If you’ve never played a tabletop roleplaying game, you are missing out on an awesome experience. Tabletop roleplaying games like Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, or Call of Cthulhu have a long history of bringing people together to tell incredible stories and have a ton of fun. With the world as it is now, playing in person has become more difficult. Thankfully, there are plenty of virtual options that can give you the same experience. In this article, we’ll tell you how to play tabletop RPGs with friends online, so you can have a new way to connect with people you’re close to.
Step 1: Gather Your Party
The first thing you’ll need to play an RPG is a group of like-minded people that also want to play. Maybe your friend group from school is interested, or perhaps you have friends from another activity you do who can become your fellow adventurers. Once you have enough people, we recommend at least three or four depending on the game you’re playing, it’s time to gather up your reference material and find out where you’ll be playing.
Step 2: Choose Your Weapon
Your weapon in this case is the virtual tabletop you’ll be using. There is a multitude of free, online tools that can facilitate this. Roll20, Tabletop Simulator, and Fantasy Grounds are just a few. Pick one that everyone can agree on and you’re ready to get started. Don’t worry—there are completely free options like Roll20 if you don’t have the money to drop on new software.
Step 3: Stay in Touch
Almost every tabletop RPG is going to be more fun with actual voices rather than just text on a screen. You’ll need to have a voice chat client up and ready to go so you can talk to one another. This could be a Zoom call, a Google Hangout, a Skype call, or a Discord channel. Whatever you use, make sure everyone can access it and that all of your microphones work properly.
Step 4: Accessorize Heavily
Just playing with “theater of the mind” is all well and good, but you may want a little more of a tactile feel to your game. That’s where the accessories come in. Many games require the use of a set of dice to play, getting real physical ones instead of using the virtual dice can really enhance your game. You may also want physical copies of reference material like the rule book. You can even go the extra step and grab some gamer glasses to help protect your eyes from all that blue light you’ll be staring at while you play.
That’s all you really need to know about how to play tabletop RPGs online! Don’t let the distancing keep you from doing things that are fun and exciting. With a little adjustment, you can be in a new game in no time while still playing with your close friends.