Tabletop, Role-Playing, Games

A tabletop role-playing game (or pen-and-paper role-playing game) is a form of <a title="Role-playing game" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Role-playing_game">role-playing game</a> (RPG) in which the participants describe their characters' actions through speech. Participants determine the actions of their characters based on their <a title="Characterization" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Characterization">characterization</a>,<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-whatis-1">[1]</a> and the actions succeed or fail according to a set <a title="Role-playing game system" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Role-playing_game_system">formal system</a> of rules and guidelines. Within the rules, players have the freedom to <a title="Improvisation" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Improvisation">improvise</a>; their choices shape the direction and outcome of the game.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-whatisnarrative-2">[2]</a>

Unlike other types of role-playing game, tabletop RPGs are often conducted like <a title="Radio drama" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio_drama">radio drama</a>: only the spoken component of a role is acted. This acting is not always literal, and players do not always speak exclusively in-character. Instead, players act out their role by deciding and describing what actions their characters will take within the rules of the game.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-Cover-3">[3]</a> In most games, a specially designated player called the <a class="mw-redirect" title="Game master" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_master">game master</a> (GM)—also known as the Dungeon Master (DM) in <a title="Dungeons & Dragons" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeons%26_Dragons">Dungeons & Dragons</a>, Referee for all <a title="Game Designers' Workshop" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_Designers%27_Workshop">Game Designers' Workshop</a> games, or Storyteller for the <a title="Storytelling System" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Storytelling_System">Storytelling System</a>—creates a <a class="mw-redirect" title="Setting (fiction)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Setting(fiction)">setting</a> in which each player plays the role of a single <a title="Player character" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Player_character">character</a>. The GM describes the game world and its inhabitants; the other players describe the intended actions of their characters, and the GM describes the outcomes. Some outcomes are determined by the game system, and some are chosen by the GM.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-whatisnarrative-2">[2]</a>

The terms pen-and-paper and tabletop are generally only used to distinguish this format of RPG from other formats, since neither pen and paper nor a table are strictly necessary.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-whatisnarrative-2">[2]</a>

<h2>Contents</h2>

<ul>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-1"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#Gameplay">1Gameplay</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-2"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#History">2History</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-3"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#Game_systems">3Game systems</a>

<ul>

<li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-4"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#Statistics">3.1Statistics</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-5"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#Character_creation">3.2Character creation</a></li>

</ul>

</li>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-6"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#Campaign_settings">4Campaign settings</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-7"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#Publishers">5Publishers</a>

<ul>

<li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-8"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#Business_models">5.1Business models</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-9"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#Indie_publishers">5.2Indie publishers</a></li>

</ul>

</li>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-11"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#References">7References</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-12"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#External_links">8External links</a></li>

</ul>

</div>

<h2>Gameplay[<a title="Edit section: Gameplay" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tabletop_role-playing_game&action=edit&section=1">edit</a>]</h2>

Most games follow the pattern established by the first published role-playing game, <a title="Dungeons & Dragons" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeons_%26_Dragons">Dungeons & Dragons</a>. Participants usually conduct the game as a small social gathering. One participant, called the Dungeon Master (DM) in Dungeons and Dragons, more commonly called the game master or GM, purchases or prepares a set of rules and a fictional setting in which players can act out the roles of their characters. This setting includes challenges for the player characters to overcome through play, such as traps to be avoided or adversaries to be fought. The full details of the setting are kept secret, but some broad details of the game world are usually given to the players. Games can be played in one session of a few hours, or across many sessions depending on the depth and complexity of the setting.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

The players each <a title="Character creation" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Character_creation">create characters</a> whose roles they will play in the game. As well as fleshing out the character's personal history and background, they assign numerical <a title="Statistic (role-playing games)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statistic_(role-playing_games)">statistics</a> to the character; these will be used later to determine the outcome of events in the game. Together, these notes tell the player about their character and his or her place in the game world.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-whatisnarrative-2">[2]</a>

Role players at the Convention Burg-Con in Berlin 2009</div>

</div>

The GM then begins the game by introducing and describing the setting and the characters. The players describe their characters' actions, and the GM responds by describing the outcome of those actions. Usually, these outcomes are determined by the setting and the GM's common sense; most actions are straightforward and immediately successful.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-whatisnarrative-2">[2]</a> For example, if a player has their character look around a room, the GM will describe the room; if they have their character leave, the GM will describe whatever they encounter outside the room.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

The outcomes of some actions are determined by the rules of the game. For example, while looking around the room, a character may or may not notice an important object or secret doorway, depending on the character's powers of perception. This usually involves rolling dice, and comparing the number rolled to their character's statistics to see whether the action was successful. Typically, the higher the character's score in a particular attribute, the higher their probability of success. Combat is resolved in a similar manner, depending on the character's combat skills and physical attributes. In some game systems, characters can increase their attribute scores during the course of the game (or over multiple games) as the result of experience gained. There are alternate game systems which are <a title="Diceless role-playing game" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diceless_role-playing_game">diceless</a>, or use alternate forms of randomization, such as the non-numerical dice of <a title="Fudge (role-playing game system)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fudge_(role-playing_game_system)">Fudge</a> or a <a title="Jenga" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jenga">Jenga</a> tower.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-4">[4]</a>

Games are of indefinite length, from a single brief session (usually completed in a few hours) to a series of repeated sessions that may continue for years with an evolving cast of players and characters. Play is often episodic and mission-centric, with a series of challenges culminating in a final puzzle or enemy that must be overcome. Multiple missions played with the same characters may be related to each other in a plot arc of escalating challenges. The exact tone, structure, pace and end (if any) vary from game to game depending on the needs and preferences of the players.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

<h2>History[<a title="Edit section: History" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tabletop_role-playing_game&action=edit&section=2">edit</a>]</h2>

<div class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a title="History of role-playing games" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_role-playing_games">History of role-playing games</a></div>

Tabletop role-playing games have origins in <a class="mw-redirect" title="Wargaming" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wargaming">wargaming</a>, which has roots in ancient <a title="Strategy game" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strategy_game">strategy games</a>, particularly <a title="Chess" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess">Chess</a>, (which originated from the <a class="mw-redirect" title="Ancient India" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_India">ancient Indian</a> game <a title="Chaturanga" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaturanga">Chaturanga</a>). From the late 18th century to the 19th century, <a class="mw-redirect" title="Chess variants" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess_variants">chess variants</a> evolved into modern wargames, most notably <a class="mw-redirect" title="Kriegsspiel (wargame)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kriegsspiel_(wargame)">Kriegsspiel</a>.

