Technology & the Pen and Paper RPG

Lately, I've begun integrating more technology into my gaming experience. I've always been a pen & paper note-taker, but when I got my iPad, I realized that there were a whole host of possibilities I'd been ignoring. I really think an iPad is something that no one really realizes how much they need until they have one. I know that's how it was with me. I have a PC desktop, a Macbook, a Kindle Keyboard, and my cell phone, so I couldn't figure out why on earth I'd need an iPad, too. Then I broke down and bought one, and now I can't remember what I did before I had it. It's my new best friend, technologically speaking.

It's also quickly becoming one of my favorite, must-have gaming tools. Character sheets, dice, my stylus and iPad, and I'm ready to go. Well, that plus drinks and sometimes snacks, you know, gaming staples. But more specifically, we're talking about Penultimate by Evernote. It is one of the most awesome apps available and it's completely free. There's really nothing like it. It allows me, along with my stylus, to make hand written notes and sync them to Evernote so I can see them on my other gadgets later.

Frankly, it's freaking awesome. I'm saving paper, so I don't have dozens of sheets of paper laying around everywhere with notes all over them, and all of my notes stay in one place. It makes everything incredibly organized because I can make multiple notebooks inside the program that keep my D&D notes separate from my, say, 7th Sea notes, etc., all of which I can keep separate from my GM notes and book brainstorming (I'm also an author).

Otherwise, my iPad's iBooks apps allows me to keep my eBooks on hand, all in one place, for handy reference that means I don't have to cart around a ton of books. With gaming books becoming more and more electronically accessible, particularly with such sites as Drive-Thur RPG, I love that I can keep my books on my iPad in full color, something my Kindle doesn't have.

Matt has even started integrating some technology--something he use to be annoyed by, to be sure. Some of the apps he uses include Penultimate for his iPad and an app on his phone that generates names. He's always struggled to come up with names on the fly, so having an electronic name generator has been a life saver for him. Although, I think we need to look for another one because I don't much like many of the names the app he uses summon up.

And frankly, being able to summon up the net via Safari or small bits of information via apps like Wikipanion make reference so much quicker than it was before. Particularly when we're playing 7th Sea because we regularly use my 7th Sea website for quick reference. So having an iPad is helpful for gaming and I'm starting to get to the place where I don't leave my house without it, whether we're gaming or not. It's invaluable and has an amazing battery life, which is helpful because we tend to game for hours and hours on end.

Right now, I'm also thinking that Pintrest (and the Pintrest iPad app, of course) might be a good way to set up props. Boards could be created for each game system, or even every game in particular, that includes images, maps, and the like that will help set the stage. Particularly with a game system like Wolsung, where players may not be completely immersed in the steampunk feel of the game. Giving props and steampunk images, game maps, and gadgets, could make things much easier. It could also make referencing game materials easier to put them all in one place like that.

I'm still always looking for even new ways to use my gadgets for gaming, so how do you use yours? Or do you use yours at all? Is your gaming pretty old school or have you given in to the wave of modern technology and integrated these conveniences into your gaming experience?

Session One. . .

We had our first game today and we actually had fun. . . with me as GM. Unbelievable! And you know, I feel pretty awesome about it. Well, okay, I felt pretty shaky about it, particularly since the game didn't start with particular confidence on my part. I had planned out the game's skeleton--because I read on Gnome Stew that railroading players isn't a very nice thing to do and also because my husband just can't be railroaded--but when it came time to start, I sort of froze up a little bit. I don't think it was so noticeable as to take away from the fun of the game, and my husband was very encouraging and understanding. Ultimately, I got over it and we had a productive session.

There are a few things (okay, more than a few) that I feel like I need to work on, or seek out more advice about, including making the setting richer in terms of "feeling" like steampunk, how to make it more cinematic since Wolsung is a cinematic role playing game, and how to make the system's rule set function inside the story more smoothly. I'm sure, though, that those things will come to me as I get more experience. And, of course, with them resolved will come more questions. Bring em' on!

So, I think I'm going to start working on some more games and see where that takes me. I'm pretty sure this adventure will conclude next session, it wasn't a particularly long or difficult scenario--I'll share game notes after the adventure's over. So, it's planning time and I have more than a few ideas, I have just have to sit down and bring them together. I see so much inspiration for this story in movies, in books, all over the web. I'm loving it!