ambience [Archive] - Wizards Community - Pages Merged by Solauren

ambience [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
totaldejection
10-22-07, 11:42 PM what do (if any) you use for background music while in session.

a long time ago i got majesty(for computer) it has great music for RPing to, theres only like five tracks in the game tough so i use the music from that and wizardry8 and make a random looping playlist
Shadowhowler
10-23-07, 12:13 AM I knew one DM who made 'mood tapes' for the game... planing them out for certain moments in the game. Then he would put on the track for the right moment, it was pretty cool.

Another DM I played with had a shaper image 'noise maker' which had tracks of all kinds of sounds. Rivers, campfires, ext. He would select sounds aproprate to our surroundings.

I like both aproches... but am often too lazy to use them myself. :(
wordserpent
10-23-07, 12:17 PM As a DM I would not use anything that has words because they distract from the game.

I personally don't use any mood music, but if the players wanted to put something on I would not say no.
Arabella
10-23-07, 12:35 PM as long as it doesn't take away from the game, I don't mind music. But I like it in the background. If it's something like metal, it kind of ruins it for me though. Doesn't seem to fit the era.
Shadowhowler
10-23-07, 01:20 PM I agree with both of the above posts, to a point.

Music with words is distracting as background music. The only time I'd go for it was if I was using something folk-songish to depect the perfomance of a local Bard, something like that.

As for the era, also I agree with that as well. I know some players who like to play Ozzy or Metalica while they play... and I hate that.

Tho I do love Metalica and Ozzy, just not durring my D&D.

Same reason I hate Shadowrun, some things don't mix well.

:D
VulcanStormwrath
10-23-07, 01:32 PM Manowar is great Orc/Giant music.
Ariakus
10-23-07, 01:41 PM I like a compilation called Carmina Burana from Carl Orff. It is a classical piece (I favor metal but not for D&D) that has ups and downs that don't distract from the game but adds a good medieval flavor. If you have watched the movie Excalibur, you have heard a portion of the piece, it has also been in several movies since then, but I don't remember which ones.
zzo38computer
10-23-07, 01:58 PM When playing D&D, I do not listen to music or eat or drink or talk on the telephone or use miniatures.
Arabella
10-23-07, 03:43 PM Why not zzo?
totaldejection
10-23-07, 04:26 PM it would be awesome if i could que(sp?) the music to certain time. like more dramatic music for battle, but im a little lazy also so i just choose pretty versatile music. ive also played classical guitar at my players instead of pre recorded music before, its pretty fun becasue i can change it up for battles.

ive uploaded some music i use if anyone is interested.
http://rapidshare.com/files/64687080/background_music.zip.html
MortonStromgal
10-23-07, 04:40 PM For D&D I like video game music or maybe some film scores. Sound FX are something I've always wanted to incorporate but it needs to not take me from the game and I dont have a sound board. I find lighting is the best way to set mood though. If you can get the lights off and the candles up your ready for some horror goodness :D
frasmage
10-23-07, 04:49 PM I find midnight syndicate (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midnight_Syndicate) very good for ambience. After all, they make their stuff for games (one album is called the official AD&D soundtrack).
Bleeding_Eyes
10-23-07, 10:17 PM I use DragonForce, and Videogame music, we sometimes use metal for battle music (Bodies by Drowning Pool is great)
zzo38computer
10-23-07, 10:28 PM Why not zzo?

Because I am playing the game instead. I don't listen to music often
Decoy_Lockbox
10-24-07, 01:26 AM I also find that stuff with words is too distracting. But power metal (Manowar, dragonforce, Rhapsody of fire, etc) truly is the soundtrack to D&D.

If anyone is familiar with the symphonic metal band Therion, I think that their song "postludium" off of the Theli CD is the best battle music ever. If I ever wrote a final fantasy-ish computer RPG, I would definitely use that song for my battle music.
Type2Demon
10-24-07, 10:35 AM When using mood music, don't use stuff with lyrics....If the players are listening to the words of a song, then they are not listening to the DM.

Also, watch the volume levels.
The music should be kept in the background...not drowning out conversation.

A lot of classical music is good for this, as well as movie soundtrack music (Music from Conan the Destroyer comes to mind). These albums were originally made to be backgrounds for movies, so they tend to fit well as mood music for D&D.

