Campaign News - June 29

SCHEDULE 
The Saturday, June 28 at Footbridge Brewery was cancelled due to three of the four scheduled players having last minute conflicts. It's disappointing, but it happens, especially in summer. The next scheduled game is on Thursday, July 3. Downtime orders for all characters are due no later than 18:00 on July 1 (Tuesday). As always, if you have questions related to planning your characters orders, would like to execute orders for part of the period before deciding on subsequent orders, or would like to conduct a mini-session, either in person or on Discord/phone or email, whether as a group or one-on-one, that is also possible. All such actions, however, need to be at least initiated, and, unless agreed otherwise, resolved by the orders deadline.

I am cancelling the August 7 session, as I will be away.

PLAYERS & CHARACTERS
We stand at 7 active and 4 dormant players. There's plenty of room for more. Everyone, please invite new players, even just to try it out, any time.

As you can see below most of the characters are currently in Castlemaine. Your downtime orders should cover the period from July 6 through end-of-day July 10, 1479.

• Castlemaine
• Calvis Mulroney (Andy O)
• Nicole Connery (Andy O)
• Colm Stewart (Barry F)
• Shay McFarland (Barry F)
• Patrick Cartney (Cole W)
• Finnan Fitzpatrick (Cole W)
• Cieran Keane (Justin H)
• Keith McHugh (Josh L)
• Tralee
• Connor Ryan (Cole W)
• Eoin Sweeney (John S)
• Castlenoe
• Connor Hely-Hutchinson (John S)
• Sean Gavan (Adam M)

TIPS & TRICKS

Calculating Your Rating

While I'm more than happy to provide anyone their fulls ratings history on request, it's quite easy for you to calculate your future rating on your own by checking the leader board. If you currently have, for example, a rating of 1.5 and 12 ratings, and two characters in the game, if you skip submitting downtime orders for them in the next period, your rating will worsen to about 1.86. Multiply your current rating by your count, add your new, anticipated rating, and then divide that by your new count (14 in the example). You can compare that to what your rating would improve to by adding 2 instead of 8 to 1.5 X 12, and dividing that total by 14 to see your rating would improve to about 1.43. That that's a difference of about 643 gold per level in training costs!

Campaign News - June 18

SCHEDULE
Our next scheduled game is at 13:00 on Saturday, June 28 at Footbridge Brewery. Downtime orders for all characters are due no later than 18:00 on June 21 (Saturday). As always, if you have questions related to planning your characters orders, would like to execute orders for part of the period before deciding on subsequent orders, or would like to conduct a mini-session, either in person or on Discord/phone or email, whether as a group or one-on-one, that is also possible. All such actions, however, need to be at least initiated, and, unless agreed otherwise, resolved by the orders deadline.

PLAYERS & CHARACTERS
We stand at 7 active and 4 dormant players. There's plenty of room for more. Everyone, please invite new players, even just to try it out, any time.

I've updated the leader board with the results from last night's session. While there is virtually no change in the player standings, Keith McHugh (Josh L) has jumped from 12th position to 5th position in the character standings!

Below is where and when every active player's characters are. Your downtime orders should cover the period from this date through end-of-day July 5, 1479.

• Castlemaine
• Calvis Mulroney (Andy O), June 17
• Nicole Connery (Andy O), June 17
• Colm Stewart (Barry F), June 25 
• Shay McFarland (Barry F), Jun 17
• Patrick Cartney (Cole W), June 25
• Finnan Fitzpatrick (Cole W), Jun 17
• Keith McHugh (Josh L), Jun 25
• Tralee
• Connor Ryan (Cole W), June 17
• Cieran Keane (Justin H), June 17
• Eoin Sweeney (John S), June 17
• Castlenoe
• Connor Hely-Hutchinson (John S), June 17
• Sean Gavan (Adam M), June 17

RULES UPDATE

About two weeks ago I solicited input from the active players about a change in time-keeping methodology. The rules are clear that campaign play operates best when, outside the game session, time passes in the game at the same rate as outside. That is, for each day that passes between sessions, one day passes in the game world as well. The rules are also clear that within the game session, time may move at a variable rate relative to the real world. Often, overland travel which takes days of game world time to accomplish can be executed in minutes at the table in session play, for example. A single round of combat, lasting one minute, might take 5 times as long to resolve in table time, however.