Over a century later, the <a class="mw-redirect" title="Miniature wargame" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miniature_wargame">miniature wargame</a> <a title="Chainmail (game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chainmail(game)">Chainmail</a>, released in 1971, eventually became the basis for <a title="Dungeons & Dragons" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeons%26_Dragons">Dungeons & Dragons</a>.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-peterson-5">[5]</a><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-virginia-6">[6]</a>

According to RPG designer <a title="John Wick (game designer)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wick(game_designer)">John Wick</a>, Chess can be turned into a role-playing game if <a title="Chess piece" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess_piece">chess pieces</a> such as the <a title="King (chess)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King(chess)">king</a>, <a title="Queen (chess)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen(chess)">queen</a>, <a title="Rook (chess)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rook(chess)">rooks</a>, <a title="Knight (chess)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knight(chess)">knights</a> or <a title="Pawn (chess)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pawn(chess)">pawns</a> are given names, and decisions are made based on their motivations. According to Wick, Dungeons & Dragons was a "sophisticated, intricate and complicated combat simulation board game that people were turning into a roleplaying game" just "like giving your rook a motive" in Chess.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-7">[7]</a>

The assumption of roles was a central theme in some early 20th century activities such as the game <a title="Jury Box (game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jury_Box(game)">Jury Box</a>, mock trials, model legislatures, and "Theatre Games". In the 1960s, <a title="Historical reenactment" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_reenactment">historical reenactment</a> groups such as <a title="The Sealed Knot (reenactment)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sealed_Knot(reenactment)">The Sealed Knot</a> and the <a title="Society for Creative Anachronism" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Society_for_Creative_Anachronism">Society for Creative Anachronism</a> began to perform "creative history" reenactments introducing fantasy elements, and in the 1970s <a title="Fantasy wargame" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fantasy_wargame">fantasy wargames</a> were developed, inspired by <a title="Sword and sorcery" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sword_and_sorcery">sword and sorcery</a> fiction, in which each player controlled only a single unit, or "character". The earlier role-playing tradition was combined with the wargames' rule-based character representation to form the first role-playing games.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-rpgoverview-8">[8]</a><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-wherewevebeen-9">[9]</a>

<a title="Dungeons & Dragons" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeons%26_Dragons">Dungeons & Dragons</a>, developed in 1974 by <a title="Dave Arneson" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Arneson">Dave Arneson</a> and <a class="mw-redirect" title="E. Gary Gygax" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E.Gary_Gygax">E. Gary Gygax</a> and published by Gygax's company, <a class="mw-redirect" title="TSR, Inc." href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TSR,_Inc.">TSR</a>, was the first commercially available role-playing game. TSR marketed the game as a niche product. Gygax expected to sell about 50,000 copies total to a strictly hobbyist market.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-gygaxinterview-10">[10]</a> After establishing itself in boutique stores, it developed a strong, lasting fan base.

One of the first original role-playing games was <a title="M. A. R. Barker" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M.A.R.Barker">M. A. R. Barker</a>'s <a title="Empire of the Petal Throne" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empire_of_the_Petal_Throne">Empire of the Petal Throne</a>, first published in 1974, the same year as Dungeons & Dragons. It introduced the fictional world of <a title="Tékumel" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T%C3%A9kumel">Tékumel</a>, influenced by <a title="List of mythologies" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mythologies#South_Asia">Indian</a>, <a class="mw-redirect mw-disambig" title="Middle Eastern mythology (disambiguation)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Eastern_mythology(disambiguation)">Middle-Eastern</a>, <a title="Egyptian mythology" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian_mythology">Egyptian</a> and <a title="List of mythologies" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mythologies#Mesoamerica">Meso-American</a> <a class="mw-redirect" title="Mythology" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mythology">mythology</a>.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-wired-11">[11]</a> It also introduced the game mechanic of <a title="Critical hit" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Critical_hit">critical hits</a>.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-12">[12]</a> Using these rules a player who rolls a 20 on a 20 sided die does double the normal damage, and a 20 followed by a 19 or 20 counts as a killing blow. According to creator Barker, "this simulates the 'lucky hit' on a vital organ."<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-13">[13]</a> The game influenced Arneson and Gygax, who was so impressed with it that his company TSR published Empire of the Petal Throne in 1975.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-wired-11">[11]</a> TSR published Barker's game and setting as a standalone game, rather than as a "supplement" to the original D&D rules.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-14">[14]</a>

