DNN Tool: Wakelet

This is a quick shot, and I’m certainly not the first to consider this, but I wanted to mention Wakelet as a solid tool for making social media stories. It has the essential elements we need: it allows you to pull into a collection (their term for what Storify used to call stories) individual items from social media feeds on platforms where you have an account, and crucially, it allows you to sequence them in the order that’s most fitting to the story you’re telling. Love it.

#DNN20

Critical Review: Digital DnD over Roll20

The website Roll20 has revolutionized the possibilities available to lovers of tabletop RPGs. The stories you used to be forced to wait months on end to experience when you could finally get a group together can now be scheduled conveniently on the web for everyone to meet in the “Game” lobby.
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The site uses a chat code based roll system, as well as interactive character sheets that you can do all the rolls from just by clicking the statistic. There’s even a macro system that lets you pre-build out your rolls so you don’t have to factor in every single variable every time you use a move. 2017-05-13 (9)
Not only does the site offer everything a game master or player could need to play a basic game all online for free, it has a full suite of drag and drop character art, level and map designs,2017-05-13 (13) traps, monsters, and there’s even a premium version with even more features. There are even extensive looking for player lists that help players without a group find a game master willing to add them to their group.2017-05-13 (11)

The site uses all the affordances of the digital medium and works as a celebration of collaborative storytelling. As time has gone on and its name has gotten out there the site has gotten even more fluid, allowing basically anybody to play full Dungeons and Dragons 5e without constantly needing to refer to their handbook or notes. Everything the player needs is available or can easily be made, going as deep as Macros for specific commands. It is a massive sandbox that requires a proper game master to make the most out of. In truth though it is an excellent proving ground for testing your gamemastering skills. And since all of the statistics from dice rolls are saved you can avoid arguments with ornery players who are salty about their poor rolls.2017-05-13 (8)

Games played over Roll20 could certainly be argued to somewhat cheapen the classic personal experience of playing Dungeons and Dragons with your group of friends. At the same time however, thanks to the the platform affordances of the internet, Roll20 brings the tabletop to everyone at a computer, and on mobile if you have premium, now when somebody leaves town but has some time we can still play in a game despite the massive collaborative effort that it takes to get a whole group of people scheduled for such time consuming leisure. Now instead of being forced to meet in real life you can play Dungeons and Dragons from anywhere.