We take a look at excellent ways to improve your TTRPG roleplaying skills!
For those of us that enjoy roleplaying games being in-character is a thrilling and fun experience. But if you are new to the craft, or are feeling daunted by other players’ talents at the table, don’t worry! We’ve put together a list of ways to help you not only improve, but also feel more confident in yourself and in your delivery of the character. After all, you are the vessel through which their story is being told, and we know you want to do them justice.
Expand Your Knowledge of Their Life
A great way to improve your roleplaying is to expand your knowledge of the character. After all, you can’t act out what you don’t understand. Even if these things never come up in-game, it all contributes to the decisions your character makes, how they react to situations, and their personality.
Take time to write down things about their life. We definitely recommend using any of those fun online questionnaires you find about characters. These ask a variety of questions that will have you thinking creatively about your character.
Be In-Character Outside of the Game
We cannot recommend enough how much being in-character outside of our homebrew TTRPG game has improved our roleplaying. Try to spend some time as them while doing tasks around the house. If you are with another player in the game, try just having an in-character conversation. It’s amazing how much their voice develops when you can be them in casual situations.
Add Some Narration to Your Character
Dialogue drives a story, as does the lack of something to say by a character in a situation. But when you are at the table, it can also be extremely beneficial to narrate your character’s current emotional state. This helps bring a full-body experience into your roleplaying. Try things like:
“They just sit huddled in the corner and don’t look at anybody.”
“They start stomping back and forth across the room and muttering under their breath.”
“They fidget in anxiety and keep glancing over their shoulder.”
Allow Yourself to Be Open
The final piece of advice we have is to allow yourself to be open. Being vulnerable as yourself and as your character will bring your roleplaying far. But this is where having a trusted table you play with is vitally important. Whether you play as part of a big group or are in a single-player campaign, you must surround yourself with like-minded, kind people who want the same thing you want from the game. If someone else is being open and raw with their character’s emotions at the table, it will make it all the easier for you to rise to that level, as well.
Plot is important to keep the narrative moving. We discuss ways you can push forward the story to keep readers, viewers, and players engaged.
There have been times when we watch a movie or play a game where the plot just bogs down. It may not pull us out of the immersion but it can make things a little less fun and interesting. Stories should constantly be developing and shifting. It’s what makes them captivating and intriguing.
As fantasy authors, we fell in love with Lord of the Rings. While watching Fellowship for the thousandth time the other day we noticed ways the movie progresses the story. There is always something else that happens to advance the plot. We’re not talking about how Frodo has to take the ring to Mordor. It’s deeper than that.
It’s in the moments where the crebain from Dunland arrive and the party is forced to take cover. Or when the Fellowship must choose between going over the pass of Caradhras, through the Gap of Rohan, or into the Mines of Moria. There are multiple examples in the films that constantly usher the narrative forward. Without these moments, the story falls flat. It would just be a montage of the main characters traveling from point A to point B.
Beginning – End
Having a starting point and an endpoint should be the first things you come up with. Knowing where you want your story to go will help you fill out everything in the middle. This works for novels, movies, Dungeons & Dragons, and comics.
Like with Lord of the Rings: The Ring of Power has returned and found itself in the hands of a hobbit. The main characters learn it must be destroyed within the fires of Mt. Doom where it was created.
Everything in the middle is where you develop characters and introduce obstacles. These can be summed up as encounters.
Encounters, Encounters, Encounters
When you think about structuring a story like a TTRPG it makes it a bit more simple. Encounters are designed to challenge characters. They can range from social interactions, combat, and travel. One of the most important factors of an encounter is it should always advance the plot.
For example. In the Two Towers when the refugees are traveling to Helm’s Deep the caravan is attacked by orcs and wargs. It lets the viewer and characters know Sauron is watching them. He knows their plans and is actively trying to stop them. If it were just some random orc attack it wouldn’t mean much for the story. If that were the case it would be an inconvenience and readers wouldn’t connect with it.
Every encounter your characters come across should revolve around the story. Whether it lets the characters know the enemy is onto them or reveals a detail about a character, plot thread, or villain.
