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What are your 3 best tips for brand new RPG players?

What are your 3 best tips for experienced RPG players?

Maximum snark is always appreciated (hey, its us), but I really would like to see some great ideas too.

My first rule is common to both groups:  We should all be in this to have fun.  This isn't a job, it isn't a chore, it isn't a war, and no one should be forcing you to do it.  If you're not having fun, something is wrong, and you need to address that.  If worst comes to worst, a popular catchphrase is "No gaming is better than bad gaming."

For newbies:

2)  Try new styles out.  There are so many systems, styles, milieus and genres out there.  Don't fall into the common trap of thinking that the Only Way You Can Play The Game is exactly like your first group does it; that's like sitting down at a poker game and getting mad that the rules aren't exactly like blackjack.

3)  Be someone interested in learning the rules of the system you play.  A lot of players don't, and they not only place a lot of burden on the GM, but they slow down play for their fellow players in constantly having to be prodded and reminded of things.  As with any other field of human endeavor, you get out of something what you put into it.

For experienced players:

2) Be true to (and aware of) yourself.  Play the games you like, not the ones you don't because you've been browbeaten into it.  Recognize the styles and milieus you can handle, how frequently you can play, how long you like sessions to be, how much digression and socializing you want.  Not knowing your own limitations ends in trouble.

3)  This is a cooperative exercise; tabletop, for the most part, is a consensus-driven game.  A player who designs a character wildly at odds with the others, a player who wants to freelance all the time, a player who doesn’t want to get on board with the milieu or the setting, these are pains in the ass for all around them.  There are RPGs out there for rugged individualists who don’t want to act in lockstep with others: we call them MMORPGs and LARPs.

Good advice.

Quote from: Ravenswing;895698There are RPGs out there for rugged individualists who don’t want to act in lockstep with others: we call them MMORPGs and LARPs.

Everyone doesn't need to be in lock step, but it sure does tend to be more fun if most of the time everybody is running, walking, marching, riding, skipping, or hobbling in the same basic direction.

"Backstory is not role playing."

For new players.
1: Try things. Experiment. Think outside the box. Think. Dont just charge everything swinging or assume everything will be handed to you.
2: Think about the other players. Dont do things that will actually ruin their enjoyment of the game.
3: NEGOTIATE! Despite what some gibbering idiots may stringently claim. D&D and most RPGs are not all about combat. Sometimes you gain more from talking than fighting. A-LOT more. And when that fails... RETREAT! When things look bad and when possible. Run like hell!

For seasoned players. On top of all the new player advice.
1: Just because your last DM was a fruitcake and total jackass. Do NOT assume every DM is.
2: Do not totally dismiss a game just because of one bad session/DM/Player.
3: Different tables can play the same game very differently. Expect the unexpected.

3 best tips for new players
1. Relax, it's just a game, have fun.
2. Think about what character you want to play, what is their motivation for what they are doing?
3. Don't worry about the rules, think about actions, and let the GM fit them to the rules.

3 best for experienced players
1. Relax, it's just a game, have fun.
2. Approach the game like a tabula rasa, a blank slate.
2. Think about what character you want to play, what is their motivation for what they are doing?

Quote from: Spinachcat;895689What are your 3 best tips for brand new RPG players?

1. Try to enjoy it, even if you don't know wtf are you supposed to do.
2. TALK.
3. When in doubt, channel your favorite character (either real-life, or from some work of fiction).

Quote from: Spinachcat;895689What are your 3 best tips for experienced RPG players?

1. Try to enjoy it, even if everyone else (obviously) are playing it wrong.
2. TALK.
3. Every now and then entertain the thought that you're playing it wrong and you know little about this whole RPG business and life in general.

I guess my top advice for any player is "Tell the GM what you're thinking." The GM isn't going to pick up on subtle unstated cues that your shy female PC is romantically interested in shy male NPC, for instance (that was one where I was the player). The GM has a lot on his/her plate and you need to make your intentions & aims very clear.

Quote from: Spinachcat;895689What are your 3 best tips for brand new RPG players?

1. Relax and have fun, no one is going to judge you. The key word is role playing GAME, no one expects you to be a good actor, eloquent speaker, or master tactician.
2. Take risks, and be creative. Don't play it safe, there's no consequences in real life if something bad happens in the game.
3. Don't worry about the rules. The GM can handle those. Just play your character, and make the decisions you imagine they would make, rules knowledge will come in time and its no way necessary to enjoying the game.

QuoteWhat are your 3 best tips for experienced RPG players?

1. If you want to up your game, you could do worse than checking out some books on Improv theatre techniques. I especially recommend Impro by Keith Johnstone.
2. If immersion is your thing, check out the exceptional, though sadly short-lived, webzine Imazine by A& E alumni Paul Mason, whcih is highly focused on players and GMs heavy into immersive gaming.
3. If online arguments ever get you frustrated, look up the "post your pictures" archives on the rpgnet wiki and realize these are the sorts of people you're arguing with. Then log off and do some reading.

Quote from: dragoner;8957113 best tips for new players
1. Relax, it's just a game, have fun.
2. Think about what character you want to play, what is their motivation for what they are doing?
3. Don't worry about the rules, think about actions, and let the GM fit them to the rules.

lol, uncanny, my list was almost exactly the same.

Play to have fun
Don't worry about what other people think or gaming theory about how you should play - Play the way you find works best
Try playing different systems to see what you like

For new players:

1) RPGs are, ultimately, a team effort.
2) Reading out numbers from your character sheet isn't roleplaying
3) Try various systems and see what fits you best.

For veterans
1) Don't be afraid to experiment
2) Your favourite game might be another players' antithesis of all that is good on the world
3) Doing some reading to prepare for the game won't kill you if you aren't the GM.

Oh and the most important.

Dont Die! ...
...The player that is... Not the PC...
(a player from the group I picked up died before Id picked up the group. And one of my current players just came within an hour of not making it.)

New (but also good for Old players)
1) It's a group adventure game, so make a character who will get along with the rest of the group AND who wants to adventure.

2) Your character is always more than the sheet. You can always do more than what it says. Your character is never useless.

3) Your character could die because of bad choices or bad luck. And that's OK, it's how things roll. One thing that helps is to always have a second character in mind, or even ready to go. It helps "gamer grief" a lot.


Old

1) It's not your table and it's not your old game and it may not be your fave rules. So relax.

2) Help out with the new players. Treat them as equals.

3) Don't send day after emails to the rest of the group lecturing them on how they are doing everything wrong and don't appreciate your brilliance.

Quote from: Spinachcat;895689What are your 3 best tips for brand new RPG players?

(1) Forget the cliches. The experience of gaming is much different.
(2) Don't let one bad experience turn you off on the whole hobby (if at first you don't succeed....)
(3) Ask questions. We don't mind. Let's us know what's on your mind.
(4) Don't be daunted by the unknown. (everyone has a first date)
(5) Don't expect to "win." This isn't that kind of game.
(6) Enjoy yourself. It's make-believe (albeit) with rules. So, you can do this, because you HAVE done this (remember?).

Quote from: Spinachcat;895689What are your 3 best tips for experienced RPG players?

(1) You don't know EVERYTHING, 'k? (and even if you do, keep that shit to yourself, unless asked).
(2) Be a good example of whatever your role is (GM, player).
(3) Don't be "the cliche incarnate," please. Just adds another cross to bear for the entire hobby.
(4) Exercise tolerance for those less godlike
(5) Remember why you're there--to have fun.