Don't get me wrong guys, I don't dislike the books, and after being exposed to some other characters with functioning frontal lobes in book 3 I have come to realize Harry's dumbassery is intentional. I am just not used to the main characters of the books I read to be bumbling like that when it comes to interpersonal relationships, especially when they think they are smooth operators. Harry isn't half as clever as he thinks he is.
If you want something in a similar vein the Laundry Files by Charles Stross (starting with the Atrocity Archive) features a computational demonologist working as IT support and newbie field agent for a secret branch of the British Civil Service dedicated to combating horrors from beyond space and time. Along the way he must do battle with cultists, unspeakable alien intelligences, HR, and (deadliest of all) Middle Management.
Lovecraft Meets Dilbert... the RPG was (cubicle 7 took t down) using the same system as classic Cthulhu. His name is Bob O. Howard. As in Bastard Operator from Hell :p Book 1: Nazis from beyond the world Book 2: James Bond Book 3: Promotions... Book 4: Modesty Blaise (a big chunk is without Howard. Best moment: "WWLJD", you'll see). Yog Sothot starts to wake up... Book 5: Vampires. Everyone knows they do not exist... even if ghosts, zombies, etc... do... It all starts in a Bank, with a group of Scrum-organized Data Analysts... Book 6: no Howard, but his wife... and the Pale Violin. Invited Guest: The King in Yellow... Book 7: Elvish invasion. They use Unicorns (AKA: children of Shubb Niggurath) as mounts and Vampires as mages... Almost no Howard Book 8: Privatization of the public sector. Nyarlathothep gets a toy, and the privates... lose it. Oh boy, always bet for Bob... Even if the opposition is leaded by Yog Sothot's chosen. Book 9: Nobody remembers the President of the United States (Arnold... the actor... yeah :p), so they send a commando to set USA ablaze. Kinda strange ending (there are clues along the book about the narrator not being trustworthy...), nearly Zero Bob. Every. Single. One. Are. Worth it! But my favourite is the 2nd book, the Jennifer Morgue. Because of Powerpoint, and because the car ejects. PD: several short stories. Equoid can give you the creeps or nightmares, the others are more... for all ages. Again, all worth it. And the parent organization? SOE. Very Delta Green. Very much so.
[/QUOTE] Well, Harry does have a regular D&D game with the local werewolf pack.[/QUOTE] Was just about to mention that. What, the Harry/hairy pun, or the fact that a wizard plays in an RPG**? For the record, it was the werewolf pack that introduced Dresden to roleplaying, and his character in the games is a barbarian because Dresden doesn't want to think like a wizard needs to in his relaxation time. ** You know that Vin Diesel was running a D&D game on the set of Chronicles of Riddick, right?
I don't get it. Someone explain to me what's the appeal of playing fantasy RPGs in a world where the fantasy is reality and you can cast a fireball at some asshole's face and converse with fairytale beings like werewolves?
Well, it's clear to me: you can play a brainless pile of muscles and solve any problem by applying axe to mouth without taking any real-life risks. One of the points of playing RPG is that you can do things irresponsible/impossible/too dangerous IRL and have some fun. You, as a human (I guess), might like to play an wizard elf hurling fireballs in all directions; fantasy novels characters like to play simple humans swinging swords in all directions. ;)
Only in Fantasy games. Sci-Fi demands lots of reading to not go through lost, and Harry, like all mages in the setting, has a problem with technology (it stops working... unless is horribly obsolete). A Conan de Barbarian campaign can be really fun... specially salted with some Call of Cthulhu "guests" you can punch and remain in-universe XD
To most people in the setting magic isn't real, which is my 99.8% of people Harry deals with think he's either crazy or just going for a gimmick with his detective agency, so D&D (or equivalent) would have developed much as it did in the real world as a bit of escapism, which even a crime solving wizard needs. Actually he might need it more than just about anybody.
As, so probably the same reason I play Harvest Moon/Stardew Valley* instead of going to do actual gardening. *(highly recommended BTW) Quite likely, but it explains precisely nothing. The obvious answer to that would be "What exactly makes it fun?" To clarify, I was asking why a wizard/someone aware of magic etc. plays fantasy RPG, and not just about some random muggles, because those probably have the same reasons as most players in our world. As for escapism - isn't it too close to what he's doing in his "day job"?
It's really simple. In a reality where fireballs and fairies and such exist, you're still not going to be like in a DnD campaign. Dresden isn't going to go dungeoning on a whim and cast fireballs at anyone. There are social conventions. A tabletop game will allow him to turn off for a while and relax. And actually enjoy his time casting a fireball rather than think of the hundreds of consequences if he's seen or attack the wrong person. Plus magic and fairies in a modern world isn't the same as playing in fantasy world. Basically, the reason is the same as why WE play. To experience something else and have fun. Even if your job is being a mage, tabletop will let you be one purely for fun.
He hangs out with people who believe him and let him simply play with an axe... it's relaxing because he is in no danger, doesn't have to think fast, doesn't need to memorize tons of rules, and can hang out with people. Outside those gaming sessions, he doesn't have much of a social life...
Not when he's playing someone who doesn't use magic and whose solution to any problem is "Apply axe to issue. Repeat until Issue stops." He can socialize without overthinking and planning the hell out of his day, like he has to as a wizard in the real world. One of his wizarding tools is a ring that stores up kinetic energy as you walk around every day, and can release that in an enormous blast with a punch. But he has to remember to wear it all the time for it to be effective, AND has to avoid troubles most days even then (it takes 2-3 days of wearing around before it's fully charged). The werewolf pack mostly play non-combat types in the game for much the same reason. They can eat someone, literally, in the real world. They don't need to get into a fight to prove their badassery.
Heck, everyone likes to play dressup with houses... only in the Sims you can do it for (almost) free XD
Also, Pen & Paper RPGs aren't just "alternate life simulators." They're communal storytelling. Life is messy and things happen without purpose. RPGs are run by someone with a plan for how things will go and there's a reason for things to happen (excepting random encounters). Also, "Fantasy" is a broad category. Lord of the Rings and Warmachine both fall into that category (everything different is just subgenre). The fantasy of D&D isn't necessarily the same as the "Fantasy" of his "real life."
I guarantee you players WILL mess the DM's story :p But you're quite right. Tabletop games and RPGs in general are about experiencing a story and getting out of the real world. It has nothing to do with what you do in real life. People in the military will play wargames even though it's "close to their job". The purpose is to have fun. Even if he played a mage, Dresden wouldn't be playing himself, simply because he's playing.
That WTF moment when I go to the wiki and realize that several weapons are, in fact, NOT a BS weapon: http://infinitythewiki.com/en/Feuerbach (heavy support weapon) means the Sogarat is quite f*cked!!! http://infinitythewiki.com/en/Rocket_Launcher_(RL) means Phoenix is quite nerfed Oo http://infinitythewiki.com/en/Grenade_Launcher_(GL) means so many Kuang Shi controllers threw so many extra smokes!! And the new Ghulam NCO is not that great too... XD
Apparently he managed to rope Judi Dench into playing in it, or so the rumour goes The real wtf about the feuerbach is that a weapon that is explicitly described as having a 'rapid rate of fire' is only B2 at best. And yes I understand that the rules are an abstraction to fit into the game, not a direct translation of the weapon description. Still kind of weird when 'burst' is roughly described as the number of shots the weapon fires.
