Pen and Paper role-playing games.

Anyone aside from myself still play these? Or have they gone the way of the dodo in lieu of visual entertainment?

Thoughts about the abomination knows as 4th edition Dungeons & Dragons? How about independent producers such as White Wolf (World of Darkness being my personal game of choice) Are you a DM or a player?

C'mon let's share some experiences basted in the succulent juices called nerdom Anything from tips to running a game, to funny stories and experiences shared at the table, its all good here

[Pix]

I read the Dragonlance Chronicles (or whatever, the trilogy that started the series) when I was 16 that got me into D&D books with me being a fan of kender.

When I was 16 I also played Vampire: The Masquerade as a LARP (and as a Toreador when everyone else was Brujuah, Gangrel, Nosferatu, and one Malkavian that I often partnered with in the stories under the story that I was looking for beauty & art in madness, it got interesting). That was kinda funny because I sometimes have vampire nightmares and in a few I was the vampire I roleplayed but still being hunted by the vampires (I guess that would make them Sabbat).

When I was 17 and in a rural area where you had to pay for cable or sat to get ANY TV at all things like D&D (2nd edition) were popular. Because of my reading Dragonlance and having played V:TM it wasn't hard to talk me into joining a game. I really wanted to play a kender but the DM wouldn't allow it and because they needed more spells, someone to deal with traps, and another sword I was made into an elven bladesinger (fighter/wizard) and my friend who joined me was a gnome illusionist/thief maxing out Find/Remove Traps (we played fast friends who joined the party very much like how we were friends who joined the players in playing). I don't want to be a typical D&D geek (*) and bore you with my character back story and all but I made my "unofficial" patron god the Fey Jester, elven god of mischief, and lived to please my god.

I had fun and after we wrapped up that campaign we started a Planescape campaign where I did a tiefling wizard/thief anarchist. D&D switched over to 3rd edition around that time.

I briefly played a 3.5 halfling rogue as well.

I really got into the D&D novels though I finally lost interest, in part because it went all "9/11" as I put it (that is they couldn't just have stories anymore, everything had to be an epic apocalypse and I got sick of it). I've made a couple of D&D fanfics, btw, but unless you like kender and/or 2nd edition Planescape don't read The Discord of Harmony as you almost certainly won't like it or may not even understand it (I meant to put it up on a kender site but that site was destroyed just as I was finishing it and after making it I wanted to put it SOMEWHERE), a fic I made in part to show up my old DM to show that a kender could fit into the Forgotten Realms (as he said couldn't), among other inspirations for having written it. But here's another one plenty of D&D players told me they liked (though it helps to understand Daria and thus get many references to the show):

[Only registered members can see links. ]

I didn't have the money to keep up with it, however. And I liked 3.5 better than 2nd (though I liked the 2nd edition Planescape setting more) as I thought it was a lot simpler (I prefer story to game mechanics, especially as I have yet to see anything truly "realistic," not even the convoluted rules of 3rd edition Shadowrun) and it gave a lot more room to customize characters. I didn't care for what I saw of 4rth as it seems too generic in a way, too limiting, and as one other described it, "More like something from a video game."

(*I mean no offense at saying D&D geek, and figure I'm one as well, certainly was one once, which is proven when I baffled people I know by saying things like, "It's [her cooking] so bad it requires a Fortitude save." But when I first realized I was a geek was the moment after I posted on YT on why Darth Vader couldn't hope to win in a fight against Dark Willow. Shock coursed through me as I realized I was undeniably a geek and I wrestled with that for maybe 15-30 seconds before I shrugged and accepted it, which is to say was even harder than realizing I was sexually attracted to females. )

I've played other games as well, though nothing for too long. Favorites include CJ's Witchcraft (played as a LARP), and Alternity's Darkmatter and also Stardrive (I still reread my Stardrive novels all the time). Games I'd like to try someday include Buffy, Changeling: The Dreaming, and Macho Women With Guns (I want to be a [Only registered members can see links. ]). Though I've almost always been a player (I've only GM a one shot Darkmatter adventure and a short Star Drive campaign), I think I'd like to referee games in the future (at least those I have experience playing).