Some Computer game music is very good for mood music. Some games (like The Elder Scrolls: Daggerfall) had music that is so well liked that fans have done rearrangements of the music with professional equipment and the results are free from various sites around the internet.
Ariakus
10-24-07, 10:47 AM Also, watch the volume levels.
The music should be kept in the background...not drowning out conversation.

A lot of classical music is good for this, as well as movie soundtrack music (Music from Conan the Destroyer comes to mind).

I love the soundtracks to the Conan movies, I think they set the mood for a good Dark Ages type campaign.
The_Levitator
10-24-07, 02:11 PM I've been using RPG Audiomixer for some time now and the players love it. It allows me to combine music and sound effects as it's a 2 track player. I created playlists by style (general background, battle, travel, spooky, etc.). I also created background loops of different environments (forest, crypt, swamp, city, busy tavern, etc.). One click and both the music and the sound effects match the scene. Volume is definitely important. I also find I can increase suspense by killing the music and just play sound effects, like a creaky door opening or the muffled sound of a creature behind a door. I run my laptop through my 6.1 home theater system, so I don't need to have the volume as loud since the sounds are dispersed thoughout the room.

I use my laptop for just about every aspect of my gaming, so everything is right at my fingertips at all times. I love the addition of music and sound effects to enhance the pictures I am trying to create in the minds of my players. Anything that helps make the game more fun and more memorable for my players is well worth the effort! :D
Kamin_Majere
10-24-07, 02:21 PM I just hit the remote on my TV until i get to a music channel that we all like. Usually it ends up classical or light classical. But a few games its been anything from completely random to apocolyptica
Ariakus
10-24-07, 02:34 PM I've been using RPG Audiomixer for some time now and the players love it. It allows me to combine music and sound effects as it's a 2 track player. I created playlists by style (general background, battle, travel, spooky, etc.). I also created background loops of different environments (forest, crypt, swamp, city, busy tavern, etc.). One click and both the music and the sound effects match the scene. Volume is definitely important. I also find I can increase suspense by killing the music and just play sound effects, like a creaky door opening or the muffled sound of a creature behind a door. I run my laptop through my 6.1 home theater system, so I don't need to have the volume as loud since the sounds are dispersed thoughout the room.

I use my laptop for just about every aspect of my gaming, so everything is right at my fingertips at all times. I love the addition of music and sound effects to enhance the pictures I am trying to create in the minds of my players. Anything that helps make the game more fun and more memorable for my players is well worth the effort! :D

Wherever it is you live, I'm moving there!!! That would be awesome
lulzapalooza
10-24-07, 02:53 PM paizo.com has a section for ambience and roleplaying CDs, and I've heard a few of them. They're pretty much all top notch. Check on the Beatnik Turtles for some really weird nerd-music, but it's not so good for D&D. The combo Baldur's Gate/Sword Coast computer game came with an audio CD that works great with a D&D game...sadly I lost my promotional CD :(

Midnight Syndicate has alot of great atmosphyric music, chief among them being the official Dungeons and Dragons sound-track.

Also, most used bookstores have a section devoted to used CDs, and I more than likely half of those would be bland orchestra peices, and bland would be what I'd look for. Nothing distracting or unique. If you're playing the Beastie Boys or the Gorilaz during D&D you'd be dancing and not playing. And now on that note here's a dancing smiley icon for your amusement: :dancin:
totaldejection
10-26-07, 03:35 AM For D&D I like video game music or maybe some film scores. Sound FX are something I've always wanted to incorporate but it needs to not take me from the game and I dont have a sound board. I find lighting is the best way to set mood though. If you can get the lights off and the candles up your ready for some horror goodness :D
ive tryed lights off with candles before but it just get so dark that the number of candles i have to light is ridiculous, the upper portion of my house is only devided into 2 rooms so we use the larger of the 2 (sometimes used for jamming. the other room is mine) the only downside to all the room we get by doing this, is we only have one piddly little window that isnt hardly big enough to stick you head out (seriously) so if we have 10 or 15 candles around the room then fill the rest up with 4 to 6 sweaty nerds it get exponentialy hotter the longer we game
Arabella
10-26-07, 11:28 AM so if we have 10 or 15 candles around the room then fill the rest up with 4 to 6 sweaty nerds it get exponentialy hotter the longer we game

:rofl:
1 ton ghost
10-26-07, 11:35 AM ah, always a popular thread...
i'm of the opinion that peripherals to the gaming experience can help, but they gotta' be monitored. music, food/drink, etc., are one of many...
eveyrthing in moderation, right?

