Things Non-Roleplayers Don't Understand

[Sylthia]

In my years of playing tabletop RPGs, mostly DnD, I've noticed a few common misconceptions. Feel free to add your own, while being civil. It's not us vs them.

Most common, people don't seem to understand that DnD is a co-op game, or is meant to be. Directly tied to that, you don't really "win" DnD.

Colleague: What did you do this weekend?
Me: I played some DnD with my friends.
Colleague: Oh, did you win?

Not as common, but no role playing games aren't satanic, at least no more than your local theater group doing MacBeth.

[Kaun]

The one i always get is that people think you have to dress up to play. Then i explain that, no, that's just LARPing. Then i need to explain what LARPing is. Then i need to explain the difference between rping and LARPing. Then i need to explain that, no, table top RPing doesn't involve running around with swords... and so on... lol

Now i just say, "you can i guess, but i don't."

[Slipperychicken]

When I talk to non-roleplayers about it, I typically mention that stuff ("It's not LARPing, it's not satanism") in the same breath used to utter the acronym "dnd".

People I've talked to about it tend to be relatively understanding, are at least passingly familiar with the concept ("Like what they were playing on that one episode of [popular comedy series], right?"), or else already have close friends who play TTRPGs.

[sktarq]

That it somehow involves advanced math....That calculus and what non-mathematician sorts would call advanced algebra are constant companions.

That it is the same as wow on a piece of cardboard.

[Lord_Burch]

Not as common, but no role playing games aren't satanic, at least no more than your local theater group doing MacBeth.

Funnily enough, when I was, oh, maybe ten or so, and having recently read LotR and other high fantasies besides, I saw something related to DnD at my local Barnes & Nobles, when I was there with my mom. Now, I had absolutely no understanding of the game at the time- I thought it would be something similar to LotR or the like- but when I asked for it, my mom simply said "no". Later, when we got home, she had this long(I say long, it probably wasn't that long) tirade about how "satanic" and "immoral" DnD was.

Anyway, just thought I'd share.

[INDYSTAR188]

That all sorts of people have this hobby, not just pocket-protector wearing Bill Nye types (not that there's anything wrong with that awesome style). I am in the military, work a full-time job, coach my kids soccer team, love sports, and I consider myself a pretty regular guy. It's not any wierder than Fantasy Football, WoW, Game of Thrones, etc.

[Terraoblivion]

The only real misconception I run into is people thinking all roleplaying is LARPing. Specifically combat-centered LARPing in the woods, not Vampire LARPing or similar. However, people also has a tendency not to ask questions, so I'm sure there are plenty more misconceptions that just never get uttered.

[Sylthia]

The one i always get is that people think you have to dress up to play. Then i explain that, no, that's just LARPing. Then i need to explain what LARPing is. Then i need to explain the difference between rping and LARPing. Then i need to explain that, no, table top RPing doesn't involve running around with swords... and so on... lol

Now i just say, "you can i guess, but i don't."

I forgot about the LARPing confusion. Yeah, I get that one a lot. Although personally, I think it does look like fun.

[Joe the Rat]

It's a group effort. Card players get the partner thing, but the idea that all of the players are on the same team can be a bit weird.

That it somehow involves advanced math....That calculus and what non-mathematician sorts would call advanced algebra are constant companions.

Indeed. For many, it is your first introduction to probability and distributions.

...and we still take long odds like a desperate tourist at the craps table.

[TandemChelipeds]

That it is the same as wow on a piece of cardboard.

Oh my god, this. When I was first getting into DMing, all my friends were new to the game, and one of them complained that they never got any treasure. It just didn't occur to him to loot the enemies. I guess he was used to having floating indicators or whatever they have in MMOs.

[Sylthia]

Oh my god, this. When I was first getting into DMing, all my friends were new to the game, and one of them complained that they never got any treasure. It just didn't occur to him to loot the enemies. I guess he was used to having floating indicators or whatever they have in MMOs.

Players didn't think to loot the enemies? The PCs in my campaign even search Carrion Crawler droppings for treasure.

[Mnemophage]

Every pen and paper RPG is D&D, apparently.

I mean, I like D&D, but that's not all I play. Campaigns close, and we begin new ones. Sometimes we play RIFTS, sometimes Call of Cthulhu, sometimes Vampire, sometimes whatever strikes our fancy. However, whenever I try to explain what some of this is ("It's like a post-apocalyptic Earth, with portals to everywhere, and magic, and giant robots, and every single object in the world has a skull on it, and I'm the anthropomorphic triceratops on a pterodactyl with a laser lance") eyes just blank over until I just say, "It's D&D".

[Slipperychicken]

Every pen and paper RPG is D&D, apparently.