I've tried video games but never got into them. I need to create a story with others (who do things that make sense given the character & story) whose faces I can see to really get into it.

[Genersis]

I haven't played any personally.

Though Shadow has. He's played Palladium, though i'm not sure which ones specifically.
"Heroes Unlimited" is definitely one of the ones he's played though.
I'm also pretty sure he has most of the books.

And i know he at least has Advanced Dungeons and Dragons Second edition.

So i guess you could always give him a poke.

[SIZE=1]I wonder if i should be speaking on behalf of him like this... ah, he probably wouldn't mind...:[SIZE]

Pix...those sound like amazingly fun times. I have always wanted to run a Planscape session myself, but could never find the books.

Is Vampire any good? Most of my World of Darkness games consists of Werewolf and Mage players, with a smattering of Promethean thrown in for flavor. I've flirted with the idea of LARPING, but I would never do so unless I had a willing friend to come along with me

Genersis....you should give it a go sometime. Its a great way to meet new people and exercise your imagination. Wonderful tool for creative people as well, especially if you're in the position to DM the game. Honestly, I've had more fun creating my own sessions and world as a DM than I ever had as a player

[TommyinKY]

I'm a big nerd so I've played alot of them, ALOT. I have an entire bookshelf full of RPG's.

I don't play much at the moment though since I've been out of the hobby for awhile but I still buy books occasionally and check out forums and websites.

[Bowyn Aerrow]

I played D&D way back - back before it became known as the game of Satan and making headlines on nightly news. This was mid to late 1970's I was 12-13 when I was introduced to it.

Back then the rule book we had was badly beaten up hand written copy from someone else. We didn't have dice, we made simple spinners. We had simple handmade maps, hand drawn and we used our imaginations for the dungeons. Mind we also stole music by taping with cassette tape of the Radio too. We were not called pirates back then for having free copyrighted materials .

This was well before the game morphed into a huge effing deal Miniatures, special dice and all of the compendium.

We rolled (spun) for everything from attacks to saving, to even doing things like pulling off a successful stealthy move.

I stopped playing when I entered university/seminary. The Devil's Game and becoming a minister didn't seem to mesh very well.

I tried playing a later version in my late 20's. It was Second Edition, a lot of the rules had changed - there were way to many books for pre-crafted dungeons. Too many changes.

The game was really special way back - but then any kid could play it if they could put a nail through a sheet of cardboard and make an arrow out of another piece and draw a pie charts representing D4, D6, D8, D10, D12 and D20.

A lot of the groups made up their own rules and had a lot of different diversity on how the game was played, how states were drawn up for characters.

It all changed and someone tried to uniform it too much to turn a buck.

I used to go to a local "games night/club" every Friday night from 6pm till 10pm with a group of friends from college and some of their friends - one of with was what you would call not the DM but the GM - Game Master, I was nothing more than a humble player and had my own little dwarven fighter/engineer equipped with a big ol' meaty axe and heavy plated armor - it was a paper based game that we had all written/made up and took part in creating as opposed to playing D&D and the likes we liked to use our own imagination.

Though we did from time to time play munchkin this was our preferred game of choice, sadly now though I no longer take part in it as it's moved from being local to VERY far down south from me, but there is talks of me and my closest friends in the group creating our own paper-based RPG game and just playing it at home as opposed to in a games-hall/workshop/institute area to save on the running costs and travel a little bit.

Not quite the same but we took part in LARP from time to time too, instead of joining one of the pre-made factions we created our own against the odds and became the top rated faction/realm haha with the most loot, gold and such

ahhh how I miss my nerdy geeky old days....