Another early game was <a title="Traveller (role-playing game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traveller(role-playing_game)">Traveller</a>, designed by <a class="mw-redirect" title="Marc W. Miller" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marc_W.Miller">Marc Miller</a> and first published in 1977 by <a class="mw-redirect" title="Game Designer's Workshop" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_Designer%27s_Workshop">Game Designer's Workshop</a>. This was originally intended to be a system for playing generic space-opera-themed science-fiction adventures (in the same sense that Dungeons & Dragons was a system for generic fantasy adventures), but an optional setting called "the <a class="mw-redirect" title="Third Imperium" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_Imperium">Third Imperium</a>" that was detailed in subsequent supplements became strongly identified with the game. The changes in this setting over time, especially those involving "the Fifth Frontier War" as depicted in the <a title="Journal of the Travellers Aid Society" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Journal_of_the_Travellers_Aid_Society">Journal of the Travellers Aid Society</a>, arguably constitute the first use of <a title="Metaplot" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metaplot">metaplot</a> in a role-playing game.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>] Meanwhile, <a title="Call of Cthulhu (role-playing game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Call_of_Cthulhu(role-playing_game)">Call of Cthulhu</a> and <a title="Paranoia (role-playing game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paranoia(role-playing_game)">Paranoia</a> offered different role-playing experiences, in which the story arc of a group's investigation would lead to death and/or madness, or where comical infighting within a group would be expected and reinforced within the genre conventions of "a darkly humorous future". At the same time, games using the fictional worlds of <a title="Star Trek" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Trek">Star Trek</a>, <a title="DC Heroes" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DC_Heroes">DC Heroes</a>, the <a title="Marvel Universe" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvel_Universe">Marvel Universe</a> or <a title="The Lord of the Rings" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lord_of_the_Rings">The Lord of the Rings</a> expanded the range of possibilities for Table-top gaming. Games such as <a title="GURPS" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GURPS">GURPS</a> and <a title="Champions (role-playing game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Champions(role-playing_game)">Champions</a> introduced <a title="Game balance" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_balance">game balance</a> between player characters; later, <a title="Vampire: The Masquerade" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire:The_Masquerade">Vampire: The Masquerade</a> and similar games emphasized storytelling, plot and character development over rules and combat. More recently, rules innovations have combined with literary techniques to develop games such as <a title="Dogs in the Vineyard" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dogs_in_the_Vineyard">Dogs in the Vineyard</a> and <a title="Polaris (2005 role-playing game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polaris_(2005_role-playing_game)">Polaris</a> that rely on the contributions of players to enhance moral agency in a process of emergent storytelling.

Due to the game's success, the term Dungeons & Dragons has sometimes been used as a <a class="mw-redirect" title="Genericized trademark" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genericized_trademark">generic term</a> for fantasy role-playing games. TSR undertook legal action to prevent its <a title="Trademark" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trademark">trademark</a> from becoming generic.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-15">[15]</a> Dungeons & Dragons was a subject of <a title="Dungeons & Dragons controversies" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeons_%26_Dragons_controversies">controversy</a> in the 1980s when opponents such as <a title="Patricia Pulling" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patricia_Pulling">Patricia Pulling</a> claimed it caused negative spiritual and psychological effects. Academic research has discredited these claims.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-cardwell-16">[16]</a> Some educators support role-playing games as a healthy way to hone reading and arithmetic skills.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-kestrel-17">[17]</a> Though role-playing has been generally accepted in society,<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-cgg-18">[18]</a> the subject retains a level of controversy among some religious organizations.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-chick-19">[19]</a><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-watchman-20">[20]</a> This belief or attitude is by no means universal among religious organizations; there are faith-based role-playing games on the market<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-holy_lands-21">[21]</a> and religious role-players who disagree that these games are morally corrupt or occult in nature.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-christian_gamers-22">[22]</a>

Competition from <a title="Role-playing video game" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Role-playing_video_game">role-playing video games</a> and <a title="Collectible card game" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collectible_card_game">collectible card games</a> led to a decline in the tabletop role-playing game industry. The financially troubled market leader <a class="mw-redirect" title="TSR, Inc." href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TSR,_Inc.">TSR, Inc.</a>, which had suffered financial setbacks from overproduction, was eventually purchased by <a title="Wizards of the Coast" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wizards_of_the_Coast">Wizards of the Coast</a>.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-tidwell-23">[23]</a> To better cope with the economics of role-playing games, they introduced a new regime of <a title="Open gaming" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_gaming">open gaming</a>, allowing other companies to publish D&D-compatible supplements. Meanwhile, self-defined "<a title="Indie role-playing game" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indie_role-playing_game">Indie role-playing</a>" communities arose on the internet, studying role-playing and developing several forms of <a title="Role-playing game theory" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Role-playing_game_theory">role-playing game theory</a> such as <a title="GNS theory" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNS_theory">GNS theory</a>, and critical reflection on role-playing games has become popular in Scandinavia leading even to a yearly academic conference.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

In forty years the genre has grown from a few hobbyists and boutique publishers to an economically significant part of the games industry. Grass-roots and small business involvement remains substantial while larger projects have attracted several million players worldwide. Games industry leader <a title="Hasbro" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hasbro">Hasbro</a> purchased Wizards of the Coast in 1999 for an estimated $325 million.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_note-buyout-24">[24]</a>

<h2>Game systems[<a title="Edit section: Game systems" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tabletop_role-playing_game&action=edit&section=3">edit</a>]</h2>

<tbody>

<tr>

</td>

<div class="mbox-text-span">This section does not <a title="Wikipedia:Citing sources" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources">cite</a> any <a title="Wikipedia:Verifiability" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability">sources</a>. Please help <a class="external text" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tabletop_role-playing_game&action=edit">improve this section</a> by <a title="Help:Introduction to referencing with Wiki Markup/1" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Introduction_to_referencing_with_Wiki_Markup/1">adding citations to reliable sources</a>. Unsourced material may be challenged and <a title="Wikipedia:Verifiability" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability#Burden_of_evidence">removed</a>. (March 2014) (<a title="Help:Maintenance template removal" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal">Learn how and when to remove this template message</a>)</div>

</td>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

<div class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a title="Role-playing game system" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Role-playing_game_system">Role-playing game system</a></div>

Role-players at a small convention</div>

</div>

The set of rules of a role-playing game is known as its game system; the rules themselves are known as <a title="Game mechanics" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_mechanics">game mechanics</a>. Although there are game systems which are shared by many games, for example the <a class="mw-redirect" title="D20 system" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D20_system">d20 system</a>, many games have their own, custom rules system.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

