Advice for a First-Time Player

First Time Players

Matthew McFarland

I’ve been playing RPGs since age 11, as I may have mentioned elsewhere on this site. During that time, I’ve had a lot of different players (something like 150, to my best guess) and quite a lot of those have been folks who have never played — or in many cases, even heard of — role-playing games.

And in a lot of ways, those are my favorite kinds of players.

To be sure, experienced players have their perks. They know the basic concepts of role-playing and are able to wrap their minds around the fact that an RPG has neither winners nor losers, which is something that’s hard to grasp at first. They know the terminology and lingo that we’ve all grown to love over the years, stuff like “chargen” and “saving throw.” Still, the first-time player has advantages that more knowledgeable folks don’t, and if you’re careful as a Storyteller, you can keep that flower in bloom.

This essay is meant as reference for and about first-time gamers. That is, it’s useful for first-time players who are wondering what the hell is going on, Storytellers of first-time players, and players who have to cope with a newbie in the group. Just keep that in mind if it seems like I’m covering some pretty basic stuff; remember, it wasn’t always so basic.

The Basics

When people ask me what I do for a living, I’ve got three possible answers. The first is the most basic and gives very little information: “I’m a managing editor.” That’s true enough, but it ignores a large part of what I do. But for folks who are just making chit-chat and don’t really want to know that I develop a role-playing game about medieval vampires, it works.

The second is, “I work for a publishing company called White Wolf, and I come up with ideas for our products and contract books out to authors.” That’s still pretty vague, but if people want to know more, they have to know what “role-playing” means.

Which brings me to the third answer: “I develop role-playing games.” And that brings the inevitably question, “What’s a role-playing game?”

The point of this rather long-winded diatribe is that very few people actually know what RPGs are, and what the “point” of them is. The new guy or girl who’s agreed to play might not know a darned thing about gaming, especially if s/he’s playing because of a significant other. So, a good rule of thumb for the Storyteller: Never assume a first-time player knows the first thing about gaming.

Obviously, you’ll have to explain the basics of whatever game you’re running, but before that, make sure the player understands what gaming is. I’ve got a memorized speech that I give to new players at this point, but you don’t have to use mine (in fact, you can’t, because I’m not going to type it up). When explaining role-playing, liken it to theatre. Tell the new player it’s something like those How to Host a Murder games that were popular a few years back. Tell her that in the game, she assumes the persona of a character that she creates, while each of the other players is responsible for his/her own character. Make sure she understands that no one really “becomes” these characters and that you don’t get up and act out your characters’ actions (unless you’re running a Live-Action game, but then you’re on your own — LARPing doesn’t hold a lot of fascination for me).

Above all, make sure the player knows that this is a game, not a religion, a cult, a therapy session, or a come-on. I can’t stress this enough. Gaming seems a little strange to most folks, especially those who have heard the wrong things about the hobby. Don’t demonstrate what a perfect geek you are to a new player — it’s actually much more comforting if you appear to be, if not normal, then at least stable. Show the new player that playing an RPG is no different, in many ways, than getting together to play poker or Pictionary®. It just presents very different challenges and is based on a different kind of goal.

And, be sure to explain those goals. What you’re trying to do here is state, in concrete terms, what role-playing means and entails. Never scoff at a question, no matter how obvious the answer seems. The notion of a game where no one really wins is alien to most folks, so make sure that this gets discussed. A good way to make gaming a bit more concrete is to show the player a character sheet. Indicate an easily understood stat (like Strength) and explain what it means. For example, in explaining White Wolf games, I’ll usually say that the more dots one has, the better one’s rating. One dot in Strength is pretty weak, two is average, three slightly above, four is someone is professional athletic shape, and five is Olympic weightlifter ability. It doesn’t matter what system you’re playing, though. Showing the new player that this game has rules takes some of the weirdness off. Don’t get into the permutations of the rules too much at that stage. Let the player ask questions and take everything slowly.

