Morning folks - just wondering about everyone's game time commitment. How many games are you in (running or playing), what is your favorite genre (D&D, Star Wars, etc), and, if you don't mind, how old are you and how long have you been gaming?

I'll start:

Games > The Darnathian Prophecies (D&D, DM); The Red Hand of Doom (D&D, DM email-based game); Conan: Throne of Blood (player); Classic AD&D (player on Yahoo groups).

Favorite genre of gaming > D&D; prefer older editions, but 3.5 is fine.

Age: 45

Gaming experience: since 1983 = 25 years! :cool:

-g-

[Gralhruk]

Currently playing in 7 games: Eidolon, Deadwatch Embers, Band of Bumbling Bards, Champions, Eberron, Aerdun (well, I'm working on my character) and Dissonance Kindled. 3 are D&D 3.5, 3 are HERO 5th edition, and 1 is D&D 4e.

The vast majority of my gaming experience is D&D - from Basic (red box) and every edition up to the present. Outside of that he only system I've played is HERO, and that only via PbP on these boards. Someday I'll get my Witchmark campaign off the ground using FATE version 3 but I have to stop joining new games first (damn you J!).

I've been playing since around 1981 and I recently turned 40. As far as favorite genre . . . I suppose Sword & Sorcery as opposed to High Fantasy, Espionage, or Modern type fantasy. I guess D&D is my favorite gaming system although I have to say I really do like HERO, despite being mostly clueless with the rules. As I have said before, I think FATE is an awesome ruleset especially for PbP but I don't have any actual gaming experience with it.

[BigRedRod]

Well you two have been gaming since before I was born, which is quite impressive.

I can't quite remember the year I started, but it was with The Alcotroll and ElPresidente(who has since dropped off the face of the earth). Along with a couple of others we started playing AD&D when we were fourteen or fifteen in the afterschool Games Workshop club (As you can tell, we were fucking cool kids). In fact those guys are the only people I've gamed with face to face. I once gave it a whirl with the uni gaming society but the smell was so bad that I never made a second session (or the second half of the first).

In terms of games, I run two right now. Or possibly one as the second hasn't started (but will when I get home from work assuming that everybody has sorted out their characters). One is 3.5 and t'other is 4e D&D.

I play in a couple of Iron Heroes games too. One of which is the amazing Inceptum which sadly has kind of stalled. I used to play in more, and run more, but that was the past. And we have to move forwards, not back. Upwards, not sideways. And always twirling, twirling, towards freedom.

[Tashalar]

Hrhm... favorite system has to be D&D (or at least the d20 system) as I've not yet really played any other system. Played Earthdawn once or twice, Shadowrun once or twice and a Tolkien-ish game once - all of those long ago.

Started out approximately 14 years ago with AD&D 2nd edition with the 1st edition module Eye of Traldar. I was 16 back then and we played it with one DM and two players - each playing two characters, heh.

Currently I'm playing in:

PbP games:
d20 Arcana Evolved - Wheel of Life (Plothook)
d20 Iron Heroes - Klotho (one of little z's games)
d20 Iron Heroes - Dark Harbor (Plothook)
D&D 3.5 - Factions (soon to get started - one of LuneMoonshadow's games)
D&D 3.0/3.5 mix with RL friends (mostly) - Retribution (on a 'private' web site)PbP challenges/tourneys:
D&D 3.5 - CR Challenge (right here, right now)
D&D 3.5 - Conjurer's Chess (over on Dragonavenue)Offline games:
D&D 3.0/3.5 mix - Ravenburg (player)
D&D 3.0/3.5 mix - Fire Below (player)
D&D 3.5 - A Red Hand of Doom adaptation (DM)

[Mercutio]

Games - The Red Hand of Doom (DM) and Dissonance Kindled (Player), and the Conjurer's Chess tournament at Dragonavenue.

I vastly prefer D&D in the gaming world, although I really like the Mutants and Masterminds and d20Advanced mechanics. I've played Shadowrun and it's good for what it does, but D&D captures my attention in ways few others can do.

I'm 29, and I've been playing RPGs since 1988, starting with Price of Freedom when I was a Boy Scout.

Recently, my favorite genre has shifted towards swords and sorcery and away from high fantasy.

[elmer_jok]

Been gaming since... 1999ish.

