FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Who’s this game for?
The game is designed for kids ages 6 and up and a devoted parent. You need at least two players. But we recommend 2-5 players plus the GameMaster (GM)… which is usually a grown-up, initially. That said, after a few gaming sessions, we’ve seen kids take on the GM role too. Unless you are a grade-school educator, taking on more than four/five players may be very challenging to manage, but you do you.
N.B. — From our test experiences, unless your players are seasoned veterans with laser focus, Ampersand RPG games are not ideal for birthday parties or an entertainment segment at a group gathering. It takes some ramp-up, especially if rolling new Characters and focus… hours will go by in an instant. We recommend to dedicate your play session to this activity alone. Supply plenty of snacks. Confiscate all digital devices and screens. You’ll thank us later. And let us know how it goes. We’d love your feedback!
How long does it take to play?
Finishing a whole ScreenBox Adventure story can take two or more hours, depending on how you play. However, you can take a break at any time and resume the next time you play. At the end of the gaming session, we recommend taking a picture of the map (to help remember where characters and monsters were). The GM should mark with a pencil where they left off on the ScreenBox story text. To make things a little easier, most Ampersand Adventure stories are split in Acts, like a play. These are natural breaks in the story where you can end the gaming session for the day.
Smack-dab in the middle of our first issue of LoadOut zine, there is a skirmish (short Adventure) called “Module B2”, complete with Figurines, a Map, Monster Cards, and a bunch of Loot Tokens. It’s designed to be only about 30 minutes of play. Check it out!
Do I need anything else? How about those weird dice?
Everything you need to play is in our ScreenBox game, including a full set of polyhedral dice. We even added an extra twenty-sided dice (d20) for the players. Get a nice clean table, a handful of sharpened pencils, a comfortable chair, and you’re ready to roll!
As the GM, while you’re setting up the screen and all the game pieces, have your players “roll” their characters and take the time to illustrate their avatar on the cover of their Character Folio. That will get them invested in their persona’s personality which is the foundation of a roleplaying game. There is a Player Setup card included with the ScreenBox version of the game that will give them some guidance as you finish setup.
The short skirmish game in the middle of LoadOut can be played on its own, but you’ll need to download the FREE Character Folio LITE and supply your own dice.
What’s the difference between this and D&D?
Ampersand gameplay is a simplified version of a roleplaying game like D&D. But it’s a totally new system, unique to anything else in the RPG gaming world. It is intently designed for kids (and their parents), retaining traditional RPG elements like rolling dice, figurines, gridded map, and numeric player attributes, but adding more engaging elements such as a reimagined Character sheet, Loot Tokens, brain-teasing Puzzles, and wipe-erase Monster Cards.
Unlike traditional D&D, Ampersand Adventures span many genres from dungeons to space ships, underwater spy lairs to forgotten planet root farms. Characters can be any type of creature imaginable, and Ampersand players enjoy hundreds of exotic and mundane Loot Token items to outfit their avatars.
Best of all, our stories are written for kids and families: lots of humor, goofy situations and some inside jokes. Let’s have some fun!
I’ve never played D&D or any RPG before. Is that ok?
Totally fine! Ampersand is designed for newbies who want to play a tabletop roleplaying game with their kids. If you’ve played D&D before, everything will be very familiar to you, and we hope you enjoy our take on how to play an RPG, but if you’re new to the genre, that’s fine too! We strive to make onboarding of parents and newcomers as easy as possible. Check out our 2-minute video overview to get acquainted with the Ampersand RPG system.
Is there a lot of prep work? How long are the Rules?
Not long at all. To keep things simple, we’ve distilled the rules down to just a six-page, tri-folded “How to Play” sheet. It explains setup and gameplay with examples. And there’s a Player Setup card with tips for the players to “roll” their avatars. The actual story text is printed on the inside of the GameMaster’s screen (i.e. the inside of the game box) which is read as you play. There are no large tomes or gigantic reference manuals. The “How to Play” sheet is included with the Mages & Macrophages ScreenBox, but you can download a printable version PDF here if you want to check it out.
What’s an Exoskeld? Do you have a Glossary?
While we’ve tried to simplify the game the best we could, there will be some RPG terms along with some very Ampersand-y jargon you’ll run into. We’ve compiled all the ideas we could think of in our Ampersand Glossary. If you run into something that’s not addressed, please ask us directly by email or use the form below!
Do the kids make a new Character every time they play?
The first time you play, the kids will create or “roll” a new Character using Ampersand RPG’s tri-folded Character Folio. You can request one in the mail for FREE. Instructions on character creation are right in the Character Folio’s pages. Your child will roleplay as this avatar in the game. As they gain experience, the characters will become more powerful and attain new skills and equipment. While we encourage players to play with their character across multiple Ampersand Adventures, you can start over and create a new character at any time. If you got an issue of LoadOut and want to player the included skirmish right away, you can download a FREE printable, abbreviated LITE version PDF here.
As a GM, how am I supposed to speak NPC?
NPCs, or Non-Player Characters, are the fictional characters the players will meet in the story. As the GameMaster, you will read out – or act out – their lines of dialogue to the players. It is crucial that you bring the NPC personalities to life through their lines. This may seem daunting at first, but think of it like reading a bedtime story to your kids. The Big Bad Wolf. The Little Engine that Could. Sponge Bob. If will come naturally to you, don’t worry!
But to help you out, sometimes in the story text you’ll find some acting starting points to help enliven the NPC personality. Of course, you can portray them as you see fit. These tips are indicated with asterisks like this:
Will this game make me a better parent?
Yes. It will. You will be very popular.
We love playing this game! When will the next story be released?
The development of our gaming system has been a labor of love by three dads over years, but in these manic economic times, it has been a challenge to get our games produced. That said, we have written Adventure stories in various sizes that are ready to go. Don’t miss any updates. Sign up for our mailing list now. We plan to post downloadable digital Adventures as well as more crowd-funded printed endeavors like LoadOut in the near future. Be sure to stay on top of the latest and greatest from Ampersand RPG by following our socials:
MORE questions?
Please drop us a note if you have a specific question we did not address. We’ll try to answer as soon as we can!