Help!: we need a friend to play the game remotely

[ppf66208]

My friend is running a d&d game and we have one player were trying to remote in. Our initial attempt was a bit of a disaster. The remote player could barely hear anyone and it was hard for hime to keep track of what was going on. What is the best method for doing this? What is the best mic and setup for something like this?

[Force]

What kind of equipment do you have available, and what's the budget?

You can probably pick up a decent webcam with an integrated mike and that'll work well enough.

[AsDeR]

You need this!

[Kuma Kode]

Yeah. A mic with a webcam positioned somewhere where he/she can see everyone. That's important. It's also important to have them have a webcam, too; blow up their face on the laptop to fullscreen and place it where everyone can see IT. One of the biggest problems we've encountered with remote play is forgetting that person is "there."

Test the set up before you play. Avoid ambient noise and music, since that will just present as garbled background noise. Avoid it on both sides. Our remote player lived near a street where semi trucks regularly passed by, and because the webcam was integrated with the laptop that also was that player's speaker, every semi truck ended up creating a disgusting feedback loop of noise through our speaker > our mic > her speaker > her mic > our speaker.

The remote player has to really try to be engaging and involved. It's easier to be distracted on a computer and its easy to forget you're there when you're not physically present and not saying anything.

[Telonius]

We had some success with oovoo; Skype will work too. Basically make sure everybody has a functional webcam, microphone, and speakers, and you should be fine.

[olejars]

My group actually used a Kinect with our 360s. Had our cam focused on the mat and had a designated north. Had their cam focused on them. Worked out pretty well.

[bokodasu]

I've used Skype with and without video. With is infinitely easier (see suggestions above), but if you have to do without, it's possible. I just had to listen really carefully & ask a lot of questions - one player was put in charge of describing the field to me when it was my turn. Still not as good as being there, but better than missing out totally.

[eggs]

I've used Skype, but it was a bit of a nightmare.

The least bad it's been has used video for Group-to-outside player communication, IRC for outside player-to-GM discussion of the character's actions in broad strokes ("I want to pickpocket the key" or "I want to attack the angriest goblin") and basically leaving the specific implementation of those actions to the GM to narrate, roleplay and otherwise detail.

It wasn't a situation amenable to roleplaying on the other end of the internet tubes, but it basically worked for puzzle-solving and for keeping the remote player there without bogging down play too much. I wouldn't use it for a long-term solution.

[Deadtissue]

We too use skype, the laptop mike and speakers seem to be fine as you adjust the settings in skype. Camera focused on the battlemap and one player in charge of relaying the remote players orders and moving his mini.

You can also get a dice roller for Skype so the DM can see the rolls that way and you do not need a camera on the other end at all. It is very cool as long as the player is happy with digital number generation vs rolling actual dice.