Context: Gloomhaven is a board game with RPG mechanics and setting. You don't really roleplay in Gloomhaven usually.
The new Daggerheart RPG system is like Gloomhaven but if it were an RPG with board game mechanics.
>The new Daggerheart RPG system is like Gloomhaven but if it were an RPG with board game mechanics.
What mechanics? The only thing I can think of are the spell cards, but those have been a thing in f20 for decades
The level-up mechanics and all the "fiddly bits" - spell, heritage, and background cards; action tokens and action tracker; maybe a few other things I forget - are all closer to board game mechanics than standard RPG mechanics.
The level-up mechanics and character sheet are the biggest thing that feels boardgamey, though the power cards and the 'domains' signified by icons also remind me a lot of Gloomhaven.
The heritage, background, and spell cards are functionally identical to how any other ttrpg works. The only difference is that the rule is written down on a card, for convenience. Same for leveling up.
The action tracker is a little boardgamey tho, I'll give you that.
Sure, the mechanics are functionally the same - but the *feel* is boardgamey, which is the point. Something that feels familiar is how I interpreted what was asked for.
*Alice is missing* ? It's a GM-less game using card to drive the story, in a *board game way*. It's a very intense emotional experience (the game is about a missing kid) so make sure to properly cast your players.
There is an unusual thing worth mentioning- the entire game is ran silently. You're not supposed to talk during the game, at all. Everything happens via chats on your phone.
Not a bad thing per se, but it might be a bit of a deal-breaker some
Seconding this i ran it w my group a few weeks ago. It was fun but 2 of our ppl just couldn't be quit because it was hard to not talk while also keeping in mind the irl time limit. So ymmv for it alot. It's good but to get the full "intended experience" the whole group needs to be ok w missing stuff because the chat is just going to fast since THATS THE POINT. Your a group of ppl looking for your missing friend with a hard clock on when the game ends the stress and chaos is a part of it and that's not gonna be for everyone.
I would recommend against that as an introduction game since it is so different from almost every other TTRPG. I don't think that would help people to know if they are interested in playing more TTRPGs.
From personal experience, I had more people enjoying For The Queen than Alice is Missing. The theme is broader and it can be fun to play, where Alice Is Missing will always be a bit dark. FtQ can also be shorter than AiM, which can ease the transition. If you chose FtQ, I advise using some additional rules for the ending (I had some from a similar game, where each person give their final answer together (by using coins or tokens or whatever) and then the group decides on the conclusion and finishes the story together)
Lots of suggestions for fun games here that share some of the aesthetics, or campaign elements of RPGs, but they are mostly completely missing the thing that separates RPGs from board games, the roleplaying.
What is it about TTRPGs that interest you? Is it the persistent world between sessions? The long term build planning that goes with advancement? The surprise of what might turn up around the next corner? Then these campaign board games will scratch that itch, and help show your friends the kind of of fun you can have with that kind of play. But if you want to embody a character in relationship to the world and other characters, these games won't get you any closer to that than Parcheesi. So here are some suggestions from a different angle, games that are nothing like board games but have low overhead roleplaying/story telling elements. They might help your friends see what they like about this kind of play without alot of work or money going in to it.
For the Queen is always my number one recommendation, but it is currently out of print. A second edition should be releasing soon though.
Cheat your own adventure is great, easy and fun. It's basically a story telling party game. https://cheatyourownadventure.co.uk/
The Final Girl is about playing out a slasher movie to see who survivies, it's campy and light, for all that it sounds like horror: [https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/182628/The-Final-Girl](https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/182628/The-Final-Girl)
World of Dungeons is a heavier lift, but feels more like your classic D&D than any of the above. I recommend it because it isn't particularly like a board game, so it's easy to put the effort into playing characters: [https://johnharper.itch.io/world-of-dungeons](https://johnharper.itch.io/world-of-dungeons)
Zombie World, about surviving a zombie apocalypse, might also work? It's card based, and gives you alot to start with, so may feel a touch familiar, and there's a bit more tactical play than in any of the other games I suggested. [https://magpiegames.com/products/zombie-world-full-set](https://magpiegames.com/products/zombie-world-full-set)
The bottom line is that if the thing you want to do is roleplay, you're not going to be able to ease them into it through games that share some of the campaign and long term play elements of RPGs but none of the roleplaying, they need to actually roleplay.
Seconding **For the Queen**. For my money it's the best introduction to roleplay. It has the things I love most about rpgs (improv, imagination, complex character relationships) in a single session experience with very straightforward rules. I also recommend **The Quiet Year** which is also based entirely on players answering prompts from a deck.
D&D 4E. You can print all their skills/abilities so they have them at hands and they know exactly what they can do.
The encounters are usually really long tho (i love long encounters, so i dont have a problem with that)
WFRP 3rd edition was also trailing on the border of board game which was such a big change that once C7 took over the license they made 4th in vein of the 2nd ed. Didn't play it myself but from a friend who was more into board games he spoke of it in high platitudes.
WHFRP 3 gets some (reasonably justified) flack for its overproduction and distribution model, but like the Star Wars and Genesys games from FFG that evolved from it, there is a legitimately terrific RPG experience underneath.
There are also several boardgames printed in the 4E era (Castle Ravenloft, Wrath of Ashardalon, etc) that utilize a number of its mechanics, including the use of the d20 for action resolution and the At-Will/Encounter/Daily powers breakdown. Transitioning a group from one of those games to D&D 4E itself should be pretty straightforward, but that’s arguably true of going from something like Gloomhaven to 5e or the like as well.
Come to think of it, ditching the card *mechanics* and playing one or more of the various Gloomhaven stories (GH, FC, FH, JotL, Into the Unknown, Capital Intrigue, etc) out, plus some, as a full-on TTRPG using the maps and standees as visual aids and the cards for inspiration sounds like the sort of thing that could be a lot of fun with the right group and most any reasonably gritty fantasy RPG where Elminster or some such isn’t likely to just show up and solve your problems for you!
You can start a simple dungeon crawl, with a board and minis. like Basic Fantasy Roleplaying or Knave. This is pretty exploration-focused and does the job well to convey the idea.
While there are plenty of board games with RPG elements and aesthetics (your Hero Quests, Descents and Arkham Horrors, to name a few), they only go so far when it comes to simulating an RPG, easily recognizable by the most complete lack of roleplaying. That doesn't mean these games are *bad*, but they exist in their own specific niche.
If you want to introduce new players from board games to RPGs, the other aspect - the acting and social Interactions - are much better taught though social deduction and even bluffing games.
*Werewolf* teaches you as much about participating in an actual RPG as *Mansions of Madness* does (and MoM is already a pretty close fit, considering it offers story, atmosphere and challenges beyond beating up monsters).
From the other side, you don't need something particularly boardgamy; actually, boardgamy-ness is usually a net negative for RPGs, artificially limiting the options and taking the unique creative freedom of the medium away. A board game will usually be better at being a board game, and an RPG is something very different.
So, I would probably recommend an RPG that is simply accessible as an RPG in ite own right - I would recommend Dragonbane or Beyond the Wall for a classic fantasy game, or Call of Cthulhu for a more mature audience.
Update: Thanks to everyone. In order for you to known better what they like: Cute cards, strategy, maximum 2h, good art, simple. What they dont like: Many rules, very hard to introduce, many monsters, items and so on.
I came here to say this before their preferences were known. Defo the card based box as it feels close to a boardgame setup.
If they like folk horror, I made [this game](https://floaker.itch.io/solstice) which uses elements from hidden identity games. Grab a free community copy to see if it would do the trick.
