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Atabletop role-playing game (TTRPG orTRPG), also known as apen-and-paper role-playing game, is a kind ofrole-playing game (RPG) in which the participants describe their characters' actions through speech and sometimes movements. Participants determine the actions of their characters based on theircharacterization,[1] and the actions succeed or fail according to a setformal system of rules and guidelines, usually involvingrandomization (such as throughdice). Within the rules, players have the freedom toimprovise, and their choices shape the direction and outcome of the game.[2]Neither pen and paper nor a table are strictly necessary for a game to count as a TTRPG; rather, the termspen-and-paper andtabletop are typically used to distinguish this format of RPG fromrole-playing video games orlive action role-playing games.[2] Online play of TTRPGs throughvideoconferencing has become common since theCOVID-19 pandemic.[3][4][5]
Some common examples of tabletop role-playing games includeDungeons & Dragons,Call of Cthulhu, andPathfinder.
In most games, a specially designated player typically called thegame master (GM) purchases or prepares a set of rules and a fictionalsetting in which each player acts out the role of a singlecharacter. The GM describes the game world and its inhabitants; the other players describe the intended actions of their characters, and the GM describes the outcomes. Some outcomes are determined by the game system, and some are chosen by the GM.[2] This pattern was established by the first published role-playing game,Dungeons & Dragons, but is not universal across all tabletop RPGs.
Games are of indefinite length, from a single brief session (sometimes completed in a few hours) to a series of repeated sessions that may continue for years with an evolving cast of players and characters. Play is often episodic and mission-centric, with a series of challenges culminating in a final puzzle or enemy that must be overcome. Multiple missions played with the same characters may be related to each other in a plot arc of escalating challenges. The exact tone, structure, pace and end (if any) vary from game to game depending on the needs and preferences of the players.
During the first session, players typicallycreate characters whose roles they will play in the game. As well as fleshing out the character's personal history and background, they assign numericalstatistics to the character; these will be used later to determine the outcome of events in the game. Together, these notes tell the player about their character and said character's place in the game world.[2] In many game systems, characters can increase their statistics during the course of the game (or over multiple games).
The GM then begins the game by introducing and describing the setting and the characters. Specific tabletopRPGs may have a unique name for the GM role, for examples: Dungeon Master, Referee and Storyteller.[6][7] Some games, such asPolaris andPrimetime Adventures, have distributed the authority of the GM to different players and to different degrees. This technique is often used to ensure that all players are involved in producing a situation that is interesting and that conflicts of interest suffered by the GM are avoided on a systemic level.[8]
The players describe their characters' actions, and the GM responds by describing the outcome of those actions. Usually, these outcomes are determined by the setting and the GM's common sense; most actions are straightforward and immediately successful.[2] For example, if a player has their character look around a room, the GM will describe the room; if they have their character leave, the GM will describe whatever they encounter outside the room.
The outcomes of some actions are determined by the rules of the game. For example, while looking around the room, a character may or may not notice an important object or secret doorway, depending on the character's powers of perception. Determining the outcome usually involves rolling dice and adjusting the result for the character's statistics and environmental factors to see whether the action was successful. Typically, the higher the character's score in a particular attribute, the higher their probability of success. There are alternate game systems which arediceless, or use alternate forms of randomization, such as a deck of cards or aJenga tower.[9]
Tabletop RPG settings includes challenges for the player characters to overcome through play, such as traps to be avoided, rulers to be courted, or adversaries to be fought. Many game sessions contain moments of puzzle solving, negotiation, chases, and combat. Frequently, this involves interacting withnon-player characters, other denizens of the game world, which are played by the GM. In most games, the full details of the setting are kept secret, but some broad details of the game world are usually given to the players.
