How to Make a Fantasy RPG

Create the World

• 1

  Draw a map of the world. Include coastlines, mountains, lakes, rivers and other natural formations. The lay of the land is entirely up to you. Remember that most fantasy worlds have vast expanses of wild land, small towns and villages, and plenty of mysterious regions to explore.

• 2

  Create the races that inhabit the world. Choose homelands for those races. Think about why those races developed in those homelands, why they might have expanded to new homelands and why they might be seeking new homelands. Common fantasy races include humans, elves, dwarves and gnomes, but you are in no way limited to those races.

• 3

  Create a history for your world. Consider how the races of people began, how they evolved and how they exist in "modern" times. The same goes for physical features; what caused the landscape, what maintains it and how is it changing?

Game Mechanics

• 4

  Choose a game system. For example, if you choose to base your character attributes (strength, intelligence, charisma, etc.) and skills (combat prowess, stealth, magic, etc.) on a six-sided dice roll, base all future rolls on the same system. Note that systems can be complicated, using various dice, or as simple as using "rock, paper, scissors."

• 5

  Create attributes and skills, based on the system created in Step 1. Keep in mind that in most fantasy settings, high-tech skills are uncommon. Base the skills available to players on what would logically be available in the world you created.

• 6

  Decide when rolls are necessary. Most often, rolls are needed for determining character attributes, deciding the outcome of combat and deciding if the use of a non-combat skill (pickpocketing, manipulation, etc.) is successful.

• 7

  Write down all of the character-generation and game-play rules for easy reference. It's wise to make several copies of the rules to pass out to players later on.

Story Line

• 8

  Create the main characters, often referred to as cannon characters, of your world. These characters are the leaders, heroes and villains of your world. Give main characters personalities and histories.

• 9

  Determine a general plot for your RPG story. The plot can be anything from recovering a lost artifact to defeating a powerful villain. Outline the plot, the history behind the plot and the possible outcomes. Keep in mind that the subtleties of the plot may change over time, but the ultimate goal of the plot should remain constant.

• 10

  Create opportunities for characters to not only participate in the plot of the story but also to affect it to some degree. A fantasy RPG game is enticing to most players because it allows the player to affect the destiny of the world. Story lines should be flexible as well as intriguing.

• 11

  Take care of the details. What type of money is used? What are common means of transportation? What food is available? Is the land peaceful or at war? What is clothing made from? Any detail, however trivial, may come in to play throughout the course of your story.