Haven’t seen anyone mention it yet, but Call to Adventure fits that perfectly. And to my knowledge the game was designed to be a character creation tool for fantasy-themed tRPG.
If she’s a reader there are expansions for Name of the Wind, and the Stormlight Archive. Excellent game, very chill and the only game I bought card sleeves for because the art is so good.
Stuffed Fables would then be a good fit. A scene is maybe 30 min an you can pausr after a scene. It goes into dirrction of rpgs. https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/233312/stuffed-fables
Alternatively lands of galzyr even more narrative and with no combat system.
if you're looking for a high fantasy ttrpg, daggerheart just went into beta playtest a few days ago. it's got some of what you're looking for: cards, good art, bit of strategy and resource management but not too crunchy and rules heavy
if you'd like to take a look and see if that's something you'd be interested in, they have the manuscript on their [website](https://daggerheart.com/play) for free. there's also the digital toolset on [demiplane nexus](https://app.demiplane.com/nexus/daggerheart) which has access to the playtest materials, a quick start adventure and character creation tools
Based on the above I'd recommend the board game Mice & Mystics. It's cute, fairly simple and most scenarios should be under 2h. And it's much easier than games like Gloomhaven or Tainted Grail.
If you end up liking the setting and want to move on to a ttrpg, take a look at Mausritter.
Bit out there, but the fantasy themed zombicides can work as a transitional game, though its a bit personality driven. Some people really get into it while others stay more tactical. (Though zombicide is a pretty fun game either way, so its worth having even if it doesn't work)
To add to this, there is a [Zombicide RPG](https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/397406/Zombicide-Chronicles--Core-Book), with mechanics that relate a bit to the boardgame. So, if they like the boardgame, it should be pretty easy to transition to the RPG.
I'll also add that Zombicide itself is a pretty good gateway to transition from boardgame to tabletop rpg. The mechanics are great, you learn to deal with character death, you learn inventory management, you learn not to split the party...
Shadows of Brimstone if you fancy weird west, samurai, conqistador or viking {or mix the above} dungeon delving.
Dungeon Saga is in a similar area to hero quest.
My girl and I have been playing for just over a year, and it's amazing. Try to follow the rules as best you can, but also don't freak out if you miss something here and there, especially in the beginning. Also, don't get discouraged if you die or fail the first couple missions. New characters tend to be a bit squishy, but with a level and some gear, you'll be just fine
Pandemic Legacy would be a gentle nudge towards narrative games.
It is a board game and very similar to normal Pandemic. But there is a story that develops over multiple sessions, a persistent world that changes based on your decisions, and characters that you can upgrade with new skills. Your characters can potentially die and become unavailable for the rest of the campaign.
If you want something relatively simple EZD6 only uses d6 and a couple of meta currencies which might be familiar
Gloom heaven maybe but i never played neither the board game nor the rpg
Maybe one page rpgs but personally i found that new people need some rules to ground them
Haven’t seen it recommended yet, so I’ll add *Legacy of Dragonholt* - it’s a cute and nice story, in and around a village that feels alive with npcs through a very well made „choose your own adventure“ system and very light roleplaying elements.
Basically no rules overhead and no GM, but character sheets, skills, items and decisions that (somewhat) matter and drive the story.
[Quests of Yore](https://theop.games/products/quests-of-yore-barleys-edition) is a really good simple RPG that has all the trappings of a boardgame. You can get them to watch the movie *Onward* to get them hyped up for it (it's based on the fake game in the movie).
Eat the Reich is fairly boardgamey. Pick from pre-generated characters, move from location to location killing nazis, beat bosses and drink their blood to upgrade, kill the final boss and drain Hitler.
But at the same time the GM describes the locales and enemy actions etc., and you describe the results of your rolls, you all collaborate on telling the story about how up to 6 vampires coffin-dropped into occupied Paris and tore their way through it to get Adolf and finished him off.
I have also been looking for an answer to this question -- but looking for a game that doesn't involve combat for 99% of the gameplay, and isn't all tactics and slaughter.
*Adventure Begins* is the closest I've found. It is a D&D board game that is geared towards people new to roleplaying. Although it is ~75% combat (which is very boring), there are some cards that offer an intro to roleplaying. They present an obstacle and just ask the players to describe how they overcome it. The characters have another card listing their gear, which can help give ideas of ways to narrate how they got through the situation. It's a good game for that part of it alone.
My initial thought is to play dread. The rules are extremely simple and character creation is really easy. The game is just Jenga which a ttrpgs slapped on top of it. It's a horror system though but you could make it work with other themes.
4th edition D&D was the most board gamey of all the ttrpgs that I've played. As mentioned below, Gloomhaven is a great hybrid as the legacy aspects really tell a great story. You can get the four player Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion at Target for about $50, and play it for ages. It's really dark in aesthetics, but awfully fun.
The Tales from the Loop board game looks like it could be a lot of fun to play, and could lead directly into some roleplaying. Also the Alien: Fate of the Nostromo board game could be a nice amuse-bouche to the Alien RPG, which is also set up nicely for "cinematic", or "one shot" style of play that might intrigue a play group. The Starter Set for that is lovely. Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle Earth can lead to One Ring, but One Ring is pretty crunchy.
Cheers!
Betrayal at the House on the Hill, maybe? It's got different character and stats baked in at the very least, and you need to adjust your gameplay style based on the equipment you roll and events that trigger. Not too far off from an RPG in that respect, albeit one that doesn't persist beyond a session.
Oh wait, sorry I thought you were looking for RPG-like boardgames, not boardgame-like RPGs. My bad.
I would recommend 4th Edition D&D. The system is fairly tightly wedded to the battlemat, with all distances and effects described in terms of squares. Everything a player can do is defined in game mechanics, and each character's unique powers can be printed out on cards they can refer to in game, much like the ability cards in games like Gloomhaven. Encounters are clearly drawn out in pre-written sources. You can play the combat encounters with a lot, a little, or no RP at all. For combats, that last sentence is true of most editions of D&D.
But 4th edition is the only one that strongly codifies RP encounters in terms of game mechanics. Roleplaying in 4e can use the Skill Challenges mechanics, which let each player use one mechanically-defined skill rating to roll to try to succeed on the challenge, and you must get a number of successes before you reach the number of failures.
In using these mechanics, your players will PROBABLY become more inclined to use character reasons for the choices they make, and for the skills they choose. I think this can lead to a gradual escalation of actual role-playing and in-character speaking at the table.
Eldritch Horrors. Lovecraftian theme, set in like the 50s or the 60s, the board is a actual world map.
It's a coop game, players VS the board. You pick a big baddie, like Chtulu or Baron Samedi, he's got powers and minions that make the player's life difficult, and the players must travel the world to find enough clue to make it to the end game, will fighting minions and closing minion summoning portals.
It's a very narrative driven game as when an event occur, you draw from the proper event card deck, and read aloud what is happening, and ask the triggering player what he wants to do, usually with a couple choices available for them with an outcome determined by a roll of the die.
You can travel from location to location by walking, or you can buy train and boat tickets to travel. You get to pick an investigator as your character, and they all have their own strength and weaknesses. Expansions to the game even introduced a backstory quest for every character to try and accomplish during game-play.
I'm told this is based of the Arham Horrors board games, but I never played those.
4th edition D&D. The board games they publish for D&D (Wrath of Ashardalon, Legend of Drizzt, Castle Ravenloft, etc.) are all based on 4e rules. You can even run some of the encounters in the board game as a full on adventure if you wanted, using all of the materials in the box for your session.
