Role-playing games
Do you like reading books? Would you like to experience adventures of
the main character? Or maybe you would like to create stories for others?
Role-playing games combine these things in one piece.
But what exactly is a role-playing game? According to Wikipedia
“RPG is a game in which players assume
the roles of characters in a fictional setting.”
Clear? Not? Ok, so let me explain, how it works.
Firstly, you will need a team. A group of friends who are eager to play,
a place to meet and a couple of spare
hours are needed to.
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| http://www.darkelfdice.com/product/rpg-dice-set-metal-steel-12mm-mini-role-playing-game-dice |
Secondly, you will have to decide which system to play. Warhammer,
Neuroshima, Call of Cthulhu are one of the most famous ones; nevertheless, there
are plenty of these on the market right now. Try speaking with your team, in
what world, or realm, they would like to play. Maybe they want to be a knight
and wizards from a fantasy Europe? Or a group of scientists in a post-apocalyptic
America? The choice is yours. Depending on the system, you will need different
dices. People can love or hate them, because every important act, like sword
fighting or driving a car during a race, is tested by rolling dices.
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| http://max3d.pl/forum/threads/82639-Chc-41-Neuroshima-by-GrzegorzPrzybys |
Ok so we gather a team, we chose a system, and now what? Now you have to
decide who of you will be the Game Master. This is, I think, the most important
person in our group. He or she will create the world for the other players like
a narrator in a novel. GM is responsible for taking care of the whole game. He
can do everything to players, he can kill them or lead them to wealth and
glory(in the game of course). So choose wisely. In the meantime, the rest of the
group can start creating their characters. You can be almost anyone you can
think of. So use your head, get the
character sheet and start writing a story of the most epic protagonist.
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| http://komadoria7.blogspot.com/2012/05/warhammer-rpg-dla-poczatkujacych-czyli.html |
And finally you can start the adventure! Let your
imagination go and role some
dices! If you are a knight, go and chop someone’s head off! If you are a
wizard, burn your enemies with a powerful spell! You can do whatever you want
with your character, unless GM allow you. RPGs are much better than computer
games, because the only limit is your imagination. Of course there are some
downsides to it, like time consumption. Usually one session lasts for at list 3
hours. And one more thing, RPGs could be addictive so take it under
consideration before you will drown in this world.
What do you thing about role-playing games? Are you a fan of RPGs? Or
maybe you hate them? Let me know in the comment section.
Sources:
Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Role-playing_game
I played Warhammer once with my friends and it was a lot of fun. Our game master was depressed after our game because we didn't focus on the task but we were at the tavern and we tried to sell our friend for vodka :D. Unfortunately we burned the tavern down. I think RPG games are awesome but usually I don't have time to play them. If I had more free time I would look for people to play RPG games again.
ReplyDeleteRPG seems to be definitely cool. I had even occasion to deal with it during one of job interviews. Unfortunatelly I do not have too many friends willing to spend time like that, however during boring parties I often manage to convince them to play. Frequently I had a chance to observe friends having polyhedral dices but we have never tried to use them during the game. Speaking of dices I hope you heard about DICE+ (http://dicepl.us/pl/). One of school-mates show us how it works and he even developed few games that uses this dice. So far for me it seems to be just a gadget that will not substitute the traditional version.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely the most important person is so called Game Master, we can find even helpers describing "the four major hats": author, director,referee and manager. There is a lot of websties like www.highprogrammer.com/alan/gaming/gmtips.html desciribing also tips about how to run the game.
P.S. lasts for at least not list :P
When I was much much younger I was really into forgotten realms world (have you heard? :) ), I loved all books about Drizzt Do'Urden and that was a trigger to try to play a Role-Playing Game placed in this realm.
ReplyDeleteBut actually it was rather disappointing :) Maybe due to fact that I was a child and my really small three-person team as well. The thing that was the most disturbing was the fact that there are no rules written down. When you play a computer RPG you clearly know what you can do, what will hurt you, what's gonna happen when you go this or that way ( I mean you don't know, but someone already has invented it and it doesn't depend on GM's whim ).
