Do you play Tabletop RPGs?

[kitstellation]

i've always loved roleplaying and after i fell off forum rp, i'd been looking for something to fill that void. and in came tabletop!

i've been playing tabletop for a couple years now, so i'm curious if anyone else plays them! i got into dnd 5th edition after getting into the podcast the adventure zone about 2-3 years ago now and it's turned into a regular hobby of mine. i've played a bit of dungeon world and retail magic, as well as pathfinder 2nd edition, and i'm looking into trying out starfinder, as well as blades in the dark and monster of the week, as well as one off style games like honey heist.

i'm more of a dungeonmaster/gamemaster than a player - i used to run a forum rpg for 10 years, so i guess i'm used to that mindset? - and i've been running my own 5e campaign for over a year now.

do any of you play? i know there's a pokemon version of the dnd system out there...

 

[prog rocker]

No, but I'm considering getting into it. Doesn't help that I'm too shy to try it on Discord and the like.

 

[kitstellation]

it's always nervewracking to get your foot in the door! if you're not comfortable doing it over discord voice (the games i'm in are usually a mix of discord voice and roll20) i know there are discords that do it play by post like a written roleplay instead. good luck! it's been a really rewarding hobby for me.

 

[Kung Fu Ferret]

Played D&D in High school, but that was over a decade ago.

 

[Felly]

I got into D&D when I was in university and ended up enjoying it a lot. I've played the Pokemon D&D before as well, and I liked it as well. I'd love to get back into it, but with everything going on in the world right now, it's a little difficult to find in person sessions, and I'd also have to find the time to play.

 

[Beth Pavell]

Played a bit of Pathfinder once, didn't like it at all. I used to GM a lot back in college, etc, playing the various Warhammer 40,000 RPGs. It steadily started to fall apart when the group started to discover MMORPGs. I don't think they ever quite realised that I had to plan and write the adventures, and therefore if they weren't used it was wasted time and effort.

 

[kitstellation]

Played D&D in High school, but that was over a decade ago.

my first experience with it was in high school! it actually warded me away from dnd for a long time, i'd gotten dragged in to fill out a party, no one told me the rules and my character immediately died and everyone laughed at me when i was upset and told me i should have known the rules, even though i had asked and no one told me. sometimes people are jerks.

I got into D&D when I was in university and ended up enjoying it a lot. I've played the Pokemon D&D before as well, and I liked it as well. I'd love to get back into it, but with everything going on in the world right now, it's a little difficult to find in person sessions, and I'd also have to find the time to play.

i really miss in person sessions! there's only one game place close enough, but i never have the time to play campaigns, i always end up running one offs for newbies. have you tried playing online? the energy isn't exactly the same, but i've found it really rewarding too.

Played a bit of Pathfinder once, didn't like it at all. I used to GM a lot back in college, etc, playing the various Warhammer 40,000 RPGs. It steadily started to fall apart when the group started to discover MMORPGs. I don't think they ever quite realised that I had to plan and write the adventures, and therefore if they weren't used it was wasted time and effort.

i've only tried pathfinder 2e, but i know pf1 is pretty crunchy! i've also never gotten into warhammer, i don't know if i'd like it! i can definitely sympathize with wasted effort wrt prep, i always end up overprepping rather than underprepping so stuff always goes unused...

 

[Felly]

i really miss in person sessions! there's only one game place close enough, but i never have the time to play campaigns, i always end up running one offs for newbies. have you tried playing online? the energy isn't exactly the same, but i've found it really rewarding too.

When I played in college, it was me and a group of fraternity brothers (that slowly evolved into people that weren't quite in the fraternity but were good friends with some of the brothers) that would play. The first semester we played, a lot of us were new (but we had some experienced players), but it was a lot of fun. I know of a couple stores that do in person sessions, but I've been hesitant to go because I'm not sure if I'd fit in with the crowd or how it'd be or if it'd be an issue if I wasn't able to show up every week because of work (or just needing a day off); I can't go now, of course, because of the social distancing guidelines still in place (and understandably so!!), but maybe once things go back to normal, I might try to get out there and just scope things out and see how they do things.

I've done online before, but I prefer in person more; I think it just depends on the people you're playing with though and not so much the format. My Pokemon tabletop experience was fully online, but the people I played with were great and it was overall a fun game. I have another friend who would try to start games up, but they'd always end up flopping before they even started, which was unfortunate and left me more or less unmotivated to play. I wouldn't mind giving online sessions another whirl though, but I'd probably prefer to do it just through text; it'd just be a matter of me finding the time to do it between work and needing to sleep, haha.

 

[Beth Pavell]

I always stubbornly resisted any attempts to bring our games online. A large part of that was because back then playing videos on smartphones was becoming ubiquitous and that was already derailing the sessions - the temptation of a gaming PC in front of half the group would have meant trying to play some MMO between their turns. That would have spoiled the game not just for me but for the other couple of players who did still want to play a game.

