Brighton hobby 13: Role playing game
Sorry, no photos this time. As befits hobby number 13, I lost all the pictures I took of that night. Spooky! So you’ll just have to take my word that I did actually go to this meet-up of Brighton role-players that takes place every Thursday night in the Railway Club.
To be honest, a few snaps wouldn’t have done the evening justice anyway as most of the action takes place in your actual brain. The photos would have just showed six people sitting on plastic chairs around a table in a dreary room above a pub. But actually we were in an (undefined) historical period, meeting kings, dodging shiny orbs and being grossed out by bits of people’s bodies falling off.
For this hobby I took my friend Carlos with me. He used to play Dungeons and Dragons (or D&D to those in the know) when he was a teenager so he knows a thing or two about fighting imaginary monsters. I felt like I needed some support as all I knew about role playing was that:
1. It was played by all the clever kids at school (like Carlos).
2. As a hobby it's thought of as bit uncool.
It’s not just me who thinks that. When I went bellringing, one lady told me how they’d all gone out for drinks after a peal one night and were sat next to a group of RPG players. “It’s rare for a group of bellringers to feel like they’re the coolest people in the pub,” she said.
But these so called dorks are having the last laugh because actually, it’s rather hip to be a nerd these days. Forget sipping cocktails and going to poncey bars, these days hipsters are playing boggle and scrabble in underground board game clubs. No, really!
So did the role-players I met at the Brighton meet-up conform to the stereotypes of oddball obsessives with no social skills? Thankfully no. There was lots of eye contact and everyone seemed to enjoy each other’s company. There was a real sense of camaraderie, albeit one that only comes when you’re playing an oft ridiculed hobby..
As newcomers we were made to feel really welcome, particularly by games master Peter who let us enter the imaginary world he’d invented, and also by Maria who was super-friendly and nice, and an actual woman!
So how did the evening shape up? The players met in the bar at 7.30 for drinks, but things didn’t really get going until about 8.30pm when everyone disappeared upstairs to two separate (and very cold) rooms to get playing. There were no dice, board games or costumes, it was all just the product of our imaginations, although we were guided in our quest by Peter.
At first it was a bit hard to figure out what was going on as we were coming in to the middle of a long running game.There seemed to be a mix of historical elements thrown together with some science fiction elements and, although it was a bit hard to fathom for a newbie, everyone else seemed to be enjoying themselves. Carlos particularly got into it to and played his role as leader of the secret police with great aplomb.
After just observing what was going on for a while, I was finally given a role as a noblewoman who’s son had been arrested. The video of my Oscar winning performance has sadly been lost but take it from me, I was very convincing.
It's all a bit strange as you really do get into it. And in today's world of technology there's something quite nice about escaping from reality into your imagination.
The best bit: The venue. The Railway Club is a proper social club for railway workers with a subsidised bar (£4.50 for two drinks? Yes please). However it may be difficult to become a member unless you drive a train.
The worst bit: Having to leave while the game was in full swing and never finding out what happened in the end. Sorry, but they were still going strong at 10.45pm on a school night.
The lowdown: The Brighton role players group meet up at the Railway Club on Belmont, just off Dyke Road, every Thursday from 7.30pm until 11.30pm. Here's how to join their Yahoo group.