Started with a 1st edition/2nd edition hybrid with a few of my older buddies and an uncle of mine (in name if not blood) that had a lot of broken unearthed arcana stuff thrown in the mix. It was a colorful session that captured my imagination instantly. I was 16, fresh out of job corps. (freshly kicked out that is) and ready to get to work, put school behind me (for now... and little did I know, many years to come), and live on my own terms.

Over the last 9 years or so I have evolved with the D&D system to 3rd edition, 3.5 samplings thrown into existing campaign, and eventually a few 3.5 games here on the forums. I have the equipment to play and/or run a 4th edition game, but alas... time.

As to the main point of the thread though...

Currently playing (yet on hold) in coffeesucker's Darnathian Prophecies game.

Was playing in coffeesucker's RED HAND OF DOOM! game, but when I bailed on my free time pleasures I bailed on it as well. I'm sooooo sorry coffee. I was really ambitious with where I wanted to go with Evelar. I've never tried to make a broken magic-user character like I was with him. :devious::evil:

Was ressurecting my Into the Wilds game and started off slow yet ambitious... before I dissapeared into the busy worldwind that became my life.

Also abandoned at this tragic/joyous time was Itches and BBR's Labyrinth of Little Lies game in which I played the part of a psychotic kenyan man with a foul mouth and temper. I will miss you Gitanga!

Leadpal's Runelords game seems to have stopped after I left. Tragedy... I was really diggin' that setting.

Luneshadow's Duality of Truth Horror game was looking pretty cool too, especially since my character was me... literally. He said he had a very loose game system and we need not even know of it. It might have survived with just the two of us who remained... but then I bailed... another tragedy. :(

I'm sorry to all those that I bailed on, but as I explained to you all... life called.

So really I guess I've only played D&D, D20 modern (just a sampling), and had a couple RL sessions of Gurps (The older version).

At this time I am playing in 0 games and DM'ing 0 games.
<.................................(________________ ______)

[zachol]

Right now? Klotho (DM), The Red Hand of Doom (player), Eben's Monster game (player), and Dissonance Kindled (player).
Three or four (steady) games seems to be my preference. For some reason, almost half of the games I play in result in death on the games part or my leaving within a month. Ergh.
Still (painfully) learning how to DM properly - have sort of a rotation between three (-ish) games.
I don't do any tabletop gaming anymore. I muddle in WoW (though I should really cancel it, such a money-sink).

I like D&D just because I'm used to it, but I have a soft spot for GURPS and the Chaosium system, GURPS for its flexibility and Chaosium for being rules-light, but not excessively so.

I'm 19. I've been sort of roleplaying (Ars Magica, GURPS) since around '98.
My first "serious" or otherwise longstanding game (everything else had been one-shots and other BS) was actually a pbp, Realms of Shadow, which started in... 2003?

So only like five years of "real" experience.

[LuneMoonshadow]

Well, I'm 21 and I've been playing systems since I was 14. This started with AD&D as well as online freeform, though I quickly transitioned into playing only 3e. I played face-to-face with a couple of guys on this board (only 2 of which are still here) until we all went our separate ways. Now I play on here only, though I'd like to get a f2f game going.

I really only know how to play D&D and Werewolf, though I prefer freeform at a large margin. That is why I tend to ignore rules whenever possible. Awesome shouldn't be inhibited by rules.

As for what I'm playing now, I'm only in two game. I'm playing in Nocturne of Souls and I'm DM'ing Factions at War (again, woo).

[Grognard]

Been playing since 1975. Mostly ftf,am new to PbP. Got into D&D from Chainmail and since have played and Gm'ed nearly everything. Favorite system of all time - Ars Magica! No question.

[omni-roach]

Great. Thanks for reminding me how new I am to this guys. Thanks a lot. :P

I started roleplaying... maybe 5 years ago; mainly a bunch of free-form pbp stuff that I don't do anymore. I had my first taste of D&D a few months after quitting all that, but that didn't get serious about role playing until Benicus invited me and a bunch of other nerdy friends over for a game sometime the next year (4 years ago, in case I'm confusing you guys :P) and I was hooked ever since.

Over the next summer or so, Benicus had pulled a campaign out of his butt using his own setting (he's actually tried running a game in that world on here). I consider that dwarf my first real D&D character, and I still need to grab that sheet from him...

