A Case for Visual Aids in RPGs

As the title says, I like to play RPG with terrain and miniatures. However, I want to point out that I do not look down upon theater of the mind or cheap DIY RPG visual aids. I'm just saying that RPGs look a lot more visually exciting with things representing players, monsters, NPCs and the terrain around them. As a species who rely heavily on their sight, "it's better if you see it for yourself" is an apt phrase in a lot of situations.

That looks pretty, right?

Alright, I get it; some people can't afford to buy or the skill to build and paint nice miniatures and great terrain. I get it. There's always the theater of the mind for most if not all people. Yes, good; imagination is good. However, sometimes, people interpret your words differently because you know, different people, different experiences and all that. Visual aids are not just "I got awesome stuff and you don't". It's not about that.

Something something blind people something something elephant.

A part of having visual aids is clarity. You can easily know what's a red box instantly because you see a red box with your eyes. If someone were to describe a red box to a blind man, it would be very difficult. Also, no offense to blind people. I will probably discuss this some other time i.e. how people with disabilities play RPGs. Going back to the issue at hand i.e. clarity, it just makes things clear and for everyone to see. You know where the approximate location of the enemy, you know how far away you are, you know whether you are behind cover, etc.. Everything is clear and you don't have to waste time explaining where everything is.

Yep, it's wood.

Okay, let's say you agree; yes, having visual aids is a "must-have" to have but you can't afford any of the fancy, good looking stuff. You don't have to buy a Rolls Royce if you need to commute to work. Just get something within your means. Tokens! Paper standees! Cheap plastics toys you got randomly from somewhere you can't remember! I saw the other day, on Reddit, someone who drew his own character and made a paper standee. Of course, I gave him the red arrow for it. The paper standee had more character and personal investment than my [online] store-bought miniature. If you can't draw, just download and print a picture of a character from the internet to make a standee out of it. There is reasonably priced papercraft for just about anything that you can download from the Internet. You just need to look and take the time and effort to put it together. I will probably do an article later specifically discussing what, where and how to put together various types of visual aids; paper, plastic, metal, etc..

Business people talking about business in a meeting.

This is what an RPG table without visual aids look like.

But let's say you don't agree; fine, that's your prerogative. That's your stance on the matter. However, I still would like to persuade you. Imagine yourself not being into RPGs and you are at a convention. Now, imagine seeing a table with some people sitting around and just talking about this adventure they are having inside their heads and describing the scene and action. Well yeah, they can obviously see it but you don't. You are not privy to their unseen world. However, you see another table with people also playing an RPG but this time, it has all these wonderful terrain and miniatures. You know what’s going on because it’s all there for you to see and observe. And yes, I’m advocating RPGs to be a spectacle for people to see and be interested in. This leads to an argument for visual aids; it helps in recruiting new players and get more people into the hobby.

Players discussing strategies to defend a village!

This is what an RPG table looks like with visual aids!

I understand that some people would prefer their RPG sessions to be private and not be made a spectacle for other people. Sure, go ahead; it’s your session. However, I’m always in the opinion that people should open their sessions to newbies and newcomers to the hobby. It helps to community to grow and replace the slowly dwindling number of players who are lost for a myriad of reasons e.g. work, marriage, life, etc.. There’s always a need for fresh blood for a community and I feel just keeping to ourselves in our little group in our little cave isolated from the public will not help the community as a whole. Allowing your sessions to be publicly seen in game shops and social media with terrain and miniatures for people to look at and become intrigued will help inform the masses that there are RPG things happening and they know where to look and ask about.

I know it's a prop for some Fortnite Battle Royale thing but as you can see, the props they use certainly does draw people's attention. Same can be done for tabletop RPGs!

Okay, so I made 2 arguments so far for supporting and having visual aids. The other is quite very personal and for the individual. The one other argument I want is that it’s just awesome to have them. Yes, it’s the materialistic capitalism in me talking but having stuff is quite nice. Having miniatures and terrain is a nice thing to have. Having paper standees and cardboard houses is awesome. They look great. They provide a physical representation for your imagination and you can play with them. Toys are meant to be played with.

Sweet, sweet material possessions.

So those are my arguments. It’s not just so for some of us to have cool stuff but also it helps the hobby grow. It lets people see into the made-up world players could see through the eyes of their minds. A glimpse into their private theater of the mind. It gets people interested and intrigued. It gets people looking into the hobby and eventually, get into it. That’s how I think we can grow the hobby; by having nice things to see and using them as advertisements for the hobby.