What Obsidian Portal Means To Me

Keryth987

So, its been a little over 4 years for me now since I joined Obsidian Portal. Back when I first joined I did little with the site. Honestly, I didn't know what to do with it. My campaigns were always pretty much played off the cuff, my players knew our campaign worlds, or at least the basics, and we were the only ones truly interested in talking about past adventures. So, I had an account, but it languished there, unused.

Then I started working on my Dresden Files Campaign. It began as a brainstorming project over on Jim Butcher's forums. Templates and such I had created. Some locations, and a bunch of questions. Then I started scouting the web for things to borrow and I truly discovered OP. I came on Wolfhound's incredibly awesome Dresden Files Dallas site here on OP, and I was amazed. So I started scouting OP for more sites to look over and found HumAnnoyd's Emerald City and then, lo and behold, the gem of them all, KillerVP's a God, Rebuilt.

These sites inspired me. I wanted to create something like what I saw. So I read through every page of each site. Devouring the stories these GMs and their players wove, and amazed at how wonderful their sites looked. Then I stumbled, accidentally almost, on Wolfhound's tutorials. So I figured, what the Hell, and followed them. Alot of cutting and pasting later,as well as many msg's sent to Wolfhound and KillerVP and Phoenixhawk and others, and Shadows Over New York was born. It was fairly primitive compared to what is there now. But it was something. Quickly, I posted to the review my campaign discussion on the forums. I took the criticism and suggestions to heart, and went back to work. And with the help of one of my players who is a Graphic Artist, Shadows became much more, and captured Campaign of the Month and then Campaign of the Year. I was astounded at how much people liked my little campaign. And I've tried since then to continue to improve my skills here and make Shadows and my other campaign sites better and more enjoyable for all.

So, whats the point of all this? What is OP to me? Its a place full of people, who, like me, love gaming and love creating. Imaginative people, creating worlds and stories to wonder and amaze. Here we all can be Tolkiens, Butchers, Salvatores, Martins, Webers, and Brooks. It is a place that encourages one to create and invent, while also being a place for all to share their creations and stories.

So, there's my tale. What about the rest of you?


Keelah Se'lai,
Keryth
"Shadows Over New York":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/shadows-over-new-york
"2013 Campaign of The Year":http://blog.obsidianportal.com/2013-coty-shadows-over-new-york/
"Campaign of the Month July 2013":http://blog.obsidianportal.com/shadows-over-new-york-julys-campaign-of-the-month/

Tau_Cetacean

I don't quite remember how I was steered to OP, but I'm a compulsive world-builder... actually gamemastering / saying I'm going to write a novel is sort of just an excuse to world-build... my sci-fi timeline/setting has been through multiple venues (folders filed with word documents on my PC, an offline webpage in an html editor on my PC, a Livejournal), but what it really needed was a wiki-like function, and that's what OP provided

I like the broad potential the site has for this... that I can keep the wiki private until I am ready, that even when I publish it, there will be public and private portions of each wiki pages

I'm new to the forums, but like being in this community so far... I prefer a small niche group to, say, going onto reddit and asking a huge audience "what do you think about {x} (this is for my weird sci-fi timeline thing)"

I'm just frustrated, that the 500 errors slows down the process of finishing my wiki to a crawl, that I'm loathe to share my wiki with my friends if I can count on them hitting 500 errors as they try to navigate it

"frustrated potential" is how I would put what OP is to me

Basileus

I've been active on Obsidian Portal for about 3 years now. Though I recall joining as a player under some old account for one campaign back in... 2009?!

I only recently got back to OP after a hiatus, and honestly I haven't much touched the main portion of the site to fiddle with campaigns.

To me, OP is entirely the user community - its not even a tool for me anymore. The community was a huge part of why I became involved, and is now really the only reason I float around the forums. That and to monitor... "developments".

twiggyleaf

Obsidian Portal is the hub of my whole gaming world. I started just over six years ago and found the site by accident on "TINTERNET". After years of playing just modules, I was once again inspired to create my own world and develop a campaign around it. Shimring was born and I played this over three years, having spent a whole year designing it before even opening up to my players.

I early on discovered the community and have been fairly active on the forums since those times, tending to be more interested in the NON TECH pages, but getting great help from many people here.

Shimring had an epic conclusion and about three years ago I started my new campaign, Mysteria, still running to this day. I love all the things that Keryth mentioned and also make great use of the private campaign forums afforded by Ascendant membership. Two of my players also use Obsidian Portal for their own sites, which they do as part of my Ascendancy membership, with me as co-GM. It is great that we have consistency while playing different games.

