Limits on Home Games and Online Play - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Limits on Home Games and Online Play

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
Scottbert
Oct 28, 2008 9:28:09 Hi, I just qualified as a Herald-level 4e GM and I have a few questions about home and online games

What are the limits on home games -- IE, can I run homemade adventures at the level of my choice as long as all players are RPGA members? What are the specifics (I'm guessing that they have to be allowed to use reward cards, but other than that the only restriction is that if the characters were created at a level above 1 they're not eligible for play in official RPGA adventures? Question: Can I allow monster-race PCs in such games)?

Also, are we allowed to have an online game as a 'home game'? It's hard to get everyone together physically, even a couple friends I live moderately close to, but online play could work great. Am I allowed to run an RPGA event online?
#2
WolfStar76
Oct 28, 2008 10:42:17
Hi, I just qualified as a Herald-level 4e GM

Congrats and welcome to the team!

and I have a few questions about home and online games

What are the limits on home games -- IE, can I run homemade adventures at the level of my choice as long as all players are RPGA members? What are the specifics (I'm guessing that they have to be allowed to use reward cards, but other than that the only restriction is that if the characters were created at a level above 1 they're not eligible for play in official RPGA adventures? Question: Can I allow monster-race PCs in such games)?

You *can* sanction and run games at home. This is listed as a home event, and you can use it to either download RPGA adventures, play (some) published adventures for RPGA points, or even run your own custom-made "homebrew" campaign for yourself and your friends.

The CCG v1.7 has this to say about home games:
If you’re going to be the DM for a homebrew game, you can choose to follow any or all of the information in this guide. However, if you make your game a RPGA sanctioned public event, meaning different players can rotate in and out of your sessions, you need to use two rules presented here: characters use Method 1 or 2 for ability scores and characters have use of RPGA Rewards cards (see below). The rest is up to you.

Also, are we allowed to have an online game as a 'home game'? It's hard to get everyone together physically, even a couple friends I live moderately close to, but online play could work great. Am I allowed to run an RPGA event online?

You ARE allowed to play online, in fact, the CCG covers this as well:
With the RPGA, thousands of gamers participate in
massive shared-world campaigns in their homes, at conventions around the world, and online.

Hope that helps. If you haven't read the CCG yet, you can grab a copy here (Adobe Acrobat Reader required).
#3
Scottbert
Oct 28, 2008 10:54:39 I did read that shortly after posting... however, I'm still wondering how homebrew interacts with the tracking system.

Example!
I run a module out of Dungeon Magazine. It's for 8th level characters, so my friends make appropriate characters, two of them deciding to play monstrous races with my ok (bugbear and goblin).
If I run this as a home game under RPGA, do the new 8th level characters, some using monstrous races, go into the online tracking system? If not, is it because they were created at 8th level, or because they were monstrous races? If they do go in, are they considered legal characters for non-homebrew LFR games run by me or others? Or are they only allowed for my or other homebrew games?

Example two:
Suppose, in the above example, that not all of the characters were freshly created -- Suppose my friend had an LFR-legal 8th level character from playing LFR games (we'll say this happens in the future to explain that). Can he use that character in the homebrew game, and if so does he get treasure, items, and xp from it that he can bring back to LFR?

Additional question!
Online games, and sometimes home games, often require more than one session to get through an adventure. The RPGA seems to expect things to be done in one day... Can I run a game over multiple days, say, during the 22 day window between when I receive the adventure and when I have to report the results? Or is there a way to sanction an event that will be done 'when it's done'?

Additional additional question!
What is the process for sanctioning a homebrew adventure? What determines the rewards points given for completing it? Or do homebrew adventures give none?
#4
telvin3d
Oct 28, 2008 11:14:16 If an adventure doesn't show up in the list of adventures that you can sanction, it doesn't count for XP/gold/items for LFR characters.

If a character gains items or experience from a non-sanctioned game, they are no longer LFR characters.
#5
Scottbert
Oct 28, 2008 11:26:34
If an adventure doesn't show up in the list of adventures that you can sanction, it doesn't count for XP/gold/items for LFR characters.