I mean, I like D&D, but that's not all I play. Campaigns close, and we begin new ones. Sometimes we play RIFTS, sometimes Call of Cthulhu, sometimes Vampire, sometimes whatever strikes our fancy. However, whenever I try to explain what some of this is ("It's like a post-apocalyptic Earth, with portals to everywhere, and magic, and giant robots, and every single object in the world has a skull on it, and I'm the anthropomorphic triceratops on a pterodactyl with a laser lance") eyes just blank over until I just say, "It's D&D".

I've seen this, only I usually say something something to the effect of "It's like D&D, but it's [insert genre here] instead of fantasy". It seems to get the point across well enough.

[veti]

"How did it end?"

The game doesn't end. Even when you reach a conclusion, it doesn't end, any more than "real life" does.

[Knaight]

"How did it end?"

The game doesn't end. Even when you reach a conclusion, it doesn't end, any more than "real life" does.

It totally ends*. Campaigns are played, they draw to a close/are abandoned, and that constitutes an ending.

*For that matter so does "real life" at the individual level.

[~xFellWardenx~]

It totally ends*. Campaigns are played, they draw to a close/are abandoned, and that constitutes an ending.

*For that matter so does "real life" at the individual level.

Campaigns end in much the same way a life ends. D&D ends in much the same way reality ends.

Except I think I'd cry more over D&D, since I'd still exist to do so.

[Knaight]

Campaigns end in much the same way a life ends. D&D ends in much the same way reality ends.

The same comparison could be made with individual Monopoly games and Monopoly. For that matter, it could be made of a book - sure, you read it until it's done, but it's still there and available to reread.

[Altair_the_Vexed]

I affirm all preconceptions with a slow, sinister smile.

"You do magic?"
"You dress up as goblins?"



In other news, I was once playing a anti-corporate insurrectionist, under cover as a DJ in a cyberpunk game. We had monthly LARP sessions as well as the online forum-based game - it worked really well.
Away from the game, round a mutual friend's house, I was chatting away to a mate about how I was a a bit worried that if my secret got out, then the Zaibatsu security would just drag me out of the DJ booth and shoot me in head - and our mutual friend came in, looking worried.
"Who is this guy again?" she asked

It took some explaining.

[BWR]

Funnily enough, when I was, oh, maybe ten or so, and having recently read LotR and other high fantasies besides, I saw something related to DnD at my local Barnes & Nobles, when I was there with my mom. Now, I had absolutely no understanding of the game at the time- I thought it would be something similar to LotR or the like- but when I asked for it, my mom simply said "no". Later, when we got home, she had this long(I say long, it probably wasn't that long) tirade about how "satanic" and "immoral" DnD was.

Anyway, just thought I'd share.

My mother's reaction when I first started was "I thought it sounded like something you'd like".
I have an awesome mom.

Other than that, most people I have spoken to here either don't know enough to have any sort of opinoin, wrong or otherwise, or they are familiar enough to know the basics. Some may think it's restricted to replaying LOTR around the table, but they the thing about Satanism never really made it into the public consciousness here, and the thought of learning real magic is cool to credulous fools (witness the number of people believing in various 'healers' and other alternative treatments).

[lytokk]

That getting together to play games is a social gathering of friends. Same as getting together to watch a movie or meet at a bar to watch a football game. The difference is we're writing our own movie and scoring our own touchdowns.

That it takes an insane amount of time when compared to other "geek" interests. For example, my group of friends gets together every few weeks to play magic. When I suggested that maybe some time we should play D&D, one vocal friend said he wouldn't ever want to spend that much time on anything. When I pointed out that it takes hours to make a magic deck, we usually spend all night playing magic and some of our matches can last longer than any encounter in D&D, he still remained unconvinced.

why table top RPGs are better than digital RPGs (at least in my opinion). Since the digital game designers can't possibly predict every choice the player wants to make, or every plan the player wants to hash together, table tops are definitely much better suited to this task. I've often expressed table tops have an unlimited freedom over video games.

Overall, a sense of why I do it, instead of other things.

[Raimun]

They don't understand what exactly they are.

Can't really blame them. Most games are played in someone's house and non-gamers aren't usually invited during that time because the game is on and it requires all the focus of the owner of the house. This not very visible hobby like paint ball, larping or football.

Usually when I'm required to explain, I tend to go with some or all of the following points:

- It's not on a computer
- It's a social event
- It's kind of like shared storytelling
- Everyone plays a character
- Except one person, the GM, who plays every other character, runs the world and challenges the players
- There are rulebooks which govern the actions one can try during the game
- Every player character has a list of abilities that are marked down on a character sheet, like strength, senses, etc.
- You roll dice to determine if you succeed on an action

I rarely have to explain that it's not LARPing. Most people unfamiliar with games more complex and/or weirder than chess and monopoly haven't heard of that either.