Where the rules are silent, is regarding what happens to time for characters sharing the game world with characters who move quickly through game world time while those characters are not in the session. To date, we have used the approach that those characters that are played in the session past the real-world clock are stuck in "time jail" until the same number of real-world days that they experienced in the game world have passed in the real world too.

Another approach which aligns with the 1:1 time-keeping rules is to advance the game clock to world clock offset. For example, if we play a game on June 1, 2025 which starts in the game world on June 1, 1479 and finishes on June 11, 1479 in the game world, then the 546 years offset between the real date and the game date is shortened by 10 days, and June 12, 1479 then equates to June 2, 2025. This is the approach we will take, effective now.

The June 17 session ended on June 25, 1479, so we have a 546 years, minus 8-days offset on the dates now. This means our next game, scheduled to be played on June 28, will start on game date July 6, 1479.

If you have questions about how this works, or foresee any possible game problems resulting from it, please let me know.

TIPS & TRICKS

Character Records
One of the most important keys to skillful play is record-keeping. There are several types of it that are all slightly different and which provide value in different ways.

Resource tracking is perhaps the most obvious example of record-keeping in the game. Keeping track of supplies such as money, torches, arrows, and the like is important to the integrity of the fiction of the game as well as the mechanics of it. The limits to what characters can carry, how fast they can move carrying it, how long they can delve into a dungeon because of what they have for light sources, and so on, also have these same values. This mundane accounting is simple and should not be particularly time-consuming. With the clever use of a spreadsheet it can be made even faster.

A slightly less obvious example, perhaps, is the character sheet itself. While resources might also be tracked on the sheet, here I'm referring to important facts about the character. Having up-to-date to-hit numbers, recognizing the different armor class cases, accurately tracking hit points, maintaining spell readiness and use records, accurate movement rate for current load, and so on should be laid out in a way that is easy to find quickly. The player should be very familiar with this layout so as to minimize real time spent finding these answers during the session. Less time looking things up means more time recovering treasure.

The least obvious example of record-keeping is character notes. Keeping track of what has happened in the game is key to planning your characters' future actions. I'm just going to say that twice. Keeping track of what has happened in the game is key to planning your characters' future actions.

These notes should include dungeon maps, dates hirelings were hired and paid, where and when recovered treasure has been hidden, what the character was doing in between the sessions in which it was played at the table and what the results of those actions were. At a minimum. Skillful players will keep this well-organized so that they can refer to that information quickly during play when it might be useful, and also when planning both in-session and between-session activities.

If you haven't organized your past notes already, don't wait until the next session to start! For each of your characters go through your old downtime orders and results emails and put that information into a timeline / log / diary, whatever you want to call it. Intersperse those with whatever you can remember or find notes about from the sessions each character participated in. Order the information by date and key it by date and location. A lot has happened to a lot of characters in the past 6 months of game time and reviewing it all this way might suggest or even reveal things about the game world, that you hadn't consciously noticed.

There's no question that this game takes work to play well. For me, this is possibly the game's most attractive feature. The game rewards study, strategic thought, teamwork, and creativity. The game punishes inattention, carelessness, and laziness most of all.

Campaign News - June 7

SCHEDULE
Our next scheduled game is Tuesday, June 17. Downtime orders for all characters are due no later than 18:00 on June 14 (Saturday). Please remember that besides a broad description of activity, or a list of specific activities, orders which are contingent on the results of prior steps in the orders may be issued. If you have questions related to planning your characters orders, would like to execute orders for part of the period before deciding on subsequent orders, or have a group or one-on-one play-by-email or mini-session in person or on Discord/phone that is also possible. All such actions, however, need to be resolved by the deadline.

PLAYERS & CHARACTERS
We have a new player, Josh, who joined for the June 5 session. I'm hopeful that he will continue with us. Thanks very much, Cole, for inviting Josh. Everyone please feel free to invite new players, even just to try it out, any time.