Tabletop RPGs are often conducted likeradio drama: only the spoken component of a role is acted. Acting in tabletop RPGs is not always literal, and players do not always speak exclusively in-character. Instead, players act out their role by deciding and describing what actions their characters will take within the rules of the game.[10]
Tabletop role-playing games have origins inwargaming, which has roots in ancientstrategy games, particularlychess and its predecessorChaturanga.[11] From the late 18th century to the 19th century,chess variants evolved into modern wargames, most notablyKriegsspiel. Over a century later,David Wesely developedBraunstein, the first tabletop roleplaying game, fromStrategos, and then theminiature wargameChainmail, was released in 1971, both of which became the basis forDungeons & Dragons.[12][13]
According to RPG designerJohn Wick, chess can be turned into a role-playing game ifchess pieces such as theking,queen,rooks,knights orpawns are given names, and decisions are made based on their motivations. According to Wick,Dungeons & Dragons was a "sophisticated, intricate and complicated combat simulation board game that people were turning into a roleplaying game" just "like giving your rook a motive" in Chess.[14]
The assumption of roles was a central theme in some early 20th century activities such as the gameJury Box, mock trials, model legislatures, and "Theatre Games". In the 1960s,historical reenactment groups such asThe Sealed Knot and theSociety for Creative Anachronism began to perform "creative history" reenactments introducing fantasy elements, and in the 1970sfantasy wargames were developed, inspired bysword and sorcery fiction, in which each player controlled only a single unit, or "character". The earlier role-playing tradition was combined with the wargames' rule-based character representation to form the first role-playing games.[15][16]
Dungeons & Dragons, developed in 1974 byDave Arneson andE. Gary Gygax and published by Gygax's company,TSR, was the first commercially available role-playing game, though at the time itsfirst printing was marketed as a niche wargaming product.[17] Gygax expected to sell about 50,000 copies total to a strictly hobbyist market.[18] After establishing itself in boutique stores, it developed a strong, lasting fan base that distinguished itself from the typical wargame player base. By the time of itsfirst major reprinting in 1977,Dungeons & Dragons was refocused as a role-playing game to segregate it from the typical wargame.[17][19]
One of the first original role-playing games wasM. A. R. Barker'sEmpire of the Petal Throne, first published in 1974, the same year asDungeons & Dragons. It introduced the fictional world ofTékumel, influenced byIndian,Middle-Eastern,Egyptian andMeso-Americanmythology.[20] It also introduced the game mechanic ofcritical hits.[21] According to creator Barker, "this simulates the 'lucky hit' on a vital organ."[22] The game influenced Arneson and Gygax, who was so impressed with it that his company TSR publishedEmpire of the Petal Throne in 1975.[20] TSR published Barker's game and setting as a standalone game, rather than as a "supplement" to the originalD&D rules.[23]
Another early game wasTraveller, designed byMarc Miller and first published in 1977 byGame Designer's Workshop. This was originally intended to be a system for playing generic space-opera-themed science-fiction adventures (in the same sense thatDungeons & Dragons was a system for generic fantasy adventures), but an optional setting called "theThird Imperium" that was detailed in subsequent supplements became strongly identified with the game. The changes in this setting over time, especially those involving "the Fifth Frontier War" as depicted in theJournal of the Travellers Aid Society, arguably constitute the first use ofmetaplot in a role-playing game.[24]
Up to this stage, each game had tied itself to a particular setting; If a player wanted to play in a science-fiction game and a fantasy game, they had to learn two game systems. Attempts were made inAdvanced Dungeons & Dragons to allow cross-genre games usingGamma World (1978) andBoot Hill (1975) rules, but the obscure rules went largely unused. Meanwhile,Call of Cthulhu andParanoia offered different role-playing experiences, in which the story arc of a group's investigation would lead to death and/or madness, or where comical infighting within a group would be expected and reinforced within the genre conventions of "a darkly humorous future". TheHero System, first introduced inChampions (1981), was also used inJustice, Inc. (1984),Fantasy Hero (1985) and other games.Steve Jackson Games followed withGURPS (the Generic Universal Roleplaying System) in 1986. At the same time, games using the fictional worlds ofStar Trek,DC Heroes, theMarvel Universe orThe Lord of the Rings expanded the range of possibilities for Table-top gaming. Games such asGURPS andChampions introducedcharacter creation via point-buy systems; later,Vampire: The Masquerade and similar games emphasized storytelling, plot and character development over rules and combat.
Due to the game's success, the termDungeons & Dragons has sometimes been used as ageneric term for fantasy role-playing games. TSR undertook legal action to prevent its trademark from becoming generic.[25]Dungeons & Dragons was a subject ofcontroversy in the 1980s when opponents such asPatricia Pulling claimed it caused negative spiritual and psychological effects. Academic research has discredited these claims.[26] Some educators support role-playing games as a healthy way to hone reading and arithmetic skills.[27] Though role-playing has been generally accepted in society,[28] the subject retains a level of controversy among some religious organizations.[29][30] This belief or attitude is by no means universal among religious organizations; there are faith-based role-playing games on the market[31] and religious role-players who disagree that these games are morally corrupt or occult in nature.[32]
Competition fromrole-playing video games andcollectible card games led to a decline in the tabletop role-playing game industry. The financially troubled market leaderTSR, Inc., which had suffered financial setbacks from overproduction, was eventually purchased byWizards of the Coast.[33] To better cope with the economics of role-playing games, they introduced a new regime ofopen gaming, allowing other companies to publish D&D-compatible supplements.