Most role-playing games require the participation of a <a title="Gamemaster" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamemaster">gamemaster</a> (GM), who creates a setting for the game session, portrays most of its inhabitants, known as <a class="mw-redirect" title="Non-player characters" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-player_characters">non-player characters</a> (NPCs) and acts as the moderator and rules arbitrator for the players. The rest of the participants create and play inhabitants of the game setting, known as <a title="Player character" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Player_character">player characters</a> (PCs). The player characters collectively are known as a "party".[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

During a typical game session, the GM will introduce a goal for the players to achieve through the actions of their characters. Frequently, this involves interacting with <a title="Non-player character" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-player_character">non-player characters</a>, other denizens of the game world, which are played by the GM. Many game sessions contain moments of puzzle solving, negotiation, chases, and combat. The goal may be made clear to the players at the outset, or may become clear to them during the course of a game.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

Some games, such as <a title="Polaris (2005 role-playing game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polaris_(2005_role-playing_game)">Polaris</a> and <a title="Primetime Adventures" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primetime_Adventures">Primetime Adventures</a>, have distributed the authority of the GM to different players and to different degrees. This technique is often used to ensure that all players are involved in producing a situation that is interesting and that conflicts of interest suffered by the GM are avoided on a systemic level.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

Game rules determine the success or failure of a character's actions. Many game systems use weighted <a title="Statistic (role-playing games)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statistic_(role-playing_games)">statistics</a> and <a title="Dice notation" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dice_notation">dice rolls</a> or other random elements. In most systems, the GM uses the rules to determine a target number though often the targets are determined in a more principled fashion. The player rolls dice, trying to get a result either more than or less than the target number, depending on the game system. Not all games determine successes randomly, however; an early and popular game without random elements is <a title="Amber Diceless Roleplaying Game" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amber_Diceless_Roleplaying_Game">Amber Diceless Roleplaying Game</a> by <a title="Erick Wujcik" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erick_Wujcik">Erick Wujcik</a> (1990).[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

Most systems are tied to the setting of the game they feature in. However, some <a class="mw-redirect" title="Universal role-playing game system" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_role-playing_game_system">universal role-playing game systems</a> can be adapted to any genre. <a title="Basic Role-Playing" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basic_Role-Playing">Basic Role-Playing</a> (1980) was the first of these, adapted from the fantasy RPG <a title="RuneQuest" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RuneQuest">RuneQuest</a>. The following year <a title="Champions (role-playing game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Champions(role-playing_game)">Champions</a> was published; it was accompanied by a number of sourcebooks w (collectively called the <a title="Hero System" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero_System">Hero System</a>) allowing play in a wide range of genres. The d20 system, based on the third edition of <a title="Dungeons & Dragons" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeons%26_Dragons">Dungeons & Dragons</a>, was used in many modern or science fiction game settings such as <a title="Spycraft" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spycraft">Spycraft</a> and the <a title="Star Wars Roleplaying Game (Wizards of the Coast)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars_Roleplaying_Game_(Wizards_of_the_Coast)">Star Wars Roleplaying Game</a>.

In practice, even universal systems are often biased toward a specific style or genre and adaptable to others. For example, although the d20 system has sourcebooks for <a title="D20 Modern" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D20_Modern">modern</a> and <a title="D20 Future" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D20_Future">futuristic</a> settings, most published d20 system material stays within Dungeons & Dragons' <a class="mw-redirect" title="Hack-and-slash" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hack-and-slash">combat-focused fantasy</a> milieu.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

<h3>Statistics[<a title="Edit section: Statistics" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tabletop_role-playing_game&action=edit&section=4">edit</a>]</h3>

<tbody>

<tr>

<div><a id="a13953a5-6639-4049-ab62-e0e4ad7f866a" class="brain-processing" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png">https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png</a></div>

</td>

</td>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

<div class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a title="Statistic (role-playing games)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statistic_(role-playing_games)">Statistic (role-playing games)</a></div>

Statistics recorded on a character sheet</div>

</div>

Characters in role-playing games are usually represented by a number of statistics. Statistics are an abstract measure of how successful a character is likely to be at a class of tasks. Many game systems make distinctions between two key types of statistic: <a class="mw-redirect" title="Attribute (roleplaying games)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attribute(roleplaying_games)">attributes</a> and <a class="mw-redirect" title="Skill (roleplaying games)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skill(roleplaying_games)">skills</a>. Some, such as <a class="mw-redirect" title="Burning Wheel" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burning_Wheel">Burning Wheel</a> and <a title="The Shadow of Yesterday" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shadow_of_Yesterday">The Shadow of Yesterday</a> include character motivations among these resources. These names are not at all consistent across different games, however.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

Attributes are statistics all characters possess: strength, agility, and intelligence are common examples. These are ranked, often on a numeric scale, so that a player can gauge the character's capabilities. For example, a character's strength rating could be used to determine the likelihood that the character can lift a certain weight.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

Skills are abilities that only some characters possess, such as negotiation, horseback riding, and marksmanship. Game systems often define skills that are genre-appropriate. For example, fantasy settings generally include <a title="Magic (gaming)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_(gaming)">magic</a> skills, while science-fiction settings may contain <a title="Spacecraft" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spacecraft">spaceship</a> piloting skills. However, some skills are found in several genres: a medieval rogue and a Wild West outlaw may both be very proficient at throwing knives, and a skill labeled "diplomacy" may benefit ancient Roman patricians or industrial tycoons of the 19th century equally well.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

Character motivations are things that the character will fight for. <a title="The Riddle of Steel" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Riddle_of_Steel">The Riddle of Steel</a>'s Spiritual Attributes, <a class="mw-redirect" title="Burning Wheel" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burning_Wheel">Burning Wheel</a>'s Beliefs and <a title="The Shadow of Yesterday" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shadow_of_Yesterday">The Shadow of Yesterday</a>'s Keys are such features. They might reveal secrets the character has kept, aspirations they hold, or other characters they care about.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

<h3>Character creation[<a title="Edit section: Character creation" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tabletop_role-playing_game&action=edit&section=5">edit</a>]</h3>

<tbody>

<tr>

</td>

</td>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

<div class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a title="Character creation" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Character_creation">Character creation</a></div>

