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Dr.Epic
2012-08-05, 10:42 PM
So I'm trying to work out the introduction to my RPG I've been working on. Problem is I'm stuck on the beginning. I'm not sure how to write an introduction to it. I've skimmed over the intro to my D&D PHB and it just seems like you say:

"This is a roleplaying game where you assume the identity of a character you create. Then, you go on great, mythical adventures saving the world from hostile forces."

I'm not sure how to really stretch that out. I've never had to explain an RPG to someone so I'm not sure where to start. I'm just wondering if you have any tips for explaining these sort of things. Maybe share stories how you explained RPG concepts to first time players.

Thanks.

Stubbazubba
2012-08-05, 11:07 PM
I actually just wrote one, and yeah, it sounds like that, just stretched out a whole bunch. I actually haven't put a name on this game yet, so THIS GAME is a place holder. Spoilered for length-

Chapter 1: Role-playing 101

1.1 What is a Role-playing Game?

The most fundamental aspect of role-playing is pretending to be someone else. Actors do this for a living. Sometimes we play roles to “practice” social situations, whether it's asking someone out, talking about something difficult, or trying to make a sale. When you were a kid, you probably played games where you pretended to be a Jedi or a super hero or a princess. All of this is role-playing, but we're just going to focus on the last example.

Role-playing games let you create a unique character, often in a different world, and then let you explore the world, face dangers, and overcome all kinds of obstacles as that character. The rules for the game help to keep things fair and to present interesting choices to you as a player. Role-playing games, or RPGs, are great fun because, among other things, they let us do cool things that we otherwise couldn't do. In THIS GAME you can be a master swordsman like Lancelot, or you can put Robin Hood to shame with your skill with a bow. You can shoot fire and lightning from a staff or even turn into a wolf or a bear. You can charge into a line of Orcs shouting battle cries, your shining steel blade cutting a swath into the host of evil. You can quick-talk guards, charm princesses, or intimidate your foes into surrender. You can bless your allies, heal them, read minds, or see into the future. These are just some of the many options for characters in THIS GAME.

But we believe that RPGs are fun for another reason, and that's the ability to tell stories together with your fellow players. Unlike computer or video games which have a set story (or a branching, but pre-determined story), RPGs tell a constantly evolving story. We'll explain just how they do so in the next section, but in THIS GAME, you can be an orphan trying to find a feeling of family in a dangerous world, or a husband on a quest to free his captured spouse. You can be a warrior-maiden bringing glory to your people, or a holy avenger protecting the innocent from unspeakable horrors. You can be the thief with a heart of gold, or one with just an eye for it. You can be a prince of barbarians struggling to protect the borders of your people, or a ranger tracking down the beast which stole your beloved from you. There are compelling stories for all the characters you can think of, just waiting to be told. THIS GAME lets you experience the lives of your characters with your friends. It's one part adventure and one part drama which makes for one great experience.

1.2 How do I play?

THIS GAME requires only a few things to play;

These rules (in your preferred flavor; book, PDF, or forum post)
One 12-sided die (aka d12), and six 6-sided dice (d6)
Pencils/pens & paper (or a computer with a word processor, if this is being read after the 90s)
Some scratch paper may be desirable for sketches (a small white board would be ideal)
Other players


One person will be the Game Master, or GM. A GM is the referee, narrator, and controller of almost all the characters and environments that your character will interact with. Typically, a GM creates new locations for the game, comes up with new enemies and their evil plots, and determines the outcome of player character actions according to the rules. Remember how we said RPGs are different from computer games because of an evolving storyline? It's possible because the GM and the Players build the story each time they play, so the world and the story react to what your character does in a way that no pre-published video game or Choose-your-own Adventure could ever hope to. For more information on Game Mastering, see Chapter 11.

Everyone else playing will be in control of just a Player Character, or PC for short, and so they're called the Players. Each Player creates a PC, the main characters in the story, as detailed in Chapter 2, and then the GM will describe the environment around the PCs. Players determine what their PCs do, and, if necessary, roll dice to determine the outcome of their action, which the GM will narrate. For instance, if the GM says the PCs are in a dark cave lit dimly by their torches, one of the Players might say, speaking for her character, “I peer into the darkness, searching for danger ahead of us.” The GM would then call for a Skill check, where you roll the dice to do something challenging, like seeing clearly in a dark cave, using the Search skill in this case, and based on the dice total, the GM will narrate what you are able to see.

This is how THIS GAME is played, in a very fundamental way. The following chapters will teach you how to create a new character, what they are capable of doing in the game, and how specific tasks in the game are played out. For now, start thinking of the kind of character you want to create: Who is he? What can he do? What does he want? The following introduction to the world of BLAH should help you come up with some ideas.

