The "Review my Campaign" thread

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Comments

  • madartiste
    madartiste
    Posts: 328
    dlaporte, I don't have time to do an extensive review, but I would recommend putting some padding on your sections with the borders so the text isn't smack up against it.
    There's a lot going on and it looks pretty good otherwise on first glance. :)

    Just as an aside, I really wish they'd made the OP logo a png with a transparent background... (I think it was chainsaw that made a file for that somewhere that can be subbed in with a bit of code, but it just seems like it would be easier all around.)
  • dlaporte7271
    dlaporte7271
    Posts: 94
    uh...oops...beautiful thing about CSS...padding DONE! That was an oversight...every other damn class of box I've made has padding...HOW did I miss that...thanks!

    dlaporte
  • EarlofBurrito
    EarlofBurrito
    Posts: 11
    Looking for some feedback on my campaign " Hail the Usurper!":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/hail-the-usurper Hybrid strategy/adventure RPG, taking place in the Ancient Kingdom of Alba (Scotland), "c.1094-1095 AD":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/hail-the-usurper/wikis/timeline, at the very beginning of the "War of Three Crowns.":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/hail-the-usurper/wikis/main-page

    Thanks
    BB
  • SqueeEGA
    SqueeEGA
    Posts: 12 edited March 2013
    Eberron is being flipped upside down, turned inside out, torn apart, and if we're all very, very lucky it'll be put back together so that all of reality is not unmade. So lets all cross our fingers and pray that a Shifter Barbarian haunted by her fathers madness, an Elf of House Phiarlan seeking revenge on the uncle who killed his undying ancestor, a delusional cleric of Dol Arrah who is quite insistent he is a paladin, and expects you to know who the F he is, a Psiforged version of Mr. Data who seeks new experience, an adolescent girl prodigy of House Cannith who has an unyielding adoration of sentient constructs and the catchphrase "I can make that!", and, occasionally, a Shifter Druid who grew up in the wilds of Xen'Drik knowing no one other than his mother can save all of creation from the seemingly inevitable unmaking of all of reality...at least according to the eccentric madman who summoned them all together.

    Join this mismatched group of misfits as they try to save the entire polycosm from utter destruction in "Selenaphobia":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/selenaphobia
    Post edited by SqueeEGA on
  • GamingMegaverse
    GamingMegaverse
    Posts: 2,998
    Been really busy, and have not been back here in a bit- seems 2 campaigns needed review, and no one stepped up! Well, I will tackle BlueBenny's "Hail the Usurper":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/hail-the-usurper As always, just my opinion....

    *Start Page-* Appearance is simple and clean. Using Wolfhound's backgrounds. If you are going to have links on the page, make the links stand out- another color, font change, something. The only way you know that there are links is if you read with your mouse... I highly suggest a new custom main background for your site- the OP castle background is just ok. I really like the banner and the pic.

    *Adventure Logs-* Add some padding to your pages. Text against the edges are hard to read. Only 2 logs, and both preludes, but really cool, historical background. Good pictures (some are a bit large) and interesting. Will be fascinating to see what you do with the future, in-game, logs.

    *Wiki-* Same 2 complaints- padding and color variation for links. Some great info though! Love the poem in Wars of the Greater Kingdoms (I am a sucker for poetry) Really cool historical background info, and well done!

    *Others- Characters-* No real individuality in the pc's- obvious the gm wrote all backgrounds and info. Would be cool to get players involved in the bios of their characters- makes them more involved in play as well!
    *Items, Maps-* No items, basic b&w map

    *Overall-* You have some amazing historical data here, with some good images. The color scheme is way off for this though! Find more appropriate backgrounds and replace the Wolfhound template images with those. Also, have a different font color than red, have some way of distinguishing links, and add some padding. Looks like a great game. If you have ?s, send me a pm.

    killervp
    "A God...Rebuilt":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/a-god-rebuilt
    "OP's COTM April 2012":http://blog.obsidianportal.com/a-god-rebuilt-aprils-cotm/

    Just trying to help out.