• Castlemaine
• Calvis Mulroney (Andy O), May 31
• Nicole Connery (Andy O), May 31
• Shay McFarland (Barry F), Jun 17
• Patrick Cartney (Cole W), May 31
• Finnan Fitzpatrick (Cole W), Jun 17
• Keith McHugh (Josh L), Jun 17
• Tralee
• Connor Ryan (Cole W), May 31
• Cieran Keane (Justin H), May 31
• Eoin Sweeney (John S), May 31
• Castlenoe
• Connor Hely-Hutchinson (John S), May 31
• Sean Gavan (Adam M), May 31
• Castle Island
• Colm Stewart (Barry F), May 31

TIPS & TRICKS

Monthly Upkeep Rules
When a character has insufficient funds to meet their monthly upkeep costs when they are due, their funds go to zero and they are evicted from their lodgings. It's assumed that such characters scrape by and survive, however. Because they are living rough, their risk of disease and infestation is slightly higher (still only 3% and 4%, respectively, in the current weather and uncrowded conditions) than it would be in proper lodgings.

Players may not voluntarily forego upkeep costs, and if necessary the referee will automatically liquidate gems, magic items, or other valuables for gold in order to cover those costs. Players may not have one of their own PCs give anything to another. The mundane supplies assumed to be accounted for in upkeep (torches, arrows, rations, etc.) must again be paid for rather than provided for free once an upkeep payment has been missed until the next one is met.

The rules provide for taking out loans for characters of wealth and standing. Putting a valuable item in hock, is a means by which a character might prevent such an item from being immediately liquidated. 

The Dungeon
The dungeon is possibly the most game-like, rather than simulation-like, component of AD&D. The whole concept is fairly absurd, but as a referee I try to keep even this element as simulation-like as the game rules permit. Here are rules you should be aware of in order to play this component skillfully:

• Dungeons versus Lairs
  Dungeons are different from "lairs." Lairs are described in the Monster Manual for each creature type which might live in one, and are the places, often underground, where monsters live in their normal "ecology" with their eggs, young, and any other non-combatant members of their group. In lairs there may be pets, slaves, servants, livestock, and so on of other species, but generally it is a one-species environment. Perhaps most importantly, this is where the "treasure types" listed in the Monster Manual will be found.
  
  Dungeons, on the other hand, often contain a more random mix of monsters. In contrast with lairs which are well-organized to withstand invasion, dungeons are defended only where creatures have holed-up against other creatures, sometimes in order to defend treasure they've found. The dungeon is more controlled by the game rules than by the fiction of the world. The content of lairs is driven by the rules of the game, too, but the dungeon rules create more game than fiction by comparison. The dungeon rules put lesser threats and lesser treasure rewards near the surface, and increasingly dangerous foes and greater treasure rewards literally deeper below the surface.
  
  
• Time and Risk Management
  Everything in the dungeon takes time and time costs resources and increases risk. Recall that 1 turn = 10 minutes, 1 round = 1 minute, and 1 segment = 6 seconds. Movement and mapping takes 1 turn per 1" of movement rate, that is, a character with a movement rate of 9" traverses 90' in the dungeon, while mapping / exploring, in 10 minutes.
  
  The greatest risk in the dungeon is wandering monsters. Despite the rules mentioning wandering monsters 16 times in the DMG, including an entry in the glossary, the rules do not indicate the frequency or chance of these occurring. From the example of play, however, one can infer that on a 1 in 6, checked every 3 turns, a wandering monster is encountered. Sometimes this is a monster from another area of the dungeon and sometimes this is a monster that wasn't already known to be present. Such monsters have only, at most, individual treasure (pocket change). Loud noises increase the frequency and/or likelihood of wandering monsters. The Basic rules indicate in a dungeon wandering monsters appear on a 1 in 6, checked every 2 turns. The classic AD&D module T1: The Village of Hommlet has one area where the check is 1 in 12 every turn, and another where it is 1 in 6 every turn.
  
  I will default to 1 in 6 every 3 turns as a base case, however it will vary from one dungeon or dungeon area to another. Which you can discover by tracking time and watching when I roll.
  