Knaight
2012-08-05, 11:41 PM
I'd recommend writing the intro near the end, and just sticking it in front. It is comparatively low priority, and it is easier to write an intro for a known work. In my case, I usually have something along the lines of "[Game] is a roleplaying game intended [for Purpose], in [Game] players [do whatever] for [whatever end goal]", though the syntax in that is very much compressed.

toapat
2012-08-05, 11:52 PM
I think the PF method of Introduce each section with a bit of epic lore would work pretty well.

"Get me through this one more fight old girl, and ill finally give you that polishin ive been promising ya"

Grinner
2012-08-06, 12:36 AM
"This is a roleplaying game where you assume the identity of a character you create. Then, you go on great, mythical adventures saving the world from hostile forces."

That seems to be the bog-standard for most introductions. You could also add some kind of personal appeal by explaining your experiences, or highlight concepts and themes important to the book.

May I assume this is a system book you're writing?

Milo v3
2012-08-06, 08:38 AM
So I'm trying to work out the introduction to my RPG I've been working on. Problem is I'm stuck on the beginning. I'm not sure how to write an introduction to it. I've skimmed over the intro to my D&D PHB and it just seems like you say:

"This is a roleplaying game where you assume the identity of a character you create. Then, you go on great, mythical adventures saving the world from hostile forces."

I'm not sure how to really stretch that out. I've never had to explain an RPG to someone so I'm not sure where to start. I'm just wondering if you have any tips for explaining these sort of things. Maybe share stories how you explained RPG concepts to first time players.

Thanks.

I'm having the exact same problem with the two systems I'm developing. So I've put the intro on hiatus until I've finished the mechanics.

Hopefully once mechanics are done you can say "This is a roleplaying game where you assume the identity of a character you create. [Then say why this game is worthy your time instead of playing D&D or VtM]."

Blacky the Blackball
2012-08-06, 10:52 AM
Here's what I wrote in both Dark Dungeons and Blood, Guts & Glory...


What Is A Role-Playing Game?

Role-playing games have been around since the mid 1970s. When they first started, they had their roots in war-gaming (moving model armies around in simulation of historical battles) and descriptions of role-playing games would have used those war games, along with such childhood games as “Cops and Robbers” and “Cowboys and Indians” as reference points. However, now that we’re in the second decade of the 21st century, times - and cultural reference points - have changed.

For most people today, the term “role playing game” is usually found abbreviated to “RPG” and is usually preceded by the letters “C” (becoming “CRPG” or “Computer Role Playing Game”) or “MMO” (becoming “MMORPG” or “Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game”).

In this genre of computer games, the player takes on the role of a character in an ongoing storyline - usually the main protagonist of the story. The game consists of trying to get the story to progress towards its climax, often involving combat and problem solving.

Table-top role-playing games like Blood, Guts & Glory have a similar basis, except that the game is controlled by a human Game Master rather than by a computer, and rather than the action taking place on a computer screen the action takes place in the imaginations of the players.

While this may sound like a step backwards at first glance, it is much more flexible and adaptable. On a CRPG, you are limited to telling the single story that the game designers wrote. You can’t go “off the map”. In a table-top role-playing game, however, you are not limited to fixed stories. The Game Master and the players can between them create an infinite variety of stories, limited only by their imaginations. The Game Master can create whatever scenarios and situations they want to, and the players are not constrained to only doing what has been anticipated.

If they want their characters to do something, they don’t have to simply hope that some designer wrote it into the game. They simply tell the Game Master what their character is trying to do and the Game Master can improvise in a way that a computer never could (although the rules and guidelines in this book cover most common situations so that they can be handled in a consistent manner).

The other main difference between a table-top role-playing game and a CRPG is the social aspect. Although many CRPGs allow the player to control a whole party of characters rather than just a single one, they are still largely solitary affairs. Table-top role-playing games are usually designed for groups of players to play together and Blood, Guts & Glory is no exception.

Although it can be played with only a single player and a Game Master, it plays best with 3-8 players playing together, each controlling a single character. Interaction between the characters controlled by the different players, as well as non-scripted interaction between the characters controlled by players and characters controlled by the Game Master, is one of the chief elements of a table-top role-playing game.

How Do You Play?

Before starting, one person will decide to be the Game Master.

That person is responsible for establishing a setting for the game (either creating their own or using a published one). The other players create characters that live in that setting.

The characters have a set of abilities which represent their capabilities; for example how strong they are or what sort of magic they are capable of using.
Then, normal play consists of the Game Master describing the situation that the characters find themselves in, and the players responding by telling the Game Master what their characters are doing.

In many situations, this is all that is required, but to provide structure and consistency to the game, this book provides rules covering what characters can do in various situations.

Additionally, many situations involve random factors, where a character has a chance of successfully doing something (which may vary depending on their abilities) rather than being automatically successful or relying on the Game Master’s whim; for example, when fighting with foes.

In these situations, the rules tell you which type of dice to roll and how to interpret the results.

Dr.Epic
2012-08-06, 02:41 PM
Alright, this is all great advice. Thanks to everyone. I'm making progress writing this thing. At some point, I'll post what I have so you can review and comment on it.