I hosted my first tabletop roleplaying game (TTRPG) session last week.
I had seen Dungeons and Dragons from TV shows like Community, but never knew anyone who played it personally.
I held this belief:
I need a group of experienced friends to play!
Here are three approaches I took to dispel this myth :
1. Find a group online
My first direct exposure to playing a TTRPG game came from using a platform called Roll20.
It’s basically an open marketplace for hosting and playing any type of TTRPG imaginable. It was crazy to learn how many different systems were available other than Dungeons & Dragons.
Every type of game is imaginable. There are long-running campaigns, one-shot pickup games, and even sandbox open-world play (known as West Marches1).
You can filter for free games and ones that welcome newbies.
It’s a great starting place if you don’t know anybody who plays or you want to get some practice first with randos.
Some tradeoffs:
Free games run a higher risk of people flaking. Paid games mean both players and hosts have skin in the game.
Additionally, paid games usually have better hosts, so it might be worth shelling out a few bucks to experience what a good game-master is like. Set a budget for yourself and try it out!
The long-running campaigns usually involve joining a Discord server. These can be confusing to navigate at first. Make sure to read any welcome instructions and don’t be afraid to use Q&A channels/figure out who you can direct message.
2. Flying solo
Turns out that solo campaigns are actually a thing in the TTRPG world.
Some systems are designed specifically for solo play. One system that I thought was particularly cool is Colostle. The world-building is unique, and you use a deck of playing cards instead of rolling dice.
It’s not really “solo” in the sense that you are still using randomness to collaboratively create the world and the story. Usually this means you have some dice and reference tables.
I found solo campaigns to be an interesting way to learn the mechanics for a system and practice narrating out-loud.
However, I realized through playing that my real goal with learning TTRPG stuff was to play socially with friends.
3. Organize your own newbie group
If you just bring up in conversation that you’re looking into Dungeons and Dragons stuff, you’ll eventually find people who have played before or are interested in playing.
Another benefit of an online presence is casting an even wider net:
After building up some TTRPG muscle with the first two approaches and getting positive signals from friends, I decided to commit to hosting a game virtually.
I had never hosted a game before and one of the players had never played a TTRPG before, but it turned out really well!
I didn’t bother with fancy setups or complicated character sheets. We focused on theater of the mind and having fun with the story. Because that’s ultimately what TTRPGs are about – storytelling with friends.
Takeaways
These three approaches, Roll20, solo, and self-hosting, were all effective ways for me to conduct experiments with trying out TTRPGs without ever having played before myself.
If you’re interested in dipping a toe into TTRPGs, I hope this helps! Let me know how it goes and if there’s anything I can do to help!