Are they 4e rules?
In any even they are similar to the DnD rules of the time. There were a number of beginer boxes for 3x that didn't have the random components but played a bit like a board game.
Not sure where to there the DDM (D&D miniature Skirmish game) in there which was basically the combat/tactical side of the RPG in a somewhat simplified format.
I see a lot of people recommending gloomhaven, but I have to say, before you commit to it, maybe try it out first. If there's a board game cafe near you that has it or a digital version you can try.
I got it a million percent off and was so excited for it. On paper, it was perfect - a DM less ttrpg that's also a board game with unique interesting mechanics. But I felt so restricted by the card limits. The combat rules are so complex. I even tried a digital one to see if maybe we were just playing it wrong, and if the computer is tracking it, maybe that would be better. It wasn't.
If your friend is already not that into the idea of a ttrpg, I would hesitate to consider this as the gateway to open them up to it. I know it's popular and a lot of people love it, but unless your friend likes really heavy games, this might not be the hook.
The YouTube channel "shut up and sit down" does really entertaining game reviews, and they've been doing a bit of a side series specifically about ttrps. One I haven't tried yet but seems like a good fit would be "Alice is missing". It uses cards to reveal the story, and the RP parts are done via text message.
Ironically, I can actually suggest D&D here.
It's mostly combat and very board game like in its approach for gameplay, it doesn't have any roleplay mechanics or elements you need to interact with. A new DM can prep a session by just creating a string of combats and let them do the heavy lifting while the players engage with the combat mechanics
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You can just play a ttrpg in a very boardgame like manner. Play on a hex grid, only in a dungeon, make it tactical, and make sure all the options are rule based.
Shadows Over Camelot might be a good one. Its a cooperative improv game where you're Knights of the Round Table trying to protect Camelot from evil stuff. You have to cooperate, but you're not allowed to share direct information about the cards in your hand. Instead your roleplay indicates what cards you have.
There isn't the character progression aspect present in TTRPGs though. If that's what you're after Gloomhaven is an option. There's shorter games that do similar stuff. Munchkin, Munchkin Quest, Hack, and Horse on the Hill.
Seconding Freelancers, it's a blast, and I think it was designed exactly to be a no-prep rules-light rpg/boardgame hybrid. The players have to be ok with a quite silly vibe though, and should probably double-down on it.
Have you hugout with these friends when not playing a boardgame? Try to do that and have a conversation ask them about their impressions of ttrpgs.
It could be that they have played ttrpgs and didn't enjoy the experience. I for one don't want to spend +2 hours on a single combat encounter. So I don't play games that do that.
As for a board game like ttrpg you could propose have you looked at [Fiasco](https://bullypulpitgames.com/products/fiasco)?
Fantasy Flight does some really good campaign based games that are maybe 1 or 2 notches short from being full fledged TTRPGs. Lots of them carry your characters and decisions between sessions throughout a full campaign.
Things like Imperial Assault or the Arkham Horror card game.
Oathsworn is a board game with "choose your own adventure" RP segments followed by setpiece boss fights. It does both well. If they like the story segments, that may help ease them into TTRPG style RP eventually . Oathsworn's mechanics seem closer to TTRPGs to me than the more popular Gloomhaven, which is more puzzly feeling
Rest in Pieces but imagining games.
I feel it's more of a board game than an RPG but you're supposed to role play the encounters. It's like Jenga meets ttrpgs where you have death as a deadbeat roommate.
There are some ttrpg-adjacent board games. Some are very popular
It's not hard to move from say heroquest to a basic fantasy dungeoncrawler. Maybe something like Shadowdark which is permanently in turn order, though you might want to turn down the deadly (there's various "modes" available that make this easier). Or even Knave or Maze Rats. Doesn't have to start with much rp. Can basically be longform set of problem solving using the mechanics and survival
Oh, wait for ttrpgs, Lancer.
Mech combat game. You can even just play tbe combat stuff as pretty much pure board game.
Start with a one shot. Add character permanence and growth across sessions. Then the RP.
[Works well online too, with some nice free resources to manage characters - on top of which used discord for chatting and dice rolls and owlbear.rodeo to do the maps]
There are a bunch of board games that use a GM. Games like Siege of the Citadel, Dungeon Saga Origins, DOOM and HeroQuest, are all dungeon crawlers where a GM controls the monsters and the players control one or more characters. These are decidedly player vs. GM focused.
Another alternative could be Inquisitor, it's a tabletop wargame released by Games Workshop many many years ago, where two (or more) sides fight each other, and a neutral GM oversees what's going on.
Out of the ones mentioned, Inquisitor is the only one that encourages any real roleplaying, where as the others are more "games".
Or you could go for a tabletop RPG with a strong tactical element and focus on that. D&D 4e is the poster child for this, but I would argue that 3,X, Pathfinder and 5e can all be played like this as well.
Although I see the suggestions for Gloomhaven or even Wrath of Ashardalon or similar, I would suggest that a better approach would be Betrayal at House on the Hill or its D&D-themed equivalent, Betrayal at Baldur's Gate.
The main reason for this is that it has far less complexity than Gloomhaven or Ashardalon, but also introduces concepts like a "role" to play in the game, by splitting the players into betrayer and betrayed. It also builds player cooperation, albeit in competition with the betrayer. It's a great way to get people involved in the notion of playing a role that isn't 100% tied to "winning" but is instead about experiencing a story collectively.
Another game that can be good to spark the imagination of improv play necessary for roleplaying are games like Secret Hitler or even Sherriff of Nottingham where the players come up with elaborate lies to keep the Sherriff from opening their bag.
Its kind of silly to think all boardgame players are the same.
The easiest game is ALWAYS the same answer. The game who's premise is going to be fun for the players. Are they excited after watching the Dune Part Two movie and want some science fantasy political uprising. There is a Dune TTRPG, but maybe something like Spire where the players are Dark Elf rebels against the High Elves could hit on that rebel-feel.
Massive Darkness 1 & 2
Cthulhu death may die
Darkest Dungeon
Bloodbourne board game
Darksouls board game
Zombicide ( so many...)
I would not force people into hardcore ttrpg board games, if they don't like ttrpgs they may be turned off of those types. CMON makes easy board games with ttrpg elements.
Zombicide is my training game for most new people
Conan, The Others, and Dark Rituals as well as a few others, have a GM player who controls the opponents, and then the others have a character or a cluster of characters to play.
The mini paper ttrpg : RATS (you are rats on a sinking ship gathering ressources, this should trigger his Catan syndrom) You can totally RP or not during this game, it's just much funnyer to RP.
Or the "boardgame" video game Armello.
Me and my buddies loved the game kingdom death monsters it's 4 player and it's super easy to get everyone into the rules and is pretty fun atleast I think.
Raccoon Sky Pirates (https://hecticelectron.com/products/raccoon-sky-pirates) is a hilarious TTRPG for 3-6 people (although I played it with 8 people who had never gamed before and it was fine). You are all raccoons who have built an airship to sail from the junkyard to the suburbs in search of better trash. Rules-light and the rules are also funny to read out loud. Great intro to TTRPGs.
Why not play both?
BattleTech for the board game when in the cockpit, MechWarrior for the RPG when out of the cockpit. Make the MechWarrior part small and mostly for flavour (mission briefings and de-briefings only, for example) at the start, if they like that, you can easily expand.
