So... who won?!?

Does anybody wonder..."who won the dxContent mini/module map contest"?

Well, lets say everybody won.  I mean after all, Map Runner got used, some bugs were found and squished and a few tweaks were made and so now the tool is better off.. and a better tool means less stress on the DM... and... less stress on the DM means... um... more effective games by the DM.  Yes, so players and DMs alike are all winners!

OK, ok enough spin. 

The reality is nobody entered the contest.  While it was just 3000 words and a simple map the prizes were...  what's the word I'm looking for... cheap?  I knew going in the contest might not garner much interest... but my big goal was to get Map Runner exposed, get some people using it and get some more people to create dxContent accounts. And on a small scale that's what happened. We are up to 75ish registered users (we started at around 60 before the contest).

So what's next?  Well, I'm off for a week of camping in the woods.  I should have a lot of time to think about what is next, and what can be improved.

Have a [PositiveDescriptor] week.

Introducing: Judge Shawn

It's Friday and you know what that means... time to introduce another judge for the dxContent mini map/module contest.  Its not to late to enter the contest - there are 10 days left!  Check out the rules and make your maps.  The contest ends midnight May 20th, 2012!

Today we meet Shawn.  He looks like a Jedi to me which is ironic because he is currently running a popular Star Wars campaign.  I'm always impressed with Shawn's "immersion" in role playing his characters - I can only assume that translates to his DMing style.  His player notes are often more detailed than the GM's! - One of these days I'll do a series of blogs comparing and contrasting DM notes... I hear from the Bothans that Shawn's notes are pretty detailed...


dxContent: As a game master and/or player, what level of importance do you place on maps and why?

Shawn: Maps are pretty important to me as a GM.  I don't often use modules, but when I do it's important for the maps to be grid-based.  I use minis, so transferring encounters from modules to the table is made much easier by a high quality map.  The worst maps I've seen were in Necromancer Games' Rappan Athuk modules.  Those modules were so epic, but the maps absolutely sucked.  When I write my own adventures, I spend time on the maps to make setting up encounters easier.

As a player, it makes a huge difference to my enjoyment of a session to have a battle mat.  I don't often see a GM's maps when playing, so the battle mats are the main thing.

dxContent: How many years have you played RPG games?


Shawn: 32

dxContent: How many years have you played 3.5 / Pathfinder?

Shawn: Since it came out.

dxContent: Minis are a "must" for your style of RPG play - Yes or No?

Shawn: Yes!

dxContent: Your game master notes (or player notes if you don't gm) are best described as...?

Shawn: My GM notes are very extensive and detailed.  I also take pretty thorough player notes.

dxContent: Do you prefer ready-made modules or home-spun material or a mix?

Shawn: Home-spun.

dxContent: As a gm (or player if you don’t GM) do you prefer published campaign settings or home-grown settings?

Shawn: Home grown.

dxContent: Favorite role to play in a RPG (stealth, magic, melee-master, etc)?

Shawn: Magic. 

dxContent: Would you rather play, game master or do both?

Shawn: Both! 

Introducing: Judge John

Hey folks, just a reminder: you've got until May 20th to get your submissions in for the dxContent mini/module mini/map contest.

Speaking of which, its time to introduce our next judge John Reyst.

John is the man behind the two-time Ennie winning www.d20pfsrd.com. He also developed d20modernpf.com and d20herosrd.com (did I miss any?!). John and I played in each others campaigns for many years.  I know John appreciates a good map when he sees one, so he was a shoe-in for the judging.  Of all the GM's I know John has great stamina when it comes to keeping a campaign going year after year.

I think John "burnt out" once as a DM, but we fed him a sandwich and he was good for another six years.

Its under these kind of DM's that you really get to develop a character (Brother Roth began as humble acolyte and rose all the way to Arch-something or other, and I"ll never forget the Romey Wanderbuck who began life as a young halfling scoundrel and ended up an aged local legend and business tycoon.

Below are John's responses to my "get to know the judge" questions.

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dxContent: As a game master and/or player, what level of importance do you place on maps and why?

John: As a GM, maps are absolutely required, at least in terms of high-level maps of encounter areas or the world setting as a whole. For specific, actual combat encounters, I almost always design them on graph paper and assume they’ll be necessary. The players I most often play with enjoy the tactical side of roleplaying games as much as the actual role playing aspects so when things get tense excitement visibly builds when we shift to the battlemat and start placing our mini’s where they’re supposed to be.

