Welcome, Bogota!

Whenever a "RPGs for beginners" thread comes up, I encourage people to run a game (a) they know well and (b) they're enthusiastic about running.

Since you haven't played D&D in a while, it may interest you to learn that, while the game has changed a lot from its 1980s iterations, especially since its 3rd (2000) and 4th (2008) editions, several "new" rulesets, explicitly aimed at emulating older editions of D&D (the so-called "retro-clones") have since been made available, for free as downloadable PDF documents, or for purchase in physical book format.

Some of the most popular and (in my opinion) newbie-friendly are:

Delving Deeper

Swords & Wizardry Core Rules

Labyrinth Lord

Old School Reference Index & Compilation (OSRIC)

Get a game started, hang around over here when you have the time, don't be afraid to ask; it's a great, great hobby.

Best of luck with the kids' game! Let us know how it goes.

I started running a weekly group for my 12 year old and her friends a while back. I went with D&D and the B series to start. We've been playing for months now, and we left D&D a while back (though we will return!), and have since finished one of my own (lightly censored) campaigns (which is a D100 system). My lot took to RPGing like ducks to water, and the only trouble I have now is that they want to play much longer sessions than I am prepared to run (Phase 2: Getting one of them to step up and GM!).

Good luck with it!

The problem with these threads is they always devolve into "You should run MY FAVORITE GAME!" instead of being useful advice.

I was 10 when I started with D&D Basic Back In The Day. I'd say they could probably start with just about anything. As recommended earlier, pick a game YOU personally like and teach that. It's the best way.

Yeah, I gotta say it didn't really matter what I played, so long as I got to play it.  As long as they can understand the rules - 1st edition Mage was not a good intro to WW for a 12-year old, FASERIP and D&D box sets were - and like the setting, get them whatever.

Quote from: Bogota;621007Hi I'm new to RPGnet.

I planning in introducing my friends teenage kids to RPG and I'm looking for some ideas/suggestions/advice.  

About the kids: they are brothers aged 11 & 14. They are home schooled and seem to be very educated compared to me at that age. They play MTG. I introduced them to munchkin last year and they loved it. They are very excited to learn to play "d&d".

Me: I learned to play D&D when it was just a couple if pamphlets. I  bought the AD&D books the year they were published and ran campaigns in high school and college. My friends and I had lots of house rules and freely mixed games systems and supplements together. We considered rule books to be guidelines only and heavily role played. We played AD&D, Call of Cthulu and Cyberpunk mostly.

College was a long time ago. I haven't played an RPG since the 80's. I've played lots of video games and board games since then. It's what me and my friends can fit into our work schedule.

So I see there are these 2 box sets for beginners, the D&D red box and the Pathfinder beginners box. I plan to get one (or both) for the kids and teach them to play over a weekend.

Please let me know what you think of these products and how an old lady can teach these kids to play (IMHO) the greatest game on earth.

TIA

I wouldn't spend any money up front.
I would ask them what sort of game they want to play and what sort of setting. Talk to them about what they like about computer RPGs like Oblivion or Fable or Fallout (I assume they are familiar) and see what they like about it.

i) Genre - so they want fantasy or Scifi, Superheroes or spies, pulp heroes or noble rabbits looking for a new home, Vampires in search of their lost humanity on the streets of Detroit?
ii) Style - do they enjoy getting lots of options and things to pick from, do they enjoy talking in character and a bit of thespianism, do they want to see a map with little figures moving about, do they want to see it all in their minds eye?
iii) Grittiness - do they want to be super heroic action heroes or do they want to be ordinary guys doing their best and being in real danger while doign it.

When you have these answers you can start to think about the game they would like to play but it also has to be something you want to run as otherwise you'll jack it in after a few session and it was all for nought.

Once you have that info I would download something for free. Plenty of free downloads out there from introductory games to homebrew stuff. Give it a couple of sessions work out what they like then come back here or RPGnet and we can all let you know what would be a good fit.

So you wanna groom some Satanists? Excellent!

The "best" RPG for them is based on their interests. Do they like fantasy, super heroes, science fiction, mystery? There are RPGs for all of those.

I don't think either the D&D 4e or the Pathfinder beginner box sets are worth the purchase. Neither are as good as the Gamma World boxed set for presenting the creative side of RPGs along with tactical bits like tokens and maps. Also, they can be Turtle Cyborgs with Laser Guns!