Two years ago, Benicus got me into playing here on ORP, and since I've met some pretty cool people and had a chance to play in some pretty cool games, all of which have collapsed at some point in time, which makes me sad, because all of the characters I have made for PbP games seen to have had more thought put into them then my F2F characters.

Since my time on ORP, Benicus has moved out of my immediate walking distance (Damn, I need to get a car) and I have met a few different groups to play with, a D&D group where the DM makes his settings TOO BIG, and a group that VERY loosely uses GURPS for their games.

GMing has never been my thing. I've always prefered to perform as my own character than tell a story, but I have tried co-GMing a couple of games, both for my good friends Benicus and Skidrow. Too bad the Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil flopped and Skidrow's game never got off the ground. I'll have to see if he has any plans to try that again...

I am in two different F2F games and I'm starting another PbP character as soon as I get around to reading the rules for D20A. I mainly play D&D (haven't gotten around to playing a 4E game yet, but I love 3.5) and freeform games.

[Benicus]

Four years ago? I feel old now...

I've been playing off and on since the late 90's, about 9 years. Only started playing with a steady schedule since 4 years ago. I've played D&D (2nd, 3rd, 3.5, 4th), GURPS, Conan d20, d20A, True 20, Iron Heroes, Mutants and Masterminds, and d20 Modern. My favorite is probably 3.5 D&D with Iron Heroes as second and d20A as third.

On ORP, games I'm playing in-Dissonance Kindled, Fort Griffin Wild West, still praying Rise of the Runelords would resurrect itself, Klotho. Games I DM-A Tale of Two Winters (Spellpunk D20A). Games I plan on DMing in the future-something super heroes.

[LynMars]

Playing since I was in AIT, so late 1998/early 99 when I was 19 (now 28)--almost 10 years ago. My very first ever game was 2nd ed Werewolf the Apocalypse.

Since then I have played a tiny handful of AD&D, a lot of 3.x/D20 of various kinds and settings, some Shadowrun, Various other WoD games, Exalted, Adventure and Aberrant, a nWoD game where we were normal people, Scion. There was a Star Trek game in there a few years ago, some Call of Cthulhu, the old Warhammer Fantasy RPG, BESM, Deadlands, Serenity, Amber Diceless, 7th Sea, Legend of the 5 Rings.

I've dabbled a lot in the last decade. My favorite genres though are fantasy based. Not a huge fan of deep, heavy politics games (though a nice balance of that with other elements is good and usually necessary). I would count Traveller in my list, but we didn't actually play, just rolled characters and saw how far we got through char gen before we died or something else crazy happened. Great way to spend an evening.

About 7 or 8 years ago I got into online gaming, and am still involved in my first community for that, a freeformish multi-setting community. And there's here, where currently I'm only in 2 games, Polemarch's Divergent Path and am a long time, card carrying member of Wired*Nun's Cult. I am in a ftf Werewolf The Apocalypse game that runs every other Friday.

I was briefly GMing a ftf 7th Sea game earlier this year, but otherwise have been pretty quiet on the GM angle for awhile, aside from small trheads in my other online community. As far as future GM plans go, I dunno. I've had a Serenity idea kicking around in my brain for a couple years now, but don't seem to ever have the time to run it, and don't know if I want to try it ftf or online, or how to implement it, etc.

[itches]

I started roleplaying back in ... 2000 I think. Maybe 1999 or 2001. It was with Dungeons and Dragons 3rd Edition. Back in the day I was one of those players you hear horrific gaming stories about, looking at the DMs notes, not roleplaying, roleplaying badly out of character, adding my BAB to damage because I was confused.

Most of my experience has been with DnD (d20 in general), with dozens and dozens of dead games and characters. After that I guess it would be BESM and the Story Teller System, which dispite being my favourite setting/system/game and the only RPG books I've spent money on, I only recently started a game with it.

All of my current games take place on Orp and it's been this way since almost as long as I've been on here (2002). Right now I run two games and play in three.

The first is the Band of Bumbling Bards, an all Bards 3rd Edition D&D game.
The second is Huddle of Haywire Hunters, a single PC Hunter: The Reckoning game I'm running.

The first of the ones I play in is Eidolon (DnD 3e), with Nicos my one-armed, ex-monk, womanising bard.
The second is in BRR's NoS (DnD 3e), with Lade my borderline alcoholic, middleaged ranger/fighter.
The third BRR's DK (DnD 4e), with Remiel the first mage I've ever really made and played.

