So, I've decided that I hate roleplaying

[BenBrown]

The OP basically said, "I'm tired of funny voices and 'walking through a Ren-Faire' type gaming sessions." The amount of "go play WoW/you're a hack 'n' slasher/D&D isn't for you" type answers really amaze me, and I wonder when talking in a funny voice while playacting out haggling over a bolt of silk began to equate with rpg'ing.

The title of the thread is "So, I've decided that I hate roleplaying".

If the OP had titled the thread "Enough with the silly voices", and had the exact same words in his first post, this discussion would be different. Name your threads carefully, kids.

 

[Ariosto]

The dislikes I see described here are not what I would call "role-playing" in the RPG context. I would call them "theatrical performance". That can indeed be employed as part of the RP endeavor, but the RP can also go on without it.

It's as if someone were to claim to "hate roleplaying" because he was not keen on dressing up in costume, sneaking into a university basement, and performing by candlelight such calculations as "BIF=(Charisma/2) + Social Status + Experience Level + (Honour Points/100)".

 

[airwalkrr]

I imagine the OP would absolutely detest White Wolf games. I recommend never trying any of their systems if you have this attitude. That said, there is nothing wrong with appreciating the combat and wargaming side of RPGs. That's how D&D was born anyway. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson themselves were of wargaming backgrounds and simply wanted to create a game that focused more on individual heroes (the concept of heroes or unique units in wargaming wasn't unique, just a game centered around these figures). In fact, I imagine their games had very little "in-character" speech. The purist roleplayer, one focused on story and speaking in the first person seems like something that really didn't become in vogue until the early 90's.

MMOs are great if you are the kind of person who likes combat, character power builds and tactics. I don't really like WoW myself but I do play DDO and I think people who try to role-play in DDO are missing the point. MMOs are typically for people who prefer action to story. A little bit of story is all you need in those games. The fact that a vampire is evil, even if the vampire is sitting in the middle of the mausoleum minding his own business, is a good enough excuse to run in and kill him. So I think its great that you have found a game that gives you what you want.

I myself am at home both with groups that like to role-play and groups that just like to kill stuff, so long as everyone is on the same page. In fact, some groups like both and are willing to shift styles depending on the campaign. But if you want to play tabletop RPGs, it is a good idea to figure out what your group expects. If you like the tactical aspect only I doubt you'd have very much fun in a group of roleplayers, and I think that is what the OP is experiencing. It's okay to walk away from a group if you aren't having fun.

 

[wayne62682]

@airwalkrr I'm not a fan of the WW system so it's not something I would try in the first place. Way back when I thought it would be awesome, but as I've "grown up" I'm just not into the whole amateur theatrics type of roleplaying. The extent of my RPing is usually what I've already given examples of previously in the thread, stating my character's actions and maybe a small bit of dialogue.

 

[coyote6]

I wonder when talking in a funny voice while playacting out haggling over a bolt of silk began to equate with rpg'ing.

Last Tuesday. Didn't get the memo, huh? They really gotta fix the circulation issues on those things.

 

[Oryan77]

The OP basically said, "I'm tired of funny voices and 'walking through a Ren-Faire' type gaming sessions." .............and I wonder when talking in a funny voice while playacting out haggling over a bolt of silk began to equate with rpg'ing.

I hate funny voices and I don't care for the Ren-Faire style gaming sessions. But I love to roleplay.

The OP said he hates roleplaying in the thread title, then followed it up with all of the things he hates about roleplaying. Other than the funny voices and old english dialogue, everything else he said he hates about roleplaying happens to be the way I roleplay. He was pretty clear about it and made perfectly valid points (even though I don't share his opinion).

The amount of "go play WoW/you're a hack 'n' slasher/D&D isn't for you" type answers really amaze me,

So what are people supposed to say in response other than suggesting that he try out other games? I'm really surprised that you're trying to twist those suggestions around in a negative light as if people are rubbing it in his face. I didn't get that impression at all, and I was just trying to be helpful when I suggested playing DDM. It seemed like everyone else was also.

I think he even called himself a Hack-N-Slasher! Not every single thing someone says is bad and meant to hurt feelings. Chill....

 

[Aus_Snow]

The extent of my RPing is usually what I've already given examples of previously in the thread, stating my character's actions and maybe a small bit of dialogue.

*shrug* Whatever works is the thing.

I truly believe that RPGs always have been, still are, and always will be, toolboxes to do with as you so wish.

 

[Leatherhead]

If you like playing games without the roleplaying, have you thought about trying some of the tactical wargames out there, like Mordheim, Necromunda, Squad Leader, Gangs of Mega City, Descent, Doom, or those sorts of things? A lot of them even have character advancement, have a "lite-roleplay" feel to them. Mordheim and Necromunda rules are even free, you just need a dozen or so figures for each side and some basic terrain for your table.

I find most wargames to be severely lacking in terms of what a character(or more specifically units) can do. In fact, I believe one of the reasons D&D gained so much popularity was that the characters could do more than just "move and shoot." I know you can do more than just that in most wargames nowadays, but none of them I know of come close to the amount of things you can have a character do in an RPG.

 

[FireLance]

Role-playing is...

... creating/writing a fictional character.

... performing and/or pretending you're a fictional character.

... kicking-ass and problem-solving using a fictional character, who, if I'm really being honest, sometimes might as well be a board game piece.

Quoted simply because I think it's the most comprehensive yet succint definition of role-playing that I've seen to date.

 

[Gog]

I haven't played at all for a little over two years now because I couldn't find a group. Recently I found a group of new players and played a game with them (d&d 3.5). Now as a player I could not stand the way they played, way too many house rules, stuff misunderstood, 2nd/1st edition rules thrown in and not even a basic understanding of the 3.5 game. They however were having a blast so nothing wrong with that.

I offered to run a game for them that is more my style, if they like it I'll stay with them as a DM, if not I'll thank them and move on. Maybe you could offer to run a game explaining how you like to play and see how it goes. After a few games try to talk someone else into running once in a while.