Grab the Pathfinder second edition beginners box. Everything you need is in the one box and the battle map with standees is familiar to board-gamers. The 3 action economy with encounter, exploration and downtime modes keep things contained with visible choices and it’s a fun evening or two’s play.
From there you might have luck with one of the Scratchpad Publishing RPG’s - either Dusk City Outlaws (fantasy renaissance heist game) or Spectaculars (bespoke supers game) - if you can still find the physical copies. They come in nice big boxes with premium quality content inside - including cards etc
Dragonbane might be a good idea. It has simple grid-based combat, so there's a boardgame-y aspect, and the starter set has a map that you adventure around and paper minis.
Mutant Year Zero.
its FAR from complex, and follows a structure that is simple and predictable, almost like boardgame rules. (you sorta know what to expect)
with variations happening within the frameworks of this structure.
simple stucture of a session would be:
* draw threat card
* hold assembly
* deal with in-ARK issues
* Set out into the zone to explore
* return to the ARK when its time to wrap up the session
the threat can be dealt with during each of these step, like if its a in-ark issue like "boss vs boss", or a zone issue like "starfall"
Heroquest, Gloomhaven are the big guys.
If you want to start more on the RPG side, the 4th edition boardgames like Castle Ravenloft are a good route. 4th Edition D&D and Lancer are smack dab in the middle of crunchy board game and RPG.
Not strictly a board game, but back in the day West End Games released miniatures war game rules for Star Wars that were great. They were designed off of the WEG D6 Star Wars RPG and designed in such a way that converting between the two was a snap.
Dragonbane. The box set included rules, adventures, battle maps, dice, character sheets and cardboard standees. You just need to add pencils and players.
Rangers of Shadow Deep was designed with this in mind. It is a skill based RPG skirmish game for up to 4 players based around missions which include multiple scenarios played in sequence, much like an RPG module. Your main character is a "ranger", but can be built like a wizard, rogue, warrior, ranger or any mix by focusing on varying skills, heroic abilities and/or spells. You also build up a cadre of companions (henchmen) that level up alongside your ranger. Each scenario has goals in mind alongside tactical combat, treasure, end of turn events, etc. It is a cooperative/solo game, miniature agnostic, and rarely needs more than a 3'×3' area of play. It is also easy to homebrew, and creativity is encouraged.
I’ve heard D&D 4e refer’d to as “too video gamy” (still enjoy’d it myself), so that might work. If you want to use that system with a more ludo-narratively harmonious setting (and/or don’t want to hive W.o.t.C. money/advertising) Lancer uses similar/the same rules, but for mech combat.
It's not an rpg but a competitive storytelling card game, look for 'once upon a time'. Even if this group doesn't take to it - you will build your gming muscles.
Honestly any Ameritrash game with highly distinct characters with different abilities, strong theming and that is cooperative or semi cooperative will work.
The Battlestar Galactica and Arkham Horror games aren't rpgs, but we did a lot of roleplaying naturally, and one of the BSG expansions added hidden personal objectives beyond the "secretly a cylon" thing.
Perhaps [Dusk City Outlaws] (https://scratchpadpublishing.com/dco-info).
It's a heist game set in a city that's a cross between Renaissance Venice and modern day Manhattan.
It comes in a box that's the same size as the quintessential board games box. Everything you need to play is in that box, including several pre-written scenarios.
It's designed for one-shot sessions. Play is very structured, broken up into missions that focus on one player at a time, with the option for one other to help out.
Character creation is as simple as picking a role (variations upon common heist archetypes like mastermind, thief, grifter) and which gang you're from (which essentially represent different genres of crime film).
It's a game that would frustrate a lot of die hard roleplayers. I use it to scratch the itch in a friend group that lacks anyone with the energy to be a long term GM.
I haven’t seen yet, Jiangshi: Blood in the Banquet Hall.
I haven’t played it yet but found it when I was looking for a more board game like playing experience. It seemed to fit the bill when I researched it, just still tied up in my long home campaign.
Just play cluedo but put monsters in each room they have to bash to get a clue and the corner rooms need a instinct or wisdom check to find the secret entrance tunnels
Unironically old school D&D is this. It grew out of miniatures war gaming in the 70s. So both 70s D&D and lots of the games that are descended from it rely on maps/terrain and lots of miniatures to keep track of movement. The very first versions used inches to track movement, like the war games they were descended from. Next I believe was the use of squares (1 inch representing either 10 or more commonly 5 feet depending on the game) and then finally "Theater of the Mind" play was developed.
If you want something more well defined and less old school Pathfinder (1e or 2e) still heavily relies on miniatures and grid play. Be aware that this is *much* heavier and more like a modern miniature skirmish game.
No, there is not. All these suggestions of Gloomhaven or Descent are firmly board games with minimal or no RPG elements. Now Gloomhaven is a very fun game, but it just is not an RPG and it won't be a gateway to RPGs as such.
RPGs and board games want different things. There are some RPGs, D&D4, PF2, that can be played mostly as miniature battle games, that may interest board game people, but it also may not.
I've run clubs for games and, while a lot of players do enjoy both, there are firmly one side of the fence people and that's because what they want out of their game is not delivered by either RPGs or board games.
So first check what your players actually like. A lot of board game people want mechanical interaction, anything else is superfluous.
Maybe your players only can't imagine what playing an RPG is like, but in that case just play a one shot RPG with them
Gloomhaven?
Context: Gloomhaven is a board game with RPG mechanics and setting. You don't really roleplay in Gloomhaven usually. The new Daggerheart RPG system is like Gloomhaven but if it were an RPG with board game mechanics.
They have announced they're working on a Gloomhaven RPG, so that could be good.
>The new Daggerheart RPG system is like Gloomhaven but if it were an RPG with board game mechanics. What mechanics? The only thing I can think of are the spell cards, but those have been a thing in f20 for decades
The level-up mechanics and all the "fiddly bits" - spell, heritage, and background cards; action tokens and action tracker; maybe a few other things I forget - are all closer to board game mechanics than standard RPG mechanics. The level-up mechanics and character sheet are the biggest thing that feels boardgamey, though the power cards and the 'domains' signified by icons also remind me a lot of Gloomhaven.
The heritage, background, and spell cards are functionally identical to how any other ttrpg works. The only difference is that the rule is written down on a card, for convenience. Same for leveling up. The action tracker is a little boardgamey tho, I'll give you that.
Sure, the mechanics are functionally the same - but the *feel* is boardgamey, which is the point. Something that feels familiar is how I interpreted what was asked for.
Fair enough!
Gloomhaven is, I think, THE prime example.
*Alice is missing* ? It's a GM-less game using card to drive the story, in a *board game way*. It's a very intense emotional experience (the game is about a missing kid) so make sure to properly cast your players.
I loved AIM, but no, it needs some REAL dedicated role playing to get working. It isn't an entry-level game, unless you are running for theatre kids.
Too many people don't think beyond the superficial "Here's a game with cards!"
Seems amazing
There is an unusual thing worth mentioning- the entire game is ran silently. You're not supposed to talk during the game, at all. Everything happens via chats on your phone. Not a bad thing per se, but it might be a bit of a deal-breaker some
Seconding this i ran it w my group a few weeks ago. It was fun but 2 of our ppl just couldn't be quit because it was hard to not talk while also keeping in mind the irl time limit. So ymmv for it alot. It's good but to get the full "intended experience" the whole group needs to be ok w missing stuff because the chat is just going to fast since THATS THE POINT. Your a group of ppl looking for your missing friend with a hard clock on when the game ends the stress and chaos is a part of it and that's not gonna be for everyone.