Originally Posted by Bowyn Aerrow

A lot of the groups made up their own rules and had a lot of different diversity on how the game was played, how states were drawn up for characters.

It all changed and someone tried to uniform it too much to turn a buck.

Ain't that the truth!

I started on 1st edition myself back when I was about 11 or so. A neighborhood kid borrowed his dad's books and ran a game for all the kids on the block. God those were fun times...our campaign must have lasted a good three years. What I remember best though was how the game brought all these different personalities together, thrown into this strange world of intrigue and wonder and how we had to work together as a collective to make any sort of difference. I'd go as far to say that a good portion of my people skills stem from my D&D experiences and teamwork with those kids.

I see it now and it looks like nothing more than World of Warcraft on paper....sad times....

[Bookworm]

Lets see, started off playing D&D years ago then progressed onto AD&D when that came out (and yes, I read Dragonlance too - I wonder why I always went Wizards, absolutely nothing to do with Raistlin :rolleyes)
From there, my friends and I delved into Warhammer; Stormbringer (you really need to read Michael Moorcock's Elric books to get a broader understanding of the world that system is based on); Vampire the Masquerade - had some VERY atmospheric games by candlelight. We would spend ages making tapes (yes, cassettes, remember them!) as ambient background music

We tended to loosely follow the guidebooks but sometimes rules can get in the way, so we would deviate alot in order to make for a better playing experience. Have some very fond memories. Not played any for awhile, real life and geography get in the way these days. Am I allowed to still be role-playing at 40 anyway I wonder??

EDIT: I forgot about Call of Cthulu! How could I forget my character being throttled to death by a seven tentacled thing! (I failed a dexterity roll climbing out a ground floor window) Gamesmasters can be evil sometimes...

Originally Posted by Bookworm

Vampire the Masquerade - had some VERY atmospheric games by candlelight. We would spend ages making tapes (yes, cassettes, remember them!) as ambient background music

LOL I did the exact same thing with my Mage: The Awakening sessions Right down to using tapes over digital music

We played a lot of esoteric sounding trance and chants from various countries, as well as some traditional Native American music and chants....very atmospheric indeed

[TimmyThink]

When ever I tried playing these as a kid they always dissolved in fights and accusations of cheating. Playing super nintendo was just easier cause when you got your ass kicked in Street Fighter 2 there was no excuse other than getting your ass kicked.

Also they always seemed tedious tracking your own states and having do math, it just seemed like way to effort to play a game.

Originally Posted by TimmyThink

Also they always seemed tedious tracking your own states and having do math, it just seemed like way to effort to play a game.

Ah, but that's where part of the fun lies in being a player my friend...complete and total control over how you wish to customize your character Only the most basic math skills are involved (if you can add and subtract, you can play these games )

It can seem a little overwhelming with all the options presented to you when designing your character at first...but if you invest the time into making one with a memorable and unique personality, he or she will leave a lasting impression on the game and feel like a real integral part of the fictional world, rather than a bit player set against a papier mache background.

I will give you props for mentioning Street Fighter 2 however....that game kicked ass when it first came out

[TommyinKY]

I always liked the translucent polyhedral dice. They made me think of a bag of jewels. :D

Sent from tapatalk

Originally Posted by TommyinKY

I always liked the translucent polyhedral dice. They made me think of a bag of jewels. :D

Sent from tapatalk

Some of those dice are ridiculously expensive though...check out this Amazon link and see what I mean.

[Only registered members can see links. ]

[Pix]

Originally Posted by wintermoon

Is Vampire any good?

I personally enjoyed it, it was a well thought out world that made sense to me (of course they made changes to history, etc, to account for vampires and other supernatural forces), but mostly I liked the sophisticated “let's pretend” and making a story together with all my friends. But then that's pretty true of other role playing games as well.

