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Author Topic: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?  (Read 2383 times)

Jam The MF

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Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« on: September 06, 2022, 11:59:09 PM »
Let us know where you are coming from.

I love to roll dice, and find out what happens.  I don't decide the outcome, the dice do.  All the resources are close at hand.  All the gameplay is in real time.  All the dice rolls are out in the open; except for a few DM only things, such as random encounters.  It's the good ol' days, all over again!!!
« Last Edit: September 07, 2022, 12:21:14 AM by Jam The MF »
Let the Dice, Decide the Outcome.  Accept the Results.

PulpHerb

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Re: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« Reply #1 on: September 07, 2022, 12:16:25 AM »
I'm an RPG fan which, without modifiers, should indicate pen & paper in-person gaming. That's the root version and thus the correct object for the unmodified term.

There was a Wizards ad in the 3.x era that I think captured what makes RPGs unique and while probably not that useful for a company the size of Hasbro (or even smaller...SJG makes it rent with Munchkin, not GURPS after all) that sums up the hobby for me and why I play in person, not online:


Ratman_tf

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Re: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« Reply #2 on: September 07, 2022, 03:00:29 AM »
What do you mean by online RPG? Multiplayer computer RPGS? Playing over Roll20?
The notion of an exclusionary and hostile RPG community is a fever dream of zealots who view all social dynamics through a narrow keyhole of structural oppression.
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S'mon

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Re: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« Reply #3 on: September 07, 2022, 04:25:55 AM »
I like both live tabletop RPGs, and playing/GMing RPGs online over Roll20 and Discord, both synchronous voice-chat and asynchronous play-by-post. Those three all have their different strengths. I'm not sure which is better overall, though I guess live tabletop play has the biggest social benefits. Roll20 + voice chat is remarkably good for dungeon crawls. Asychronous via Discord text-chat and dice rolling utility (Avrae) is good for high roleplay, low combat games, like my White Star campaign.

One thing: ALL my dice rolls are ALWAYS in the open and unfudged. That does not vary by medium.

Jam The MF

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Re: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« Reply #4 on: September 07, 2022, 05:40:07 AM »
What do you mean by online RPG? Multiplayer computer RPGS? Playing over Roll20?

Electronic Gaming
Let the Dice, Decide the Outcome.  Accept the Results.

jeff37923

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Re: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« Reply #5 on: September 07, 2022, 05:46:47 AM »
Pen and paper.

Tabletop RPGs are an in person social form of entertainment.
"Meh."

Ratman_tf

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Re: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« Reply #6 on: September 07, 2022, 05:49:49 AM »
What do you mean by online RPG? Multiplayer computer RPGS? Playing over Roll20?

Electronic Gaming

I like them both for different reasons.
The notion of an exclusionary and hostile RPG community is a fever dream of zealots who view all social dynamics through a narrow keyhole of structural oppression.
-Haffrung

Cathode Ray

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Re: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« Reply #7 on: September 07, 2022, 06:45:36 AM »
There is no "more of" in my case.  I'm purely paper & pen.  And I made one RPG, and one game with some RPG elements, where note-taking is minimized or eliminated, so no erasing required!
Creator of Radical High, a 1980s RPG.
DM/PM me if you're interested.

Steven Mitchell

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Re: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« Reply #8 on: September 07, 2022, 08:03:51 AM »
Playing electronic games largely replaces television in my time.  For me, it's mainly a mindless time passer. 

RPGs (in person, no electronics) do something different, a thing that isn't really filled any other way.  It is most closely associated in my mind with sitting on a front porch while it rained, probably doing something productive with hand crafts or food preparation, while people took turns telling stories.  That was still a thing when I was a child, if uncommon and beginning to die out.  Or looking at mythological books, with pictures, and stopping to imagine the story going of on a tangent, but one that still fit what had happened.  It wasn't a huge leap for me to blend the two into a game.

FingerRod

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Re: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« Reply #9 on: September 07, 2022, 08:19:12 AM »
Strongly prefer pencil and paper. My character sheet is almost always a piece of paper or a small craft reader.

For the most part I run games, and I do that by paper as well.

I went through a spell when I used iPad and digital, but it did not stick. Having said that, I’m not opposed to online. In fact, there have been several people I’ve had in my house that I decided I’d rather hang out with online.

Effete

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Re: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« Reply #10 on: September 07, 2022, 08:27:46 AM »
I prefer face-to-face gameplay, but ever since I moved out into the woods, it's been hard to get a consistent table going. I'd either have to drive an hour out to the FLGS and hope people show up, or ask them to drive an hour out to my house (in the spooky woods). After a while I gave up and went almost completely online, doing play-by-post. I tried VTT but it just wasn't doing it for me. Too much crap to learn and/or download to get a decent game running. I've also come to like the freedom that PbP offers: no strict time-limits to keep, minimal rolling and more emphasis on narrative, etc.

As for video games, the last console I owned was an Xbox360. I used to play games a lot when I was younger, but now my free time is spent in other ways.

Formerly

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Re: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« Reply #11 on: September 07, 2022, 01:07:37 PM »
I prefer to play in person

HOWEVER

There's no-one in my area that is willing to play and I'm poor as fuck so can't afford to move or commute somewhere people are playing and most of my contacts are in different countries so I'm only playing online at the moment
« Last Edit: September 07, 2022, 01:09:50 PM by Formerly »

Greentongue

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Re: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« Reply #12 on: September 07, 2022, 01:52:32 PM »
Face to Face is a dream from my youth. Now "The RPG Engine" is the option when times can sync.
Play by Post mostly as consistent time sync is so rare.

tenbones

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Re: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« Reply #13 on: September 07, 2022, 03:00:02 PM »
In person. Face to face.


the crypt keeper

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Re: Are you more of a Pen & Paper RPG fan, or an Online RPG fan?
« Reply #14 on: September 07, 2022, 03:00:42 PM »
I like playing table top rpg's in any form, whether online or face-to-face, over any video game. I don't like using virtual tables either. My online games are run just like I would run a game face-to-face at a table. Players get to roll their own dice. They draw their own maps if they want one. I throw up relevant pictures, diagrams, and maps when I've made them up for specific locations which are going to see much action.

Sample of my style can be found here; https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/QFlzHnpt8sb
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