How to get the GF into gaming? Options

[Penta]

Okay...My situation.

Me and my GF are, as I've noted in places, in a long-distance relationship. Only online, we've yet to meet in real life. We met on a MOO. Yes, we know the other one's for real and not some 60-year-old creep.:)

She's a good roleplayer, a damn good one. I've been trying to get her interested in Shadowrun through a MUSH I play on...Eh, whenever it gets back up, anyway...And here's where I come into a block.

She's never played pen and paper RPGs. Not once. But she rejects the notion of playing them, because they're stat-based...(So far as I can tell, anyway...)

...How does one go about convincing such people to give this side of the hobby a try?

Is it even worthwhile to try?

[Aku]

well, i forget what a MOO is, but has she done any other crpg playing? Fact is, most anything thats a "game" in the traditional sense, is going to be stat/numbers based, its just the fact of the matter...

[Seven-7]

[Simon May]

Perhaps Shadowrun is too big a jump to start with. You may want to get a couple people together for a couple one shots of something quick, fun and simple. For me, Paranoia is always a good one for hilarity.

Another option would be to start by encouraging her to read some of the fiction. If she likes the world, she may become interested in the game.

Really, your best argument is that MOOs and MUSHs are extremely confing in comparison to a good RPG with a solid GM. If it's the story and the character she enjoys, that should be a compelling enough argument on its own.

[Seven-7]

[Platinum]

It was not too hard for me to get my wife to start pnp and she is not a gamer at all. (she turned out to be a brilliant role player however) Sadly she will play for me ... but is not interested in playing.

1. tell her about your enthusiasm. And ask her to try it out. try a solo session.

2. ask her what type of archtype/persona she wants. You make up the char.

3. go through the 20 questions with her answering them.

4. start with a simple scenario. I found a bounty hunting run worked really well.
Women are more into the relationship side of roleplaying, and so manipulating people and trying to smooze npc's really was something she enjoyed. You would also be surprised how whiley they turn out to be. Manipulating men and women etc. My wife had me laughing out loud many times. I was beside myself a few times.

5. keep rolling with the praise and stay positive.

[Aku]

another thought just hit me, and thats that you also need to beware of is any sort of favoritism, among your group, which again since your not really in a live group it sounds, it may be less of a problem, but something to be always aware of...

[DireRadiant]

Is the obstacle simply the work in making a character sheet based on reading the rule book? That can be a lot of work that isn't interesting if you are used to simply doing role play online.

SR offers the character archetypes. When introducing new players to SR I often simply give them copies of the example characters, tell them to read the paragraph blurb and choose one they like, and off we go. No need to learn rules to start playing. The only new thing will be using dice rolls to resolve actions.

[Wounded Ronin]

GM a tentacle pr0n episode for her.

[Penta]

[Hocus Pocus]

[Daddy's Litt...]

Hocus, the ultimate romantic. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/twirl.gif)

I started playing to spend time with my husband, but we were already in a relationship. It sounds like you want to take it from the other end. She likes games and you have not met her face to face yet.

[nezumi]

Never try to get her to do what she doesn't want to do, it'll only breed contempt. Instead, figure out what you can give to her that she'll enjoy and is in the right direction. If she doesn't like stats, don't give her a game with stats (or nothing beyond very basic stats). There's nothing wrong with running Shadowrun freeform. If you think she'll accept it, if she isn't against stats but just lots of rules, go with tri-stat, which is hugely simple, but still can be lots of fun. Your goal shouldn't be to change her to like Shadowrun, but to find a hobby you can both enjoy in person together. If it happens she falls in love with PnP and pursues it farther, hurrah! If she doesn't care for it, drop it. You keep up with your games on your own and maybe she'll give it another try later.

[CircuitBoyBlue]

I started playing to spend time with my husband, but we were already in a relationship. It sounds like you want to take it from the other end. She likes games and you have not met her face to face yet.

There's a great post to quote out of context, if one were so inclined.

But if you want to get her into stat-based RPGs, get her interested in you CHA attribute. Think real hard about why YOU enjoy them, and it will probably tie into some aspect of your mind that the two of you have already talked about and possibly have in common. Also, most stat-based games can be run mostly diceless, if you trust your GM. You could maybe start there, and let her see what you and the GM are doing with the rules to figure out how most scenarios would shake out.

Also, since I have to throw this out in any thread involving the more feminine sex: sucker's bet, man. They will steal your soul, your time, your money, and your pets. They don't have to be physically near you to do this. They're guilty of propagating the human race, and the human race caused such niceties as the Star Wars prequels and the Holocaust. Just walk away, Penta. Just walk away. Well, that's my advice, anyway. YMMV.