Carpe Weekend: Playing the role

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Dice are an important part of any tabletop role-playing game. | Supplied photo

Updated: February 20, 2012 8:14AM

If you think role-playing games are for dateless dweebs who wear pocket protectors and can quote entire episodes of “Star Trek,” chances are you never met anyone who plays them.

Sure, we sometimes have a hard time procuring a date, and a good deal of us love going where no man has gone before, whether it’s via Captain James T. Kirk or Captain Jean-Luc Picard.

But to write off an entire group of people as being socially inept or unable to connect to the real world in any meaningful way is a bit stereotypical.

What I always loved about role-playing games — and fellow dweebs, back me up, here — is the ability to disappear into a different land and become someone entirely new, if only for a few hours.

This world and the sometimes sad realities therein can weigh on you if you let them.

Things like movies, books, music and, yes, role-playing games give us an escape, no matter how brief or far-fetched the experience is.

The high school freshman who constantly is demeaned in the real world can become a confident knight in shining armor in a different one.

That down-on-her-luck waitress who has to work long hours just to pay the bills?

Through role-playing games, she can journey to a world where the only worries involve slaying dragons and avoiding the occasional ornery orc.

“Storytelling is one of the oldest and highest of art forms,” said my brother North Roberts, himself a seasoned gamer.

“It has founded religions, shaped communities and conveyed world-changing ideas in ways that no other media could.

“Role gaming is a wonderful way to engage in that time-honored tradition, to share a story and become part of it.”

There’s a limit, sure, because you never want to forget that the real world exists. But what’s wrong with escaping from it every once in a while?

Answer: absolutely nothing.

Dungeons & Dragons

Steger-South Chicago Heights Public Library, 54 E. 31st St., Steger, will host a Dungeons & Dragons tournament for teenagers from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Jan. 19.

Participants will be able to create their own characters and embark on a sprawling journey using the popular fantasy game. No experience is necessary.

Information: (708) 755-5040.

GURPS

Generic Universal RolePlaying System is an extremely fun series that I used to play all the time when I was young.

GURPS isn’t genre-specific, meaning it allows gamers to play in any setting, be it the Old West, outer space or the present day.

You really can create any kind of character you want and then take an adventure into countless worlds of your own creation.

Information: sjgames.com/gurps.

Electronic role-playing

If you have a computer, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 or Nintendo Wii, check out “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim,” “The Sims 3,” “Sid Meier’s Civilization” or “Fallout: New Vegas” for the same kinds of role-playing fun that traditional tabletop games give you.

Sure, there aren’t any dice involved in these games, but they provide just as much fantasy fun as the Dungeons & Dragons or GURPS franchises.