In 2000, Wizards of the Coast'sDungeons & Dragonsbrand managerRyan Dancey introduced a policy whereby other companies could publishD&D-compatible materials under theOpen Gaming License (OGL). He was frustrated that game supplements suffered far more diminished sales over time than the core books required to play the game, then this would spread the cost of supplementing the game and would increase sales of the core books, which could only be published by WotC. The newD&D rules became known as thed20 system, and aSystem Reference Document was published, containing all the rules needed to write a supplement or run a one-off game, but lacking the character advancement rules necessary for long-term play. Theopen gaming movement and 3rd/3.5 editionD&D (2000, 2003) enjoyed a great deal of success, and although there was some criticism of the move, a great manyd20 System games were released until around 2008.[34]
Meanwhile,indie role-playing game communities arose on the internet, studying role-playing and developing several forms ofrole-playing game theory such asGNS theory. Rules innovations combined with literary techniques to develop games such asApocalypse World,The Quiet Year, andDogs in the Vineyard that rely on the contributions of players to enhance moral agency in a process of emergent storytelling.[35][36][37]
In January 2012, Wizards of the Coast announced that a new edition ofD&D, at the time referred to asD&D Next, was under development. In direct contrast to the previous editions of the game,D&D Next was developed partly via a public open playtest.[38] An early build of the new edition debuted at the 2012Dungeons & Dragons Experience event to about 500 fans.[39] Public playtesting began on 24 May 2012,[40] with the final playtest packet released on 20 September 2013.[41] The 5th edition'sBasic Rules, a freePDF containing complete rules for play and a subset of the player and DM content from the core rulebooks, was released on 3 July 2014.[42] In forty years the genre grew from a few hobbyists and boutique publishers to an economically significant part of the games industry. Grass-roots and small business involvement remains substantial while larger projects have attracted several million players worldwide. Toys industry leaderHasbro purchasedWizards of the Coast in 1999 for an estimated $325 million.[43]
With the emergence ofesports,livestreamed gaming, andLet's Plays,actual plays of TTRPGs became a popular podcast and webseries format, and contributed to the resurgence of TTRPGs in the 2010s and 2020s.[44][45] These include streaming shows and podcasts such asDimension 20,Critical Role, andThe Adventure Zone.
Tabletop role-playing games increased in popularity in the early 2020s, facilitated by an increase in online play through video conferencing during theCOVID-19 pandemic,[3][4][5] viewership of actual play programming onstreaming media such asTwitch,[46] and the development of user-friendly marketplaces to buy and sellindie role-playing games asPDFs, such asItch.io.[47]
In 2023, Wizards of the Coast attempted to alter theOpen Game License. When the community protested, they walked the decision back, and placed basic 5th EditionDungeons & Dragons rules into theCreative Commons.[48] Later that year,Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves was released.[49]
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The set of rules of a role-playing game is known as itsgame system; the rules themselves are known asgame mechanics. Although there are game systems which are shared by many games, for example, thed20 system, many games have their own, custom rules system. Game rules determine the success or failure of a character's actions, or adjudicate changes in the setting or the characters themselves. Many game systems use weightedstatistics anddice rolls or other random elements. Some games offer aSystem Reference Document (SRD) that allows other designers to use part of the game system in their own, future game products.[50][51][52][53]
Some systems are designed for a particulargenre.[54][55] Examples includeDungeons & Dragons (fantasy),Starfinder Roleplaying Game (science fiction),Outgunned (heroic action), andTen Candles (horror). Genre-based games often come packaged with a default setting but invite adaptation to other settings in the same genre by players and GMs.[citation needed]Universal role-playing game systems also exist, created with the intent of building a rule system that can be adapted to any genre. Examples includeBasic Role-Playing,Champions, andGURPS. Thed20 system, based on the third edition ofDungeons & Dragons, has been used in science fiction and modern-day game settings such asSpycraft and theStar Wars Roleplaying Game. In practice, most universal systems are more effective for particular settings, power levels, or types of play.[citation needed]