Before play begins, players develop a concept of the role they would like to play in the game. They then use the game system's character creation rules to form a representation of their characters, in terms of game mechanics. The character's statistics are recorded on a special-purpose form called a <a title="Character sheet" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Character_sheet">character sheet</a>. Some systems, such as that of <a title="Feng Shui (role-playing game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feng_Shui_(role-playing_game)">Feng Shui</a>, require characters to choose from a set of pre-built template characters with only a small amount of customization allowed. Others, like the <a title="D20 System" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D20_System">d20 System</a>, use <a title="Character class" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Character_class">character classes</a> to define most character concepts, but allow some freedom with the statistics within those classes. Still others, such as <a title="GURPS" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GURPS">GURPS</a>, allow the player to create their own character concepts by freely assigning statistics.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

Game statistics are not a substitute for a character concept. For example, one Wild West gunfighter may become a quick drawing revolver marksman, whereas another with similar game statistics could be a mounted rifle expert.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>] Many systems take this into account, requiring statistics to be described, such as <a title="Dogs in the Vineyard" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dogs_in_the_Vineyard">Dogs in the Vineyard</a>'s Traits and Possessions.

Template-based systems have the advantage of easy and quick character creation. It also provides the GM with the means to spend less time approving each character for play. The sacrifice is in flexibility and concept. Templates are essentially pre-built characters that are balanced against each other and pre-approved by the game companies.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

Class-based systems give slightly more freedom but still require a player to choose from a set number of roles for their character. The character's powers are generally set by the character class, but the specific statistics are assigned by the player.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

<a class="mw-redirect" title="Character point" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Character_point">Character point</a>-based systems, such as <a title="Hero System" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero_System">Hero System</a>, allow complete freedom of concept. The downside is that, in many cases, character creation is much more complex, making the GM spend a lot more time examining and approving each character concept.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

A few games allow free-form character creation. Characteristics are simply assigned as a player sees fit, and the final result is submitted to the GM or group for approval. Free-form character creation can be implemented in any game system, but is only rarely the prescribed or assumed method.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

<h2>Campaign settings[<a title="Edit section: Campaign settings" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tabletop_role-playing_game&action=edit&section=6">edit</a>]</h2>

<tbody>

<tr>

</td>

</td>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

<div class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a title="Campaign setting" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Campaign_setting">Campaign setting</a></div>

Each game has a <a class="mw-redirect" title="Setting (fiction)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Setting(fiction)">setting</a> in which <a title="Adventure (role-playing games)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adventure(role-playing_games)">adventures</a> and <a class="mw-redirect" title="Campaign (role-playing game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Campaign(role-playing_game)">campaigns</a> can take place. Usually a campaign setting is designed for a specific game (such as the <a title="Forgotten Realms" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forgotten_Realms">Forgotten Realms</a> setting for <a title="Dungeons & Dragons" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeons%26_Dragons">Dungeons & Dragons</a>) or a specific genre of game (such as Medieval fantasy, <a title="World War II" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II">World War II</a>, or outer space/science fiction adventure). There are numerous campaign settings available both in print and online. In addition to published campaign settings available for purchase, many <a class="mw-redirect" title="Game master" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_master">game masters</a> create their own.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

Campaign settings exist for almost all <a title="Genre fiction" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genre_fiction">genres of fiction</a>; however, because the world's most popular role-playing game, <a title="Dungeons & Dragons" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dungeons_%26_Dragons">Dungeons & Dragons</a>, is part of the fantasy genre, fantasy is also the most played role-playing genre. RPGs of the fantasy genre are sometimes collectively called "Fantasy role-playing games" ("FRP").[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

The use of the term "world" in describing a campaign setting is loose, at best. Campaign worlds such as the <a class="mw-redirect" title="World of Greyhawk" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_of_Greyhawk">World of Greyhawk</a> detail entire cosmologies and time-lines of thousands of years, while the setting of a game such as <a title="Deadlands" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deadlands">Deadlands</a> might only describe one nation within a brief segment of <a title="Alternate history" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternate_history">alternate history</a>.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

There are three primary types of campaign setting. The first exists in <a title="Genre" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genre">genre</a>- and setting-specific role-playing games such as <a title="Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warhammer_Fantasy_Roleplay">Warhammer</a> or <a title="World of Darkness" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_of_Darkness">World of Darkness</a> which exist specifically within one setting. The second type of setting is for games that have multiple settings such as modern Dungeons & Dragons or those that were developed specifically to be independent of setting such as <a title="GURPS" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GURPS">GURPS</a>. The final type of setting is developed without being tied to a particular game system. Typically this last sort are developed first as stand-alone works of fiction, which are later adapted to one or more role playing systems such as the <a title="Star Wars" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars">Star Wars</a> universe or <a title="Middle-earth" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle-earth">Middle-earth</a>.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

The range of genres represented by published settings is vast, and includes nearly all genres of fiction. While role-playing's roots began in <a title="Fantasy" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fantasy">fantasy</a>, <a title="Science fiction" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Science_fiction">science fiction</a> has been used in settings such as <a title="Traveller (role-playing game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traveller(role-playing_game)">Traveller</a>, <a title="Horror fiction" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horror_fiction">horror</a> formed the baseline of the World of Darkness and <a title="Call of Cthulhu (role-playing game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Call_of_Cthulhu(role-playing_game)">Call of Cthulhu</a> while <a title="Spycraft" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spycraft">Spycraft</a> was based in modern-day <a title="Spy fiction" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spy_fiction">spy thriller</a>-oriented settings. The comic book and superhero genres have been utilized for games such as <a class="mw-redirect" title="Mutants and Masterminds" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutants_and_Masterminds">Mutants and Masterminds</a>.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