As a player, I’m like most of the rest of the players I play with regularly I think, in that I do enjoy the tactical and strategic “chess-like” aspects of seeing and moving mini’s around on a battlemat in an encounter. Using a battlement in any sort of combat encounter that is remotely involved, or in which the outcome may have a serious long term effect (such as possible character death or “losing” (not successfully accomplishing) some major goal, almost demands the use of battlemats. I don’t want to have arguments with other players or the GM as to where my PC is, or how far it is to the bad guy etc. Using a battlemat removes all of that. If, however, the encounter is less important, or unlikely to have any real long-term ramifications, the use of minis and the battlemat can be skipped. The GM can simply describe what happens in a narrative fashion, or it can be played out casually, still using most of the combat rules, but simply describing where things are and the effects of actions, instead of worrying about exact and precise placement of figures. As a player, in terms of maps in regards to maps of the setting or the world, I find them immensely helpful in immersing myself in the setting. Even if my PC wouldn’t know what countries lie on the farthest corners of the world, I as a player enjoy knowing that there really are things out there for me to explore, and things that the GM has invested at least some effort into.

dxContent: How many years have you played RPG games?

John: About 32 years.

dxContent: How many years have you played 3.5 / Pathfinder?

John: I’ve played the 3.x generation since it was released in or around the year 2000 and have continued playing since then.

dxContent: Minis are a "must" for your style of RPG play - Yes or No?

John: Sometimes yes, sometimes no. In larger or more complex encounters I enjoy the tactical nature of seeing and moving figures about on a battlemat. I enjoy the strategic aspect of the game in that sense. In smaller or more impromptu encounters I don’t always “need” mini’s. Only if there is likelihood of a lot of questions of character and enemy placement do I prefer mini’s.

dxContent: Your game master notes (or player notes if you don't gm) are best described as...?

John: Chaotic initially, jumbled, and often stream of thought. Then during play they’re fairly non-existent but I try to do a “brain-dump” after a session, to try to make note of the things I noticed were problems, things the players did that I need to follow up on, or to determine how the world reacts to the players actions etc.

dxContent: Do you prefer ready-made modules or home-spun material or a mix?

John: 99.9% home brew. I strongly dislike the “rair-roady” nature of published adventures. I prefer a campaign world without invisible walls that confine me into a predetermined set of actions.

dxContent: As a gm (or player if you don’t GM) do you prefer published campaign settings or home-grown settings?

John: As a GM, home brew 100%. As a player, either is fine so long as the world is consistent and engaging.

dxContent: Favorite role to play in a RPG (stealth, magic, melee-master, etc)?

John: All of the above. I’ve played and enjoyed just about every role and expect I’ll continue doing the same.

dxContent: Would you rather play, game master or do both?

John: I find that GMing engages me more, not just from an amount of effort required point of view but also from a “how actively engaged am I in the world” point of view. Meaning, when I am laying in bed at night trying to fall asleep, I’m not stuck thinking about what my character did or will do in the next session. What constantly goes through my mind are ideas for campaign settings, people, races, religions, that sort of thing.

Introducing: Judge Denny

I always find it informative to hear how other game-masters prepare and view RPGs.  In this post I introduce one of the dxContent mini/module mini/map contest judges.

I'd like you to meet Denny Edwards, another long-time gaming friend, DM and player.  Denny has a fantastic grasp on plot twists, mystery and suspense.  He creates villains you really hate (I'll get you General Gnaw!), and NPCs you really love (Rest in peace "Decoder").  Below are Denny's responses to my "get to know the judge" questions.

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dxContent: As a game master and/or player, what level of importance do you place on maps and why?

Denny: If a picture is worth a thousand words, a map is worth a thousand encounters.  In the RPG games I’ve played in or ran over the years, maps have always been a staple.  Clearly not all gaming situations call for a map, but more times than not a visual representation of where things are in relation to each other helps provide a better (and hopefully a shared) understanding of what’s going on.  Personally I have a preference that significant combat encounters take place on a gridded map with miniatures or other counters.  I’ve found that a lot of time is saved if you don’t have to ask or explain where something is at and a map solves the problem handily.  If nothing else, even a small map and a pencil make for a much better game. Finally, it has been my experience that maps encourage exploration and curiosity; players  always want to know what’s beyond the edges of the map or what the strange rune etched into the floor is for.

dxContent: How many years have you played RPG games?

Denny: 28 years

dxContent: How many years have you played 3.5 / Pathfinder?

Denny: 9 years

dxContent: Minis are a "must" for your style of RPG play - Yes or No?

Denny: Yes; minis or counters

dxContent: Your game master notes (or player notes if you don't gm) are best described as...?

Denny: Organized and cross-referenced

dxContent: Do you prefer ready-made modules or home-spun material or a mix?

