Pen and paper RPG I can play with my young kids

[Lazarus52980]

I have been listening to my oldest 3 children play (they are 7,6 and 5) and I hear them acting out stuff that sounds a lot like an RPG session. However, as soon as they get to combat, they fight each other and it breaks down into arguing about who wins and who dies.

It's been a few years, but I used to play AD&D and some Shadowrun, and I was considering teaching them to play. However, both those games are far too complicated for younger kids to play.

Thus, I appeal to the great minds of the ATOT forum. Does anyone know a nice simple rules pen and paper RPG that I could teach my young kids? (if it matters, yes, all of them can read, just with different degrees of skill)

 

[Fritzo]

Hmm...never thought of pre-geeking my kids. Might have worked for them. I can't even get my kids to watch Star Wars or Indiana Jones.

 

[Juddog]

D&D 3.5 edition.

 

[Lazarus52980]

D&D 3.5 edition.

Seriously? Don't you think that is too complicated for that age?

 

[Alienwho]

Here are a couple of ideas: I have a friend who plays essentially D&D 3.5/Pathfinder with his kids but he has morphed it into the Disney Universe and simplified it significantly. So his kid plays robin hood and his daughters play tinkerbell and somebody else.

Another option that could be fun if they're into the Adventure Time tv show would be playing the adventure time RPG that is based on D&D 4 that some dude made up. I think they've even got an online character generator to get going.

 

[jaedaliu]

GURPS? You can choose what level of complexity is appropriate for them.

 

[gorcorps]

Hmm...never thought of pre-geeking my kids. Might have worked for them. I can't even get my kids to watch Star Wars or Indiana Jones.

might as well sell em and start over then

 

[Lazarus52980]

GURPS? You can choose what level of complexity is appropriate for them.

I haven't heard of this one. I will look into it, thank you.

 

[KaOTiK]

Why not use like D&D and just simplify stuff. Or just make a simple system up yourself just using like 1-3 6 sided dice with a few steps. Just strip out the more complicated and additional stuff till they can get the hang of it. Just have them roll dice to see if they hit the target, how much damage they do, and the target rolls to see if it can dodge the attack and how much damage is mitigated by like armor/magic.

 

[pontifex]

what about the Munchkin card games. sort of RPG-ish but way less complicated.

 

[MutantGith]

Try this one? Hero Kids

http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product/106605/Hero-Kids---Fantasy-RPG

Not too bad, for the younger ones it might be a good intro. It's definitely simplistic, but that might be just what you're interested in.

I've also had good experiences with board game stand ins, like Descent. The pieces and cards from a board game like that are always a hit. Setting things up, moving the pieces around and seeing how they interact is always a nice attention grabber. The game can run long, so pre-setting as much as possible and dropping the difficulty might be advisable.

And, as a third option, you could try and grab a deck of Munchkin, and use that. Simply changing the rules out of the box to make it a co-operative game (let's see how fast we can all make it to level 10, vs. let's see who can hit level 10 first by stabbing others in the back) would be a really easy, approachable way to trickle in some of the standard RPG ideas.

Just two cents. Hope this all works out. Seeing a wondrous light of imagination in young kids is pretty priceless.

 

[Lazarus52980]

Try this one? Hero Kids

http://rpg.drivethrustuff.com/product/106605/Hero-Kids---Fantasy-RPG

Not too bad, for the younger ones it might be a good intro. It's definitely simplistic, but that might be just what you're interested in.

I've also had good experiences with board game stand ins, like Descent. The pieces and cards from a board game like that are always a hit. Setting things up, moving the pieces around and seeing how they interact is always a nice attention grabber. The game can run long, so pre-setting as much as possible and dropping the difficulty might be advisable.

And, as a third option, you could try and grab a deck of Munchkin, and use that. Simply changing the rules out of the box to make it a co-operative game (let's see how fast we can all make it to level 10, vs. let's see who can hit level 10 first by stabbing others in the back) would be a really easy, approachable way to trickle in some of the standard RPG ideas.

Just two cents. Hope this all works out. Seeing a wondrous light of imagination in young kids is pretty priceless.

That Hero Kids game looks PERFECT. I will purchase that tonight and try to get a game going this weekend (as long as the 6 week old and the 1 year old say its ok).