[Red Redemption]

D&D is definitely my favorite system, as it's where I got my start in roleplaying. Most other things I've played or have been involved with have all been some sort of d20 game, namely Iron Heroes and True20.

I'm 17, and started roleplaying seven years ago. My brother in law invited me to his family's game session (which consisted of around 8 people) after I saw the D&D movie. They're all old school gamers still playing 1E AD&D (I believe the oldest is close to 50 and the youngest is around 23), and that's the system I got my start with, and I still occasionally play with them. I told a friend about the game, he told his dad, and then his dad bought the 3.5 core books for us.

Since then (2003) I've DM'ed a handful of games f2f, and played in just as many. I'm about to run Expedition to the Ruins of Greyhawk here, and I'm supposed to be in two games, Benicus' Baptism by Fire and A Tale of Two Winters.

[Benicus]

Supposed to being the key words ;).

[The Hive Custodian]

I am currently running 0 games and playing in 0 games. =( These days I never seem to have time or books at the same time, so I don't want to commit to anything I can't support in the future.

I've been playing since I was in middle school, which would be back in 1999: 9 years or so, out of my 21 years of age.

System-wise, I've mostly played D&D; it's actually the only "full-featured" (i.e., not including things like Kobolds Ate My Baby) system that I've played, but I don't have any particular allegiance to it. I've tried my hand at designing a few things of my own (see my signature), but never got around to trying them out. Most of them seem a bit silly in retrospect, but I can't be bothered to improve them.

[hedgeknight]

Nice hearing from all you fellers. :)
Let's keep it going - any other old timers out there like Gral, Grog, and me? ;)
-g-

[LeadPal]

Leadpal's Runelords game seems to have stopped after I left. Tragedy... I was really diggin' that setting.
still praying Rise of the Runelords would resurrect itself
The Runelords shall rise again!

In fact, if Jok still wants to play, I won't even have to look for fresh players (assuming PrinceY and Xaden haven't quit on me). It'll still definitely take a few weeks for me to finish my business with the real world, but it'll happen.

Most games need a huge lull or three anyways. Just look at Merc's Red Hand of DOOM campaign. :nod:

...

Anyways, at the moment I'm not really in any games, since I'll need the next few weeks off from this site. But when I get back, my DMed game, Rise of the Runelords, will be restarting, hopefully with most of my old players, possibly with one or two newcomers. I'll also be playing in The Alcotroll's Lost Homelands game, unless he decides to drop me. Whether or not he does, I won't be actively joining any more games, although I'll be happy to play in anything that restarts. Most PbPs die so quickly that the effort I put into each character is just a distraction from my DMing.

I started off with 2e AD&D... geez, fifteen years ago? and I've been a fan of D&D ever since. I've dabbled with a few other systems: tried GURPS a few times, got roped into RIFTS once, was unfortunate enough to try HERO, had some fun with Mutants & Masterminds, once attempted a Shadowrun game that never made it off the ground. But I always come back to D&D, especially 3rd edition--although 4th edition is definitely nice.

I've always loved horror: it mixes well with just about anything. You can have horrific science fiction, horrific fantasy, horrific action-adventure, horrific romance, even horrific comedy. Some of my RotR game is an exploration into what types of horror work best; I'm starting with some gruesome hack-n-slash, and I hope to experiment with other forms of horror soon. (I've largely abandoned horrific comedy, however, after I found with my first game, Excommunication, that I'm not very good at it.)

[Mercutio]

Most games need a huge lull or three anyways. Just look at Merc's Red Hand of DOOM campaign. :nod: Thanks. That's just what I want to be known for. Not for having a good campaign with excellent players that survived the disappearance of one DM and the complete lifestyle change of the other and have continued to stick with the game for over 2 years. Nope, I'll just be the guy whose game lapsed for like 6 months or so. ;)

[LeadPal]

Absolutely. Most people aren't going to be kind enough to hint that the lapse was all part of the success, after all. :fun:

[Reclaimer]

Games: Money Can't Buy Survival- a solo CoC game I'm keeping for a friend of mine.

Favorite Genre: CoC, since it's currently the only one I've actually played.

Age: 14.

Gaming Experience: About three months.