A number of campaign settings have fused multiple genres into a single game[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]. <a title="Shadowrun" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shadowrun">Shadowrun</a> combined fantasy with <a title="Cyberpunk" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyberpunk">Cyberpunk</a>, <a title="Castle Falkenstein (role-playing game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castle_Falkenstein(role-playing_game)">Castle Falkenstein</a> drew on fantasy and <a title="Steampunk" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steampunk">Steampunk</a> elements, and <a title="Torg" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torg">Torg</a> mashed up fantasy, science fiction, pulp and horror elements. Meanwhile, <a title="Feng Shui (role-playing game)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feng_Shui(role-playing_game)">Feng Shui</a> combined Chinese historical fantasy with Kung Fu action tropes and <a title="Dystopia" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dystopia">dystopian</a> science fiction. In <a title="GURPS Infinite Worlds" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GURPS_Infinite_Worlds">GURPS Infinite Worlds</a>, the characters play "Infinity Patrol" agents who travel to <a class="mw-redirect" title="Parallel universe (fiction)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parallel_universe_(fiction)">alternate worlds</a>, some if which include fantasy or steampunk as well as science fiction elements.

<h2>Publishers[<a title="Edit section: Publishers" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tabletop_role-playing_game&action=edit&section=7">edit</a>]</h2>

<div class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a class="mw-redirect" title="List of publishers of role-playing games" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_publishers_of_role-playing_games">List of publishers of role-playing games</a></div>

<tbody>

<tr>

</td>

<div class="mbox-text-span">This section needs to be updated. Please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (January 2018)</div>

</td>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

The largest publisher of role-playing games is <a title="Wizards of the Coast" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wizards_of_the_Coast">Wizards of the Coast</a>, a wholly owned subsidiary of <a title="Hasbro" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hasbro">Hasbro</a> and publisher of Dungeons & Dragons, the D20 Star Wars RPG, and a number of smaller D20 titles. Most analysts give <a title="White Wolf Publishing" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Wolf_Publishing">White Wolf</a> the second largest industry market share, and the highest share in live-action games. Most role-playing game publishers are privately held companies and do not release sales figures, making precise estimates difficult. There has been no publicly available, systematic examination of point of sale data, limiting further estimates to a rough consensus between industry analysts whose conclusions are often controversial.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>]

Market research conducted at Wizards of the Coast in 1999-2000 indicated that more than 1.5 million people played D&D on a monthly basis, and about 2 million people played all tabletop RPGs combined on a monthly basis. The success of the 3rd Edition of Dungeons & Dragons likely resulted in an increase in those totals.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>] These figures for play are substantially larger than the figures for sales. In 2006, non-Dungeons & Dragons tabletop RPGs in the upper echelons of sales typically generated between five and ten thousand unit sales. Most commercially published RPGs are <a title="Small press" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Small_press">small press</a> products, having less than a thousand units sold.[<a title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed</a>] The technology of <a title="Print on demand" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Print_on_demand">print on demand</a> is strongly used in RPGs, since it reduces run costs for the typical small print runs.

<h3>Business models[<a title="Edit section: Business models" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tabletop_role-playing_game&action=edit&section=8">edit</a>]</h3>

<tbody>

<tr>

</td>

</td>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

Role-playing games are produced under a variety of <a title="Business model" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_model">business models</a>, which succeed or fail based on those models' objectives. The smallest viable businesses are one person companies that produce games using <a title="Print on demand" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Print_on_demand">print on demand</a> and <a title="E-book" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-book">e-book</a> technologies. Most of these companies provide a secondary income for their owner-operators. Many of these businesses employ <a class="mw-redirect" title="Freelancers" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freelancers">freelancers</a>, but some do not; their owners complete every aspect of the product. Larger companies may have a small office staff that manages publishing, brand development and freelance work. Guided by a developer/manager, freelancers produce most of a game line's content according to a central plan. Finally, a few companies (such as Wizards of the Coast and <a title="Mongoose Publishing" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongoose_Publishing">Mongoose Publishing</a>) maintain an in-house writing and design staff.

The standard business model for successful RPGs relies on multiple sales avenues:

<ul>

<li>the so-called <a class="mw-redirect" title="Three-tier (alcohol distribution)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-tier(alcohol_distribution)">three-tier distribution model</a>, under which the company sells products to distributors who in turn sell the products to retailers who sell to customers. This is traditionally divided into the hobby trade (used by the majority of print publishers) and the book trade (viable for a smaller number of companies able to absorb returns and provide sufficiently large print runs). The industry consensus is that hobby retail sales have greatly declined, with the balance of hobby games sales moving from RPGs to <a class="mw-redirect" title="Miniature figure (gaming)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miniature_figure(gaming)">miniatures</a> games and <a class="mw-redirect" title="Collectible card games" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collectible_card_games">collectible card games</a></li>

<li>direct sales via the internet, through an online retailer or through the company's own electric storefront.</li>

<li>electronic sales and distribution, either without any physical product at all (e-books) or through a <a title="Print on demand" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Print_on_demand">POD</a> service. Once limited to small companies, this sales venue is now employed by publishers of all sizes.</li>

<li>attendance at conventions and events; this is particularly common among live-action games.</li>

</ul>

Typically, RPG publishers have a very long life cycle once they manage to generate an initial successful game. TSR, the initial publisher of Dungeons & Dragons was an independent entity until 1997 when it was acquired by Wizards of the Coast, who was subsequently acquired by Hasbro in 1999. Many of TSR's contemporaries remain in business as independent publishers. The core design group of a publisher is often kept as a team within the new company for the purposes of continuity and productivity, though <a class="mw-redirect" title="Layoffs" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Layoffs">layoffs</a> are common after such mergers and acquisitions. For example, Wizards of the Coast experienced multiple layoffs in the wake of acquiring <a title="Last Unicorn Games" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Last_Unicorn_Games">Last Unicorn Games</a> and after its own acquisition by <a title="Hasbro" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hasbro">Hasbro</a>.