Other systems are more strongly tied to the specific setting of the game they feature in. Tabletop role-playing games that take place in existing fictional worlds have been called a form offan fiction. Some officially licensed game systems provide templates enabling players to play as canon characters, such as theMarvel Multiverse Role-Playing Game, which includes official character sheets for Marvel heroes and villains.[56] In 2023, Rebekah Krum ofCBR commented that "such games have existed nearly as long as the industry itself, cropping up as the result of marketing campaigns or attempts to capitalize on existing hype, but they've never been more popular than they are now".[56] She highlighted that this includesDungeons & Dragons setting books for actual play shows such as "Acquisitions Incorporated andCritical Role to theFate sourcebooks set in the world ofThe Dresden Files. Many are collaborations between well-known game developers and the creators of the original tales or experts on them, such asThe Witcher Tabletop Roleplaying Game fromR. Talsorian Games,Avatar Legends fromMagpie Games, and several titles fromModiphius, includingStar Trek Adventures".[56]
Before play begins, players build or select a character. This can take one of several forms:
Characters in role-playing games are usually represented by a number ofstatistics. Statistics are an abstract measure of how successful a character is likely to be at a class of tasks.[61][62]
Many game systems make distinctions between two key types of statistic:attributes andskills.[63][64][65] These names are not always consistent across different games - a "skill" in one game may be a "talent" or "ability" in another. Attributes are statistics all characters possess: strength, agility, and intelligence are common examples. These are ranked, often on a numeric scale, so that a player can gauge the character's capabilities. For example, a character's strength rating could be used to determine the likelihood that the character can lift a certain weight. Skills are abilities that only some characters possess, such as negotiation, horseback riding, and marksmanship. Game systems often define skills that are genre-appropriate. For example, fantasy settings generally includemagic skills, while science-fiction settings may containspaceship piloting skills. However, some skills are found in several genres: a medieval rogue and a Wild West outlaw may both be very proficient at throwing knives, and a skill labeled "diplomacy" may benefit ancient Roman patricians or industrial tycoons of the 19th century equally well.
Some games such asBurning Wheel andThe Shadow of Yesterday represent character motivations as statistics. Character motivations are things in which the character believes strongly.The Riddle of Steel's Spiritual Attributes,Burning Wheel's Beliefs andThe Shadow of Yesterday's Keys are such features. They might reveal secrets the character has kept, aspirations they hold, or other characters they care about.
TTRPGs are typically played in groups, however, single player TTRPGs are also available.[66][67][68] Brendan Hesse ofLifehacker highlighted that solo TTRPGs, like other TTRPGs, "run the gamut of settings and playstyles" and while it is a "different experience", solo games combine "the tactile feel of dice rolls and imagination-driven approach of group-based tabletop gaming, with the pick-up-and-play nature of single-player video games".[67] Katie Wickens ofGamesRadar+ noted that many of the earliest games were "solo mods of multiplayer TRPGs", typically involving "dice and/or cards, a character sheet, and a hex map from your chosen tabletop RPG to wander through".[66] Similar to non-solo games, they often required stat tracking; however, Wickens observed that the journaling elements and story tracking requirements "were far less introspective than the kind we often see" in the 2020s.[66] Rowan Zeoli, forPolygon, explained that solo tabletop games "started in earnest with wargames in the [1980s]" and slowly rose "in prominence for the next few decades until the quarantine period of the ongoing COVID pandemic offered a perfect moment for board games and TTRPGs".[68] Wickens commented that the "genre has evolved profoundly", with many including a narrative focus – "the lines between simple solo RPG systems and journaling games have become far more blurred over the years".[66] Additionally, she noted that "many solo journaling systems today are not only subversions of the standard pen-and-paper model" but also introduce "their own unique and even far-flung mechanics to help cement the theme".[66]
Each game has asetting in whichadventures andcampaigns (connected strings of adventures) can take place. Campaign settings are usually designed for a specific game (such as theForgotten Realms setting forDungeons & Dragons), though some settings are published with the intent of being usable in many games. There are numerous campaign settings available both in print and online. In addition to published campaign settings available for purchase, manygame masters create their own.
Campaign settings exist for almost allgenres of fiction. Because two long-time best-selling role-playing games,Dungeons & Dragons andPathfinder,[69] are part of the fantasy genre, fantasy is among the most played role-playing genres. While role-playing's roots began in fantasy, science fiction has been used in settings such asTraveller,horror formed the baseline of theWorld of Darkness andCall of Cthulhu whileSpycraft was based in modern-dayspy thriller-oriented settings. The comic book and superhero genres have been utilized for games such asMutants and Masterminds.