[Wired*Nun]

Stared at age 5 when I learned to play competitive Cribbage in 1968. Learned to play Risk the next year, and never stopped. Grew up all through the 70s with a small gaming group of about 6 friends of similar ages. Right now I play in one PBP when it's going, and run two. Did a lot in between.

[Gnarsh]

Games: Rebels, Imperials, and Wookies Oh My! - run by Bad Luck Charm is the only one I'm in on here, and one set in the Song of Ice and Fire universe on another. And a friend is supposed to start a f2f game of Scion soon. I've mostly played D&D and Star Wars, with a little White Wolf.

Started gaming when D&D 3E came out, so around eight years now.

[hedgeknight]

Stared at age 5 when I learned to play competitive Cribbage in 1968. Learned to play Risk the next year, and never stopped. Grew up all through the 70s with a small gaming group of about 6 friends of similar ages. Right now I play in one PBP when it's going, and run two. Did a lot in between.

Whoohoo! Another old timer! :cool:
-g-

[Bad Luck Charm]

I started in the late 70s/early 80's when first edition D&D came out (I still have the red player books and the blue GM books). Since then I've played every edition of D&D (though Advanced 2nd Edition is my favorite as mages are just insanely powerful...Summon Monster spells lasted 1 hour/level, not 1 round/level :nod:). Too bad everything else about that edition kinda sucked, although I liked how the Kits worked (basically prestige classes that you could take at level 1 and there were hundreds of them available).

Once I got into college I helped form an RPG club and got exposure to Shadowrun (which I love), Star Wars D6 and d20 editions, d20 Modern, Rifts, Gurps, World of Darkness, and several other systems. I also got to play Heroes Unlimited, Rolemaster, and a few other more abstract RPG's at a few local gaming stores. I've also played a lot of the fun board games like Munchkin, Zombies, Dork Tower, and several others.

The one game I haven't tried that I really want to play is Hackmaster, which is basically a parody of Advanced 2nd Edition D&D.

Overall my favorite system right now is Shadowrun, and my least favorite system is probably Rifts (very cool setting and player options, but it's so damned complicated to do anything and the rules are very vague on several issues...and yes I realize Shadowrun is the same lol...I guess I'm not sure what it is, but Rifts just rubs me the wrong way even though I love the setting and character creation options).

Favorite Genre: Science Fiction / Post Apocalyptic. I use to prefer Fantasy, but lately I've really been on a sci-fi kick.

Games I'm currently in here:

Star Wars Saga Edition (GM) - set 1 year after Episode VI, running in diceless mode
Shadowrun 3rd Edition (GM) - sticking closely 'to-the-books' and 'by-the-dice'. We've already had the players kill one of their own after only a month of playing ;)

Cogs of Fate (Player, 3.5e D&D) - elf enchantress that is going to have everybody kissing her boots by the end of the game

The Cult (Player, no idea what system it is) - modern horror/supernatural game in which I'm completely lost...Wired*Nun is a very weird GM

[Lando The Archmagi]

Yea, me. :cool: I started with 1st edition AD&D at age 7-8 in 1980. I had borrowed the 1st edition AD&D books from the library (born/raised in Wisconsin and you could check them out at the local library). My neighbor's kids helped me learn to play. Got the original Basic D&D boxed set for my 8th birthday. This year I'll be 36 in October.

I've played nearly everything at least once or something very close to it. I own over 30 game systems and play in over a dozen pbp games on 4 pbp sites including here. As for DMing, I run 2 here, 2 elsewhere and 2 live OpenRPG games and play in several OpenRPG games as well.

I'm also trying to reform my f2f gaming group. I like every genre and enjoy them for different reasons depending on my current gaming mood.

I've also had the pleasure to playtest/contribute to 2 rpgs (Werewolf: The Apocalypse and the BubbleGum Crisis RPG). I'm a long time rpg judge for Dragon*Con here in Atlanta, GA and recently ran Shadowrun 4th there this year for CGL as a member of their Commando Demo team.

Favorite games currently are D&D (3.5), Serenity, Rifts, OGL d20 Wild West/Sidewinder: Recoiled and Shadowun 4th, Star Wars (d6 and SAGA).