<h3>Indie publishers[<a title="Edit section: Indie publishers" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tabletop_role-playing_game&action=edit&section=9">edit</a>]</h3>

<tbody>

<tr>

</td>

</td>

</tr>

</tbody>

</table>

<div class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a title="Indie role-playing game" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indie_role-playing_game">Indie role-playing game</a></div>

Indie games are produced by a self-identified independent games community, or individuals who identify with that community. Generally they are self-published or published by a collective group of small publishers. The indie role-playing game community often produces games with signature and idiosyncratic character. Some indie publishers often eschew the three-tier distribution model and sell directly online and at <a title="Gaming convention" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaming_convention">conventions</a>, or directly to stores, but many do use distribution services. The line between "indie" publishers and "mainstream" publishers is hazy at best. Varying definitions require that commercial, design, or conceptual elements of the game stay under the control of the creator, or that the game should just be produced outside of a corporate environment, or be distributed without dependence on the industry's three-tier retail structure.

<ul>

<li><a title="Role-playing game terms" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Role-playing_game_terms">Role-playing game terms</a></li>

<li><a title="Gaming convention" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaming_convention">Gaming conventions</a></li>

<li><a class="mw-redirect" title="Timeline of role-playing games" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_role-playing_games">Timeline of role-playing games</a></li>

<li><a title="List of role-playing game artists" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_role-playing_game_artists">List of role-playing game artists</a></li>

<li><a class="mw-redirect" title="List of designers of role-playing games" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_designers_of_role-playing_games">List of designers of role-playing games</a></li>

<li><a class="mw-redirect" title="List of publishers of role-playing games" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_publishers_of_role-playing_games">List of publishers of role-playing games</a></li>

<li><a class="mw-redirect" title="List of role-playing games by name" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_role-playing_games_by_name">List of role-playing games by name</a></li>

<li><a class="mw-redirect" title="List of role-playing games by genre" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_role-playing_games_by_genre">List of role-playing games by genre</a></li>

<li><a title="List of campaign settings" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_campaign_settings">List of campaign settings</a></li>

<li><a title="Polish role-playing games" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_role-playing_games">Polish role-playing games</a></li>

<li><a class="mw-redirect" title="Japanese role-playing games" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_role-playing_games">Japanese role-playing games</a></li>

</ul>

<h2>References[<a title="Edit section: References" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tabletop_role-playing_game&action=edit&section=11">edit</a>]</h2>

<li id="cite_note-whatis-1"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-whatis_1-0">^{</a> }<cite class="citation web">Kim, John. <a class="external text" href="http://www.darkshire.net/_{jhkim/rpg/whatis/}" rel="nofollow">"What is a Role-Playing Game?"</a>. Retrieved 2008-09-09.</cite></li>

<li id="cite_note-whatisnarrative-2">^ <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-whatisnarrative_2-0">Jump up to:a</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-whatisnarrative_2-1">b</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-whatisnarrative_2-2">c</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-whatisnarrative_2-3">d</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-whatisnarrative_2-4">e</a> <cite class="citation web">Kim, John. <a class="external text" href="http://www.darkshire.net/_{jhkim/rpg/whatis/tabletop.html}" rel="nofollow">""Narrative" or "Tabletop" RPGs"</a>. Retrieved 2008-09-09.</cite></li>

<li id="cite_note-Cover-3"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-Cover_3-0">^{</a> }<cite class="citation book">Cover, Jennifer Grouling (2010). The Creation of Narrative in Tabletop Role-Playing Games. McFarland & Company. p. 6. <a title="International Standard Book Number" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Standard_Book_Number">ISBN</a> <a title="Special:BookSources/978-0-7864-4451-9" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-7864-4451-9"><bdi>978-0-7864-4451-9</bdi></a>. <q>As suggested by the name, TRPGs are played face-to-face (around a table, most likely), and involve players 'acting out' a role. This acting is not always literal. Players do not arrive in costume or speak exclusively in-character — something that differentiates TRPGs from live-action role-playing games (LARPs). Instead, players develop characters based on certain rules and are responsible for deciding what those characters do over the course of the game.</q></cite></li>

<li id="cite_note-4"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-4">^{</a> }<cite class="citation"><a class="external text" href="http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/13/13186.phtml" rel="nofollow">Review of Dread</a>, rpgnet</cite></li>

<li id="cite_note-peterson-5"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-peterson_5-0">^{</a> }Jon Peterson (2012), <a class="external text" href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=syNzMAEACAAJ" rel="nofollow">Playing at the World: A History of Simulating Wars, People and Fantastic Adventures, from Chess to Role-Playing Games</a></li>

<li id="cite_note-virginia-6"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-virginia_6-0">^{</a> }<a class="external text" href="http://faculty.virginia.edu/setear/students/wargames/page1a.htm" rel="nofollow">Brief History of Wargaming</a>, <a title="University of Virginia" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Virginia">University of Virginia</a></li>

<li id="cite_note-7"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-7">^{</a> }<a title="John Wick (game designer)" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wick_(game_designer)">John Wick</a>, <a class="external text" href="http://johnwickpresents.com/games/game-designs/chess-is-not-an-rpg-the-illusion-of-game-balance/" rel="nofollow">Chess is not an RPG: The Illusion of Game Balance</a>, John Wick Presents (October 1, 2014)</li>

<li id="cite_note-rpgoverview-8"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-rpgoverview_8-0">^{</a> }<cite class="citation web"><a title="Andrew Rilstone" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Rilstone">Rilstone, Andrew</a> (1994). <a class="external text" href="http://www.rpg.net/oracle/essays/rpgoverview.html" rel="nofollow">"Role-Playing Games: An Overview"</a>. RPGnet. Retrieved 2006-09-01.</cite></li>

<li id="cite_note-wherewevebeen-9"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-wherewevebeen_9-0">^{</a> }<cite class="citation web"><a class="external text" href="http://www.rpg.net/oracle/essays/wherewevebeen.html" rel="nofollow">"Where we've been and where we're going"</a>.</cite>: "Generation 1" games</li>

