Playing the Middle Ages Non Digital Neo Medievalist Role Playing Games

The Middle Ages seem to hold a special fascination for contemporary popular culture. Whereas medievalist movies and fantasy novels (i.e. those engaging with an idea of the Middle Ages) have already met with the attention of scholars of literature and culture, the vast realm of (neo)medievalist role playing games has remained comparatively unexplored the less digital such games are, the more so; maybe their nerdy' flavour serves as a deterrent This project seminar addresses students who are not fazed but rather attracted by that flavour. Its aim is to explore, assess and analyse an array of (neo)medievalist non-digital role playing games in order to find and try out possible methodological approaches to study these games from a scholarly perspective. Major issues to be addressed in this endeavour will be the various aspects of world making (with a special focus on character building) and narrative strategies. Moreover, we shall enquire into the transformations of medieval elements in the course of the world making process. Being designed as a project seminar, the course will be taught in four-hour sessions that will allow us to include not only theoretical reflections and discussions but also practical exercises. This includes active role playing, and students are expected to be ready and willing to actively participate in this. The list of examples to be investigated is not finalized yet. At present, I intend to focus on pen and paper rpgs, most notably Dungeons and Dragons (3.5), Das Schwarze Auge, Vampire: The Dark Ages and the Song of Ice and Fire RPG. Depending on participants' inclinations and suggestions, we can also add one or two boardgames/tabletop games of your choice (upon prior arrangement with me). Last but not least, at least some theoretical sessions will touch on live action role play (larp); whether we shall also indulge into practice here will entirely depend on participants' inclinations. NEW: The course will also include practical workshop sessions with fantasy-expert Friedhelm Schneidewind (on the practice of music in role plays) and fantasy author Bernhard Hennen (presumably on medieval tabletop games and combat). These workshops will take place as a block seminar on 17 and 18 November (a Thursday and Friday). Please keep that date as a fixed appointment in your schedule. It is a MUST-session to attend. Credit points can be obtained by contributions to possible methodological and theoretical approaches to non-digital rpgs and/or by project work. Project work will generally consist of developing and mastering practical rpg sessions, with the other students of the group participating; alternatively, one may develop an academic project proposal focusing on methodology. All in all, this course is thus of a rather explorative, experimental nature. It is aimed at students who are willing to venture into a new field of research and enjoy developing new ideas, methods and approaches in a group rather than expect a fixed schedule with ready-made take-home answers. Experience with role playing games (pen and paper, boardgame, larp) is not necessary, but the readiness to actively participate in such games without major inhibitions is essential. So is the readiness to participate in 4-hour sessions and, a blockseminar and maybe (I can only plan this once I have a halfway certain idea of who is actually going to attend) one additional weekend for the projects. Students who are merely interested in a course because of credit points and a good fit into their weekly schedule and/or students who are easily embarrassed and/or prefer to have a quiet time hiding in class, are strongly advised to choose other courses instead. I will try to have an appropriate number of players' handbooks and guides (to share) available for the participants of the course, either in print or digital version. However, if students already have (or, despite the high price, wish to purchase) their own copies: These are the RPG handbooks that will form the basis for our discussions: Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 Player's Handbook DSA (Das Schwarze Auge): Aventurischer Almanach Vampire: Dark Ages; and Vampire Dark Ages Companion A Song of Ice and Fire Roleplaying and A Song of Ice and Fire Campaign Guide DragonSys Versions 1-3    (NB: Unfortunately, the handbooks for the Dragon Age PnP were so horrendously expensive that they could not be included) Seminar für Anglistik Please note that you can only obtain credit points for this course, if you fulfil the requirements stated for this module element in your Prüfungsordnung BY THE BEGINNING OF THE WINTER TERM 2016/17. Of course, students who want to take this course out of sheer interest for the topic are always welcome to participate - even without receiving credit points. Previous experience with non-digital role playing games (pen and paper, tabletop/boardgame, live action role play) is no requirement. The willingness to actively engage with and participate in such activities, however, is very much so. As is the readiness to active participation - this is NOT going to be a course where you can sit quietly and hide... 3 LP Studienleistung: In order to obtain a certification for your workload of 3 LP Studienleistung, students are, of course, expected to participate in class actively and regularly. This particularly applies to our activity sessions and - especially - to our blockseminar on 17/18 November 2016. Please book this firmly in your schedule! (Yes, it IS Thursday to Friday, but these were the only days possible, and I have frequently encountered students who could not attend sessions in my classes because of special events in other courses - so this time it should be the other way round...). In addition, students will act as experts for one of the topics, which means that you will be asked to either monitor and master a role-playing session or that you will develop and discuss an analytical approach to neo-medievalist role-playing on the basis of existing theoretical sources, which are to be applied to the examples we are discussing in the course. In order to comply with the PO-regulations, students in the MA-Lehramt study programme will additionally be asked to produce a 2000-word essay with their own analysis of the topic they cover as experts. More information will be given in our first session, because it is only then that I will know who exactly is coming with what kind of pre-knowledge and interest. 3 LP Prüfungsleistung: For students in the MA-Lehramt, the Prüfungsleistung is your Modulabschlussprüfung according to the regulations of your PO. Details will be discussed in my office hour For students in MA-Liwi doing the Projektseminar: Written elaboration of what you did as an expert plus an activity that is to be specified in the first session (again: according to your interests and pre-knowledge). For students in IKHS and MA-Liwi, NOT doing the Projektseminar: Either the same as the students doing the Projektseminar, or, if you want to have a more conventional choice, you can also write a 4000 word-long term paper providing an analysis of aspects of neo-medievalist RPG, as discussed in course. Your topic should have been assigned by 20 January 2017; your paper should have been submitted by 9 March 2017 the latest. Universität Siegen WiSe 2016/17 Univ.-Prof. Dr. Müller Anja