What is an RPG?
RPG stands for Role Playing Game and a Role Playing Game at its core is a collaborative storytelling game where the events and the outcomes to those events are determined in the moment. No one knows how the story ends, until the people playing the game determine that end for themselves! It’s a fun way to embody a character or role in a story with no script where the outcome is determined by the actions of you and the character you’re playing in the game. Often times the “game” part comes in the form of random chance by virtue of dice that you roll when you decide that your character wants to take an action. The character attempts to do a “thing” and the random roll of the dice determine whether you succeed. RPGs usually have a storyteller and rules referee often referred to as a Game Master, Dungeon Master, Narrator, Director, and a whole slew of other titles depending on the RPG you’ve chosen to play. Its this person’s job in the game to narrate in the story what happens based on the results of the dice. There’s tons of different kinds of RPGs from every genre you can imagine: Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Superheroes, Horror, etc.
What do I need in order to play an RPG?
What you need to play a RPG usually depends on which RPG you’re playing, but usually what you need is:
- A Character Sheet which has the stats for your character. This sheet or collection of sheets of paper tell you what your character is good at, and what they’re not so good at.
- Usually some dice to help determine the results of the actions you attempt in the game.
- Some idea of what type of character you want to play, often times with a character backstory and some connection to the other characters at the table.
- A willingness to embrace the random nature of the dice, and to let go of the need to be “cool” in front of the other players.
- The more willing you are to embody the character you’re playing the more willing the other players at the table will be to do the same.
What makes RPGs Interesting?
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be your favorite character in a book, or movie or TV show? Have you ever yelled at a screen or a page “Don’t do that you, dummy!”
Playing in an RPG gives you that chance. Its an immersive experience where you can make the choices you think your character would make in that moment and find out what would happen. You can go on grand adventures, have super powers, cast magical spells, fight terrifying monsters, be the hero and escape the drudgery of every day life for a little while.