Role-playing & Texas Culture
Combining elements of gaming, storytelling and improvisational theater, tabletop role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons allow players to create virtually any kind of character imaginable and portray them in an interactive story.
Due to the long-time popularity of D & D, many may associate tabletop roleplaying games( RPG) with high fantasy. Back in 2014, Pinnacle Entertainment Group published a Texas higher educationthemed tabletop RPG called“ East Texas University.” And while it ' s not to be confused with the real-life East Texas A & M University, the game’ s premise of college students striving to survive four years dealing with monstrous professors, urban legends and creepy cultists is good fun.
Plus … it’ s an RPG with a dictionary of“ Texasisms”( complete with translations of“ fixin’ to” and“ dadgummit”), which is sure to elicit laughs from actual Texans. The game is also available for purchase at Greenville’ s own game shop, Brigandry Games.
As with D & D, East Texas University gaming sessions require a game master( in this case called the“ dean”) who functions as a sort of head writer / narrator, and also roleplays all of the antagonists and nonplayer characters( NPCs) to flesh out the story that the other players are navigating with their characters.
East Texas University, however, uses the Savage Worlds system of die rolls and card drawing to determine outcomes of players’ actions, which is more focused on fastpaced action than D & D’ s system.
An example of a short, simple story that players of East Texas University might create could go something like this:
Session Title: " The Midterm Monster "
The Hook The students— a stressed pre-Med major, a rebellious art student, and a star linebacker— are gathered at " The Grind " coffee shop trying to study. Their professor, Dr. Aris, recently disappeared, and the rumor is that he was researching forbidden folklore in the university archives.
The Scene
– Investigation: The team sneaks into the closed campus library at 10 p. m. The atmosphere is quiet and creepy. Using their skills, they find the professor ' s notes, which speak of a " creature in the steam pipes."
– The Encounter: Suddenly, the heat rises. A creature made of shadowy grime and rusted metal emerges from the vents.
Action / Combat: Linebacker: Uses a metal chair( a " solid hit ") to bash the creature. Pre-Med: Identifies that cold water weakens it.
Art Student: Uses a found flash-camera to blind it.
Chase and Resolution
– The creature flees into the tunnels. The students must use their wits to navigate the dark, avoiding a " dramatic task " to get out before the pipes burst.
– Conclusion: They escape just in time, finding the professor ' s missing watch in the tunnel. They haven ' t found him yet, but they now know the campus is not just " plumb weird," but dangerous.
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