[MarcoSkoll]

Obviously, coronavirus has heavily curtailed the prospect of Inquisitor events this year.

However, not wanting to let things die completely, I'm wondering if anyone would be interested in joining a campaign run online, such as via Tabletop Simulator.
Obviously, it means we don't get to put nice models on tables, but Tabletop Simulator does have a fairly considerable library of community-made WH40K assets at its disposal to use as stand-ins.

[Inquisitor_Snarf]

Count me in. I am SUPER RUSTY as I cannot even remember the last time I played, so don't make me a GM.

[MarcoSkoll]

... suffice to say that I was mistaken about whether we'd be able to use existing miniatures. This was only a rough test, but suffice to say that 3D scanning technology is both further advanced and far more accessible than I thought. Zero specialist equipment required.



(Modelling thread for more detail).

[Inquisitor_Snarf]

Zero specialist equipment required.

I see what you did there...

What software are you using? A phone app?

[Cortez]

We could try something on tabletop simulator.

What are your thoughts as to the campaign?

[MarcoSkoll]

(Topic split)

I haven't thought very far regarding a campaign at this point. Right now, I'm mostly trying to work out if the idea is even viable.

However, at this point, I've demonstrated that (contrary to this morning's assessment) it *is* actually possible to get people's existing miniatures into the program without requiring any particularly specialist tools:


I think the early goal will be to try to get a few people scanning in some of their models, get three or four people together, and prove we can run a viable Inquisitor game using the simulator.

Once we've got that sorted, we'll see if we can build something more substantial out of it. I don't know if that's going to look like a standard event - I think probably not, as I suspect that could be hard to keep organised. It may end up with a narrative structure closer to what was originally anticipated for Inquisitor, with an ongoing story-line running when we can get people together.

[Inquisitor_Snarf]

FYI Everyone. Tabletop Simulator appears to be on sale this weekend (at least in my country). Now would be a good time to grab it if you are interested.

[maglash1017]

I would certainly be interested in joining an online campaign. I have no experience with Tabletop Simulator but since it's $9,99 right now I'm willing to give it a try!

[Cortez]

@Marcoskoll
Looks like the old laptop (which is currently all I have available) can't handle the meshroom calculations. If I send you the photos, will you be able to process them?

[MarcoSkoll]

I can probably take a look, yes. (Although I can't promise I'll be able to do it for very many of other people's models; it takes a while, and I do have other demands on my computer).

As it's presumably quite a large package, send me a WeTransfer link or something.

[FierceDefence]

If you're looking to animate objects, I've used Mixamo in the past. I had a scan of me done in an artec booth as part of a study and using internal documentation I adapted the mesh files to work on Mixamo.

[MarcoSkoll]

I apologise for the delay on this... even with lockdown, it's still a case of so many projects, so little time.

I'm going to try to push ahead with scanning in another couple of my models, publish a method (once I've nailed it down) and then if I can find some willing victims, run an online game.

To start with, I'm imagining it'll be run manually (real world dice rolls and character sheets on a trust system) rather than trying to do digital bookkeeping, but we'll see where things go from there.

For anyone watching this, let me know if you're still interested.

[Inquisitor_Snarf]

For anyone watching this, let me know if you're still interested.

Keep me in the loop. I will at least want to watch a game being played.

[MarcoSkoll]

Sorry, this has taken bloody ages. Real life hit.

As is, when it comes to the guide, I've decided that the full process is going to need a video guide; while the photogrammetry itself isn't too complicated, cleaning up and converting the scans for Tabletop Simulator requires reasonable knowledge of Blender and will benefit from detail difficult to provide in a written guide.

However, that's going to take time, as I hate horrible rambling video guides that don't get to the point, so I'll need to write up a script and do some editing. Rather than farting around waiting for that, I'm going to take a direct approach.

~~~~~

I want to run a test game sometime in the next few weeks, most likely on a Saturday, although Sunday isn't impossible if it's earlier in the day (I have Dark Heresy sessions over Discord from 7).

As is, there's a fair number of WH40k models out there for Tabletop Simulator, and for a test game we can reasonably get away with a few stand-ins. The main point is to sound out any technical issues, work out what needs fixing for a regular game session or full event.

If anyone particularly wants to do the photo-scanning, I can send them the written guide I have on the first stages of the process, and I am then volunteering to do the final clean-up for a limited number of models if the results are sent to me. (Just please, not the night before).

So, I'm looking for volunteers who are willing to get involved in the near future. We'll organise an exact date and time once we know who's available.

[mcjomar]

This is one of those things where I'm interested, and assuming the Deadlands sunday campaign I was in really is dead (the server vanished off my discord, and when I checked with one of the other players, the response was that they had given up on the campaign too - no word from the GM though...    ), I might have the time for.
Not sure what selection of minis I could photograph (I'm assuming a max of three?) and I only have a phone to work with for photos, so quality would be poor at best. (I'd be thinking Samantha, Jack, and their ex-law enforcer, as that would fit current timelines and conclave stories as they've been present at previous events).
I do have TTS on my steam account though, so there's that.