If a character gains items or experience from a non-sanctioned game, they are no longer LFR characters.

That's how I kind of expected it to work.
Do non-LFR characters still go in the database? Is there a 'legal for LFR' flag that is unset on them or something? If they don't go in the database, how is the event reported and do the participants still get anything for it (ie rewards points)?
#6
pedr
Oct 28, 2008 11:56:10 Only LFR characters go in the database.

There are two 'bits' to the RPGA. The biggest bit is the organised campaigns it runs, of which LFR is now the major one as Living Greyhawk play ends at the end of the year. If you are playing in this bit, you need to look carefully at all the rules, follow the guidelines carefully, and do the paperwork bits accurately. It's a world-wide campaign where each subsequent GM is relying on players having been advised accurately at previous events.

The other 'bit' is the ability to gain RPGA points for just about any D&D you play. In this bit, the only thing the RPGA is doing is giving points. It doesn't track characters, care too much what rules you use, or (usually) provide the adventures . If you're playing in this 'bit', what you do has no bearing on the other 'bit'. So while you can let someone play an 8th level LFR character, it's probably easiest to consider this a different but identical character, as nothing you do outside Living Forgotten Realms can affect that character in any way. He can't die, can't gain treasure, and can't receive XP with any validity or meaning in the Organised Campaign 'side' of the RPGA. Only adventures which explicitly state in the downloaded documents that they give rewards in the LFR campaign can give those rewards. There has been some confusion over the PREV adventures because of how they were added to the database: they are not part of the LFR campaign, and if you're in any doubt whatsoever, it's likely that what you are playing is not part of that campaign. Unless something is part of the campaign, it doesn't go in the tracker, and it has no bearing on characters within the campaign.

This is a very frequently asked question, so I hope you excuse the somewhat repetitive nature of this reply - much of which is aimed at future readers of this thread!
#7
Scottbert
Oct 28, 2008 12:00:09 Thanks for clearing that up, Pedr! I hope future thread visitors find your answers helpful as well. Perhaps a note on this should be added to the FAQ?

By the way, I do still have two more questions:

Additional question!
Online games, and sometimes home games, often require more than one session to get through an adventure. The RPGA seems to expect things to be done in one day... How much does Wizards care if I run a game on the day I said I planned to? Can I run a game over multiple days, say, during the 22 day window between when I receive the adventure and when I have to report the results? Or is there a way to sanction an event that will be done 'when it's done'?

Additional additional question!
What is the process for sanctioning a homebrew adventure? What determines the rewards points given for completing it? Or do homebrew adventures give none?
#8
pedr
Oct 28, 2008 12:26:52 On long events, the system is very poor for dealing with them. Officially you have to report an event within eight days of running it, which as far as the system is concerned is within eight days of the date entered.

If you are running scenarios where the results do not have to be reported, then I'd just report the event as soon as you start. Once you know who's playing, that's all the RPGA needs to be told.

If you are running a scenario in one of the campaigns which need the actual results reported things are more complicated: you have to create an event in order to get the scenario, and you need to be able to report the scenario after you've finished. My suggestion is to create one event, download the scenario, then cancel the event. If you want the event to be public, I'd cancel it on the day before you scheduled it so at least it's on the event calendar up until then. If it's a Home event that won't be on the calendar anyway (as yours seem to be) then it doesn't matter when you cancel it.

Then, once you've finished and know what the results are, set up a new event (as a Home event even if the original one was public: you don't want viewers of the calendar thinking that you're running the scenario a second time!) and report the scenario using that one. It's far from elegant, but given that some LFR scenarios will take multiple sessions (Sceptre Tower of Spellguard springs to mind!) it seems to be the only sensible solution.

For homebrew adventures you want to look for the 'scenario' "D&D Home Campaign (xxxxx)". It gives one point per session. Although there is some blurb downloadable, basically you don't need it. Create an event, play a session or two (you could play a few sessions per event if you want, but don't stack up too many as I think the system gets confused if it looks like people played five sessions in one day), then report the event.