Denny: Mix

dxContent: As a gm (or player if you don’t GM) do you prefer published campaign settings or home-grown settings?

Denny: Mix

dxContent: Favorite role to play in a RPG (stealth, magic, melee-master, etc)?

Denny: Magic/stealth

dxContent: Would you rather play, game master or do both?

Denny: Both

dxContent Map Runner Mini Module Design Contest

As Map Runner nears its official graduation from beta status, I'm holding a design contest to see what people can do with the mapping tools.  The rules are not complex - basically you're creating a very mini-module around a map you make with Map Runner.

Lots of ideas come to mind creature lairs, tombs, castle dungeons, city sewers and more.  So unleash your creativity and show me what you can do with Map Runner (and ultimately help make it better).

dxContent’s Map Runner Mini-Module Design contest rules

#1 - Create a dxContent.com user account.

#2 - Create a single map 14w x 12h (or smaller) map using dxContent’s Map Runner tools.

#3 - Detail your creation using the Pathfinder rules system in 3000 words or less.

• Up to half of your word budget can be allocated to background, plot, environment notes, the other half must be allocated to detailing specific areas on the map.
• Author your submission text in google docs
• save on text budget by linking to creatures / spell descriptions, etc on www.d20pfsrd.com
• Include a screenshot of your map in the Google doc. No maps created outside of Map Runner are allowed, and the map should not be altered outside of Map Runner in any way.
• Your submission text must be “PG-13”.
• Your submission must not use copyrighted intellectual property.
• You waive all copyrights to your submission and place it public domain.

 #4 - Before midnight May 13th 20th 2012 (due date extended!):

1. Post a response to this blog post notifying me of your submission.  Be sure to state your dxContent account name.
2. Share the google doc containing your submission with wheelmanforhire@yahoo.com.

 #5 - Contest submissions no longer accepted after midnight EST on May 20th 2012

Contest Judging

Judging will begin May 21st.  All submissions will be ranked on a 1 to 10 scale by a panel of contest judges in the following categories:

1. Creative use of Map Runner
2. Overall Originality
3. Overall theme
4. Conformance to Pathfinder Rules system
5. Technical Writing / Organizational skills / formatting / layout
6. Effective use of word budget / PG-13 content

In the event of a tie, the earliest submission wins.

Prizes

The top three creations and honorable mentions will all be featured on dxContent.com and/or Not So Random Thoughts, (dxContent.com’s blog). In addition:

1st Place Prize

25 tiles based on your specs will be added to Map Runner*

2nd Place Prize

15 tiles based on your specs will be added to Map Runner*

3rd Place Prize

10 tiles based on your specs will be added to Map Runner*

Honorable mentions

1 tile based on your specs will be added to Map Runner.

*Alternately you can request a feature change/addition to Map runner

-or-

have a custom random generator built for you

Good luck and happy [Random RPG activity]!

Map Runner 99% ready!

Its been a busy first quarter of updates to Map Runner!

First lets talk about the tiles. Map Runner makes maps based on combining tiles (also known as "geo-morphs"). At the time of this blog the tile count is 4,064! I don't know if that is a lot compared to other map generators, but can I just claim that that is the largest geo-morph library in the universe?

Anyway, biggest or not, here is what I've done:

• I've completed the entire list of tiles I had planned and all the possible legal combinations.



• I've added some additional tile variations (and will continue to add more over time)



• I've improved the stair images and added variations for those as well.

Now on to the tool changes. I've made a number of tweaks to the map making tools making them smarter so that they produce fewer illegal tile combinations. For example placing a vertical hallway puts in the end caps, placing stairs starts a hallway, etc, etc, etc.

But the big news is that I've added the basic text tools so that you can not label your maps with key numbers / letters or labels (" 'ere be trezure!").

There is more planned, but I'm not ready to "let the dragon out of the cave" on those features yet, but at this point I've armed all you overworked DM's with the basic tools you need to create attractive dungeon and sewer maps for your campaigns, that you can save in the cloud and work on from anywhere you have web access.

Have fun building the Dungeons of [RandomRuinedCastleName]!

Map Runner Save/Open features now enabled!

I have good news map makers! The Save, Save As, and Open features for Map Runner are enabled! Now you can keep your mapping goodness safetly tucked away in our database for you to work on anytime, anyplace and come back to it again and again.

Next on the agenda is to get the text tools implement as well as finish the library of tilesets so you don't get those ugly green broken image links when your work requres a tileset that isn't created yet.

Enjoy making (and saving) your [RandomBossMOnster]'s Lair