442ndRCT Soldier's Forum

Well with a little encouragement from Dave I have scouted the lay of the land of createforums myself to get this project kicking. I once posted a nice long winded explanation but took it down not to detract from the forums here.

But, if you are interested... stop on by. Its still in the works so I will be slowly adding more information and such since about 95% of those I'm inviting have never played a RPG let alone a play-by-post one.

Time requirements? Shouldn't be too big of an issue but we'll see. I'm looking at taking a week or maybe every other for players to chime in and then I write up the story side with their actions.

World War Two RPG

For any interested but have no idea what I'm talking about:

What is a roleplaying game?

Tabletop RPGs have been around for a long time and pretty much the one that stands out as “The Original” would be Dungeons & Dragons co-authored by the late Gary Gygax. Ironically enough the game stemmed from wargames he and friends played but wanted something fantastical which lead to Chainmail a fantasy based wargame. The forerunner to D&D. Now Roleplaying is a tool that is used by many businesses and professional organizations to train. Essentially you imagine yourself in a position and then carry out like you would in that position. Essentially the players become actors in a movie. Unlike a movie though, the game system was created to give limitations to what the characters can do and to represent unknowns of success or failure.

To carry on this analogy, the Gamemaster (Dungeonmaster, referee, and other interesting names also apply) is the director/producer/writer of sorts. They control everything in the game that the players do not. Usually they create the world and characters encountered by the players. These are called Non-player characters. These range from the antagonists the players must face, to the unknown factors, to helpful allies to their cause. The interesting thing about RPGs is that the characters have somewhat of a free reign (pending on the Gamemaster really) and sometimes they make decisions or change plans on the fly that may not be in tune with what the gamemaster was expecting (or even the players themselves in some cases!) and therefore the GM must progress the story as if nothing out of the ordinary happened, even if it results in a character’s death or other unexpected results.

What is Weird Wars?
Some coming across these forums may be aware of the Weird Wars comic books and stories published when they were younger, featuring these tales of bizarre acts and supernatural influence on World War Two. Well the scary reality is that those on both sides were playing with everything from superscience (the secret weapons and Manhattan Project) to the supernatural (oddly enough Hitler had a thing for the occult, Indiana Jones is not so far off in idea). Weird Wars is a d20 System RPG published by Pinnacle Entertainment (now Great White Games) that takes both the reality and fantasy and blend it together… As if war wasn’t horrific enough… The system is flexible enough to where if I wanted, I can run the games “historically” and cut out the Weird leaving us with what could be considered a roleplaying version of Combat! Encountering situations like the actors on the show, its all a player vote.

Play by Post?
Simply this is a version of a way to handle playing a Roleplaying game online and in a long timespan. Usually playing a game like this requires gathering at someone’s house and ordering pizza and bringing Mountain Dew and gaming from Noon (or earlier) until late into the night. It’s a fact people get spread out and even with the advent of the internet, we can even play online over chat programs, but the fact is we still need to get together at some time, which can still prove troublesome. Playing by post enables the players to take their time and we can slow the pace of the game down. Something that could be done in person in an hour can take a week. But that’s the good part, it enables those with tight schedules to still be involved. I know from experience that having missing players is always a let down, especially if it’s a key member. But playing by post we are almost essentially co-authoring a short story of the characters and what happens. We each contribute our character’s part and the GM weaves it together into something that someone else can come in and read like a story and it makes sense. To play we have an OOC (Out of Character) area where the players can discuss plans and what they’d like to do next as well as post their actions. At first I will only require that of the players. If we get a little more into it, I’d like for the players to be able to post and write up their own actions in their own literary style. As for dice rolls and such the GM(s) can handle them and will only post the result and possibly the number (if it’s a roll you should be aware of).

So what are we doing and when do we start?
Well things are still in the infancy stages. The biggest issue is what period of the war we’d like to cover. The game is flexible enough to where we can cover almost all the combatants and campaigns of World War Two. I would like to personally track a American GI Squad/Platoon as they progress in their unit’s campaign (as the core game is written mainly for US GI’s) but I’m willing to do anything… even German! In case we do GI interested players should start thinking of a type of character they want to play, including their background, interests, hobbies, their Army background, even their job in the Army. D20 however has things called “classes” which are a profession that you progress through in experience, these vary but the basic ones in Weird Wars are:

Grunt: The Rank and File troops of any army, this class covers riflemen, machinegunners, engineers, whoever. They get a lot of Hit Points and have possible access to some Heavy Weapons as well. Grunts who take the “Rank” feat begin play as Sergeants (or national equivalent) and lead a squad in battle.

Medic: Doc, Corpsman, Aidman, Sanitater, its obvious this is your master of Combat Medicine and a valuable part of a Company/Platoon.

Officer: Yes, you can begin play as a 2nd Lieutenant (or equivalent) and whether you are a fresh OCS 90 day wonder or a greenhorn from West Point, or even a Mustang (former enlisted) you are in you first command of a platoon.

Scout: This class is in a way like the Grunt, but is geared more towards those who want to be sneaky and have the ability to track the enemy. They usually carry the same or lighter weaponry then the Grunts and being in the Scout class will gear your character up for becoming a professional Sniper. (A “Prestige Class” which is a more specialized profession with many benefits and abilities added to your current ones.)


As for when we can start, it depends on the players and the GM. The characters need to be created and then the GM must at least outline the mission that the players will go through. It serves a guideline because chances are, players will not play into the cunning traps a GM sets up.


For more detailed explanations (as if you don't trust me):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roleplaying_Game
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D20_System
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weird_Wars
http://www.smithandrobards.com/index.php?cPath=25

Thanks to Brett... My campaign has been chosen....

We will be following 2nd Battalion, 505th PIR, 82nd Airborne....

He's all ready created a Bazooka Gunner and has the basic character things done (and will update a background later)

And first up... OPERATION HUSKY!

http://www.createforum.com/weirdwarsgam ... warsgaming

WATCH! As Panzerkiller (Pfc Thomas West) takes on a small Axis convoy the night of the Husky Airdrop. As they have all ready ambushed a motorcycle patrol at a road junction Sergeant Peters decides they should try and hold it for as long as they can to help disrupt Axis rear area movements. But as they lay in wait they see a tank, kubelwagen, and truck! Can surprise and the concealment of night tip the odds in their favor? Maybe, maybe not, but the M1A1 bazooka Pfc West is carrying just might...

The "In-Character" Story: (As in what you'd read as the mechanics work themselves out, almost like a short-story)
World War Two RPG :: View topic - Example of Play-IC

The "Out Of Character" Section: (This is where I explain the mechanics behind the actions, you can see how much the player is involved, yet they don't have to do all the mathematics work!)
World War Two RPG :: View topic - Example of Play-OOC

Any other takers or interested persons?

I have Brett, Greg, and a gent from the WW2Zone that was interested. I'm aiming to get at a minimum four and more is a little better.

After some light posting we finally get into some action!

http://worldwartworpg.createforum.com/current-operations-f8/operation-husky-in-character-t23.html

Ok well West's player "Panzerkiller" has come back and Matt has survived his first skirmish with the Germans. Its possible they left, or maybe they are awaiting more reinforcements... we'll find out soon. But so far... things are looking up for the All American Boys in the 82d!

Stay tuned after this informative commercial!



And now Greg is involved playing... Gregory Miller!