If you've ever wanted to play an RPG but froze up thinking you had to be an expert, take a breath. Nobody starts out knowing how. I started at 8, with a gamebook and a die I fudged without mercy, not the faintest idea what I was doing, and it was fun anyway. This guide exists to get you out of "someday I'll play" and into the game, no fuss and no prerequisites at all.
Do I need to know how to play RPGs to start?
You don't. This is the most important truth in the article: you learn RPGs by playing, not by studying. Nobody memorizes a manual before sitting down at the table. The rules start making sense in practice, round after round, and there's always someone beside you (or the game itself) to guide you. If you can hold a conversation and imagine, you already have what you need.
What an RPG is, in one sentence
A tabletop RPG is collective storytelling: a group of players sets off on an adventure guided by a Game Master, who acts as the narrator, and the dice come in to decide what succeeds and what goes wrong. You play a character and choose what they do; the rest is imagination.
The fears that hold beginners back
Almost everyone who puts off starting is stuck on one of these five fears, and every one of them has a reassuring answer.
"I need to be good at acting." Not at all. Nobody expects you to know how to act. If you like, you can simply describe what your character does, in the third person. The role-play comes on its own, in your own time, once you feel comfortable.
"I need to memorize a ton of rules." Relax: the Game Master handles most of the rules, and you learn your small slice by playing. Starter kits come with the bare minimum you need, and the rest you look up whenever you have to.
"I need a big group of people." Actually, it's the opposite: you can play with a Game Master and a single player, and you can even play on your own, with a gamebook or a solo RPG. A full group helps, but it's far from a requirement.
"What if I embarrass myself?" There's no embarrassing yourself in an RPG. The game is collaborative, everyone's there to have fun together, and in my experience, longtime players love welcoming newcomers.
"I need to spend a lot." Not even that. The 2024 fifth edition basic rules are free, Old Dragon has a free basic PDF, and Tormenta20 has a free introductory kit. You can start without spending a cent, just dice (or an app on your phone) and the will to play.
What you need to start
Less than you'd imagine: an adventure or system (ideally a starter kit), a set of dice (or a dice app on your phone) and people to play with. And if you don't have anyone, you can start solo and rope in others later.
The best ways to take the first step
A starter kit. It's the classic route and the most comfortable. The D&D starter set, for example, comes with a ready-made adventure, pre-made characters and the essential rules for the first few levels. In Portuguese, Old Dragon has a free basic version that's light to read and to play, and Tormenta20 has a free Introductory Kit with pre-made characters and an adventure to run. The starter kit exists precisely so you don't have to build anything, just play.
Starting on your own. If gathering people is your obstacle, start with a gamebook or a solo RPG. With no logistics at all and no audience to make you self-conscious, you learn at your own pace. (I have a whole guide on playing RPGs solo, if you want to go deeper.)
An RPG in your browser. The most effortless route of all: a game that comes with the adventure, the dice and the character ready to go, and you just steer the story. It's the lowest barrier there is to feel firsthand what it's like.
Tips for your first adventure
Start small: plan for the first two or three hours, not a twenty-hour campaign. Pick a simple character, like a fighter or a rogue, so you focus on the fun and not on the sheet. Ask away, because in an RPG there's no such thing as a dumb question. And remember the golden rule: the rules serve the story, not the other way around. When in doubt, do whatever's most fun and move on.
In short, it's easier than it looks
RPGs are far more welcoming than they look from the outside. The only real prerequisite is the will to imagine. And when you want the easiest nudge of all, no group, no manual and nothing to install, Mysteries & Perils will be there: an RPG gamebook you play right in your browser, with the game handling the rules and the math under the hood, so first-timers can jump in without feeling intimidated. [Join the waitlist] and be one of the first to play when it opens.
By Mario, creator of Mysteries & Perils, a Baldur's Gate 1 fan raised on gamebooks.
Sources and further reading
- The best tabletop RPGs (GamesRadar+)
- 10 Best Beginner Tabletop RPGs (High Ground Gaming)
- Top 5 Tabletop RPG Starter Sets (CGMagazine)
- The Complete Beginner's Guide to Tabletop RPGs (The Battle Standard)
- How to Start Playing RPGs: A Beginner's Guide (Bodogami)
- Guide: How to Start Playing RPGs (Epic Kingdom)
