#What Is a Tabletop Roleplaying Game? (卓上の役割劇)
Three people meet at a cafe. And a world begins to form.
#Scent — At the Cafe
Saturday afternoon. A small cafe in Shimokitazawa.
Kuro sat by the window, drinking iced coffee. On the table lay a notebook, a pencil, and two dice with ten faces. The dice were brown and white, their corners rounded from long use.
"Sorry I'm late!" Hana opened the door and came in. A manga volume stuck out of her bag — volume 2 of a Touken Ranbu side story. She ordered a matcha latte at the counter and sat across from Kuro.
"Where's Mei?"
"5 minutes out," Kuro said.
Hana picked up the dice on the table. She turned them over in her hand. Numbers from 0 to 9 were carved into them.
"Are these TRPG dice?"
"Yes. That's all of them. With those two, you can decide everything in Konsei Reiyotan."
Hana rolled the dice. 7 and 3. Meaningless numbers. For now.
Mei arrived. She had an Americano in hand and a Call of Cthulhu scenario book still in her bag. She sat between Kuro and Hana.
"Ready?"
Kuro opened the notebook. On the first page, one line was written.
"A Sengoku age of blades and yoma."
Kuro said, "A TRPG needs three things."
Hana tilted her head. Mei took a sip of coffee.
"First, the person who guides the story. That's me. Call me the GM. Game Master. I create the world, move the enemies, and decide the results."
"In CoC, that's the Keeper," Mei said.
"Right. Same role. Second, the people who live inside the story. That's you two. Players. Each of you makes one character, then experiences the world through that character. Maybe a samurai, maybe an onmyoji, maybe a shinobi."
Hana's eyes lit up. "Samurai."
"Third, the tool that decides what happens." Kuro lifted the two dice. "Does the blade cut the enemy, or does the enemy dodge? Do you fall from the cliff, or barely cling on? These two dice decide."
Mei asked, "Is there a rulebook?"
"There is. And you don't need to read all of it. I'll teach you. Today, just remember these three things: the GM creates the world, you live inside it, and the dice decide fate."
Hana rolled the dice again. 5 and 5. The same number.
Kuro smiled. "That's a very special roll. You'll learn why later."
Mei asked carefully, "How do winning and losing work?"
Kuro shook his head. "A TRPG is not a game about winning and losing. It does not have points like a board game or video game. What it has is story."
"Then... what do we do?"
"You adventure. You become a samurai and fight yoma, obey or defy a lord's orders, protect your companions or betray them. As that happens, your characters grow and a story forms. That story becomes your own story, one that exists nowhere else in the world, made only at this table."
Hana murmured, "So we write a novel together."
"Exactly," Kuro said. "I set the stage, you act, and the dice create events that were not in the script. Unexpected things happen. That's the appeal of TRPGs."
Mei nodded. "CoC is like that too. Usually in the direction of going insane, though."
Kuro laughed. "In Konsei Reiyotan, instead of going insane, you draw or sheathe the blade."
Outside the cafe window, the sun was sinking. The three had not started their first session yet. But already, a world had begun to form.
#Law — Session Transcript
Kuro: "All right, TRPGs in one line. The GM creates the world, the players portray characters, and dice decide the result. That's enough."
Hana: "These dice... are they called d10s? Do you roll two at the same time?"
Kuro: "Right. Roll two at the same time and add them together. You get results from 2 to 20. We call that 2d10."
Mei: "What about d100? CoC uses d100."
Kuro: "Konsei Reiyotan uses d100 sometimes too, but only for special situations. The default is adding 2d10. The biggest difference from d100 is the probability curve. With d100, every number has the same chance. With 2d10, the middle (around 11) comes up most often, while the ends (2 or 20) almost never appear. A bell curve."
Mei: "Ah, a larger version of adding dice together. Like Catan."
Kuro: "Exactly. That's why the 'average difficulty' is 11. 11 is the most common total on 2d10."
Hana: "The 5+5 = 10 I rolled earlier... is that a failure?"
Kuro: "Depends on the target. But 5+5, the same number — that's called a 'double.' Doubles are special. If you succeed with a double, it's a Critical Hit — a great success. If you fail with a double, it's a Fumble — a disaster. We'll go into that next time."
Hana: "Ugh, I don't want a disaster."
Mei: "So it's like CoC criticals and fumbles."
Kuro: "Similar, but the probability is different. A CoC critical is 1%. Here, doubles are 10%. Something dramatic happens one time in ten. You feel it clearly once you play."
Hana: "One time in ten is pretty often, isn't it?"
Kuro: "Right. That means Konsei Reiyotan is a game where dramatic reversals happen often. You don't win by moving in perfect order. Moments come when one strike turns everything over. Those moments are the most fun."
Kuro: "That's enough for today. Next time, I'll explain what makes Konsei Reiyotan different from other TRPGs. And then — we'll start making characters."
Hana: "Samurai! I'm making a samurai!"
Mei: "I'll think a little first. Onmyoji... esoteric monk... I need to know what's different."
Kuro: "Good. Next week."
Two dice rest on the table. Possibilities not yet rolled sleep inside them.