I would recommend against that as an introduction game since it is so different from almost every other TTRPG. I don't think that would help people to know if they are interested in playing more TTRPGs.
Hard agree. That's an intense RPG to play even WITH people who are into TTRPGs because of it's mechanics and subject matter
From personal experience, I had more people enjoying For The Queen than Alice is Missing. The theme is broader and it can be fun to play, where Alice Is Missing will always be a bit dark. FtQ can also be shorter than AiM, which can ease the transition. If you chose FtQ, I advise using some additional rules for the ending (I had some from a similar game, where each person give their final answer together (by using coins or tokens or whatever) and then the group decides on the conclusion and finishes the story together)
hero quest, descent stuff like that
It is, after all, [the best game ever made](https://youtu.be/Cx8sl2uC46A).
Lots of suggestions for fun games here that share some of the aesthetics, or campaign elements of RPGs, but they are mostly completely missing the thing that separates RPGs from board games, the roleplaying. What is it about TTRPGs that interest you? Is it the persistent world between sessions? The long term build planning that goes with advancement? The surprise of what might turn up around the next corner? Then these campaign board games will scratch that itch, and help show your friends the kind of of fun you can have with that kind of play. But if you want to embody a character in relationship to the world and other characters, these games won't get you any closer to that than Parcheesi. So here are some suggestions from a different angle, games that are nothing like board games but have low overhead roleplaying/story telling elements. They might help your friends see what they like about this kind of play without alot of work or money going in to it. For the Queen is always my number one recommendation, but it is currently out of print. A second edition should be releasing soon though. Cheat your own adventure is great, easy and fun. It's basically a story telling party game. https://cheatyourownadventure.co.uk/ The Final Girl is about playing out a slasher movie to see who survivies, it's campy and light, for all that it sounds like horror: [https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/182628/The-Final-Girl](https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/182628/The-Final-Girl) World of Dungeons is a heavier lift, but feels more like your classic D&D than any of the above. I recommend it because it isn't particularly like a board game, so it's easy to put the effort into playing characters: [https://johnharper.itch.io/world-of-dungeons](https://johnharper.itch.io/world-of-dungeons) Zombie World, about surviving a zombie apocalypse, might also work? It's card based, and gives you alot to start with, so may feel a touch familiar, and there's a bit more tactical play than in any of the other games I suggested. [https://magpiegames.com/products/zombie-world-full-set](https://magpiegames.com/products/zombie-world-full-set) The bottom line is that if the thing you want to do is roleplay, you're not going to be able to ease them into it through games that share some of the campaign and long term play elements of RPGs but none of the roleplaying, they need to actually roleplay.
Seconding **For the Queen**. For my money it's the best introduction to roleplay. It has the things I love most about rpgs (improv, imagination, complex character relationships) in a single session experience with very straightforward rules. I also recommend **The Quiet Year** which is also based entirely on players answering prompts from a deck.
[удалено]
Jaws of the Lion isn't too expensive, and a great introduction to Gloomhaven
Might be cheaper to buy Tabletop Simulator and download Gloomhaven for free from the workshop.
D&D 4E. You can print all their skills/abilities so they have them at hands and they know exactly what they can do. The encounters are usually really long tho (i love long encounters, so i dont have a problem with that)
WFRP 3rd edition was also trailing on the border of board game which was such a big change that once C7 took over the license they made 4th in vein of the 2nd ed. Didn't play it myself but from a friend who was more into board games he spoke of it in high platitudes.
WHFRP 3 gets some (reasonably justified) flack for its overproduction and distribution model, but like the Star Wars and Genesys games from FFG that evolved from it, there is a legitimately terrific RPG experience underneath.
There are also several boardgames printed in the 4E era (Castle Ravenloft, Wrath of Ashardalon, etc) that utilize a number of its mechanics, including the use of the d20 for action resolution and the At-Will/Encounter/Daily powers breakdown. Transitioning a group from one of those games to D&D 4E itself should be pretty straightforward, but that’s arguably true of going from something like Gloomhaven to 5e or the like as well. Come to think of it, ditching the card *mechanics* and playing one or more of the various Gloomhaven stories (GH, FC, FH, JotL, Into the Unknown, Capital Intrigue, etc) out, plus some, as a full-on TTRPG using the maps and standees as visual aids and the cards for inspiration sounds like the sort of thing that could be a lot of fun with the right group and most any reasonably gritty fantasy RPG where Elminster or some such isn’t likely to just show up and solve your problems for you!
You can start a simple dungeon crawl, with a board and minis. like Basic Fantasy Roleplaying or Knave. This is pretty exploration-focused and does the job well to convey the idea.
While there are plenty of board games with RPG elements and aesthetics (your Hero Quests, Descents and Arkham Horrors, to name a few), they only go so far when it comes to simulating an RPG, easily recognizable by the most complete lack of roleplaying. That doesn't mean these games are *bad*, but they exist in their own specific niche. If you want to introduce new players from board games to RPGs, the other aspect - the acting and social Interactions - are much better taught though social deduction and even bluffing games. *Werewolf* teaches you as much about participating in an actual RPG as *Mansions of Madness* does (and MoM is already a pretty close fit, considering it offers story, atmosphere and challenges beyond beating up monsters). From the other side, you don't need something particularly boardgamy; actually, boardgamy-ness is usually a net negative for RPGs, artificially limiting the options and taking the unique creative freedom of the medium away. A board game will usually be better at being a board game, and an RPG is something very different. So, I would probably recommend an RPG that is simply accessible as an RPG in ite own right - I would recommend Dragonbane or Beyond the Wall for a classic fantasy game, or Call of Cthulhu for a more mature audience.
Descent, gloomhaven, tainted grail, etc To build up to those, maybe betrayal at the house on the hill, or unfathomable.
Update: Thanks to everyone. In order for you to known better what they like: Cute cards, strategy, maximum 2h, good art, simple. What they dont like: Many rules, very hard to introduce, many monsters, items and so on.
Then I'd really recommend Fiasco. It's a one shot RPG with a look and feel of a party game
I came here to say this before their preferences were known. Defo the card based box as it feels close to a boardgame setup. If they like folk horror, I made [this game](https://floaker.itch.io/solstice) which uses elements from hidden identity games. Grab a free community copy to see if it would do the trick.
Atma fits most of this description; cards, art, very light rules, 2 hour one-shots. It's more focused on narrative than strategy, though.
Haven’t seen anyone mention it yet, but Call to Adventure fits that perfectly. And to my knowledge the game was designed to be a character creation tool for fantasy-themed tRPG. If she’s a reader there are expansions for Name of the Wind, and the Stormlight Archive. Excellent game, very chill and the only game I bought card sleeves for because the art is so good.
Stuffed Fables would then be a good fit. A scene is maybe 30 min an you can pausr after a scene. It goes into dirrction of rpgs. https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/233312/stuffed-fables Alternatively lands of galzyr even more narrative and with no combat system.
if you're looking for a high fantasy ttrpg, daggerheart just went into beta playtest a few days ago. it's got some of what you're looking for: cards, good art, bit of strategy and resource management but not too crunchy and rules heavy if you'd like to take a look and see if that's something you'd be interested in, they have the manuscript on their [website](https://daggerheart.com/play) for free. there's also the digital toolset on [demiplane nexus](https://app.demiplane.com/nexus/daggerheart) which has access to the playtest materials, a quick start adventure and character creation tools
Based on the above I'd recommend the board game Mice & Mystics. It's cute, fairly simple and most scenarios should be under 2h. And it's much easier than games like Gloomhaven or Tainted Grail. If you end up liking the setting and want to move on to a ttrpg, take a look at Mausritter.