Instead of spending any cash before you know if the kids even would like RPGs, I do suggest looking at one of the free PDF games. There are dozens.

My favorite is: Mazes & Minotaurs (Greek Fantasy RPG)
http://storygame.free.fr/MAZES.htm

If you want an easy, simple D&D clone: Swords & Wizardry: White Box
http://www.swordsandwizardry.com/whitebox.htm

The reason I like these two clones for beginners is the bare minimum of pages need to be read before they are ready to rock and roll.

My best advice is to encourage the kids to bring their friends to a second session, preferably run by one of the kids with adults fading into the background, or better yet, in another room entirely.

Hail Satan!

If your kids love science fiction, check out the Trinity Quickstart. The game is out of print, but the PDF is free. You just sign up on the site and you can download dozens of free PDFs.

I have run the Trinity Quickstart several times with teenagers and they really enjoyed the combination of scifi + superhero vibe in the game and the rules are extremely easy, flexible and halfway through the session, most of the kids started making up their own rules too.

The quickstart is compact enough to start playing very fast, but I have been surprised repeatedly how much depth the kids found in replay value. And again, the best part is that it costs nothing.

http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product/86000/Trinity-RPG-Quickstart

If your kids like Anime style "Asian Fantasy", they may like Exalted and I have found that free Quickstart be equal to the Trinity one. I have used this one repeatedly with adult groups who were casual gamers and wanted a cool setting but did not want to spend any time learning rules.  

http://kschnee.xepher.net/rpg/exalted/Exalted%20Starter%20Kit.pdf

Quote from: Doctor Jest;621161The problem with these threads is they always devolve into "You should run MY FAVORITE GAME!" instead of being useful advice.

Not true! Dragon Warriors, is at best, my third favorite game

Quote from: Doctor Jest;621161The problem with these threads is they always devolve into "You should run MY FAVORITE GAME!" instead of being useful advice.
.

Mostly true, yes.  But there's some good advice here, especially those that said to find out what type of RPGs they like and go with that.  Heck, I recommended 4e, and I HATE 4e

Thank you all so much for your replies. You all have been very helpful.

I'm going with the pathfinder box set mostly because I want to give the kids something they can keep and play with. I still remember when I got the AD&D Monster Manual and I definitely want to pass on that type of experience. The kids don't live near me. So I've got basically one weekend and that's it.

Nevertheless I am thrilled to learn about retro gaming and I've checked out Labyrinth Lord. It is very impressive. Maybe I can get my old buddies to give it a try with the tabletop forge or some other online tool.

The weekend isn't until march. If I you don't mind me digging up a necro thread, I'll be happy to report.

Cheers!

Please do let us know how things went. I for one, am interested.

Nobody hails Satan after playing Pathfinder. At best, they can pledge themselves to the Lowly Demons of Weaksauce. There is no Gygaxian power in the Paizo.

Quote from: Bogota;621596The weekend isn't until march. If I you don't mind me digging up a necro thread, I'll be happy to report.

Cheers!

We don't mind on-topic necros at all around here.

RPGPundit

My adventure in teaching teenagers tabletop rpg's went super well. We ended up getting the Paizo Pathfinder Beginner Box. I was impressed with the way the game was designed to teach someone how to play pathfinder and I thought the step by step instructions for creating characters was well thought out.

The kids LOVED the game. We spent one evening creating characters and one day playing the dungeon.

The 10 year old was a little immature for a roleplaying game, but we had two adult players to keep him in line. He was so excited to play and afterwards really got into designing death trap dungeons. I can't imagine a 1st level surviving even 10 minutes in one of his creations. Still he's being very creative and having fun.

I wasn't sure in the 15 year old would really be interested but he totally took to the rule set immediately. By the time we were done he was correcting me on the rules. I understand his facebook page is now filled with posts on creating pathfinder characters. I hope this means he's found a group to play with.

It was a total success. Thank you all for your suggestions, they helped quite a bit.

On a personal note, you all also introduced me to old school gaming rules. I'm not interested in playing a rpg with a gizillion rules like pathfinder, even though I understand why today's teenager would love it. I have been able to join some old school type groups on roll20.net. It's been a blast. Maybe I'll meet one of you in some creepy dungeon sometime... wait that came out wrong! :rolleyes:

Thanks again for your help.

If my recent experience is any indication, today's teenager will absolutely love playing DCC.