Role v. Roll playing

In my younger days, I just thought RPG's were a chance to roll dice and kill vile monsters and find treasure. I enjoyed many a game session where we would go through a list of monsters, killing all of them with ruthless efficiency, and rolling to find out what amazing treasure we liberated. It was fun in the way that a Quentin Tarantino action movie is fun. Not necessarily anything super deep, but you enjoy the ride while not having to think about it too much.

A few years later, I played with a group that opened my eyes to the ROLEplaying side of the game, where the killing baddies was part of a story that my character was a meaningful part of. As I was still pretty young and saw things in absolutes, I felt that it was the way everyone should play and looked down on all the hack and slash players that clearly weren't as mature as I was. After all, I hadn't been a hack and slash player for like, a whole month! I got into my character and immersed myself in his lore, his story, his thoughts, and I could go entire sessions without rolling dice and not care at all. Surely, this is what roleplaying was supposed to be and I finally understood what made it so special and different!!

Eventually, I grew up, went to college, and realized that all gaming styles are equally valid ways to play RPG's, and rather than sneer at those who played differently than I did, I became impressed with the fact that roleplaying games could accommodate so many different play styles. In the same game session, you can have people who delve into rich character histories, some who are looking to follow along a story, other who mostly want to socialize with their geek friends, as well as those who just enjoy rolling dice to see what comes up. I can't think of any other category of games that can be played in so many vastly different ways. Over my decades of gaming, I've played each style and found they're all fun in their own way.

Of course, people can often learn to enjoy the other styles if they honestly give them a chance. Again, that's what's so awesome about RPG's! If you're running a campaign that's heavy into the roleplaying side of things, you definitely want the pure roleplayers that you know, but it's worth extending the offer to other friends that don't fit that playstyle. Just make sure to explain that it's going to require some creativity and is going to be a LOT of roleplaying with a little action, and let them decide if they want give that kind of game a try. If it's not their cup of tea, then no hard feelings, as they're still welcome in the other games. I used to think you needed a group of the same kind of players for those games to work, but now I think you just need players willing to try that style of RPG with the understanding that they're free to try it and leave if they're not enjoying it.

In the end, RPG's are a game, and you should try and have fun with them in whatever way works for you, and I encourage everyone to at least try different games outside their normal comfort zone once in a while. You may not like them all, but odds are that you'll find at least a few new ways to enjoy RPG's that you never considered before.

You got your Wargame in my RPG!! You got your RPG in my Wargame!!

Gamers come in many flavors, and wargamers and roleplayers rarely share the same table. Few ever play both in equal amounts, even if they have tried each at one time or another; the mindsets are just too different. Despite this, if you have access to the materials to run a session or two in a different gaming style, the results can be extremely satisfying for both GM and player alike. There is no better way to break out of the same old routine of a game (without playing something else entirely) than to essentially change the scale of the existing game. Whichever way you go, a well done event can be epic and memorable for everyone!

The primary pitfall to keep in mind when trying such an event is that there’s a fundamental difference between the playstyles of a wargamer and a roleplayer. The wargamer will look at things primarily from a strategic viewpoint, often ignoring the underlying motives behind individual actions, while the roleplayer will make decisions based on their character’s background instead of focusing on solid tactics. For instance, a roleplayer in a wargame might make a tactically unsound decision to protect a village from being attacked instead of taking an opportunity to critically weaken the opponent’s forces. Meanwhile, a wargamer playing an RPG might maneuver a character precisely to get the best bonuses, while ignoring the role that the character fills for the group (healing, buffing, etc). These are all perfectly valid playstyles, and in order for the game to be enjoyable, the event must keep those playstyles in mind.

Since the goal of any game is to have fun, some adjustments may be required to make the event run smoothly. First of all, the event has to be consistent with the overall campaign. An RPG event in the Pacific wouldn’t make sense in series of World War II battles that takes place in the European theatre, just like a wargame event between dwarves and elves wouldn’t make sense if the main RPG threat is rampaging orcs assaulting a human city. Also, the event should offer some reward to the normal campaign for achieving objectives. A wargame event to take the castle of an evil wizard might result in the RPG characters gaining powerful magical items if the players succeed, or an RPG event might offer benefits to a wargame through changes to the battlefield or units allowed. Putting such rewards in the event makes it “matter” instead of just being a break from the norm.

Above all else, the event must be simplified as much as possible. This cannot be stressed enough. Many of the players are going to be unfamiliar with the ruleset being used for the event, so the more you can streamline it for them, the better. For example, wargamers don’t need to know how much wealth their character has or how their bonuses are figured up any more than roleplayers need to know how many points their unit is worth or have a detailed breakdown of possible maneuvers. Make reference cards for the players with only the most vital info about their character/unit without any specific rules listed and create ‘cheat sheets’ for everyone listing the order things are done in each turn. The GM/referee should handle the rules for the players so that they can focus on what they’re trying to do. Asking, “What would you like to accomplish?” and then telling them how they can do it will be satisfying for the player while not slowing the event down with the rules’ learning curve. Keep it fun and don’t let the mechanics get in the way. If you have to, make a ruling on the fly to resolve something that you can’t find a quick answer for (within 30 seconds of searching). In the end, nobody’s going to be telling their friends about how one or two rules worked in the game, but they just might tell of the epic battle their character fought in or the daring mission a SEAL squad undertook behind enemy lines.

In an RPG, a wargame works any time that the scale ramps up so that there are too many NPC v. NPC variables to run (cause that’s not fun for players watching the DM roll dice against himself) and the event will likely take up the entire session. The characters’ actions could have triggered events leading up to a climactic battle between the local king and an invading army. But it doesn’t have to be such a massive change in scale. Perhaps the player characters are each leading groups of refugees through a zombie infested city and splitting up is the best way to escape. A slave uprising could have player characters at the head of a unit of slaves and seek to free others and take control. An air campaign might be run to weaken the defenses of an impenetrable fortress so the PC’s can infiltrate it. It doesn’t even need to be combat oriented. Players might be running airships to capture herds of flying mounts to use against an airborne threat. For almost every event that can be run for individual characters, larger scale scenarios can be run with a wargame. An escape should always be allowed for the player characters if their unit is wiped out (or ransom them back to the party after the game for some reasonable amount), and victory should reward the group with some item or ability that’s usable in the RPG campaign.

Wargames might become RPG’s for any situation where individual achievements can make a significant difference in continuous battle campaigns or regularly scheduled games. A team of assassins or commandos trying to take out the leader of the opposition could remove a powerful leader unit from the next battle. Saboteurs tasked with destroying a factory could remove resources or reinforcements from the opponent. Since most wargames are player v. player rather than cooperative, the opposition could be run by other players in an attempt to foil the attacking players. Failure of the attackers’ mission could result in captured intel for the opposition (free round before the start of game, or knowledge of the forces being deployed before choosing their own units) or remove a key recon unit (deduct those points from initial deployment) from the side that failed in their attempt. Perhaps a small group going to make contact with an undercover spy, and doing so gives their armies a bonus mentioned above. Alternately, RPG scenarios could be run separately for each side to affect an upcoming battle with each side able to gain a benefit if they meet their objectives. Note: Because of the way that RPG’s work, an impartial referee should be watching over the roleplaying event in most cases.

These tips may offer a new experience that is fun and memorable for everyone at your game. Got other ideas for wargame events to spice up and RPG or roleplaying events to flesh out a wargame? Please leave them in the comments below and they will be incorporated into this article with credit to the screenname that posted it.