"Feelies" with your tabletop games

[KidSnide]

I do a fair amount of larping (don't talk about it much on ENWorld since this is generally a tabletop board), and calling something a "prop" makes me think of larping instead of just adding some items to add flavor and feel of a tabletop game, which made me think of the old Infocom games and the pack-in "feelies" used to add atmosphere to a text-only game in lieu of graphics.

Then again, that is just me and my quirks and the fact I tabletop and larp regularly.

I've played in dozens of LARPs too, and I would call these things "props" because that's what they are. Creating a letter or map for a table-top game isn't really any different than creating it for a LARP.

"Feelies" is a term I hadn't heard until this thread. It sounds creepy, and not in a good way...

-KS

 

[am181d]

I've played in dozens of LARPs too, and I would call these things "props" because that's what they are. Creating a letter or map for a table-top game isn't really any different than creating it for a LARP.

"Feelies" is a term I hadn't heard until this thread. It sounds creepy, and not in a good way...

It makes more sense if you're familiar with the Infocom games and, in particular, the sense of humor they brought to their work.

 

[MarkB]

I like doing this sort of thing when I can.

I had a game set in Middle Earth, contemporary with the events of The Hobbit, in which the PCs start out being taken to an audience with Saruman the White, guided by a soldier who's carrying their letter of introduction from Radagast the Brown, addressed to Saruman in confidence.

I made up the letter, using Photoshop and a colour printer to give it a realistically 'parchment' look on both sides, and then I folded and sealed it using a cut-out graphic of a wax seal and some paper glue. When their guide was killed during a bandit attack and they recovered the letter from his body, they had not only a neat little prop, but also a moral dilemma - do they open the letter and maybe get a heads-up on what's going on, but leave it obvious to Saruman that they peeked and broke the seal, or do they deliver it still sealed and thus demonstrate their discretion?

 

[Therise]

Props? Heck yes, all the time.

Maps, map fragments, letters, notes, (plastic) gems, rune-sticks, ward-stones, carved bone items, drinks, food, old-looking coins, candles, we've used all sorts of things. Once, even a homemade rustic-looking compass.

Tactile props are really fun. For a high-quality tavern, we prepared a meal on one occasion, complete with wines and a server (not quite a "wench" but a little more up-market). More time intensive than we thought, we haven't repeated that one, but it was fun.

 

[Halivar]

I love making feelies as a DM, and I love getting them as a player. Felt bags, felt-lined boxes, etc., also make giving feelies to the players very fun and atmospheric.

PS: The term "feelies" is almost 30 years old now, and is still currently used in Interactive Fiction circles to describe any digital play-aids for IF games like images, splash screens, maps, documents, etc. Since IF games are the closest RPG's to a D&D session I've seen yet, I would definitely prefer the term over "prop."

 

[jonesy]

More recently the Fallout collectors editions, Catherine and Dead Rising 2 had feelies. Also, remember Brave New World (but that was a bit different).


I made a mission dossier for Top Secret with a hidden compartment. You take two manilla envelopes and cut and glue the second into the first so that the second compartment can only be noticed if you feel around the insides, or take it apart.

One time I found this empty book in a flea market that someone had made. I carved a small rectangular hole into the last part, snuck a little code book into it, and then glued the last and the first pages together and painted them the same colour as the covers, as if it was just a book with thick covers. Then I filled the rest of the pages in the middle with crazy stuff and handed it out in a Call of Cthulhu game. When the players finally figured out there was actually a book inside the book their faces lit up like it was Christmas in Miskatonic.