*But are still very welcome.
Today I’d like to revisit the notion that Players and Games Masters do not need acting talent in order to participate in TTRPGs. This is not an April Fool’s joke, so please believe me when I say I’m being as serious as usual. I take the topic of people being actively chased away from my hobby very seriously.
One of my ultimate goals in TTRPGs is to gain and retain as many players as possible overall. Not because I’m trying to sell products or fill conventions, but because games are fun. We’re supposed to be having fun. I know we fight, bicker, and complain loudly on YouTube and social media most days, but honestly the hobby is all about enjoying the games we play together.
Yes, it’s fun to ham it up at the gaming table.
But it’s not a requirement. For some it can be amusing to do the funny voices and hand gestures, or maybe even dress in character. For others, it might be enough just to show up and roll some dice and eat snacks. I’ve had players that barely said a word all night in character but still had lots of fun. It’s okay if a player just describes a little of what their character does or says.
It’s not like the fun police are going to break into your gaming session and start hauling people off if your group doesn’t sound like the cast from Critical Role. I’ve run plenty of beer-n-pretzels games where nobody spoke in character, and we cracked jokes the whole time. Somehow we still made it through a whole dungeon crawl. Don’t try to tell me it’s wrong because we all still had fun.
TTRPGs were inspiring actors long before Actual Play series were a thing.
I got heavy into theatre and speech in high school and later in college because of my interest in Dungeons & Dragons, Marvel SHRPG and Star Wars RPG. I wanted to be a voice actor before I discovered TTRPGs. I just thought it would be cool to do those voices like in the cartoons.
The irony is, back in the old days of gaming, my players thought I was nuts when I would change voices and mannerisms for different NPCs. Half the time, they weren’t even interested in the character’s physical description. Gameplay has advanced significantly since then.
Yes, I’ve been known to lay it on too thick as a GM and as a player. I figured out that some of that energy is best held back for the actual stage, especially around players that are shyer. I want to inspire without being intimidating.
Sometimes we have to ask the right questions.
Newer players don’t always sit right down and know what’s what and who’s who. GMs need to talk to the new players a lot. That’s not to say neglect the other players at the table for the sake of the newbie, because all players are super important. The newbie just needs more encouragement.
Thinking back to my experiences as a new player make me chuckle. Remember not knowing the d20 from the d12? Back then all of our dice were the same color, and the numbers weren’t inked. What do I roll? Oh, this funny shaped one here that looks a lot like the funny shaped one there. I at least knew what the d10s were from my Marvel experience the day before. (*Note we didn’t have double digit d00% back then. It was 2d10s call the first digit.)
New players may have never even heard of Critical Role or any Actual Play series. Most of them don’t know the rules, they may have only glanced at the core book/Player’s Handbook. Heck, some of them might have pregenerated characters. (*That’s a whole separate article.) What do I roll? What does this do?
Get to know the new players as they get to know the game. Sometimes their interests can help them better relate to their character or the game itself. Suppose the new player has a wizard and is a big Lord of the Rings fan. Ask them, “What would Gandalf do in this situation?”
As I have said many times…
Please be kind and welcome new players. Yes, shows such as Critical Role have brought the hobby many new players, but we must continue to grow. I admire voice actors a great deal, and many of them are tabletop roleplayers just like us. I love them to pieces, but new players are also worth their weight in gold. I mean, all players and GMs are worth their weight in gold.
Please, TTRPG family, hold the gate open for people who want to try the hobby out. Encourage them to participate at the table as much as they are comfortable playing. This isn’t Shakespeare. There’s no Academy Award at stake. Just play Dungeons & Dragons (or whatever game you choose.)
Let’s hold that gate open for new players and those who have been previously discouraged for not acting at the table. Let’s not be jaded by our own experiences early on with Old Grognards who were less than welcoming. Please, help players as fellow players. Show some love.
Jeff's Game Box 