Lore Driven
Encounters are also great ways to introduce lore. If you’re writing a book, it makes more sense to tell a streamlined story without filler or fluff. But there are times when even the best of novels introduce threads that lead nowhere. It’s best to avoid these altogether so you don’t leave your viewers confused.
This can best be summed up with random encounter tables. They have their place but we’re not big fans of them. If you do end up using a random encounter table make sure it is connected to your story. It could be connected to a character, NPC, or the overarching plot.
We’ll pull an example from our fantasy series Thread of Souls. In book two Ash & Thunder, a few characters find themselves in ancient elven ruins. Brought there by Jade’s brother to investigate a strange creature.
“As they turned into another room, they pulled up short and stifled surprised gasps. Curled in the far corner was a giant spider. The size of a horse, it was clearly dead and had been for some time. The torchlight cast its twisted shadow three times as big on the wall behind it.“Yuck,” Heron shivered.
“I have never seen one so big!” Skar gasped. “I am going to take one of its hairs.” He shuffled over, already getting out a pouch. Artemis glanced sidelong at Jade. “Do you get big spiders in Oceala?” The Druid stared at the dead creature, perplexed. “Well, no. But come to think of it . . . It has been awhile since I’ve seen a spider.” “One this size?” Unolé clarified. Jade shook her head, chewing on her lip in consideration. “No, any spiders.”
The missing spiders are the driving force of our story. Instead of delving into some unknown ruin, this reveal makes the story feel much more connected. While other characters may have known this information, Jade and the others just learned it.
In the case of the mysterious creature, it helps paint a better picture of the Deep Hollows where the spiders have the largest presence.
Here are some quick ways you can advance the plot:
We share our tips for running TTRPG scenarios without focusing on Initiative.
Initiative is a concept in games like Dungeons & Dragonsthat decides who acts when in combat. Players and enemies roll a d20 and add their Dexterity then a fight begins. It works well but it isn’t something we’ve come to rely on and neither should you.
Frankly, Initiative can bog down a game. Fights can take hours whereas traveling from point A to point B can take a manner of minutes. Not only does opting not to use Initiatve speed things up it allows everyone at the table to pay more attention. By not knowing when they are up, they may not dissappear into their phone. It’s a great way to ensure everyone, including the dungeon master, pays attention and is engaged.
Streamline Encounters
Fights tend to take a bit of time. Player turns can be lengthy and other players may tune out while it isn’t their turn. The next time you have an encounter try forgoing Initiatve altogether. Instead, narrate what is happening and ask the players what they want their characters to do. It’s best to still stick with standard action economy – action, bonus action, move, reaction – but instead of acting in turn, they act after the enemy does their action.
For instance, if the group is up against a villain who is trying to get away with an artifact. Rather then go into Initiative, have them grab it as an action then run away. Then ask the players what they want to do. By not being in Initiative, they may think differently and not necessarily jump to fight mode.
Fluid Interactions
Asking players what they want to do gives them more freedom. They don’t necessarily have to worry about waiting for another player to act before they do. No one is tied down by an order. As long as they act after the enemy or opposing force.
It’s a great time for players to try new things as well. Not being restrained by Initiative can open up some new opporunities in working together and thinking of unique ways to handle situations. It’s an idea that can really change the flow of any session and make encounters more freeing and cinematic.
Initiative Shouldn’t Mean Combat
The definition of Initiative according to the Player’s Handbook states,
“Initiative determines the order of turns during combat. When combat starts, every participant makes a Dexterity check to determine their place in the initiative order.”
Saying ‘roll for Initiative’ may cause players to automatically think they should engage instant kill mode. That shouldn’t always be the case.
Cinematic Feel
When you break away from thinking of Initiative as strictly combat you start to see everything in a more cinematic view. Action movies all have intense scenes but think about all of the stuff that happens. They are generally more than just fast punches, swift kicks, car chases, and bullets. Villains monologue and characters react. Everything is so alive. By using these alternate rules, you can make more engaging encounters that don’t end in a blood bath. Why you Shouldn’t Rely on Initiative
We provide your one-stop list for character flaws, as well as a fun exercise to create dynamic characters!
Creating a character is a difficult task. There are several things to consider from what do they look like, how do they sound, how do they act, and what makes them who they are? All of these things and more should be focused on when building a character. But you should also focus on their weakness or flaws.
