The Role Playing Game Society is designed for children with
high fantasy imagination and an interest in dice playing games.

Day: Wednesday from 4:30pm to 5:30pm

Venue: Library

A role-playing game (RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development. Actions taken within the game succeed or fail according to a formal system of rules and guidelines.

There are several forms of RPG. The original form, sometimes called the pen-and-paper RPG, is conducted through discussion, whereas in live action role-playing games (LARP) players physically perform their characters' actions. In both of these forms, an arranger called a game master (GM) usually decides on the rules and setting to be used and acts as referee, while each of the other players plays the role of a single character.

Purpose

Role-playing games are fundamentally different from most other types of games in that they stress social interaction and collaboration, whereas board games, card games, and sports emphasize competition.

Both authors and major publishers of pen-and-paper role-playing games consider them to be a form of interactive and collaborative storytelling. Events, characters and narrative structure give a sense of a narrative experience, and the game need not have a strongly-defined storyline. Interactivity is the crucial difference between role-playing games and traditional fiction. Whereas a viewer of a television show is a passive observer, a player at a role-playing game makes choices that affect the story. Such role-playing games extend an older tradition of storytelling games where a small party of friends collaborate to create a story.

While simple forms of role-playing exist in traditional children's games of make believe, role-playing games add a level of sophistication and persistence to this basic idea with additions such as game facilitators and rules of interaction. Participants in a role-playing game will generate specific characters and an ongoing plot. A consistent system of rules and a more or less realistic campaign setting in games aids suspension of disbelief. The level of realism in games ranges from just enough internal consistency to set up a believable story or credible challenge up to full-blown simulations of real-world processes.

Pen and paper
The Clifton Role Playing Society is a pen-and-paper RPG

The game is conducted through discussion in a small social gathering. 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.

This is the format in which role-playing games were first popularized.

This format is often referred to simply as a role-playing game. To distinguish this form of RPG from other formats, the retronyms pen and paper role-playing game or tabletop role-playing game are sometimes used, though neither pen and paper nor a table are strictly necessary.

by Mr Stagg

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