Did you know the Library has a collection of tabletop roleplaying game (TTRPG) books you can borrow?  They are located just outside the Edge, our teen library (though anyone can check them out!).  Holds cannot be placed on the titles (currently, but that will soon be changing), but you can pick them up at the Library and borrow them for three weeks!

Titles in the growing collection include
(by game system – Will be updated as new titles are added. Links for unlinked items will be added as they become available.)

What’s a TTRPG?

A tabletop roleplaying game (TTRPG) is a system of rules so that a group of players can partake upon a storytelling experience together.  Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) is by far the best known, and most popularly played, TTRPG, but there are many other systems out there that use different rules (some more complicated, some more “rules-lite”).  In playing a TTRPG, usually one person assumes the role of the guide for the game (in D&D terms: the Dungeon Master) who handles the setup of the world and provides a backdrop and scenarios the other players will interact within and with.  Then, a group of players play as characters of their own design in the story, helping to shape the story and interact with the story, the world and the characters that the guide creates.  However, since there are so many differing TTRPG rules systems not all follow this general model (there are even solo-play RPGs out there!).  In addition, there is a TTRPG for any type of genre or setting you wish to craft stories and experiences within, and the Library’s collection reflects the diversity of settings, genres and rules.

Why play TTRPGs?

There are many reasons to play tabletop roleplaying games — purely fun; social interaction; skills such as literacy, critical thinking and storytelling; inclusive and safe spaces to explore ideas and concepts; potentially even therapeutic and health benefits. For many years, TTRPGs had an (unearned) bad reputation, but they are mainstream and very popular now with players running the gamut of backgrounds and life experiences, including some very high profile celebrities! TTRPG sessions can be lighthearted or serious (and a mix of both), filled with danger and combat (or not at all!), intergenerational, thought-provoking, and so much more.  But, they are, of course, also fun!