These types of traits can be anything from fear, a vice, or failing. They could also be something another character can use against them or hold over their head. It may even be another person. Someone they are afraid to speak with or even see. Whatever it is, characters with weaknesses are more engaging to readers as they are more realistic.
Character Building Exercise: Choose five numbers randomly, or use one of those random number generation tools online. Or roll a d100 five times! Write down those five traits and create a character out of them. Decide how this personality happened. What in the character’s past caused these traits to form? How do they use them? Do they fully understand them? If there are contradicting ones, what caused this internal battle?
A creative guide to help TTRPG players who find themselves roleplaying more than one character in a campaign.
While it is expected for a Game Master to juggle multiple characters and creatures simultaneously, it is not the same for players. However, being a GM and playing a player character is not as difficult as it sounds. For those playing singe-player campaigns, having a fuller party makes much more sense.
But are there any drawbacks? After all, if you are the type of player that likes to delve deep into your character and fully bring them to the table, you might be concerned about having difficultly. You might worry you can’t juggle two, or even more characters at the same time.
That’s where this guide steps in! Coming from a player who has spent years playing three characters at the same time, I’ll give a breakdown of how this can be easy, fun, and rewarding!
Choose Your “Protagonist”
This may sound harsh to your other characters, but choosing a main character for your campaign is really beneficial. This will be the character that you default to, that drives scenes, and that spends the most time talking. Collaborate with your GM regarding the campaign’s conflict, as it will help a lot if the overarching conflict is tied to this character.
Tips for choosing: make sure it is a character class you enjoy playing. You should feel really passionately about this character and more intrigued by them than the others you roleplay.
Whose Scene is it, Anyway?
While you are playing the game, determine which character benefits the most from a certain “scene”. If you are navigating a forest, perhaps it is time for your Druid to shine! If you are negotiating with dangerous people, perhaps your extraverted character with the highest Charisma score will lead. If you are back in your Ranger’s town, then they will guide the party around. Think about who makes the most impact in a certain situation, and focus on them.
Have 1:1 Moments
To ensure all your characters have time to develop, make sure they get one-on-one moments. Either with other characters or NPC’s. Having time to voice their own thoughts without overlapping roleplay is great to ensure they get their time to shine.
Collaborate with Your GM
When you are in a single player campaign, player-GM communication is key. Make it clear what each of your characters want, and what they will pursue in the coming games. This helps tell the tale of all of your characters, instead of all but one being silent.
Learn to Narrate More
Playing multiple characters at once requires some narration. This not only helps tell your characters apart, but it also helps set the scene for what each of them are doing. I’ll pull an example from our most recent game. The party just got some critical information and were taking time to digest it.
I said, “Jade has a heavy frown on her face, and it’s clear she is thinking deeply. Taliesin is curled up on himself in a bit of an emotionally fetal position. Sen doesn’t really understand the weight and has gone to get another drink.”
Through this, I was able to convey three different reactions and emotional states without having to overlap dialogue or get the characters confused.
Quick Reference List
Choose a main character to lead interactions.
Allow different characters to have the spotlight depending on the situation.
Give a single character private conversations with others.
Communicate with your DM on each of your character’s motivations.
Narrate scenes to avoid too much character overlap.
We look to series like Dragon Age and Pirates of the Caribbean see how adding a third neutral party can help you tell more engaging stories
It’s typical storytelling to follow the protagonist versus the antagonist. But what if there was a third party introduced to the mix? One that got in the way of both others. One with their own agenda. How would that change a story? We’ll use Dragon Age and Pirates of the Caribbean as examples of how you can use a third party to develop your story.
Story Example
The next Dragon Age game may be a ways off but the stories and characters of Thedas span more than just video games. There are several novels and comic books you can sink into until the fourth game’s release. The most recent comic being Dragon Age: Dark Fortress.
SPOILER WARNING: Content may spoil events from the games. You have been warned. We will avoid major spoilers.