Originally Posted by wintermoon

Pix...those sound like amazingly fun times. I have always wanted to run a Planscape session myself, but could never find the books:

Planescape was fascinating to me because of a concept that didn't survive past the 2nd edition: the concept of "philosophers with clubs" who held extremist views, and the power of belief on the Outer Planes (the spiritual realm of gods, moral & ethical alignments, and the souls of the dead) can impose special abilities (and limitations) not only on believers (in an extreme case a child believed his toy sword was magic so hard that he manage to wound a deva that could only be hurt by magic) but enough together could even affect gods (which is why they wanted worshippers as their belief gave them their power) and planes, and if enough people in a town started to believe differently then it could actually move, sometimes to another plane completely. Or as explained in a fanfic of mine (the one featuring kender):

His dad was such a clueless sod. A hyped up Measure, that is commander, of the Harmonium, he was always going on about the need to combat chaos, and the glorious new age that the Harmonium would bring to the multiverse. Things like fun, joy, individuality were threats to be guarded against, lest they topple the universal harmony.

Yeah, right. What a screed.

If the planes were shaped by beliefs, moral and ethical alignments, and other philosophical and spiritual concepts, then he'd choose the beliefs that shaped Arborea rather than Arcadia. It scared him to think that if the Harmonium—who were attempting to control all the planes by uniting everyone under a single philosophy-succeeded in their goals to stomp out the very concept of freedom, fun, and whimsy, that Arborea would cease to exist.

If the Harmonium were to ever decide that mercy and compassion were as important as law and hierarchy, then maybe there'd be something redeemable about their vision. He knew that some of the paladins and celestials in the faction were trying to impart these values, including Faith who had become the Factol since the assassination of her husband, but had not yet succeeded. In fact, the Harmonium had even faced conflict from some of the celestials and beings of Mount Celestia, the plane where Goodness was just as important as Law (much like how Goodness was as important as Freedom in Arborea). And Lenny's own father, Measure Two Tyrm, considered the question of Good and Evil (essentially defined as to whether a being thought helping others or harming others was important in achieving self-fulfillment) was a distraction to be ignored. His only concern was Order through Harmonium Law

His family liked to say that a carefully considered plan beats spontaneous action every time. Maybe that was true in Arcadia, given how belief shaped the planes and those that believed that tended to live in Arcadia and not Arborea, but here in Arborea he found the exact opposite was true (just as the locals believed).

Sylvie dropped her eyes. "Sorry. I'm still mad at those Hardheads. I mean, if the Hardheads manage to establish themselves here, White Sands will be ejected from beautiful Arborea into the Outlands, and might even be dragged all the way into their nasty realm of mindless obedience and ridiculous order, where dusk and dawn don't even exist, since everything is black or white, day or night, there!

As you know, the prevailing beliefs, morals, and ethics affect the locations in the Outer Planes, and the evil the Harmonium did caused many of their prison camps to be ejected from the plane of Law with a preference for Good. And if they get control of White Sands, then this place will be torn from Arborea, and possibly dragged to their own idea of Heaven. Though what they call Heaven is what I'd call Hell!"

This game got me very interested in philosophy, and many of the factions were based strongly on real world counterparts (though again taken to extremes as the planes seem to respect extreme, uncompromising beliefs most of all and are most easily shaped, that is reality rewritten, by them, which just encourages a fanatic extremism, including in alignments as many beings, spirit and mortal, sought to be paragons of their alignment, and all too often try to convert the rest of the multiverse to their beliefs & alignment, even with war).

But I wouldn't recommend getting the game books now as they're far too expensive, and to make it worth it you really need to get the boxed sets, Factol's Manifesto, etc.

In both cases V:TM and Planescape it had a slang and unique vocabulary that drew me into the story as well and made the concepts more real for me. It was not only escapism at its finest (without commercials, canned laughter, or lack of suspense as the hero attempted a heroic deed they get away with in movies all the time as we knew the hero just might not make it!) but a good way to socialize with others as well (another difference between almost all other media).