There are some real advantages to online play, mostly, in my opinion, when it comes to creating the environment and keeping track of the action. I managed to get a lot of mileage out of graph paper, pencils, and different-coloured pushpins but it would have been easier to use some sort of digital map. But still, I don't think there's any substitute for rolling dice in front of people, where everyone can see it, and everyone can hear the chatter and reactions. When everyone's invested in the game and the GM's got the hang of the game it's a great social experience.

 

[Poke Dragon]

I played D&D with my brother and some friends online since that's the most convenient and cheapest way to do it. We did it on the website called Roll20 and we combined that with Discord for the best experience. Anyways, I have been trying to talk to my brother in getting back into it and trying to reform the group so we can continue the campaign we are currently on.

 

[prog rocker]

When I played in college, it was me and a group of fraternity brothers (that slowly evolved into people that weren't quite in the fraternity but were good friends with some of the brothers) that would play. The first semester we played, a lot of us were new (but we had some experienced players), but it was a lot of fun. I know of a couple stores that do in person sessions, but I've been hesitant to go because I'm not sure if I'd fit in with the crowd or how it'd be or if it'd be an issue if I wasn't able to show up every week because of work (or just needing a day off); I can't go now, of course, because of the social distancing guidelines still in place (and understandably so!!), but maybe once things go back to normal, I might try to get out there and just scope things out and see how they do things.

I know it might be kind of a dumb question, but fraternities actually exist?

 

[ReturnofMCH]

I tend to do oneshots as if I do any sort of campaign, I get into it for a day or 2 then drop off entirely, so it's best to do one shots for me.

 

[Felly]

I know it might be kind of a dumb question, but fraternities actually exist?

Yes! They're typically male only social organizations (sororities are the female only social orgs), but the one I was in was a co-ed honor fraternity, so it was a mix of males and females (and those that didn't identify with either!!) and focused more on academics in addition to the social aspects Greek life gives in colleges and universities.

 

[kitstellation]

I played D&D with my brother and some friends online since that's the most convenient and cheapest way to do it. We did it on the website called Roll20 and we combined that with Discord for the best experience. Anyways, I have been trying to talk to my brother in getting back into it and trying to reform the group so we can continue the campaign we are currently on.

that's how i run my campaigns! once i figured out that roll20 has a ton of features to it, it made running it a godsend, ahaha! i tend to be a bit of a grandma in person (notes in notebooks, always referencing physical books, etc) so it's easier for me to just have stuff at a click!

 

[ThatAsianInTheCorner]

DnD sounds really damn cool but the closest I've ever come to it is an Online Chatroom in the Social Media site: Amino, where me and a couple of other people in the chat would just kinda go on adventures in this Fantasy Land that was created for us. The only DnD-like mechanic involved was that how effective our actions were was decided via an online website featuring a D20 that you could roll.
Fun stuff, wish I could do it again.

 

[prog rocker]

Yes! They're typically male only social organizations (sororities are the female only social orgs), but the one I was in was a co-ed honor fraternity, so it was a mix of males and females (and those that didn't identify with either!!) and focused more on academics in addition to the social aspects Greek life gives in colleges and universities.

I only asked because they don't exist at all where I live, so thanks for the answer.

 

[Beth Pavell]

It seems awkward that when most people think of tabletop RPGs, they still immediately think of D&D. I mean, there's a whole world of game systems out there that aren't D&D, and I wonder whether that's what I'll have to settle for if ever I try to find a new group and start roleplaying again

 

[omahanime]

I used to a long time ago in a galaxy far far away

 

[Kung Fu Ferret]

The DM I had was hilarious and made then-relevant pop culture/meme references. Like, a having someone try to tame a giant eagle and made it do a barrel roll. And the bad guy was name Roundhouse Kick Murphy.

 

[kitstellation]

It seems awkward that when most people think of tabletop RPGs, they still immediately think of D&D. I mean, there's a whole world of game systems out there that aren't D&D, and I wonder whether that's what I'll have to settle for if ever I try to find a new group and start roleplaying again

it's always kinda just been the stereotypical "haha weird nerds and their weird game" joke and i know it was the subject of chick tracts too. there are plenty of ttrpgs out there (it's why i asked if people play tabletop instead of asking if they play dnd!) but i think dnd's just the standard from how easily available it is - it's easier to walk into a comic book store and ask if there's a dnd game going instead of asking if someone wants to play apocalypse world or blades in the dark.

5e's also had a boom because of popular media - critical role is one of the biggest actual play shows on twitch and the adventure zone, calvinball with the rules or not, got a ton of people into 5e, myself included...

DnD sounds really damn cool but the closest I've ever come to it is an Online Chatroom in the Social Media site: Amino, where me and a couple of other people in the chat would just kinda go on adventures in this Fantasy Land that was created for us. The only DnD-like mechanic involved was that how effective our actions were was decided via an online website featuring a D20 that you could roll.
Fun stuff, wish I could do it again.

good news, that stuff about the d20 is more or less how the game works! the game isn't that complicated when you get down to it - a d20 solves every resolution, and other dice are really only used for how damaging something is.