my current platform: instrumentals only if it can be helped. don't get me wrong, i love blasting the g-rides downtown at work w/ aphex twin, ministry, rasputina...anything to combat overally loud ie)bad gangsta' rap.

but in game, soon as you hear the words (lyrics), you're distracted. that is, you were just processing sound/tone, etc. soon as you hear the words, you're language centers are qued and you begin translating them whether you like it or not, hence a distraction. so, when we game w/ lots of words and text in RPGs (can you say, oral tradition?), it can throw you off a bit...
i'm real keen on movie soundtracks for this reason usually. plus, the overall message or theme is more uniform since the music supports just 1 story, rather than 4 guys w/ guitars/decks/drums, their relationship/drug/alchol history, teenage angst, supernatural freakiness, and whatever else they grind out in the studio...
Nickoleye
10-26-07, 12:42 PM Great web site for RPG music!

http://www.radiorivendell.com/
Nytmare
10-26-07, 02:12 PM I use the RPG Soundmixer, I'm not sure if it's the same thing that The_Levitator is talking about.

It allows you to play both music and sound effects. You can script out huge swathes of sound effects. Layering looped sounds on top of each other and adjusting and randomizing their pitches and a host of other effects. I've got background sounds for everything from a thriving city, to a small town. You can hear bits of conversations wandering past, horse drawn carts going down cobblestone streets, blacksmiths fade in and out in the distance. Bubbling swamps, filled with the sound of croaking frogs and buzzing insects. Dripping, echoing caverns lit by flickering torches.

As for music, most of what I use is background music from different video games. The Temple of Elemental Evil, Morrowind, and Jack the Ripper are the normal soundtracks.
1 ton ghost
10-26-07, 03:21 PM damn...
i wish i had that so bad.
instead, i had to pay my rent, insurance, utilities...

that system mention on the 6.1 surround looks horribly enticing.
just imagine in a few more years the visual aids to go along w/ the audio for stuff like this.
i mean, i want holographic minis, easy to render FX on-the-fly, Hell, even VR might be interesting given individual Spot checks, light, concealment...
so many possibilities. it's just a matter of $

