Is AI in our industry really that bad? (Dungeon Alchemist)

So there was this Steam sale last month and even though I really don't use my gaming laptop to play games, I did go ahead and pick up a few cheap games I could play when on the road. While I was at it I noticed that Dungeon Alchemist was something I saved as a "want" in Steam.

I think it was $35, possibly as part of the Steam sale.....it's $45 now. I'm not one to throw down that kind of cash on a tool I'm not sure I'll use, but with all this AI hype I figure.....why not check it out. I've played with Google Bard a little bit, and I see how that could assist with some writing, but not a road I want to go down. AI art.....not just no, but hell no. What I've seen as far as AI art really looks like it's ripping off actual artists, so that's a no-go....

....but Dungeon Alchemist....maybe?

From the Dungeon Alchemist press kit: "Dungeon Alchemist is an AI-powered map making application for fantasy games that allows you to create high-quality maps easily and fast. Players pick a map size, choose a theme, draw some shapes and Dungeon Alchemist will automatically populate the map with walls, lights, doors, windows and objects. Exporting maps for print can be done in seconds, and integration with VTTs is seamless. "

I did NOT go through a tutorial or anything and just started playing with a plain map. Ok, it took the third map until I found something appropriate for what I was trying to do, but that was just a couple of minutes at best. I settled on trying to build a small cottage with an attached brewery with some bee hives and walled-off garden plots. Throw in a small outhouse and a few odds & ends as well.

The program was easy enough to use, but it was obvious that I'm just scratching the surface of what this thing can do. Don't like how the room generated? Just re-do it and it'll add different stuff. If there's an individual "thing" in your room you don't like, just click on it and delete.

While there are a lot of current options as far as room types, the dev team is making more, and it needs more.

An added option, which pretty much blew me away, is that if you plop down a token (there are only a few monster tokes right now) you can actually navigate through your map! Pretty cool feature.

You'll probably notice on the pic above that there is a big cut-away of the hill that one walled field is on. Didn't like that, but I'm a newb with the program and I know that I selected the option to have all my construction on the same level as the water.

I haven't figured out if I like how these things print out yet, because I don't have a full-color printer....well I do actually have a large format one, but I don't want to use the ink. I'm more interested in having this program for VTT use. I didn't see underground caverns.....wait one...

Oh crap, the cave creation is awesome! If I wasn't already at the end of this post I'd re-do everything with a focus on caves. Uh...yeah......I'm of the opinion that my $35 was worthwhile for making some quick caves & caverns...and I like hand-drawing my caves. I'm also a big fan of this tidbit: "Dungeon Alchemist will be updated over time at no extra cost."

Got a New Toy For My Game Table/Game Prep

So this last week I bought myself a new toy that I hope to use at the gaming table, more for prep/adventure design, but I'm starting to see how it might be useful during a game (especially if online).

So I managed to find this Wacom One drawing tablet at Sam's Club while on a business trip and it was like $20 more new than picking up a used one directly from Wacom.

I've tried an old drawing tablet that was basically a mouse pad that your could draw on, but you had to see everything on your monitor and frankly it just didn't work out for me. The Wacom One is a 13.3" secondary screen that you can use a pen like a mouse. 

I'm sure everyone probably has a clue what drawing tablet is, so the real question (as if there was one) is why would I think this is possibly a good GM tool. First off, I plan on using it normally like anyone else would...to work on my maps and assorted game-related graphics. Yeah, I know....that's a big "duh". 

Half the reason I got this, is that the tablet is essentially a second screen and since I play most of my recent games online and having that second screen that I can easily draw on is rather appealing. I don't know how many times I've needed to add some notation and I'm fumbling around with the fricken mouse, where a stylus would be sooooooo easy. As a GM though, being able to share a second screen with that same level of stylus editing.....

I don't know how many people here have tried the assorted Virtual Table Tops, but some will let you run two instances on one computer. With a second screen and stylus input I could have the GM screen on my laptop and also be logged in as a player (NPC, torchbearer.....hell, even a torch), which can be super helpful, probably depending on the program. I have found it useful to be able to see things as a player/through the player's "eyes".

I do have other monitors, even an ultra-thin portable monitor that's a bit bigger than this tablet, but the air-mouse that is the stylus is a huge draw......probably more of one than I realize. Hopefully some other patrons here can fill me in on some other uses I'm not even thinking of yet.

I'm already starting on my next Tweak and Toss adventure, but if I'm having fun with this new toy I might pivot a bit and just work on something else......time will tell. 

Seriously though....if there is something else I can do with this thing, I'd love to hear about it. I do love my toys and if I can more mileage out of them....

Found a Cool New Board Game Aid

I'm starting to loathe travelling for work.......I know, you don't care, I wouldn't in your shoes either. After my month in Germany I got a whopping 30 hours back home where I discovered one of my cats had passed (probably a week prior) and then on my turn-around trip I had my plane ride/seat cancelled five times, resulting in an overnight stay in O'hare (Terminal K was so much fun) and eventually a 6 hour car ride in a vehicle that costs 3x normal.

Again....why should you care?

Like so many things, my "normal" life inspires my gaming projects and everything effed up about my travels is inspiring me to figure out a rather large d30 travel table. I actually had a rough-up for today's post, but I'm not happy with the numbers and if you get too many events the whole table is worthless, at least in my eyes. Hopefully I can get it done by next weekend.

On a plus side, for me, being back in the US of A means I can finally get my ass to a game store. It's a minor fix for my gaming addiction, but a fix is a fix. The closest store to my current location was so much "meh", but I did manage to pick up a new tiny board game that was good for 1-4 players: Tiny Epic Dungeons (link to original Kickstarter). This game store was more a CCG place with maybe one bookshelf of RPGs (all 5E) and another with board games. If it wasn't a CCG it wasn't priced, which was a turn off. Ends up I got this for the same price as the Kickstarter, but without shipping, so I figured why not? I'm hoping that I find it a fun game to play solo.

Now once again I fully expect the patrons here at the tavern to not really care so much about me getting a new game, especially since I'm not reviewing it.....BUT WAIT!!! THERE'S MORE!

This small game box has quite a few small bits and bobs, along with a rather lengthy rule booklet. Not really something I'm going to warm up to quickly....BUT there is a freaking cool interactive game tutorial on Dized.com. 

I have never heard of dized tutorials and I'm going to go out on a limb and guess you haven't either. There are only about 40 tutorials right now, but there are some big name games here. The big deal here is that it is interactive and you basically play along with your game, enabling you to learn-as-you-go. There is a Dized app that allows you to download the rules, with search and FAQ, as well as the tutorial. Download what you need on the app (or even just online), grab your game, and just get going.

I'm really hoping that this app gets expanded because I would simply love to have a one-source go-to for instructions and tutorials for my many board games. Right now I have this accordian binder filled with a crap-ton of single page instructions & booklets. Just the multitude of Munchkin rules is a mess of sheets.