  • Kallak
    Kallak
    Posts: 1,090
    If someone hasn't tackled Selenaphobia by tonight, I'll knock it out first thing tomorrow morning. Was hoping to get it today, but it's pretty crazy so far - so I'm thinking I probably won't be freed up. Until later,

    -Kallak
    All the best,
    - Kallak
  • Kallak
    Kallak
    Posts: 1,090
    *Campaign:* "Selanaphobia":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/selenaphobia
    *GM:* "cujo90009":http://www.obsidianportal.com/profile/cujo90009

    *Theme/Layout:* While there are several aspects of the theme/layout that I do like, I'm not sure that I like them together as currently presented. For instance, I think the banner with the compiled moons and such is solid (minus the very bottom where the image is cut off, fix?) and conceptually it goes with the space oriented background image. However, since the "fused moons" are on a blank white banner background, they come off feeling separated from what should be a complimentary background image. Being a less than stellar image guy, I'm not sure what to recommend specifically as a repair.

    I also like the scroll paper background on the wiki pages, adventure logs, etc.. however given the lack of any terrestrial based images, the scroll background comes off as being a bit out of place. When you step back and take a look at the site, it feels like a space game with a scroll background. This issue is compounded somewhat by the cross linking to a separate (though related) campaign. On the one hand, the color coded linking system is a very good idea, but on the other your theme changes mid-browse as you move to some areas of the site. Obviously it's not something you can fix unless you want to consolidate the sites, but it's nonetheless noticeable. There are also some pages here and there where the scroll theme isn't carried over.

    *Wiki:* Looking past the aesthetics from the theme, the functionality of the site is very straightforward and intuitive, which I like. Things like (again) the color coded link system are quite good, and it's pretty much impossible to get "lost" and lose track of where some piece of information was. Overall, nicely done.

    *Characters/Items:* The usual gripes, missing images, blank bios, etc.. As with most campaigns, this area of the site could use a bit more loving from the players.

    *Forums/Maps:* I'd consider using the custom CSS to hide these pages, as they are clearly not being used much. The maps page is blank, and aside from one or two specific threads, the forums haven't seen activity in several months. I think the treasure horde post could easily be converted into a wiki page somewhere and be just as effective.

    *Logs:* Some entries are a bit short for my taste, but overall no complaints here save for one. Zero linking to people places and items referenced in the write ups. This is a huge pet peeve because this is the biggest way to hinder retention of the story and characters to your readers. Definitely need to go back through and hyperlink.
    All the best,
    - Kallak
  • GamingMegaverse
    GamingMegaverse
    Posts: 2,998
    Nice detailed review Kallak. Thanks!

    Just trying to help out.

  • PlotTractor
    PlotTractor
    Posts: 2
    Been putting some serious work into a DC Adventures campaign lately. Only one other on OP worth reading and it seems to have tapered off. Give it a look and let me know what you think. (Become a fan if you enjoy it. I would like to push this as campaign of the month after the plot progresses a bit and HOPEFULLY the players get more involved in the OP contributions.)

    http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/there-is-no-justice-league