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
totaldejection 10-22-07, 11:42 PM	what do (if any) you use for background music while in session. a long time ago i got majesty(for computer) it has great music for RPing to, theres only like five tracks in the game tough so i use the music from that and wizardry8 and make a random looping playlist
Shadowhowler 10-23-07, 12:13 AM	I knew one DM who made 'mood tapes' for the game... planing them out for certain moments in the game. Then he would put on the track for the right moment, it was pretty cool. Another DM I played with had a shaper image 'noise maker' which had tracks of all kinds of sounds. Rivers, campfires, ext. He would select sounds aproprate to our surroundings. I like both aproches... but am often too lazy to use them myself. :(
wordserpent 10-23-07, 12:17 PM	As a DM I would not use anything that has words because they distract from the game. I personally don't use any mood music, but if the players wanted to put something on I would not say no.
Arabella 10-23-07, 12:35 PM	as long as it doesn't take away from the game, I don't mind music. But I like it in the background. If it's something like metal, it kind of ruins it for me though. Doesn't seem to fit the era.
Shadowhowler 10-23-07, 01:20 PM	I agree with both of the above posts, to a point. Music with words is distracting as background music. The only time I'd go for it was if I was using something folk-songish to depect the perfomance of a local Bard, something like that. As for the era, also I agree with that as well. I know some players who like to play Ozzy or Metalica while they play... and I hate that. Tho I do love Metalica and Ozzy, just not durring my D&D. Same reason I hate Shadowrun, some things don't mix well. :D
VulcanStormwrath 10-23-07, 01:32 PM	Manowar is great Orc/Giant music.
Ariakus 10-23-07, 01:41 PM	I like a compilation called Carmina Burana from Carl Orff. It is a classical piece (I favor metal but not for D&D) that has ups and downs that don't distract from the game but adds a good medieval flavor. If you have watched the movie Excalibur, you have heard a portion of the piece, it has also been in several movies since then, but I don't remember which ones.
zzo38computer 10-23-07, 01:58 PM	When playing D&D, I do not listen to music or eat or drink or talk on the telephone or use miniatures.
Arabella 10-23-07, 03:43 PM	Why not zzo?
totaldejection 10-23-07, 04:26 PM	it would be awesome if i could que(sp?) the music to certain time. like more dramatic music for battle, but im a little lazy also so i just choose pretty versatile music. ive also played classical guitar at my players instead of pre recorded music before, its pretty fun becasue i can change it up for battles. ive uploaded some music i use if anyone is interested. http://rapidshare.com/files/64687080/background_music.zip.html
MortonStromgal 10-23-07, 04:40 PM	For D&D I like video game music or maybe some film scores. Sound FX are something I've always wanted to incorporate but it needs to not take me from the game and I dont have a sound board. I find lighting is the best way to set mood though. If you can get the lights off and the candles up your ready for some horror goodness :D
frasmage 10-23-07, 04:49 PM	I find midnight syndicate (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midnight_Syndicate) very good for ambience. After all, they make their stuff for games (one album is called the official AD&D soundtrack).
Bleeding_Eyes 10-23-07, 10:17 PM	I use DragonForce, and Videogame music, we sometimes use metal for battle music (Bodies by Drowning Pool is great)
zzo38computer 10-23-07, 10:28 PM	Why not zzo? Because I am playing the game instead. I don't listen to music often
Decoy_Lockbox 10-24-07, 01:26 AM	I also find that stuff with words is too distracting. But power metal (Manowar, dragonforce, Rhapsody of fire, etc) truly is the soundtrack to D&D. If anyone is familiar with the symphonic metal band Therion, I think that their song "postludium" off of the Theli CD is the best battle music ever. If I ever wrote a final fantasy-ish computer RPG, I would definitely use that song for my battle music.
Type2Demon 10-24-07, 10:35 AM	When using mood music, don't use stuff with lyrics....If the players are listening to the words of a song, then they are not listening to the DM. Also, watch the volume levels. The music should be kept in the background...not drowning out conversation. A lot of classical music is good for this, as well as movie soundtrack music (Music from Conan the Destroyer comes to mind). These albums were originally made to be backgrounds for movies, so they tend to fit well as mood music for D&D. Some Computer game music is very good for mood music. Some games (like The Elder Scrolls: Daggerfall) had music that is so well liked that fans have done rearrangements of the music with professional equipment and the results are free from various sites around the internet.
Ariakus 10-24-07, 10:47 AM	Also, watch the volume levels. The music should be kept in the background...not drowning out conversation. A lot of classical music is good for this, as well as movie soundtrack music (Music from Conan the Destroyer comes to mind). I love the soundtracks to the Conan movies, I think they set the mood for a good Dark Ages type campaign.
The_Levitator 10-24-07, 02:11 PM	I've been using RPG Audiomixer for some time now and the players love it. It allows me to combine music and sound effects as it's a 2 track player. I created playlists by style (general background, battle, travel, spooky, etc.). I also created background loops of different environments (forest, crypt, swamp, city, busy tavern, etc.). One click and both the music and the sound effects match the scene. Volume is definitely important. I also find I can increase suspense by killing the music and just play sound effects, like a creaky door opening or the muffled sound of a creature behind a door. I run my laptop through my 6.1 home theater system, so I don't need to have the volume as loud since the sounds are dispersed thoughout the room. I use my laptop for just about every aspect of my gaming, so everything is right at my fingertips at all times. I love the addition of music and sound effects to enhance the pictures I am trying to create in the minds of my players. Anything that helps make the game more fun and more memorable for my players is well worth the effort! :D