The size of a setting can vary. Campaign settings such as theWorld of Greyhawk andInvisible Sun detail entire cosmologies and time-lines of thousands of years, while the setting of games such asDeadlands orCoyote & Crow might only describe one or more nations within a brief segment ofalternate history. Other settings describe smaller locations, such asBlades in the Dark, which describes a single fantasy city,Alice is Missing, which describes a realistic small town, andVisigoths vs. Mall Goths, which takes place entirely inside oneshopping mall. Some settings involve shifting between multiple different planets or timelines, sometimes with their own genres. For instance, inGURPS Infinite Worlds, the characters are "Infinity Patrol" agents who travel toalternate worlds, some of which include fantasy or steampunk as well as science fiction elements.
A number of campaign settings have fused multiple genres into a single game.Shadowrun combined fantasy withcyberpunk,Castle Falkenstein drew on fantasy andSteampunk elements, andTorg mashed up fantasy, science fiction, pulp and horror elements. Meanwhile,Feng Shui combined Chinese historical fantasy with Kung Fu action tropes anddystopian science fiction. Instead of literary genres, some campaign settings are modeled on video game genres, such asFabula Ultima, which is based onJRPGs likeFinal Fantasy.
The largest publisher of role-playing games isWizards of the Coast, a wholly owned subsidiary ofHasbro and publisher ofDungeons & Dragons. Other major companies in 2020-2024 includedOnyx Path Publishing (Vampire: The Requiem,Exalted, and others),Games Workshop (Warhammer 40K),Chaosium (Call of Cthulhu),Green Ronin Publishing (Fantasy AGE: Cthulhu Mythos),Free League Publishing (Alien: The Roleplaying Game,Mörk Borg),R. Talsorian Games (Cyberpunk),Paizo (Pathfinder),Evil Hat Productions (Fate), andModiphius Entertainment (Star Trek Adventures), as tracked on ICv2's Top 5 Roleplaying Games articles[70] and the Bestselling Titles list[71] onDriveThruRPG.
Most role-playing game publishers are privately held companies and do not release sales figures, making precise estimates difficult. There has been no publicly available, systematic examination of point of sale data, limiting further estimates to a rough consensus between industry analysts.
Most commercially published RPGs aresmall press products, selling fewer than a thousand units.[72]Print on demand is often used to reduce costs for small print runs.
Independent or"indie" role-playing games are tabletop role-playing games produced by individual creators orsmall press publishers, in contrast to games published by largecorporations.[73][74][75] As a movement, indie game design typically emphasizes creative freedom and fair financial compensation for game designers.[73] The indie role-playing game community often produces games with signature and idiosyncratic character. Some indie designers create and sell their own games onItch.io,[76][77]DriveThruRPG,[78]Kickstarter,BackerKit,[79][80] or via in-person sales at gaming conventions, while others use distribution services such asIndie Press Revolution.[81]
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Role-playing games are produced under a variety ofbusiness models, which succeed or fail based on those models' objectives. The smallest viable businesses are one person companies that produce games usingprint on demand ande-book technologies. Most of these companies provide a secondary income for their owner-operators.[citation needed] Many of these businesses employfreelancers, but some do not; their owners complete every aspect of the product. Larger companies may have a small office staff that manages publishing, brand development and freelance work. Guided by a developer/manager, freelancers produce most of a game line's content according to a central plan. Some start with already established franchises while others create original series and then branch out as a franchise to multiple medias. Finally, a few companies (such as Wizards of the Coast andMongoose Publishing) maintain an in-house writing and design staff.
The standard business model for successful RPGs relies on multiple sales avenues:[citation needed]
Typically, RPG publishers have a very long life cycle once they manage to generate an initial successful game.[citation needed] TSR, the initial publisher ofDungeons & Dragons was an independent entity until 1997 when it was acquired byWizards of the Coast, who was subsequently acquired by Hasbro in 1999. Many of TSR's contemporaries remain in business as independent publishers. The core design group of a publisher is often kept as a team within the new company for the purposes of continuity and productivity, thoughlayoffs are common after such mergers and acquisitions. For example, Wizards of the Coast experienced multiple layoffs in the wake of acquiringLast Unicorn Games and after its own acquisition byHasbro.[citation needed]
As suggested by the name, TRPGs are played face-to-face (around a table, most likely), and involve players 'acting out' a role. This acting is not always literal. Players do not arrive in costume or speak exclusively in-character – something that differentiates TRPGs from live-action role-playing games (LARPs). Instead, players develop characters based on certain rules and are responsible for deciding what those characters do over the course of the game.
Metaplots generally advanced the plotline of an RPG setting through new publications. Uniquely, GDW explored both of these avenues in the late '70s.