[CarpeGuitarrem]

Every pen and paper RPG is D&D, apparently.

I mean, I like D&D, but that's not all I play. Campaigns close, and we begin new ones. Sometimes we play RIFTS, sometimes Call of Cthulhu, sometimes Vampire, sometimes whatever strikes our fancy. However, whenever I try to explain what some of this is ("It's like a post-apocalyptic Earth, with portals to everywhere, and magic, and giant robots, and every single object in the world has a skull on it, and I'm the anthropomorphic triceratops on a pterodactyl with a laser lance") eyes just blank over until I just say, "It's D&D".

For me, it's either this or conflating all RPGs with LARPing.

[jedipotter]

Most common, people don't seem to understand that DnD is a co-op game, or is meant to be.

This is a common thing that not only do non-roleplayers, but also role-players don't understand. The whole ''co-op'' thing comes from all them other RPGs.


Non-Roleplayers also don't understand the concept of role-playing. It is not something most people have ever done. Few people ''play a roll''.

[Tengu_temp]

From my experience, it's very hard to explain RPGs to people who know nothing about them. They will think it's some kind of board game with one player being a judge, or perhaps improv theater.

Every pen and paper RPG is D&D, apparently.

I'd say this is less a thing non-roleplayers don't understand, and more a thing people who only play DND don't understand.

[huttj509]

In other news, I was once playing a anti-corporate insurrectionist, under cover as a DJ in a cyberpunk game. We had monthly LARP sessions as well as the online forum-based game - it worked really well.
Away from the game, round a mutual friend's house, I was chatting away to a mate about how I was a a bit worried that if my secret got out, then the Zaibatsu security would just drag me out of the DJ booth and shoot me in head - and our mutual friend came in, looking worried.
"Who is this guy again?" she asked

It took some explaining.

I'm reminded of hearing some friends talking about their L5R campaign.

"So the Lion walks in on my Scorpion, and the Crab just pulls out his tetsubo."

I could follow the overall arc, but man it's a weird conversation to come in in the middle of when you don't know the clans.

[Slipperychicken]

I'm reminded of hearing some friends talking about their L5R campaign.

"So the Lion walks in on my Scorpion, and the Crab just pulls out his tetsubo."

I could follow the overall arc, but man it's a weird conversation to come in in the middle of when you don't know the clans.

You think that's awkward? Try having a pair of cops walk in during a planning-session for Shadowrun. Until they saw the dice and minis, they probably thought we were planning an actual kidnapping. We pretty much stopped playing Shadowrun after that incident.

[Spacebatsy]

You think that's awkward? Try having a pair of cops walk in during a planning-session for Shadowrun. Until they saw the dice and minis, they probably thought we were planning an actual kidnapping. We pretty much stopped playing Shadowrun after that incident.

You think that’s awkward? Brace yourself!

I was once at my fathers house and his wife was watching the news and suddenly called out:
“They say on the news that more and more people have been reported getting injured during roleplay! That’s dangerous!”
I thought to myself: “now this I got to see”, and sat down waiting for the later re-run.
Come the news and sure enough, there was a short reportage of people receiving injuries while “exploring BDSM and sexual roleplay”

Now THAT was awkward. Like my grandma always say: Should one laugh or weep?

[erikun]

• All RPGs are not D&D. We can play a RPG that doesn't involve killing orcs with swords.
• The point of a RPG is to take actions yourself and have them affect the game. You don't need to be told to go somewhere before you can go there.
• You can do whatever is reasonably possible to accomplish. You do not need to look at an actions list on your character sheet.

[CarpeGuitarrem]

I'd say this is less a thing non-roleplayers don't understand, and more a thing people who only play DND don't understand.

I think it's something that non-roleplayers don't really understand, because of the people who only play D&D. That, and Jack Chick. D&D is almost exclusively the RPG with mainstream media exposure.

You think that’s awkward? Brace yourself!

I was once at my fathers house and his wife was watching the new and suddenly called out:
“They say on the news that more and more people have been reported getting injured during roleplay! That’s dangerous!”
I thought to myself: “now this I got to see”, and sat down waiting for the later re-run.
Come the news and sure enough, there was a short reportage of people receiving injuries while “exploring BDSM and sexual roleplay”

Now THAT was awkward. Like my grandma always say: Should one laugh or weep?

I've never run into that one personally, but yeah. That's another thing.

[Arbane]

Non-Roleplayers also don't understand the concept of role-playing. It is not something most people have ever done. Few people ''play a roll''.

The best description I've heard so far is "roleplaying games are cross between a strategy game and improv radio drama."