    Thx,

    Plot Tractor
  • madartiste
    madartiste
    Posts: 328
    PlotTractor, I don't have time at the moment to do a full review, but I would really, really recommend at least putting up a custom banner for your campaign.
    The content I got the chance to look through seems pretty good. The adventure log I looked at was nicely detailed and even have some good images. All of the characters have pictures along with full descriptions and bios. But overall the site is really on the plain side design wise.
  • PlotTractor
    PlotTractor
    Posts: 2
    Done. If as I am not an ascendant member the ascetics of the page are only going to get so good. The content is where the real substance is (and what campaigns should be judged on in my opinion). Please let me know what you all think, especially if you are a superhero RPG fan.
  • madartiste
    madartiste
    Posts: 328
    PlotTractor, the new banner is a bit improvement, though I might recommend reducing the size of the logo so the bottom isn't getting cut off.
    And you don't NEED to be an ascendant to do some inline CSS or other visual things. This is personal opinion, but I think it looks nice when the character portraits are all the same size. Makes things look cleaner when they're all square, for instance. Little things like that often improve the visual look of the site and reduce the "clutter."
    Out of curiosity, are your players going to write some adventure logs? One of my favorite things is to see logs that are in the perspectives of different characters. Also what kind of content do you have planned for the wiki section? Are you just going to do the cities or are there more fun things in the works?
    Just to let you know, I'm a huge DC fan, so I'll try to keep an eye on this. Comics, being a visual storytelling medium, has tons and tons of things to draw from to make a good looking site. You're off to a decent start and I like that you inserted images into the adventure logs. It still feels a little sparse right now, though it sounds like you're still in the early stages.
    Good luck!
  • Syrinx
    Syrinx
    Posts: 42
    Hi!
    I´ve added a front for our Delta Green game.
    It´s still early days, but does the concept work?

    It´s done as non-ascendant and the character generation rules and game logs
    are yet to be upped.

    This is a quick question if this looks good or if I should alter something radically.

    "Green Box Blues":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/green-box-blues

    Cheers!
    /Dave
  • Bookscorpion
    Bookscorpion
    Posts: 58
    I really like it, it looks interesting and well-structured without being overloaded with graphics. However, the Delta Green-graphic on the left doesn't move at all for me and it's right on top of the text... I use Firefox with a 1024x577 screen resolution (which may cause that problem). Here's a "screenshot":http://www.flickr.com/photos/58702601@N05/8668392020/

    Shadowrun: The Rat's Nest - COTM  November 2014

  • Syrinx
    Syrinx
    Posts: 42 edited April 2013
    Thanks for the kind words.
    Try ctrl + to get a border background. I wanted it to be like a tab in the left corner. I´ll see what I can do to make it stick to the edge...

    AH, you´re having a small screen, I see.
    On larger screens it floats to the left, though.
    Post edited by Syrinx on
  • twiggyleaf
    twiggyleaf
    Posts: 2,006
    Looks good Syrinx,

    ....and very intriguing!

    twiggyleaf
    "Shimring - The Faces of Divinity":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/shimring
    "Campaign of the Month - August 2012":http://blog.obsidianportal.com/shimring-augusts-cotm/
    Campaign in Planning: "Mysteria":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/mysteria - set in Wolfgang Baur’s MIDGARD.

    "I met a traveller from an antique land....."

    CotM May 2016: Mysteria: set in Wolfgang Baur’s MIDGARD.

    Previous CotM Aug 2012: Shimring: High Level Multiplanar Campaign

    Inner Council Member

  • Syrinx
    Syrinx
    Posts: 42
    Thanks Twiggyleaf,
    I just have to put up the material I have pending over at PLAY@YSDC and update the game.
    It´s been hectic at work. (The normal complain when trying to get the gaming flowing.)

    /Dave
  • robertkety
    robertkety
    Posts: 55 edited May 2013
    I've been using OP for over a year and was very excited to participate in the KS. I've been ardently monitoring my achievements tab for the new badge when I stumbled across the featured campaign badge. I'd love to know what some of you think - comments, suggestions, etc.

    For the last year, I've been running my friends through the 3.5 Dragonlance campaign, Dragons of Autumn Twilight. Most of my work involves summarizing the game sessions and posting correlating imagery. My site includes wiki pages for almost everything and everyone of note that my group encounters (and some hints about Dragonlance Canon that my players have yet to discover).

    For your consideration:

    "Dragons of Autumn":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/autumn-dragons

    Thanks,

    Robert
    Post edited by robertkety on
  • GamingMegaverse
    GamingMegaverse
    Posts: 2,998
    Sorry, been really swamped. Will review your campaign this weekend if no one else has.
    killervp
    "A God...Rebuilt":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/a-god-rebuilt
    "Duskreign's First Ever COTM":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/wyrmshadow/wiki_pages/112011
    "OP's COTM April 2012":http://blog.obsidianportal.com/a-god-rebuilt-aprils-cotm/

    Just trying to help out.

