“Roleplay Heavy” games place the focus on the story, the characters, and the world they live within, and tend to lean hard into the various roleplaying elements of the game. These games will frequently find the party talking with NPCs, exploring the personal elements of their backstories, or even having emotional moments around the camp fire. 

Roleplay Heavy

“Combat Heavy” games emphasize the combat mechanics within their systems over roleplay or puzzle solving. There are frequent and longer battles with enemies and a greater emphasis on tactical game play.

Combat Heavy

A “Dungeon Crawl” is a scenario where players navigate a dungeon or labyrinth-like environment for the entirety of the adventure. It emphasizes battling monsters, collecting loot, and avoiding traps to survive to the end!

Dungeon Crawl

“Theater of the Mind” uses little to no visuals for scene settings and combat. Instead, the narrative imagery comes from the Game Master’s descriptions and character action and movement comes from Players’ descriptions. 

Theater of the Mind

“Rule of Cool” emphasizes creative story beats over sticking to a system’s rules as written. Players have the ability to push the limits of the rules or even break core rule mechanics at times if the Game Master thinks it is interesting, fun, or cool enough.

Rule of Cool (RoC)

Games that are ran “Rules as Written” emphasize realism and stick to the letter of the rules, allowing players to explore creative solutions while still operating under a consistent rule set. Players have the ability to utilize the rules in creative ways to create awesome characters and moments in the game.

Rules as Written (RaW)

West Marches games are typically ran as “drop-in / drop-out” campaigns,  where a pool of players hop into sessions as they are available or as sessions align with their schedules. These games focus on a player-led story and exploration, with each session acting as a self contained adventure, allowing for players to experience a variety of stories within an overarching campaign.

West Marches

Organized Play uses a standardized ruleset for character creation, leveling, and rewards. Every character plays by the same rules. Its strength is flexibility: bring your character to any table and jump right in. With tight rule adherence, every game feels consistent, fair, and ready for adventure.

Organized Play

In "Sandbox" or "Open World" games, players are given a tremendous amount of freedom to pursue their stories without the restrictions of a more linear game style. Players are encouraged to explore and engage with the world, and find their own story as they do so. These games offer the players the opportunity to help drive the narrative, and allow for the story to evolve organically through the choices they make.

Sandbox / Open World

“Hexcrawl / Exploration” games are all about the journey. Whether you're uncovering ancient ruins, navigating dangerous terrain, or charting new territory, the focus is on discovery and player-driven adventure. Hexcrawls add additional structure by using a map where each hex holds new surprises, challenges, or story hooks.

Hexcrawl / Exploration

“Tactical / Crunchy” games are all about mastering the rules and making smart, mechanical choices. These games place a strong emphasis on strategy, planning, and system knowledge. Players who enjoy complex combat, optimized builds, or detailed mechanics will feel right at home here.

Luke/Velxir

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