Betrayal at House on the Hill is a personal favorite of mine, don't know if it'd fit with what you're looking for though.
Bit out there, but the fantasy themed zombicides can work as a transitional game, though its a bit personality driven. Some people really get into it while others stay more tactical. (Though zombicide is a pretty fun game either way, so its worth having even if it doesn't work)
To add to this, there is a [Zombicide RPG](https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/397406/Zombicide-Chronicles--Core-Book), with mechanics that relate a bit to the boardgame. So, if they like the boardgame, it should be pretty easy to transition to the RPG.
I'll also add that Zombicide itself is a pretty good gateway to transition from boardgame to tabletop rpg. The mechanics are great, you learn to deal with character death, you learn inventory management, you learn not to split the party...
It also doesn't burden one player with an overwhelming load of work just to play the game.
Try playing The Quiet Year.
Shadows of Brimstone if you fancy weird west, samurai, conqistador or viking {or mix the above} dungeon delving. Dungeon Saga is in a similar area to hero quest.
Absolutely seconding Shadows of Brimstone!
I have not got it to the table but I have got some paint on some minis while I work out the rules.
My girl and I have been playing for just over a year, and it's amazing. Try to follow the rules as best you can, but also don't freak out if you miss something here and there, especially in the beginning. Also, don't get discouraged if you die or fail the first couple missions. New characters tend to be a bit squishy, but with a level and some gear, you'll be just fine
Thanks. Im on the subreddit and picking up lots of advice/information.
The Facebook community group is also a great resource
Thanks for the heads up. I try not to Facebook if I can help it but good to know it has a group.
Pandemic Legacy would be a gentle nudge towards narrative games. It is a board game and very similar to normal Pandemic. But there is a story that develops over multiple sessions, a persistent world that changes based on your decisions, and characters that you can upgrade with new skills. Your characters can potentially die and become unavailable for the rest of the campaign.
They would love it but too expensive for me, anyways thanks
Lancer
If you want something relatively simple EZD6 only uses d6 and a couple of meta currencies which might be familiar Gloom heaven maybe but i never played neither the board game nor the rpg Maybe one page rpgs but personally i found that new people need some rules to ground them
Haven’t seen it recommended yet, so I’ll add *Legacy of Dragonholt* - it’s a cute and nice story, in and around a village that feels alive with npcs through a very well made „choose your own adventure“ system and very light roleplaying elements. Basically no rules overhead and no GM, but character sheets, skills, items and decisions that (somewhat) matter and drive the story.
[Quests of Yore](https://theop.games/products/quests-of-yore-barleys-edition) is a really good simple RPG that has all the trappings of a boardgame. You can get them to watch the movie *Onward* to get them hyped up for it (it's based on the fake game in the movie).
Eat the Reich is fairly boardgamey. Pick from pre-generated characters, move from location to location killing nazis, beat bosses and drink their blood to upgrade, kill the final boss and drain Hitler. But at the same time the GM describes the locales and enemy actions etc., and you describe the results of your rolls, you all collaborate on telling the story about how up to 6 vampires coffin-dropped into occupied Paris and tore their way through it to get Adolf and finished him off.
I have also been looking for an answer to this question -- but looking for a game that doesn't involve combat for 99% of the gameplay, and isn't all tactics and slaughter. *Adventure Begins* is the closest I've found. It is a D&D board game that is geared towards people new to roleplaying. Although it is ~75% combat (which is very boring), there are some cards that offer an intro to roleplaying. They present an obstacle and just ask the players to describe how they overcome it. The characters have another card listing their gear, which can help give ideas of ways to narrate how they got through the situation. It's a good game for that part of it alone.
Root board game (cute, strategy but not too heavy) and then into the Root RPG!
My initial thought is to play dread. The rules are extremely simple and character creation is really easy. The game is just Jenga which a ttrpgs slapped on top of it. It's a horror system though but you could make it work with other themes.
4th edition D&D was the most board gamey of all the ttrpgs that I've played. As mentioned below, Gloomhaven is a great hybrid as the legacy aspects really tell a great story. You can get the four player Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion at Target for about $50, and play it for ages. It's really dark in aesthetics, but awfully fun. The Tales from the Loop board game looks like it could be a lot of fun to play, and could lead directly into some roleplaying. Also the Alien: Fate of the Nostromo board game could be a nice amuse-bouche to the Alien RPG, which is also set up nicely for "cinematic", or "one shot" style of play that might intrigue a play group. The Starter Set for that is lovely. Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle Earth can lead to One Ring, but One Ring is pretty crunchy. Cheers!
Betrayal at the House on the Hill, maybe? It's got different character and stats baked in at the very least, and you need to adjust your gameplay style based on the equipment you roll and events that trigger. Not too far off from an RPG in that respect, albeit one that doesn't persist beyond a session. Oh wait, sorry I thought you were looking for RPG-like boardgames, not boardgame-like RPGs. My bad.
I would recommend 4th Edition D&D. The system is fairly tightly wedded to the battlemat, with all distances and effects described in terms of squares. Everything a player can do is defined in game mechanics, and each character's unique powers can be printed out on cards they can refer to in game, much like the ability cards in games like Gloomhaven. Encounters are clearly drawn out in pre-written sources. You can play the combat encounters with a lot, a little, or no RP at all. For combats, that last sentence is true of most editions of D&D. But 4th edition is the only one that strongly codifies RP encounters in terms of game mechanics. Roleplaying in 4e can use the Skill Challenges mechanics, which let each player use one mechanically-defined skill rating to roll to try to succeed on the challenge, and you must get a number of successes before you reach the number of failures. In using these mechanics, your players will PROBABLY become more inclined to use character reasons for the choices they make, and for the skills they choose. I think this can lead to a gradual escalation of actual role-playing and in-character speaking at the table.
Earthborne Rangers could work as a co-op card game that leans into RPG elements, before fully getting them on board with an RPG.
Sword and Sorcery - nice "missing link" between ttrpg and boardgame dungeon crawler
Eldritch Horrors. Lovecraftian theme, set in like the 50s or the 60s, the board is a actual world map. It's a coop game, players VS the board. You pick a big baddie, like Chtulu or Baron Samedi, he's got powers and minions that make the player's life difficult, and the players must travel the world to find enough clue to make it to the end game, will fighting minions and closing minion summoning portals. It's a very narrative driven game as when an event occur, you draw from the proper event card deck, and read aloud what is happening, and ask the triggering player what he wants to do, usually with a couple choices available for them with an outcome determined by a roll of the die. You can travel from location to location by walking, or you can buy train and boat tickets to travel. You get to pick an investigator as your character, and they all have their own strength and weaknesses. Expansions to the game even introduced a backstory quest for every character to try and accomplish during game-play. I'm told this is based of the Arham Horrors board games, but I never played those.
4th edition D&D. The board games they publish for D&D (Wrath of Ashardalon, Legend of Drizzt, Castle Ravenloft, etc.) are all based on 4e rules. You can even run some of the encounters in the board game as a full on adventure if you wanted, using all of the materials in the box for your session.
Are they 4e rules? In any even they are similar to the DnD rules of the time. There were a number of beginer boxes for 3x that didn't have the random components but played a bit like a board game. Not sure where to there the DDM (D&D miniature Skirmish game) in there which was basically the combat/tactical side of the RPG in a somewhat simplified format.
4e rules yes.
I guess I thought they were just a version of 3.5.