Dark Fortress follows fan-favorite character Fenris as he hunts down the son of his former master Danarius. Throughout the three-issue run, we learn that Tevinter mages are creating another powerful warrior like Fenris. It’s something the Qunari aren’t huge fans of either so they show up to put an end to it. Fenris teams up with characters from previous comics and they work together to track down the mages.
Towards the end of the run, events collide and the three groups end up facing off against one another. It’s a story that is familiar to the Dragon Age series and plays out many times throughout. Yet it never feels overused: Quanri vs
Things are going rather well for the protagonist when all of the sudden, the Qunari arrive and they have to rethink their strategy.
How You Can Adapt it
It’s an example that can be used in any TTRPG or novel for that matter. It is a great way to increase tension and build lore in your world as well. Your characters may think they are the only ones hunting down a specific enemy, item, or person but what if they weren’t? Perhaps a third party shows up at inconvenient moments to get in their way. Plots like this are a great way to develop your story and add suspense and action to the mix.
Just when the characters think they’ve got the upper hand, the third party comes in and trips them up. This third group can be evil, good, or neutral. Their motivations can vary from stopping the other two parties, stopping one party, or just adding a little chaos.
Take the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean movie for example. On Stranger Tides follows Spanish and English soldiers as they search for the Fountain of Youth. The third party consists of Jack Sparrow and the crew of the Queen Anne’s Revenge. The climax sees English troops fighting the pirates over control of the fountain before Spanish soldiers arrive and destroy it. After their task is done, they just walk away without fighting anyone.
Introducing a third party to the story can change the flow of the narrative. It’s interesting, adds detail to your world, and gives your payers a reason to think of new ways to handle situations. Although, don’t overdo it.
So, give it a shot the next time your characters are after the BBEG or magical artifact. You never know how it will change your story and keep everyone on their toes.
A land torn asunder by war, famine, and corruption. Through many years of hardship, the people step from their homes to discover a new life. The once mysterious Blood Mist slowly evaporates from the earth, and demons linger throughout the mountains. This is the world of the Forbidden Lands.
A dwarf minstrel, elf fighter, goblin sorcerer, and human peddler approach a small quaint village by the river. A guard gazes lazily at them as they pass by the fortified wooden gate. These aren’t typical adventurers, they are rogues and raiders trying to make a living in a dangerous world.
Forbidden Lands is a tabletop role-playing game from Free League Publishing. It’s a twist on other popular RPG titles where the players aren’t necessarily the heroes of the campaign, but instead are simply trying to survive any way they can.
The mythos and lore of Forbidden Lands is well thought out and detailed. The gods brought their people to a new land and discovered it wasn’t as peaceful as they had hoped. Wars erupted and fighting spread throughout the world. Then a terrible mist appeared and killed everything it touched. Eventually, the mist vanished but the world was changed and portions of it still linger throughout waiting to be discovered by would-be adventures hoping to become a legend.
Legends
Speaking of legends, Legends are how the players learn about the world and its people. They are also a way for them to gain experience. Instead of a player not knowing who an NPC is, the game masters might have the characters hear about a legend from NPCs, maps, or notes they find during their adventure. Or before they encounter an area of the person, they roll a die to find out what they know.
Stronghold
Another aspect of Forbidden Lands is the Stronghold. Over time the characters will have made a name for themselves and if they live long enough, they will gain access to their own stronghold. The Forbidden Lands are dangerous and full of deadly creatures, and the characters will need a place to rest. Strongholds are a home base for characters to regroup and restock after returning from an adventure.
However, they are not always safe. The rules contain several random encounters to use when the characters are resting inside their stronghold. Peace is hard to come by in this world and that’s what makes it exciting.
Cultures and Kin
Forbidden Lands contains many cultures called Kin. They range from Human, Elf, Half-Elf, Dwarf, Halfling, Orc, Wolfkin, Goblin. Each one can then choose a profession or class ranging from Druid, Fighter, Hunter, Minstrel, Peddler, Rider, Rogue, or Sorcerer.
There are also skills and abilities based on Attributes. Your character’s physical and mental capabilities are measured in attributes. They are broken down into four categories: Strength, Agility, Wits, and Empathy.
Player Characters
Dark Secret. Akin to Dungeons & Dragons Flaws are Dark Secrets. A Dark Secret is something you did in the past that you don’t want anyone else to know about. It is one of the most valuable resources the game master can pull from when deciding future plot points for your character.