Apart from the point of the game and the specific rules, it might be wise to explain what actually happens during a role-playing session. That is, a bunch of people sit down around a table (or sprawled around the living room, or whatever) and talk. Some of that talk is “in-character,” that is, dialogue spoken as normal conversation but acting as the given character, while some is “out-of-character,” which is the player describing to the Storyteller what her character is doing. And, as if it needed to be said, the difference between “IC” and “OOC,” and in fact between “player” and “character” need to be explained at the outset.

“What Clan Are You Playing?”

After the new player has a decent grip on what role-playing means, you can take her through the basics of the specific game you intend to run. An important caveat here: Don’t assume your player knows all of the weird minutia that you do. I’ve been studying vampire legendry for a long time now, so I know the difference between a langsuir and a vrykolakes, but I wouldn’t assume that a new acquaintance knew that those two terms don’t refer to pastry or something. Explain the game-specific stuff, make sure not to use game terms without reference, and don’t go too fast.

Also, tell the player only what she needs to know. If you’re running Vampire, there’s a lot of back-story and meta-plot information that makes the game rich and colorful…but to a new player, it’s just confusing. She’s still grappling with the notion that vampires descended from a Biblical figure. Leave out the nuances until later (like, after she’s played a game and decides to stick with it).

Talk to the player about style. A lot of players think that they’re characters need to have some kind of combat prowess (and many times, that’s true). But in certain groups, any fighting skill seen as gratuitous marks the player as “twink.” Likewise, styles of player differ between games like Chill (horror) and Paranoia (dark humor). Styles of player even differ within the same system; Vampire (for example) can be run as a kind of nocturnal crime-story, or with themes of salvation and redemption, or as a Machiavellian power game. Figure out what kind of game you’re going to run and tell the players what to expect. Compare it to some movies the players might have seen (their reactions may tell you what, if anything, needs to be changed).

In particular, make sure the new player is going into the game with some idea of what to expect from the atmosphere. This is especially true if you often game by candlelight with creepy music playing. Most folks do not associate such things with the word “game.”

System Blues

Probably the biggest cause of friction between Storytellers and new players, the rules can really muck things up. Some RPGs have elegantly simple rules, some are so complex that they bog everything down. I’ve found that very often it doesn’t matter if the rules are simple or not. If a player is inclined to learn them, she will. If not, you could be playing Tic-Tac-Toe and she’d still ask what to do. Instead of worrying about whether the new player knows what dice to roll for what kind of action, make sure she knows what her character is capable of doing. For example, if you’re running Werewolf, players have enough to keep track of between five forms and a host of other “innate” abilities that they’re characters can call on without adding Gifts to mix. So when a new player is asked to remember that to use her Call of the Wyld Gift, she has to roll Charisma + Performance, it’s more likely she’ll never use the Gift at all. She’ll see the system instead of the Gift, and forget entirely what it does for her character. Instead, help her to remember that they Gift allows her character to howl at supernatural volume, and most likely the player will come up with a use for it that you haven’t seen yet.

Some new players will happily borrow the game books and learn the rules for themselves. Most won’t. One thing that I’ve done for new players, especially for games like Werewolf and Wraith where characters can amass many different powers, is type up sheets with the powers’ names, effects, and systems, so that the players can skim them easily during play. That’s extra work for the Storyteller, sure, but the players do appreciate it.

Also, don’t let the more knowledgeable players who know the rules hog the limelight. Show preferential treatment to the new folks, listen to their ideas, and if you make a ruling against an action they want their characters to take, explain why. The position of Storyteller can be a big temptation for power-tripping (God knows I know) and you don’t want to come off that way. Try to appear impartial and fair, which might require you to justify your rulings more than usual to the new players.

New players, by the same token, should trust that the Storyteller knows what she’s doing. If you feel confused by something, ask. Don’t be afraid to halt play for a moment to ask an immediately relevant question (but if it can wait, write it down and ask afterwards rather than disrupting game play too much). Never be afraid to ask “Would my character know this?” or “Can my character do this?” (But don’t be surprised if you get “I don’t know — do you think your character would know this?” in response. The point is that you know your character better than anyone.)