  • robertkety
    robertkety
    Posts: 55
    Thanks again!

    Robert
  • saethone
    saethone
    Posts: 153
    Robertkey, I took a look at your campaign and I have a few comments:

    First, your adventure logs are great! So much cross linking, pictures, etc. They are very well done. My only suggest may to utilize the tag to have smaller displays on the log listing and possibly move or copy your index into an adventure log post and future date it so it stays at the top.

    Second, your main wiki. There is a TON of stuff here - but I noticed very few pages had any images. You may want to try and add some more where you can, just keeps things looking nicer and helps put a feel to things.

    You may also want to try using some kind of sub-menu system because you have to scroll a loooong ways down to see all the information that's available.

    Finally I wanted to touch on the characters tab. The PCs are usually the most interesting part of any campaign, and sadly yours are nearly bare! For someone to jump in and start reading your adventure logs they will want to know about the characters so I definitely recommend filling that section out some more.

    Oh, I nearly forgot - I also wanted to mention that I love the font you're using, it looks great with that campaign!
  • GamingMegaverse
    GamingMegaverse
    Posts: 2,998
    Nice Review, Saethone- dead on!
    Thanks!

    Just trying to help out.

  • robertkety
    robertkety
    Posts: 55
    saethone,

    Thanks for your review! I spent some time this weekend working on the site. I switched the Adventure Log over to introductory blurbs with the more-tag you recommended. I decided not to place an index of the Adventure Log under a future-dated entry - mainly because I didn't like reading the date/time for the future-dated entry. Instead, I changed the index I had on my wiki main-page into columns.
    Also on the main-page, I eliminated much of the repetitive links that made the page so long - most of the headings in the wiki index linked to a sublist anyway. The main-page is now much shorter and will continue to get shorter as I transfer the remaining NPCs over to the Characters page.
    As for the Characters page, my players are largely responsible for updating the information on their player characters. However, I did take the liberty of adding a photo to each of them.
    After making all of these updates, I finally decided to start tackling the CSS coding for my page. I wanted to eliminate the "Home Page" and "Main Page" headings for the Home and Wiki tabs. After that, I went pretty wild changing border and font colors. I added a secondary font for the navbar and sidebar headings. Currently, I'm dealing with an issue that I'm not sure I can control. Has anyone else noticed that the image links for the 'login instantly' icons? (I'll probably post something in a different thread if someone hasn't already).
    Thanks again for the feedback and please keep it coming!

    Robert
  • robertkety
    robertkety
    Posts: 55
    Sent the broken image issue to the help forums - no response yet. Added the submenu saethone recommended to my wiki-page. I designed the submenu to resemble my tab-container. I also added an index of adventure log posts to the wiki-page. Table formatting gave me no end of grief (colspan, where art thou?) so I used unordered lists and some CSS formatting to simulate the table format I wanted.
    Everything is pretty much the way I want it, except for the Maps page.
    The 10 map minimum is a bummer so I was thinking of creating a unique wiki-page to replace it. I was thinking about using a popup, but that won't work here. I was searching the forums when I found this: http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/melekar-test/wikis/test-location5
    Very interesting. I may try to borrow some code ideas from gaaran.
  • GamingMegaverse
    GamingMegaverse
    Posts: 2,998
    @RobertKety- Yes, many of us know about the broken image- it will be fixed in the reforge, so it has not been a high priority. As far as help responses go, please remember that this is a labor of love- everyone has day jobs- you typically will get responses on the weekends.
    We have all stolen from Gaaran, Arsheesh, Duskreign, Chainsaw, and Wolfhound- they all laid the groundwork....
    killervp
    "A God...Rebuilt":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/a-god-rebuilt
    "Duskreign's First Ever COTM":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/wyrmshadow/wiki_pages/112011
    "OP's COTM April 2012":http://blog.obsidianportal.com/a-god-rebuilt-aprils-cotm/

    Just trying to help out.