Consumables. In Forbidden Lands, keeping track of consumable items such as food, water, and arrows is an important aspect of exploring. These are tracked by a d6, d8, and d12. Once eating a ration or loosing an arrow, you roll the specific dice and if a 1 or 2 appears you lower the dice to the lower amount – d12 to d10 and so on. After rolling a 1 or 2 on a d6, you run out of whatever it is you used and have to buy more.
It’s actually an engaging way to keep track of your items. Instead of worrying about how many arrows or bolts you have in a given day, you just roll the dice to decide.
Reputation. Being recognized in the Forbidden Lands is something to keep track of as well. Whether you successfully looted an ancient crypt or angered the village leader, your name could get out and reach the ears of powerful people.
This mechanic works by having the player with the highest reputation roll a d6 when they reach a town or interact with an NPC. A 6 means you have made a name for yourself and that person or town knows you, however, if it’s good or bad is up to the deeds you have done. This also works in reverse and the players can roll d6 to determine if they’ve heard of an NPC.
It Takes a d6
Instead of relying on a d20 like D&D, Forbidden Lands can be played entirely with a d6. Weapons and gear have attributes of their own you add or subtract from skills and attacks. You roll to attack and for skills but the damage is calculated by characters four Attributes. You can also go one step further and push any roll for added success or failure.
If you fail a roll and choose to push it you add dice according to certain skills and abilities and roll again. But failing could result in an even worse result than the original roll. While success means you achieve an even cooler result and perhaps do more damage.
Verdict
Forbidden Lands is one of the most innovative and engaging TTRPGs around. It’s fast-paced and full of history. Exploring feels rewarding and interacting with NPCs and adventure sites is intriguing and exciting. The whole thing can even be played at random without any planning so both the game master and players aren’t aware of what’s going to happen. Forbidden Lands is built for storytellers and fantasy lovers who enjoy diving into the unknown and uncovering new mysteries.
Forbidden Lands is recommended for fantasy fans! It is thrilling, detailed, and full of wonderful and dreadful encounters We give it a 9 on a d10.
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We received a free copy of Forbidden Lands in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are our own.
We discuss how reading and referencing the Emotion Wheel can enhance your character and story building.
Perhaps you have seen the Emotion Wheel pictured online? This large colorful wheel starts with six “basic” emotions and then gets more and more specific with the next two rings in the wheel. It was created by late psychologist Robert Plutchik. It was made to help people better understand and verbalize their own emotions. But it also has great applications for storytellers. Whether your focus is on writing a story or roleplaying a character, looking at the Emotion Wheel has tremendous benefits.
Writing Better Characters
This Emotion Wheel can be a great benefit to your writing. Consulting this helps to understand the complexities of personalities, emotions, and reactions to situations. Use it to build more believable villains, to craft stronger character motivations, and to ensure your story is character-driven instead of plot-driven. Let’s use some examples from our own Thread of Souls book:
After pirate Sen’s capture in Book 1, we see great fear in him in Book 2. Fear of interplanar travel and associations. If we look at Fear on the list, we can move to the next ring. Sen is feeling Scared. Why is he scared? What is the base? We look at the final outer ring. Sen feels Helpless. Helpless that a Dragonborn as big and strong as he can still be imprisoned and tortured.
Healer Taliesin is feeling Sad about crossing the priestesses that rule his city which caused them to punish him. What is the root of his Sadness? The next ring clarifies that he is feeling Despair. Why is he feeling Despair? The final ring can clarify that he’s feeling Powerless. Powerless at the oppressive matriarchal system that governs his city.
Roleplaying Characters
If you enjoy TTRPG’s, you are asked to fully become your character each game session. Now if your playing style is just to snack and roll dice while not being story-invested, that is fine. We hope you found a group who plays that style. But as we saw from our D&D survey, most people that play are emotionally-driven and insightful. And to avoid being the person who simply shrugs decisions off with “That’s what my character would do”, we can have a better understanding of actually why.
