I've got it Maid

[ComicJam]

So I was browsing through IPR and came across this little gem:
Maid RPG

I bought the pdf, and its fantastic. The read of the rules and the examples given are worth the money alone!! :)

Cheers! :D

[Laserray]

Having read the rules and examples, ComicJam, can you tell me whether this would be appropriate for junior high kids? If so, i'll order it.

[Logos]

Junior High Kids Would Probably be Pushing it , but as long as every effort was taken to make sure that the game would stay on the light side of things (its pretty express about whats lighter and darker, including side by side tables where requires), I don't see the problem.

That said, If I was running this for other people's kids, an immature group, a group not familure with the source (Harem Anime) or a group of boys it would probably go down like the hidenburg at the junior high level. (junior high where i come from is grades 6-9 ages about 12-15, if your talking about that thing after middle school and 15 is your lowball ymmv)

thats my 2 cents on it

Logos

[Laserray]

Great information, Logos.

I'll purchase it, have a look, and either tweek it where necessary or shelve it

Appropriate role-playing games would excite and support several of our state education goals:
- Literary analysis (character, setting, conflict, plot, as well as theme).
- Narrative writing (as we see with Paizo RPG competitions and Open Calls
- Social skills
- Conflict resolution

Can you recommend other role playing games for gifted 8th graders? I want to utilize rpg to excite both interest and skill in reading, writing, and social interaction; the less time spent on complex rules, the better.

Maybe I should start a whole thread focused on this issue. . .

[ComicJam]

MAID looks to be a absolute blast, but I've got some other games on the go and should not really start another one.

If you think you're kids like crazy (anime) cartoons, they'll probably like this. You'll have to modify some of the tables (or remove some completely) as you can roll up some really dodgey characters (eg. Lolita and see-through outfit can be rolled). Also, I don't think 13-14 year old would understand the whole maid-fetish concept, and boys of that age might not be happy playing one, unless you change them to butlers/man-servants.

As for other RPGs for kids that age... I don't honestly know. I guess it all depends on what they personally like. I would say BESM 3e using the rules for "Keeping it Simple" and Templates, but its impossible to get hold of. Failing that, the D&D Basic Game thing might work really well.

Cheers! :D

[Cap'n Jose Monkamuck]

Laserray wrote:

Great information, Logos.

Appropriate role-playing games would excite and support several of our state education goals:

the less time spent on complex rules, the better.

I don't know about rules light. You would learn a whole lot about math and probability if you try to teach them GURPS. It could help teach them resource management and carefullly planning. Of course it could also make their heads explode.

If they are anime fans or at least know a bit about it, BESM is a very flexible rules light system. Of all the systems I've played I think it is the quickest to learn. Of course its rules light so a LOT of situations are not covered in depth and you'll have to figure things out as you go along. This of course does play into the social ineraction and conflict resolution lessons you are trying to teach.

[Laserray]

It sounds as though BESM is a must. Maybe I could link up with the math teacher, an "rpg"er, for GURPS.

Keep the ideas coming, Paizoians. You're touchin' lives!

[Chris Mortika]

Laserray,

When I was a student-teacher, getting ready for my own classroom, I used Role-Playing Games for a unit in 7th Grade Reading. We had all just finished a book ( Lackawanna, by Chester Aaron, about kids left to fend for themselves during the Great Depression) so I explained a very simple system (stat plus 2d6 versus a target difficulty number), translated characters from the novel into game terms, and ran a simple adventure in groups of three: one GM and two players.

Then we had a design week. Some of my gamer friends were guest lecturers that week, explaining about how to avoid rail-roady plots, how to game cooperatively, and so on. Each student designed a scenario in whatever novel he or she had read recently, and they ran each other through those scenarios as a form of book report.

And we could talk about

• settings versus themes ("Lackawanna" and "The Journey of Natty Gann" have the same themes. "The Untouchables" has the same setting, but different themes. And you could have an adventure set in the old west with the same themes, but a different setting.)
• plots versus themes (If you're running characters through an adventure as a book report, you want the adventure to have the same themes as the novel, so they get a good feel for it, but you don't want to spoil the plot.)
• how authors get characters to do things. (Much the same way as the GM; by introducing situations that pull the character in certain directions the character already wanted to go.)

Afterwards, enough students wanted to keep on gaming that we formed an after-school club. And several of them are still in the hobby, 15 years later.

[Laserray]

Mortika, amazing ideas!

This is exactly the kind of information I'm looking for.

You've got me charged up to develop a project over the winter break before 2nd semester.