  • robertkety
    robertkety
    Posts: 55 edited May 2013
    @killervp

    I hear you on the labor of love - no hurry :-D
    In the meantime, I implemented a css workaround to provide a "Third Party Login" link in lieu of the broken images. Also, I've started creating a pop-up map based on @Gaaran's wicked Dresden Files page.
    My intention was to not only include landmark icons, but also a chronological track summarizing the current progress (Think Indiana Jones map, but with dots instead of a red line). I created moving gif's for each leg with the intention of assigning a link to the appropriate adventure log; however, I've run into an overlap issue. Now, I've combined everything into one large (and probably unstable) moving gif. Some time in the next week, I'll plot out some poly coordinates for an image map.

    I should probably move this to a different thread, but I just wanted to post my progress. Thanks for the support!

    Robert
    Post edited by robertkety on
  • RyanSprague
    RyanSprague
    Posts: 2
    Hello all. I've been using this site for a year but haven't been very active in forums at all. I saw this though and thought it was a great idea as I would love some feedback on my campaign site. My players use the site a little, but I feel like only one or two of them has actually read any of the fluff or really appreciated it.

    "A World of Blood and Darkness":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/a-world-of-blood-and-darkness

    Just a heads up, the Location Descriptions section is incomplete, partially because I've been a bit lazy about it, but also for other game-relevant reasons. I intend to get them updated in time though.
  • Kallak
    Kallak
    Posts: 1,090
    *Campaign:* "A World of Blood and Darkness":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaigns/a-world-of-blood-and-darkness
    *GM:* "RyanSprague":http://www.obsidianportal.com/profile/RyanSprague

    *Theme:* In terms of theme, there isn't too much to say I guess. I think the banner (while fine in its own right) could be recolored a bit to match the campaign background image better. What other art that appears is solid, so no worries there.

    *Content:* There are a few more blank pages than I would like, but the rest of the content appears well written - with enough cross linking to make for sufficient navigation. In other news, it was refreshing to find a campaign where every PC was "complete" (in that they had stats, an image AND a backstory). Some lacked cross linking, but that would be an easy fix. Sadly, the NPCs were not in the same boat. Outside of that, there is a bit of inconsistency in terms of paragraph spacing that I think should be addressed. In some log entries, there is a space between paragraphs, where in others there aren't. In a campaign where the text is just about all there is to see, you want it to look nice - and this spacing issue takes away from that. I'd also probably suggest justified alignment.

    ~~~

    Overall, I would say this is a nice campaign to read, if not a visually impressive one.
    All the best,
    - Kallak
  • RyanSprague
    RyanSprague
    Posts: 2
    Thanks Kallak.
    I'm aware it's not terribly visually impressive. I'm not terribly skilled with web design or anything so my goal is more to make it look decent but mostly just to be functional. And I'm aware there's a large number of blank pages, those are partially incomplete due to my own lack of motivation to keep it updated, but I've lately been working on getting them all up to date and cleaned up. Same goes with the NPCs. Though I don't intend to make all of their backstories as in depth as the PCs, and only a few of them actually have stats, but the point is well taken there.
    But thanks for taking the time to look at it and the feedback.
  • robertkety
    robertkety
    Posts: 55
    Hello all,

    I decided not to use the image map, but to keep the hover icon idea I borrowed from @Gaaran with transparent backgrounds. The hover icons are used in conjunction with an animated gif I finally completed Tuesday. I'm pretty pleased with the end result and hope you will be too. Check it out at: "http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/autumn-dragons/wikis/abanasinia-interactive-map/":http://www.obsidianportal.com/campaign/autumn-dragons/wikis/abanasinia-interactive-map/

    If anyone thinks my updates should be in a different thread, just let me know.
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