02/20/2012
Common Role Playing Terms according to Victoriana 2nd Edition
Campaign
A series of scenarios linked together with a common theme or possibly by the presence of the same characters. Campaigns are the most common and most rewarding type of game to play as they allow characters to progress through skill and attribute increases.
Character
The fictional persona that a player will control during the game. A player’s character is called a PC. Often a Gamemaster will add characters to a party as extras; maybe a mountain guide, or a character with skills the player characters will need for a scenario but do not possess. Such a Gamemaster controlled character is called a non-player character or NPC.
Gamemaster
The overworked storyteller who writes the adventure for the players’ characters to mill about in. The Gamemaster has the final say in all rules related decisions.
Girlfriend
A while ago there were plenty of gamers who needed a definition of this term. Thankfully, this isn’t so much the case anymore, and plenty of women in this enlightened age play the game too. A good few of these ladies are also playing the games without the company of a gentleman. However, gaming bachelors should remember that ‘single’ does not always mean ‘available’. If the girlfriend is going out with the GM, she should be treated with great care, as she wields great potential power over the game world! However, plenty of women are the ones
running the games and even introducing their boyfriends to the hobby. So to help differentiate between them, the writing in this book assumes the Gamemaster is female and the players are male.
Munchkin
There are a few definitions of this type of player. However, essentially, it is someone who sees their character only in terms of their stats. They provide no background or characterisation and just want to get the most stuff and the highest rank, rating success purely by the level of their character’s statistics. They make very, very boring players to adventure with.
Party
Not a disco or drinking frenzy, but the term used to denote a group of characters.
Player
For every Gamemaster, there is at least one player. A typical gaming group is 1 Gamemaster and 2-5 players. Players have it easy; they roll up a character and play it. Some players may play two characters at once, but most stick to one at a time.
Power player
A type of player who thinks he can ‘win’ the game. Usually, this is by his character’s prowess in combat situations and material wealth. Power players are silly; there is no way to win an RPG other than by enjoying the game.
Round
A period of game time, loosely 3 seconds. When a combat situation occurs, the action is organised in rounds.
Rules-lawyer
Rules-lawyers are the nemesis of a forgetful Gamemaster. They sit among the other players and, whenever a Gamemaster forgets or waives a rule, they leap up and down in an energetic manner, screaming and shouting that (insert transgression) isn’t in the rules! Rules lawyers can be incredibly irritating for all players and Gamemasters as their jibes and taunts slow down an evening’s play incredibly.
Running a game
When a Gamemaster decides to referee a game, we say she is 'running a game’.
Scenario
A single adventure for the characters. This adventure might take one night, or it might take weeks to complete. It might take place in a single pub or across several locations.
Session
The real world time you put aside to play an instalment of the game. It could be an evening, an afternoon or an hour after school. You might not get a whole adventure finished in one session, but you should try to end the game at a convenient place to pick it up again next session.
System breaker
A character or item that is so powerful in its abilities that it can do anything, making the game little more than schoolyard ‘let’s pretend’. System breaking characters are heavily associated with power players.
