Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Shredicine 05-20-06, 02:37 PM	Hey, I'm usually a DM, as I can't find other people dedicated enough around here to spend the extra time off-table to organize this stuff, so I think I invented a cool exploration trick. Okay, say you start something new, and the pc's have never explored a certain region, yet there's some sort of map. As they begin to explore, in pursuit of realism, they CAN'T see the entire map, due to them never being there in the first place! The way to put into action this practice, is to take a seperate sheet of paper, (I use parchment or paper modified to look like so), and make an appropriate "Line of vision" hole. Depending of the scale of the map, the size of the hole will have to be adjusted accordingly. Preferrably in the shape of a circle, when placed over a map that would in other words "spoil" or reveal the entire map, only shows their current location! Using this type of technique, the pc's may even get LOST! This could spring up other links to other modules or adventures. Tell me what you all think, and as DM's...give it a whirl!
hmmmm 05-20-06, 03:14 PM	Hmmmm interesting trick.
celtredleg 05-20-06, 04:47 PM	I just might give that a try.
Bic_thunder_rings 05-20-06, 05:14 PM	that is just like fog of war in tabletop game programs like fantasy grounds, klooge, battlegrounds ..etc . well allmost , interesting idea though .
cloudncali 05-20-06, 07:47 PM	thats a grate idea exept i have a question: what if the party get split up?
Arcane 05-20-06, 08:50 PM	They could have a designated mapper. This is what my party does: DM describes room/tunnel (60 ft. radius) in integers of 5 feet. Mapper writes it down on graphing paper.
Elf_Jedi 05-20-06, 09:34 PM	It is interesting, I'm going to have to try it. Reminds me of all the Age of Empires games.
Edymnion 05-20-06, 10:00 PM	The use of paper to cover the map segments the party hasn't seen before is pretty much as old as the game itself, although I'll admit that the fog of war idea is a new one to me. But, its got a few problems. First one that comes to mind is shape. You would need to build dungeons around the shape of their line of sight to keep them from looking through walls by accident. Second one is that, at least in the games I've been in, we always have a mapper character, someone that actually draws maps in character as they explore, meaning you don't get lost, and the characters have a referance to look back on later. Granted, this is typically because we have the players make the map as we go (the DM has the master map, but just says things like "a 30 foot hallway going to the left" and its up to us to put it on our maps). All sorts of paper with holes in it just sounds like too much trouble to me.
Sphyre 05-21-06, 12:05 AM	Okay, say you start something new, and the pc's have never explored a certain region, yet there's some sort of map. As they begin to explore, in pursuit of realism, they CAN'T see the entire map, due to them never being there in the first place! This is different than normal in what way?
hmmmm 05-21-06, 04:03 AM	Hmm you could do something like this with a computer and then you really could make a fog of war.
Herobane 05-21-06, 02:31 PM	They did this in the IWD and BG games, with the 60' radius thing, it was a pain, cause I'm used to playing minis, where you always see the whole map, and besides, it was all 2ed, which was really friggin' hard to figre out. "Oh, you want a LOW AC, I was just not wearing any amour because I thought that 10 was a great AC..."
Tristan 05-22-06, 04:12 PM	Hmm, that is much better than My having a personal map of the dungeon, and then when they got to the next area, briefly outlineing the room with a marker.
Bruunwald 05-22-06, 04:22 PM	I started creating one-inch-scale maps on the computer back around 2000, or so, and cut them into segments, which I set on the table as the rooms came up. If I needed to allow the players to "see" into the next room, I just printed both rooms on the same tile, or put them both up at the same time, and took some black construction paper and covered the spots in the next room they couldn't see. I still use tiles, sometimes, but mainly now I use full terrains. Sometimes that means I am limited to describing what's next, for to put it on the table would be too revealing. However, for interior dungeons, I make most of my rooms in segments or modules. The modular nature means I can put the first ten or fifteen feet of the next room on the table without revealing too much, and the players can - literally - see part of the next room through the doorway. In any case, what you have on the table is rarely, if ever, the literal description of what you have written. Makes just as much sense to simply describe it to the players. I love my terrain-making hobby, but in the end, it's still just window dressing to a game whose main focus ought to be imagination.
Rock_Slice 05-22-06, 06:55 PM	What I use is a set of 8" by 10" wet-erase map tiles. They let me map out the entire area beforehand, but only put out what the PCs have actually seen. Also, they fit handily in a folder without needing to fold them, so they're really portable. Unfortunately, I can't find the company I got them from (www.dragonscalecounters.com), so I don't know where to get more from.
Mysticaloctopus 05-24-06, 04:31 PM	The Hypertext SRD (http://www.d20srd.org) has a rather useful trick for using a projector and table (http://www.d20srd.org/extras/mapProjection.htm) to make maps in Photoshop, scale them for your minis and then choose what to reveal. I've experimented with doing this on-screen, but I may try doing this with the school smart-boards when I take over the (curently in sore need of a DM) D&D club at my old school (where I'm going back to for sixth form). I've never used minis for combat, but this mapping thing will be useful because I'll have little time at home to plan stuff, but plenty of time with computers and the 'net.