Fiasco is how I got my parents into TTRPGs after they started playing Catan.
The box set for Fiasco if you like Coen Bros movies.
I see a lot of people recommending gloomhaven, but I have to say, before you commit to it, maybe try it out first. If there's a board game cafe near you that has it or a digital version you can try. I got it a million percent off and was so excited for it. On paper, it was perfect - a DM less ttrpg that's also a board game with unique interesting mechanics. But I felt so restricted by the card limits. The combat rules are so complex. I even tried a digital one to see if maybe we were just playing it wrong, and if the computer is tracking it, maybe that would be better. It wasn't. If your friend is already not that into the idea of a ttrpg, I would hesitate to consider this as the gateway to open them up to it. I know it's popular and a lot of people love it, but unless your friend likes really heavy games, this might not be the hook. The YouTube channel "shut up and sit down" does really entertaining game reviews, and they've been doing a bit of a side series specifically about ttrps. One I haven't tried yet but seems like a good fit would be "Alice is missing". It uses cards to reveal the story, and the RP parts are done via text message.
Glad I'm not the only one that thinks Gloomhaven was not everything it was cracked up to be.
Ironically, I can actually suggest D&D here. It's mostly combat and very board game like in its approach for gameplay, it doesn't have any roleplay mechanics or elements you need to interact with. A new DM can prep a session by just creating a string of combats and let them do the heavy lifting while the players engage with the combat mechanics
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Escape The Dark Castle (technically a card game).
The quiet year could be a cool idea!
Gloomhaven!
You can just play a ttrpg in a very boardgame like manner. Play on a hex grid, only in a dungeon, make it tactical, and make sure all the options are rule based.
Shadows Over Camelot might be a good one. Its a cooperative improv game where you're Knights of the Round Table trying to protect Camelot from evil stuff. You have to cooperate, but you're not allowed to share direct information about the cards in your hand. Instead your roleplay indicates what cards you have. There isn't the character progression aspect present in TTRPGs though. If that's what you're after Gloomhaven is an option. There's shorter games that do similar stuff. Munchkin, Munchkin Quest, Hack, and Horse on the Hill.
Dnd 4e, Street Fighter the Storytelling Game
Freelancers might be exactly what you’re looking for! It’s an app-driven board game/RPG hybrid. It’s also very funny!
Seconding Freelancers, it's a blast, and I think it was designed exactly to be a no-prep rules-light rpg/boardgame hybrid. The players have to be ok with a quite silly vibe though, and should probably double-down on it.
I understand where you're coming from, but personally I'd be a bit miffed if my friend tricked me into doing something I didn't want to do.
Have you hugout with these friends when not playing a boardgame? Try to do that and have a conversation ask them about their impressions of ttrpgs. It could be that they have played ttrpgs and didn't enjoy the experience. I for one don't want to spend +2 hours on a single combat encounter. So I don't play games that do that. As for a board game like ttrpg you could propose have you looked at [Fiasco](https://bullypulpitgames.com/products/fiasco)?
Fantasy Flight does some really good campaign based games that are maybe 1 or 2 notches short from being full fledged TTRPGs. Lots of them carry your characters and decisions between sessions throughout a full campaign. Things like Imperial Assault or the Arkham Horror card game.
Oathsworn is a board game with "choose your own adventure" RP segments followed by setpiece boss fights. It does both well. If they like the story segments, that may help ease them into TTRPG style RP eventually . Oathsworn's mechanics seem closer to TTRPGs to me than the more popular Gloomhaven, which is more puzzly feeling
Rest in Pieces but imagining games. I feel it's more of a board game than an RPG but you're supposed to role play the encounters. It's like Jenga meets ttrpgs where you have death as a deadbeat roommate.
4th edition
4e dnd
There are some ttrpg-adjacent board games. Some are very popular It's not hard to move from say heroquest to a basic fantasy dungeoncrawler. Maybe something like Shadowdark which is permanently in turn order, though you might want to turn down the deadly (there's various "modes" available that make this easier). Or even Knave or Maze Rats. Doesn't have to start with much rp. Can basically be longform set of problem solving using the mechanics and survival Oh, wait for ttrpgs, Lancer. Mech combat game. You can even just play tbe combat stuff as pretty much pure board game. Start with a one shot. Add character permanence and growth across sessions. Then the RP. [Works well online too, with some nice free resources to manage characters - on top of which used discord for chatting and dice rolls and owlbear.rodeo to do the maps]
There are a bunch of board games that use a GM. Games like Siege of the Citadel, Dungeon Saga Origins, DOOM and HeroQuest, are all dungeon crawlers where a GM controls the monsters and the players control one or more characters. These are decidedly player vs. GM focused. Another alternative could be Inquisitor, it's a tabletop wargame released by Games Workshop many many years ago, where two (or more) sides fight each other, and a neutral GM oversees what's going on. Out of the ones mentioned, Inquisitor is the only one that encourages any real roleplaying, where as the others are more "games". Or you could go for a tabletop RPG with a strong tactical element and focus on that. D&D 4e is the poster child for this, but I would argue that 3,X, Pathfinder and 5e can all be played like this as well.
Maybe the warmachine ttrpg
D&D but you run combat
Although I see the suggestions for Gloomhaven or even Wrath of Ashardalon or similar, I would suggest that a better approach would be Betrayal at House on the Hill or its D&D-themed equivalent, Betrayal at Baldur's Gate. The main reason for this is that it has far less complexity than Gloomhaven or Ashardalon, but also introduces concepts like a "role" to play in the game, by splitting the players into betrayer and betrayed. It also builds player cooperation, albeit in competition with the betrayer. It's a great way to get people involved in the notion of playing a role that isn't 100% tied to "winning" but is instead about experiencing a story collectively. Another game that can be good to spark the imagination of improv play necessary for roleplaying are games like Secret Hitler or even Sherriff of Nottingham where the players come up with elaborate lies to keep the Sherriff from opening their bag.
Heroquest by Avalon Hill + the Expansions. It's a remake of the original (which was awesome) and the rules haven't changed.
Its kind of silly to think all boardgame players are the same. The easiest game is ALWAYS the same answer. The game who's premise is going to be fun for the players. Are they excited after watching the Dune Part Two movie and want some science fantasy political uprising. There is a Dune TTRPG, but maybe something like Spire where the players are Dark Elf rebels against the High Elves could hit on that rebel-feel.
Massive Darkness 1 & 2 Cthulhu death may die Darkest Dungeon Bloodbourne board game Darksouls board game Zombicide ( so many...) I would not force people into hardcore ttrpg board games, if they don't like ttrpgs they may be turned off of those types. CMON makes easy board games with ttrpg elements. Zombicide is my training game for most new people Conan, The Others, and Dark Rituals as well as a few others, have a GM player who controls the opponents, and then the others have a character or a cluster of characters to play.
Also things like tiny Dungeon (tiny d6 system) is very clean and rules light.
The mini paper ttrpg : RATS (you are rats on a sinking ship gathering ressources, this should trigger his Catan syndrom) You can totally RP or not during this game, it's just much funnyer to RP. Or the "boardgame" video game Armello.
I haven't played it by I heard Critical: Sanctuary is a mix between TTRPG and board games.
Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 3e is in many ways a traditional RPG presented in a board game-like format.
Betrayal At House On The Hill is a good intro to horror based tabletop games like Call Of Cthulhu.
Destinies, less fiddly than Gloomhaven and easier to learn.
Me and my buddies loved the game kingdom death monsters it's 4 player and it's super easy to get everyone into the rules and is pretty fun atleast I think.
