u/EHeathRobinson

When last I wrote about removing the to-hit roll from the game, it was hugely controversial here on Reddit. But, removing the to-hit roll lets us play much faster, makes battles more exciting, creates drama, and lets us fight more battles.

I GM online through livestream where my players are the people in the chat. They create characters and then send them commands about how to fight. That means I run a lot of fights. I put a total of 48 characters through four "bloodcage" fights every night. I can play a single turn in an average of 19 seconds - eat that 5e.

But for those of you who LOVE missing in combat - it is still possible to miss, but only because of the active defenses of the players. Players can block attacks with shields and dodge out of the way completely. And let me tell you, players love it SOOO MUCH MORE when a monster misses them because of something active on their player part, rather than just because the monster failed a to-hit roll.

To me, it is a better game all around. What do you think?

For the past few weeks I've been running a livestream game, called Zorn's Dungeon, where anyone who watches can join the game. Everyone generates a level 0 character by typing !spawn in the chat. The characters are eligible to be drafted into a 12-character party to fight in the bloodcage. Players can even issue commands to their characters while they fight, like directing their movement to certain squares, going all-out-attack, all-out-defense and more.

Right now the bloodcage is being run basically like a 0-level funnel. If you get through the cage you get to be level 1. Although, a lot of players have their characters enter the bloodcage again to compete for greater glory, and we keep track of all the stats like most damage dealt, largest hit, most damage taken, longest kill-streak etc., which are often impossible to keep up with at the tabletop. It has been so much fun!

I've developed an RPG that can be run on YouTube livestream and can be played through commands in the chat.

It's called Zorn's Dungeon and it runs on a custom hack of Old School Essentials, called The Hacked Edge, which was also developed on livestream design sessions.

I now have "version 1" of the game operational.

To begin with, I've focused on 0th-level play. The "bloodcage" is my version of a funnel. 12 0th-level characters are thrown into a cage with a monster hoard. Zorn, the Gamesmaster, even has goblin archers atop the cage to shoot down PCs who get too uppity. But, characters who survive receive a blood badge and may even make it to level 1 to continue their adventure as the game develops.

So far, several hundred characters have been spawned in the chat and over 100 of them have already perished in the bloodcage.

Yesterday, I posted a video "How to Play Zorn's Dungeon in 5 Minutes": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bR0tgSFA5s if anyone want to see how it works.

I want to talk more about this and its game design philosophies, from both the old-school hack side of things and the development of a "multiplayer livestream RPG" as I was basically working on both aspects at the same time.

I would love to know what you think of the idea and its implementation. Has anyone else tried to pull something like this off?

We are going to be putting more 0th level characters through the cage tonight. If you would like to help playtest it tonight, I'd love to have you play with us in the chat: https://www.youtube.com/live/mzhdRv3onPQ?si=lsLVLSEAZAClBBkB It would be great to have as many people spawn characters as possible. Battle testing is needed in more ways that one! :-)

Most every roleplaying system today almost entirely neglects the subject of how, exactly, to roleplay. "The 4D Handbook" is the first book I have read that provides extensive guidance on the subject. At its core, 4D roleplaying is a style of gameplay where players try to get into character as much as possible and stay there as long as possible. The book doesn't just say "get into character"; it tries to lay out a framework for how to do that and how to get better at it. Moreover, in today's world of livestreams and actual play, "getting into character" is often taken to mean wearing a costume and doing professional voice acting. That is not the case with 4D roleplaying.

Regarding the definition, the authors admit that the "as much as possible" element is doing a lot of heavy lifting, as the degree to which one can get into character and stay there will be highly dependent on the table, the system, and the players. However, there is a growing number of people on YouTube (and in the wider community) who want to push the boundaries of "as much as possible" as far as they can go, and in doing so, actually talk about how to become better roleplayers in the context of pursuing this goal. This is refreshing because "becoming better at the RPG hobby" today may often be equated with having an expensive gaming table, an elaborate gaming room setup, lots of painted miniatures, projection setups, and/or 3D terrain. None of those things necessarily deepen immersion, and may actively distract from it. In contrast, 4D roleplaying costs nothing, and as such harkens back to roleplaying’s traditional status as an inexpensive hobby.

For those looking for greater immersion, this book provides concrete guidance on how to move toward obtaining it. For example, it describes the importance of playing in a high-trust environment, a willingness to accept feedback, avoiding cross-talk, table-talk, and most out-of-character conversations in general. It even covers how to choose a roleplaying system that facilitates in-character play (for example, one that does not require the rulebook to be referenced at the table or for the GM to search for notes to facilitate the game), and maintaining player sovereignty over their character.

This book advocates for short player turns, often only requiring the player to speak two to three sentences before play passes to the next player. But what does a player need to say? The book has recommendations on that, including how to "anchor" your character's actions in the world while discouraging "test-driving" player turns, negotiating actions above the table, or taking turns by committee. Instead, it discusses signaling and queuing other players through in-world actions. This sort of material is largely absent from player handbooks today.

Of course, this book is not a manifesto on the "correct" way to play. If you don’t follow these guidelines, you are in no way playing "wrong". This book just provides one possible toolkit for those who want to deepen their RPG immersion, and I recommend it to anyone who is interested in pushing further into in-character play at their table.

"The Beginner's 4D Handbook" is by James Bacon and Mike Melnick and is currently available for free on DriveThruRPG here: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/549599/the-beginner-s-4d-handbook