Paladin Forge

Independent research into how tabletop roleplaying games are played, created, and purchased

Paladin Forge RPG Research is an independent research initiative dedicated to understanding how tabletop roleplaying games are played, created, discovered, and purchased. We examine the experiences and preferences of players, game masters, creators, publishers, and consumers across generations, systems, and styles of play.

Our purpose is not to declare one approach to gaming correct. It is to ask clear questions, gather meaningful evidence, identify differences within the community, and publish findings that players and creators can examine for themselves.

Paladin Forge RPG Research conducts independent research. Questions and findings are not shaped to promote a particular game system, publisher, play style, political position, or predetermined conclusion.

Paladin Forge also publishes tabletop roleplaying products. Any potential conflict of interest will be disclosed in the relevant work.

For every major study, we will publish the survey questions, recruitment methods, collection dates, sample size, relevant demographics, analytical methods, and known limitations. We will distinguish what the evidence demonstrates, what it suggests, and what remains unknown.

Participation in Paladin Forge RPG Research is voluntary. Each survey will explain what information is collected and how it may be used. We will not collect personally identifying information unless it is necessary and provided with informed consent. Public datasets will be anonymized. Individual responses will not be connected to names, email addresses, or online identities.

We will report what participants actually tell us, including findings that challenge our expectations. We will not treat one age group, game system, or style of play as inherently superior. Differences among players will be treated as differences in experience and preference, not as evidence that one group is playing tabletop roleplaying games incorrectly.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Paladin Forge RPG Research will use clear, neutrally worded questions and will test major surveys before public release. We will identify self-selected samples, uneven demographic representation, small response groups, and other limitations that affect interpretation. Correlation will not be presented as causation, and exploratory findings will not be described as universal facts.

Research findings will be made publicly available on this site and in linked public materials from Paladin Forge. Reports will include accessible summaries, supporting charts, and appropriate source citations. When privacy, consent, and hosting requirements permit, anonymized data and survey instruments will also be released so others can examine, challenge, and build upon the work.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Paladin Forge RPG Research will examine how tabletop roleplaying games are changing across generations, communities, technologies, and publishing models. Our 2026–2027 research program will focus on the following areas:

1. Character investment, consequences, and death

2. What different generations want from tabletop RPGs

3. How players discover and purchase games

4. Crowdfunding, trust, and publisher accountability

5. Artificial intelligence and RPG publishing

6. The influence of actual-play programming

7. Physical, digital, and hybrid play

8. What makes a published adventure playable

9. The new-player pathway

10. The changing meaning of “old-school” gaming

These subjects will be investigated through surveys, interviews, existing research, market observation, and community discussion. Individual projects may examine more focused questions within each area. Not every area will produce a study in the same year.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​