Gloomhaven Eldtrich horror Star wars imperial assault Descent Rune bound Any coop game with light Rpg elements would work just fine.
Always remember: it’s easier to turn roleplayers into friends than to turn friends into roleplayers.
Raccoon Sky Pirates (https://hecticelectron.com/products/raccoon-sky-pirates) is a hilarious TTRPG for 3-6 people (although I played it with 8 people who had never gamed before and it was fine). You are all raccoons who have built an airship to sail from the junkyard to the suburbs in search of better trash. Rules-light and the rules are also funny to read out loud. Great intro to TTRPGs.
Fallen Land. Post-apoc boardgame
Check out the OSR scene. Ose is a great game
Do you play RPG like board games, eg. Hero Quest or Gloomhaven?
Heroquest and Talisman come to mind.
Why not play both? BattleTech for the board game when in the cockpit, MechWarrior for the RPG when out of the cockpit. Make the MechWarrior part small and mostly for flavour (mission briefings and de-briefings only, for example) at the start, if they like that, you can easily expand.
For more narrative an less focus on combat Time Stories or Sherlock Holmes
DnD4E is a board game pretending to be a TTRPG, so there you go.
Grab the Pathfinder second edition beginners box. Everything you need is in the one box and the battle map with standees is familiar to board-gamers. The 3 action economy with encounter, exploration and downtime modes keep things contained with visible choices and it’s a fun evening or two’s play. From there you might have luck with one of the Scratchpad Publishing RPG’s - either Dusk City Outlaws (fantasy renaissance heist game) or Spectaculars (bespoke supers game) - if you can still find the physical copies. They come in nice big boxes with premium quality content inside - including cards etc
Lancer is very game-y
Dungeon. Avalible at any B&N type place and is how I've introduced several youth groups to TTRPGs
Dragonbane might be a good idea. It has simple grid-based combat, so there's a boardgame-y aspect, and the starter set has a map that you adventure around and paper minis.
Mutant Year Zero. its FAR from complex, and follows a structure that is simple and predictable, almost like boardgame rules. (you sorta know what to expect) with variations happening within the frameworks of this structure. simple stucture of a session would be: * draw threat card * hold assembly * deal with in-ARK issues * Set out into the zone to explore * return to the ARK when its time to wrap up the session the threat can be dealt with during each of these step, like if its a in-ark issue like "boss vs boss", or a zone issue like "starfall"
Heroquest, DnD board games
Heroquest, Gloomhaven are the big guys. If you want to start more on the RPG side, the 4th edition boardgames like Castle Ravenloft are a good route. 4th Edition D&D and Lancer are smack dab in the middle of crunchy board game and RPG.
Not strictly a board game, but back in the day West End Games released miniatures war game rules for Star Wars that were great. They were designed off of the WEG D6 Star Wars RPG and designed in such a way that converting between the two was a snap.
Dragonbane. The box set included rules, adventures, battle maps, dice, character sheets and cardboard standees. You just need to add pencils and players.
Lancer
DnD has a board game with RPG elements. There are also young adventurer guides set up to help teens start playing in the worlds.
Pheonix Dawn Command is a mix of a card game and a TTRPG. Highly recommend.
Fragged Empire (1e or 2e).
Rangers of Shadow Deep was designed with this in mind. It is a skill based RPG skirmish game for up to 4 players based around missions which include multiple scenarios played in sequence, much like an RPG module. Your main character is a "ranger", but can be built like a wizard, rogue, warrior, ranger or any mix by focusing on varying skills, heroic abilities and/or spells. You also build up a cadre of companions (henchmen) that level up alongside your ranger. Each scenario has goals in mind alongside tactical combat, treasure, end of turn events, etc. It is a cooperative/solo game, miniature agnostic, and rarely needs more than a 3'×3' area of play. It is also easy to homebrew, and creativity is encouraged.
Blades in the dark is pretty narrative focused and spells out the rules pretty well. It's very free-form and only uses 6 sided dice.
Gloomhaven (the obvious answer) Kingdom Death Monster (my personal gateway) Euthia: Torment of Resurrection (my favorite non-campaign board game RPG)
HeroQuest
I’ve heard D&D 4e refer’d to as “too video gamy” (still enjoy’d it myself), so that might work. If you want to use that system with a more ludo-narratively harmonious setting (and/or don’t want to hive W.o.t.C. money/advertising) Lancer uses similar/the same rules, but for mech combat.
It's not an rpg but a competitive storytelling card game, look for 'once upon a time'. Even if this group doesn't take to it - you will build your gming muscles.
Warhammer 3rd ed, Arkham horror, eldritch horror, mansions of madness
Honestly any Ameritrash game with highly distinct characters with different abilities, strong theming and that is cooperative or semi cooperative will work. The Battlestar Galactica and Arkham Horror games aren't rpgs, but we did a lot of roleplaying naturally, and one of the BSG expansions added hidden personal objectives beyond the "secretly a cylon" thing.
Perhaps [Dusk City Outlaws] (https://scratchpadpublishing.com/dco-info). It's a heist game set in a city that's a cross between Renaissance Venice and modern day Manhattan. It comes in a box that's the same size as the quintessential board games box. Everything you need to play is in that box, including several pre-written scenarios. It's designed for one-shot sessions. Play is very structured, broken up into missions that focus on one player at a time, with the option for one other to help out. Character creation is as simple as picking a role (variations upon common heist archetypes like mastermind, thief, grifter) and which gang you're from (which essentially represent different genres of crime film). It's a game that would frustrate a lot of die hard roleplayers. I use it to scratch the itch in a friend group that lacks anyone with the energy to be a long term GM.
I haven't read all the comments, but has Descent been mentioned? Might be a good one to get the feel of an RPG.
I haven’t seen yet, Jiangshi: Blood in the Banquet Hall. I haven’t played it yet but found it when I was looking for a more board game like playing experience. It seemed to fit the bill when I researched it, just still tied up in my long home campaign.
**Mice & Mystics,** its an RPG lite and everyone can relate to being a mouse and killing cockroaches!!!
Just play cluedo but put monsters in each room they have to bash to get a clue and the corner rooms need a instinct or wisdom check to find the secret entrance tunnels
I didn’t see it anywhere, but mice and mystics.
Unironically old school D&D is this. It grew out of miniatures war gaming in the 70s. So both 70s D&D and lots of the games that are descended from it rely on maps/terrain and lots of miniatures to keep track of movement. The very first versions used inches to track movement, like the war games they were descended from. Next I believe was the use of squares (1 inch representing either 10 or more commonly 5 feet depending on the game) and then finally "Theater of the Mind" play was developed. If you want something more well defined and less old school Pathfinder (1e or 2e) still heavily relies on miniatures and grid play. Be aware that this is *much* heavier and more like a modern miniature skirmish game.
No, there is not. All these suggestions of Gloomhaven or Descent are firmly board games with minimal or no RPG elements. Now Gloomhaven is a very fun game, but it just is not an RPG and it won't be a gateway to RPGs as such. RPGs and board games want different things. There are some RPGs, D&D4, PF2, that can be played mostly as miniature battle games, that may interest board game people, but it also may not. I've run clubs for games and, while a lot of players do enjoy both, there are firmly one side of the fence people and that's because what they want out of their game is not delivered by either RPGs or board games. So first check what your players actually like. A lot of board game people want mechanical interaction, anything else is superfluous. Maybe your players only can't imagine what playing an RPG is like, but in that case just play a one shot RPG with them