[Palanthias]

I was maybe 7 or 8 in 1980ish when my friends brother was forced to let us play AD&D with him and his friends. He thought for sure my stupid canned Dwarf Cleric (who they named after a lighter "Bic")would be dead meat. But the little guy lived till the session was over and I was hooked.
It wasn't until maybe a year later that after enough whining that my parents bought me the D&D companion (green) box set. Which had none of the basics in it. I read it over and over until I realized I needed the basic (red) box set. I got the parents to buy that one. Then it was game on. I played Basic D&D then Ad&d , second edition, star frontiers, buck rodgers, paranoia, rifts, marvel super heroes, third edition, shadowrun first edition, starwars d6, made 3 rpg systems from scratch (one based on the d12 because I just like the way it looks), CoC,Vampire, The Arcanum, Cyperpunk 1st and 2nd ed.s. then my story takes a different turn. My ADD ass was poor and had bad grades when the inevitable boot form the the nest came. Yep to hell with your swimming scholorship off to the military for me. Then came wife, children and life in general. Then the children grow up. Mwah ha ha. I now play 3.5e. and Shadowrun 4e. FtF(GM) with my 13yo son and Starwars saga, Shadowrun 3e, Conspriacy X on ORP (Player).

[GeekEclectic]

I'm 27, and I've been playing (actually playing) for about 9 years, though I had some gaming books since about '96. My AD&D 2E Player's Guide up and disappeared, and I got rid of some of my GURPS 3E books (core and Compendiums) around the time I got the 4E books, though I kept a few of the "fluff" books like Rogues, Warriors, and Ancient Egypt.

With local groups:
D&D (ok), Vampire LARP (worst gaming experience ever), and d20 Modern (decent). The last is my current group's regular game. My experience is weird considering that I really don't like d20 system at all (though I'm intrigued by some variants like that in Mutants & Masterminds, but haven't gotten to try it out).

At Conventions I've Played:
D&D, Primetime Adventures, Don't Rest Your Head, Wushu Renegades, Dark Heresy, Dread (not Dread: the First Book of Pandemonium), Monsters & Other Childish Things, and a couple other things I can't remember off the top of my head. I've never had a bad con gaming experience, and I've gotten to try a few things I wouldn't have gotten to IRL.

In Chatrooms:
D&D, GURPS 4e, Marvel Superheroes (FASERIP), Tomorrow Knights. All pretty good, but never had a chatroom game last more than a few sessions.

PBP:
Exalted, Cartoon Action Hours. Both times my GM just up and disappeared! No notice or anything. I also tried unsuccessfully to get a Buffy the Vampire Slayer RPG game going once, and am thinking of contacting my prospective players to see if we can do something again. And I'm trying to get a Primetime Adventures game going here. (http://online-roleplaying.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9556)

[Croaker]

I've been playing since I was seven or eight, back in 1994/1995. I don't really know what my first gaming system was (I was sort of forced to play someone's character at my daycare), but it was some form of D&D pre-3.0.

After that, I bought the 2nd Edition books in 1998ish (RIGHT before 3.0 was announced). I played that for a while, and then migrated to 3.0 which I stuck with until 2003 when we started playing WoD (Vampire, Vampire: Dark Ages, Demon, Orpheus, Hunter, Werewolf, and Mage).

After a whirlwind of gaming (including most of the old WoD, new WoD, Paranoia, FATE, Burning Wheel, Mutants and Masterminds, REIGN, Dogs in the Vineyard, In A Wicked Age, BESM, Earthdawn, Shadowrun 3rd/4th, Exalted 1st/2nd, and Alternity), I wound up selling off most of my vast (500+ core, splat, source, etc books) collection and kept only what I loved most.

I now own/play D&D 4e (I hate DMing, love playing), Dark Heresy (love love love this game), Burning Wheel (favourite game), and Dogs in the Vineyard (best themed mechanics EVER).

I don't have any time for f2f gaming these days, so I set up a Burning Wheel campaign for a buddy here at ORP. I happened upon a thread about Dark Hersey and managed to come across a GM and some players. I'm happy with those two games for now. I hate playing/GMing more than one game (I can play in one and GM one though).

[hedgeknight]

Thanks for keeping this thread alive, fellers! Never heard of some of these games - but that's what I love about gaming - always something new and different for everyone. Burning Wheel? I'll have to check that out. ;)

[Zeff]

What in the heck am I doing back here? what was my name again?

Started with AD&D when I was like 12. I'm 36 now and hate math. I've been off and on over the years, with the most stable F2F games being Earthdawn with a local group of friends who opened a game store. Unfortunately it would take a large miracle for these guys to try another game.

