Your Guide to Tabletop Roleplaying Games

This site is designed for anyone who has an interest in tabletop RPGs. Learn what Dungeons & Dragons and other roleplaying games are about, get tips on how to play, discover the right games for your group, and get advice on how to improve your gaming sessions. You can get started with one of these:

Three for Thursday: Games in the Library

2019-05-30

In the early 1980s I was way into tabletop RPGs, and attempting to find my way through the jungle that is the American high school experience. For the first couple of years in that crucible, my friends and I spent many a lunch break in the safe haven of the library. It had two or three small, glass-enclosed rooms that could be reserved for group activities that might be too loud for the common area. Read more

Degenesis: Rebirth — The Actual Play Review

2019-05-26

I’d picked up the Degenesis rule books months ago. I’d pored over them, ordered all the published adventures, and written a glowing review (which you’ll probably want to read before this post if you want a broader understanding of the game). Finally I’d found a game that delivered that same feeling of discovery and amazement that RuneQuest had first given me many years earlier. Which is why I approached the act of actually running the game with some trepidation. As anyone who has played tabletop RPGs for a while will tell you, the easiest way to ruin a promising game is to actually play it. Read more

Three for Thursday: Playing Tabletop RPGs Before the Internet

2019-05-23

The Internet has radically changed tabletop roleplaying, just as it has changed almost everything else. Sometimes it’s hard to even recall what it was like before the rise of the Web in the late 1990s and the resulting Internet explosion. But I do remember what it was like discovering and playing what were then called fantasy roleplaying games in the early 80s.

There were (conveniently) three things in particular about that era that can never again be the same: Read more

There’s Never Been a Better Time to Play Tabletop Roleplaying Games

I’ve been playing tabletop RPGs since the early 1980s, and now is hands down the best time to get into the hobby. The 5th edition of Dungeons & Dragons has been a smash hit. Streaming shows like Critical Role and Starter Kit have lifted the veil on how roleplaying games work. Celebrities are going public with their love of roleplaying. Online tabletop roleplaying is taking off, Kickstarter has enabled scores of high-quality games to get published, and the number of sophisticated gaming blogs and podcasts has soared. So whether you’re new to tabletop roleplaying, a lapsed gamer rejoining the fold, or a gaming veteran, let this site be your guide to tabletop roleplaying games!