Or maybe it was some childish mistake, and in the rules of the "paper" RPG it is said that you cannot invent anything when the game has started :)
I don't know, maybe it is not my thing, but I know so many people that are so into it, that I would like to try one day, just to see how it should work, and how much fun you can have :)
Although I'm a geek, I must unfortunately admit I've never had a chance to play a 'proper' RPG. I love D&D books or the prose written by H.P.Lovecraft, I've played cRPG based on World of Darkness and other systems, I have board games like Arkham Horror, but I don't know many RPG players and therefore never had a chance to take part in a real RPG session.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I really like the idea of it - it shows that you don't need any computer-generated hi-tech graphics to feel the mood, you just need your imagination.
For those who don't mind terrible graphics, I recommend the web comic called RotflPG; it reflects not only real RPG sessions, but also cRPG and fantasy in general :)
Karolina Wieczorek:
ReplyDeleteI'm creating an app for tablets that will allow you to play whole RPG system "Neuroshima" using DICE+ :)
I am not a huge fan of RPGs, but a have a few friends that are real "freaks". I had a chance to participate in one or two games and I can understand how people have fun doing this. The person of Game Master is really important, his attitude and creativity can really make the difference – and together witch players' attention it can create a wonderful atmosphere.
ReplyDeleteIf I had to choose a system, I'd probably go for the post-apocalyptic ones like Neuroshima. I like these kind of stories (somewhat similar to STALKER).
I have the same problem as Katarzyna – if I only had more time, than I would try and learn to play RPG.
Jan, I have a question: how did you come with the idea of an app? This might be really interesting project!
I've been playing pen&paper rpgs since a long time ago, with breaks, but still quite a lot. :) I'm a huge fan and I love playing them with my friends. It's incredibly entertaining and often very creative at the same time.
ReplyDeleteI played Dungeons and Dragons, Warhammer, Neuroshima and more recently, Monastyr. Unfortunately, I don't have as much time for this as I would like to have. Besides that, nowadays it's hard for our group of friends to gather for a proper session.
RPGs tend to be great entertainment. Unfortunately I never had the opportunity to play in RPG, this is due to the fact that my friends prefer other activities.
ReplyDeleteWhen I Was younger I used to play D&D with my friends at primary school at time of lesson gap or free lessons. It was fun and great experience. I think that best position in this type of games is Game Muster, because he can do almost whatever he want. I also used to play Warhammer. But since end of my primary school I didn't have opportunity to play. I want to play but I don't have anyone who would like to play with me.
ReplyDeletes9397:
ReplyDeleteIn fact this is my Engineering Thesis. After many hours of playing Neuroshima, me and my team found out that we need an extra tool for our sessions. With this app we will not have to count everything, so the game could go smother, and we will be able to focus more on the story.
I've played only in Dungeons & Dragons so I don't have great experience in RPG games. However it's excellent replacement to video games. RPG systems stimulate our imagination and creativity because we have only some descriptions and accessories. Moreover we meet people in real life not by the screen. That points are for me the greates advantages of RPG games.
ReplyDeleteI don’t play RPG games, but for sure these sessions are a great idea for spend time with friends. It’s better than sitting alone at a computer. I think I should try someday. I'm a fan of Lovecraft's stories, so, Call of Cthulhu will be the very first :)
ReplyDeleteI play a lot RPG and I rally like it. I spend a lot of time for it in my Highschool. Some time ago I was have mor time/willingness for it. Now I occasionally play RPG.
ReplyDeleteI play a lot In LARP - Life action role play. This is similar then RPG but you are person from different world. When you play LARP you have to make disguise for your character.
I also actually never had a chance to play proper RPG, but as I truly enjoy board games (different kinds) I think also would realy like the RPG. I can't tell more about it because I'm not very familiar with it. But I think every social game must be fun.
ReplyDeleteLike Marcin Konarski said i never play in RPG in real but it seems to be great entertainment. I play a lot in Role-playing games but only on PC.
ReplyDelete@Jan Any progress in writing that app on android? :)
It seems to be cool but i prefer more 'real' games like HEMA, mentioned in your other post. The best thing in playing RPG's games is that the only limit is your imagination. Unfortunatly i must admit that i'm looking for reality in such activities
ReplyDeleteI have never played RPG game for real witch role-playing.:(
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately I propably haven't got friends, who are spending free time playing it. Only RPG computer mode;) I was in special shop conencting with RPG game and that was really impressing what I saw. You can buy everything to create own world with a lot of differets topics. Special boards with builded castles, ruing, gates and a lot of other ideas of creating mini-world. But I saw that it isn't really cheap, if you want to have figures and paint it you have to spend some money for that.
Maybe in the future:)