So I got online and started here with Adventures in Earthdawn. Played some Trek and Serenity freeform which was enjoyable if a bit laborous to keep up with.

Playing AD&D, Truth & Justice, and Nobilis at the moment, and having much fun.

I hope to find a game to join here again.

[Shoelip]

On the topic of commitment, I've become increasingly averse to playing 3.5 D&D. Not directly because of anything in particular about the system, every single one of the games I get into using that system seems to end a few weeks after it starts thanks to the DM vanishing. It's rather monotonous for me to make character sheets in this system, and it's just not worth it if I'm not going to end up using them!

[Scythe]

You can't blame people; we all have lives and things can get pretty hectic sometimes. I've learned to not get my hopes up for PBP anymore. DM's vanishing is a pretty common and regular thing, especially if they are new to the board.

[hedgeknight]

I'm learning the same thing, Scythe...and like Shoelip, it's pretty damn frustrating. In fact, one of the first games I joined on here a few years ago started off very well and then all of a sudden the DM is just gone! No explanation, no reason, nothing! Just gone. And it happened again a recent as a few weeks ago; spent a lot of time on character creation, had one or two posts...and then nothing. DM is gone.
Sam thing happened in a Yahoo Groups game - we were rolling along wonderfully and the DM just disappears. Weird as hell.

And while that is frustrating, it's just as frustrating when players ditch your game. Granted RL gets in everyone's way occasionally and that's understandable. But to sign on, create a character, work with me to build a background and a place in the campaign, and then either disappear or post so infrequently that I have to NPC the character...well, it just pisses me off.

[Shoelip]

You can't blame people; we all have lives and things can get pretty hectic sometimes. I've learned to not get my hopes up for PBP anymore. DM's vanishing is a pretty common and regular thing, especially if they are new to the board.

That'd be fine except for the statistical improbability (nigh impossibility) that all but two of the 3.5 DMs I've ever had in a PbP game were suddenly forces away from the game by real life stuff without even getting a chance to tell their players about it.

[BigRedRod]

Shoelip, your problem is not related to 3.5 in any way, shape or form.
It's just a sad truth of PBPs that players/DMs have a 25% chance of vanishing within about a dozen IC posts.

[Shoelip]

The amount of frustration I get from having the DM vanish is proportional to the amount of work it is making the character. I find making 3.5E characters tedious.

[SponkleofInfini]

I started roleplaying back around the same time as Itches, with Cadogan Trahem and some of our other mates. I started with DnD 3rd edition and found myself to be a player who liked to try and min-max his characters, I say try because in reality I wasn't that great at it.

It wasn't long before Itches and Cadogan brought ORP to my attention and I began roleplaying online. The old school members of these boards might remember me and the dozen or so games I would be in at any one time.

After participating in games on these boards for a couple of years a little game called World of Warcraft came into my life and completely devoured my soul and all of my remaining time. So I have resigned myself to trolling these boards on a daily basis ever since.

[-J-]

Warcraft is a hard, hard mistress.

[Viro]

I'm current in D&D - Aftermatch (Walkerurza) here on ORP, and playing in three face-to-face games. Two are D&D 3.5, and the other is Shadowrun 4th.
I've been trying to get into a 4th edition game (D&D) since it came out, but have had pretty abysmal luck, but think it looks very interesting.

As far as favorite systems, Shadowrun is probably my #1 - 4th edition now that target number adjustments aren't the only important thing in the world.
After that, the Whitewolf systems in general, with my absolute favorite being Exalted and then Mage (have not tried the latest editions yet).
I enjoy D&D, but the system behind it places too much of a focus on combat. Yes, I realize skills are combat-independent, but how many skills you GET is based on your combat class. In Shadowrun or anything Whitewolf, you can create a character who is very low powered in combat, but has massive social/stealth/etc skills. In D&D, you play a Rogue (or variant), and you have the exact same combat prowess as any other rogue, pre-feats.

[treehouse]

Most games need a huge lull or three anyways. Just look at Merc's Red Hand of DOOM campaign. :nod:

Psssh, we're just biding our time. It was always part of the plan for me to 'disappear' for a couple years and lull the players into a false sense of security. It's all about hardcore dedication to one's craft.

Honestly!