I hope that helps!
#9
Scottbert
Oct 28, 2008 12:58:57
I hope that helps!

Thanks, it does! That's everything I wanted to know!
#10
gamersgambit
Oct 28, 2008 21:36:06 I posted this in another thread:

Of course, with the new DM empowerment rules, it's entirely possible for you to run an entire home campaign with your PCs that used LFR mods as a "framework" so that they could be RPGA legal as long as:

a) The rewards you gave per session were identical to the rewards in the mod; and
b) The story awards are the same; and
c) You followed all other restrictions implicit in the mod.

It'd be unorthodox. What I mean here is, you could download a mod, let's say CORE 1-1. You look at that mod and figure out how many XP it grants and what the items are and what the story awards are. Ideally, you use the mod as a guideline for your storyline and encounter types but that's not really necessary. You use the mod as kindling. You run your own game: Keep on the Borderlands. As long as the rewards you give out for Keep on the Borderlands are identical to the rewards for CORE 1-1, you report your players as having completed CORE 1-1. They can never play CORE 1-1 as a mod in an RPGA tournament, but they should be able to play in general RPGA play.

So long as advancement, achievement, and character balance follow the RPGA guidelines, you should be OK.

...and what I want to know is, is it legit? It SEEMS to be, to me. I am completely uncertain, however.
#11
warfteiner
Oct 28, 2008 22:55:30 What it looks like you have there is a mix of LFR and Homebrew play.

Thing is, only LFR mods as written can give LFR rewards. Granted, we DMs have a fair bit of wriggle room as far as adventure execution but we have to remember that as LFR adventures are part of the ongoing, "breathing" canon of the Realms we cannot carte blanche gut the adventure - even if the rewards are the same.

The key here is "story rewards" - the rewards are geared specifically to the story that the players at least theoretically ran through.

Back on track, though: please run some homegames and get the players their RPGA Rewards points! Other than knowing methods 1 & 2 for stat generation, there's not a whole lot more to do before exploding your homebrew world(s)!

Good luck out there!