Thank you!

 

[NikolaeVarius]

http://viralgamespublishing.com/

Engine Hearts. Free, easy, simple.

 

[W.C. Nimoy]

I know this isn't what you're talking about, just reminded me of a paper game we used to play in school. Does anyone remember, where one person draws the terrain, river, each side's boats & tanks etc, fort wall cells, mines on a piece of paper; then the other person who didn't draw it chooses their preferred side?

Then to play you "zip" your pencil tip across paper to deploy your vehicles, same from their landing spot to shoot. I don't remember the ultimate objective though, if it was just to destroy all your opponent's stuff, or if there was a guarded flag, or what. The most fun to me was always drawing the board game so it was a difficult decision for the other guy.

 

[Juddog]

Seriously? Don't you think that is too complicated for that age?

If they have incentive to play, they will want to learn what the big words mean, which is basically like giving them free English lessons and will put them ahead of their schoolmates. Learning to do the math portion in their head will push them ahead in math class. You're teaching them the skills they need to get ahead in school without having to go through the painful and boring homework assignments.

 

[preslove]

RIFTS!!!!

SOOO much simpler!

 

[Midwayman]

Just a observation from watching some of my friends kids grow up gaming- They don't care about the rules and in generally won't really understand what is going on really for quite a long time. You could set them down with a character sheet from any system and tell them a story. Ask them what they want to do and tell them what happens based on your whim after they roll dice. All they'll see is you sitting around with a character sheet, rolling dice and talking. They get that experience, they get to be like daddy, and will be happy.

 

[bhagan]

I've never played it myself, but maybe the mouse guard rpg would do? http://www.mouseguard.net/books/role-playing-game/

 

[silverpig]

That Hero Kids game looks PERFECT. I will purchase that tonight and try to get a game going this weekend (as long as the 6 week old and the 1 year old say its ok).

Thank you!

A 6 week old and a 1 year old?

You sure put your wife to work!

 

[shortylickens]

RIFTS!!!!

SOOO much simpler!

GTFO

:thumbsdown:

 

[alkemyst]

Basic D&D would work if you can find a set and basically DM them.

IMHO board games may be a better avenue to go...don't think Toys R Us, think online gaming shops.

 

[Paladin3]

I did a mix of 2nd edition and home rules AD&D with my kids and they all loved it. As their DM, I concentrate more on making the storyline work, but also included dice rolling to keep their attention. Every kid got their own set of dice to help keep them involved. Just don't bog them down with the long formulas and endless calculation that the more modern versions of the game seem enamored with.

One of the best tools is you playing an NPC that can mentor and push them in the right direction. You can include a lot of moral, ethical and life lessons in your play. It's a great way to teach them to think, cooperate and creatively problem solve.

We also used to listen to a lot of audio books during dinner time. A child who learns to concentrate on and be engaged by a story, and then personalize it by talking about how they would interact with the story characters, is a thinking child.

My only bit of cautionary advice would be to watch out for your kids blurring the lines between fantasy and reality. Make it a point of your discussions and don't take for granted that they won't get lost in the fantasy.

I have a 22 year old son who loves to play paintball, airsoft, spar and play online and pen/paper RPGs. He thinks nothing of blowing an opponent's head off in virtual reality, but in reality he is one of the more empathetic and compassionate people you could ever meet. Children without empathy, who can't understand the difference between a game and real-world suffering, are the bane of existence.

 

[Lazarus52980]

A 6 week old and a 1 year old?

You sure put your wife to work!

To be fair, the 6 week old is a foster child.

 

[Malak]

When I was 11 I was playing a pen and paper version of Oregon Trail.

 

[Juddog]

I was playing D&D with my brother when I was 5 years old. It was amazingly fun and taught me math and a bunch of complex words that I had no idea what they meant at the time when I started. I learned the math of combat which put me way ahead of the kids at my grade level. When I was later tested for english / math abilities, by the time I hit 4th grade I was already at the reading ability of most 10th thru 11 graders and I could do all of the math homework in about 1/5th the time it took my classmates (rated at the equivalent of most 9th graders, so basically 6 / 5 years ahead respectively).