  With that in mind, skillful play requires consideration for how long various typical activities use:
• CORRIDOR: move & map 10' per 1" of movement rate, 1 turn
• CORRIDOR: pass previously explored 10' per 1" of movement, 1 round 
• DOOR: search for traps, open, or listen, 1 round
• ROOM: mapping and casually searching 20' X 20' area, 1 turn
• ROOM: thoroughly searching after initial examination, 1 turn
• SECRET DOOR: checking for in 10' X 10' area, 1 round
• SECRET DOOR: thorough examination to find means of opening, 1 turn

Campaign News - June 1

SCHEDULE
Yesterday's planned game was the first cancellation since January. Summer is busy,  schedules become irregular, and the traffic sucks. Last year we agreed to close down the game for the summer rather than fight those challenges, but we weren't playing "club style" then, and we used "freeze-time" instead of "1:1 time," so it was disruptive when one person couldn't make it. This is not a problem at all under our current scheme. It’s possible to play sporadically, or not show up for a session all summer, and still have a viable character you can jump back in with in the fall. I intend to follow the planned schedule as well as I can, but it is likely that I will need to either cancel or remotely run one or two of the dates.

Rather than burden us all with a second, short downtime period for May 31 - June 4 before the next game this Thursday, June 5, we'll just start that session at May 31.

Please remember that I can run off-schedule sessions, and you can issue more elaborate, contingency-based downtime orders. We can also play mini-sessions in groups or one-on-one in person, by email, Discord, or whatever. Remember that the game world will keep turning whether we play in it or not.

PLAYERS & CHARACTERS
Jay has decided to quit the game and he leaves behind four characters which anyone is welcome to adopt. As you can see on the Leader Board, these characters are all first level (so you can change their alignment without penalty) and have between 431 and 1,001 XP (so you can get a jump on leveling up). Even though ratings are earned by characters, they follow their player, so these characters come with no ratings when they are adopted. They’re on the roster below with the rest. All of the characters in the game are currently at the same time: dawn of May 31, 1479. Some geographical consolidation of the characters also occurred. Here's where everyone is. Boy, there sure are a lot of "castle" places around here!

• Castlemaine
• Calvis Mulroney (Andy O)
• Nicole Connery (Andy O)
• Edmond Connolly (--)
• Shay McFarland (Barry F)
• Patrick Cartney (Cole W)
• Tralee
• Ronan Mulqueen (--)
• Alison Heath (--)
• Connor Ryan (Cole W)
• Cieran Keane (Justin H)
• Eoin Sweeney (John S)
• Castlenoe
• Sarah Smith (--)
• Connor Hely-Hutchinson (John S)
• Sean Gavan (Adam M)
• Castle Island
• Colm Stewart (Barry F)

I’d like to remind everyone that you are encouraged to invite new players to join the game any time.

TIPS & TRICKS
Here are four brief considerations for skillful play.

• Read or re-read "SUCCESSFUL ADVENTURES." Beginning on page 107 of the Players Handbook, this short section, just a page and a half of text, is pure gold.
• Talk to the other players before we meet for the game. We usually only have about 4 hours to play and eat and socialize. Buying armor & weapons, hiring mercenaries, deciding what to do, and so on are activities that can be done outside the session without supervision from the referee. Activities that earn your characters XP, however, are almost exclusively possible during this 4-hour period. Gaining XP is the objective of this game, at least until your character is in the 8th to 12th level range, so maximize the amount of XP your characters earn during that period.
• Divide treasure strategically. It's easy to simply divide your spoils even-steven, but that's not always best, for example, when one or more characters are approaching their next level threshold. The XP earned from combat is divided by the referee, and I will always split it evenly between the surviving characters and henchmen (not hirelings). The XP earned from treasure, however, is up to the players to divide. Once a character earns enough XP to be eligible for the next level, he cannot earn any more XP until he trains for that level. If he's not going to have the cash to train up, then he's going to end up adventuring to get money without being able to also earn XP which is inefficient. His share of XP still gets divided out to him, but those XP are simply wasted.
• Always submit downtime orders. Missing your orders earns a rating of 4 on each character who is "NO ORDERS RECEIVED" that period. The average of your characters' ratings is the multiplier for all of your characters' training time and costs, so keeping your average rating as close to 1 as possible benefits all of your characters. Only characters whose player has a rating of 2 or less is able to self-train, which is a special consideration for the rarer classes and higher level characters who may have difficulty finding a higher level character of their own class under whom to train.