RP-like Tabletop Games With No Game Masters

Once in a while, you just need a break from game mastering. What follows are the games that I break out when my previous plans fall through, or I don't have time to prep for a session, or I just think the players want something other than a traditional RPG.

Betrayal at House on the Hill

This big 'ole board game is for spooky adventures in grand Lovecraftian fashion. I like putting on an eerie soundtrack and reveling in the absurd B-movie feel of this one. Putting you in the shoes of a band of people exploring a haunted house, this game is different every time you play. The house is mapped out and built room by room as players draw and place special tiles on the table, so the floorplan is unique every time.

Eventually, the game automatically designates a player as the 'traitor' and they basically become a GM, attempting to defeat the rest of the cast with their special abilities and sometimes their own minions. The rules will also randomly select from one of fifty unique scenarios, including a zombie attack, a mad bomber, shrink rays, or mummies! This game can either run really short or really long, so you might even have time to play a second round in one night.


PROS: Atmosphere! Fun art design and flavor text make this an all around appealing game. The chaotic nature of its randomly generated maps and scenarios add to the suspense of "what-will-happen next?" The exploration elements and the traitor gimmick leads to lots of fun times, rivalries and camaraderie between players.

CONS: Game balance. The random aspect of this game can also lead to some annoyance. A lot of the scenarios can end up lopsided in favor of either the traitor or the adventurers. Not all scenarios are equal, some have more going on for them than others and of course you never know which one you're going to get. Finally, you need to play this one with players who are good at rules comprehension. The traitor in each scenario has his own secret playbook with a couple of special rules, and if they can't understand the rules themselves, thinks will go a bit topsy-turvy. The game itself is also quite pricey.

CONCLUSION: If you like spooky imagery and chaotic gameplay that is always surprising, give "Betrayal" a shot!

Forbidden Island

Forbidden Island is also a game in which the maps are built from  random configuration of tiles. This game is a cooperative one, in which the players' goal is to collect all the treasures and escape the island before it sinks. Simple but very tactical, this one is also limited to a specific number of players, (two to four) but is good for those who just want a nice challenge without any performance or story elements.

PROS: Cooperative play, so everybody gets to work together. Scaling difficulty levels so you can choose the level of challenge. Each player gets a unique special ability for added layer of tactical goodness.

CONS: Purely a game of strategy. The elements of randomness could skew the difficulty from game to game.

CONCLUSION: For those who like thinking games and challenges, and prefer cooperative gaming, The Forbidden Island will be the adventure they are looking for!

FIASCO

Fiasco is an improvisational story-telling game in which the players act out scenes to tell the tale of a frenzied, chaotic caper. The original theme is farcical Coen Brothers (Burn After Reading, Fargo) inspired antics, but there are playbooks for all sorts of genres and settings. You need a pile of six sided dice of two colors to play. The dice are used by the players to generate concepts for their characters, motivations, items, locations, and more. Then it is up to the players to act out their interactions with one another and improvise the story as if it was a movie or TV show. At the end, the players get to roll the dice one last time to determine whether their character's story ends in tragedy or triumph.

PROS: Strong focus on storytelling and simple rules. The dice are used to influence outcomes, but there are no rules for combat or interaction between players, that's all handled by the players' cooperation. There really is no winner or loser, it's more about telling a fun story. Great for people who are into writing or acting.

CONS: There's not much of a strategic element in this one. Won't really work if your players are shy or don't like to perform. It requires a very specific number of players (between three and five) to work. Some of its core material isn't family friendly.

CONCLUSION: With its rules-lite system and theatrical play-style, Fiasco is a great pick for a game where the game mechanics take a back seat and storytelling rules!

Time/Space Tear

This one is my own hack of FATE Core  intended for player versus player. I will share the rules for this system in a future article here. It's basically setting rules to the game kids play when they imagine what would happen if Spider-Man fought Robocop.

PROS: Translating characters to FATE allows you to include characters from any genre or setting and let them duke it out. The characters are generally balanced evenly against each other. Both physical and mental combat are permitted, so even weak but crafty characters can be included.

CONS: The system for adjudicating success is more art than science, and this game won't really tell you who will win in a fight. If your players tend to argue over rules, this isn't the game for them.

CONCLUSION: For a game that lets player combine their favorite characters and pit them against each other like tabletop Smash Brothers, T/ST is the way to go!

Do you have a favorite game system for fast fun with friends and no prep-time required? Share in the comments and keep following DMpathy for more tips and reviews. Happy ventures!