RPGs in Schools Assignment: Player Roles for RPG Students

When you have to make D&D Academic! And you want to model civic responsibility.

This is designed to be used as a posted assignment. It is ready to copy and paste or modify as you see fit. This comes directly out of the Teacher Gamer Handbook coming out this fall 2020.

Notice each player has a journal as part of their player kit along side character sheets, dice and clipboard

This is not the class of your character (like Space Ranger or Wizard or Slicer), but the organized role you play out-game as a player in responsibility to other players. In some campaigns, players share the work of the Dungeon Master or Game Master.

When we play in school we, as teachers, can straight up assign this work! It really just makes people more civically responsible. Another reason to say Yeah! And this is another notch in the belt of implicit learning.

This is an actual assignment for students in any RPG setting such as pencil and paper TTRPGs, online character tracking, virtual tabletops, blogs or digital classrooms where everyone can view each other’s work.

Each adventuring party needs a way to keep track of their adventure. We will do this with player roles.

The main roles are Mapper, Journalist, Chronicler, Editor and Treasurer (although this is a second role for an ambitious player).

1. Map Keeper (aka Mapper) — this person draws precise maps and keeps track of where the party is, where the party last camped, and where they are headed. Mapper uses pictures and drawings and keeps good notes on the names of hosts, regions, natural landmarks, planes, height above sea level and depth below the surface. When anyone wants to know, “Where in the 99 Hells are we?!?!” the Map Keeper knows. With Chronicler’s help, Mapper can also be counted on to know how long the party has been somewhere and approximately how far the party is from their next destination. Map Keeper is the best role, because you get to draw all the time and make diagrams that help others understand where the party is.
2. Journalist — This person has an eye for detail and excites the senses with their descriptions of events and series’ of actions as they happened. Like Bilbo Baggins, Journalist is writing a kind of memoir for all to enjoy in the future. This journal is also important when trying to solve puzzles or figure out things from the past. Journalist is the best role, because you get to tell the heroic story of your character and make other characters look awesome.
3. Chronicler — This person keeps track of what has happened to a group of adventurers. Chronicler puts the adventuring group’s story together as a timeline of historical order that predates the campaign and goes all the way to the present. By putting together the backstory of each member of the party, chronicler hopes that anyone reading it might better understand how the campaign can go more smoothly. Perhaps something about a certain member’s past or combination of events might help solve a present problem. Multiple chroniclers are not uncommon as they can tell the story from many perspectives. Chronicler is the best role, because you know everyone’s story (and even some of their secrets) and you help others understand how everything historically fits together.
4. Editor — This person primarily organizes the party’s story by collecting all the pieces made and supplied by mapper, journalist, and chronicler. Secondarily, Editor is also a journalist who writes introductions, transitions, and connections between the timeline and stories collected. Editor decides how the information supplied by their peers will be best compiled and will clarify the narrative of the campaign. Editor is the best role, because you decide how everything will be presented and you help each person’s work shine.
5. Treasurer (aka Quartermaster) — this is the secondary role of one of the above people who keeps track of the party’s treasure, which includes which includes money, valuables, surplus items, food and unclaimed items for future trade or sale. This person also holds what has not been divvied out yet, in the case of being mid-adventure and keeps the record of who got what in the past and who owes the party money, goods or services.

Everyone is encouraged to write down their favorite moments in complete sentences and paragraphs and give them to editor to expand the party’s story. Make it fun and dramatic! Give lots of awesome details and use the 8 senses of creative writing to describe everything.

NOTE: Each of you as adventurers must pick a role and as part of this class post your work through the Editor. Editors will expect others to deliver their part of the story, and may make requests or gentle reminders, but in the end will post what he or she has — acknowledging credit and indicating who did not contribute.

Please comment below this page’s post who is assuming which roles in your party. There should be at least one of each role and one single player who also takes the duty of Treasurer/Quartermaster. Please look carefully at who posts what so you figure out between yourselves which roles are filled.

— — — — — -

Ok, so that line above indicates the end of the assignment. I hope this has been useful for you. Please let me know your thoughts.

What RPGs in Schools looks like…

WE WANT YOU in the Teacher-Gamer Revolution.

THE TEACHER-GAMER HANDBOOK:
https://teachergamer.com/shop/

SUBSCRIBE: https://mailchi.mp/c1712e78c549/subscribe-landing

PODCAST: https://teachergamer.com/podcast/

Teacher-Gamers FB group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/teachergamers/

Like on FB: http://fb.me/TeacherGamerHandbook

Tweet it: https://twitter.com/TeacherGamerZ

Insta: https://www.instagram.com/teachergamerhandbook/

Follow and Clap: https://medium.com/teachergamer

©2020–22 Zach Reznichek for Wild Mind Training and teachergamer.com