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Scottbert Oct 28, 2008 9:28:09	Hi, I just qualified as a Herald-level 4e GM and I have a few questions about home and online games What are the limits on home games -- IE, can I run homemade adventures at the level of my choice as long as all players are RPGA members? What are the specifics (I'm guessing that they have to be allowed to use reward cards, but other than that the only restriction is that if the characters were created at a level above 1 they're not eligible for play in official RPGA adventures? Question: Can I allow monster-race PCs in such games)? Also, are we allowed to have an online game as a 'home game'? It's hard to get everyone together physically, even a couple friends I live moderately close to, but online play could work great. Am I allowed to run an RPGA event online?
#2 WolfStar76 Oct 28, 2008 10:42:17	Hi, I just qualified as a Herald-level 4e GM Congrats and welcome to the team! and I have a few questions about home and online games What are the limits on home games -- IE, can I run homemade adventures at the level of my choice as long as all players are RPGA members? What are the specifics (I'm guessing that they have to be allowed to use reward cards, but other than that the only restriction is that if the characters were created at a level above 1 they're not eligible for play in official RPGA adventures? Question: Can I allow monster-race PCs in such games)? You can sanction and run games at home. This is listed as a home event, and you can use it to either download RPGA adventures, play (some) published adventures for RPGA points, or even run your own custom-made "homebrew" campaign for yourself and your friends. The CCG v1.7 has this to say about home games: If you’re going to be the DM for a homebrew game, you can choose to follow any or all of the information in this guide. However, if you make your game a RPGA sanctioned public event, meaning different players can rotate in and out of your sessions, you need to use two rules presented here: characters use Method 1 or 2 for ability scores and characters have use of RPGA Rewards cards (see below). The rest is up to you. Also, are we allowed to have an online game as a 'home game'? It's hard to get everyone together physically, even a couple friends I live moderately close to, but online play could work great. Am I allowed to run an RPGA event online? You ARE allowed to play online, in fact, the CCG covers this as well: With the RPGA, thousands of gamers participate in massive shared-world campaigns in their homes, at conventions around the world, and online. Hope that helps. If you haven't read the CCG yet, you can grab a copy here (Adobe Acrobat Reader required).
#3 Scottbert Oct 28, 2008 10:54:39	I did read that shortly after posting... however, I'm still wondering how homebrew interacts with the tracking system. Example! I run a module out of Dungeon Magazine. It's for 8th level characters, so my friends make appropriate characters, two of them deciding to play monstrous races with my ok (bugbear and goblin). If I run this as a home game under RPGA, do the new 8th level characters, some using monstrous races, go into the online tracking system? If not, is it because they were created at 8th level, or because they were monstrous races? If they do go in, are they considered legal characters for non-homebrew LFR games run by me or others? Or are they only allowed for my or other homebrew games? Example two: Suppose, in the above example, that not all of the characters were freshly created -- Suppose my friend had an LFR-legal 8th level character from playing LFR games (we'll say this happens in the future to explain that). Can he use that character in the homebrew game, and if so does he get treasure, items, and xp from it that he can bring back to LFR? Additional question! Online games, and sometimes home games, often require more than one session to get through an adventure. The RPGA seems to expect things to be done in one day... Can I run a game over multiple days, say, during the 22 day window between when I receive the adventure and when I have to report the results? Or is there a way to sanction an event that will be done 'when it's done'? Additional additional question! What is the process for sanctioning a homebrew adventure? What determines the rewards points given for completing it? Or do homebrew adventures give none?
#4 telvin3d Oct 28, 2008 11:14:16	If an adventure doesn't show up in the list of adventures that you can sanction, it doesn't count for XP/gold/items for LFR characters. If a character gains items or experience from a non-sanctioned game, they are no longer LFR characters.
#5 Scottbert Oct 28, 2008 11:26:34	If an adventure doesn't show up in the list of adventures that you can sanction, it doesn't count for XP/gold/items for LFR characters. If a character gains items or experience from a non-sanctioned game, they are no longer LFR characters. That's how I kind of expected it to work. Do non-LFR characters still go in the database? Is there a 'legal for LFR' flag that is unset on them or something? If they don't go in the database, how is the event reported and do the participants still get anything for it (ie rewards points)?