Kamin_Majere 10-24-07, 02:21 PM	I just hit the remote on my TV until i get to a music channel that we all like. Usually it ends up classical or light classical. But a few games its been anything from completely random to apocolyptica
Ariakus 10-24-07, 02:34 PM	I've been using RPG Audiomixer for some time now and the players love it. It allows me to combine music and sound effects as it's a 2 track player. I created playlists by style (general background, battle, travel, spooky, etc.). I also created background loops of different environments (forest, crypt, swamp, city, busy tavern, etc.). One click and both the music and the sound effects match the scene. Volume is definitely important. I also find I can increase suspense by killing the music and just play sound effects, like a creaky door opening or the muffled sound of a creature behind a door. I run my laptop through my 6.1 home theater system, so I don't need to have the volume as loud since the sounds are dispersed thoughout the room. I use my laptop for just about every aspect of my gaming, so everything is right at my fingertips at all times. I love the addition of music and sound effects to enhance the pictures I am trying to create in the minds of my players. Anything that helps make the game more fun and more memorable for my players is well worth the effort! :D Wherever it is you live, I'm moving there!!! That would be awesome
lulzapalooza 10-24-07, 02:53 PM	paizo.com has a section for ambience and roleplaying CDs, and I've heard a few of them. They're pretty much all top notch. Check on the Beatnik Turtles for some really weird nerd-music, but it's not so good for D&D. The combo Baldur's Gate/Sword Coast computer game came with an audio CD that works great with a D&D game...sadly I lost my promotional CD :( Midnight Syndicate has alot of great atmosphyric music, chief among them being the official Dungeons and Dragons sound-track. Also, most used bookstores have a section devoted to used CDs, and I more than likely half of those would be bland orchestra peices, and bland would be what I'd look for. Nothing distracting or unique. If you're playing the Beastie Boys or the Gorilaz during D&D you'd be dancing and not playing. And now on that note here's a dancing smiley icon for your amusement: :dancin:
totaldejection 10-26-07, 03:35 AM	For D&D I like video game music or maybe some film scores. Sound FX are something I've always wanted to incorporate but it needs to not take me from the game and I dont have a sound board. I find lighting is the best way to set mood though. If you can get the lights off and the candles up your ready for some horror goodness :D ive tryed lights off with candles before but it just get so dark that the number of candles i have to light is ridiculous, the upper portion of my house is only devided into 2 rooms so we use the larger of the 2 (sometimes used for jamming. the other room is mine) the only downside to all the room we get by doing this, is we only have one piddly little window that isnt hardly big enough to stick you head out (seriously) so if we have 10 or 15 candles around the room then fill the rest up with 4 to 6 sweaty nerds it get exponentialy hotter the longer we game
Arabella 10-26-07, 11:28 AM	so if we have 10 or 15 candles around the room then fill the rest up with 4 to 6 sweaty nerds it get exponentialy hotter the longer we game :rofl:
1 ton ghost 10-26-07, 11:35 AM	ah, always a popular thread... i'm of the opinion that peripherals to the gaming experience can help, but they gotta' be monitored. music, food/drink, etc., are one of many... eveyrthing in moderation, right? my current platform: instrumentals only if it can be helped. don't get me wrong, i love blasting the g-rides downtown at work w/ aphex twin, ministry, rasputina...anything to combat overally loud ie)bad gangsta' rap. but in game, soon as you hear the words (lyrics), you're distracted. that is, you were just processing sound/tone, etc. soon as you hear the words, you're language centers are qued and you begin translating them whether you like it or not, hence a distraction. so, when we game w/ lots of words and text in RPGs (can you say, oral tradition?), it can throw you off a bit... i'm real keen on movie soundtracks for this reason usually. plus, the overall message or theme is more uniform since the music supports just 1 story, rather than 4 guys w/ guitars/decks/drums, their relationship/drug/alchol history, teenage angst, supernatural freakiness, and whatever else they grind out in the studio...
Nickoleye 10-26-07, 12:42 PM	Great web site for RPG music! http://www.radiorivendell.com/
Nytmare 10-26-07, 02:12 PM	I use the RPG Soundmixer, I'm not sure if it's the same thing that The_Levitator is talking about. It allows you to play both music and sound effects. You can script out huge swathes of sound effects. Layering looped sounds on top of each other and adjusting and randomizing their pitches and a host of other effects. I've got background sounds for everything from a thriving city, to a small town. You can hear bits of conversations wandering past, horse drawn carts going down cobblestone streets, blacksmiths fade in and out in the distance. Bubbling swamps, filled with the sound of croaking frogs and buzzing insects. Dripping, echoing caverns lit by flickering torches. As for music, most of what I use is background music from different video games. The Temple of Elemental Evil, Morrowind, and Jack the Ripper are the normal soundtracks.
1 ton ghost 10-26-07, 03:21 PM	damn... i wish i had that so bad. instead, i had to pay my rent, insurance, utilities... that system mention on the 6.1 surround looks horribly enticing. just imagine in a few more years the visual aids to go along w/ the audio for stuff like this. i mean, i want holographic minis, easy to render FX on-the-fly, Hell, even VR might be interesting given individual Spot checks, light, concealment... so many possibilities. it's just a matter of $