<li id="cite_note-gygaxinterview-10"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-gygaxinterview_10-0">^{</a> }<cite class="citation web">Sacco, Ciro Alessandro (2004-03-04). <a class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20040530091430/http://atlasofadventure.com/Archive/gygaxinterview.asp" rel="nofollow">"The Ultimate Interview with Gary Gygax"</a>. Atlas of Adventure. Archived from <a class="external text" href="http://atlasofadventure.com/Archive/gygaxinterview.asp" rel="nofollow">the original</a> on 2004-05-30.</cite></li>

<li id="cite_note-wired-11">^ <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-wired_11-0">Jump up to:a</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-wired_11-1">b</a> <a class="external free" href="https://www.wired.com/2012/03/lost-tolkien-m-a-r-barker/" rel="nofollow">https://www.wired.com/2012/03/lost-tolkien-m-a-r-barker/</a></li>

<li id="cite_note-12"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-12">^{</a> }<cite class="citation web">Slack, Andy (April 4, 2012). <a class="external text" href="https://andyslack.wordpress.com/2012/04/04/review-empire-of-the-petal-throne/" rel="nofollow">"Review: Empire of the Petal Throne"</a>. Halfway Station. Retrieved 28 January 2017.</cite></li>

<li id="cite_note-13"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-13">^{</a> }M.A.R. Barker, Empire of the Petal Throne, p34.</li>

<li id="cite_note-14"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-14">^{</a> }<cite class="citation web"><a class="external text" href="https://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wizards.com%2Fdnd%2FDnDArchives_History.asp&date=2008-10-04" rel="nofollow">"The History of TSR"</a>. <a title="Wizards of the Coast" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wizards_of_the_Coast">Wizards of the Coast</a>. Archived from <a class="external text" href="http://www.wizards.com/dnd/DnDArchives_History.asp" rel="nofollow">the original</a> on 2008-10-04. Retrieved 2005-08-20.</cite></li>

<li id="cite_note-15"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-15">^{</a> }<a class="external text" href="http://www.darkshire.net/jhkim/rpg/copyright/cases/tsr_vs_mayfair.html" rel="nofollow">TSR, Inc. v. Mayfair Games, Inc.</a>, No. 91 C 0417 (1993).</li>

<li id="cite_note-cardwell-16"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-cardwell_16-0">^{</a> }<a class="external text" href="http://www.rpgstudies.net/cardwell/attacks.html" rel="nofollow">The Attacks on Roleplaying Games</a> - originally from the Skeptical Inquirer</li>

<li id="cite_note-kestrel-17"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-kestrel_17-0">^{</a> }<a class="external text" href="http://www.newhorizons.org/strategies/literacy/kestrel.htm" rel="nofollow">An educator's opinion of role-playing games</a></li>

<li id="cite_note-cgg-18"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-cgg_18-0">^{</a> }<a class="external text" href="http://www.christian-gamers-guild.org/" rel="nofollow">Christian Gamers Guild</a> explaining that one may be Christian and a role-player at the same time</li>

<li id="cite_note-chick-19"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-chick_19-0">^{</a> }"<a class="external text" href="http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0046/0046_01.asp" rel="nofollow">Dark Dungeons</a>", a <a title="Jack Chick" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Chick">Jack Chick</a> comic tract portraying D&D as the "Filth of Satan" and promoting <a title="Book burning" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_burning">book burning</a></li>

<li id="cite_note-watchman-20"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-watchman_20-0">^{</a> }<cite class="citation"><a class="external text" href="http://www.watchman.org/occult/frpgames2.htm" rel="nofollow">"Games: Fantasy or Reality?"</a>, The Watchman Expositor, <a title="Watchman Fellowship" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watchman_Fellowship">Watchman Fellowship ministry</a>, 15 (6), 1998</cite> - article denouncing role-playing games as cult activity</li>

<li id="cite_note-holy_lands-21"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-holy_lands_21-0">^{</a> }"<a class="external text" href="http://www.holylands.net/" rel="nofollow">Holy Lands</a>", a Christian role-playing game</li>

<li id="cite_note-christian_gamers-22"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-christian_gamers_22-0">^{</a> }"<a class="external text" href="http://www.mjyoung.net/dungeon/confess.html" rel="nofollow">Confessions of a D&D Addict</a>", an article refuting RPG's occult nature</li>

<li id="cite_note-tidwell-23"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-tidwell_23-0">^{</a> }<a class="external text" href="http://www.gamecabinet.com/news/TSRWotC.html" rel="nofollow">Wizards of the Coast to acquire TSR</a>, Ken Tidwell April 10, 1997</li>

<li id="cite_note-buyout-24"><a title="Jump up" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabletop_role-playing_game#cite_ref-buyout_24-0">^{</a> }<a class="external text" href="http://boardgames.about.com/library/news/bl990911.htm" rel="nofollow">WotC buyout by Hasbro</a> at about.com</li>

</ol>

</div>

<h2>External links[<a title="Edit section: External links" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tabletop_role-playing_game&action=edit&section=12">edit</a>]</h2>

<ul>

<li><a class="external text" href="https://curlie.org/Games/Roleplaying" rel="nofollow">Tabletop role-playing game</a> at <a class="mw-redirect" title="Curlie" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curlie">Curlie</a></li>

<li><a class="external text" href="http://www.pen-paper.net/rpgdb.php" rel="nofollow">Pen & Paper</a> - RPG database</li>

<li><a class="external text" href="http://rpg.net/" rel="nofollow">RPG.Net</a> - RPG community and database</li>

</ul>

</div>

<div id="mw-normal-catlinks" class="mw-normal-catlinks"><a title="Help:Category" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Category">Categories</a>:

<ul>

<li><a title="Category:Role-playing games" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Role-playing_games">Role-playing games</a></li>

<li><a title="Category:Role-playing" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Role-playing">Role-playing</a></li>

<li><a title="Category:Tabletop games" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Tabletop_games">Tabletop games</a></li>

</ul>

</div>

Tabletop, Role-Playing, Games

Attachments