#6 pedr Oct 28, 2008 11:56:10	Only LFR characters go in the database. There are two 'bits' to the RPGA. The biggest bit is the organised campaigns it runs, of which LFR is now the major one as Living Greyhawk play ends at the end of the year. If you are playing in this bit, you need to look carefully at all the rules, follow the guidelines carefully, and do the paperwork bits accurately. It's a world-wide campaign where each subsequent GM is relying on players having been advised accurately at previous events. The other 'bit' is the ability to gain RPGA points for just about any D&D you play. In this bit, the only thing the RPGA is doing is giving points. It doesn't track characters, care too much what rules you use, or (usually) provide the adventures . If you're playing in this 'bit', what you do has no bearing on the other 'bit'. So while you can let someone play an 8th level LFR character, it's probably easiest to consider this a different but identical character, as nothing you do outside Living Forgotten Realms can affect that character in any way. He can't die, can't gain treasure, and can't receive XP with any validity or meaning in the Organised Campaign 'side' of the RPGA. Only adventures which explicitly state in the downloaded documents that they give rewards in the LFR campaign can give those rewards. There has been some confusion over the PREV adventures because of how they were added to the database: they are not part of the LFR campaign, and if you're in any doubt whatsoever, it's likely that what you are playing is not part of that campaign. Unless something is part of the campaign, it doesn't go in the tracker, and it has no bearing on characters within the campaign. This is a very frequently asked question, so I hope you excuse the somewhat repetitive nature of this reply - much of which is aimed at future readers of this thread!
#7 Scottbert Oct 28, 2008 12:00:09	Thanks for clearing that up, Pedr! I hope future thread visitors find your answers helpful as well. Perhaps a note on this should be added to the FAQ? By the way, I do still have two more questions: Additional question! Online games, and sometimes home games, often require more than one session to get through an adventure. The RPGA seems to expect things to be done in one day... How much does Wizards care if I run a game on the day I said I planned to? Can I run a game over multiple days, say, during the 22 day window between when I receive the adventure and when I have to report the results? Or is there a way to sanction an event that will be done 'when it's done'? Additional additional question! What is the process for sanctioning a homebrew adventure? What determines the rewards points given for completing it? Or do homebrew adventures give none?
#8 pedr Oct 28, 2008 12:26:52	On long events, the system is very poor for dealing with them. Officially you have to report an event within eight days of running it, which as far as the system is concerned is within eight days of the date entered. If you are running scenarios where the results do not have to be reported, then I'd just report the event as soon as you start. Once you know who's playing, that's all the RPGA needs to be told. If you are running a scenario in one of the campaigns which need the actual results reported things are more complicated: you have to create an event in order to get the scenario, and you need to be able to report the scenario after you've finished. My suggestion is to create one event, download the scenario, then cancel the event. If you want the event to be public, I'd cancel it on the day before you scheduled it so at least it's on the event calendar up until then. If it's a Home event that won't be on the calendar anyway (as yours seem to be) then it doesn't matter when you cancel it. Then, once you've finished and know what the results are, set up a new event (as a Home event even if the original one was public: you don't want viewers of the calendar thinking that you're running the scenario a second time!) and report the scenario using that one. It's far from elegant, but given that some LFR scenarios will take multiple sessions (Sceptre Tower of Spellguard springs to mind!) it seems to be the only sensible solution. For homebrew adventures you want to look for the 'scenario' "D&D Home Campaign (xxxxx)". It gives one point per session. Although there is some blurb downloadable, basically you don't need it. Create an event, play a session or two (you could play a few sessions per event if you want, but don't stack up too many as I think the system gets confused if it looks like people played five sessions in one day), then report the event. I hope that helps!
#9 Scottbert Oct 28, 2008 12:58:57	I hope that helps! Thanks, it does! That's everything I wanted to know!
#10 gamersgambit Oct 28, 2008 21:36:06	I posted this in another thread: Of course, with the new DM empowerment rules, it's entirely possible for you to run an entire home campaign with your PCs that used LFR mods as a "framework" so that they could be RPGA legal as long as: a) The rewards you gave per session were identical to the rewards in the mod; and b) The story awards are the same; and c) You followed all other restrictions implicit in the mod. It'd be unorthodox. What I mean here is, you could download a mod, let's say CORE 1-1. You look at that mod and figure out how many XP it grants and what the items are and what the story awards are. Ideally, you use the mod as a guideline for your storyline and encounter types but that's not really necessary. You use the mod as kindling. You run your own game: Keep on the Borderlands. As long as the rewards you give out for Keep on the Borderlands are identical to the rewards for CORE 1-1, you report your players as having completed CORE 1-1. They can never play CORE 1-1 as a mod in an RPGA tournament, but they should be able to play in general RPGA play. So long as advancement, achievement, and character balance follow the RPGA guidelines, you should be OK. ...and what I want to know is, is it legit? It SEEMS to be, to me. I am completely uncertain, however.
#11 warfteiner Oct 28, 2008 22:55:30	What it looks like you have there is a mix of LFR and Homebrew play. Thing is, only LFR mods as written can give LFR rewards. Granted, we DMs have a fair bit of wriggle room as far as adventure execution but we have to remember that as LFR adventures are part of the ongoing, "breathing" canon of the Realms we cannot carte blanche gut the adventure - even if the rewards are the same. The key here is "story rewards" - the rewards are geared specifically to the story that the players at least theoretically ran through. Back on track, though: please run some homegames and get the players their RPGA Rewards points! Other than knowing methods 1 & 2 for stat generation, there's not a whole lot more to do before exploding your homebrew world(s)! Good luck out there!