When thinking about your character between games, consult the Emotion Wheel to help interpret their actions last game, as well as what they are planning next game. For example, if your character is feeling Joy, what is the source of that Joy? Are they feeling Satisfied or Amused? If your character is Angry, what is the root cause? Are they Frustrated or Jealous? Knowing what goes on inside your character will help guide your actions next game. And help you bring a more authentic experience to the table.
We provide your one-stop list for personality traits, as well as a fun exercise to create dynamic characters!
Personality traits are one of our top things to decide when creating a character. And unless you already have some inspiration, it can be a daunting task! We hope this comprehensive list is your final stop for a full list of personality traits. Use it to pick ones to help in your character creation! Or workout your character building muscles through the exercise below!
Character Building Exercise: Choose five numbers randomly, or use one of those random number generation tools online. Or roll a d100 five times! Write down those five traits and create a character out of them. Decide how this personality happened. What in the character’s past caused these traits to form? How do they use them? Do they fully understand them? If there are contradicting ones, what caused this internal battle?
We look at the top spells from a druid’s list that are essential to prepare, even though they don’t do damage!
Druids in D&D are such a flexible class. They can transform into animals or elementals. They can focus on devastating damage, restorative healing, or environment manipulation. Whatever way you choose to play your druid character is valid and fantastic for the type of story you are telling. But for this article, we are going to take a look at our picks for the top non-combat (and non-healing) druid spells that are great to prepare each game!
Heat Metal (2nd)
Heat metal is one of those spells that you don’t think about it until you need it. And then it is essential. You are able to transmit fire damage to an object for one minute, but its utility goes beyond that. You can use it to destroy locks, open doors, bend prison bars, and damage equipment. This makes it extremely useful for non-combat explorative and intrigue situations. And since it is only a second level spell, you can cast it at higher levels for really dense metal that you need to destroy.
Conjure Animals (3rd)
Sure, it is useful to have animal helpers in combat, by why limit this spell just for that? Do you need to transport a group a long distance? Summon eight giant owls. Do you need to search for something missing? Summon some hounds. These conjured animals can be used to dig tunnels, cause distractions, or fetch items. And if another D&D player has Speak With Animals or Beast Sense prepared, these animals can be used for reconnaissance, as well.
Speak With Plants (3rd)
This D&D spell is excellent for information-gathering. Sure, the intelligence of plants is rather low. But if your questions are phrased simply enough, there is no end to the type of intel you can learn about the location, who passed by, or what events could be going on. While this spell comes to mind the most in the wilderness, don’t forget the house garden of a villainous character can be just as helpful!
Commune With Nature (5th)
This spell has so many great applications. Where it really shines is helping a D&D party uncover secrets in unfamiliar territory. Are you searching for a hidden pond? Looking for a secret city? Trying to find a tunnel through a mountain? Or searching for an interplanar monster? Commune With Nature can help with all of these! The best thing about this spell is that it is a ritual, so you don’t have to worry about using up valuable 5th-level spell slots.
Transport Via Plants (6th)
When it comes to getting around quickly in the world, Transport Via Plants is a must. When your party gets to upper levels, the game typically shifts focus away from the every day dangers of traveling and more to the quest at hand, usually on a “world saving” scope. And to help your character focus on their next challenge, and getting quickly to a destination, this spell is fantastic. Since the druid still has to be familiar with a location, it keeps a challenge present and makes the spell not an easy fix for every situation.
Wind Walk (6th)
Despite competing for a spell slot with Transport Via Plants, we still want to name Wind Walk as a top non-combat spell. It is great for quick travel in locations with no trees, or for places the druid is unfamiliar with. It also makes sneaking through large locations more viable. If done correctly, this is not game-breaking. The D&D party still has to be physical to interact with anything, and this transformation takes a full minute. At the level that 6th-level spells become available, the party should not be really encountering dungeons that have no value other than getting from point A to point B, anyway. But if your party is trying to find a hidden chamber in a city of enemies, this spell makes for more dynamic exploration.
Animal Shapes (8th)
This spell is great to overcome a variety of challenges. Does your party need to fly somewhere? Swim deep into the ocean? Burrow underground? Blend in with the local farm animals? This spell is as useful as it is fun, bringing a levity to the often stressful situations parties at level 15+ can encounter.
