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This submission is generated automatically each Saturday at 00:00 UTC.

**Come here and talk about anything!**

​

This post will stay stickied for (at least) the week-end. Please enjoy this space where you can talk about anything: your last game, your current project, your patreon, etc. You can even talk about video games, ask for a group, or post a survey or share a new meme you've just found. This is the place for small talk on /r/rpg.

​

The off-topic rules may not apply here, but the other rules still do. This is less the Wild West and more the Mild West. Don't be a jerk.

​

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This submission is generated automatically each Saturday at 00:00 UTC.

3 years after the OGL controversy and a year after the release of the new DnD books, the RPG space is doing as good is it ever has and DnD seems to be a much smaller part of it. I am basing my observation on the large london based RPG club i am part of and play with as well as perusing Startplaying. In the local clubs I am part of, there is only 1 DnD game for ever 5 or 7 other games. The diversity of other games being played is staggering. Pathfinder has a place along with CoC, but various PbtA games are there, Vampire, OSR games, Horror Games, some Dragonbane and One Ring. The RPG space is live and as active than ever and it really warms my heart that it looks like lots of players who once only played DnD are not experimenting with different games.

At least that's how it looks like from my small vantage point.

Hi all. The question above is my way of looking for suggestions and putting a nice button on 2025. What was your favorite game this year? Bonus points if it is from this year or a good read. I feel like I have a good pulse on the hobby, but am always on the lookout for the new and novel.

Many thanks and happy gaming!

I've long maintained that there were two paths to roleplaying. The first is the one we all know: wargames -> Chainmail -> Dungeons and Dragons. This led to two parallel (and often crossing over) schools of players: those who treated D&D as a tactical wargame with some roleplay between fights, and those who treated D&D as a loose framework for roleplay.

The second is 60s LARP/SCA -> formalized roleplay -> tabletop roleplay. I know my uncle-in-law, Bruce Glassco (of Haunted House on the Hill fame) ran elaborate roleplaying games in the 60s, but they were mostly (exclusively?) one-shots.

But how about this for another path to roleplaying:

In the '60s, Edward Packard entertained his children by making up bedtime stories. One night, he'd run out of ideas, so he asked the kids what his character should do. They directed him, and Packard continued the story based on that decision.

A light bulb appeared over Packard's head, and he came up with the idea for a novel written in 2nd Person where the reader would be given several decision points, different choices leading to different pages in the book.

Sound familiar?

Well, Packard took his book to nine publishers in 1970 and was rejected by all of them. It was not until 1976 that he found a home with a small press, and not until 1979 that the first Choose Your Own Adventure (CYOA) book was published for widespread distribution. By that time, of course, roleplaying had blossomed, and CYOA were basically solo campaigns—even to the point that TSR published a(n excellent) line of Endless Quest CYOAs.

But what if Packard had been published in 1970? Kids might appoint themselves "The Reader" for a group, and the group would then make decisions collectively, whereupon The Reader would turn to the appropriate page and continue the story. Indeed, I used to do just that with some of the CYOAs.

It's a short step from reading a published CYOA to friends to impromptu creation of a tale based on input from friends, each with their own characters. And that is the definition of roleplaying. From there, it just takes someone to publish a formalized sets of rules, but instead of it being a wargame with roleplaying elements tacked on, it could be a roleplaying game with some simple combat (and other conflict/skill resolution elements).

What might this phenomenon look like? Who would be its target audience? How popular could it get? What happens when D&D debuts, and do the two have much impact on each other?

i live in Canada and am trying to find a physical book., but it seems to be sold out everywhere

If you have any stuff you were waiting to buy on there - might be a good time to stock up!

About a week ago, I walked into a table top store and was looking around without anything on my mind for what I wanted. One of the books I left with was the core rules of a system called "The Land of Eem" which sold me on the tagging 'Lord of the rings meets the Muppets.' What I took that to mean is there is a wide sense of wonder and adventure with a side of the wacky and goofy. And reading the book tells me this and more. Firstly, it was super easy to read the book front to back while skimming tables. Everything has such heart in it and the skills and world are not only fun, easy to understand and unique but rewards creativity over minmaxing, collaboration over too much prep and flexibility. Genuinely I cant recommend it enough that the only book you need is the core rule book, even if the beastiary and setting books would help, the core rule book has everything about character customization, descriptions of the areas, free qr codes to download and print character sheets and the normal map, pre-made monsters and rules to make your own adversaries within seconds and a full adventure to test run. I was able to test a character exploring the world and was laughing and having fun just by experimenting before I even have had a session 0 with my usual group, and even then I am convincing multiple friends to give it a try when we meet up.

Hey all,

So I discovered Swords of the Serpentine recently and it looks awesome. Right up my street.

With a new system I like to run pre made adventures first to get a feel for the designers intent etc. especially with this game and the use of clues etc

I've seen that Brought to Light is a collection of adventures and they sound exactly like what I'm looking to run, but I can't see any reviews.

Has anyone run them and have any thoughts on the quality? Or if they're fun but need tweaks?

I don't particularly want to drop 16 quid on em if they end up being naff. I read reviews of another SoS official adventure and they were particularly negative. So thought it best to check!

Thanks!

I recently saw an idea that was a "monologue token" that you can spend on another player to hear their inner monologue (only hear by the players). I thought it was interesting.

I'm playing urban shadows with a new group who will need help with roleplaying and coming up with ideas on the spot. Do you have anything you've introduced at your table to encourage deeper roleplay and help them?

(Edit:I've played with some players in the past and know everyone personally. I've had discussions with them about where they've struggled in other games and what pushes they need)

What’s a game that has a terrible setting but made you think ‘Man, I wish I could use these mechanics elsewhere’

My group has been using a rotating GM format we call Savage Isles. It solved the usual problems around prep, burnout, and missed sessions, so I finally wrote it all down. If you’re interested in open-table style play or shared-world campaigns, here’s the write-up:

https://open.substack.com/pub/ed12372944/p/savage-isles-west-marches-at-sea

Would love to hear how others handle rotating GMs.