Okay, based on the interest so far (@AntiOutsideAktion@hexbear.net, @roux@hexbear.net , @FlakesBongler@hexbear.net , @Grownbravy@hexbear.net , @TrudeauCastroson@hexbear.net , @BeamBrain@hexbear.net, @kidleviathan@hexbear.net ).

So, my idea is not to do a new campaign right off the bat (mainly due to how hard it is to schedule a regular session time), but maybe schedule a series of one-shots trying out different things, kinda like how the Hexbear movie night is setup or like your average board game night. That way, if other people also want to run things (like Grownbavy was suggesting), or are looking for only a single game (like Kidleviathan) then there would be some flexibility and it would be easier to share the load. However, I am happy to kick things off.

For a kick-off, think I’d like to first filter for what type of game genre people are interested in. Obviously, there are a ton of possibilities, but I think I can present a couple more concrete directions. The first option would be something explicitly revolutionary. That could be a game like Comrades or Beat the Boss, or a more fantasy/sci-fi take on that (like Spire, Thirsty Sword Lesbians or an appropriately themed adventure of a less explicitly leftist game (for example, I ran a really fun campaign of Blades in the Dark where the crew was part of a revolutionary movement.) Alternatively, we could just do a more traditional fantasy game. D&D 5E is the obvious standard-bearer here, but if I’m running a one-shot then I’d probably lean towards some of the more streamlined games in this genre, like Shadowdark, Cairn or Worlds Without Number. Still, if most folks want to run 5E, then I can roll with that. Obviously, there is a lot of other stuff out there, but I think narrowing it down for now would be a good idea to avoid choice paralysis.

Then, we’d need to figure out when people are available. I would normally use a scheduling software, but IDK on the opsec there if I link to it from here. If you feel comfortable, you can just share your general availability in this thread, or just DM me. Personally, I can generally do Monday and Wednesday evenings/night (Americas time zones), and also do some Friday evenings/nights and weekends. For the first TRPG night, how would people feel about either the week of the 22nd or 29th, as that would give plenty of time to do prep and get things organized?

Finally, we need to figure out a platform. I’d probably lean towards Owlbear Rodeo as a lightweight VTT. For voice-chat, I’m a little nervous about discord since it isn’t super secure, but I don’t know much about what people are using for alternatives. I can create a burner Discord account and server, but I open to recommendations.

Just a heads up, in case you didn’t know this existed.

There’s a group called Axe & Sickle that originally organized on this site. I believe a link to their discord is in the side bar.

They run a 3.5e D&D game with a pretty active group of DMs and regular players. Its West marches style, so you make a character and just sign up for adventures as DMs post them.

Fun community, lots of history in the three years they’ve been running, and they’re pretty open about character builds so you can enjoy yourself whether you’re a basic bard or you want to try that Gnoll Psion-War Priest-Ranger build you’ve been toying with.

I’ve never played one before but I’ve been interested to for a while now. I hope it works out!

Sounds good, been looking for a group to join since my last game died.

I’ve only played D&D a couple of times, but maybe would be interested

I’ve had a homebrew campaign in the can for a few years, and likely willing to run a 5e game

I’m game, but I must warn you all

My voice is weird and I will make it weirder

@roux@hexbear.net @BeamBrain@hexbear.net @FlakesBongler@hexbear.net @TrudeauCastroson@hexbear.net

Hey guys,

With the weather and some other obligations piling up, I haven’t had the time to figure out how to use element.io to run secure voice chat. I am not going to be ready by 1/19. I think I am going to have to push this back to February. Sorry about that.

I’ve been actually wanting to do a similar post but keep getting sidetracked.

I’m down as a tentative tag if you need an extra. Of course depends on time and what my schedule looks like. US time evenings are best but I have kids and never try to be a burden.

I haven’t played DND in 2ish years now and am getting that itch and am down to check out other systems.

If anyone wants to run a 1 or 2 or 3 shot of Lancer I would be super interested, I’ve been wanting to play that for a while now. unfortunately I can’t commit to more than 2-3 sessions at most.

Alright, I have heard back from @roux@hexbear.net , @BeamBrain@hexbear.net @FlakesBongler@hexbear.net and @TrudeauCastroson@hexbear.net.

It sounds like Friday evenings may be okay. There wasn’t a lot of strong preferences towards a first-time game theme, so I am splitting the difference for a revolutionary-tinged fantasy game. Here’s the pitch for what I am thinking so far (thinking about a custom one-shot, looking at a serial-numbers filed off,“yes and” setting as opposed to something established):

As the dread forces of the Necromancer sweep into the Federation of the Riverlands, partisans and resistance fighters have emerged to attempt to defend their communities and their land from the dark empire. Some of your fellow resistance members have been captured and imprisoned in an occupied fort. It’ll be a challenge to rescue the prisoners and liberate any useful war material before one of the Necromancer’s shadowy and powerful viceroys arrives to carry off the captives.

So, a heist/dungeon crawl with a post-Tolkeineseque vibe. My thought is to make it/run it in Cairn, since it’s very quick to learn and run, and doesn’t require a complex VTT to manage effectively (although a lightweight one will probably make things easier to keep track of where people are). For voice chat, I’ve heard that element.io might be a good alternative to Discord (although I’ll need to figure out how to use it.)

EDIT: As for time/date, how would people feel about 1/19, around 8:00PM EST? That should be accessible to most people living in an Americas timezone. Once I setup the event, I think that I’d be able to take one 1-2 more players if others are interested as well.

If you’re looking for a system I can recommend Akers’ Comrades with some caveats.

It’s a bit rules light and you need a party that’s confident making decisions with a little scaffolding more than strict limits, which might make it tough for some who are new to TT.

It also sometimes feels like it wasn’t all playtested. You may need to adapt some rules on the fly because there are little gaps occasionally, things like that.

But that said, you can have characters drop in and out for most missions because you’re playing a cadre so no one is indispensable, and it’s setting agnostic. My group is doing a WWI era lord of the rings situation where they simultaneously want to overthrow the dark lord and not fall prey to the “good guys” who want to eradicate everyone else. It comes with suggested settings too if homebrewing is too much work.

I can’t necessarily commit to more right now but I will be keeping eyes on your project as it goes, maybe I can join you folks later.

EDIT: For an idea of how it works you could check out Red Game Table/Matryoshka, they are running a different iteration of the same overarching system, both are ‘Powered by the Apocalypse’ games.

I remember we had a little shadowrun on the discord. Only lasted like two sessions, and realistically I think it would be hard for me to make time to line up with an international party. Some of the play was done by post, which I thought was nice.