Making It Easy on the Newbie

We’ve discussed a few things so far that the Storyteller can do for new players, and that new players can do for themselves, in order to make the first few sessions go well. These are reiterated below along with some other tips for both Storyteller and player.

• Solo Sessions/One-Shots: Gaming is a commitment. I’ve been altogether fortunate about finding players who understand that (but then, I’m pretty harsh on folks who flake). The new player might not want or be able to give up a night a week to join a game, but that doesn’t mean she should get the chance to try it out. Run a one-shot, perhaps with a smaller-than-usual group, so that the new player can get an idea of what’s really going on. If you commonly run a game like Mage, which is fairly intricate, it might be a good idea to switch to something simpler (like Chill) for this one-shot, just so the new player doesn’t get tossed into the deep end.

If you are going to add a new player to an ongoing game, or beginning a new chronicle with a new player, it might be a good idea to run a solo session for her. White Wolf’s games actually advocate running “Preludes” for all the characters. Preludes are a kind of flashback/history for the characters that take them from childhood (or whatever) up through the beginning of the game. I personally don’t usually run them (I prefer the questionnaire method of character history) but for a new player, they serve the dual purpose of introducing her to role-playing and fleshing out her character.

• Questions, Questions: If, as a new player, you’re unclear about something, ask. If, as the Storyteller, you need to know something about the new player’s character, ask. Keep communication lines open. I cannot stress this enough, for all players, but especially for inexperienced ones. The reason that player-Storyteller communication is so important here is that the player has a right to know anything her character would. If the player feels that asking a question would make her look stupid or that her character isn’t supposed to know anything more than she does (follow that?) the game will get bogged down as the player gets more confused. And along those lines…

• Take notes: I’ve mentioned this for the Storyteller before, but new players, take heed. Write stuff down, especially how your powers (if any) work, what the names of the other characters are, the names and functions of any NPCs you meet, and any other salient details. Really, this is good advice for all players, but I try to get them in the habit when they’re starting out. J

• Create a character you can play: If you’ve never held a gun, don’t create an assassin character right off the bat. Don’t go for the “coolest” concept you can. Create a character that you can really sink your teeth into. Think about the character first, before you start putting on any special supernatural window-dressing. I don’t advocate playing oneself as a character, but some similarity is recommended, if only because it gives you a frame of reference. For example, if you’re good with computers, it wouldn’t hurt if your character knew a thing about them, too. The more “real” your character is, the more grounded and human, the more realistic and interesting the game will seem, because you’ll be able to more easily decide how she would react to whatever strange goings-on the game encompasses.

• Keep it at the right level: This one’s for the Storytellers, and it’s a pretty subjective topic. Some players can jump right into epic, world-spanning chronicles without missing a beat. Some would rather play characters that have immediate superiors and are sent on missions, rather than given a scenario and set loose. You’ll need to gauge what kinds of player you have, and that means trying to figure out the newbies. The best way to do that is to get to know them, find out their tastes in movies and books, and again, keep the communication lines open during the game. Also, keep a firm grip on the game. If you look like you’re just blundering along, running a game with a random outcome (i.e., letting the dice think for you), you’ll lose the new players because the whole thing seems silly. If the game is a story, if it comes to a conclusion and the loose ends tie up, at least to a degree, the whole thing is so much more satisfying.

New players bring unique challenges to the tables, but also the advantage of not having a lot of preconceptions about a game (and therefore some pretty original takes on how to solve problems). Also, since they haven’t been through the same long nights of gaming that we old-timers have, we get to see that learning process all over again. Make the new players feel at home and be patient with them, and you might rewarded with the best compliment of all: A brand-new gamer saying, “I’m in for life.”

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Thanks to all of the folks who sent in suggestions and thoughts on new players and how to make their first gaming experiences better.