I have great fun setting up characters and wiki pages and the campaign forums are incredibly useful for our group to discuss character development, rules, and even arrange the odd social event.

The General Forums are a great place where I have met many fantastic people who have commented, helped and contributed greatly. So thank you: Arsheesh, KillerVP, Wolfhound, Duskreign, DM Loki, Craigcoxon, Beuamains, Cgregory, Darkangelmarine, Leonides300, AZRune, Adoraith, Ketherian, Maesenko, AlexRedeye, Keryth987, Basileus, JustinMason, Tau, Lxcharon and the many others who have helped make time between gaming and designing so delightful!

twiggyleaf
CURRENT CAMPAIGN: "Mysteria":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/mysteria - set in Wolfgang Baur’s MIDGARD.
Previous CotM Aug 2012: "Shimring":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/shimring

Lxcharon

Well, I'm one of the newer people to OP. But I hope (keyword is hope) to be around for a long time. To me Obsidian Portal represents a lot. Like Tau potential is one of the main things. I really want OP to return to its days of glory and I'm willing to come along for the ride. I've been working on my campaign world for a while, with its home changing here to there, from physical print, to web, to internally hosted, back to web. But of all the places it's been, OP feels most right, and most like home for it. I get giddy to GM in the world when I see the pages laid out like they are.

But more that anything, OP is about community to me. I would hate to see this community go. To me that would be the greatest loss if OP collapsed. (but I also have most of my wiki backed up so I really wouldn't lose much if that went away) I think the gaming world can be divisive, occasionally elitist, and spread out, but the people on OP are awesome, they are helpful, educated, supportive and creative. I really enjoy coming on here everyday to hold discussions, to read other's campaigns, to just get a feel for the community. I will continue to be active here for as long as you guys are willing to have me and hope to make some great friends here.

~LX
"Realm of the Six Gods":https://terrasia.obsidianportal.com/
'Heroes are only as strong as those they protect.'

GamingMegaverse

I am approaching 5 years on Obsidian Portal. It used to be the hub and center of my gaming world, but that has changed in the time that it languished. I am still very active here, and my campaign gets updated daily, but I have become rather negative. This saddens me, as many who left at the Reforge, and those that stayed during that turbulent time, will say I was one of the most positive, encouraging the change. I, and each of my players, spent many hours changing A God...Rebuilt, my campaign, after the reforge- we estimated about 150 hours worked, to make it look as close to pre-Reforge as we could.
The Community here has always been great, and unfortunately is a shadow of what it used to be. Sure, Twiggy, Keryth, and others are still active, and there are new folks (2 I really appreciate have already spoken on this thread) but it pales to what it used to be. The # of campaigns that would be updated each week used to be in the hundreds- now it is a trickle.
So I cannot list all that have helped, and I appreciate, but I will talk of a few- in no particular order- The above mentioned Twiggy, Keryth, Lxcharon, Tau Cetacean, and Basileus, Arsheesh, Bluesguy, Beaumains, Hoptowngamenight, ChainsawXIV, Cgregory, Wolfhound, Adoraith, Ketherian, Kallak, Maesenko, Duskreign, Leonidas300, Magavendon, StephenWollett, Black Vulmea, DungeonMasterLoki, Sommerset, tolsimirwolfblood, FrankSirmanco, JaymesBolton, Pils, HumAnnoyd, Jayph, PhoenixMark, Madartiste, Gaaran, RaseCidraen, Cernig, Langy, Kettle, MdBLimited, Kettle, RobertKety, Thorvaldr, SkidAce, GuyKilmore and of course all my players, past and present.

killervp
"A God...Rebuilt":https://a-god-rebuilt.obsidianportal.com

Kallak

God, looking at that list brings back some memories. Hopefully if things keep moving in the current direction, there will be some reappearances. That would be awesome.

Keryth987

Well, their accounts are still here, so nothing says we cannot email those who have left and let them know not only does it appear things are changing for the better, but that they are sorely missed. I believe sending an email to an account here notifies the person on their email that is not OP they have a message. If enough people contact them, they might just pop back to least say hi and look around.

Keelah Se'lai,
Keryth
"Shadows Over New York":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/shadows-over-new-york
"2013 Campaign of The Year":http://blog.obsidianportal.com/2013-coty-shadows-over-new-york/
"Campaign of the Month July 2013":http://blog.obsidianportal.com/shadows-over-new-york-julys-campaign-of-the-month/